cies as this.

Now her eyes were on the wolf, and now on the boy. As the wolf
approached she cringed back to the very end of her jerk-line. She saw
his red tongue lolling, heard the chop-chop of his iron jaws and caught
the wicked gleam of his eyes.

The boy appeared to time his pace, for he came on more slowly. The
deer, still facing the wolf, gave forth a wild snort of rage. He
appeared to be unconscious of the fact that he was as defenseless as
his driver.

Now the wolf was but a few yards away. Suddenly, pausing, he sprang
quickly to the right, to the left, then to the right again. Before the
deer could recover his bewildered senses, the wolf leaped full for his
side.

But someone else leaped too. With a marvelous spring, the Eskimo boy
landed full upon the reindeer's back. Coming face to face with the
surprised and enraged wolf, he poised his lance for the fatal thrust.
But at that instant, with a bellow of fear, the deer bolted.

In wild consternation Marian tugged at the skin-rope. In another
moment she had the deer under control and turned to witness a battle
royal. The Eskimo had been thrown from the deer's back, but, agile as
a cat, he had landed upon his feet and had turned to face the enemy.
He was not a moment too soon, for with a snarl of fury the wolf was
upon him.

For a fraction of a second the lance gleamed. Came a snarl, half of
rage, half of fear, as the wolf fell backward. But he was on his feet
again. It was to no purpose. All was over in an instant. Long
practice with the lance had given the boy power to baffle his enemy and
send the lance straight to the wild beast's heart.

"Come," Marian was startled by the sound of his voice at her side. She
had managed to retain her hold on the jerk-rein. She now felt it being
taken from her, knew that she was being lifted onto the sled and, the
next moment, sensed the cool breeze that fanned her cheek. They were
racing away to join Lucile and to continue their journey.

As she looked back, she saw the cowardly pack snarling over the bones
of their fallen leader, and realizing that all danger was past, settled
down in her place with a sigh as she said:

"That--that was a very close one."

"Too much close," Ad-loo-at smiled back. "In north we must go--how you
say it--pre--pre--"

"Prepared," supplemented Marian. "We'll never travel again without
rifles."

"Oh! yes. Mebby," the boy smiled back. "Mebby all right. Mebby rifl