188 ON THE EDGE OF THE WILDERNESS 
Young Parmalee gasped for breath. “I 
never see such a big cat!” he finally ex- 
claimed. 
“ Believe me now, do yer?” the old man 
cackled. “ But why didn’t yer pick up my rug?” 
He spoke plaintively, but there was the hint of a 
twinkle in his watery blue eyes. 
At ten o’clock the cows came back to the bars 
and woke the family up. It was after eleven 
before they were milked, and young Parmalee 
back in bed again. He retired with anything but 
kindly feelings toward Lucy. 
The cows were not turned out the next morn- 
ing, but early the second morning Lucy, return- 
ing to the den, heard suspicious sounds in the 
pasture, drawing nearer. She roused the kittens, 
drove them out of their warm, dead-leaf and 
wood-mould bed in the log, and began leading 
them rapidly up the rocks. But the dogs be- 
hind moved more rapidly. They picked up the 
fresh scent at the den, and suddenly their deep, 
rather mournful, slow baying (not the quick, ex- 
cited baying they use on a fox track) told her 
they were on her heels. At the top of the hill 
