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Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul cliche, il est filmd d partir de I'angle sup6rieur gauche, de gauche d droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mdthode. y errata }d to nt ne pelure, igon d 1 2 3 32X 1 2 3 4 5 6 c * t t ,^ /^ c( f\ *^ ' '/^i o< A /. ^ '^.C-''*. i-:f/ K ^J UN CAVA " He sliot through the lessening ctiannel hke an arrow. ' (I'a.t^e 15.) L'ns(tvii] [Ficntispicce I'xr.^WA 7 A • ; 1 r- ?'-'' U ' » ^/) I' ' 1 . • ' ; t- f . I .?• ) ! i ■■ ' .-fk' ., t^'*'' v-'lj--^**'." i.' *l them to go by means of more powerful arguments than words." *"Tis not cowardice; you do the men injustice," said Frank, shaking his head. "Well, well, I believe I do, lad; you're right," re- plied Stanley, while a smile smoothed out the firm linos that had gathered round his lips for a few s{^conds. "No doubt they care as little for the anticipated dangers of the expedition as any men living, and they hesitate to go simply because they know that the life before them will be a lonely one at such an out-o'-the- way place as Ungava. But we can't help that, Frank ; the interests of the Company must be attended to, and so go they must, willing or not willing. But I'm annoyed at this unexpected difficulty, for there's a mighty difference between men who volunteer to go and men who go merely because they must and can't help it." The young man slowly rubbed the stock of his rifle with the sleeve of his coat, and looked as if he under- stood and sympathised with his friend's chagrin. " If Prince were only here just now," said he, look- ing up, "there would be no difficulty in the matter. These fellows only want a bold, hearty comrade to step forward and show them the way, and they will follow to the North Pole if need be. They look upon our willingness to go as a mere matter of course, though I don't see why we should be expected to like banishment more than themselves. But if Prince were- >> 14 UNOAVA ! 1^ il) **WeIl, well, Prince is 7iot here, so we must do the best we can without him," said Stanley. As he spoke, the trumpet note of a goose was heard in the distance. *' There he goes ! — down with you ! " exclaimed Frank, darting suddenly behind the stump of the tree, while his companion crouched beside him, and both bogan to shout at the top of their voices in imitation of the goose. The bird was foolish enough to accept the invitation immediately, although, had it been other than a goose, it would have easily recognised the sound as a wretched counterfeit of the goose language. It Hew directly towards them, as geese always do in spring when thus enticed, but passed at such a dis- tance that the elder sportsman was induced to lower his piece, " All ! he's too far off. You'd better give him a shot with the rifle, Frank; but you're sure to miss." " To hit, you mean," cried his companion, flushing with momentary indignation at this disparaging remark. At the same moment lie took a rapid aim and fired. For a few yards the goose continued its forward flight as if unhurt ; then it wavered once or twice, and fell heavily to the ground. " Bravo, boy ! " cried Stanley. " There, don't look nettled; I only jested with you, knowing your weakness on the score of rifle-shooting. Now, pick up your bird, and throw it into the canoe, for I must away." Frank finished reloading his piece as his friend spoke, and went to pick up the goose ; while the other walked down to the edge of the rivulet, and disengaged a light birch-bark canoe from the long grass and sedges that almost hid it from view. " Make haste, Frank ! " he shouted ; ** there's the ice coming up with the flood-tide, and bearing down on the creek here." At a short distance from the spot where the sports- men stood, the streamlet already alluded to mingled its waters with a broad river, which, a few miles farther f UNOAVA 16 I down, flows into James's Bay. As every one knows, this bay lies to the south of Hudson's Bay, in North America. Here the river is about two miles wide ; and the shores on either side being low, it has all the appearance of an extensive lake. In spring, after the disruption of the ice, its waters are loaded wnth large floes and fields of ice ; and later in tlio season, after it lias become quite free from this wintry encumbrance, numerous detached masses come up with every flood- tide. It was the approach of one of these floes that called forth Stanley's remark. The young man replied to it by springing towards tlie canoe, in which his companion was already seated. Throwing the dead bird into it, he stooped, and gave the light bark a powerful shove into the stream, exclaiming, as he did so, ** There, strike out, you've no time to lose, and I'll go round by the woods." There was indeed no time to lose. The huge mass of ice was closing rapidly into the mouth of the creek, and narrowing the only passage through which the canoe could escape into the open water of the river beyond. Stanley might, indeed, drag his canoe up the bank, if so disposed, and reach home by a circuitous walk through the woods ; but by doing so he would lose much time, and be under the necessity of carrying his gun, blanket, tin kettle, and the goose, on his back. His broad shoulders were admirably adapted for such a burden, but he preferred the canoe to the woods on the present occasion. Besides, the only risk he ran was that of getting his canoe crushed to pieces. So, plunging his paddle vigorously in the water, he shot through the lessening channel like an arrow, and swept out on the bosom of the broad river just as the ice closed with a c»ash upon the shore and ground itself to powder on the rocks. " Well done ! " shouted Frank, with a wave of his cap, as he witnessed the success of his friend's exploit. •* All right," replied Stanley, glancing over his shoulder. Id UNGAVA In another moment the canoe disappearnd hchind a group of willows that grew on the point at the river's mouth, and the young man was left alone. For a few minutes he stood contemplating the point behind which his companion had disappeared ; then giving a hasty glance at the priming of his rifle, he threw it across his shoulder, and striding rapidly up the bank, was soon lost to view amid the luxuriant undergrowth of the forest. CHAPTER II k::ad-quaiiters — the men — disputation and uncer- tainty — NEW USES FOR THE SKINS OF DEAD BOYS ! — MUTINOUS RESOLVES Moose Fort, the head-quarters and depot of the fur- traders, who prosecute their traffic in almost all parts of the wild and uninhabited regions of North America, stands on an island near the mouth of Moose Eiver. Like all the establishments of the fur-traders, it is a solitary group of wooden buildings, far removed beyond the influences — almost beyond the ken — of the civilised world, and surrounded by the primeval vvilderncss, tho only tenants of which were, at the time we write of, a few scattered tribes of Muskigon Indians, and the wild animals whose flesh furnished them with food and v\'hose skins constituted their sole wealth. There was little of luxury at Moose Fort. The walls of the houses within the stockade, that served more as an ornament than a defence, were of painted, in some cases un- painted, planks. The floors, ceilings, chairs, tables, and, in short, all the articles of furniture in the place, were made of the same rough material. A lofty scaf- folding of wood rose above the surrounding buildings, and served as an outlook, whence, at the proper season, longing eyes were w^ont to be turned towards tho sea. in expectation of " the ship " which paid the estdblish- ment an annual visit from England. Several iarga iron field-pieces stood before the front gate ; but they 18 UNGAVA hi. r .' wore more for tlio sako of appoarancc than use, and wore never fired except for the purpose of saluting* tho said ship on the occasions of her arrival and departure. The first hoom of tho cannon unlocks tlio long-closed portals of connection between Moose Fort and Eng- land ; the second salvo shuts them np a^nin in their frozen domains for another year ! A century and a half apfo, tho band of " adventurers trading into Hud- son's Bay" felled the first trees and pitched their tents on the shores of James's Bay, and successive genera- tions of fur-traders have kept the post until tho present day ; yet there is scarcely a symptom of the prcsenco of man beyond a few miles round the establishment. Years ago the fort wai built, and thoro it stands now, with new tenants it is true, but in its general aspect unchanged; and there it is likely to remain, wrapped in its barrier of all but impregnable solitude, for cen- turies to come. Nevertheless, Moose is a comfortable place in its way, and when contrasted with other trading establish- ments is a very palace and temple of luxury. There are men within its walls who can tell of log-huts and starvation, solitude and desolation, compared with which Moose is a terrestrial paradise. Frank Morton, whom we have introduced in the first chapter, said, on his arrival at Moose, that it appeared to him to be the very fag-end of creation. He had travelled night and day for six weeks from what he considered the very outskirts of civilisation, through uninhabited forests and almost unknown rivers, in order to get to it ; and while the feeling of desolation that overwhelmed him on his first arrival was strong upon him, he sighed deeply, and called it a '* horrid dull hole." But Frank was of a gay, hearty, joyous disposition, and had not been there long ere he loved the old fort dearly. Poor fellow ! far removed though he was from his fellow- men at Moose, he afterwards learned tha-t he had but obtained an indistinct notion of the signification of the word " solitude." UNGAVA 19 There were probably about thirty human beings at Moose, wlicn Mr. CJcorf^o Stanley, one of the prin- cipal fur-traders of the place, received orders from the governor to make preparations, and select men, for the purpose of proceeding many hundred miles deeper into t!io northern wilderness, and establishing a station on the distant, almost unknown, shores of Ungava Bay. No one at Moose had ever b^'en there before; no ono knew anything about the route, except from the vague report of a few Indians ; and the only thing that was definitely known about the locality at all was, that ita inhabitants were a few wandering tribes of Esquimaux, who were at deadly feud with the Indians, and gene- rally massacred all who came within their reach. What the capabilities of the country were, in regard to timber and provisions, tiubody knew, and, for- tunately for the success of the expedition, nobody cared ! At least those who were to lead the way did not ; and this admirable quality of total indifference to prospective dangers is that which, to a great extent, insures success in a forlorn-hope. Of the leaders of this expedition the reader already knows something. George Stanley was nearly six feet high, forty years of age, and endued with a decision of character that, but for his quiet good-humour, would have been deemed obstinacy, lie was deliberate in all his movements, and exercised a control over his feelings that quite concealed his naturally enthusiastic disposi- tion. Moreover, he was married, and had a daughter of ten years of age. This might be thought a dis- advantage in his present circumstances; but the governor of the fur-traders, a most energetic and active ruler, thought otherwise. He recommended that the family should be left at Moose until an establishment had been built, and a winter passed at Ungava. Afterwards they could join him there. As for Frank Morton, he was an inch taller than his friend Stanley, and equally powerful ; fair-haired, blue-eyed, hilarious, romantic, twenty-two years of 20 UNGAVA : i ago, and so impuliuvo that, oa hc.iring of the propo'^cd expedition from one of his comrades, who happened to be present when Stanley was reading the despatches, he sprang from his chair, which he upset — dashed out at the door, which he banged — and hurried to his friend's quarters in order to be first to volunteer his services as second in command ; which offer was ren- dered unnecessary by Stanley's exclaiming, the moment he entered his room, — "Ha, Frank, my lad, the very man I wanted to see! Here's a letter from head-quarters ordering me off on an expedition to Ungava. Now, I want volunleors ; will you go ? " It is needless to add tliat Frank's blue eyes sparkled with animation as he seized his friend's hand and replied, " To the North Pole if you like, or farther if need be ! " It was evening. The sun was gilding the top of the flag-staff with a parting kiss, and the inhabitants of Moose Fort, having fmished their daily toil, were making preparations for their evening meal. On the end of the wharf that jutted out into the stream was assembled a picturesque group of men, who, from the earnest manner in which they conversed, and the energy of their gesticulations, were evidently dis- cussing a subject of more than ordinary interest. Most of them were clad in corduroy trousers, gartered below the knee with thongs of deer-skin, and coarse striped cotton shirts, open at the neck so as to expose their sun-burnt breasts. A few wore caps which, what- ever might have been their original form, were now so much soiled and battered out of shape by long and severe service that they were nondescript; but most of these hardy backwoodsmen were content with the covering afforded by their thick bushy locks. " No, no," cxclaiined a short, thick-set, powerful man, with a somewhat ascetic cast of countenance; ** I've seen more than enough o' these rascally Huskies.* irt VNGAVA 21 proposed pened to ipatches, shed out i to his itoer his fvas ren- moment i to see ! le off on unlecrs ; sparkled and and arther if )p of the itants of ill, were On the am was om the md the tly dis- ntcrest. [rartered coarse ) expose .1, what- ncw so )ng and it most rith the owerful mance ; iskieg.* *Tig well for me that I'm here this blessed day, an' not nude into a dan to bob about in Hudson's Straits at the tail of a white whale, like that poor boy Peter who was shot by them varmints." "What's a dan?" asked a young half-breed who had la^tely arrived at Moose, and knew little of Esqui- mau implements. " What a green-horn you must be, Francois, not to know what a dan is ; ' replied another, who was inclined to be quizzical. ** Why, it's a sort of sea-carriage that the Esquimaux tic to the tail of a walrus or sea-horse when they feel inclined for a drive. When they can't get a sea-horse they catch a white whale asleep, and wake him up after fastening the dan to his tail. I suppose they have conjurers or wizards among them, since Massan told us just now that poor Peter was " ** Bah ! gammon," interrupted Frangois with a smile, as he turned to the first speaker. " But tell me, Massan, what is a dan ? " " It's a sort o' float or buoy, lad, used by the Huskies, and is made out o' the skin o' the seal. They tie it with a long line to their whale spears to show which way the fish bolts when struck." •* And did they use Peter's skin for such a purpose ? '* inquired Frangois, earnestly. " They did," replied Massan. *' And did you see them do it ? " "Yes, I did." Frangois gazed intontly into his comrade's face as he spoke; but Massan was an adept at what is usually called drawing the long bow, and it was with the moift imperturbable gravity that he continued — " Yes, I saw them do it ; but I could not render any assistance to the poor child, for I was lying close behind a rock e,t the time, with an arrow sticking between my shoulders, and a score o' them oily varmints a-shoutin', and yellin', and flourishing their spears in search o' me." " Tell us how it happened, Massan. Let's hear the 22 UNGAVA Hi N story," chorused the men, as they closed round their comrade. " Well then," began the stout backwoodsman, pro- ceedin^T leisurely to fill his pipe from an ornamented bag that hung at his belt, " here goes. It was about the year — a — I forget the year, but it don't matter — that we were ordered off on an expedition to the Huskies; 'xactly sich a one as they wants us to go on now, and — but you've heerd o' that business, lads, haven't you?" ** Yes, yes, we've heard all about it ; go on." ** Well," continued Massan, " I needn't be wastin' time tellin' you bow we failed in that affair, and how the Huskies killed some of our men and burnt our ship to the water's edge. After it was all over, and they thought they had killed us all, I was, as I said, lyin* behind a great rock in a sort o' cave, lookin' at the dirty villains as they danced about on the shore, and took possession of all our goods. Suddenly I seed two o* them carry Peter down to the beach, an' I saw, as they passed me, that he was quite dead. In less time than I can count a hundred they took the skin off him, cut off his head, sewed up the hole, tied his arms and legs in a knot, blew him full o' wind till he was fit to bu'st, an' then hung him up to dry in the sun ! In fact they made a dan of him ! " A loud shout of laughter greeted this startling con- clusion. In truth, we must do Massan the justice to say, that although he was much in the habit of amusing his companions by entertaining them with anecdotes which originated entirely in his own teeming fancy, he never actually deceived them, but invariably, either by a sly glance or by the astounding nature of his com- munication, gave them to understand that he was deahng not w4th fact but fiction. " But seriously, lads," said Eran9ois, whose intel- ligence, added to a grave, n^anly countenance and a tall, muscular frame, can od 1 iiii to bo regarded by his comrades as a sort of leader both in action and in UNGA VA 23 nd their lan, pro- amented 13 about natter — , to the IS to go iss, lads, I wastin' md how our ship nd they bid, lyin' ' at the ore, and ;ecd two saw, as 3SS time o£f him, :ms and as fit to Un ! In ng con- istice to ^musing ecdotes ncy, he ther by 13 com- he wa3 intel- ! and a by his and in council, " what do you think of our bourgeois' plan ? For my part, I'm willin;' uiough to go to any reason- able part o' the country where there are furs and Indians ; but as for this Ungava, from what Massan says, there's neither Indians, nor furs, nor victuals, — nothin' but rocks, and mountains, and eternal winter ; and if we do get the Huskies about us, they'll very hkely serve us as they did the last expedition to Eich- mond Gulf." " Ay, ay," cried one of the others, " you may say that, Francois. Nothin' but frost and starvation, and nobody to bury us when we're dead." "Except the Huskies," broke in another, "who would save themselves the trouble by converting us all into dans ! " " Tush, man ! stop your clapper," cried Francois, impatiently; " let us settle this business. You know that Monsieur Stanley said he would expect us to be ready with an answer to-night. — What think you, Gaspard? shall we go, or shall we mutiny?" The individual addressed was a fine specimen of an animal, but not by any means a good specimen of a man. He was of gigantic proportions, straight and tall as a poplar, and endowed with the strength of a Hercules. His glittering dark eyes and long black hair, together with the hue of his skin, bespoke him of half-breed extraction. But his countenance did not correspond to his fme physical proportions. True, his features were good, but they wore habitually a scowling, sulky expression, even when the man was pleased, and there was more of sarcasm than joviality in the sound when Gaspard condescended to lauc,h. " I'll be shot if I go to such a hole for the best bourgeois in the country," said he in reply to Fran9oi3* question. " You'll be dismissed the service if you don't," remarked Massan with a smile. To this Gaspard vouchsafed no reply save a growl that, to say the beet of it, did not sound amiable. ; I 24 VNGAVA I' ill *' Well, I think that we're all pretty much of one mind on the point," continued Francois; "and yet I feel half ashamed to refuse after all, especially when I see the good will with which Messieurs Stanley and Morton agree to go." "I suppose yoic expect to be a bourgeois too some day," grov/led Gaspard with a sneer. ** Eh, tu gros chien?" cried Fran9ois, as with flashing eyes and clinched fists he strode up to his ill-tempered comrade. " Come, come, Francois, don't quarrel for nothing," said Massan, interposing his broad shoulders and pushing him vigorously back. At that moment an exclamation from one of the men diverted the attention of the others. *'VoilM the canoe." ** Ay, it's Monsieur Stanley's canoe. I saw him and Monsieur Morton start for the swamp this morning." "I wonder what Dick Prince would have done in this business had he been here," said Frangois to Massan in a low tone, as they stood watching the approach of their bourgeois* canoe. "Can't say. I half think he would have gone." " There's no chance of him coming back in time, I fear." " None ; unless he prevails on some goose to lend him a pair of wings for a day or two. He won't be back from the hunt for three weeks good." In a few minutes more the canoe skimmed up to the wharf. " Here, lads," cried Mr. Stanley, as he leaped ashore and dragged the canoe out of the water ; " one of you come and lift this canoe up the bank, and take these geese to the kitchen." Two of the men instantly hastened to obey, and Stanley, with the gun and paddles under his arm, proceeded towards the gateway of the fort. As he passed the group assembled on the wharf, he turned and said — ■ < "m !■ UNGAVA 25 too some ** You'll como to the hall in an hour, lads ; I shall expect you to be ready with an answer by that time." "Ay, ay, sir," replied several of the men. "But we won't go for all your expectations," said one in an undertone to a comrade. " I should think not," whispered another. "I'll be hanged, and burnt, and frozen if I do," said a third. In the meantime Mr. Stanley walked briskly towards his dwelling, and left the men to grumble over their troubles and continue their debate as to whether they should or should not agree to go on the pending expedi- tion to the distant regions of Ungava. ilf - .1 CHAPTER III ' til. SHOWS HOW STANLEY DEIGNED TO CONSULT WITH WOMANKIND — THE OPINIONS OF A CHILD DEVELOPED — PEESUASION FAILS — EXAMPLE TRIUMPHS — THE FIRST VOLUNTEERS TO UNGAVA On reaching his apartment, wLich was in an angle of the principal edifice in the fort, Mr. Stanley tlnng down his gun and paddles, and drawing a chair close to his wife, who was working with her needle near a window, took her hand in his, and heaved a deep sigh. ** Why, George, that's what you used to say to me when you were at a loss for words in the days of our courtship." " True, Jessie," ho replied, patting her shoulder with a hand that rough service had rendered hard and long exposure had burnt brown. " But the producing cause then was different from what it is now. Thoi it was love ; VlOw it is perplexity." Stanley's wife was the daughter of English parents, who had settled many years ago in the fur countries. Being quite beyond the reach of any school, they had been obliged to undertake the instruction of their only child, Jessie, as they best could. At first this was an easy matter, but ^.r^^ years ?aew by, and little Jessie's mind expanded, it was found to be a difficult matter to carry on her education in a country in most parts of which books were not to be bad and schoolmasters did not exist. When the difficulty first i^rosented V ,,: UNGAVA 27 itself, they talked of sending their little one to England to finish her education ; but being unable to bring themselves to part with her, they resolved to have a choice selection of books sent out to them. Jessie's mother was a clever, accomplished, and ladylike woman, and decidedly pious, so that the little flower, which was indeed born to blush unseen, grew up to be a gentle, affectionate woman — one who was a lady in all her thoughts and actions, yet had never seen polite society, save that of her father and mother. In pro- cess of time Jessie became Mrs. Stanley, and the mother of a little girl whose voice was, at the time her father entered, ringing cheerfully in an adjoining room. Mrs. Stanley's nature was an earnest one, and she no sooner observed that her husband was worried about something, than she instantly dropped the light tone in which she at first addressed him. "And what perplexes you now, dear George?" she said, laying down her work and looking up in his face with that straightforward, earnest gaze that in days of yore had set the stout backwoodsman's heart on fire, and still kept it in a perennial blaze. "Nothing very serious," he replied with a smile; "only these fellows hcve taken it into their stupid heads that Ungava is worse than the land beyond the Styx ; and so, after the tough battle that I had with you this morning in order to prevail on you to remain here for a winter without me, I've had to fight another battle with them in order to get them to go on this expedition." "Have you been victorious ? " inquired Mrs. Stanley. "No, not yet." " Do you really mean to say they are afraid to go ? Has Prince refused? are Frau9ois, Gaspard, and Massan cowards? " she inquiared, her eye kindling with indigna- tion. "Nay, my wife, not so. These men are not cowards ; nevertheless they don't feel inclined to go ; and as for Dick Prince, he has been off hunting for a week, and i'l .1 I 23 VNOAVA w I don't expect him back for three weeks at least, by which time we shall be off." Mrs. Stanley sighed, as if she felt the utter helpless- ness of woman in such affairs. " Why, Jessie, that's what you used to say to me when you were at a loss for words in the days of our courtship," said Stanley, smiling. "Ah, George, like you I may say that the cause is now perplexity ; for what can 1 do lo help you in j^our present difhculty ? " " Truly not much. But I like to tell you of my troubles, and to mal:e more of them than they deserve, for the sake of drawing forth your sympathy. Ble^^s your heart ! " he said, in a sudden burst of enthusiasm, *' I would gladly undergo any amount of trouble every day, if by so doing I should secure that earnest, loving, anxious gaze of your sweet blue eyes as a reward ! " Stanley imprinted a hearty kiss on his wife's cheek as he made this lover- like speech, and then rose to place his fowling-piece on the pegs from which it usually hung over the fire-place. At that moment the door opened, and a little girl, with bright eyes and flaxen hair, bounded into the room. "0 mamma, mamma ! " she said, holding up a sheet of paper, while a look of intense satisfaction beamed on her animated countenance, ** see, I have drawn Chimo's portrait. Is it like, mamma ? Do you think it like ? " "Come here, Eda, my darling, come to me,'* said Stanley, seating himself on a chair, and extending his arms. Edith instantly left the portrait of the dog in her mother's possession, and, without waiting for an opinion as to its merits, ran to her father, jumped on his knee, threw her arms round his neck, and kissed him. Edith was by no means a beautiful child, but miserable indeed must have been the taste of him who would have pronounced her plain-looking. Her features were not regular; her nose had a strong / !i; VNGAVA 29 least, by ■ helpless- ay to me -ys of our 1 cfiusG is u in your lU of my / deserve, y. Bless bhusiasm, ble every ;t, loving, reward ! " cheek as to place t usually ittle girl, into the p a sheet beamed drawn ou think it le," said ding his e dog in g for an nped on d kissed lild, but of him Her g- strong tcnclcncy to what is called snuu^cd, and her mouth was largo ; but to counterbalance these defects she had a pair of large deep-blue e3^es, soft golden hair, a fair rosy complexion, and an expression of sweetness at the corners of her mouth that betrayed habitual good-nature. She was quick in all her movements, combined with a peculiar softness and grace of deport- ment that was exceedingly attractive. "Would you like to go, my pet," said her father, " to a country far, far away in the north, where there are high mountains and deep valleys, inhabited by beautiful reindeer, and large lakes and rivers filled with fish ; where there is very little daylight all the long winter, and where there is scarcely any nij^ht all the long bright summer? Would my Eda like to go there ? " The child possessed that fascinatin^g quality of being intensely interested in all that was said to her. As her father spoke, her eyes gradually expanded and looked straight into his, while her bead turned slowly and very slightly to one side. As he concluded, she rephed, '' Oh ! very, very, very much indeed," with a degree of energy that made both her parents laugh. '*Ah, my darling! would that my lazy men were endued with some of j^our spirit," said Stanley, patting the child's head. "Is Prince a lazy man, papa?'* inquired Edith anxiously. " No, certainly. Prince is not. Why do you ask?" ** Because I love Prince." " And do you not love all the men ? " ** No," replied Edith, with some hesitation ; " at least I don't love them very much, and I hate one ! " " Hate one I " echoed Mrs. Stanley. *' Come here, my darling." Eda slipped from her father's knee and went to her mother, feeHng and looking as if she had said something wrong. Mrs. Stanley was not one of those mothers who, 80 UNGAVA i^ h ■ whenever tbcy hoar of their children having dono anything wrong, assume a look of intense, solemnised horror, that would lead an ignorant spectator to sup- pose that intelligence had just been received of some sudden and appalling catastrophe. She knew that children could not be deceived by such pieces of acting. She expressed on her countenance precisely what she felt — a slight degree of sorrow that her child should cherish an evil passion, which, she knew, existed in her heart in common with all the human race, but which she expected, by God's help and blessing, to subdue effectually at last. Kissing Eda's forehead she said kindly — " Which of them do you hate, darling ? " " Gaspard," rep^'ed the child. " And why do you hate him? " ** Because he struck ray dog," said Eda, while her face flushed and her eyes sparkled; **and he is always rude to everybody, and very, very cruel to the dogs." ** That is very wrong of Gaspard ; but, dearest Eda, do you not remember what is written in God's Word — * Love yv.v enemies ' ? It is wrong to hate anybody." " I know that, mamma, and I don't wish to hate Gaspard, but I can't help it. I wish if I didn't hate him, but it wonH go away." " Well, my pet," replied Mrs. Stanley, pressing the child to her bosom, " but you must pray for him, and speak kindly to him when you meet him, and that will perhaps put it away. And now let us talk of the far-off country that papa was speaking about. I wonder what he has to tell you about it 1 " Stanley had been gazing out of the window during the foregoing colloquy, apparently inattentive, though, in reality, deeply interested in what was said. Turning round, he said — " I was going to tell Eda that you had arranged to follow me to that country next year, and that perharpa you would bring her along with you." " Nay, George, you mistake. I did not arrange to do UNGAVA 81 ng done •lemnised r to sup- of some lew that )f acting, fvhat sho id should sisted in race, but ssing, to head she vhile her IS always dogs." :est Eda, 1 Word— lybody." to hate In't hate sing the lim, and that will le far- off ler what 7 during though, Turning ,nged to perharps Re to do BO — you only proposed th»> uranp aont ; but, to say truth, I don't like it, and ^ can't r ike up my mind to let you go without us. I r iimot wait till next year." " Well, well, Jessie, I have exhausted all my powers of persuasion. I leave it entirely to yourself to do as you think best." At this moment the sound of deep voices was heard ill the hall, which was separated from Stanley's quarters by a thin partition of wood. In a few seconds the door opened, and George Barney, the Irish butler and general factotum to the establishment, announced that the " min wos in the hall awaitin'." Giving Eda a parting kiss, Stanley rose and entered the hall, where Francois, Massan, Gaspard, and several others were grouped in a corner. On their bourgeois entering, they doffed their bonnets and bowed. " Well, lads," began Stanley, with a smile, " you've thought better of it, I hope, and have come to volunteer for this expedition " Ho checked himself and frowned, for he saw by their looks that they had come with quite a different intention. " What have you to say to me? " he continued, abruptly. The men looked uneasily at each other, and then fixed their eyes on Fran9ois, who was evidently expected to be spokesman. " Come, Frangois, speak out," said Stanley ; **if you have any objections, out with them — you're free to say what you please here." As he spoke, and ere Frangois could reply, Frank Morton entered the room. **Ah! " he exclaimed, as he deposited his rifle in a corner and flung his cap on the table, " in time, I see, to help at the council ! " " I was just asking Frangois to state his objections to going," said Stanley, as his young friend took his place beside him. "Objections!" repeated Frank; "what objections can bold spirits have to go on a bold adventure ? The question should have been, * Who will be first to volunteer9'" ^ 82 rXGAVA 4»i ) '(^ I'* ft •' I At til is moment tho door oC Stanley's .apartment opened, and his wife appeared leading; Eda by tho hand. "Ilcre are two voKinteers," slic said, with a smile; " pray put us at the head of your list. Wo will go with you to any part of the world ! " ** Bravo ! " shouted Frank, catching up Eda, with whom he was a great favourite, and hugging her tightly in his arms. " Nay, but, wife, this is sheer folly. You know not the dangers that await you " "Perhaps not," interrupted Llrs. Stanley, "but yoit know them, and that is enough for me." " Indeed, Jessie, I know them not. I can but gacss at them. But, ah ! well, 'tis useless to argue further. Be it so; we shah head the list with you and Eda." " And put my name next," said a deep-toned voice from behind the other men. All turned round in surprise. " Dick Prince ! " they exclaimed ; " you here ? '* "Ay, lads," said a tail man of about forty, Vv'ho v.