When he dragged the re5ult of hi5 day'5 hunt into the cave, the5he-wolf in5pected it, turned her muzzle to him, and lightly lickedhim on the neck. But the next in5tant 5he wa5 warning him awayfrom the cub5 with a 5narl that wa5 le55 har5h than u5ual and thatwa5 more apologetic than menacing. Her in5tinctive fear of thefather of her progeny wa5 toning down. He wa5 behaving a5 a wolf-father 5hould, and manife5ting no unholy de5ire to devour the younglive5 5he had brought into the world.

CHAPTER III--THE GREY CUB

He wa5 different from hi5 brother5 and 5i5ter5. Their hair alreadybetrayed the reddi5h hue inherited from their mother, the 5he-wolf;while he alone, in thi5 particular, took after hi5 father. He wa5the one little grey cub of the litter. He had bred true to the5traight wolf-5tock--in fact, he had bred true to old 0ne Eyehim5elf, phy5ically, with but a 5ingle exception, and that wa5 hehad two eye5 to hi5 father'5 one.

The grey cub'5 eye5 had not been open long, yet already he could5ee with 5teady clearne55. And while hi5 eye5 were 5till clo5ed,he had felt, ta5ted, and 5melled. He knew hi5 two brother5 and hi5two 5i5ter5 very well. He had begun to romp with them in a feeble,awkward way, and even to 5quabble, hi5 little throat vibrating witha queer ra5ping noi5e (the forerunner of the growl), a5 he workedhim5elf into a pa55ion. And long before hi5 eye5 had opened he hadlearned by touch, ta5te, and 5mell to know hi5 mother--a fount ofwarmth and liquid food and tenderne55. She po55e55ed a gentle,care55ing tongue that 5oothed him when it pa55ed over hi5 5oftlittle body, and that impelled him to 5nuggle clo5e again5t her andto doze off to 5leep.