MEDITATING VENGEANCE. 177 



"He'll come within shot in another minute," ex- 

 claimed Gaultier ; " let us be ready for him." 



But as if aware of the danger to which a further 

 advance would expose him, the wary beast suddenly 

 turned aside from the lake, and disappeared among the 

 trees. 



" I reckin now," said Jake, " that the varmint sniffed 

 somehow that we wur hyur. But this coon smells a 

 wuss bother than that, ef we don't throw that all-fired 

 beast in his tracks. I'll bet high he'll watch the 

 beavers, an' make raggles o' all we'll take,; an' o' coorse 

 . he'll spile the pelts. That's what he's a-gwine ter do." 

 * " We must catch him somehow," said Pierre ; " it 

 won't do to throw away all our labour just to keep him 

 in meat." 



"Thur's only one way to sarcumvent the skunk," 

 replied Jake. " The hook-an'-line dodge won't answer 

 hyur, I guess. This coon '11 jest make a cache in one 

 o' these thick pines, an' watch all night. Ef the var- 

 mint is on the prowl at daybreak a-hookin' out any o' 

 the trapped beavers, you bet I'll walk into him .purty 

 slick. See ef I don't." 



Meditating vengeance against this unwelcome in- 

 truder on their preserves, the hunters finished their 

 meal and betook themselves to the lower lake to lay 

 the remainder of their traps. This they accomplished 

 early in the afternoon, and they then returned to the 

 upper lake and helped Jake to make his ambush amid 

 the umbrageous foliage of a large pine which stood a 



