The Boy Scouts of the Geological Survey | Page 8

doing so, for a bad cut might injure the skin and feathers of the
coveted trophy. But it seemed likely that such considerations would
have to be banished in the face of this horrible danger.
After repeatedly beating back the infuriated eagle, Ralph saw that his

best blows were glancing harmlessly from its shining armor of feathers,
and that the vengeful creature was gaining courage with every charge.
Moreover, in his cramped position he was at a disadvantage, while the
blood trickling down from the wound in his forehead made his sight
uncertain. In desperation he resolved to turn the knife edge uppermost
and to strike with an upward motion as the bird rushed close.
His next blow showed the wisdom of this course. Aided by the bird's
reckless attack, the keen blade found its mark under one of those great
pounding pinions, and by the diminishing force of the next charge, and
the next, Ralph knew that the eagle was weakening.
Another lucky thrust hurled the wounded bird to the ground, where it
lay kicking feebly for a few moments; then, with a convulsive jerk, it
flopped over and lay still at the edge of the stream.
Ralph slid out from his crevice, and bathed his face in the cold water.
Refreshed, he picked up the two splendid birds and gazed at them
almost sadly, with no feeling of elation. He was full of admiration for
the brave fight they had made.
"I had to do it, I had to do it," he muttered apologetically, as if seeking
an excuse for an act which he found difficult to defend. "Better do this
than to borrow money and get into debt."
Thus he argued; but, in spite of his gladness at having won the means
wherewith his mother might undergo the operation, he felt a reaction
after the excitement of the fight. Weary and wounded, and moved to a
pitying admiration of the prize within his grasp, it was nothing to the
discredit of this simple, manly lad that he shed a few tears over his
victory. Have not seasoned hunters been known to weep over the death
of a noble stag or a gentle doe? And were these eagles no less noble in
their sphere of the animal kingdom?
Almost sadly he tied them to his belt, carefully avoiding further injury
to their plumage; and as he did so, the thought crossed his mind:
"Wonder what those fellows and the Scout Master would say about this,

if they knew?"
Still wondering, he retraced his steps along the edge of the stream, back
to the spot where he had left Keno. Imagine his dismay and
consternation when he found the tie-rope broken and the pony---gone!
Keno had disappeared! Had he grown restive and wandered away, or
had he been stolen by some lawless prowler among the hills?
The situation, in either case, was bad enough, for the distance home
was long, and Ralph was sore and aching in every limb. Knowing a
horse's infallible instinct for going homeward, he felt no apprehension
that Keno would get lost; yet he realized what a sensation the pony
would make when, provided he were not stolen, he ambled into the
farmyard, saddled and bridled and riderless!
"Mother'll be scared out of her wits!" thought Ralph. "Gee! I wish this
hadn't happened! I wish Keno hadn't bolted like this! My fault, I
suppose; I ought to have tied him more firmly, but in my hurry to get
the first eagle I neglected to do it!"
Removing his belt, he sat down on a flat stone in the sunlight, and
stared at the ground dejectedly.
"I guess this is when little Weary Willie walks home!" he groaned.
"Confound the luck!"
Suddenly his gaze became riveted on a peculiar mark on the soft dry
loam: the imprint of a large paw like that of a cat rising hastily, he
examined the ground all around the place and discovered many similar
tracks.
"It's a bobcat!" he exclaimed aloud. "A big bobcat or a lynx! The critter
must have frightened old Keno and made him hit the trail home! Hope I
don't meet the brute! I've got only two or three cartridges left."
Pausing only to remove his coat and shirt and to bathe the upper part of
his body in the stream, he put on his garments again and set forth along

the trail. As he walked slowly through the fragrant woods, squirrels and
jays chattered derisively at him overhead, and frightened rabbits dashed
helter-skelter among the thickets. He gave them not the slightest heed;
his chief interest now was to get home as soon as possible and to
relieve his mother from anxiety over his absence.
To hasten his arrival he resolved upon taking a short-cut through the
thickest