^13 not so remarkable for physical development (though in this respect he was by no means deficient) as for a certain decision of character that betrayed itself in every outline of his masculine, intelligent countenance — " ay, lads, I'm here ; an' sorry am I that I've jist corned in time to hear that you're sich poor-spirited rascals as to hang back when you should jump for'ard." " But how came you so opportunely, Prince V " inquired Stanley. " I met an Injin, sir, as told me you was goin' off; BO I thought you might want me, and corned straight back. And now, sir, I'm ready to go ; and so is Francois," he continued, turning to that individual, who seized his hand and exclaimed, " That am I, my boy, to the moon if ye like ! " " And Massan, too," continued Prince. " All right ; bock me for Kova Zembla," replied that worthy. 1 iKil UNOAVA 83 " So, so," cried Mr. Stanley, witli a satisfied sjiiilv*. " I see, lads, that we're all of one miiul now. Is it not 60 ? Are we agreed ? " " Agreed I agreed I " they replied with one voice. " That's well," he continued. " Now then, lads, clear out and geo your kits ready. And ho ! Barney, give these men a glass of grog. Prince, I shall want to talk with you this evening. Come to me an hour hence. And now," he added, taking Eda by the hand, ** come along, my gentle volunteers; let's go to supper." i i 63 w i il CHAPTER IV EXrLANATORi% BUT NOT DRY.' — MURDEROUS DESIGNS THWARTED BY VIGOROUS TREATMENT — THE CATTLE PAY FOR IT ! — PREPARATIONS FOR A LONG, LONG VOYAGE m In order to render our story intelligible, it is necessary here to say a few words explanatory of the nature and object of the expedition referred to in the foregoing chapters. Many years previous to the opening of our tale, it was deemed expedient, by the rulers of the Hudson's Bay Fur Company, to effect, if possible, a reconcihation or treaty of peace between the Muskigon Indians of James's Bay and the Esquimaux of Hudson's Straits. The Muskigons are by no means a warlike race ; on the contrary, they are naturally timid, and only plucked up courage to make war on their northern neighbours in consequence of these poor people being destitute of ^re-arms, while themselves were supplied with guns and ammunition by the fur-traders. The Esquimaux, however, are much superior to the Muskigon Indians physically, and would have held their adversaries in light esteem had they met on equal terms, or, indeed, on any terms at all ; but the evil was that they never met. The Indians always took them by surprise, and from behind the rocks and bushes sent destruction into their camps with the deadly bullet ; while their help- less foes could only reply with tljo comparatively ■ i z\ ' ■ '-'-"'^ UNGAVA 85 hannless arrow and spear. Thus the war was in fact an annual raid of murderers. The conceited ;Muskigons returned to their wigwams in triumph, with bloody scalps hanging at their oelts ; while the Esqui- maux pushed farther into their ice-bound fastnesses, and told their comrades, with lowering brows and heaving bosoms, of the sudden attack, and of the wives and children who had been butchered in cold blood, or led captive to thu tents of the cowardly red men. At such times those untutored inhabitants of the frozen regions vowed vengeance on the Indians, and cursed in their hearts the white men who supplied them with the deadly gun. But the curse was un- merited. In the councils of the fur-traders the subject of Esquimaux wrongs had been mooted, and plans for the amelioration of their condition devised. Trading posts were established on Richmond Gulf and Little Whale Eiver ; but owing to circumstances which it is unnecessary to detail here, they turned out failures, and were at length abandoned. Still, those in charge of the districts around Hudson's Bay and Labrador continued to use every argument to prevail on the Indians to cease their murderous assaults on their unoffending neighbours, but without much effect. At length the governor of East Uilain — a territory lying on the eastern shores of James's Bay — adopted an argu- ment which proved eminently successful, at least for one season. His fort was visited by a large band of Muskigons from Albany and Moose districts, who brought a quantity of valuable furs, for which they demanded guns and ammunition, making no secret of their inten- tion to proceed on an expedition against their enemies the Esquimaux. On hearing of this, the governor went out to them, and, in a voice of extreme indig- nation, assured them that they should not have an ounce of supplies for such a purpose. " But we will pay you for what we ask. We are not beggars! " exclaimed the astonished Indians, into whose ¥ f ^r. 86 UNGAVA 4 • calculations it had never entered that white traders would refuse good furs merely in order to prevent the death of a few Esquimaux. " See," cried the angry governor, snatching up the nearest bale of furs — " see, that's all I care for you or your payment ! " and hurling the pack at its owner's head, he felled him therewith to the ground. " No," he continued, shaking his fist at them, *' I'll not give you as much powder or shot as would blow off the tail of a rabbits if you were to bring me all the skins in Labrador ! " The consequence of this vigorous conduct was that the Indians retired crest-fallen — utterly discomfited. But in the camp that night they plotted revenge. In the darkness of the night they slaughtered all the cattle around the establishment, and before daybreak were over the hills and far away in the direction of their hunting-grounds, loaded with fresh beef sufficient for the supply of themselves and their families for the winter ! It was a heavy price to pay ; but the poor Esquimaux remained unmolested that year, while the Indians received a salutary lesson. But the compulsory peace was soon broken, and it became apparent t! at the only effectual way to check the bloodthirsty pro- pensity of the Indians was to arm their enemies with the gun. The destruction of the first expedition to the Esquimaux, and the bad feeling that existed in the minds of the natives of Kichmond Gulf consequent thereon, induced the fur- traders to fix on another locality for a new attempt. It was thought that the remote solitudes of Ungava Bay, at the extreme north of Labrador — where the white man's axe had never yet felled the stunted pines of the north, nor the ring of his rifle disturbed its echoes — would be the spot best suited for the erection of a wooden fort. Accordingly, it was appointed that Mr. George Stanley should select a coadjutor, and proceed with a party of picked men to the scene of action as early in the spring as the ice would permit, and there build a 1 li ■ ■ ■ li; r UNOAVA 87 3 traders 3 vent the ^ up the or you cc 3 owner's *'No," not give [f the tail skins in was that comfited. nge. In ihe cattle 3ak were of their cient for 1 for the the poor vhile the npulsory •ent tl.at fsty pro- lies with 3n to the in the isequent another that the ne north lever yet ring of ;pot best George d with a early in build a fort as he best could, with the best m.iterials he could find ; live on whatever the country afforded in the shape of food ; establish a trade in oil, whalebone, arctic foxes, etc., etc., if they were to be got ; and bring about a reconciliation between the Esquimaux and the Indians of the interior, if that were possible. With the careful minuteness peculiar to documents, Stanley'^ instructions went on to point out that ho was to start from Moose — with two half-sized canoes, each capable of carrying ten pieces or packages of 90 lbs. weight each, besides the crew — and bore through the ice, if th( ice would allow him, till he should reach Richmond Gulf ; cross this gulf, and ascend, if practicable, some of the rivers which fall into it from the height of land supposed, but not positively known, to exist somewhere in the interior. Passing this height, he was to descend by the rivers and lakes (if such existed) leading to the eastward, until he should fall upon a river reported to exist in these lands, and called by the natives GaniapuscaWy or South River, down which he was to proceed to the scene of his labours, Ungava Bay ; on reaching which he was considerately left to the unaided guidance of his own discretion ! Reduced to their lowest term and widest signification, the instructions directed our friend to start as early as he could, with whom he chose, and with what he liked; travel as fast as possible over terra incognita to a land of ice — perhaps, also, of desolation — and locate himself among bloody savages. It is hoped that there would be found a sufficiency of trees wherewith to build him a shelter against a pro- longed winter; in the meantime he might enjoy a bright arctic summer sky for his canopy ! IBut it was known, or at least supposed, that the Esquimaux were fierce and cruel savages, if not cannibals. Their very name implies something of the sort. It signifies eaters of raio flesh, and was bestowed on them by their onemies the Muskigons. They call themselves Innuit — men, or warriors; and although they certainly do eat raw flesh when necessity compels i \ ■ 83 UNGAVA m them— which it often does — thoy assorted that they never did so from choice. However, be this as it may, the remembrance of their misdeeds in the first expedi- tions was fresh in the minds of the men in the service of the fur-traders, and they evinced a decided unwilling- ness to venture into such a country and among such a people — an unwillingness which was only at length overcome when Mrs. Stanley and her little daughter heroically volunteered to share the dangers of the expedition in the manner already narrated. Stanley now made vigorous preparations for his departure. Some of the men had already been en- rolled, as we have seen, and there wxre more than enough of able and active volunteers ready to complete the crev/s. " Come hither, lads," he cried, beckoning to two men who were occupied on the banlc of the river, near the entrance to Moose Fort, in repairing the side of a canoe. The men loft their work and approached. They were both Esquimaux, and good stout, broad-shouldered, thick-set specimens of the race they were. One was called Oolibuck,* the other Augustas ; both of which names are now chronicled in the history of arctic adventure as having belonged to the well-tried and faithful interpreters to FrauKlin, Back, and Richardson, in their expeditions of north-west discovery. " I'm glad to see you busy at the canoo, boys," said Stanley, as they came up. " Of course you are both willing to revisit your countrymen." '* Yes, sir, we is. Glad to go where you choose send us," answered Oolibuck, whose broad, oily countenance lighted up with good-humour as he spoke. ** It will remind you of your trip with Captain Franklin," continued Stanley, addressing Augustus. " Me no like to 'member dat," said the Esquimaux, * This name is spelt as it slioulJ be pronounced. The correct spelling ia Ouligbuck. UNOAVA 89 sr, near with a soiTowful shake of the head. " Mo love bour- geois Frankhn, but tink me never see him more." " I don't know that, old fellov^," returned Stanley, with a smile. " Franklin is not done with his dis- coveries yet ; there's a talk of sending off another exr)edition some of these days, I hear, so you may have a chance yet." Augustus's black eyes sparkled with pleasure as ho heard this. lie was a man of strong feeling, and during his journeyings with our great arctic hero had become attached to him in consequence of the hearty and unvarying kindness and consideration with which bo treated all under his command. But the spirit of enterprise had been long slumbering, and poor Augustus, wlio was now past the prime of life, feared that ho should never see his kind master more. " Now I want you, lads, to get everything in readi- ness for an immediate start," continued Stanley, glancing upwards at the sky ; "if the weather holds, we shan't be lon^ of paying your friends a visit. Are both canoes repaired ? " "Yes, sir, they is," replied Oolibuck. " And the baggage, is it laid out ? And " "Pardon, monsieur," interrupted Massan, walking up, and touching his cap. " I've jest been down at the point, and there's a rig'lar nor'-wester a-comin' down. The ice is sweepin' into the river, an' it'll be choked up by to-morrow, I'm afraid." Stanley received this piece of intelligence with a slight frown, and looked seaward, where a dark line on the horizon and large fields of ice showed that the man's surmise was likely to prove correct. " It matters not," said Stanley hastily ; " I've made arrangements to start to-morrow, and start we shall, in spite of ice or wind, if the canoes will float ! " Massan, who had been constituted principal steers- man of the expedition, in virtue of his well-tried skill and indomitable energy, felt that the tone in which this was said implied a want of confidence in his > :. '" ^'1 i!;! i' I 40 UNGAVA I ,.■' ? . "wiilingnoss to go under any circumsiancos, so lio sniJ gravely — ** Pardon, monsieur ; I did not say wo could not start." " True, true, Massan ; don't be hurt. I was only grumbling at the weather," answered Stanley, with a laugh. Just then the first puff of the coming breeze swept up the river, rufQing its hitherto glassy surface. " There it comes," cried Stanley, as he quitted the spot. " Now, Massan, see to it that the crews are assembled in good time on the beach to-morrow. We start at daybreak." " Oui, monsieur," replied Massan, as he turned on his heel and walked a way. " Parbleu ! we shall indeed start to-morrow, an' it please you, if all the ice and wind in the polar regions was blowed down the coast and crammed into the river's mouth. C'est vriii ! " If U r ■ '■'.f3 Lii J> lio snid lid not LS only with a ! swept ;ed the ws are r. We ned on J shall the ice {vn the C'est I I CnAPTEK V ICE LOOKS UNrROPITIOUS — THE STAPvT — AN IMPORTANT MEMBER OF THE PARTY NEARLY FORGOTTEN — CHIMO Stanley's forebodings and Massan's prognostications proved partly incorrect on the following morning. The mouth of the river, and the sea beyond, were quite full of ice ; but it was loose, and intersected in all direc- tions by lanes of open water. Moreover, there was no wind. The gray light of early morning brightened into dawn, and the first clear ray of the rising sun swept over a scene more beautiful than ever filled the fancy of the most imaginat^' /e poet of the Temperate Zones. The sky was perf<.ctly unclouded, and the surface of the sea was completely covered with masses of ice, whose tops were pure white like snow, and their sides a delicate greenish-blue, their dull, frosted appearance forming a striking contrast to the surrounding water, which shone, when the sun glanced upon it, like bur- nished silver. The masses of ice varied endlessly in form and size, some being flat and large like fields, others square and cornered like bastions or towers — here a miniature temple with spires and minarets, there a crystal fortress with embrasures and battle- ments ; and, in the midst of these, thousands of broken fragments, having all the varied outlines of the larger masses, appearing like the smaller houses, cottages, and villas of this floating city of ice. 41 1" "5 i i 1 9',r. 9 ) 42 UNOAVA k- il 'V3 " Oh, how beautiful ! " exclaimed httle Edith, as her father led her and Mrs. Stanley toward;^ the canoes, which floated lightly in the water, while the men stood in a picturesque group beside them, leaning on their bright red paddies. " It is, indeed, my pet," replied Stanley, a smilo almost of sadness playing around his lips. " Come, George, don't let evil forebodings assail you to-day," said Mrs. Stanley in a low tone. "It does not become the leader of a forlorn-hope to cast a shade over the spirits of his men at the \cvy outset." She smiled as she said this, and pressed his arm ; but despite herself, there was more of sadness in the smile and in the pressure than she intended to convey. Stanley's countenance assumed its usual firm but cheerful expression while she spoke. ** True, Jessie, I must not damp the men; but when I look at you and our darling Eda, I may be forgiven for betraying a passing glance of anxiety. Llay the Almighty protect you!" "Is the country we are going to like this, papa?" inquired Eda, whose intense admiration of the fairyliko scene rendered her oblivious of all else. " Yes, dear, more like this than anything else you have ever seen ; but the sun does not always shine so brightly as it does just now, and sometimes there are terrible snowstorms. But we will build j^ou a nice house, Eda, with a very large fireplace, so that we won't feel the cold." The entire population of Moose Fort was assembled on the beach to witness the departure of the expe- dition. The party consisted of fifteen souls. As we shall follow them to the icy regions of Ungava, it may be worth while to rehearse their names in order as follows : — Mr. and Mrs. Stanley and Edith. Frank Morton. Mas SAN; the guide. - V i UNOAVA 43 Dick Prikce, principal luintcr to the party. La KocnE, Stanley's servant and cook. BiiYAN, the blacksmi.^.h. Francois, the carpenter. OOLIBUCK, ] Augustus, Esquimau interpreters. Moses, j Gaspard, labourer and fisherman. OOSTESIMOW, It T -i ;i i i ■»r i- Indian guides and hunters. Ma-istequan,) ^ The craft in Tvhich these were about to cmboi-k were three canoes, two of which were large and one small. They were made of birch bark, a substance which is tough, hght, and buoyant, and therefore admirably adapted for the construction of craft that have not only to battle against strong and sometimes shallow currents, but have frequently to be carried on tlio shoulders of their crews over rocks and mountains. The largest canoe was sixteen feet long by five feet broad in the middle, narrowing gradually towards the bow and stern to a sharp edge. Its loading consisted of bales, kegs, casks, and bundles of goods and pro- visions; each bale or cask weighed exactly 90 lbs., and was called a piece. There were fifteen pieces in the canoe, besides the crew of six men, and Mr. Stanley and his family, who occupied the centre, where their bedding, tied up in flat bundles and covered with oiled cloth, formed a comfortable couch. Notwithstanding the size and capacity of this craft, it had been carried down to the beach on the shoulders of Massan and Dick Prince, who now stood at its bow and stern, preventing it with their paddles from rubbing its frail sides against the wharf; for although the bark is tough, and will stand a great deal of tossing in water and plunging among rapids, it cannot sustain the slightest blow from a rock or other hard substance without being cracked, or having the gum which covers the seams scraped o£f To those who are unacquainted m i; A i '\r. 44 UNOAVA ■j t, ' ' p. ^■' li with travollinf^ in the wild rej^iong of the north it would seem impossible that a long journey could be accomplished in such tender boats ; but a little experi- ence proves that, by judicious treatment and careful management, voyages of great length may be safely accomplished in them — that they are well adapted for the necessities of the country, and can be taken with greater ease through a rough, broken, and mountainous region than ordinary wooden boats, even of smaller size, could be. The second canoe was in all respects similar to the one we have described, excepting that it was a few inches shorter. The third was much smaller — so small that it could not contain more than three men, with their provisions and a few bales, and so light that it could with the greatest case be oarried on the shoulders of one man. It was intended to servo as a sort of pionaer and huntin^^ craft, which should lead the way, dart hither and thither in pursuit of game, and warn the main body of any danger that shouJd threaten them ahead. It was manned by the two Indian guides, Oostesimow and Ma-istequan, and by Frank Morton, who being acknowledged one of the best shots of the party, w^as by tacit understanding regarded as commissary-general. It might have been said that Frank was the best shot, were it not for the fact that the aim of Dick Prince was perfect, and it is generally admitted that perfection cannot be excelled. Although differing widely in their dispositions and appearance, the men of the expedition were similar at least in one respect — they were all first-rate, and had been selected as being individually superior to their comrades at Moose Fort. And a noble set of fellows they looked, as they stood beside their respective canoes, leaning on their little, brilliantly coloured paddles, awaiting the embarkation of their leaders. They all wore new suits of clothes, which were suf- ficiently similar to give the effect of a uniform, yet so far varied in detail as to divest them of monotony, and UNGAVA 46 relieve the eye by agreeable contrast of bright colours. All of them wore light-blue cloth capotes with hoods hanging down behind, all had corduroy trousers gartered below the knee, and all wore moccasins, and had fire-bags stuck in their belts, in which were con- tained the materials for producing fire, tobacco, and pipes. So far they were ahke, but the worsted belts of some were scarlet, of others crimson, and of others striped. Some gartered their trousers with thongs of leather, others used elegant bands of bead-work — the gifts, probably, of sorrowing sweethearts, sisters, or mothers — while the fire-bags, besides being composed some of blue, some of scarlet cloth, were ornamented more or less with flowers and fanciful devices ele- gantly wrought in the gaily-dyed quills of the porcupine. On seeing Stanley and his wife and child approach- ing, Massan gave the order to embark. In a moment every man divested himself of his capote, which he folded up and placed on the seat he was to occupy; then, shaking hands all round for the last time, they stepped lightly and carefully into their places. ** All ready I see, Massan," said Stanley, as he came up, " and the ice seems pretty open. How say you? shall we make a good day of it ? " Massan smiled dubiously as he presented his thick shoulder as a support to Mrs. Stanley, while she stepped into her place. He remembered the conver- sation of the previous evening, and determined that, whatever should happen, he at least would not cast the shadow of a doubt on their prospects. But in his own mind he suspected that their progress would be inter- rupted ere long, as the wind, although very light — almost imperceptible — was coming from the north- west. "It'll be full flood in less nor half an hour," he replied, ** and — (take care. Miss Edith, give me your little hand ; there, now, jump light) — and we'll be past the p'int by that time, and git the good o' the ebb till Bun-down." 4 I 1 I- if , r I '.-■' M (t /,! ri j.^ 46 UNGAVA a fear/* saifl Frank ^rorton, approachinpf, '* that tho ico is rather thick for us; but it don't much matter, it will only delay us a bit — and at any rate we'll make good way as far as tho point." *' True, true," said Stanley ; " and it's a great matter to get fairly started. Once off, wo must go forward. All ready, lads?" " Ay, ay, sir." "Now, Frank, into your canoe and show us the way ; mind, we trust to your guidance to keep us clear of blind alleys among these lanes of water in the ice." At this moment Edith — who had been for the last few minutes occupied in alternately drying her eyes and kissing her hands to a group of little children who had been her play-fellows during her sojourn at the fort — uttered a loud exclamation. " Oh 1 oh ! papa, mamma — Chimo ! — we've forgot Chimo ! Oh, me 1 don't go away yet ! " "So we have!" said her father; "dear me, how stupid to forget our old friend ! — Hallo ! Frank, Frank, we've forgot the dog," shouted Stanley to his young comrade, who was on the point of starting. On hearing this, Frank gave a long shrill whistle. " That'll bring him if he's within ear-shot." When the well-known sound broke upon Chimo's ear, he was Ij^ng coiled up in front of the kitchen fire, being privileged to do so in consequence of his position as Edith's favourite. The cook, having gone out a few minutes previously, had left Chimo to enjoy his slumbers in solitude, so that, when he started suddenly to his feet on hearing Frank's whistle, he found him- self a prisoner. But Chimo was a peculiarly strong- minded and strong-bodied dog, and was possessed of an iron will ! He was of the Esquimau breed, and bore some resemblance to the Newfoundland, but was rather shorter in the legs, longer in the body, and more powerfully made. Moreover, he was more sha«7ry, and had a stout, blunt, straightforward appj'.'irance, which conveyed to the beholder tho idea UNQAVA 47 'that much f rate lattor word. 3 the I clear I ice." le last r cycB n "vvho at the forgot , how b'rank, young histle. :iimo's n fire, osition out a oy his ddenly d him- jtrong- 5sed of d, and ut was y, and more orward 10 idea ft that ho scorned flattery, and would not consent to bo petted on any consideration. Indeed this was the case, for ho always turned away with quiet contempt from any of the men who attempted to fondle him. Ho made an exception, however, of little Edith, whom he not only permitted to clap him to any extent, but deliberately invited her to do bo by laying his great head in her lap, rubbing himself against her, and wag- ging his bushy tail, as if to say, " Now, little girl, do what you will with me ! " And Eda never refused tho animal's dumb-show request. V/hen she was very young and had not much sense — at which time Chimo was young too, but possessed of a great deal of souse — she formed a strong affection for tho Esquimau dog, an affection which she displayed by putting her little arms round his neck and hugging him until he felt a tendency to suffocation ; she also pulled his ears and tail, and stuffed her fat little hands into his eyes and mouth — all of which dreadful actions she seemed to think, in her childish ignorance, must be very pleasant to Chimo, and all of which the dog appeared really to enjoy. At all events, whether he liked it or not, ha came regularly to have himself thus treated every day. As Eda grew older she left off choking her favourite and poking out his eyes, and contented herself with caressing him. Chimo also evinced a partiality for Mr. Stanley and Frank Morton, and often accom- panied the latter on his hunting excursions ; but he always comported himself towards them with dignified hauteur, accepting their caresses with a slight wag of acknowledgment, but never courting their favour. On jumping up, as we have already said, and observ- ing that the door was shut, the dog looked slowly and calmly round the apartment, as if to decide on what was best to be done ; for Chimo was a dog of great energy of character, and was never placed in any cir- cumstances in which he did not pursue some decided course of action. On the present occasion there was not a hole, except the key-hole, by which he could '( 43 UNGAVA lit I' lit w Ji' ! i •■• y'-, t:-- I rM n m ^m hope to make his escape. Yes, by-the-bye, there waa a hole in the window, which was made of parchment ; but as that was merely the bullet-hole through which the animal that had given his skin for a window had been shot, and was not larger than a shilling, it did not afford much hope. Nevertheless Chimo regarded it with a steady gaze for a minute or two, then he turned to the fire, and having satisfied himself that the chimney w^as impracticable, being full of flames and smoke, he faced the window once more, and showed his teeth, as if in chagrin. *' Whew-ew ! Chimo-o-o ! " came Frank's voice, floating faintly from afar. Chimo took aim at the bullet-hole. One vigorous bound — a horrible crash, that nearly caused the returning cook to faint — and the dog was free. ** Ah, here he comes ! — good dog ! " cried Frank, aa the animal came bounding over intervening obstacles towards the canoes. Chimo made straight for the small canoe, in answer to his master's call ; but, like many dogs and not a few men, he owned a higher power than that of a master. The voice of his little mistress sounded sweetly in his ear, like the sound of a silver bell. " O Chimo, Chimo ! my darling pet ! come here — hero." It was a soft, tiny voice at the loudest, and was quite drowned amid the talking and laughter of the men, but Chimo hoard it. Turning at a sharp angle from his course, he swept past the light canoe, and bounding into that of Mr. Stanley, lay down beside Eda and placed his head in her lap, where it was immediately smothered in the caresses of its young mistress. Mr. Stanley smiled and patted his little girl on the shoulder, as he said, " That's right, Eda ; the love of a faithful dog is worth having and cherishing." Then turning towards the stern of the canoe, where Massan stood erect, with his steering paddle ready for action, he said to that worthy, — ** Now, Massan, all ready ; give the word." i UNGAVA 49 *' IIo, ho, boys ; forward ! " The paddles dipped simultaneously in thcvv'atcr with a loud, gurgling sound ; the two large canoes shot out into the streana abreast of each other, preceded by the light one, which, urged forward by the powerful arms of Frank and the two Indians, led the way among the floating fields of ice. The people on shore took off their caps and waved a last farewell. Dick Prince, who possessed a deep, loud, sonorous voice, began one of those beautiful and wild yet plaintive songs peculiar to the voyageurs of the wilderness. The men joined, with a full, rich swell, in the chorus, as they darted forward with arrow-like speed — and the voyage began. 