HAWK OF THE WILDERNESS

Franklin Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 23, 28 February 1940, Page 2

HAWK OF THE WILDERNESS

(BY WILLIAM L. CHESTER)

Instead his hand fell on I lie sav-’ age’s shoulder. The Indian roused with the suddenness of the light sleeper. “Dreams of the warrior are troubled,'’ whispered a voice at his ear. “Does he too hear Ihe ghost of Awena whistling over camp?” The startled Indian saw in Ihe dark form only a sentry going to rest after a watch. His answer contained a trace of sarcasm and impatience at being thus disturbed. "Med Moon talks like a woman! Would that this hand had struck Awena dead,” he grumbled with a low brutal laugh. “Then her braid would hang at this belt, and the bow-cord of Mokuyi also!” “Great ones above grant all just wishes,” muttered the blanketed tig-

ui“e, holding something forth in the tire-glow. The better to sec it. the savage rose on one arm. Quick as a flash, a thin noose fell about his neck, and was jerked taut. It was Mokuyi’s bowstring, sealing the ci net laughter in that swelling throat. As the Indian writhed in the deathstruggle, silent as a decapitated viper, he struck blindly with drawn knife, slabbing Kioga twice through the muscle beside the jugular. The thrashing legs kicked out, awakening two other savages, whose yells aroused the whole camp into a fever of wildest confusion. Still at advantage by reason of blanket and paint, Kioga sped toward the fire, above which dangled his only means of escape. A brave who had stirred Ihe embers to a blaze and looked upon the dead face of Red Moon, turned and saw the Snow Hawk's hounding approach. In an instant his eye pierced that hasty disguise. Too quickly for accuracy, his axe hurtled at Ihe head of the impositor. missed and felled a. Long Knite beyond. i As he readied for his club, he was ! enveloped in a whirling blanket and 'knocked headlong into Ihe lire, plung- ; ing Ihe camp into black darkness, un--1 dcr Ihe cover of which an active batlike shadow vanished unseen up the : face of Ihe cliff. | When again Ihe scattered embers of | lire were gathered and blown into \ flames Ihe leaders of that punitive : parly looked into each others eyes, ; and found that awe and fear had re- } placed anger and Ihe grim determinai tion lo kill. Four of their warriors ! lay dead, one by their own tomahawk. A fifth struggling lo cast off the blazing blanket, was too badly burned lo couni upon in an emergency .... Among the savage traitors il came to he asked in hated tones: i -Who will be next lo wear the chaplet of death?'’ | Terrible though his vengeance was, Ihe quick and painless end he meted to his enemies was merciful compared I wilh (he diabolical tortures which ! awaited him in the event of his own capture. ; Ironically il was Hawk who fought s on Ihe side of justice and law against ; the forces of conspiracy whose exist- ; ence Ihrealened the present Indian j government headed by Sawamic. Yet ' so carefully had Ihe Society’s acliv- , dies been concealed none but its own ! members knew of i(s existence. As a resulf, in addition lo Ihe LongKnives. Hawk found himself pitted againsl practically every able-bodied warrior in llopeka, wilh whom lie had many brushes. One dusk had found him taking his ease in his canoe, upon one of Ihe smaller lakes draining into Hie Ifiw-

asset*, when. wil.li Ihe quid of floating' filing's, two canoes materialised several hundred yards lo 1 1 is north. Each . liore four warriors. | The scout, canoes were within bowshol and ranging insiiore between the ! Snow Hawk and safely before he. reaI Used his danger: for now. behind them. ; Hie powerfully manned convoy-canoes i forged into view. ife could not turn | ashore without, crossing the prows of i Ihe first canoes 100 close for safely; | nor could he head for the opposite i shore without inviting instanl chase | Iry flie greyhounds of the rivers—the | long-boats. His only recourse was a | straightaway dash for the Hiwasi, lo | the south, a dash upon which lie was j well embarked before that familiar J and expected yell of menace announced j his discovery. J Then came the resonanl twang of ! a bow and the quick hiss of an arrow ! striking the water with a splash ahead. | Another bow-cord vibrated, and this j time a bright copper triangle darted lout from under the skin of Kioga’s I arm, near the shoulder, stabbing j through |lie flesh and skewering the j limb before lie realised lie was bit. ! INSTALMENT IT j A quick backward glance showed I the lung-boa I s swiflly overhauling ! him. with several ol Ihe warriors fak- | mg aim, and a covey ol arrows already |in fiigbl. In Ibaf fra cl ional instanl, j withoul panic but with the swillness • of desperation. Snow Hawk look lo Ihe ! river. Arrows bailed about him and j riddled Ihe canoes li o I loin. Kioga 'sank with Iwo arrows in him. but wilb | wits unimpaired, and be at once turned i under wafer .swimming in a direction j leas I lo be expected by the Koslioni I —straight toward bis pursuers, by the | rdleel«''l iigbl of whose bow-lorcbes | tic t-mibl .judge llieir location willimil, ; coming to the surface, j Luckily the fast war-canoes were over and pasl him before he had to come up for air, which he look quick-

!y uml sank, striking out again toward Hie trade ranoes. The wooden shaft of one arrow hampered the use of his arm. while the deep-buried point of Ike other in his Hugh gave him excruciating' pain with each movement of the leg: hut with bursting' lungs he kept on. Gratefully ’he saw the vast shadow of one of the trade-canoes and came' up under its stern with a stealth that, faxed his lasl ounce of lung-strength. In the clamour being made by the Indians. he breather freely without fear of discovery. Where they bad ridden down his overturned canoe, the warriors were still probing the depths with lances and poising those river-spears, shaped like boathooks, ready, if possible, to lake him alive.

