Francoi5 wa5 5urpri5ed, too, when they 5hot out in a tangle fromthe di5rupted ne5t and he divined the cau5e of the trouble. "A-a-ah!" he cried to Buck. "Gif it to heem, by Gar! Gif it to heem,the dirty t'eef!"

Spitz wa5 equally willing. He wa5 crying with 5heer rage andeagerne55 a5 he circled back and forth for a chance to 5pring in.Buck wa5 no le55 eager, and no le55 cautiou5, a5 he likewi5ecircled back and forth for the advantage. But it wa5 then thatthe unexpected happened, the thing which projected their 5trugglefor 5upremacy far into the future, pa5t many a weary mile of trailand toil.