5] ; 'sJ h- a fr m CHAPTEIi VI CHARACTER PARTIALLY DEVELOPED — DUCKS FOR SUPPER — A THREATENED ON THE ICE (( >> NIP — BUNDLED OUT Fortunately the wind veered round to the south-east soon after the departure of the canoes from Moose Fort, and although there was not (iDi ip^h of it to ruffle the surface of the river, it h? . d effect of checking the influx of ice from James \i j3ay. The tide, too, began to ebb, so that the progress of the canoes was even more rapid than it appeared to be ; and long before the sun set they were past the point at the mouth of the river, and coasting along the shores of the salt ocean. Outside of them the sea was covered with hum- mocks and fields of ice, some of which ever and anon met in the cross currents caused by the river, with a violent shock. Close to the shore, however, the thick- ness of the ice caused it to strand, leaving a lane of open water, along which the canoes proceeded easily, the depth of water being much more than sufficient for them, as the largest canoe did not draw more than a foot. Sometimes, however, this space was blocked up by smaller fragments, and considerable difficulty was experienced in steerin^^ the canoes amongst thorn. Had the party travelled in boats, they would h:ive easily dashed through many ol; these checks ; but with ij r fl VNGAVA 61 FO^ i* canoes it is far othervviso. Not only are their bark sides easily broken, but the seams are covered with a kind of pitch which becomes so brittle in ice-cold water that it chips off in larj^^o lumps with the slightest touch. For the sea, therefore, boats are best ; but when it comes to carrying the craft over waterfalls and up mountain sides, for days and weeks together, canoes are more useful, owing to their lightness. "Take care, Massan," said Mr. Stanley, on ap- proaching one of these floes. *' Don't chip the gum off if you can help it. If we spring a leak, we shan't spend our first night on a pleasant camping-ground, for the shore just hereabouts does not look inviting." "No fear, sir," replied Massan. "Dick Prince is in the bow, and as long as his mouth's shut I keep my mind easy." "You appear to have unlimited confidence in Prince," said Stanley, with a smile. "Does he never fail in anything, that you are so sure of him ? " " Pail ! " exclaimed the steersman, whose paddle swept constantly in a circle round his head, while he changed it from side to side as the motions of the canoe required — "fail! ay, that docs he sometimes. Mortal man must get on the wrong side o' luck now n^nd then. I've seen Dick Prince fail, but I never saw hhn make a mistake." " Well, I've no doubt that he deserves your good opinion. Nevertheless, be more than ordinarily care- ful. If you had a wife and child in the canoe, Massan, you would understand my anxiety better." Stanley smiled as he said this, and the worthy steersman replied in a grave tone, — " I have the wife and child of my bourgeois under my care." " True, true, Massan," said Stanley, lying back on his couch and conversing with his wife in an under- tone. " 'Tis curious," said he, ** to observe the confidence that Massan has in Prince ; and yet it would be diffi- 51 VNOAVA '• ii if II,! cult to say wherein consists the superiority of the one over the other." "Perhaps it is the influcnco of a strong mind over a weaker," suggested his wife. " It may be so. Yet Prince is an utterly uneducated man. True, he shoots a hair's-breadth better than Massan ; but he is not a better canoeman, neither is he more courageous, and he is certainly less powerful: nevertheless Massan looks up to him and speaks of him as if he were greatly his superior. The secret of his power must he in that steady, never-wavering inflexibility of purpose, that characterises our good bowman in everything he does." "Papa," said Edith, who had been holding a long conversation with Chimo on the wonders of the scene around them — if we may call that a conversation where the one party does all the talking and the other all the listening — " papa, where shall we all sleep to-night?" The thought seemed to have struck her for the first time, and she looked up eagerly for an answer, while Chimo gave a deep sigh of indifference, and went to sleep, or pretended to do so, where he was. " In the woods, Eda. How do you think you will like it ? " " Oh, I'm sure I shall like it very much," replied the little one. "I've often wished to live in the woods altogether, like the Indians, and do nothing but wander about and pull berries." "Ah, Jessie," said Stanley, "what an idle httle baggage your daughter is I I fear she's a true chip of the old block ! " "Which do you consider the old block," retorted Mrs. Stanley — " you or me ? " "Never mmd, wife ; we'll leave that an open question. But tell me, Eda, don't you think that wandering about and pulling berries would be a very useless sort of life?" " No," replied Edith, gravely. " Mamma often tells I' i of of ilia UNGAVA SB me that God wants me to be happy, and I'm quite sure that wandering about all day in the beautiful woods would make me happy." "But, my darling," said Stanley, smiling at the sim- plicity of this plausible argument in favour of an idle life, " don't you know that we ought to try to make others happy too, as well as ourselves ? " '• Oh yes," rcpHed Eda, with a bright smile, '* I know that, papa ; and I would try to make everybody happy by going with them and showing them where the finest flowers and berries were to be found ; and so we would all be happy together, and that's what God wants, is it not?" Mr. Stanley glanced towards his wife with an arch smile. " There, Jessie, what think you of that ? " "Nay, husband, what think you?" "I think," he replied in an undertone, "that your sagacious teaching against idleness, and in favour of diligence and attention to duty, and so forth, has not taken very deep root yet." " And / think," said Mrs. Stanley, " that however wise you men may be in some things, you are all most incomprehensibly stupid in regard to the development of young minds." " Take care now, Jessie ; you're verging upon meta- physics. But you have only given me your opinion of men as yet ; you have still to say what you think of Eda's acknowledged predilection for idleness." "Well," replied Mrs. Stanley, "I think that my sagacious teaching, as you are pleased to call it, has taken pretty firm root already, and that Eda's speech is one of the first bright, beautiful blossoms, from which we may look for much fruit hereafter ; for to make one's self and one's fellow-creatures happy, because such is the will of God, seems to me a simple and com- prehensive way of stating the whole duty of man." Stanley's eyes opened a little at this definition. "Hum! multum in parvo ; it may be so," he said; and casting down his eyes, ho v/as soon lost in a mi ^ li r- (14 UNGAVA ^i ill I 'ijili profonnJ revcno, while the canoe continued to progress forward by little impulsive bounds, under the rapid stroke of the paddles. Eda rested her fair check on the Bhaggy brow of Chinio, and accompanied him to the land of nod, until the sun began to sink behind the icebergs on the seaward horizon, where a dark line indicated an approaching breeze. Tklassan cast an uneasy glance at this from time to time. At length he called to his friend in the bow, '* Hallo, Prince ! will it come stiff, think ye? " "No," replied Prince, rising and shading his ej^es with his hand ; " it'll be only a puff; but that's enough to drive the ice down on us, an' shut up the open water." "It's my 'pinion," said Massan, "that we should hold away for the p'int yonder, an' camp there." Dick Prince nodded assent, and resumed his paddle. As he did so the report of a gun came sharply over the water. " Ha ! " exclaimed Stanley, looking out ahead ; "what's that?" "Only Mr. Frank," said Massan; "he's dowsed two birds. I seed them splash into the water." " That's right," said Stanley ; " we shall have some- thing fresh for the kettle to-night. And, by the way, we'll need all we can kill, for w^e haven't much pro- vision to depend on, and part of it must be reserved in case of accidents, so that if Frank does not do his duty, we shall have to live on birch bark, Massan." " That would bo rayther tough, I'm afeerd," replied the steersman, laughing. " I've tried the tail o' a deer- skin coat afore now, an' it wasn't much to boast of; but I niver tried a birch-bark steak. I doubt it would need a power o' chewin' ! " By this time the two large canoes had drawn gradu- ally nearer to the leading one. As they approached Frank ordered his men to cease paddling. " Well, Frank, what success? " said Stanley, as they came up. UNGAVA f>5 *• There's our Bvippcr/' cried Frank, tossing a largo duck into the canoe ; " and there's a bite for the men," he added, sending a hnge gray goose into the midst of them. " I saw a herd of reindeer on the other side of the point ; but the ice closed up the passage, and pre- vented me from getting within range. It will stop our further progress for to-night too ; so I waited to advise you to camp here." " There it comes ! " cried Dick Prince. ** Jump out on the ice, lads, and unload as fast as you can." As Dick spoke he sprang on to a field of ice which was attached to the shore, and drawing the canoe alongside, began hastily to remove the cargo. His example was instantly followed by the men, who sprang over the gunwales like cats ; and in less than five minutes the cargoes were scattered over the ice. Meanwhile, the breeze which Massan had observed continued to freshen, and the seaward ice bore rapidly dow^n on the shore, gradually narrowing and filling up the lanes of water among which the travellers had been hitherto wending their way. Dick Prince's sudden action was caused by his observing a large solid field, which bore down on them with considerable rapidity. His warning was just in time, for the goods were scarcely landed and the three canoes lifted out of the water, when the ice closed in with a crash that would have ground the frail barks to pieces, and the passage was closed up. So completely was every trace of water obliterated, that it seemed as though there never had been any there before. I Si *i ley CHAPTEE VII SHOWS HOW THE PAHTr MADE THEMSELVES AT HOME IN THE BUSH — TALK ROUND THE CAMP FIRE — A FLASH OF TEMPER — TURNING IN. Tee spot where they were thus suddenly arrested in their progress was a small bay, formed by a low point which jutted from the mainland, and shut out the prospect in advance. There was little or no wood on the point, except a few stunted willows, which being green and small would not, as La Eoche the cook re- marked, " make a fire big enough to roast the wing of a mosquito." There was no help for it, however. The spot on which Massan had resolved to encamp for the night was three miles on the other side of the point, and as the way was now solid ice instead of water, there was no possibility of getting there until a change of wind should drive the ice off the shore. Moreover, it was now getting dark, and it behoved them to make their preparations with as much speed as possible. Accordingly, Massan and Prince shouldered one canoe, Fran9ois and Gaspard carried the other, and the light one was placed on the shoulders of Bryan the black- smith ; La Eoche took the provision-basket and cook- ing utensils under his special charge ; while the three Es(^uimau interpreters and the two Indian guides busied themselves in carrying the miscellaneous goods and baggage into camp. As for Chimo, he seated himself quietly on a lump of ice, and appeared to le, it UNOAVA 67 superintend the entire proceedings ; while his younpj mistress and her mother, accompanied by Frank and Stanley, crossed the ice to the shore, to select a place for their encampment. But it was some time ere a suitable place could bo found, as the point happened to be low and swampy, and poor Eda's first experience of a life in the woods was stepping into a hole which took her up to the knees in mud and water. She was not alone, however, in misfortune, for just at the same moment Bryan passed through the bushes with his canoe, and staggered into the same swamp, exclaiming as he did so, in a rich brogue which many years' residence among the French half-breeds of Rupert's Land had failed to soften, " Thunder an' turf I such a blaokguard counthry I niver did see. Och, Bryan dear, why did ye iver lave yer native land? " **Pourquoi, why, mon boy? for ver' goot raison," cried La Eoche, in a horrible compound of French and broken English, as he skipped lightly past, with a loud laugh, *' fer ver' goot raison — doy was tired of you to home, vraiment. You was too grande raskale; dey could not keep you no longer." " Thrue for ye, La Eoche," replied the blacksmith, ** thrue for ye, boy ; they sartinly could not keep me on nothin', an' as the murphies was all sp'iled wi* the rot, I had to lave or starve." At last, after a long search, Frank IMorton found a spot pretty well adapted for their purpose. It was an elevated plot of gravel, which was covered with a thin carpet of herbage, and surrounded by a belt of willows, which proved a sufficient shelter against the wind. A low and rather shaggy willow-tree spread its branches over the spot, and gave to it a good deal of the feeling and appearance of shelter, if not much of the reality. This was of little consequence, however, as the night proved fine and comparatively mild, so that the black vault of heaven, spangled with hosts of briUiant stars, amply compci: r::'.cd for the want of a leafy canopy. M i i I it I ffi P 6S UNGAVA ■f Under the willow-irce, Frank and La Eoche busied themselves in spreading a very siuall white tent for Mr. Stanley and his family. Frank himself, although entitled from his position in the Company's service to the luxury of a tcjit, scorned to use one, preferring to rough it like the men, and sleep beneath the shelter of the small canoe. IMeanwhile, ^Mr. Stanley proceeded to strike a li/^^ht with big flint and steel, and Bryan, having deposited his burden near the tent, soon collected a sufficiency of drift-wood to make a good fire. Edith and her mother wore not idle in the midst of this busy scene. They collected a few bundles of dried twigs to make the fire light more easily, and after the blaze was casting its broad glare of light over the camp, and the tent was pitched, they assisted La Roche in Ia5ang the cloth for supper. Of course, in a journey like this, none but necessary articles were taken, and these were of the most homely character. The kettle was the tea-pot, the cups were tin pan- nikins, and the table-cloth was a large towel, while the table itself was the ground, from the damp of which, however, the party in the tent were protected by an ample oil-cloth. When all the things were carried up, and the men assembled, the camp presented the following appear- ance : in the centre of the open space, which nature had arranged in the form of a circle, blazed the fire ; and a right jovial, sputtering, outrageous fire it was, sending its sparks flying in all directions, like the artillery of a beleaguered fortress in miniature, and rolling its flames about in fierce and wayward tongues, that seemed bent on licking in and swallowing up the entire party, but more especially La Roche, who found no little difficulty in paying due attention to his pots and kettles. Sometimes the flames roared fiercely upwards, singeing olf the foliage of the overhanging willow as they went, and then, bursting^away from their parent fire, portions of them floated off for a few seconds on the night air. On the weather side of this fire stood UNGAVA Od an the and ues, tho und and irds, ' as rent 5 on Sood Mr. Stanley's tcnfc, under tho willow-trcc, as boforo described, its pure white folds showiii'.,' strongly apjainst the darkness of the sky beyond. The doorway, or curtain of the tent, was open, displaying the tea- equipage within, and the smiling countenances of Stanley and his wife, Frank and Eda, who, seated on blankets and shawls around the towel, were preparing to make an assault on the fat duck before mentioned. This duck had been spHt open and roasted on a piece of stick before the blaze, and now stood with the stumps of its wings and legs extended, as if demanding urgently to be eaten — a demand v/hich Chimo, who crouched near the doorway, could scarce help compl}'- ing with. To the right of the tent was placed the small cp.noe, bottom up, so as to afford a partial protection to tho bedding which Oostcsimow was engaged in spreading out for Frank and himself and his comrade Ma-istequan. Facing this, at the other side of the fire, and on the left of the tent, the largest canoe was turned up in a similar manner, and several c f the men were engaged ir. covering the ground beneath it with a layer of leaves and branches, above which they spread their blankets ; while others lounged around the fire and smoked their beloved pipes, or watched with impatient eyes the operations of Bryan, who, being accustomed to have familiar dealings with the fire, had been deemed w^orthy of holding the office of cook to the men, and was inducted accordingly. It is due to Bryan to say that he fully merited the honour conferred upon him ; for never, since the days of Vulcan, was there a man seen who could daringly dabble in the fire as he did. He had a peculiar sleight-of-hand way of seizing hold of and tossing about red-hot coals with his naked hand, that induced one to believe he must be made of leather. Flames seemed to have no effect whatever on his sinewy arms when they licked around them ; and as for smoke, he treated it with benign contempt. Not so La Roche : : ^i- 1 60 UKGAVA ^„. . -^'--i with the mcrcnrlal temperament of his class he leaped about the firo, during his culinary operations, in a way that afforded infinite amusement to his comrades, and not unfrequcntly broup^ht hira into violent collision with Bryan, who usually received him on such occa- sions with a strong Irish growl, mingled with a dis- paraging or contemptuous remark. Beyond the circle of light thrown by the fire was the belt of willows which encompassed the camp on all sides except towards the sea, where a narrow gap formed a natural entrance and afforded a glimpse cf the ocean with its fields and hummocks of ice floating on its calm bosom and glancing in the faint light of the moon, which was then in its first quarter. ** IIow comfortable and snu;]' evervthing is ! " said Mrs. Stanley, as she poured out the tea, while her husband carved the duck. "Yes, isn't it, Eda?" said Frank, patting his favourite on the head, as l.o held out her plate for a wing. " There, give her a bit of the breast too," ho added. " I know she's ravenously hungry, for I saw her looking at Chimo, just before we landed, as if she meant to eat him for supper without waiting to have him cooked." ** O Erank, how can you be so wicked ? " said Eda, taking up her knife and fork and attacking the wing with so much energy as almost to justify her friend's assertion. " Snug; said you, Jessie? yes, that's the very word to expreR3 it," said Stanley. " There's no situation that 1 know^ of (and I wasn't born yesterday) that is so perfectly snug, and in all rcppects comfortable, as an encampment in the woods on a fine night in spring or autumn." " Or winter," added Frank, swallowing a pannikin of tea at a draught, nodding to Chimo, as much as to say, " Do that if you can, old fellow," and handing it to Mrs. Stanley to be replenished. "Don't omit winter— cold, sharp, sunny winter. An encamp- VS^OAVA 61 mo.nt in the F.now, in fino weather, i;T as r.nug aa this." *' Bather cold, is it not?" said ^Irs. Stanley. *' Cold! not a bit," replied Frank, making a reckless divo with his hand into the biscuit-bag; ** if you have enough wood to get up a roaring fire, six feet long by three broad and four deep, with a bank of snow five feet high all around ye, a pine-tree with lots of thick branches spreacMng overhead to keep off the snow, and two big green l^'ankets to keep out the frost— (anotlicr leg of uhat widgeon, please) — you've no notion how snug it IS, I p.ssure you." " Hum ! " ejaculates Stanley, with a dubious smile, "you forguu to ■ dd — a youthful, robust frame, with the blood caree "ig through the veins like wild-fire, to your cataloinriie of requ* 'i^es. No doubt it is pleasant enough iu its way; but commend me to spring or autumn for thorough enjoymcnf., when the air is mild, and the waters flowing, and the woods green and beautiful.** "Why don't you speak of summer, papa?" said Eda, who nad been listening intently to this conversa- tion. " Summer, my pet ! because " / "Allow me to explain," interrupted Frank, laying down his knife and fork, and placing the fore-finger of h*d right hand in his left paim, as if he were about to make a speech. " Because, Eda, because there is such a thing as heat — long-continued, never-ending, sweltering heat. Because there are such reprehensible and unutterably detestable insects as mosquitoes, and sand-flies, and bull-dogs ; and there is such a thing as being bitten, and stung, and worried, and sucked into a sort of partial madness ; and I have seen such sights as men perpetually slapping their own faces, and scratching the skin off their own cheeks wr their own nails, and getting no relief thereby, but ramer making things worse ; and I have, moreover, seen men's beads swelled *i « 63 UNGAVA I hi i'i I (i'S 'i : 'i until the eyes and noses were lost, and the mouths only visible when opened, and their general aspect like that of a Scotch haggis ; and there is a time when all this accumulates on man and beast till the latter takes to the water in desperation, and the former takes to in- termittent insanity, and that time is — summer. Another cup, please, Mrs. Stanley. Ton my con- science it creates thirst to think of it." At this stage the conversation of the party in the tent was interrupted by a loud peal of laughter mingled with not a few angry exclamations from the men. La Eoche, in one of his frantic leaps to avoid a tongue of flame which shot out from the fire with a vicious velocity towards his eyes, came into violent contact with Bryan while that worthy was in the act of lifting a seething kettle of soup and boiled pork from the fire. Fortunately for the party whose supper was thus placed in jeopardy, Bryan stood his ground : but La Boche, tripping over a log, fell heavily among the pannikins, tin plates, spoons, and knives, which had been just laid out on the ground in front of the canoe. ** Ach ! mauvais chien," growled Gaspard, as he picked up and threw avv'ay the fragments of his pipe, "you're always cuttin' and jumpin' about like a monkey." "Oh! pauvre crapaud," cried FrauQois, laughing; " don't abuse him, Gaspard. lie's a useful dog in his way." " Tare an' ages ! you've done it now, ye have. Bad luck to ye ! wasn't I for ivcr tollin* ye that same. Shure, if it wasn't that ye're no bip;ger or heavier than a wisp o' pea straw, ye'id have druve me and the soup into the fire, yo would. Be the big toe o* St. Patrick, not to mintion his riverince the Pope " "Come, come, Bryan," cried Massan, "don't speak ill o' the Pope, an' down wi' the kettle." "The kittle, is it? Sorra a kittle ye'll touch, "Massan, till it's cool enough to let us all start fair at wance. Ye've got jcr mouth and throat lined wi' ii t UNGA VA G3 brass, I believe, an* would ate the half o't before a soul of us could taste it ! " ** Don't insult me, you red-faced racoon," retorted Massan, while he and his comrades circled round the kettle, and began a vigorous attack on the scalding mess ; ** my throat is not so used to swallowin' firo as your own. I never knowed a man that payed into the gvrub as you do. Bah ! how hot it is. — I say, Oolibuck, doesn't it remember you o' the dogs o' yer own country, when they gits the stone kettle to clean out? " Oolibuck's broad visage expanded with a chuckle as he lifted an enormous wooden spoonful of soup to his ample mouth. ** Me tink de dogs of de Innuit * make short work of dis kettle if *e had 'im." '* Do the dogs of the Huskies eat with their masters ? " inquired Francois, as he groped in the kettle with his fork in search of a piece of pork. "Dey not eat loicl der masters, but dey al'ays clean hout de kettle," replied Moses somewhat indignantly. " Ha ! " exclaimed Massan, pausing for a few minutes to recover breath; ** yes, they always let the dogs finish off the feast. Ye must know, comrades, that I've seed them do it myself — anyways, I've seed a man that knew a feller who said he had a comrade that wintered once with the Huskies, which is pretty much the same thing. An' he said that sometimes when they kill a big seal, they boil it whole an' have a rig'lar feast. Ye must understand, mes garQons, that the Huskies make thumpin* big kittles out o* a kind o' soft stone they find in them parts, an' some o' them's big enough to boil a whole seal in. Well, when the beast is cooked, they take it oat o' the pot, an* while they're tuckin* into it, the dogs come and sit ir:. a ring round the pot to wait till the soup's cool enough to eat. They knows v/ell that it's too hot at first, an' that they must have a deal o' patience ; but afore long some 'o the young uns can't hold on, so they steps up somewhat desperate like, and pokes their \:\ * E ^rjuiaiaux. 64 VNGAVA J I snouts in. Of course they pull^ Uiom out pretty sharp with a 5'cll, and sit down to rub their noses ior a bit longer. Then the old uns take courage an* make a snap at it now and again, but very tenderly, till it gits cooler at last, an* then at it they go, worryin', an* scufflin', an' barkin', an' gallopin', just like Moses there, till the pot's as clean as the day it wos made." ** Ha ! ha ! oh, ver' goot^ tres bien ; ah ! mon coeur, just tres splendiferous ! " shouted La Koche, whose risibility was always easily tickled. "It's quite true, though — isn't it, Moses?*' said Massan, as he once more applied to the kettle, while some of his comrades cut up tiie goose that Frank had shot in the afternoon. " Why, Moses, what a capacity you have for grub ! " said Fran9oi3. " If your countrymen are anything 'ike 5'ou, I don't wonder that they have boiled seals and whales for dinner." " It'll take a screamin' kittle for a whale,'* spluttered Bryan, with his mouth full, "an* a power o' dogs to drink the broth." "You tink you funny, Bryan," retorted Moses, while an oily smile beamed on his fat, good-humoured counte- nance ; " but you not ; you most dreadful stupid." "Thrue for ye, Moses; I was oncommon stupid to let you sit so long beside the kittle," replied the Irish- man, as he made a futile effort to scrape another spoonful from the bottom of it. ** Och ! but ye've licked it as clane as one of yer own dogs could ha* done it." " Mind your eye ! " growled Gaspard, at the same time giving La Roche a violent push, as that volatile worthy, in one of his eccentric movements, nearly upset his can of water. " Oh ! pardon, monsieur," exclaimed La Eoche, in pretended sorrow, at the same time making a grotesque bow that caused a general peal of laughter. ** Why, one might as well travel with a sick bear as with you, Gaspard," said Fran9ois half angrily. i' n UNGAVA 65 !u=s *' Hold 3'Onr Jav/," replied Gaspard. *' Not at your bidding," retorted Frangois, half rising from his reclining posture, while his colour heightened. Gaspard had also started up, and it seemed as if the little camp were in danger of becoming a scene of strife, when Dick Prince, who was habitually silent and unobtrusive, preferring generally to listen rather than to speak, laid his hand on Gaspard's broad shoulder and pulled him somewhat forcibly to the ground. " bhame on you, comrades ! " he said in a low, grave voice, that instantly produced a dead silence ; " shame on you, to quarrel on our first night in the bush ! "We've few enough friends in these parts, I think, that we should make enemies o' each other." " That's well said," cried Massan, in a very decided tone. "It won't do to fall out when there's so few of us." And the stout voyageur thrust his foot against the logs on the fire, causing a rich cloud of sparks to ascend, as if to throw additional li^ht on his remark. ** Pardon me, mes comrades," cried Fran9ois ; ** I did not intend to quarrel ; " and he extended his hand to Gaspard, who took it in silence, and dropping back again to his recumbent posture, resumed his pipe. This little scene was witnessed by the party in the tent, who were near enough to overhear all that was said by the men, and even to converse with them if they should desire to do so. A shade of anxiety crossed Mr. Stanley's countenance, and some time after, recur- ring to the subject, he said, — **I don't feel quite easy about that fellow Gaspard. He seems a sulky dog, and is such a Hercules that he might give us a deal of trouble if he were high-spirited." A slight smile of contempt curled Frank's lip as he said, ** A strong arm without a bold heart is not of more value than that of my Eda here in the hour of danger. But I ihink better of Gaspard than you seem to do. He's a sulky enough dog, 'tis true ; but he is a good hard worker and does not grumble ; and I sometimes have noticed traces of a better spirit than usually meets the il 'I , ' 66 VNOAVA ■M^i. eye. As for his bulk, I think nothing of it ; he wants high spirit to make it available. Francois could thrash him any day." ** Perhaps so," repHed Stanley ; ** I hope they won't try their mettle on each other sooner than we expect. Not that I care a whit for any of the men having a round or two now and then and be done with it ; but this fellow seems to ' nurse his wrath to keep it warm.