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Long, William Joseph, 1866-1952

"Wilderness Ways"

In an
instant a huge shadow swept down from the stub and hovered over the
sound. Two fierce yellow eyes looked in upon Kagax, crouching and
trying to hide under a fir tip.
Kagax whirled when the eyes found him and two sets of strong curved
claws dropped down from the shadow. With a savage snarl he sprang up,
and his teeth met; but no blood followed the bite, only a flutter of
soft brown feathers. Then one set of sharp claws gripped his head;
another set met deep in his back. Kagax was jerked swiftly into the
air, and his evil doing was ended forever.
There was a faint rustle in the thicket as the shadow of Kookooskoos
swept away to his nest. The long lithe form of a pine marten glided
straight to the fir tip, where Kagax had been a moment before. His
movements were quick, nervous, silent; his eyes showed like two drops
of blood over his twitching nostrils. He circled swiftly about the end
of the lost trail. His nose touched a brown feather, another, and he
glided back to the fir tip. A drop of blood was soaking slowly into a
dead leaf.


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