ing word, by
sharp, sudden whistle, by imitations of owl, loon, and deer calls,
which brought all the boys in the place admiringly about him, did he
strive to catch again the attention of the captive. But not once
more, even for the fleeting fraction of a second, would the Gray
Master turn his eyes. And presently, angry and self-reproachful, Kane
turned on his heel and went home, pursued by the enthusiasm of the
small boys.

After this, Kane went nearly every day to the little "Zoo"; but never
again did he win the smallest hint of notice from the Gray Master. And
ever that tireless pacing smote him with bitterest self-reproach. Half
unconsciously he made it a sort of penance to go and watch his victim,
till at last he found himself indulging in sentimental, idiotic
notions of trying to ransom the prisoner. Realizing that any such
attempt would make him supremely ridiculous, and that such a dangerous
and powerful creature could not be set free anywhere, he consoled
himself with a resolve that never again would he take captive any of
the freedom-loving, tameless kindreds of the wilderness. He would kill
them and have cleanly done with it, or leave them alone.

One morning, thinking to break the spell of that eternal, hopeless
pacing by catching the Gray Master at his meals, Kane went up to the
gardens very early, before any of the usual visitors had arrived. He
found that the animals had already been fed. The cages were being
cleaned. He congratulated himself on his opportune arrival, for this
would give him a new insight into the ways of the beasts with their
keepers.

The head-keeper, as it chanced, was a man of long experience with wild
animals, in one of the chief zoological parks of the country. Long
familiarity, however, had given him that most dangerous gift,
contempt. And he had lost his position through that fault most
unforgivable in an animal keeper, drunkenness. Owing to this fact, the
inexperienced authorities of this little "Zoo" had been able to obtain
his services at a comparatively moderate wage--and were congratulating
themselves on the possession of a treasure.

On this particular morning, Biddell was not by any means himself. He
was cleaning the cage of the two pumas, and making at the same time
desperate efforts to keep his faculties clear and avoid betraying his
condition. The two big cats seemed to observe nothing peculiar in his
manner, and obeyed him, sulkily, as usual; but Kane noticed that