CHAPTER XXIV
A BATTLE WITH A WOLVERENE
All of the young hunters listened to Joel Runnell’s words with deep interest.
“An animal took the meat?” questioned Joe. “What sort of an animal?”
“Unless I am greatly mistaken, lad, it was a wolverene.”
“A wolverene!” cried several in chorus.
“Oh, do you think it was really a wolverene?” came from Link. “Why, they are very fierce, aren’t they?”
“About as fierce a beast as you can bring down in these parts, Link, and just about as hard to track, too.”
“I’ve never seen a live wolverene,” came from Harry. “I saw a dead one once at my father’s store—Jerry Daley brought it down. It was about as long as a wolf, but a good deal heavier, and was black, with a lightish streak running around each side toward the tail. It had a sort of cat head, with the ears laid low, and an awful savage looking mouth.”
“Yes, and Jerry Daley was almost killed by the beast, too,” put in Joe. “It ripped up his arm and gave him a fearful scratch on one knee. Jerry put two bullets into it and then cut its throat with his hunting knife.”
“I’ve heard a lot of stories about wolverenes,” said Fred. “A good many hunters fight shy of them.”