* On such an expedition as ours, it behoves us to have a good understanding and a kindly feeling in the camp. One black sheep in the flock may do much damage." " He's only piebald, not black," said Frank laughing, as he rose to quit the tent. "But I must leave you. I see thatEda's eyes are refusing to keep open any longer, BO good-night to you all, and a sound sleep." Frank's concluding remarks in reference to him were overheard by Gaspard, who had risen to look at the night, and afterwards kneeled near the tent, in order to be at some distance from his comrades while he said his prayers ; for, strange though it may seem, many of the rough and reckless voyageurs of that country, most of whom are Eoman Catholics, regularly retire each night to kneel and pray beneath a tree before lying down on their leafy couches, and deem the act quite consistent with the swearing and quarrelling life that too many of them lead. Such is human nature ! As Gaspard rose from his knees Frank's words fell upon his ear, and when he drew his blanket over his head that night, there was a softer spot in his heart and a wrinkle less on his brow. When Frank stepped over to the place where his canoe lay, the aspect of the camp was very different from what it had been an hour before. The fire had burned low, and was little more than a mass of glowing embers, from which a fitful flame shot forth now and then, cast- ing a momentary glare on the forms of the men, who, having finished their pipes, were all extended in a row, side by side, under the large canoe. As they possessed only a single green blanket each, they had to make the UNGAVA 67 most of their coverings, by rolling them tightly around their bodies, and doubling the ends down under their feet and over their heads ; so that they resembled a row of green bolsters, all their feet being presented towards the fire, and all their heads resting on their folded capotes. A good deal of loud and regular snoring proved that toil and robust health seldom court the drowsy god long in vain. Turnin l?t ') ' A iii; f M! dl Thus all went favourably for a time. Lut life is a chequered story, and the sun of prosperity does not always shine, as we shall see. One fine mornin[,s as they were paddling; cheerfully along in the neighbourhood of Cape Jones, it struck Mr. Stanley that he might prove the correctness of his sextant and other instruments before entering upon the country which to most of the party waa terra incognita. This was the more necessary that he could not depend on the guidance of Oostesimow and Ma- istequan, they having travelled only once, long ago, through part of the country, while the latter part of it was totally unknown to them. It was one of those beautiful mornings that are pecuhar to arctic regions, when the air is inexpressibly still, and all inanimate nature seems hushed in profound repose — a repose which is rather rendered more effective than otherwise by the plaintive cries of wild-fowl or the occasional puffing of a whale. There was a peculiar brilliancy, too, in the atmosphere, caused by the presence of so many fields and hummocks of white ice, looming fantastically through a thin, dry, gauze-like haze, which, while it did not dim the brightness of the solar rays, lent an additional charm to every object by shrouding it in a veil of mystery. On passing the point the men ceased rowing, and proceeded to solace themselves with a five-minutes* pipe — an indulgence which voyageurs always claim as their due after a long spell at the oars or paddles. " Put ashore here, Massan," said Stanley, turning to the guide ; " I shall take an observation, if possible, and you can set the men to hunt for eggs. We shall want them, as the larder is rather low just now." Massan muttered assent, and, shouting to the other canoe to put ashore, ran alongside the rocks. ''You'd better hail the little canoe," said Stanley, as he landed. "I shall want Mr. Morton to assist me. j» UNaAVA 78 Massau stopped upon an elevated rock, and, shading his eyes with his hands, looked earnestly ahead where he observed the little canoe almost beyond vision, and just going to double a point of land. Transferring his hands to his mouth, he used them as a trumpet, and gave forth a shout the like of which had never startled the echoes of the place before. " It's no use, sir," said Massan ; "he's past hearin'. I'm afeered that they're off in the direction o' the White Bear Hills, in hopes o' gittin' a shot." "Try again, Massan," urged Stanley; "raise your pipe a little higher. Perhaps it will reach them." Massan shook his head. " Try it, Bryan," he said, turning to the Irishman, who was sitting on a rock leisurely filling his short black pipe. "Is it to halloo ye want me?" rcpHed Bryan, rising. " Shure the great gun of Athlone itself could niver hold a candle to ye, Massan, at yellin' ; but I'll try, anyhow ; " and putting his hands to his mouth he gave forth a roar compared to which Massan's was nothing. There was a sort of crack in the tone of it, however, that was so irresistibly ridiculous that the whole party burst incontinently into a fit of laughter. Loud though it was, it failed to reach the ears of those in the little canoe, which in a few seconds doubled the point and disappeared. "Ah, bad luck to it ! " said Bryan, in disgust ; " the pipe's damaged intirely. Small pace to ye, Bob Mahone ; for shure it was howlin' and screechin' at your wake like a born scrandighowl that broke it." " Never mind, my lad ; what remains of it is not bad," said Stanley, laughing, as he proceeded to open the box containing his scientific instruments. Meanwhile his wife and Edith wandered along the rocks picking up shells and pebbles ; and the men dispersed, some to smoke and chat, others to search for eggs. Bi-yan and La Boche, who were both aspiring geniuses, and had formed a sort of rough attachment to each other, asked permission to take a vv'alk to the III \'i- ii 15 74 UNGAVA ,! i!i point ahead, where they would wait for tho canoes. Having obtained it, they sot off at a good round pace, that would have been " throul)lesome to kapo up," as Bryan remarked, " with payse in yer shoes ! " " Why you come for to jino do company? " inquired La Eoche, as they jogged along. "Why? bekaso I'd nothin' else to do, as tho ould song says. Ye see, Losh " (Bryan had invented a con- traction for his friend's name, which ho said was " con- vanient ") — " ye see, Losh, there may be more nor wan raison for a gintleman lavin' his native land in order to thravel in furrin parts. It's thrue I had nothin' in the univarse to do, for I could niver git work nohov/, an' whin I got it I could niver kape it. I niver could onderstan' why, but so it was. Nivertheless I managed to live well enough in the ould cabin wid the mur- phies — " *' Vat is murphies? " inquired La Roche. ** Bhss yer innocent face, don't ye know it's praties ? " "'Tisyat?" "Praties, boy, or pit-taties, if I must be partic'lar." '* Ah ! goot, goot, I understau' — pettitoes. Oui, oui, ve call hiin. ponwie de tcrre.'' '* Hum ! well, as I was sayin', I got on pretty well wid the pumdeterrcs an' the pig, but the pig died wan day — choked hisself on a murphy — that is, a pumble- terre ; an' more betoken, it was the last murphy in the house, a powerful big wan that my grandmother had put by for supper. After this ivery thin' wint to smithereens. The rot came, and I thought I should have to list for a sodgfer. AVell, Bob Mahone died o' dhrink and starvation, an' we had a beautiful wake; but there was a rog'lar shindy got up, an' two or three o' the county p'lice misbehaved themselves, so I jist floored them all, wan after the other, an' bolted. Well, I wint straight to Dublin, an' there I met with an ould friend who was the skipper o' a ship bound for New York. Says ne, 'Bryan, will ye go?' Says I, *Av coorse ; ' an' shure enough I wint, an' got over the say .1' w r « UNOAVA 75 1, d to '^reriky. But I couM niver scttlo down, bo, wan way or another, I came at last to Montreal and ji'ied the Company; an' afthcr knockin' about in tbo Colum- bia and Mackenzics Eivcr for sonic years, I was sint to Moose, an* here I am, Losh, yer sarvant to command." " Goot, ver* goot, mais pccnliaire," said La Iloche, whose intimacy with this son of Erin had enabled him to comprehend enough of his jargon to grasp tho general scope of his discourse. ** Av ye mane that lavin* the ould country was goot,** said Bryan, stooping to pick up a stone and skim it along the smooth surface of the sea, "p'raps ye're right; but there's wan thing I niver could make my mmd aisy about," and the blacksmith's voice became deep and his face grave as he recalled these bygone days. *' Vat were dat ? " inquired La Roche. " Why, you see, Losh, I was so hard druve ly the p'lice that I was forced to lave wid-out sayin' good day to my ould mother, an* they tould me it almost broke her heart ; but I've had wan or two screeds from the priest wid her cross at them since, and she's got over it, an' lookin' out for my returnin' — bless her sowl ! — an' I've sint her five pounds ivery year since I left : so ye see, Losh, I've great hope o' seein* her yit, for although she's ould she's oncommon tough, an* having come o' a long-winded stock, I've great hopes of her." Poor Bryan ! it never entered into his reckless brain to think that, considering the life of almost constant peril he led in the land of his pilgrimage, there was more hope of the longevity of his old mother than of himself. Like many of his countrymen, he was a man of strong, passionate, warm feelings, and remarkably unselfish. "Is your contry resemblance to dat?" inquired La Koche, pointing, as he spoke, towards the sea, which was covered with fields and mountains of ice as tar out as the eye could discern. m % iV p. u 78 UNGAVA :h :' *' i i '•'! "Bo the nose o' my grcat-grandmothcr (an* that was be no means a short wan) no ! " repHed Bryan, with a laugh. " The say that surrounds ould Ireland is niver covered with sich sugar-plums as these. But what have we here? " As he spoke they reached the point at which they were to await the coming up of the canoes, and the object which called forth Bryan's remark was the little canoe, which lay empty on the beach just beyond the point. From the manner in which it lay it was evident that Frank and his Indians had placed it there; but there was no sign of their presence save one or two footprints on the sand. While La Boche was exam- ining these, his companion 'valked towards a point of rock that jutted out from the cliUs and intercepted the view beyond. On turning round this, he became suddenly rooted to the spot with horror. And little wonder, for just two yards before him stood an enormous polar bear, whose career was suddenly arrested by Bryan's unexpected appearance. It is dilBcult to say whether the man or the beast expressed most surprise at the rencounter. They both stood stock still, and opened their eyes to the utmost width. But the poor Irishman was evidently petrified by the apparition. He turned deadly pale, and his hands hung idly by his sides ; while the bear, recovering from his surprise, roce on his hind legs and walked up to him — a sure sign that he was quite undaunted, and had made up his mind to give battle. As for La Boche, the instant he cast his eyes on the ferocious- looking quadruped, he uttered a frightful yell, bounded towards a neighbouring tree, and ceased not to ascend until its topmost branches were bending beneath his weight. Meanwhile the bear w^alked up to Bryan, but not meetmg with the anticipated grapple of an enemy, and feeling somewhat uneasy under the cataleptic stare of the poor man's eyes — for he still stood petrified with horror — it walked slowly round him, putting its cold nose on his cheek, as ix to tempt him to move. But !ft I f.l 1 il- VNGAVA 77 the five minutes of bewilderment that always preceded ]3ryan's recovery from » sudden fright had not yet expired. He still remained perfectly motionless, so that the bear, disdaining, apparently, to attack an unresisting foe, dropped on his fore legs again. It is difficult to say whether there is any truth in the well- known opinion that the calm, steadj^ gaze of a human eye (^an quell any anim.al. Doubtless there are many Ktori(?s, more or less authentic, corroborative of the fact ; but whether this be true or not, we are ready to vouch for the truth of this fact — namely, that under the influence of the blacksmith's gaze, or his silence it may be, the bear was absolutely discomfited. It retraced a step or two, and walked slowly away, looking over its shoulder now and then as it went, as if it half anticipated an onslaught in the rear. We have already said that Bryan was no craven, and that when his faculties were collected he usually dis- played a good deal of reckless valour on occasions of danger. Accordingly, no sooner did he see his shaggy adversary in full retreat, than the truant blood re- turned to his face with a degree of violence that caused it to blaze with fiery red, and swelled the large veins of his neck and forehead almost to bursting. Uttering a truly Irish halloo, he bounded forward like a tiger, tore the cap oft* his head and flung it violently before him, drew the axe which always hung at his belt, and in another moment stood face to face with the white monster, which had instantly accepted the challenge, and rose on its hind legs to receive him. Eaising the axe with both hands, the man aimed a blow at the bear's head ; but with a rapid movement of its pa\7 it turned the weapon aside and dashed it into the air. Another such blow, and the reckless blacksmith's career would have been brought to an abrupt conclusion, when the crack of a rifle was heard. Its echo reverberated along the cliffs and floated over the calm water as the polar bear fell dead at Bryan's feet. ** Hurrah ! " shouted Frank Morton, as he sprang !^ ! r: I ill il; ■;'i I'l 78 UNGAVA from the bushes, knife in hand, ready to finish the work which his rifle had so well begun. But it needed not. Frank had hit the exact spot behind the ear which renders a second ball unnecessary — the bear was already quite dead. 1 ,s ) '^ f'ii CHArTER IX A STORM BREWING — IT BURSTS, AND PRODUCES CON- SEQUENCES — THE PARTY TAKE TO THE WATER PER FORCE — ALL SAVED " Ah, Bryan ! * a friend in need is a friend indeed,' " said Frank, as he sat on a rock watching the blacksmith and his two Indians while they performed the operation of skinning the bear, whose timely destruction has been related in the last chapter. ** I must say I never saw a man stand his ground so well, with a brute like that stealing kisses from his cheek. Were they sweet, Bryan? Did they remind you of the fair maid of Derry, hey?" "Ah! thrue for yc," replied the blacksmith, as he stepped to a rock for the purpose of whetting his knife ; " yer honor was just in time to save me a power o* throuble. Bad skran to the baste ! it would have taken three or four rounds at laste to have finished him nately off, for there's no end o' fat on his ribs that would have kep' the knife from goin' far in." Frank laughed at this free-and-easy way of looking at it. " So you think you would have killed him, do you, if I had not saved you the trouble ? " ** Av coorse I do. Shure a man is better than a baste any day ; and besides, had I not a frind at my back ridy to help me ? " Bryan cast a comical leer at La Eoche a3 he said this, and tlie poor Frenchman 79 80 UNGAVA blnshed, for 1]G felt that his conduct in the affair had not been very praiseworthy. It is due to La Eoche to say, however, that no sooner had he found himself at the top of the tree, and had a moment to reflect, than he slid rapidly to the bottom again, and ran to the assistance of his friend, not, however, in time to render such assistance available, as he came up just at the moment the bear fell. In half-an-hour afterwards the two large canoes came up, and Bryan and his little friend had to undergo a rapid fire of witticism from their surprised and highly- amused comrades. Even Moses was stirred up to say that ** Bryan, him dopratty well ; he most good 'null to make an Eskimo ! " Having embarked the skin of the bear, the canoes once more resumed their usual order and continued on their way. The carcass of tlie bear being useless for food, was left for the wolves ; and the claws, which were nearly as large as a man's finger, were given by Frank to the blacksmith, tliat he might make them into a necklace, as the Indians do, and keep it in re- membrance of his rencounter. But the weather v/as now beginning to change. Dick Prince, whose black eye w^as ever roving about obser- vantly, told Massan that a storm was brewing, and that the sooner he put ashore in a convenient spot the better. But Stanley was anxious to get on. Laving a long journey before him, at the termination of which there would be little enough time to erect a sufficient protec- tion against the winter of the north ; so he continued to advance along shore until they came to a point be;yond which there was a very deep bay that would take them many hours to coast. By making a traverse, however, in a direct line to the next point, they might cross it in a much shorter time. '* How say you. Prince ? shall we cross ? " asked Stan- ley, as they rested on their paddles and cast furtive glances up at the dark clouds and across the still quiet bay. UNGAVA 81 in Gt Prince shook his head. " I fear we won't have time to cross. The clouds are driving too fast and growin' black." '* Well, then, we had better encamp," said Stanley. — "Is there a proper place, Massan, hereabouts?" "No, sir," replied the guide. "The stones on the beach are the only pillows within six mile o' us." " Ho ! then, forward, boys, make a bold push for it," cried Stanley; "if it does begin to blow before we're over, we can run back again at all events." In another moment the canoes swept out to sea, and made for the point far ahead like race-horses. Although the clouds continued to gather, the wind did not rise, and it seemed as though they would get over easily, when a sudden gust came oif the shore — a direction whence, from the appearance of the clouds, it had not been expectev.1. Piuffling the surface of the water for a few seconds, it passed away. " Give way, boys, give way," cried Massan, using his large steering paddle with a degree of energy that sent the canoe plunging forward. " We can't go back, an' if the storm bursts off the shore " A loud peal of thunder drowned the remainder of the sentence, and in a few seconds the wind that had been dreaded came whistling violently off the shore and covered the sea with foam. The waves soon began to rise, and ere long the frail barks, which were ill cal- culated to weather a storm, were careering over them and shipping water at every plunge. It now became a matter of life and death with them that they should gain the point, for, deeply looded as they were, it was impossible that thev ;ould float long in such a sea. It is true that a wina off the shore does not usually raise what sailors would consider m.uchof a sea ; but it must be remembered that, although it was off shore, the bay which they were crossing extended far inland, so that the gale had a wide sweep of water to act upon before it reached them. Besides this, as has already been explained, canoes arc not like boats. Their 82 UNGAVA timbers are weak, the bark of which they are made is thin, the gum which makes their seams tight is easily kn:..;kecl off in cold water, and, in short, they cannot i'dcj-. a sea on which a boat might ride like a sea-gull. ■b'or a considerable time the men strained every nerve to gain the wished-for point of land, but with so little success that it became evident they would never reach it. The men began to show signs of flagging, and cast uneasy glances towards Stanley, as if they had lost all hope of accomplishing their object, and waited for him to suggest what they should do. Poor Mrs. Stanley sat holdmg on to the gunw^ale with one hand and clasping Edith round the waist with the other, as she gazed wistfully towards the cape ahead, which was now almost lost to view under the shadow of a dark cloud that rolled towards them like a black pall laden wdth destruction. " God help us ! " murmured Stanley, in an undertone, as he scanned the seaward horizon, which was covered with leaden clouds and streaks of lurid light, beneath T.liich the foaming sea leaped furiously. ** Call upon Mo in the time of trouble, and I will deliver thee," said I\Irs. Stanley, who overheard the exclamation. Stanley either heard her not or his mind was too deeply concentrated on the critical nature of their posi- tion to make any reply. As she buried her face in her hands, Edith threw her trembling arms round her mother and hid her face in her bosom. Even Chimo seemed to understairl their danger, for he crept closer to the side of his young mistress and whined in a low tone, as if in sympathy. The waves had now increased to such a degree that it required two of the men to bail incessantly in order to prevent their being swamped, and as Stanley cast a hurried glance at the other canoes, which were not far off, he observed that it was as much as they could do to keep afloat. '' Could we not run back, Massan ? " asked Stanley, in des^xiir. " Unposs'ble, sir," replied the guide, whose voice was I": \ UNGAVA 83 11 1 ,) almost drowned by the whistling of the wind. " We're more nor half-way over, an' it would only blow us farther out to sea if we was to try." While the guido spoke, Stanley y/as gazing earnestly in the direction of the horizon. " Round with you, Massan," he exclaimed suddenly ; *' put the canoe about and paddle straight out to sea — Hallo I " he shouted to the other canoes, *' follow us out to sea — straight out." The men looked aghast at this extraordinary order. "Look alive, lads," continued their leader; " I sec an island away there to leeward. Perhaps it's only a rock, but any way it's our only chance." The canoes' heads were turned round, and in another moment they were driving sv/ifLly before the wind in the direction of the open sea. ** Right, right," murmured Dick Prince, as they made towards this new source of hope ; ** mayhap it's only a bit o' ice, but even that's better than nothin'." ** If 'tis only ice," cried La Roche, *' ve have ver' pauvre chance at all." '* Shure an' if we are to go ashore at all, at all," said Bryan, whose spirits had suddenly risen with this gleam of hope from fifty degrees belov/ to fifty above zero — "if we are to go ashore at all, at all, it's better to land on the ice than on the wather." With such a breeze urging them on, iiie tree canoes soon approached what appeared to be a low sand-bank, on which the sea was dashing m white foam. But from the tossing of the waves between them and the beach, it was difficult to form a conjecture as to its size. Indeed, at times they could scarcely see it at all, owing to the darkness of the day and the heavy rain w^hich began to fall just as they approached ; and more than once Stanley's heart sank when he lost sight of the bank, and he began to think that he had made a mis- take, and that they were actually flying out to the deep sea, in which case all hope would be gone for ever. But God's mercy was extended to them in this hour of 84 UNGAVA peril. The island appeared to grow larger as they nearcd it, and at last they were within a stone's-throw o£ the shore. But a new danger assailed thcni here. The largest canoe, which neared the island first, had begun to leak, and took in water so fast that the utmost efforts of those who bailed could not keep it under, and from the quantity that was now shipped they made very little way. To add to the horror of the scene, the sky became very dark, and another crash of thunder pealed forth accompanied by a blinding 'J* oiD of lightning. " Paddle, boys, paddle for j-our lives ! " cried Stanley, throwing off his coat and seizing a tin dish, with \Yhich he began to throw out the water. The canoe rose on a hir.ro w;ive which broke all round it. This nearly filled it with water, r.nd carried it towards the shore v/ith such velocity that it seemed as if they should be dashed in pieces ; but they fell back into the trough of the sea, and lay motionless like a heavy log and in a sinking condition. ** Now, lads, look out for the next wave and give WMy with a will," cried Massan. The worthy stcors- nian acted rather too energetically on his own advice, for he dipped his paddle with such force that it snapped in two. *' Be ready to jump out," cried Dick Prince, standing up in the bow in order to give more power to his strokes. As he ppoke, Stanley turned to his wife and said, *' Jessie, hold on by my collar ; I'll take Eda in my arms." At that instant the canoe gave a lurch, and before Stanley could grasp his child, they were all struggling in the sea ! At this awful moment, instead of endeavouring to do as her husband directed, Mrs. Stanley instinctively threw her arms around Edith, and vv^hile iho waves vvcro boiling over her she clasped the child tightly to her bosom with her left arm, while with her right bhe endoavoun'd to raise herself to the surface. Twice she succeeded, and twice she sank, when a box i' VNGAVA 85 of merchandise providentially'' struck her arm. Seizin^* this, she raised liciT.olf above tlio water, and poor Edith gasped convulsively once or twice for air. Then the box was wrenched from her grasp by a wave, and with a wild shricik slie sank again. Just tlien a strong arm was thrown around her, her feet touched tlie ground, and in a few seconds she was dragged violently from the roaring weaves and fell exhausted on the beach. " Thanks be to God w^e arc saved ! " murmured i\rrs. Stanley, as her hu^b.ind assisted her to rise and led her beyond the reach of the waves, while l*]dith still clung with a deadly grasp to her mother's neck. ** Ay, Jessie, tliank God indeed ! But for Ilis mercy we should have all been lost. I was floundering about beside the canoe when your scream showed me where you were, and enabled me to save you. But rest hero, in the lee of this bale. I cannot stay by you. Frank is in danger still." Without Tvaiting for a reply, he sprang from her side and hurried down to the beach. Here everything was in the utmost confusion. The two large canoes had been saved and dragged out of the reach of the waves, and the men were struggling in the boiling surf to rescue the baggage and provisions, on which latter their very lives depended. As Stanley reached the scene of action, he observed several of the men watch- ing the small canoe wdiich contained Frank and his tw^o Indians. It had been left some distance behind by the others, and was now approaching with arrow speed on the summit of a large wave. Suddenly the top of the billow curled over, and in another moment the canoe was turned bottom up ! Like a corl: it danced on the wave's white crest, then falling beneath the thundering mass of water, it was crushed to pieces and cast empty upon the beach. But Frank and his men swam like otters, and the party on shore watched them with anxious looks as they breasted manfully over the billows. At last a towering wave came rolling majestically forward. It caught the three swimmert!- ^iM -ii kM m 66 UNOAVA in its rough embrace, and carryinpj ihcm alonp; on its crest launched them on the beach, where it left them Btrugghng with the retreating water. Those who have bathed in rough weather on an exposed coast know well how difficult it is to regain a firm footing on loose Band while a heavy wave is sweeping backward into its parent ocean. Frank and the two Indians experienced this ; and they might have struggled there till their strength had been exhausted, were it not for Stanley, Prince, and Massan, who rushed simultaneously into the water and rescued them. As the whole party had now, by the goodness of God, reached the land in safety, they turned tlieir undivided energies towards the bales and boxes which were roll- ing about in the surf. IMany of these had been already collected, and Vy'ero carried to the spot where Mrs. Stanley and Edith lay under the shelter of a bale. As the things were successively brought up they were piled around the mother and child, who soon found themselves pretty wcl! Bhelterod from the wind, though not from the rain, which still fell in torrents. Soon after Frank came to them and said that all the things were saved, and that it was time to think of getting up some sort of shelter for the night. This was very much needed, for poor Edith was beginning to shiver from the wet and cold. *'Now then, Francois, Ma=?san," shouted Frank, " lend a hand here to build a house for Ed a. We'll be all as snucf as need be in a few minutes." Despite the cold and her recent terror, the poor child could not help smiling at the idea of building a house in a few minutes, and it was with no little curiosity that she watched the operations of the men. IMeanwhile Mr. Stanley brought some wine in a pannikin, and made Edith and his wife drink a little. This revived them greatly, and as the rain had now almost ceased they rose and endeavoured to wring the water out of their garments. In less than half-an-hour the men piled the bales and boxes in front of the largest canoe, * 1 UNOAVA 67 which wafj turned bottom up, and secured firnil;, in that position by an embankment of sand. Over the top of nil three oilcloths were spread and lashed down, thus forming a complete shelter, large enough to contain tho wholo party. At one end of this curious house Mr. Stanley made a separate apartment for his wife and child, by placing two largo bales and a box as a parti- tion ; and within this little space Edith soon became very busy in arranging things, and " putting the house to rights," as she said, as long as the daylight lasted, for after it went away they had neither candles nor fu'o, as tho former had been soaked and broken, and as for the latter no wood could bo found on the island. Tho men's clothes were, of course, quite wet, so they cut open a bale of blankets, which had not been so muclj Boaked as the other goods, having been among the hrst things that were washed ashore. At the time they were wrecked the dashing spray and the heavy rain, together with the darkncps of tho day, had prevented the shipwrecked voyagcrrs trom ascertaining the nature of the island on which they had been cast ; and as the night closed in while they wercs yet engaged in the erection of their temporary shelter, they had to lie down to rest in ignorance on this point. After such a day of unusual fatigue and excitement, they all felt more inclined for rest than food ; so, instead of taking supper, they all lay down huddled to- gether under the canoe, and slept soundly, while the angry winds whistled round them, and the great sea roared and l:t5;hcd itself into foam on the beach, as if disappointed that the little band of adventurers had escaped and were now beyond the roach of its impotent fury. ( !■ I .1 .^-. ^"^a. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) /. ,^ <; ^o 1.0 I.I 12.8 1 2.5 u^ m Hi Ul ■ 40 I 2.2 2.0 1.8 1.25 1.4 IIIII..6 < 6" ► Photographic Sciences CorpoiBuDn 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 '^.V^ ^ <;5^ /h. r 1^ CIIArTEL. X rUE SAXD-BANK— DIST.IAL monrECTFJ - C0X.SULTATI0X3 —INTERNAL AUllAN'JEMENTJi EXPOSED AND DE- tail]:d Of all the clianfjes that constantly vary the face of nature, the calm that succeeds a storm is one of the most beautiful, and the most agreeable, perhaps, to the feelings of man. Few conditions of nature convey to the mmd more thorouglily the idea of complete repose — of deep rest after mortal strife, of sleep after ex- hausting toil ; and those who have passed through the violence of the storm and done battle with its dangers are, by the physical rest which they enjoy after it is over, the more litted to appreciate and sympathise with the repose which reigns around them. ^Yhen the sun rose, on the morning after the storm, it shone upon a scene so calm and beautiful, so utterly unconnected with anything like tlie sin of a fallen world, and so typical, in its deep tranquillity, of the mind of Him who created it, that it seemed almost possible for a moment to fancy that the promised land was gained at last, and that all the dark clouds, the storms Lud dangers, the weary journeyings and the troubles of the wilderness, were past and gone for ever. So glorious was the scene that when ]']dith, rising fr'^ra her rude couch and stepping over the prostrate forms of her still slumbering companions, issued from the shelter of the canoe and cast her eyes abroad upon the bo VNGAVA 80 glassy fioa, tlie coukl nf)t restrain lirr foelings, and uttered a thrillinp^ Khout of joy tliat lloatod over tlic waters and rcverljerated among tlie glittering crags of the surrounding icebergs. The island on which the travellers had b^en cast was a mere knoll of sand, not more than a fi'W hundred j-ards in circumference, that scarcely raised its rounded fmmmit above the level of the water, and at full tide was reduced to a mere speck, utterly destitute of vege- tation. The sea around it was now smooth and clear as glass, thoufrli undulated by a long, regular swell, which rolled, at slow, solemn iiitervals, in majestic wavi;s to- wards the sand-bank, where they hovered for a moment in curved walls of dark-green water, then, lipping over at their crests, fell in a roar of foam that hissed a deep high on the pebbles of the beach, and left the silence greater than before. IMasses of ice floated here and there on the surface of the deep, the edges and fantastic points of which were tipped with light. Not far from the northern extremity of the sand-bank a large iceberg had grounded, from the sides of which several pinnael(;s had been hurled by the shock and now lay stranded on the beach. The shout with which Edith had w'elcomed the morn- ing roused the whole party, and in a few minutes they were all assembled outside of their little hut, some admiring the scene, others — of a less enthusiastic and more practical turn — examining the circumstances of their position, and considering the best course that should be pursued in their dilficulty. Mr. Stanley, Dick Prince, and T^Iassan, as was their wont, held a council upon the existing state of things, and after nmch gazing round at the sea and up at the sky, and considerable grunting of his deep voice and rubbing of his capacious chin, on the part of the latter, he turned to Dick Prince, as if apx^ealiug to his superior sagacity, and said — "Well, ye see, my 'pinion's jist this: yonder's the mainland there " (pointing to the eastward, w here, I l\ 00 UNGAVA I about ten miles distant, the rocks ancl trees were seen distorted and faintly looming through a tremulous haze), " an' there's our canoes there " (jerking his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the large canoes, whose torn sides and damaged ribs, as they lay exposed on the sand, bore sad testimony to the violence of the previous night's storm), "and there's the little canoe yonder" (glancing toward the craft in question, which lay on the beach a hopelessly-destroyed mass of splinters and shreds of bark that projected and bristled in all directions, as if in uncontrollable amazement at the suddenness and entirety of its own destruction). *' Now, that bein' the case, an* the baggage all wet, an' the day parfitly beautiful, an' the sun about hot enough to bile the sea, we can't do better nor stay where we arc an* mend the canoes, dry the goods, an' start fair to-morrow mornin*." Stanley looked at Prince, as if expecting a remark from him; but the grave countenance of the silent bowman indicated that ho was absorbed in contem- plation. ** 'Tis quite evident, Massan,** said Stanley, " that we must repair the canoes ; but a few hours could do that, and I don't like the idea of staying another night on a strip of sand like this, which, I verily believe, another stiff nor'-wester would blow away altogether. — But what say you, Prince ? Do you advise our remaining ? " "Yes," replied Dick, "I do. Ye r.no, there's no fear of anoliu.'r storm soon. 'Tis a good cliance for dry in' the goods, so I vote for stoppin*." " Well, then, we shall stay," replied Stanley. "To say truth, I agreed with you at first, Massan, but it's always advisable to look at both sides of a ques- tion " "Yes, and *in the multitude of counsellors there is wisdom,' " said Frank Morton, coming up at the moment, and tapping his friend on the shoulder. " If you will include me in your confabulation, you shall UNOAVA 61 have tliG benefit of deep experience and far-sighted sagacity." ** Come, then, Master I'Vank," roph'ed Stanley, *' what does your sagacity advise on the point of our staying on this sand-bank? Shall \vc spend another night on it in order to dry the goods, or shall we up and away to terra finiui as soua as the canoes are seaworthy?" "Stay, of course," said Frank. "As to the sand- bank, 'tis firm enough, to my mind, after resisting the shock of the v/avc that dashed me ashore last night. Then, we have evcr^'lhing we need — shelter and food, and even fuel." As Frank mentioned the last word, ho glanced round with a rueful countenance and pointed to the bark and timbers of his broken canoe. " True, Frank, we have wherewith to boil the kettle, and as the water-cask was full when we started yester- day morning, there will be enough at least for one or two days." "By the way, that reminds mo that Eda and your wife are particularly desirous of having breakfast," said Frank. " In fact they sent me specially to lay their melancholy case before you; and I have great fears that Eda will lay violent hands on the raw pork if her morning meal is delayed much longer. As for Chirao, he is rushing about the island in a state of ravenous despair ; so pray let us be going." " Be it so, Frank," said Stanley, taking his friend's arm, and sauntering towards the canoe, while Massan and Prince went to inform their comrades of the deter- mination of their leader. 