“Don’t agree with me, eh? Well, we won’t argue the question. I suppose we have different points of view on the subject, but I do wish that we could arbitrate.”
Slowly the time passed, although he had no way of telling just how slowly. But it seemed almost an eternity before he noticed the first hint of the coming dawn. So slowly as to be almost imperceptible the darkness began to lift, and he knew that day was at hand. Would the cats give it up and go? That was the question which he asked himself over and over again.
“If they don’t, I guess I’ll have to close with them and have it out. The winner can eat the victim. No use of all of us starving,” he said half aloud.
Soon he was able to make out the form of one of the cats as it paced back and forth close to the water’s edge. He was surprised at the size of the beast.
“Gee, I didn’t know you grew that big,” he said. “Guess I’ll have to revise my last statement. You can stare as long as you like, so far as I’m concerned.”
Only the one cat was in sight and he concluded that the other must have given up and gone off.
“Mebby he’s gone to get breakfast for his companion,” he thought. “And that reminds me that I haven’t had mine yet. Ugly as you look, kittie, I don’t believe you want to eat me a bit more than I want to eat you. Wish I had a fish line along,” he thought, feeling through his pockets without success. “I believe I could relish a trout raw. But I don’t suppose they’d take a hook without any bait on it even if I had one.”
As soon as it was light enough for him to see distinctly he determined to wade down the brook—cat or no cat.
“Might as well take a chance as to stay here and starve,” he thought as he let himself down from the rock into the water, which came a little above his knees.
The cat, seeing him move, gave an angry snarl.