246 HUNTING THE GRISLY. 



was still curling upwards. Near it lay the 

 packs, wrapped and arranged. At first 

 Bauman could see nobody ; nor did he receive 

 an answer to his call. Stepping forward he 

 again shouted, and as he did so his eye fell 

 on the body of his friend, stretched beside the 

 trunk of a great fallen spruce. Rushing to- 

 wards it the horrified trapper found that the 

 body was still warm, but that the neck was 

 broken, while there were four great fang marks 

 in the throat. 



The footprints of the unknown beast-crea- 

 ture, printed deep in the soft soil, told the 

 whole story. 



The unfortunate man, having finished his 

 packing, had sat down on the spruce log with 

 his face to the fire, and his back to the dense 

 woods, to wait for his companion. While 

 thus waiting, his monstrous assailant, which 

 must have been lurking nearby in the woods, 

 waiting for a chance to catch one of the ad- 

 venturers unprepared, came silently up from 

 behind, walking with long, noiseless steps, and 

 seemingly still on two legs. Evidently un- 

 heard, it reached the man, and broke his neck 

 by wrenching his head back with its forepaws, 

 while it buried its teeth in his throat. It had 

 not eaten the body, but apparently had romped 

 and gambolled round it in uncouth, ferocious 

 glee, occasionally rolling over and over it ; 

 and had then fled back into the soundless 

 depths of the woods. 



Bauman, utterly unnerved, and believing 

 that the creature with which he had to deal 