'In an hour after the above discourse breakfast was over, and the men, under Stanley's inspection, arranged and examined the baggage, which, considering that it had been rolled about by the surf for a considerable time, was not so much soaked as might have been ex- Eccted. The two kegs of gunpowder were first inspected, eing the most valuable part of the cargo, as on them depended much of their future livelihood. They were . Ij m t:1 !] ;;i! 1. 1 r' ) i i i Mki 9a VKGAVA fonnd to bo qiiile dry, except a Rinall portion of powder at the seams of the staves, which, having caked with the moisture, had saved the rest from damage. Some of the bales, however, containing knives and other hardware, were very wet, and had to be opened out and their con- tents wiped and spread out to dry. Blankets, too, u;nd other woollen garments that had suffered, ;vere also spread out on the sand, so that in a short time the little island was quite covered with a strange assortment of miscellaneous articles, that gave to it the appearance of a crowded store. The entire wealth of the fur-traders was now exposed to view, and it may perhaps be inter- esting to enumerate the different articles, in order to give some idea of the outfit deemed necessary on such an expedition. And, first, there were two kr'gs of gunpowder, as before mentioned, containing each thirty pounds, with four bags of ball and three of sliot of various sizes — in all, about 250 pounds of lead. Six nets of four and a half inch mesh. A large quantity of twine for making nets — most of the men being able to construct these useful articles. A small bag of gun-flints. Sixty pounds of roll tobacco. Twelve large axes. Six augers. Seven dozen scalping-knives. Six pounds of variously- coloured beads. Two dozen fire-steels, and a pretty large assortment of awls, needles, thread, nails, and such like small articles, which, though extremely useful, were too numerous and comparatively insigniiicant to mention in detail. Besides these, there was a small bale containing gaudy ornaments and attractive articles, which were intended as propitiatory presents to the Esquimaux when they should be met with. Then there were two runlets of soJt pork, containing about ninety pounds each, and in the centre of each runlet were two hams. A barrel of Hour and a barrel of oat- meal constituted all their provisions, if we except a small cask of hard biscuit, and a little tea and sugar, which were the private property of Stanley and Frank Morton. There was also a large deerskin tent, capable UNGA VA f,1 of holding from twenty to thirty men, which "^vas in- tended to be used while they were engaged in buildinp; their winter residence at Ungava, As to arms, each man had one of the long single-barrelled fowling-pieces that are supplied by the Fur Company to the natives, and are styled Indian guns. Stanley had a double- barroUed flint fowling-piece ; and Frank had a rifle, besides a single gun of a description somewhat finer than that supplied to the Indians. Of course each man carried a scalping-knife and an axe in his belt, not for the purpose of self-defence, but for carving their food and cutting their fuel. It may be well to remark here tliat the goods and provisions which we have detailed above were merely intended as a supply for their imTncdiate necessities, and to enable them to commence active operations at once on arriving at their destination, while the heavy stores and goods necessary for the year's trade were to be forwarded in a small sloop from the depot direct through Hudson's Straits to Ungava Bay. When the work of unpacking and exposing the things to dry in the sun was accomplished, it was long past noon, and high time for dinner, so a fire wha liglited by 13 r van, who cut up another portion of Frank's canoe for tlie purpose. A rasher of pork and a flour cake w-crc disposed of by each of tlio party in a surprisingly sliort time, and then the men bestirred themselves in mending the canoes. This was a more troublesome job than they expected, but being accus- tomed not only to mend but to make canoes, they worked with a degree of skill and dihgence that speedily put all to rights. In Hassan's canoe there was a hole large enough, as Brj^an remarked, to stick his head through, though it v/as a " big wan, an' no mistake." Taking up a roll of bark, which was carried with them for the purpose, Massan cut from it a square patch, which ho sewed over the hole, using an awl for a needle and the fibrous roots of the pine-tree, called wattape, for threc^d. After it was firmly sewed on, the n 04 UNOAVA seams were covered with niGltcd gum, and the broken spot was as tight and strong as ever. There were next found several long shts, one of them fully three feet, which were more easily managed, as they merely re- quired to be sewed and covered with gum. Several broken ribs, however, were not so easily repaired. Had there been any wood on the island, Hassan's quick knife would have soon fashioned new ribs ; as it was, he had to make the best job he could, by splicing the old ones with several pieces abstracted from Frank's little canoe. It was sunset before all was put in complete order, the goods repacked, and placed in readiness for a start at daybreak on the following morning. After all was done, the remains of the small canoe were converted into a bonfire, round which the tired and hungry travellers assembled to smoke and chat, while supper was being prepared by the indefatigable Bryan and his friend La Eoche. As the day faded away the stars came out, one by one, until thej' glittered in millions in the sky, while the glare of the fire became every moment more and more intense as the darkness deepened. It was a strange, wild scene — especially when viewed from the extremity of the little sand- bank, which was so low as to be almost indiscernible in the dark night, and seemed scarce a sufficient foun- dation for the little busy group of human beings who stood radiant in the red light of their camp-fire, like a blazing gem cast upon the surface of the great cold sea. m CHAPTER XI START AFREGH — SUPERSTITIOUS NOTIONS— THE WHIRL- POOL — THE INTERIOR — WISHING IN THE OLD WAY ON NEW GROUND, AND WHAT CAME OF IT — A COLD BATH — THE RESCUE — SAVED — DEEPER AND DEEPER INTO THE WILDERNESS As if to make amends for its late outrageous conduct, the weather, after the night of the great storm, con- tinued unbrokenly serene for many days, enabhng our travellers to make rapid progress towards their destina- tion. It would be both tiresome and unnecessary to follow them step by step throughout their journey, as the part of it which we have already described was, in many respects, t5rpical of the whole voyage along the east coast of Hudson's Bay. Sometimes, indeed, a few incidents of an unusual charac -r did occur. Once they were very nearly being crushed jetween masses cf ice ; twice the larger canoe struck on a hummock, and had to be landed and repaired ; and frequently mis- baps of a shghter nature befell them. Their beds, too, varied occasionally. At one time they laid them down to rest on the sand of the sea-shore ; at another, on the soft turf and springy moss of the woods. Some- times they were compelled to content themselves with a couch of pebbles, few of which were smaller than a man's fist ; and, not unfrequently, they had to make the best they could of a flat rock, whose unyielding surface seemed to put the idea of anything like rest to 95 iii IE t ■ 4': 1 1* i 1 1'. • '! 9fi UNGA VA ( , 1.1 ; ■M I flight, causin<4 the thin men of the party to prowl and the fat ones to chuckle, l^ryan was one of the well- favoured, hcAUff round and ilcshy ; while his poor little friend La lioclie poisesscd a frameworlc of ])oncs that were so sparin^^ly covered with softer suh^tance, as to render it a matter of wonder how he and the stones could compromise the matter at all, and called forth from his friend frequent impertinent allusions to " thrid-papers, hags o' hones, id^cs o' knives, half fathoms o' pump water," and sncli like curious suh- stances. But whatever the hed, it invariahly turned out that tlie whole party slept soundly from the time they lay down till the time of rising, which was usually at the hrcak of day. Owing to the little Indian canoe having been wrecked on the sand-bank, Frank and his men had to embark in the smaller of the large canoes, a change which was in some respects a disadvantage to the party, as Frank could not now so readily dash away in pur- suit of game. However, this did not much matter, as, in a few days afterwards, they arrived at the mouth of the river by which they intended to penetrate into the interior of the country. The name of the river is Deer Eiver, and it Hows into Kichmond Gulf, which is situated on the east shore of Hudson's Bay, in lat. 5G° N. Richmond Gulf is twenty miles long, and about the same in breadth ; but the entrance to it is so narrow that the tide pours into it like a torrent until it is full. The pent-up waters then rush out on one side of this narrow inlet while they are running in at the other, causing a vv^hirlpool which w'ould engulf a large boat and greatly endanger even a small vessel. Of course it was out of the question to attempt the pas- sage of such a vortex in canoes, except at half flood or half ebb tide, at which periods tho waters become quiet. On arriving at the mouth of the gulf, the travellers found the tide out, and the entrance to it curling and rolling in massive volumes, as if all the evil w^ater-spirits of the north were holding their orgies it e it le ■es UNOAVA 07 there. Oostcsimow and Ma-istcquan, Ixing by nature and education inteusoly superstitiour., told Stanley — after they had landed to await the lluw of the tide — that it was absolutely necessary to perform certain ceremonies in order to propitiate the deities of the place, otherwise they could not expect to pass such an awful whirlpool in safety. Their leader smiled, and told them to do as they thought fit, adding, however, that he would not join them, as ho did not brlicvo in any deities wliatovcu", except tlio one true God, whcj did not require to be propitiated in any way, and could not bo moved by any other means tlum by prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. The red men seemed sur- priscd a little at this, but, with their proverbial stoicism, refrained from any further or more decided expression of feeling. Nevertheless, the Indians sufficiently showed their faith in their own dooLrines by immediately setting about a series of curious and elaborato ceremonier.;, which it was impossible to comprehend, and decidedly unprofitable to describe. They appeared, however, to attach much importance to their propitiatory offerings, the chief among which seemed to be a few inches of tobacco, with which it was fondly hoped the deities of the gulf would condescend to smoke the pipe of peace while their red children ventured to trespass a little on their domain ; and hard indeed must have been the hearts of the said spirits had they refused so valuable an offering, for tobacco is the life and marrow, the quintessence of terrestrial felicity, the very joy and comfort of a voyageur, and the poor Indians had but little of it to spare. While this was going on Bryan stood with his back to the fire, a remarkably short and peculiarly black pipe in his mouth, and his head inclined sagaciously to one side, as if he designed, by dint of a combination of intense mental abstraction, partial closing of his eyes, severe knitting of his brows, and slow but ex- ceedingly voluminous emission of smoke, to come to a II' -i ■-.I ||i H liu i il^'i mi 1 ''m ^M .1 m VNCAVA if- . I n ( : conclusion ill rofjiiifl to tlio iiiif;ithonial)lo Bubject of ]ii(li{in Biipcrstilion. La llocho, steeped in unphilo- sophic indifferenco on such matters, and keenly alivo to tlio gross cravings of hunger, busied himself in con- cocting a kctllo of soup, \vhilo the rest of the party rambled about the beach or among the bushes in search of eggs. In this latter search 1^'rank and Edith were very successful, and returned with pockets laden with excellent eggs of the cider-duck, which were imme- diately put into the kettle, and tended not a little to increase the excellence of the soup and the impatience of the men. Meanwhile the tide ro:^o, the power of the current was gradually checked, and towards noon they pasfsed the dangerous narrows in safety. From the view that was now obtained of the interior it became evident that the worst of their journey yet lay before them. On arriving at the mouth of Deer Kiver, the mountains were seen to rise abruptly and precipitously, while fji;: away inland their faint blue peaks rose into the sky. Indeed, from this point tlio really hard work of the voyage may bo said to have commenced ; for, scarcely had they proceeded a few miles up the river when their further progress, at least by water, was effectually interrupted by a rapid which came leaping madly down its rocky bed, as if the stream rejoiced to escape from the chasms and mountain gorges, and find rest at last on the ample bosom of the groat deep. •'What think ye of that, boy?" said Stanley to Frank Morton, as they leaped from their respective canoes, and stood gazing at the rugged glen from which the rapid issued, and the wild appearance of the hills beyond. " It seems to me that report spoke truly when it said that the way to Clearwater Lake was rugged. Here is no despicable portage to begin with, and yonder cliffs, that look so soft and blue in the far distance, will prove to be dark and hard enough when we get at them, I warrant." *'When we get at them!" echoed Mrs. Stanley, as m VNOAVA 00 as sho ftpproaclicd, loadin;; lOcliili l>y tl'o hand. "Got at them, Gcorf^c! Had any ono asked mo if it wcro possible to pa!;3 ovor tlirso inonn tains \vith our canooa and carj^oos I sliould have answered ' Decidedly not ! * " •' And yet you were so foolish and reckless as to bo the first to volunteer for this decidedly impossible ex- pedition I " replied {-.Uanley. " There you arc inconsistent," Kaid ^Ir.-?. Stanley, smilinf^. *' If reckless, I cannot be foolish, accordin/j to your own showinpf ; for 1 have heard you f^ive it as your opinion that recklessness is one of the most essen- tial elements in the leaders of a forlorn-hope. 13ut really the thing docs seem to my ignorant mind im- possible. What think you, ]*ida?" Mrs. Stanley bent down and looked into the face of her child, but she received no reply. The expanded eyes, indeed, spoke volumes ; and the parted lips, on which played a fitful, exulting smile, the heightened colour, and thick-coming breath, told eloquently of her anticipated delight in these new regions, which seemed so utterly different from the shores of the bay : but her tongue was mute. And well might Mrs. Stanley think the passage over these mountains impossible, for, except to men accus- tomed to canoe travelling in the American lakes and rivers, such an attempt would have .'appeared as hopeless as the passage of a ship through the ice-locked polar Bcas in winter. Not Eo thought the men. Already several of the most active of them were scrambling up the cliffs with heavy loads on their backs ; and, while Stanley and his wife were yet conversing, two of them approached rapidly, bearing the large canoe on their shoulders. The exclamation that issued from the foremost of these proved him to be Bryan. ** Now, bad luck to ye, Gaspard, can't ye go stidy ? It's mysilf that'll be down on me blissid nose av ye go staggerin* about in that fashion. Sure it's Losh, the spalpeen, that would carry the canoe better than you." m- •IB ;L, ti 'ft il m . i ,1 i' 100 UNGAVA Gasp.ird made no reply. Bryan Btaf^gered on, growling as be went, and in another minute they were hid from view among the bushes. " What do you sec, I'rank ? " inquired Stanley ; "you stare as earnestly as Bryan did at the white bear last week. What is't, man? Speak!" "A fish," replied Frank. "I saw him rise in tho pool, and I'm certain he's a very large one." '• Very likely, Frank ; there ought to be fish of some Eort there. I've been told — hist, there he's again. As I live, a salmon ! a salmon, Frank ! Now for your rod, my boy ! " But Frank heard him not, for he was gone. In a few minutes he returned with a fishing-rod, which he was busily engaged in putting up as he hurried towards tho rocks beside the pool. Now, Frank Morton was a fisher. We do not mean to say that he was a fisher by profession ; nor do we merely affirm that he was rather fond of the gentle art of angling, or generally inclined to take a cast when he happened to be near a good stream. By no means. Frank was more than that implies. He was a steady, thorough-going disciple of Isaac Walton ; one who, in the days of his boyhood, used to flee to the watcr-sido at all seasons, in all weathers, and despite all obstacles. Not only was it his wont to fish when he could, or how he could, but too often was he beguiled to fish at times and in ways that were decidedly improper ; sometimes devoting those hours which were set apart expressly for the acquirement of Greek and Latin, to wandering by mountain stream or tarn, rod in hand, up to the knees in water, among the braes and woodlands of his own native country. And Frank's enthusiasm did not depend entirely on his success. It v/as a standing joke among his school -fellows that Frank would walk six miles any day for the chance of a nibble from the ghost of a minnow. Indeed, he was often taunted by his ruder comrades with being such a keen fisher that ho was quite content if ho only hooked a drov/ued cat ■h^- i>i VNGAVA 101 during a day's excursion. But Frank was good-natured, he smiled at their jests, and held on the even tenor of his way, whipping the streams more pertinaciously than his master whipped him for playing truant ; content alike to hear ignominy and chastisement, so long as he was rewarded by a nibble, and overjoyed beyond expres- sion when he could return home with the tail of a two- pounder hanging over the edge of his basket. Far be it from us to holdup to ridicule the weakness of a friend, but we cannot help adding that Master Frank made the most of his tails. His truthful and manly nature, indeed, would not stoop to actual deception, but he had been known on more than one occasion to offer to carry a friend's waterproof fishing-boots in his basket, when his doing so rendered it impossible to prevent the tails of his trout from protruding arrogantly, as if to insinuate that there were shoals within. Another of Frank's weaknesses was, upon the hooking of every fish, to assert, with overweening confidence and considerable excitement, that it was a tremendously big one. Ex- perience had, during all his piscatorial career, contra- dicted him ninety-nine times out of a hundred ; but Frank's firm belief in his last minnow being a big trout — at least until it lay gasping on the bank at his feet- was as unshaken after long years of mistaken calcula- tion as when first he sallied forth to the babbling brook with a willow branch, a fathom of twine, and a crooked pin ! Such untiring devotion of course could not fail to make Frank particularly knowing in all the details and minutia? of his much-loved sport. He knew every hole and corner of the rivers and burns within fifteen miles of his father's house. He became mysteriously wise in regard to the weather; knew precisely the best fly for any given day, and, in the event of being unhappily destitute of the proper kind, could dress one to per- fection in ten minutes. As he grow older and taller, and the muscles on his large and well-made limbs began to develop, Frank slung a more capacious basket ri 102 UNOAVA ■-\\ on his back, shouldered a heavier rod, and, v.ith a pair of thick shoes and a home-spun shooting suit, stretched away over the Highland hills towards the romantic shores of the west coast of Scotland. Here he first experienced the wild excitement of salmon-fishing ; and liere the Waltonian chains, that had been twining and thickening around him from infancy, received two or three additional coils, and were finally riveted for ever. During his sojourn in America, he had happened to dwell in places where the fishing, though good, was not of a very exciting nature; and he had not seen a salmon since the day he left homo, so that it is not matter for wonder that his stride was rapid and his eye bright while he hurried towards the pool, as before mentioned. He who has never left the beaten tracks of men, or trod the unknown wilderness, can have but a faint conception of the feelings of a true angler as he stands by the brink of a dark pool which has hitherto reflected only the antlers of the wild deer — whose dimpling eddies and flecks of foam have been disturbed by no fisher since the world began, except the polar bear. Besides the pleasurable emotions of strong hope, there is the additional charm of uncertainty as to what will rise, and of certainty that if there be anything jiiscatine beneath these fascinating ripples it un- doubtedly will rise — and bite too ! Then there is the peculiar satisfaction of catching now and then a drop of spray from, and hearing the thunder of, a cataract, whose free, surging bo and is not yet shackled by the tourist's sentimental description ; and the novelty of beholding one's imago reflected in a liquid mirror whose geographical position is not yet stereotyped on the charts of man. Alas for these maps and charts ! Despite the wishes of scientific geographers and the ignorance of unscientific explorers, we think them far too complete already ; and we can conceive few things more dreadful or crushing to the enterprising and romantic spirits of the world than the arrival of that UNGAVA lO:} time (if it ever shall arrive) when it shall he Faiil that terra incognita exists no longer — when every one of those fairy-like isles of the southern seas, atid n!l the hidden wonders of the polar re;;iniir',, sliall l>o ])iit down, in cold hlood, on hlack and white, exposed profanely on the schoolroom v/alls, and drummed into the thick heads of wretched little hoys who don't want to learn, by the unsympathising hands of dominies who, it may be, care but little Vvhether tlusy do or not ! But to retiu'n. While I'^-ank stood on the rocks, attaching to tiie line a salmon-fly which he had selected with much considouation from his book, he raised his eyes once or tv/ice to take a rapid glance at his position and the capabilities of the place. About fifty yards farther up the river the stream curled round the base of a large rock, and gushed into a pool which was encircled on all sides by an overhanging wlH, except where the waters issued forth in a burst of foam. Their force, however, was materially broken by another curve, round which they had to sweep ere they reached this exit, so that when they rushed into the larger pool below they calmed down at once, and, on reaching the point where Frank stood, assumed that oily, gurgling surface, dimpled all over with laughing eddies, that suggests irresistibly the idea of fish not only being there, as a matter of course, but being there expressly and solely for the purpose of being caught ! A little farther down, the river took a slight bend, and immediately after, recurring to its straight course, it dashed down, for a distance of fifty yards, in a tumul- tuous rapid, v/hich swept into sudden placidity a few hundred yards below. Having taken all this in at a glance, Frank dropped the lly into the water and raised his rod to make a cast. In this act he almost broke the rod, to his amazement ; for instead of whipping the fly lightly out of the water, he dragged a trout of a pound weight violently up on the bank. "Bravo!" cried Stanley, laughing heartily at his w iJ. 104 UNOAVA : I iiiend's stare of minglccl wonder Paul amazement— "Bravo, Frank ! I'm no fisher myself, but I've always understood that fish required a little play before being landed. However, you have convinced me of my ignorance. I see that the proper way is to toss them over your head ! A salmon must be rather troublesome to toss, but no doubt, with your strong arms, you'll manage it easily, hey ? " "Why, what an appetite they must have ! " replied Frank, answering his friend's badinage with a smile. " If the little fellows begin thus, what will not the big ones do?" As he spoke, he disengaged the fish and threw it down, and made the next cast so rapidly, that if another trout was waiting to play him a similar trick, it must have been grievously disappointed. The line swept lightly through the air, and the fly fell gently on the stream, whore it had not quivered more than two seconds v/hen the water gurgled around it. The next moment Frank's rod bent like a hoop, and the line flew through the rings with whirring rapidity, filling these lonely solitudes for the first time with the pleasant " music of the reel." Almost before Frank had time to take a step in a downward direction, fifty yards were run out, the waters were suddenly cleft, and a salmon sprang like a bar of burnished silver twice its own height into the air. With a sounding splash it returned to its native element; but scarcely had its fins touched the water, when it darted towards the bank. Being brought up suddenly here, it turned at a tangent, and flaslied across the pool again, causing the reel to spin with renewed velocity. Here the fish paused for a second, as if to collect its thoughts, and then coming, apparently, to a summary determination as to what it meant to do, it began steadily to ascend the stream, not, indeed, so rapidly as it had descended, but Bufliciently so to give Frank some trouble, by means of rapidly winding up, to keep the line tight. Having bored doggedly towards the head of the rapid, ^ii U .1 , UN CAVA 100 the fish stopped .in(/ he shouted, as Stanley passed the iron hook neatly into the side of the fish, and lifted it high and dry on the rocks. The cheer to which Frank gave vent, on this successful termination to the struggle, was re-echoed heartily by several of the men who, on passing tlie spot with their loads, had paused and become deeply interested spectators of the sport. *' Powerful big fish, sir," said Bryan, throwing down his pack and taking up the salmon by the gills. " Twinty pounds at lastc, av it's an ounce." *' Scarcely that, Bryan," said Stanley ; " but it's not much less, I believe." *' Ah 1 oui, 'tis ver* pritty. Ver' superb for supper," remarked La Roche. The little Frenchman was right in saying that it was pretty. Unlike the ordinary salmon, it was marked with spots like a trout, its head was small and its shoulders plump, while its silvery purity was exceed- ingly dazzling and beautiful. •* 'Tis a Hearne-salmon," said Massan, approaching the group. " I've seed lots o' them on the coast to the south'ard o' this, an' I've no doubt we'll find plenty o' them at Ungava." While the men were discussing the merits of the fish, Frank had hooked another, which, although quite as large, gave him much less trouble to land ; and before the men had finished carrying the canoes and goods over the portage, he had taken three fish out of the same pool. Wishing, however, to try for a larger one nearer the sea, he proceeded to take a cast below the rapid. Meanwhile, La Koche, whose activity had enabled him to carry over his portion of the cargo long before his comrades, came to the pool which Frank had just left, and seating himself on a large stone, drew forth his tobacco-pouch. With a comical leer at the water which had so recently been deprived of its denizens, he proceeded leisurely to fill a pipe. M ]i VNGAVA 107 It is impossible to foresee, and difficult to account for, the actions of an impulsive human being. La Koche sat down to smoke his pipe, but instead of smoking it, he started to his feet and whirled it into the river. This apparently insane action was followed by several others, which, as they were successively performed, gradually unfolded the drift of his intentions. Drawing the knife which hung at his girdle, ho went into the bushes, whence he quickly returned, dragging after him a large branch. From this he stripped the leaves and twigs. Fumbling in his pocket for some time, he drew forth a piece of stout cord, about four yards long, with a cod-hook attached to the end of it. This line had been constructed some weeks before when the canoes were wind-bound at a part of the coast where La Eoche, desirous of replenishing the kettle, had made an unsuccessful attempt at sea-fishing. Fastening this line to the end of his extemporized rod. La Koche proceeded to dress his hook. This he accomplished by means of the feather of a duck which Frank shot the day before, and a tag from his scarlet worsted belt ; and, when finished, it had more the appearance of some hideous reptile than a gay fly. However, La Roche surveyed it for a moment or two with an expression of deep satisfaction, and then, hurrying to the brink of the water, made a violent heave. " Oh ! cent milles tonnerres ! " he exclaimed angrily, as the enormous hook caught in the leg of his trousers. The large and clumsy barb was deeply imbedded, so there was no help for it but to use the knife. The second throw was more successful, and the hook ahghted in the water with a splash that ought to have sent all the fish in the pool away in consternation. Instead of this, however, no sooner did the reptile trail upon the stream than a trout dashed at it in buch violent haste that it nearly missed it altogether. As it was, he hooked itself very slightly, and the excitable Frenchman settled the matter by giving the line a violent tug, in his anxiety to land the fish, that pulled the hook entirely out of its mouth. ifilffiil 109 UNGAVA II r; m n I- t ■X. i: "'■ 11 'p "Ah! c'cst damage, ver' groat; mais try it encore, rny boy," exclaimed the mortiiied angler. The next throw, although well accomplished, produced nothing; but at the third attempt, ere tlie reptile had settled on the water for a second, it was enoulfed hy a salmon fully six pounds weight, and La Roche's rod wa3 almost drawn out of his grasp. " Hilloa, Losh ! what have ye got there? " exclaimed r)ryan, as, with several of the men, he approached to where the Frenchman and the salmon strove in uncer- tain conflict. " By the mortial, he's hiickcd a whale ! Out with it, boy, afore it pulls ye in ! " said the Irishman, running to the rescue. Just then the salmon gave a pull of more than ordinary vigour, at the same moment La llocho slipped his foot, and, ere Bryan could lay hold of him, fell headlong into the water and disappeared. Bryan's hands hung helplessly down, his jaw dropped, and his eyes opened wide, as he gazed in mute wonderment at the spot where his friend's toes had vanished. Sud- denly he wrenched off his cap and flung it down, and proceeded to tear off his coat, preparatory to leaping into the river to the rescue, when his arms were pinioned to his sides by the powerful gripe of Massan. " Come, Bryan," said he, " you know very well that you can't swim ; you'd only make things worse." ** Och ! murder ! he can't swim neither. Let me go, ye black villain. Thunder an' turf ! will ye see the poor lad drownded forenint yer two eyes?" cried the poor Irishman, as he made violent but unavailing struggles to get free. But Massan knew that to allow him to escape would only add to the number requiring to be saved, and as he himself could not swim, he saw at once that the only service he could render under the circumstances would be to hold the Irishman down. Clasping him, therefore, as in a vice, he raised his head and gave a shout for help that rolled in deep echoes rjN'GMF.l 109 among the overhanging cHfTs. Another shout was uttered at ilie same instant. Edith, who happened to come up just as La lioche's head emerged from the water gasping for hrcath, uttered a wild shriek that made more than one