“She’s just an all-right girl,” he said to himself.  “Heaven bless her and keep her from any further trouble!”

When the fire showed signs of burning low he arose and piled on more brushwood.  There was hardly enough at hand to suit him, and, ax in hand, he started back from the river, to cut more.

He was within fifteen feet of some dense bushes when of a sudden he came to a halt, as he saw a pair of gleaming eyes glaring at him.  As soon as he noticed the eyes they disappeared.

“A wild animal,” he thought.  “Can it be a wolf?”

Retracing his steps to the fire, he caught up his gun and waited.  But the animal did not appear, nor did Dick hear any sound save the murmur of the wind through the snow-clad trees.

The youth wondered if he ought to awaken the guide, but finally resolved to let John Barrow sleep.  “I ought to be able to take care of one wolf,” he reasoned.  “I’ve taken care of worse than that in my time.”

Gun in hand, he advanced upon the bushes once more.  He expected to see a wolf slink away at any moment, but no beast came to view, and, after walking completely around the growth, he laid down the gun and went to work vigorously with the ax.

Bush after bush was brought down in rapid succession, until in ten minutes Dick calculated he had cut sufficient to last the camp-fire for the rest of the night.  Then he lowered the ax and caught up a large bush, to drag it close to the blaze.

As he turned around he met a sight that, for the instant, chilled him to the backbone.  There, between the blaze and the tree under which John Barrow was sleeping, crouched a wildcat, a large, fierce-looking creature, with fire-shot eyes and a stubby tail which was moving noiselessly from side by side, as the creature prepared itself to make a leap.

“Gracious! he’s going to attack Mr. Barrow!” thought Dick, but even as this flashed over his mind the wildcat made a leap into the tree, close to where hung the game the guide had brought down some hours before.

“Thank goodness, he’s only after the meat,” thought Dick, and the chill he had experienced passed away.  Then, struck with a new idea, he leaped for his gun.

Several twigs of the tree were in the way of getting a good aim, and he had to circle around to the other side before he could get another good view of the wildcat.  In the meantime the beast had grabbed up the wild turkey that was left, and clutching it tight in its mouth, started to drop to the snow-covered ground.

Bang! went the gun and the charge of heavy shot took the wildcat in the left flank, making a bad, but not a fatal, wound.  The, beast dropped the wild turkey and let out a fearful snarl of rage.  Then it saw Dick, gave another snarl, and leaped toward the youth.

The gun was double-barreled, and once more Dick let drive.  But he was not overly cool, and the charge merely nipped the beast in its left front leg.  It continued to come on, and as it did so Dick commenced to retreat.