NECHAKO MOTORS J. E. JOHNSON, Manager GENERAL MOTORS DEALERS Automobile Repairs Brazing, Welding Super Shell Gasoline and Body Work Parts and Accessories Firestone Tires VANDERHOOF BRITISH COLUMBIA TED’S TAXI TED COOK, Proprietor 24 HOURS’ SERVICE Phone Centrai VANDERHOOF REIDSHOREE Robert Reid, Prop. Rooms with Private Bath FULLY LICENSED VANDERHOOF B.C. Siee| FRASER’S STORE GENERAL MERCHANDISE GAS, OIL, ETC. Agent—SHELL OIL CO. of B.C., LTD. FORT ST. JAMES B.C. —— L. R. DICKINSON GENERAL MERCHANT RAW FURS OUTFITTING HEADQUARTERS FOR MINERS, PROSPECTORS Fort St. James and Pinchi Lake, B.C. ASSMAN’S FUNERAEICHAPEIS Service with Dignity Phone 172-L-1] PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. SAM STEVENS ® PLUMBING and HEATING Authorized Agents for Canadian Fairbanks-Morse Electrical Appliances Box 302 Phone 94-L-2 @ PRINCE GEORGE Page Ninety-two the conversation that followed, Mc- Comas told Wiegner, that he too, was a marksman, and belonged to one of the local rifle clubs. An ex-soldier himself, McComas took to the young man, and showed him a .22 calibre Mosberg rifle he had. ““What do you think of it?’”’ McComas said. Wieg- ner’s eyes lighted up; eagerly he fon- dled the light rifle. Then McComas continued: ““Would you like to have it? It’s not much use to me now. Bad eyesight.” Wiegner accepted the rifle as part payment for the trip, the balance, $125 was to be paid en route. Two or three days followed, prin- cipally occupied by the purchase of supplies and getting the old Chevro- let car in condition for the long trip. McComas did not tell his little daughter about the great change that was to be made in her life, till the day before departure. He wanted to surprise her. And what a surprise. Louise was thrilled. Here was glamour and romance dear to the heart of a little girl. A pretty girl, looking much older than her years. Continued company with older per- sons had given her a veneer of pre- cocity and sophistication which added to the illusion of maturity. But she was still a little girl at heart. “Oh daddy, when do we leave?”’ was her eager reply to her father’s announcement. “Tomorrow, dear. Get your things packed up, and don’t forget any- thing.” “Oh, I'll be ready, daddy, don’t worry.’ ‘Then, “will we be going through Canada?” McComas told her that the Alaska Highway ran through the Province of British Columbia and the Yukon Territory before ending up in Alaska. On August 4, 1948, Wiegner called for McComas, then to Valley Street, where Louise lived. Placing her few belongings in the car, the trio began their long voyage. An oddly assorted trio. A man of 52 seeking a new life. A man of 26, seeking travel and escape from family discord. A girl, nearing her 13th birthday, bursting with excitement and anticipation of the many won- derful things she was to see. Traveling at moderate speed down the well-paved highway, a rented trailer loaded with supplies and bed- ding dragging behind, the car headed west. From the days of Genghis Khan, through Columbus and Gree- ley, man has always sought fame, fortune and destiny in the West, the Golden West. The car rolled on. Ohio was left far behind. Every turn in the road brought new thrills to the little girl sitting in the front seat. McComas, not so eager for the pleasures of the open road sat quietly in the rear seat. Wiegner, intent, and hungering for far places, answered the thousand questions put to him by the little passenger at his side. To save as much expense as pos- sible, it had been agreed that they would camp out on the trip. In the trailer there was a mattress, ex-U.S. Airforce flying suits, blankets, and a substantial quantity of food. At night they stopped by the side of the road and ate a hearty supper from the canned goods with which they were provided. The little girl usually slept in the car, but Wiegner did not waste time on sleep. An hour or two once in a while when he could no longer hold his chin up was all that he required. Alaska, THAT was where he wanted to go. Why waste time on sleeping? So on and on they went. Three days and three nights of almost continuous travel. Through Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Ne- braska, South Dakota, and into Mon- tana. Then the Canadian border at Coutts, Alberta. Wiegner cleared customs, declaring the rifle they had with them. It was dusk and it was three very tired peo- ple who stopped a short distance in- side the Dominion of Canada for the night. The following day, August 7, the party resumed the journey, and passed through Cardston, Alberta, on their way to the vast Peace River District. Bad road conditions de- layed the party, but stopping only for gas and oil, with an occasional break for a hastily cooked meal, they Went on and on. Louise was not tired. Sleeping on the pile of blankets in the back seat whenever drowsy, she did not wish to miss anything that the open road might reveal. Snapping pictures, asking a million questions, and smil- ing radiantly all the time, she was thoroughly enjoying herself. The slender young man, though still in- tent on reaching Alaska as soon as possible, had been kind to the little girl, and treated her like a “grown- up.’ In this she revelled. The father was quiet. A tiring journey for a man in middle age. So the young man and the little girl became very chummy. As the Chevrolet rattled along in a north-westerly direction, hope and many other emotions began to work on the trio. zk*kk Bushnell, Nebraska, is a small town of some 350 inhabitants. It lies in the Great Central Plain a few miles from the Wyoming border. The heat of summer is searing, but in middle August it had moderated somewhat. A travel stained car rolled down the main street with two young THE SHOULDER STRAP