heart among the absentees leap as they flew to the rescue. Meanwhile La Eoche rose and sank several times in the surges of the pool. His face on these occasions exhibited a mingled expression of terror and mischievous wildness ; for although he could not swim a stroke, the very buoyancy of his mercurial temperament seemed partially to support him, and a feeling of desperate determination mduced him to retain a death-like gripe of the rod, at the end of which the salmon still struggled. But his strength was fast going, and ho Bank for the fourth time with a bubbhn«^ cry, when a step was heard crashing through the adjacent bushes, and Dick Prince sprang down the slope like a deer. Ho did not pause when the scene burst upon his view, but a smile of satisfaction played upon his usually grave face when he saw Edith safe on the banks of the stream. Another spring and an agile bound sent him headlong into the pool about a yard from the spot where La Boche had last sunk. Scarcely had he disappeared when the dog Chimo bounded towards the scene of action, and, with what intent no one could tell, leaped also in the water. By this time Frank, Stanley, and nearly all the party had assembled on the bank of the river, ready to render assistance. In a few seconds they had the satisfaction of seeing Dick Prince rise, holding poor La Boche by the collar of his capote with his left hand, while he swam vigorously towards the shore with his right. But during the various struggles which had taken place they had been gradually sucked into the stream that flowed towards the lower rapid, and it now became apparent to Prince that his only chance of safety was in catching hold of the point of rock that formed the first obstruction to the rush of water. Abandoning all effort, therefore, to gain the m i! I! m ' 1 i.; ■r M t' ■ no UNO A VA bank besido him, he Rwam with the ciurent, but edged towards the shore as he ilonted down. " Plallo! La llochc! " lie exclaimed loudly. "Do you hear? do you understand me? " " Ah ! oui, vraiment. I not dead yit." " Then let go that rod and seize my collar, and mind, sink deep in the water. Show only enough o* your face to breathe with, or I'll drown ye." The Frenchman obeyed to the extent of seizing Dick's collar and sinking deep in the water, so as nob to overburden his friend : but nothing could induce him to quit the rod to which he had clung so long and so resolutely. Prince's arm being now free, one or two powerful strokes placed him beyond the influence of the strong current, and as ho passed the rocks before men- tioned, ho seized an overhanging branch of a small shrub, by which he endeavoured to drag himself ashore. This, however, he found to be impossible, partly owing to the steepness of the shelving rock, and partly to the fact that Chimo, in his ill-directed attempts to share in the dangers of his friends, had seized La Eoche by the skirts of the coat in order to picvent himself from going down the stream. Those on shore, on seeing Prince make for the rock, ran towards the spot ; but having to malie a slight detour round the bend of the river, they did not reach it until he seized the branch, and when Frank, who was the first, sprang down the slope to the rescue, he found them streaming out and waving to and fro in the current, like some monstrous reptile — Dick holding on to the branch with both hands, La Bocho holding on to Dick, Chimo holding on by his teeth to La Eoche, and the unfortunate salmon holding on to the line which its half-drowned captor scorned to let go. A few seconds sufBced to drag them dripping from the stream; and the energetic little Frenchman no sooner found his feet on solid ground than he hauled out his fish and landed it triumphantly with his own hand. " *Tis a pretty fish, La Eoche," said Frank, laugh- : I I'l \ " He found them streaniin^^ out. and \\a\ing to and fro in the current." I'twara i 1/ ch^f nil 4 '1 HP- H I y» j f; |r ^ I'l > III ilk^ji^ VNG \VA 111 ing, as ho Imriod liiiusclf in takinpj down his rod, whilo Bcvcral of tbo iii'ii assisted Dick Princo to wring tho water out of his clothes, and others crowded round I^a Rocho to rongratulate hiin on his escape — " 'tis a pretty fish, but it CO ^t you Romo trouble to catch it." " Throublo, indned ! " echoed Bryan, as lio sat on a rock smoking his pipo; "troth it'P more nor liirn canio to throublo by that samo fish : it guve mo tho throublo 0* bcin' more nor half choked by Massan." "Half choked, Bryan! what mean you?" asked Frank. "Mane? I jur,t mano what I say; an* the raison why's best known to himself." A loud peal of laughter greeted ^faf^san's graphic ex- planation of the forcible manner in which he had prevented the Irishman from throwing himself into the river. The party now turned earnestly to the more serious duties of the journey. Already too much time had been lost in this "playing themselves with fish," as Stanley expressed it, and it behoved them to embark as speedily as possible. About a mile above the pool which had nearly proved fatal to La lloche was the head of a series of insurmountable rapids, which ex- tended all the way down to tho waterfall. Beyond this was a pretty long reach of calm water, up which they proceeded easily ; but as they advanced the current became so strong that no headway could be made with the paddles, and it was found necessary to send a party of the men ashore with a long line, by means of which the canoes were slowly dragged against the current. At length they came to shallow water, which neces- sitated another portage ; and as it v/as about sunset when they reached it, Stanley ordered the tent to be pitched for the night, and the fire lighted, under the shadow of a stupendous mountain, the rocky sides of which were sprinkled with dwarf pine trees, and par- tially covered with brush and herbage. Here Edith and her mother discovered multitudes of berries, the . 1 Ji iia VNGAVA I' I V. ^ : 'M' most numerous being cloud and crow berries, both of which were found to be good, especially the former, and a fragrant dish of these graced the towel that evening at supper. Thus, day by day, our adventurous travellers pene- trated deeper and deeper into the heart of the wilder- ness, which became more savage and mountainous as they left the coast. Stanley drew forth his quadrant and compass, wherewith he guided the party towards their future home. At night, after the labour of the day was over, he and Frank v/ould spread their charts in the blaze of the camp fire, and study the positions of the land so far as it was laid down ; while Edith sat beside her mother, helping her to repair the torn and way-worn habiliments of her husband and Frank, or listening with breathless interest to the men, as they recounted their experiences of life in the dlLterent regions through which they had travelled. Many of these tales were more or less coloured by the fancy of the narrators, but most of them were founded on fact, and proved an unfailing source of deep interest to the little child. Frank's fishing-rod was frequently in re- quisition, and often supplied the party with more than enough of excellent fish ; and at every new bend and turn of the innumerable lakes and rivers through which they passed, reindeer were seen bounding on the mountain-sides, or trotting down the ravines to quench their thirst and cool their sides in the waters ; so that food was abundant, and their slender stock of pro- visions had not to bo trenched upon, while the berries that grew luxuriantly everywhere proved a grateful addition to their store. Thus, day by day, they slowly retreated farther and farther from the world of man- kind — living in safety under the protection of the Almiglity, and receiving the daily supply of all their necessities from His fatherly and bountiful hand ; thus day by day, they rose with the sun, and lay down at night to rest upon the mountain's side or by the river's bank ; and thus, day by day, they penetrated deeper and deeper into the heart of the unknown wilderness. CIIAPTEH XII A NEW SCENE — THE ESQUIMAU— DEEIl SLAYING— ENEMIES IN THE BUSH TuBN we now to another, a more distant, and a wilder scene. Near the bleak shores of Hudson's Straits there flows a river which forms an outlet to the super- fluous waters of the almost unknown territory lying between the uninhabited parts of Labrador and that tract of desert land which borders Hudson's Bay on the east, and is known to the fur-traders by the appellation of East Main. This river is called the Caniapuscaw, and discharges itself into Ungava Bay. The scene to which we would turn the reader's attention is upwards of twenty miles from the mouth of this river, at a particular bend, where the stream spreads itself out into a sheet of water almost worthy of being called a lake, and just below which two bold cliffs shut out the seaward view, and cause an abrupt narrowing of the river. The scene is peculiar and surpassingly grand. On each side of the stream majestic mountains raise their bpJd and rugged peaks almost into the clouds. Little herbage grows on the more exposed places, and nothing, save here and there a stunted and weather-worn pine, breaks the sharp outhne of the cliffs. But in the gorges and dark ravines — for there are no valleys — clumps of small- sized spruce-fir and larch trees throw a softness over some of the details of a spot whose general aspect is iia : iip t 7. m j. ;|i 114 UNGAVA 1S one of sterility. The mountains riao in a succession of irregular steps or terraces, whose faces are so preci- pitous that they cannot be ascended. To accomplish the feat of scahng the mountain-tops it would be necessary to clamber up a ravine until the first terrace should be gained, then, walking along that, ascend the next ravine, and so on. At the upper end of the lake (as we shall hereafter call this wide part of the river) lies a low island, fringed with a scanty growth of willows ; and not far from this, on the eastern bank of the river, lies a small patch of level sand. This spot is somewhat peculiar, inasmuch as it is backed by a low platform of rock, whose surface is smooth as a table. At the foot of this rock bubbles a little spring, which, meandering through a tangled spot of stunted shrubbery ere it mingles with the sand, gives unusual greenness and vitality to the surrounding herbage. On the edge of this rocky platform sat the figure of a man. It was evening. The declining sun shot its last few rays over the brow of the opposite mountains, and bathed him in mellow light, as he sat apparently con- templating the scene before him. The man's costume bespoke him a native of the savage region in the midst of which he seemed the only human being. But although an Esquimau, he exhibited several physical peculiarities not commonly supposed to belong to that people. To an altitude of six feet three he added a breadth of shoulder and expansion of chest seldom equalled among men of more highly-favoured climes; and his real bulk being very greatly increased by his costume, he appeared to be a very giant — no unfitting tenant of such giant scenery. The said costume con- sisted of an extremely loose coat or shirt of deerskin, having the hair outside, and a capacious hood, which usually hung down behind, but covered his head at this time, in order to protect it from a sharp north- west breeze that whirled along the gullies of the moun- tains, and surging down their sides, darkened the .ii' il:i i|!i UNOAVA 116 Burface of the water. A pair of long sealskin boots en- cased his limbs from foot to thigh ; and a little \\ Jlet or bag of sealskin, with the hair outside, hung from his shoulders. Simple although this costume was, it had &i bulky rotundity of appearance that harmonised well with the giant's frank, good-humoured countenance, which was manly, firm, and massive, besides beinfi rosy, oily, and fat. In the latter peculiarity he partooi of the well-known characteristic of his tribe ; but tho effeminacy in appearance that is produced by a round fat face was done av"ay in the case of our giant by a remarkably black, though as yet downy moustache and beard, of a length suitable to twenty-three winters. His hair was long, straight, and black, besides being uncommonly glossy — an effect attributable to the pre- valence of whale-oil in these regions. On the forehead the locks were cut short, so as to afford free scope to his black eyes and sturdy-looking nose. By his side lay a long hunting spear, and a double-bladed paddle, fully fifteen feet long; which latter belonged to a kayak, or Esquimau canoe, that lay on the sand close to the v/ater's edge. Sitting there, motionless as the rocks around him, tlu3 giant looked like a colossal statue of an Esquimau. He was no figure of stone, however, but a veritable human being, as was proved by his starting suddenly from his reverie and hastening towards the spring before mentioned, at which he stooped and drank rapidly, like one who had to make up for lost time. After a few hurried gulps, the man strode towards his canoe, but as he went his restless eye became fixed on the branching antlers of a deer, that were tossed in the air on the summit of a neighbouring cliff. Like one who is suddenly paralysed, the Esquimau stood transfixed in the attitude in which ho had been arrested. He did not even seem to breathe, as the antlers moved to and fro, clearly defined against the blue sky. At length they disappeared, and the animal to which they belonged slowly descended a ravine ji ti fi lid VNGAVA P !■ M P f I ' >!•■■ •^1 towards the river. Then, as if set free from a spell, the man gHded into his kayak, and swept rapidly but noiselessly behind a projecting point of rock, where he waited patiently till the deer took to the water. lie had not long to wait, however, for in a few minutes afterwards the deer, followed by several companions, walked out upon the patch of sand, snuffed the air once or twice, and entered the stream with the inten- tion of crossing. But there was an enemy near whom they little dreamed of — not an enemy who would dash excitedly into the midst of them, or awaken the thunders of the place with his noisy gun, but a foe who could patiently bide his time, and take cool and quiet advantage of it when it came. When the deer had proceeded about a hundred yards into the river, the Esquimau dipped his paddle twice, and the narrow, sharp-pointed canoe, which, at a short distance, seemed little more than a floating plank, darted through the water and ranged alongside the startled animals. The fattest of the herd was separated from its fellows and driven towards the shore from which it had started, while the others struggled across the river. Once or twice the separated deer endeavoured to turn to rejoin its comrades; an attempt which was frustrated by the Esquimau, who could paddle infinitely faster over the water in his skin canoe than the deer could swim. As they neared the shore, the gipjit cast on it one or two glances, and having made up his mind as to the most convenient spot for landing, he urged the point of his canoe between the antlers of the deer, and steered it in this manner to the sand-bank. The deer, thus directed, had no resource but to land where its persecutor chose; but no sooner did its foot touch ground, than it sprang convulsively forward in the vain hope to escape. The same instant its captor's canoe shot beside it. Grasp- ing the long lance before mentioned in his hand, he placed its glittering point on the deer's side, tickled it sk^wly to ascertain that it was between two ribs, and, UNOAVA 117 with a quick thrust, stal)bcd it to the lieart. A con- vulsive shudder, as the deer's head sunk in the stream, proved that, thougli cold-blooded in appearance, the action was more elfective and less cruel than many other more approved methods of killing game. Our Esquimau thought neither of the method of slaying his deer nor of man's opinion regarding it. His sole object v/us to procure supper, having tasted nothing since early morning; and the manner in which lie ate ishowcd at once the strength of his appetite and his total indifference to cookery, for he ate it raw. There was a certain appearance of haste in all his actions which, however, seemed unaccountable, con- sidering the peaceful nature of the vast sohtudes around him. Scarcely had he cut off and devoured a portion of the deer than he hastened again to his canoe, and darted like an arrow from the shore. This is no exaggerated simile. The long, thin, sharp I'jsquimau kayak is highly suggestive of an arrow in its form, and much more so in its extraordinary speed. It consists of an extremely light frame- work of wood covered with sealskin parchment, which is stretched upon it all over as tight as a drum. The top of the canoe being covered as well as the bottom, it is thus, as it were, decked ; and a small hole in the middle of this deck admits its occupant. The kaj^ak can only hold one person. The paddle, as already said, is a long pole with a blade at each end. It is dipped alternately on each side, and is used not only to propel the kayak, but to prevent it from upsetting. Indeed, so liable is it to upset, that nothing but the wonderful adroitne^;^ of its occupant prevents it from doing so wiih every swing of his body. Quick, however, though the kayak sped over the rip- pling wave, it could not have escaped the messenger uf death that seemed about to be despatched after it by a dark-skinned, red-painted Indian, who, at the moment the vessel left the shore, leapt from behind a rocky point, and, levelling a long gun, took a steady aim at 11 ■1.. it 118 UNGAVA tho niiconscions Esquimau. A liltlo puff of powder answered to the click of tho lock, as tlie gun missed firo. With an exclamation of anger tlio savage seized his powder-horn to rcprime, when a rude grasp was laid on his Ehoulder, and another Indian, wlio, from the eagle feather in his hair, and his general bearing, appeared to be a chief, exclaimed — "Fool! 3'ou have the impatience of a w^oman, and you have not yet shown that you have the heart of a man. Would the scalp of yon Eatcr-of-raw-llesh pay us for coming so far from our hunting-grounds? If 5'our gun had spoken among these mountains, wo would have found the empty v/igwams of his people, instead of fringing our belts with their scalps." With a frown of anger the chief turned on his heel and retraced his steps into the ravine from which he had emerged, followed by his abashed and silent com- panion. Meanwhile the Esquimau, ignorant of the fate from "which ho had just escaped, continued to ply his paddle with right good-will. The little craft, obedient to the powerful impulse, combined as it was with the current of the ebb-tide, flew rather than floated tov/ards the narrows, through which it passed, and opened up a view of the ice-encumbered waters of Ungava Bay. Directing his course along the western shores of the river, tho Esquimau speedily reached the coast at a point where several low, rough-built summer huta clustered near the shore. Hero he ran his kayak into a little creek, and, having lifted it beyond tide mark, betook himself to his dwelling. y m' CIIAPTEU XIII M SAVAGE LOVE — A WIFE PURCHASED — TUB ATTACK — THE FLIGHT — THE ESCAPE — THE WOUNDED MAN Scarcely had the stout Esquimau proceeded a few steps along the shore, when he was met by a young girl who laid her hand on his arm. Taking her gently by the shoulders, he drew her towards him and kissed her on both checks; an action which caused her to blush deeply as, with a half smile half frown on her face, she pushed him away. Love is the same all the world over, whether it ^lows beneath the broad-cloth and spotless linen of a civilised gentleman, or under the deerskin coat of a savage. And its expression, we suspect, is somewhat similar everywhere. The coy repulse of pretended displeasure came as naturally from our plump little arctic heroine as it could have done from the most civilised flirt, and was treated with well-simulated contrition by our arctic giant, m they walked slowly towards the huts. But the Esquimau had other matters than love in his head just then, and the girl's face assumed a grave and somewhat anxious look as he continued to whisper in her ear. At the little hamlet they separated, and the maiden went to her grandfather's abode, while her lover, lifting the skin-curtain door of a rudely-constructed hut, entered bis own humble dwelling. The room was empty, and its owner did not seem as if he meant to cheer it with 119 I r i f 1 i If : i i i u ' a k ■ ■; & ^ 'i 1 „ .-.,- .■ B . 1 f it . .Miktij 120 UNCAVA ;■■ t his presence long. In one corner lay a pile of miscella- neous articles, which he removed, and, taking the tusk of a walrus which lay near his hand, hcgan to dig with it in the sand. In a few seconds it struck a hard substance, and the Esquimau, putting his hand into the hole, drew forth a glittering axe, upon which ho gazed with supreme satisfaction. Now be it known to you, reader, that among the Esquimaux of the frozen north iron is regarded with about as much delight as gold is by ourselves. And the reason is simple enough. These poor people live entirely upon the produce of the chase. Polar bears, seals, walruses, and whales are their staff of life. To procure these animals, spears are necessary ; to skin and cut them up, knives are needful. But bone and stone make sorry knives and spears ; so that, when a bit of iron, : < matter how poor its quality or small its size, can be obtained, it is looked on as the most valu- able of possession? ; and the ingenuity displayed by Esquimaux in fashioning the rudest piece of metal into the most useful of implements is truly astonishing, proving, in the most satisfactory way, that necessity is indeed the mother of invention. The precious metal is obtained in two ways : by the discovery of a wreck, which is extremely rare; and by barter with those tribes which sometimes visit the Moravian settlements of Labrador. But neither source is very productive. Even a nail is treasured as a blessing, while an axe is a fortune ! When our giant, therefore, drew forth the shining implement, and gazed with delight at its keen edge, he experienced as great satisfaction as a miser does when gloalmg over his banker's book ! Having satisfied himself that the axe was free from all approximation to rust, he stuck it into a belt of raw hide, which he put on for the express purpose of sus^ taining it — as Esquimaux do not generally wear belts. He then sallied forth, and walked with the air of a man who wears the grand cross of the Legion of Honour. As he went to the hut in which Uved the oldest man of ti !■ 3 UNGAVA l?l the tribe, the sluulo of anxiety, which had clouded hia brow more than once during the day, a^^ain rested on his face. On entering, he observed the old Esquimau hstening with anxious countenance to the young girl whom we have already introduced to the reader. Now this girl — Anectka by name — was by no means an angel in Esquimau habiliments. Among civilised folk probably she would not have been deemed even pretty. Nevertheless, in the eyes of her lover she was most decidedly beautiful, and round, and fat, and ror,}^, and young, awkward, and comfortable I And the giant loved her — never so strongly, perhaps, as when he saw her striving to allay the fears of her old grandfather. But this same grandfather was obstinate. He wanted her to become the wife of an Esquimau who lived far to the westward, and who once had dealings with the fur- traders, and from whom he expected to derive consider- able advantages and gifts of bits of hoop-iron and nuils. But she wanted to become the giant's v/ife — so there the matter stood. " The spirits o* the wind and sea protect us, and may the god o' the mist cover us ! " said the old man, as the j^oung Esquimau sat down on a dead seal beside him. ** Is it true that you saw the men of fire ? " This was, of course, said in the language of the Esquimaux, and we render it as literally as possible. ** Yes, it is true," replied the young man. '* I saw them at the rapid water in Caniapuscaw, and I took kayak to bring the news." Various exclamations of min^^led surprise and anger escaped from the compressed lips of several stalwart natives, who had crowded into the tent on hearing of the arrival of their comrade. *' Yes," continued the young man, " we must go away this night. They had fire-tubes, and there were thirty men. We have only ten." Again a murmur ran through the listeners, but no one spoke for a few seconds. 'Did they see you? " asked the old man, anxiously. I ■.! 122 UNQAVA ■U i r ■ 1 1 i 1 [[': *' No. I came on them suddenly, when I was chasing deer, and almost ran into their camp ; but I saw, and fell in the grass. I thought the chief raised his head quickly when I fell ; but he looked down again, and I crawled away." In this the young Esquimau was mistaken. He knew little of the craft and the quickness of the red Indian, and easily fell into the snare of his savage enemy, who, having been momentarily startled by the sudden sound of the Esquimau approach, had endeavoured to throw him off his guard, by pretending that although he heard the sound he thought nothing of it. But no sooner had the Esquimau retired than he was closely followed and watched by the whole party. Thoy could have easily shot him, but refrained from doing go, that he might unwittingly be their guide to the habitations of his people. The rapid flight of his kayak distanced his pursuers at first, but they made up for this during an hour or two in the night, when the tired Esquimau allowed himself a short season of repose to recruit his energies for the following day's i'^urney. During this penod the Indians shot far aliead of him, and when he arrived at the coast next day they were not much in the rear. ** And now, old man," said our young Esquimau, " it is time that I should have my wife. If the Allat* come here to-night, as I know they will, I want to have a right to defend her, and carry her away when we flee. Are you willing? " The young giant said this with a degree of roughness and decision that at any other time would have made the obstinate old grandfather refuse point blank ; but as there was every probability of having to flee for his life ere the break of another day, and as his old heart trembled within him at the thought of the dreaded guns of the Indians, he merely shook his head and pondered a little. " What will you give me ? " he said, looking up. * Esquimau name for Indians. UNGAVA 123 Tlio young mau anriwcvnd l-y drawing the axe f am his belt and hiying it on the ground before him. Tho old nian'a eyes glistened with pleasure as ho surveyed the costly gift. " Good ; that will do. Take her and fro." A second bidding was not needed. The young man arose hastily, took his blushing bride by the hand, and led her from the tent of her grandfather towards his own. Here she set to work instantly to assist her hus- band in huiTiedly packing up their goods and chattels ; and, immediately afterwards, the little village became a perfect Babel of confusion, as the alarmed inhabitants, on learning the threatened danger, prepared for instant flight. In less tlian an hour the most of them were ready. The men launched their kayaks, while the w'omen, having loaded their oomiaks with their goods, tossed their dogs and children on the top of them. The oomiak, or women's boat, is quite a different affair from the kayak, in which the men travel singly. It is usually made large and capacious, in order to hold the entire household of the Esquimau. Lilie the kayak it is made of skin, but has no covering above, and is propelled by means of short single-bladed paddles, which are worked by the women, upon whom devolves the entire care and management of the ooimak. It is a clumsy affair to look at, but, like the boats of savages generally, it is uncommonly useful and a good sea- boat. While the Esquimaux were busied in completing their arrangements, one of the dogs rushed towards the bushes that lined the shore just behind the village, and barked vociferously. Instantly it w-as joined by the whole pack, and the Esquimaux, who, ever since they had heard of the proximity of their Indian foes, were in a sto.te of the utmost trepidation, made a general rush towards their canoes. Before they reached them, how- ever, a volley of musketry was fired from the bushes, and three of their number — a man and two women — filled the air with their death-shriek, as they fell dead li I 124 UNQAVA ^aM\\ im 1 '" i '■]' f.;: upon the beach ; whilo the Indians sprung from their concealment, and brandishing; their knives and toma- hawks, rushed with a fearful yell upon the terror-stricken Esquimaux. Shrill and terrible though the Indian war-cry is proverbially known to be, it was excelled in appalling wildness by the shriek which arose from the Esquimaux, as they hurried tumultuously into their canoes and put off to sea. These poor creatures were naturally bravo — much more so, indeed, than their assailants ; but the murderous effects of the terrible gun caused the sternest brow among them to blanch and the stoutest heart to quail. The arrow and the spear, however rapid, could be avoided if observed in time ; but this dreaded im- plement of destruction was so mysterious to them, and its death-dealing bullet so quick, and the smoke, the fire, and the loud report so awful, that they shuddered even w'hen they thought of it. No wonder, then, that they uttered a despairing cry when it actually sounded in their ears. When the dogs first gave tongue, our tall Esquimau was alone in his hut, having just sent his wife down with a bundle to the oomiak ; when the volley rang in his ears, he rushed towards the bear.h, supposing that she was there before him. This was not the case, how- ever. Aneetka had gone towards her grandfather's hut, and when the Indians fired she rushed in to assist him to fly. But the old man w^as already gone. Turning instantly, she sprang nimbly towards the shore. At that moment a single shot was fired, and she saw her husband stumble forward and fall headlong to the earth, where he lay motionless. Her first impulse was to run towards the body and throw herself upon it; but this intention w^as effectually checked by a strong, dark-skinned arm which encircled her w^aist, and, despite her cries and struggles, bore her away into the bushes. Her captor was the Indian whose gun once before on that day had been levelled at her lover's head. fi' UNOAVA 125 M i When the younf^ Esquimau fell, as already rolator!, he waa so close to the water that ho stumbled into it, and, fortunately, not a yard distant from an oomiak which the womcai were franticly thrustinpj into the sea. Th jy had no time to lift so heavy a weight on board, bit J, aa the light craft darted from the shore, an old woman, who had often received kind attentions from the good-natured youth, leant over the stern and seized him by the hair. In this manner he was dragged through the water until they were out of gim-shot, when he was lifted inside and laid beside the dogs and children. ^.leanwhile the Indians had rushed into the water up to their middle, in the hope of catching the last of the little fleet, but without success. IMad with disap- pointed rage, they waded back to the shore, and, standing in a lino along the edge of the waves, re- loaded their guns with the utmost rapidity. The poor Esquimaux knew well what would follow, and stramed every nerve to increase their distance. Once more the guns belched forth their leaden shower, which went skipping over the water towards the flotilla. Only one kayak was hit by the discharge. It was that of the old grandfather already mentioned. The ball ripped up the side of the canoe, which filled and upset, and the poor old man would certainly have been drowned but for the opportune coming up of the oomiak con- taining his wounded grandson. The old woman who had already saved the life of the young giant of the tribe, again put forth her skinny hand and grasped the patriarch, who was soon hauled on board in safety. A few minutes more placed the whole party out of danger. In the meantime, the Indians, furious with disap- pointment, scalped the three dead bodies and tossed them into the sea; after which they went into the huts in order to collect all the valuables that might have been left behind. Very little, however, was to be found, as the entire properly of an Esquimau is not ^^i . :.f ft Ij 1 ■ H;i J 1) ■, I; 'i If &• ii*l^ ;!.