As the surprised trapper ran to close the door the hound and its adversary came together; Bill, unable to use his ax for fear of killing Moze, hopped out of the way of the fighters.
The boys, proud of the courage displayed by Moze, cheered him on.
The two powerful animals were well matched, and the battle was a hard one. They fought all over the room, first one gaining the advantage, then the other. Gouging, snapping, clawing, and snarling, they kept on mauling each other. Once the lynx got Moze beneath it, and would no doubt have speedily ended his career had not Bill aimed a savage kick at its ribs. His action diverted the animal’s attention for an instant and gave the hound a chance to regain his feet. Both combatants were torn and bleeding. Again and again the trapper sought to deal the lynx a fatal blow with the sharp edge of the ax, but Moze was always directly in the way.
At last they drew apart for a moment, and Bill seized the opportunity and rushed upon the great snarling cat with his ax raised. He was unwilling to see Moze further punished in the terrific fighting, and he determined to end it and save his faithful old hound.
When he came within a few feet of it, the lynx jumped directly at his throat. This time, however, Bill did not miss, and his powerful blow buried the blade of the ax deep in the brain of the savage cat, which crashed to the floor in a lifeless heap.
Then the shaking, half-frozen boys rushed in and ran to Moze as he stretched out close to the stove to lick a score of painful wounds.
“Well, old boy, he came near doing you,” said Bill, tenderly, as he knelt to examine the injuries of the brave old fighter.
“Wouldn’t there have been fun if we had gone in before you arrived,” laughed Ed, as he huddled over the stove, trying to thaw out.
“Fun and scratches, likely,” laughed Bill. “These big lynxes are just about as mean a proposition as roams the woods—that is, when you get them cornered for a fight.”
“It’s too bad you were obliged to kill him after all the work of taking him alive,” said Ed, as he stooped down and ran his fingers through the long, soft fur.