30 THE MOOSE 



steps, she imitated the undulating movement of a 

 wolf at the gallop. 



" Come back and lead us, tailless one !" the 

 wolves howled drearily. " We cannot hunt with- 

 out you. Come back ! come back !" 



But Apukwa never went back. She had tasted 

 of comfortable servitude, and it had killed the love 

 of freedom, which is how it is sometimes. 



Very often at night, as she lay curled up at the 

 Indian's feet, she heard the call of her people, sob- 

 bing down the night wind. 



" Come back ! come back ! Come back and 

 lead us, A-a-a-a-a-apukwa !" And curling herself 

 closer she shut her ears. 



Long afterwards the bush people saw her at the 

 heels of the lithe being, fur-clad like themselves, 

 followed by four little gambolling fluffy atoms, 

 tailless, too, like Apukwa, yet not entirely wolves. 



Thus the alien race was started, the race of 

 beasts called dogs. 



The story was all too short for the calf, who 

 would, and he could, have followed out the 

 career of Apukwa to the day of her death ; but 

 there were other stories, much more useful, to 

 which he had to listen — bush lessons a young 