-' ;i2fl UNGAVA worth much to a red ijcn. Tho most nsoful thin,^ they laid liands on was the axo which the old grand- father had left behind in his hurried flight. Having taken all they could carry, the savages destroyed the rest, and then, setting fire to the village, they returned to the bush. Here a fire was made, and a council of war held. When the Indian who had captured the Esquimau girl led her forward towards the fire, there was a general yell of indignation. Tomahawks wore grasped, and more than one knife was unsheathed. But the chief commanded silence. ** What does White Heart mean to do with the Eater-of-raw-flesh ? " ho inquired, turning to the young man. "He will take her to the hunting-grounds of the Crees." " That cannot be," said the chief. " The girl must die, and White Heart nmst kill her." The young man made no reply. "If," continued the chief sarcastically, "White Heart is afraid to see blood on his knife, another warrior will show him how to do it ! " As he spoke, a dark-visaged savage drew his scalping- knife, and, with one stride, stood beside the trembling girl, who, during the consultation of the savages, liad stood silently beside her captor listening intently to the words which she did not comprehend. Seizing her by the shoulder, the savage plunged his knife at her bosom ; but, ere the keen pomt reached it, the arm was caught by the young Indian, and tho scowling savage was hurled violently back. With dilated eye and expanded nostril, the young man, not deigning to bestow a glance upon his fallen comrade, turned to his chief and said — "Did not I take her? The girl is mine. I will carrj' her to my tent and make her my tvife." " Be it so," replied the chief abruptly. Then turning to his followers, h<} gave orders to start immediately. ti UNGAVA 127 In a few minutes all was ready. The chief led the way into the bush. The Esquimau girl and her captor followed, and the whole band, silently and in single file, commenced to retrace their steps to the fa: distant hunting-grounds of the Crec Indians. in I si i1 i.| |! CIIAPTEE XIV THE PUr.SUIT — SEAL SPEARING— THE GIxVNT S DESPAIR \ i i, When the young Esquimau began to recover from the lethargic state into which his wound had thrown him, he found himself lying at the bottom of the women's oomiak with his old grandfather by his side, and a noisy crew of children and dogs around him. Baising himself on his elbow, he brushed the clotted blood and hair from his temples, and endeavoured to recall his scattered faculties. Seeing this, the old crone \yho had saved his life laid down her paddle and handed him a sealskin cup of water, which he seized and drank with avidity. Fortunately the wound on his forehead, although it had stunned him severely at first, was trifling, and in a few minutes, after partaking of the cool water, he recovered sufficiently to sit up and look around him. Gradually his faculties returned, and he started up with a troubled look. "Where are the Allat ? Where is my wife?" he exclaimed vehemently, as his eye fell on tlie prostrate form of his still insensible grandfather. " Gone," answered several of the women. " Gone ! " repeated the youth, gazing wildly among the faces around him in search of that of his wife. " Gone ! Tell me, is she in one of the other oomiaks? " The women trembled as they answered, " No." 12a UNGAVA 129 " Have the Allat got her ? " There was no reply to this q[ucstion, but he did not need one. Springing hke a tiger to the stern of the oomiak, he seized the steering paddle, and turning the head of the boat towards the shore, paddled with all his energy. Nearly two hours had elapsed since they had commenced their flight, and as all danger of pur- suit was over for the moment the Indians turned their backs on the sea, the Esquimaux had gradually edged in-shore again, so that a few minutes sufficed to run the prow of the oomiak on the shingle of the beach. Without saying a word, the young man sprang over the side, drew a hunting-spear from the bottom of the boat, and hurried back in the direction of the deserted village at the top of his speed. The women knew that nothing could stop him, and feeling that he was quite able to take care of himself, they quietly put to sea again, and continued their voyage. The limbs of the young Esquimau, as we have already said, were gigantic and powerful, enabling him to traverse the country at a pace which few of his fello''/s could keep up with ; and although a stern- chase is proverbially a long one, and the distance between two parties travelling in opposite directions is amazingly increased in a short space of time, there is no doubt that he would have overtaken his Indian foes ere many hours had passed, but for the wound in his head, which, although not dangerous, compelled him more than once to halt and sit down, in order to prevent himself from falling into a swoon. Hunger had also something to do with this state of weakness, as he had eaten nothing for many hours. In his hasty departure from the boat, however, he had neglected t.> take any provisions with him, so that he had little hope of obtaining refreshment before arriving at the village, where some scraps might perhaps be picked up. Slowly, and with a reeling brain, he staggered on ; but here no relief awaited him, for every scrap of food 9 f' 1 ? ^ ' I L-: I . ' ^' 1| in 180 VNQAVA ^'1 •I 1 |i if had been either taken away or destroyed ])y the Indians, and it was with a heavy si^^^h and a feehng akin to despair that he sat down beside the blackened ruins of his late home. But Esquimaux, more than oLher men, arc accus- tomed to reverses of fortune, and the sigh with which he regarded the ruins of his hut had no reference what- ever to tlie absence of food. He knew that about this time the mouth of the river would be full of ice, carried up by the flood-tide, and that seals would, in all pro- bability, be found on it; so he starled up, and hastening along the beach soon gained the floes, which he exa- mined carefully. A. glance or two sufficed to show him that he was right in his conjecture. On a sheet of ice not more than a couple of hundred yards from shore were two seals fast asleep. These he prepared to stalk. Between the floe and the shore ran a stream of water twenty yards broad. Over this he ferried himself on a lump of loose ice ; and, on reaching the floe, he went down on his hands and knees, holding the spear in his right hand as he advanced cautiously towards his victim. The Esquimau seal-spear is a curious weapon, and exhibits in a high degree the extraordinary ingenuity of the race. The handle is sometimes made of the horn of the narwal, but more frequently of wood. It has a movable head or barb, to which a long line of walrus hide or sealskin is attached. This barb is made of ivory tipped with iron, and is attached to the handle in such a way that it becomes detached from it the instant the animal is struck, and remains firmly im- bedded in the wound with the line fastened to it, while the handle floats away on the water or falls on the ice, as the case may be. When the Esquimau had approached to within a hundred yards, he lay down at full length and slowly worked himself forward. Meanwhile the seals raised their heads, but seeing, as they imagined, a companion coming towards them, they did not make for their II. IJI UNOAVA 181 holes, which were a few y:irJ3 distaut from them. Having drawn near ei)oiigh to render the animals Buspicious, the young {;iaiit now sprang up, rushed forward, and got between one seal and its hole just as its more active companion dived into the water. In another moment the deadly lance transfixed its side and killed it. This was a fortunate supply to the Esquimau, whose powers of endurance were fast fail- ing. He immediately sat down on his victim, and cutting a large steak from its side, speedily made a meal that far exceeded tlic powers of any alderman whatsoever ! It required but a short time to accom- plish, however, and a shorter time to transfer several choice junks to his wallet ; with which replenished store he resumed his journey. Although the man's vigour was restored for a time, BO that he travelled with great speed, it did not last long, owing to the wound in his head, which produced frequent attacks of giddiness, and at last compelled him, much against his will, to halt for a couple of hours' repose. Glancing round, in order to select a suitable camping ground, he soon observed such a spot in the form of a broad overhanging ledge of rock, beneath which there was a patch of scrubby underwood. Here he lay down with the seal blubber for a pillow, and was quickly buried in deep, untroubled slumber. In little more than two hours he awoke with a start, and, after a second application to the contents of the wallet, resumed his solitary march. The short rest seemed to have quite restored his wonted vigour, for he now stalked up the banks of the river at a rate which seemed only to accelerate as he advanced. As has been already said, these banks were both rugged and pre- cipitous. In some places the rocks jutted out into the water, forming promontories over which it was difficult to climb ; and frequently these capes terminated in abrupt precipices, necessitating a detour in order to advance. In other places the coast was indented with Bandy bays, which more than doubled the distance "i i i I 132 VNGAVA tho traveller would Lave had to accomplish had ho possessed a kayak. Unfortunately in his liasty departure he neglected to take one with him ; hut he did his hest to atone for this oversight hy making almost superhuman exertions. He strode over the sands like an ostrich of the desert, and clambered up the cliffs and over the rocks — looking, in his hairy garments, like a shaggy polar bear. The thought of his young and pretty bride a captive in the handa of his bitterest foes, and doomed to a life of slavery, almost maddened him, and caused his darlc eye to flash and his broad bosom to heave with pent-up emotion, while it spurred him on to put forth exertions that were far beyond tho powers of any member of his tribe, and could not, under less exciting circumstances, have been performed even by himself As to what were his intentions should he overtake Jio Indians, he knew not. The agitation of his spirits, combined with the influence of his wound, induced him to act from impulse ; and the wild tumult of his feelings prevented him from calculating the consequences or perceiving the hopelessness of an attack made by one man, armed only with knife and spear, against a body of Indians who possessed the deadly gun. Alas ! for the sorrows of the poor human race. In all lands they are much the same, whether civilised or savage — virtue and vice alternately triumphing. Bravery, candour, heroism, in fierce contest with treachery, cowardice, and malevolence, form the salient points of the record among all nations, and in all ages. No puissant knight of old ever buckled on his panoply of mail, seized his sword and lance, mounted his charger, and sallied forth single-handed to deliver his mistress from enchanted castle, in the face of appalling perils, with hotter haste or a more thorough contempt of danger than did our Esquimau giant pursue the Indians who had captured his bride ; but, like many a daring spirit of romance, the giant failed, and that through no fault of his. ■:l! i; UNOAVA 183 On arriving at the rocky platform beside the spring \vhere we first introduced him i !ij,.j 111 whether there ho any place suitable for biiilflirij'^ on, and, if all goes well, bo back to supper before sunset. You will take the other canoe, with Bryan, Massan, Oolibuck, and Ma-istequan, and proceed down the opposite side of the river a short way. Examine the shores there, and above the island ; see whether there be any place better than where we stand for a perma- nent residence ; and at night we shall compare notes. My wife and Eda shall remain in camp under the care of Oostesimow and Moses." " And pray who is to defend your poor wife and innocent child in the event of an attack by a band of savage natives ? " inquired Mrs. Stanley, as she joined her husband and Frank. " No fear of the wife and child," replied Stanley, patting his better half on the shoulder. " If Indiana should And out the camp, Oostesimow can palaver with them ; and should Esquimaux pay you a visit, Moses will do the polite. Besides, had you not interrupted, I was going to have given special instructions to Frank regarding you. So, Master Frank, be pleased to take Eda off your shoulder, and give ear to my instructions. While 5^ou are examining the other side of the water, you will keep as much as possible within eye-shot, and always withm ear-shot, of the camp. In a still day like this a gun-shot can be heard five or six miles off ; and should you see any sign of the natives having been here recently, return instantly to the camp." Frank promised implicit obedience to these instruc- tions, and the whole party then set to work to pile the goods on a ledge in the steep cliffs behind the spring, so that a fortress was soon formed, which, with two such stout and courageous men as Moses and Oostesimow, armed with two guns each, a brace of pistols, two cut- lasses, and an ample supply of ammunition, could have stood a prolonged siege from much more practised enemies than Indians or Esquimaux. After having completed these defensive arrangements, and provided occupation for those who remained in camp, by laying \ ; UNO A VA 189 on Uiom the duty of liavinf:j tho pjoodK examined, in order to bog that notliin!^ had hccn damaged by wet or rough usage, tho two canoes pushed from tho shore, and bounded hglitly away, whilo the men sang merrily at their easy labour ; for now that tho canoes wore light, they might have been propelled by two men. Frank directed his course obliquely up tho river, towards tho i.sland already alluded to, and Stanley proceeded with tho current towards tho narrows teyond which ho expected to catch sight of tho sea. After passing above tho island, which was found to be low and thinly covered with vegetation and a few scrubby bushes, Frank and Lis men pushed over to the other side and proceeded carefully to exaininc tho coast. It was found to bo much the samo as that which they had just left, A narrow belt of sandy and shingly beach extended along tho margin of the river, or, as it might be more appropriately termed, the lake, at least in as far as appearance went. This strip or belt was indented here and there with numerous bays and inlets, and in many places was intersected by rocky capos which jutted out from the mountains. These moun- tains were bare and precipitous, rising abruptly, lilce those on the other side, from the edge of the sand, and ascending in a succession of terraces, whose faces were so steep that it was almost impossible to scale them. They could bo ascended in succession, however, by means of the ravines and numerous gullies which rose in rugged and zigzag lines from the beach to the moun- tain tops. In the very first of these gullies in which the exploring party landed, they found the remains of an Esquimau summfer encampment. These consisted of a few stunted trees, which appeared to have been built in the form of rude huts ; but they were thrown about in some confusion, and altogether bore evidence of having remained in a state of ruin for many years. Another discovery of a more satisfactory kind was made — namely, the tracks of deer, which were so fresh as to induce Frank to take his rifle and mount the IpJ 1'.! : ii* !-l . ki M 140 UNGAVA if! ;?r 1:1 ''■ u rh; I'l:^ Uh '■;'!' ravine in search of the animals, accompanied by Massan, whose natural temperament was exceedingly prone to enjoy the excitement of the chase. So mncli, mdeed, was this the case, that the worthy guide had more than once been on the point of making up his mind to elope to the baclcwood settlements of the States, purchase a rifle and ammunition there, don a deerskin hunting-shirt, and " make tracks," as ho styled it, for the prairies, there to dwell and hunt until his eye refused to draw the sight and his finger to pull the trigger of a Kentucky rifle. But Massan's sociable disposition came in the way of this plan, and the thought of leading a solitary life always induced hii?i to forego it. "It's my 'pinion, sir," remarked the guide, as ho followed Frank up the ravine, the sheltered parts of which were covered with a few clumps of stunted pines — ** it's my 'pinion that we'll have to cut our logs a long bit up the river, for there's notliin' fit to raise a fort with hereabouts." " True, Massan," replied I'rank, glancing from side to side, hunter fashion, as he walked swiftly over the broken ground ; " there's not a tree that I can see big enough to build a backwoods shanty with." " Well, master, 'twill do for firewood, if it's fit fcr nothin' else, and that's a blessin' that's not always to be comed by everywhere. Let's be thankful for small matters. I see sticks growin' up them gullies that'll do for stakes for the nets, an' axe handles, an' paddles, an' spear shafts, an' " The honest guide's enumeration of the various articles into which the small timber of the place might be converted was brought to a sudden pause by Frank, who laid his hand on his shoulder, and while he pointed with the butt of his rifle up the ravine, whispered, ''Don't you see anything' else up j^onder besides trees, Massan?" The guide looked in the direction indicated, and by an expressive grunt showed that his eye had fallen or) i; \ hi \ \$ UNGAVA 141 the object referred to by his conipanion. It was a deer which stood on an overhanging ledge of rock, high up the ch£fs — so high that it might easily have been mis- taken for a much smaller animal by less practised sportsmen. Below the shelf on which it stood was a yawning abyss, which rendered any attempt to get near the aninifil utterly hopeless. " What a pity," said L'rank, as he crouched behind a projecting rock, " that it's out of shot. It would take us an hour at least to get behind it, and there's little chance, I fear, of its waiting for us." **No chance whatever," replied Massan decidedly. " But he's big enough to cover from where we stand." " To cover ! Ah, truly, I could point straight at his heart easy enough — indeed I would think it but slight boasting to say I could cover his eye from this spot ; but the bullet would refuse to go, Massan ; it's far beyond shot." " Try, sir, try," exclaimed the guide quickly, for as they spoke the deer moved. "I've been huntin* on the Kocky Mountains afore now, an' I know that distance cheats you in sich places. It's not so far as you think — " He had scarcely finished speaking when Frank's rifle poured forth its contents. The loud echoes of the crags reverberated as the smoke floated away to lee- ward. The next instant the deer sprang with one wild bound high into the air — over the cliff — and descending with lightning speed through the dark space, was dashed almost in pieces on the rocks below. Massan gave a low chuckle of satisfaction as he walked up to the mangled animal, and pointing to a small round hole just over its heart, he said, ** The old spot, Mr. Frank ; ye always hit them there." Having paid Frank this compliment, Massan bled the animal, which was in prime condition, with at least two inches of fat on his flanks, and having placed it on his Rhoulders, returned with his companion to the canoe. «« i4a UNOAVA li It:- :!' f^': i'ii ^: '^i' m I,- if r pi hi^' ¥' ■'■■- While Frank was thus engaged, Stanley had de- scended towards the shores of Ungava Bay, which he found to be above twenty-five miles distant from the encampment beside the spring. He made a rapid survey of the coast as they descended, and sounded the river at intervals. When ho reached its mouth ho had made two important discoveries. The one was that there did not seem to be a spot along the whole line of coast so well fitted in ah respects for an estab- lishment as the place whereon their tents were already pitched. The other was, that the river, from its mouth up to that point, was deep enough to float a vessel of at least three or four hundred tons burden. This was very satisfactory, and he was about to return to the camp when he came upon the deserted Esquimau village which, a few weeks before, had been the scene of a murderous attack and a hasty flight. On a careful exunination of the place, the marks of a hasty depar- ture were so apparent that Stanley and his men made a pretty near guess at the true state of affairs ; and the former rightly conjectured that, having made a pre- cipitate flight in consequence of some unexpected attack, there was little probability of their returning soon to the same locality. This was unfortunate, but in the hope that he might be mistaken in these conjectures, and that the natives might yet return before winter, he set up a pole on a conspicuous place, and tied to the top of it a bag containing two dozen kniven, one dozen fire-steels, some awls and needles, several pounds of beads, and a variety of such trinkets as were most likely to prove acceptable to a savage people. While Bryan was engaged in piling a heap of stones at the foot of this pole to prevent its being blown down by the wind, the rest of the party re-embarked, and prepared to return home ; for although the camp beside the spring was scarcely one day old, the fact that it was likely to become the future residence of the little party had already invested it with a species of home- like attraction. Mat. is a strange animal, and whatever UNQAVA 143 untravelled philosophers may say to the contrary, he speedily makes himself " at hoiiie " anywhere I ** Hallo, Bryan ! " shouted Stanley from the canoe, " look sharp ; we're waiting for you ! ** "Ay, ay, ycr honour," repHed the Irishman, lifting a huge mass of rock; " jist wan more, an* it'll be stiif an' stidy as the north pole himself." Then in an undertone he added, " ' Look sharp,' is it ye say? It's blunt ye are to spake that way to yer betters. Musha ! but it's mysilf wouldn't give a tinpinny for all that bag houlds, twinty times doubled ; an' yit tldni haythens, thim pork-faced Huskimos, *11 dance round this here pole wi' delight till they're fit to dlirop. Och ! but salvages is a quare lot ; an', Bryan, yer a Oliver boy to come this far all the way to see thim." With this self-complimentary conclusion, Bryan re- sumed his place at the paddle, and the party returned to the camp. Here they found things in a most satisfactory state. Frank and his party had returned, and the deer, now cut up into joints and steaks, was impaled on a number of stakes of wood, and stuck up to roast round a largo and cheering fire. The savoury steam from these, with the refreshing odour of the tea-kettle,produced a delect- able sensation in the nostrils of the hungry explorers. Stanley's tent wan erected with its back towards the mountains and its open door towards the fire, which lighted up its snug interior, and revealed Mrs. Stanley and Edith immersed in culinary operations, and Chime Vv'atching them with a look of deep, grave sagacity — his eyes very erect, and his head a good deal inclined to one side, as if that position favoured the pecuhar train of his cogitations. La Eoche was performing feats of agility round the fire, that led one to believe he must be at least half a salamander. At a respectful distance from Stanley's tent, but within the influence of the fire, the men w^ere employed in pitching, for the first time, the large skin tent which was to be their residence until they should build a house for them- mi i lil I B 1^ 11 ' 144 UNOAVA km m selves ; and on a lopf, within dangerous proximity to the mercurial La Eoche, sat Frank Morton, busily employed in entering in his journal the various events of the day. There was much talk and loud laughter round the fire that night, for the different parties had much to tell and much to hear regarding the discoveries that had been made, and discussions as to the prospects of the expedition were earnest and long. It was generally admitted that first appearances were, upon the whole, favourable, although it could not bo denied that the place looked dreadfully barren and rugged. Under the happy influence of this impression, and the happier influence of the savoury steaks on which they had supped, the entire party lay down to rest, and slept so profoundly that there was neither sound nor motion to indicate the presence of human beings in the vast solitudes of Ungava, save the fitful flame of the fire as it rose and fell, casting a lurid light on the base of the rugged mountains, and a sharp reflection on the dark waters. CHAPTEB XVI RES0URCJ5S OF THE COUNTRY BEGIN TO DEVELOT— BRYAN DISTINGUISHES HIMSELF — FISHING EXTRAOUDINARiT There is a calm but deep-sented anc". powerful pleasure which fills the heart, and seems to permeate the entire being, when one a\^ akens to the conviction th:it a day of arduous toil is about to bc^gin — toil of an uncertain kind, perhaps connected with danger and adventure, in an unexplored region of the earth. Ignorance always paints coming events in glowing colours ; and the mere fact that our adventurers knew not the nature of the country in which their tent was pitched — knew not whether the natives would receive them as friends or repel them as foes — knew not whether tlie nature and capabilities of the country were such as would be likely to convert the spot on which they lay into a comfortable home or a premature grave ; — the mere fact of being utterly ignorant on these points was, in itself, sufficient to fill the poorest spirit of the band (had thero been a poor spirit among them) with a glow of pleasurable excitement, and a firm resolve to tax their powers of doing and suffering to the uiior- most. When the sun rose on the following morning the whole party was astir, the fire lighted, and an early breakfast in course of preparation. Much had to be done, and it behoved them to set about it with energy, 10 "5 g * ' 1 ■ n \ 'H i S i » '.^H 1 '^^^B 1 1 i 4. ^^H ) 1 ■ I* i 146 UNGAVA m\ ■ ?;■»' and at once, for the short antnmn of those arctic roj^ions was drawing on apace, and a winter of great length and of the utmost severity lay hcfore them. There was also one consideration which caused noma anxiety to Stanley and Frank, although it wei;^hed little on the reckless spirits of the men, and this was the possibility of the non- arrival of the ship with their winter supply of provisions and goods for trade. With- out such a supply a winter on the shores of Ungava Bay would involve all the hardships and extreme p(3ri]s that too often fnll to the lot of arctic discoverers : and he who has perused the fascinating journals of those gallant men, knows that these hardships and perils are iK^ither few nor light. The loarlcrs of the expedition v^■cre not, indeed, men to anticipate evils, or to feel unduly anxious about possible dangers; but they would liave been more or less than human bad they been able to look at Mrs. Stanley and little Edith without a fooling of anxiety on thoir account. This thought, however, did not influence them in their actions ; or, if it did, it only spurred them on to more prompt and vigorous exertions in the carrying out of their undertaking. After breakfast Stanley assembled his men, and gave each special din^^tions what to do. One of the most important points to ascertain was whether thore wore many (ish in the river. On this hung much of the future comfort and well-being, perhaps even the existence, of the party. Gaspard was, therefore, ordered to get out his nets and set them opposite the encampment. Oolibuck, being officially an interpreter of the Esquimau language, and, when not employed in his calling, regarded as a sort of male maid-of-all-work, was ordered to assist Gaspard. The next matter of primary importance was to ascertain v/hat animals inhabited the region, and whether they were numerous. Dick Prince, being the recognised hunter of the party, was directed to take his gun and a large supply of ammunition, and sally forth over the mountains in VNOAVA 147 search of game ; and as Massan was a special friend of his, a good shot, and, moreover, a sagacious fellow, he was ordered to accompany hira. They were also directed to observe particularly tlie state of the woods and the quality of the timber growing therein ; but as this last required special attention, the style and size of the future fort being dependent on it, Francois, the carpenter, was appointed to make a journey of observa- tion up the Caniapuscaw Biver, in company with Augustus the Esquimau and Ma-istequan the Indian — it being thought probable that if natives were to be met with at all, they would be on the banks of the river rather than in the mountains. It was further arranged that Frank Morton should ascend the mountains in company with Bryan, and ascertain if there were any lakes, and whether or not they con- tained fish. As for Mr. Stanley, he resolved to remain by the camp. On entering his tent after despatching the several parties, he said to his wife, — "I'm going to stay by you to-day, Jessie. All tlie men, except Moses, Oostesimow, Gaspard, and La Roche, are sent off to hunt and fisli in the mountains, and I have kept these four to paddle about this neigh- bourhood, in order to take soundings and examine the coast more carefully ; because, you see, it would be an unfortunate thing if we began our establishment in a place not well suited for it." Mrs. Stanley and Edith were, of course, quite pleased with this arrangement, and while the males of the party were absent, the former employed herself in dressing the skin of the deer that had been shot the day before. She accomplished this after the Indian fashion, by scraping and rubbinf^ it with the animal's brains. Afterwards she smoked it over a fire of green wood, and in this way produced a soft, pliant substance similar to chamois leather, but coarser and stouter. As for Edith, she rambled at will among the bushes of the nearest ravine, under the faithful guardianship of Chime, and hurried back to the camp almost every 1 1 ivmmn i\ Si s f 'M\\ k: - ■ 148 VNGAVA m hour, ladon with cloudberries, cranberries, blaeberries, and crowbcrries, which grew in profusion everywhere. Opposite to the camp the water was found to be eight fathoms deep. This was of great importance, as affording facility for unloading the ship abreast of the estabhshraent. Higher up the river the ground was more favourable for building, both on account of its being more sheltered and better wooded with timber fit for the construction of houses ; but the water was too shallow to float the ship, and the island before mentioned, which was named Cross Island, proved an effectual barrier to the upward progress of any craft larger than a boat. But as Stanley surveyed the spot on which the tent was pitched, and observed the sheltering background of mountains, with their suc- cession of terraces ; the creek or ravine to the right, with its growth of willows and stunted pines; the level parcel of green-sward, with the little fountain under the rock ; and the fine sandy bay in which Gaspard and Oohbuck were busily engaged in setting a couple of nets, — when he surveyed all this, he felt that, although not the best locality in the neighbourhood, it was, nevertheless, a very good one, and well suited in many respects for the future establishment. ''Please, sir, the net him set," shouted Oolibuck from the shore to his master, who floated in the bay at tlio distance of a hundred yards, busily engaged with the sounding-line. On receiving this piece of information, Stanley ran the canoe on the beach, and said to his follower, — "Oolibuck, I have been thinking much about that river which we saw yesterday, off the mouth of this one ; and I cannot help fearing that the ship will run into it, instead of into this, for the land is very deceptive." " Me t'ink dat is true," answered the Esquimau, with n look of grave perplexity. "If de ship go into dat riv'r he t'ink we no arrive, and so he go 'way, and we ail starve I " lat lis m VNGA VA 149 ** Nay, Oolibuck, I trust that such would not be tho sad result of the ship faihng to find us ; but in order to prevent this, if possible, I intend to send you down to the coast, with a lew days' provisions, to keep a look- out for the ship, and li^^ht a fire if you see her, so iliat she may be guided to the right place. So get a blanket and your gun as fast as you can, and be off. I can only afford you four days' provisions, Oolibuck, so you will have to prove yourself a good hunter, else you'll starve. Will four days' provisions do ? " Oolibuck's eyes disappeared. We do not mean to say that they tlew away, or were annihilated. Uut Oolibuck was fat — so fat that, when he laughed, his eyes reduced themselves into two little lines surrounded by wrinkles, a result which was caused by a physical incapacity to open the mouth and eyes at the same time. As a general rule, when Oolibuck's mouth was open his eyes were shut, and when his eyes were open his mouth was shut. Being a good-humoured fellow, and of a risible nature, the alternations were frequent. It was the idea of Stanley doubting the sufficiency of four days' provisions that closed the eyes of the Esquimau on the present occasion. "Two (lays' grub more dan 'nuff," said Oolibuck. " Give me plenty powdur and shot, and me no starve — no fear." " Very well," rejoined Stanley, laughing, ** take as much ammunition as you require, but be careful of it ; if the ship fails us we shall need it all. And don't be too eager after the deer, Oolibuck ; keep a sharp look- out seaward, be on the hill-tops as much as you can, and keep your eyes open." Oolibuck replied by closing the said eyes with a smile, as he hurried towards the tent to prepare for his expedition. In the meantime Stanley directed Oostesi- niow and La Eoche to set about building a small canoe out of the birch bark which they had carried with them for the purpose, the large canoes being too cumbrous for the purpose of overhauling the nets. I ICO UNOAVA ^iiiH V' ^ I ' 1 ■ill ii ;^ IF The nets had been set by Gaspard in the usual way — that is, with stones attached to tlie lower Hnes to act as sinkers, and floats attached to the upper lines to kcM]} tlieju spread ; and it was v/iih no little impatience Uiat the parly in the camp awaited the issue. Indeed, tljey scarcely permitted iiii hour to pass without an ins]iection buing ordered; but to their chaf^rin, instead of I'mding (ish, they found the nets rolled up by the coiiilictinc: currents of the river and the tide into the form of two ropes. •• This will never do," cried Stanley, as they brought the nets ashore. *' We must set stake-nets imme- diately. It is nearly low tide now, so if we work hard they may be ready to set up before the tide has risen much." In pursuance of this plan, Stanley and his men went to the ravine, of which mention has been already made, and proceeded to cut stakes for the nets ; while Ooli- buck, having explained to Mrs. Stanley and Edith that he was ** going to look /tout for de ship," shouldered his wallet and gim, and ascending the ravine, speedily gained the first terrace of the mountains, along which he hastened in the direction of the sea-coast. While the party in the camp were thus engaged, Frank INTorton and I'ryan instituted a thorough in- vest] ''aiion of the coimtry that lay directly in the rear of the camp, in the course of which investigation they made sundry interesting discoveries. After ascending the ravine in which we left Stanley and his men cutting stakes for the nets, Frank and Bryan reached the iirst terrace, and proceeded along it in the opposite direction from that pursued by Ooli- buck. A walk of a quarter of a mile, or less, brought them to another ravine, into which they turned, and the first thing that greeted them as they pushed their way through the stunted willows that thickly covered this gorge in the mountains was a covey of ptarmigan. These birds are similar in form and size to ordinary grouse, perhaps a little smaller. In winter they are VNGAVA 161 pure white — so white that it is difficult to detect them amid the snow ; but in summer their coats become brown, though there are a few of the pure white feathers left which never change their colour. Being unaccustomed to the sight of men, they stood gazing at Frank and Bryan in mute surprise, until the latter hastily threw forward his gun, when they wisely took to flight. But Frank arrested his follower's arm. " Don't waste your powder and shot, Bryan, on such small game. There may \y-ttle dat way." " Taizy voo, ye petit varmint," said Bryan, approach- ing the said kettle, and smiling rapturously through the mud that encrusted his face on beholding its contents. Without waiting to change his garments the hungry blacksmith began supper, having first, however, directed attention to the bag which he had brought in. From this bag La Roche now extracted about a dozen trout, some of which were of great size — especially one, whose bulk exceeded that of the large salmon. "There's plinty more where thim comed from," said Bryan, through a mouthful of venison ; " but I'll tell ye ov it afther supper." "Ah, true! don't let us interrupt him just now," said Stanley. " In the meantime, Fran9ois, since you seem to be about done, tell us what you have seen, and let us hear what you have to say of the country." Frangois having lighted his pipe, cleared his throat and began : — "Well, monsieur, after we had paddled a short bit beyond the point below the last rapid in Caniapuscaw i! id H^ H |l ' B '^ Hi B 1 ™fl f: !