White Fang Part 4, Chapter 4: The Clinging Death

Beauty Smith takes the chain off White Fang's neck, and Tim Keenan shoves the bulldog, Cherokee, towards him. Cherokee is lazy and just sits there, not making a move. White Fang strikes, tearing Cherokee's ear and jumping away. Cherokee is confused because he cannot get close to White Fang. In all his fights before, both he and his opponent wanted to get close. But White Fang fights like a cat. White Fang tries to knock Cherokee over, but the bulldog is too squat and close to the ground. White Fang tries to topple him too many times, and at last loses his balance. In this moment, Cherokee clamps down on his throat.

White Fang tears around, trying to get free, but cannot. There is nothing he can do. He does not understand what is happening, and has never fought anyone like this before. "The bulldog's method was to hold what he had, and when opportunity favored to work in for more. Opportunity favored when White Fang remained quiet. When White Fang struggled, Cherokee was content merely to hold on." Part 4, Chapter 4, pg. 137 There is simply no way to get out of the grip that Cherokee has on White Fang. It looks like the fight is over, and Cherokee has won. At last, White Fang falls backwards, exhausted, and Cherokee closes in to tighten the grip on his throat. White Fang is no longer struggling.

When he sees this, Beauty Smith gets up and begins to kick White Fang. At this, a newcomer starts to force his way through the crowd. As Beauty continues kicking White Fang, the newcomer approaches him and punches him in the face, yelling. Beauty falls, and then tries to get up again. The newcomer punches him in the face again. He calls to his friend, Matt, to help him get the bulldog off White Fang. Matt takes hold of White Fang, and is ready to pull whenever the newcomer can get Cherokee's jaws open.

He can't get them open, and his yells to the crowd for help are only met with sarcastic jeering. Slowly, bit by bit, the newcomer is able to pry Cherokee's jaws off. White Fang tries to get up several times, but cannot. The newcomer tells Beauty that he is buying the dog for one hundred and fifty dollars. Beauty protests, saying that the dog is worth a lot of money, and that he won't be robbed. The newcomer, however, insists that he is buying, and says that if Beauty tries to go to the law for help, he will have Beauty run out of town. As everyone leaves the area, Tim Keenan finally finds out who the newcomer is. He is Weedon Scott, a mining expert and a very important person.