tree, from a
bough of which hung their deer. It was only a shadow in the night, but
they knew that it was a cougar, drawn by the savor of the deer.

"Don't shoot," whispered Obed. "He can't get our meat, but we'll watch
him try."

They lay quite still and enjoyed the joke. The cougar sprang again and
again, making mighty exertions, but always the rich food swung just out
of his reach. Once or twice his nose nearly touched it, but the two or
three inches of gulf which he could never surmount were as much as two
or three miles. He invariably fell back snarling, and he became so
absorbed in the hopeless quest that there was no chance of his noticing
the man and boy who lay not far away.

The humor of it appealed strongly to Ned and Obed. The cougar, after so
many vain leaps, lay on the ground for a while panting. Then he ran up
the tree, and as far out on the bough as he dared. He reached delicately
with a forefoot, but he could not touch the strips of bark with which
the body was tied. Then he lay flat upon the bough and snarled again and
again.

"That's a good punishment for a rascally thief," whispered Obed. "I
don't blame him for trying to get something to eat, but it's our deer.
Let him go away and do his own hunting."

The cougar came back down the tree, but his descent was made with less
spirit than his ascent. Nevertheless he made another try at the jumping.
Ned saw, however, that he did not do as well as before. He never came
within six inches of the deer now. At last he lay flat again on the
ground and panted, staying there a full five minutes. When he got up he
made one final and futile jump, and then sneaked away, exhausted and
ashamed.

"Now, Ned," said Obed, "since the comedy is over I think we can safely
go to sleep."

"Especially as we know our deer is safe," said Ned.

Both slept soundly throughout the remainder of the night. Toward morning
the cougar came back and looked longingly at the body of the deer
hanging from the bough of the tree. He thought once or twice of leaping
for it again, but there was a shift of the wind and he caught the human
odor from the two beings who lay forty yards away. He was a large and
strong beast of prey, but this odor frightened him, and he slunk off
among the trees, not to return.

Ned and Obed stayed two days beside the little river, taking a complete
rest, bathing frequently in the fresh waters, and curing as much of the
deer as possible for their journey. Th