The Last of the Plainsmen 



here they were picking sustenance out of the frozen 

 snow. 



&quot; Rea, will you look at that! Rea, will you look 

 at that! &quot; he kept repeating. &quot; See, they re hunting 

 feed.&quot; 



And the giant, with his rare smile, watched him 

 play with the calves. They were about two and a 

 half feet high, and resembled long-haired sheep. The 

 ears and horns were undiscernible, and their color 

 considerably lighter than that of the matured beasts. 



&quot; No sense of fear of man,&quot; said the life-student 

 of animals. &quot; But they shrink from the dogs.&quot; 



In packing for the journey south, the captives were 

 strapped on the sleds. This circumstance necessi 

 tated a sacrifice of meat and wood, which brought 

 grave, doubtful shakes of Rea s great head. 



Days of hastening over the icy snow, with short 

 hours for sleep and rest, passed before the hunters 

 awoke to the consciousness that they were lost. The 

 meat they had packed had gone to feed themselves 

 and the dogs. Only a few sticks of wood were left. 



&quot; Better kill a calf, an cook meat while we ve got 

 a little wood left,&quot; suggested Rea. 



&quot; Kill one of my calves? I d starve first! &quot; cried 

 Jones. 



The hungry giant said no more. 



They headed southwest. All about them glared 

 176 