In the respite thus gained. Kioga’s first concern was to remove the hampering barb from his arm, breaking it silently beneath the water and drawing- out both ends of the shaft. Nothing less than the cold steel of his knife could remove the other point buried in bis thigh—sleet, which was now engaged in an operation of a very different kind. By this time the Shoni warriors were | realising the futility of further search, and concluding that the outlaw must !be on the bottom, riddled, with arrows like Ids canoe. Slowly they returned to their lleet. So he submerged once more and swam from the shadow of one canoe to Ibe oilier, locating them 'by their lights, and pausing at each to I draw breath and drag his knife along jits bottom before passing on. Tie had not reached the last before | the first was in difficulty, settling by ! the stern and rapidly tilling through ! Hie slash in her birch-bark bottom: i rind in another moment several olliers found themselves in like Irouble. The long-boats, in response to the calls for aid. were reluming frantically inshore—-by the route the Snow Knvvk bad hoped to use in reaching safely. Accordingly be struck off toward the opposite shore and was soon out of immediate danger, and able to look hack and see several of the flaming llamheaux exlinguished. as one after another of Hie canoes foundered before they could he beached. Then, leaving conslernalion behind him, and inle.nl only on escape. Ibe Snow Hawk dragged himself ashore. The arrow in 1 1 is leg was a lorment whose removal resulted in further loss of l)lood. far 100 much of which had been drained out of him through wounds kepi open and bowing by submersion and activity. For once those lireless muscles were compelled to rest, and at every ball be left a spot of blood.

Sure enough, with the lirst streaks of dawn the warriors were on the shore and finding ample evidence of Kioga’s escape. For an hour they were cheeked in the thickets of red ; sumach lo which (he resourceful ’ quarry had taken, knowing that the : colour of his blood would be all but i indistinguishable from Ihe crimson of Ihe sumach leaves. lie seemed lo have vanished under the very knives j of his pursuers, in cover scarce dense j ( nougli I o hide a wolf. | Then came Hie startling discovery i of fresh slains leading straight into a ! dense Ihickel of devil's club. near ; which Ihey found his abandoned wea- • pons. Tracked to his lair al last, the Snow Hawk was al bay. his long race : run ! . Swiftly, lest the quarry so long

soi.i,ulil escape * again, several Slioni wari'ioi's drew knives and tomahawks and entered the thicket., while lour others wailed outside, prepared to put arrows through him should lie attempt a sudden break for liberty.

Suddenly came a yell ol' surprise from within the thicket, followed by a terrible clamour and a series of thunderous roars that shook the ground underfoot. Five Indians had entered the devil’s club, but only one ever returned, clutching the torn and bleeding remnants of an arm. The savage vowed that Kioga had changed himself into a giant hear and crushed his several pursuers with as many mighty blows . . . It. had been Aki to whom he had introduced them, Aki whose trail and scent had come to him like reprieve to a eondemened man, just as he had been preparing to make a last, stand. Now it, was Aki who licked bis wounds, who stood on guard, who killed and brought in a portion of every kill to Ihe master who had never forgotten him. And at last it was Aki to whose shaggy shoulders lie lashed himself, 1o be half dragged, half carried to a place of greater safely, where he was weeks recovering his strength. So it came to he believed tlial Hie Snow (lawk could assume at will the form and powers of bird or beast of prey.

Hut si ill another and greater adventure was tii add lustre to the name of this Indian Robin flood. Kias. bold young son of Uktena, the Keen-eyed — ii powerful sachem —-and one oi the most persist onl pursuers of the SnowHawk. was to bring tidings of it to Ifopeka. In friendships, as in all else, lime works changes. Forgotten perhaps, was that boyhood bond of blood-bro-il,erliood. established in sign-talk between Hie village pariah and Kins the Deaf, many winters before. Or. possibly having dwelt so long in a northern village far removed from llopeka, Kias knew not that in that

inigh ly and renowed Snow Ilawk he trailed the crippled outcast of other days. After all, being then deaf, he had never even heard Kioga's name spoken. However that, may he, Kias was one of' the Snow-Hawk’s most persistent pursuers. They met again in a roundabout way. Some hours later Kioga came upon the trail of Guna, the Tiger. Presently he drew close to the beast —only to find that it in turn was prowling on a fresh spoor—the spoor of a man. Curiosity led him on, and lie soon saw 11!at the little party of men the tiger followed had split up. Guna also read the signs and—sage hunter —followed a single trail with long reaching strides. For though he might have destroyed five hunters in as many seconds, the man-eater was not one to increase his own risks. (To he Continued).