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Updated: June 19, 2025
"If he'd wanted you, he'd have got you when you were hurt last summer; and if he'd wanted the girl, he'd have got her then, too. It's all clear to me. He has been visiting a friend, perhaps his brother, as he said, and he did spend less than three days in the visit. What did he come for? Let me tell you! That friend, or brother, is Jingoss, and he came up here to warn him that we're after him.
"It's all right as long as we can take it easy and hunt," advised Sam, gradually approaching the subject that was really troubling him, "and it's all right if we can surprise this Jingoss or ambush him when we find him. But suppose he catches wind of us and skips, what then? It'll be a mighty pretty race, my son, and a hard one.
"If it snows hard well " The old man fell silent, puffing away at his pipe. "One thing I want you to understand," he continued, looking up with a sudden sternness, "don't you ever take it on yourself to shoot that gun again. We're to take that man alive. The noise of the shot to-day was a serious thing; it gave Jingoss warning, and perhaps spoiled our chance to surprise him.
The bonds of race are strong, but the probabilities were good that in the tribes with whom Jingoss would be forced to seek sanctuary would be some members, whose loyalty to the Company would out-balance the rather shadowy obligation to a man they had never seen before. Jingoss might be betrayed. The chances of it were fairly good.
Jingoss had taken with him his traps, his pelts, his supplies. "That's a good thing," concluded Sam, "a mighty good thing. It shows he ain't much scared. He don't suspect we're anywhere's near him; only that it ain't very healthy to spend the winter in this part of the country. If he'd thought we was close, he wouldn't have lugged along a lot of plunder; he'd be flying mighty light."
At his feet lay the dog, one red-rimmed eye cocked up at the man who had gone down to the depths in his company. The Indian Jingoss sat amidships, his hands bound strongly with buckskin thongs, a man of medium size, broad face, beady eyes with surface lights. He had cost much: he was to be given no chance to escape.
I believe he's some sort of friend or kin of that Jingoss, an' he wants to make sure that we're after him." "Why don't he just ambush us, then, an' be done with it?" asked Dick. "Two to one," surmised Bolton, laconically. "He's only got a trade-gun one shot. But more likely he thinks it ain't going to do him much good to lay us out. More men would be sent.
And he didn't get to be sure until he heard somehow from some one who saw our trails that three people were travelling in the winter up through this country. Then he piked out to warn Jingoss." "I believe you're right!" cried Dick. "Of course I'm right. And another thing; if that's the case we're pretty close there. How many more trappers are there in this district? Just one!
"If that idea's correct," went on Sam, "and the Chippewa's just come from Jingoss, why we've got the Chippewa's trail to follow back, haven't we?" "Sure!" agreed Dick, "all packed and broken." They righted the sledge and unbound the dogs' jaws. "Well, we got rid of the girl," said Dick, casually. "Damn little fool. I didn't think she'd leave us that easy. She'd been with us quite a while."
Maybe he knows all about Jingoss, and if he does, he'll get suspicious the minute we angle down into that country." "Let's let 'em slide, then," suggested Dick, impatiently. "Let's buy some buckskin and make our own moccasins." "Too late now," negatived Sam. "To back out would be bad." "Oh, well, you're just borrowing trouble anyway," laughed Dick.
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