« 164 UNGAVA ,! '' ¥ Ivivcr, W(^ shoved the Ciinoe ashore, and landed Prince and Massan, who set ofl' to k)()k for game, leavin' Augustus, Ma-istequan and me to paddle up the river, as W(ill as we could. ]5ut we soon found that three men in a big canoe could not make much way agin tlie r>trong current of the river, so we put ashore again and look to our legs. "After making a long tramp up the hanks o' the river, we fell in with some good-sized pines; but although they are big for this part of the country, they are not big enough for building. Then we pushed into the gullies, which are sheltered from the cold winds off the bay, and here we found the trees a good deal bigger. There are pines and larch in abundance, and some of the larch are even bigger than we require." "Are they far inland?" inquired Stanley. ** No, monsieur, they are only a few hundred yards from the banks of the river, and growin' on the edge of a small creek, which I noticed is deep enough to float them down." "Good, very good," said Stanley, filling his pipe with a fresh charge of tobacco; "that is most for- tunate, for it will save time, and take fewer men to bring them here. Go on, Fran9ois." " Bien, monsieur. Then I felled one or two o' the trees, to see what like they are ; and I found that they are very tough and good. The pines are firmer and tougher than any I ever saw in the Indian country, owing, I suppose, to their stunted growth. While I was thus employed, Augustus shot the grouse we brought home, and we saw a great many coveys of them. In fact, we might have shot many more ; but as we did not know how far we should have to walk, we thought it best not lo burden ourselves too much. We also saw a great many ducks, and shot a few, as you see." "Did you see goose?" inquired La Roche, whose mind had a natural tendency to culinary matters. UNO A VA 106 " No," ropHed Fran^oiR, " I saw no geese ; but I did not go out of ray way to look for theiu. 1 wag raore taken up with the timber than replenishing the kettle." "Ah ! that ver' great pity. Oui, grand damage. Do kittle toujours de most importance t'ing on de voyage. If you forgot him — you goot for not'ing. Mais, Fran- cois, did you look into the deep clear pool at de foot of de rapid V " Francois emitted a cloud of smoke with a negative in tlie middle of it. "Ah ! " said La lioche with a sigh, " I thought not ; mais it was pity. You see one goose for certain, if you have look straight down into dat pool." " Bien," continued Francois, turning to Stanley. " I then went into one or two more gullies, and saw some more sticks fit for building ; but after all it is only in the gullies they grow, and there are not very many. The trees on the banks of the river are chic^fly pines, and only fit for firewood." "And an important item is firewood, as we shall find ere long," remarked Stanley. "Your account of the timber is very satisfactory, Francois. Did you see traces of Indians or Esquimaux ? " " No ; I saw none." " Perhaps you did. Prince," continued Stanley, turn- ing to that worthy, who was stretched, along with Massan, at full length before the blaze, and had been listening attentively to the conversation while he solaced himself with his pipe. " Yes, sir, we seed the marks they left behind them," answered Prince, while he glanced towards Massan, as if to invite him to give the desired information. "Ay, we saw their marks, no doubt," said the ^uide, knocking the ashes out of his pipe, and raising himself from his recHning posture to that of a tailor, the more conveniently to recharge that beloved implement. "Ay, we saw their marks, and they was by no means pleasant to look on. After we had landed above the 1 r ; : ' 1 1 i : 'li - "' ;; . i ii \ .! ;i ■ I 166 UNGAVA p'int, as Francois told yo, Dick Princo and mo went np one o' the gullies, an' then pjcttin' on one o' them flat places that run alonp^ the face of all the mountains hereabouts, we pushed strai^^ht up the river. We had not gone far when, on tuniia' a p'int, we both clapped eyes at tlui same moment on the most ill-lookin' black- guard of a wolf I ever saw. Up went both our guns at once, and I believe we were very near puttin' a bullet in each of his eyes, when v.e noticed that these same eyes were not lookin' at us, but starin', most awful earnest like, up a gully in the mountains ; so we looked up, an', sure enough, there we saw a deer on the mountain-top, tossin' its head and snuftin' round to see that the coast was clear before it came down to the water. We noticed that a regular beaten deer- track passed down this gully, and master wolf, who knowed the walk very well, was on the loc^.-out for his dinner; so we waited quiet till the deer came down, an' Dick put a bullet in its heart, an' I put one into the wolf's head, so they botli tumbled down the cliffs together. The shot made another deer, that we had not seen, start off into the river ; but before it got a few yards from the shore, Dick loaded again and put a bullet into its head too, an' it was washed ashore at the p'int below us. " Havin' fixed them off comfortably, we cut up the deer, and put all we could carry on our shoulders, for we knowed that if we left them, we'd find nothin* but the bones when we came back. About an hour after this we came upon a deserted camp of Indians. It was so fresh that we think they must have passed but a few weeks ago. The whole camp was strewed with bones of deer, as if the red varmints had been havin' a feast. An' sure enough, a little farther on, we came upon the dead carcasses of ninety- three deer ! The rascals had taken nothin' but the tongues an' tit-bits, leavin' the rest for the wolves." ** Ay, they're a reckless, improvident set," remarked Stanley. " I've been told that the Esquimaux are quite I UNO A VA 167 different in this respect. Thoy never kill what they don't require ; but the roJskins shau^'hter the deer by duzi ns for the sake of their ton«^Mics." ** We also found the broken head of an l*'squiniau Beal-spear, and this little bit of sealskin." Massan handed these as he spoke to Stanley. " I fear," said i^'rank, " this looks as if they had made an attack on the Esijuiuiaux very recently." " I fear it much," said Stanley, examiniii;^' the little shred of sealskin, which had beautifully j,dossy liair on one side, and on the other, which was dressed, there were sundry curious marks, one of which bore a rude resemblance to an Indian wigwam, with an arrow pointing towards it. " I found the bit o' sealskin hanging on a bush a little apart from the place where they camped, an' ffom what I've seen o' the ways o' redskins, it's my 'pinion that it was put there for some purpose or other." " Very Hkely. — Take care of it, Jessie," said Stanley, throwing it to his wife ; " it may be explained someday. — Well, Massan, did you see any other animals'? " " Yes, sir, lots o' them. We saw deer on the hill- tops, and might ha' shot more o' them if we could have brought them into camp. An' we saw porcupines in all the pine blutl's. An' we saw fish in the lakes among the mountains. There are lots o' them lakes — small things some o' them — in all the gullies, and fish in most o' them ; but we had neither lines nor hooks, so we catched none." " Faix, if ye catched none, yer betters catched plinty," said Bryan, who, having concluded supper and changed his garments, was now luxuriating in a smoke. The blacksmith pointed as he spoke to the bag of splendid trout which lay at a short distance from the fire. " 'Tis mysilf's the boy to catch them. I would have brought ye two times as much, if it wasn't that I lost my hook and line. I think it must have bin a fresh-water whale, the last wan, bad luck to it ! for it pulled me into the I m i\ n n 168 UNGAVA i. J:- wather three times, an' wint off at last with two fathom o' cod-hne trailin' behind it." " So then, Bryan," said Frank, "it must have been the yells with which you accompanied your fishing that frightened the deer I was after and caused me to lose him. However, as I got another soon afterwards which must have been frightened towards me by these same halloos, I forgive you." Frank now gave the party an account of what he had seen, but as his experience merely corroborated that of Dick Prince and Massan we will not trouble the reader with the details. The evidence of the various exploring parties, when summed up, was undoubtedly most satisfactory, and while it relieved the mind of the leaders of the band, it raised and cheered the spirits of the men. Timber, although not plentiful or very large, was to be had close to the spot where they proposed to erect their fort ; game of all kinds swarmed in the mountains in abuixdance ; and the lakes and rivers were well stocked with excellent fish : so that, upon the whole, they considered that they had made an auspicious commencement to their sojourn in the land of the Esquimaux. i-i V t. n n h e e d e LS y e )f ->) o e •s CHAPTER XVI 11 OUTPOST -IRJILDING — FORT CHIMO — AN UNEXPECTED ABRIVAL, WHICH CAUSES MUCH JOY. The band of fur-traders now set earnestly about the erection of their winter dwelling. The season was so far advanced that the men could no longer be spared from the work to hunt or fish in the mountains, so that they lived chiefly on the produce of the stake-nets in front of the camp, and a small allowance of the pro- visions with which they had started from Moose l\)rt. Occasionally Frank sallied forth and returned with the best parts of a deer on his shoulders ; but these excur- sions were rare, as both he and Stank^y worked with the men in the erection of the fort. No one was idle for a moment, from the time of rising — shortly after daybreak — to the time of going to rest at night. Even httle Edith found full occupation in assisting hei mother in the performance of a host of little household duties, too numerous to recapitulate. The dog Chimo was the only exception to the general rule. He hunted the greater part of the forenoon, for his own special benefit, and slept wheji not thus occupied, or received with philosophical satisfaction the caresses of his young mistress. The future fort was begun on the (centre of the level patch of green-sward at the foot of the Hat rock by the spring, where the party had originally encamped. A square was traced on the ground to indicate the 169 170 UNGAVA i- I 'it. f t V "i i nl stockade ; and within this, Stanley marked off an oblong patch, close to the back stockade, for the principal dweUing-housc, facing the river. Two other spaces were en either side of this — one for a store, the other for a dwelling for the men. When finished, the fort would thus have the form of throe sides of a square surrounded by a stockade. In the centre of this, and the first thing that was erected, was a flag-staif, on which the 11. B.C.* flag was hoisted, and saluted with three cheers as its crimson folds fluttered out in the breeze for the first time. Tho plan on which the houses were constructed was that on which all the dwellings of the fur-traders were bu"U — namely a frame- work of timber, the interstices of which are filled up with logs sliding into grooves cut in the main posts and beams. This manner of building is so simple that a house can be erected without any other instruments than an axe, an auger, and a large chisel ; and the speed with which it is put up would surprise those whose notions of house-building are limited to stone edifices. The axes of the wood-cutters resounded among the gullies and ravines of Ungava, and awakened the numerous echoes of the mountains. The encampment no longer presented a green spot, watered by a tiny rill, but was strownwith logs in all stages of formation, and chips innumerable. The frameworks of the dwelling- houses began to rise from the earth, presenting, in their unfinished condition, a bristling, uncomfortable appear- ance, suggesting thoughts in the beholder's mind highly disparaging to art, and deeply sympathetic with out- raged nature. The tents still stood, and the camp-fire burned, but the superior proportions of the rising fort threw these entirely into the shade. A rude wharf of unbarked logs ran from the beach into the river. It had been begun and finished in a couple of days, for the convenience of Gaspard while visiting his nets, as he sometimes did before the water left them. Everything, * Hudf^on'a Bay Company. UNOAVA 171 of It ;he he ig. in shoiL, bore evidence of the most busthng activity and persevering energy ; and in a few weeks from the time of their first landing, the dwelHng-houses were suffi- ciently weather-tight to be habitable, and the other portions of the establishment in an advanced condi- tion. The opening between the logs of the houses were calked with a mixture of mud and moss, and left in that condition in the meantime, until the pit-saw could be set to work to produce boards for the better protection of the walls without and within. The window and door frames were also made, and covered temporarily with parchment, until the arrival of the ship should enable them to fill the former with glass and the latter with broad panels. The effect of the parchment-covered door, however, was found to be somewhat troublesome. I'eing large, and tightly covered, it sounded, when shut violently, with a noise so strongly resembling the report of a distant cannon that, during the first day after its erec- tion, the men more than once rushed down to the beach in the expectation of seeing the long and ardently wished-for ship, which was now so much beyond the time appointed for her arrival tliat Stanley began to entertain serious apprehensions for her safety. This ship was to have sailed frona York Fort, the principal depot of the fur-traders in Hudson's Bay, with su})plies and goods for trade with the Esquimaux during the year. She was expected at Ungava in August, and it was now September. The frost wa.i beginning, even at this early period, to remind the expedition of the long winter that was at hand, and in the course of a very few weeks Hudson's Straits would be impassable ; so that the anxiety of the traders was natural. Just before the partitions of the chief dwelling-house were completed, Stanley went to the tent in which his wife and child were busily employed in sewing. " Can you spare Editli for a short time, wife? " said ]ie, as his partner looked up to ^^'elcome him. i 1 m i' rT^ P 172 UNO A VA '\ "Yes, for a short time; but ahe is bccomincj so useful to me that I cannot afford to spare her long." "I'm afraid," said Stanley, as he took his child by the hand and led her away, " that I must begin to put in my claim to the services of this little baggage, who seems to be so useful. What say you, Eda ; will you allow me to train you to shoot, and fish, and walk on snow-shoes, and so make a trader of you ? " " I would like very much, papa, to learn to walk on snow-shoes, but I think the gun would hurt me — it seems to kick so. Don't you think I am too little to shoot a gun off ? " Stanley laughed at the serious way in which the child received the proposal. "Well, then, we won't teach you to shoot yet, Eda; but, as you say, the snow-shoe walking is worth learn- ing, for if you cannot walk on the long shoes when the snow fails, I fear you'll not be able to leave the fort at all." "Yes, and Frangois has promised to make me a pair," said Edith gaily, "and to teach me how to use them ; and mamma says I am old enough to learn now. Is it not kind of Frangois ? He is always very good to me." " Indeed it is very kind of him, my pet ; but all the men seem to be very good to you — are tlioy not ? " " Oh yes ! — all of them. Even Gaspard is kind now. He never whips Chimo, and he patted me on the head the other day when I met him alone in the ravine — the berry ravine, you know, where I go to gather berries. I wonder if there are berries in all the other ravines? — but I don't care nmch, for there are thousands and thousands of all kinds in my own ravine, and — where are you going, papa V " This abrupt question was caused by her father turn- ing into the square of the new fort, in which the most of the men were at work. " I'm going to show you our house, Eda, and to ask you to fix on the corner you like best for your own I M n UNGA VA lis room. The partitions arc going to be put up, so we must fix at once." As he spoke they passed through the open doorway of the new dweUing, which was a long, low building* and, placing his little daughter in the centre of the principal hall, Stanley directed her to look round and choose a corner for herself. For a few minutes Edith stood with an expression of perplexity on her bright face; then she began to examine the views from each of the corner windows. This could only be done by peeping through the bullet-hole in the parchment skins that in the meantime did duty for glass. The two windows at the back corners looked out upon the rocky platform, behind which the moun- tains rose like a wall, so they were rejected ; but Edith lingered at one of them, for from it she saw the spring at the foot of the rock, with its soft bed of green moss and surrounding willow-bushes. From the front corner on the left band Cross Island and the valley of the river beyond were visible ; but from the window on the right the view embraced the whole sweep of the wide river and the narrow outlet to the bay, which, with its frowning precipices on either side, and its bold flanking mountains, seemed a magnificent portal to the Arctic Sea. " I think this is the nicest corner," said Edith, turn- ing with a smile to her father. " Then this shall be yours," said Stanley. " But," exclaimied Edith, as a sudden thought occurred to her, "perhaps Frank would like this corner. I would not like to have it if Frank wants it." "Frank doesn't want it, and Frank shan't have it. There now run to your mother, you little baggage ; she can't get on without you. Off you go, quick ! " With a merry laugh Edith bounded through the doorway, and disappeared like a sunlx^am from the room. On the 25th of September, Stanley was standing on the beach, opposite the fort, watching with a mile of m m §» 174 UNGAVA -t i f). i f saiisfiKition the fair, happy face of his daughter, as she ainiised herself and Chimo by throwing a stick into the water, which tlie hitter dutifully brought out and laid at her feet as often as it was thrown in. Frank was also watching them. "What shall we call the fort, Frank?" said his coiii[ iiiuion. " We have a Fort Good Hope, and a Fort Resolution, and a Fort Enterprise already. It seems as if all the vigorous and hearty words in the English language were used up in naming the forts of the Hudson's Bay Company. AYhat shall we call it?" "Chhno! Chimo! Chimo!" shouted Edith to the dog, as the animal bounded along the beach. lioth gentlemen seemed to be struck with the same idea simultaneously. " There's an answer to your question," said Frank; " call tlie fort ' Chimo.' " "The very thing !" replied Stanley; "I wonder it did not occur to me before. Nothing could be more appropriate. I salute thee, Fort Chimo," and Stanley lifted his cap to the establishment. In order that the peculiar appropriateness of the name may appear to the reader, it may be as well to explain tliat Chimo (the i and o of which are sounded long) is an Esquimaux word of salutation, and is used by the natives when they meet with strangers. It signifies, Are you friendly ? by those who speak first, and seems to imply. We a re friendly , when returned as an answer. So well known is the word to the fur- traders who traffic with the natives of Hudson's Straits that they frequently apply it to them as a n; ne, and speak of the Esquimaux as Chimos. It was, therefore, a peculiarly appropriate name for a fort which was established on the confines of tliese icy regions, for the double purpose of entering into friendly trafific with the Esquimaux, and of bringing about friendly relations between them and their old enemies, the Muskigon Indians of East Main. After playing for some time beside the low wharf, VNGAVA 175 Edith anfl her dog left the beach together, and rani])lod towards a distant eminence, whence could be obtained a commanding bird's-eye view of the new fort. She had not sat many minutes here when her eye was arrested by the appearance of an unusual objt^ct in the distance. Frank, who was yet engaged in conversation with Stanley on the beach, also noticed it. Laying his hand on the arm of his companion, he pointed towards the narrows, where a small, white, triangular object was visible against the dark cliff. As they gazed, a second object of shnilar form came into view ; then a fore and top sail made their appearance ; and, in another second, a schooner floated slowly through the opening ! Ere the spectators of this silent apparition could give utterance to their joy, a puff of white smoke sprang from the vessel's bow, and a cannon-shot burst upon the mountains. Leaping on from cliff to crag, it awakened a crash of magnificent echut.s, which, ai'ter prolonged repetitions, died away in low mutterings like distant thunder. It was followed by a loud cheer from the schooner's deck, and the II. J). C. flag was run up to the main, while the Union Jack lloated at the peak. " NoWj Frank, give the word," cried Stanley, taking off his cap, while the men ran down to the beach en 7nasse. " Hip, hip, hurrah ! " *' Hurrah ! " echoed the men, and a cheer arose among the cliffs that moved to the very centre the hearts of thobx^ who heard and gave it. Again and again the stirring shout arose froju the fort, and was replied to from the schooner. It was no matter of form, or cheer of ceremony. There was a deep richness and a prolonged energy in the tone, which proved that the feelings and lungs of the m(?n were roused to the uttermost in its delivery. It told of long gathering anxieties sw^ept entirely away, and of deep joy at seeing friendly faces in a sterile land, where lurking foes might be more likely to appear. At all times the entrance of a ship into port is a I t 1V6 UNO A VA i noble sipjht, and one which touches the heart and evokes the enthusiasm of almost every human being; but when the ship arriving is ahnost essential to the existence of those who watch her snowy sails swelling out as they urge her to the land — when hor keel is the first that has ever ploughed the waters of their distant bay — and when her departure will lock them up in solitude for a lon^s long year — such feelings are roused to their utmost pitch of intensity. Cheer upon cheer rose and fell, and rose again, among the mountains of Ungava. Even Edith's tiny voice helped to swell the enthusiastic shout ; and more than one cheer was choked by the rising tide of emotion that forced the tears down more than one bronzed cheek, despite the iron wills that bade them not to flow. h\ hm [■i •:l CHAPTER XIX raSTLE AND BUSINESS — A GKEAT FEAST, IN WHICH BRYAN AND LA ROCHE ARE PRIME MOVERS — NEW IDEAS IN THE ART OF COOKING The scene at Fort Chimo was moro bustling and active than ever during the week that followed the arrival of the schooner. The captain told Stanley, as they sat sipping a glass of Madeira in the hall of the new fort, that he had been delayed by ice in the straits so long, that the men were afraid of being set fast for the winter, and were almost in a state of mutiny, when they fortunately discovered the mouth of the river. As had been anticipated by Stanley, the ship entered False River by mistake, unseen by Oolibuck, notwith- standing the vigilance of his lookout. Fortunately he observed it as it came out of the river, just at the critical period when the seamen began to threaten to take the law into their own hands if the search were continued any longer. Oolibuck no sooner beheld the object of his hopes than he rushed to the top of a hill, where he made a fire and sent up a column of smoke that had the immediate effect of turning the vessel's head towards Lim. Soon afterwards a boat was sent auhore, and took the Esquimau on board, who ex- plained, in his broken English, that he had been watching for them for many days, and would be happy to pilot the vessel up to tlie fort. *' You may be sure," continued the captain, " that I 12 1" 't i i 178 UNOAVA was too happy to give the ship in charge to the fellow, who seemed to understand thoroiiglily what he was ahout. He is already quite a favourite with the men, who call him Oilybuss, much to his own amusement, and he has excited their admiration and itispect by his shooting, having twice on the way up shot a goose on the wing." *'Not an unusual exhibition of skill among fur- traders," said Stanley; "but I suppose your men are not much used to the gun. And now, captain, when must you start? " " The moment the cargo is landed, sir," replied the captain, who was distinguished by that thorough self- sufficiency and prompt energy of character which seem pecuhar to sea-captains in general. "We may have trouble in getting out of the straits, and, after getting to Quebec, I am bound to carry a cargo of timber to England." **I will do my best to help you, captain. Your coming has relieved my mind from a load of anxiety, and one good turn deserves another, so I'll make my fellows work night and day till your ship is dis- charged." Stanley was true to his word. Not only did the men work almost without intermission, but he and Frank Morton scarce allowed themselves an hour's repose during the time that the work was going on. Night and day ** yo heave ho " of the Jack Tars rang over the water; and the party on shore ran to and fro, from the beach to the store, with bales, kegs, barrels, and boxes on their shoulders. There were blankets and guns, and axes and knives, powder and shot, and beads and awls, and nets and twine. There were kettles of every sort and size ; cloth of every hue; capotes of all dimensions, and minute etceteras without end : so that, had it been possible to prevail on the spirits of the ice to carry to the Esquimaux inteUigence of the riches contained in the store at Chimo, an overwhelming flood of visitors would to UNOAVA 170 speedily have dcscciuleil on that establislimcnt. But no such messenf^crs could bo found— althouj^h ]3ryan asserted positively that more than "one o' them" had been seen by him since his aiTival ; so tlio traders had nothing for it but to summon patience to their aid and bide their time. When the work of dirichar<(iii,':j was com])l(.ted, and while Stanh^y and the captain were stand in^if on tlu3 ])each watcliing the removal of the hist boat-load to the store, the fonnia' said to the latter: "Now, cap- tain, I have a favour to rcquofit, which is that you aud your two mates will dine with me to-morrow. Your men will be the better of a day's rest af u r such a long spell of hard work. You could not well get away till the evening of to-morrow at any rate, on account of the tide, and it will bo safer and more pleasant to start 3arly on the day after." " I shall be most happy," replied the captain heartily. " That's right," said Stanley. " Dinner will bo ready by four o'clock precisely ; and give my compli- ments to your crew, and say that my men will expect them all to dinner at the same hour." Ten minutes after this Stanley entered his private apartment in the fort, which, under the tasteful management of his wife, was beginning to look ele- gant and comfortable. " Wife," said he, "I will order La Koche to send you a box of raisins and an unlimited supply of flour, butter, etc., wherewith you will be so kind as to make, or cause to be made — on pain of my utmost displeasure in the event of failure — a plum-pudding large enough to fill the largest sized washing-tub, and another of about quarter that size ; both to be ready boiled by four to-morrow afternoon." " Sir, your commands shall be obeyed. I suppose you intend to regale the sailors before they leave. Is it not so?" " You have guessed rightly for once ; and take rare i p n IMAGF EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) k A ^/ ^ V. y. %^ 1.25 2.5 1.0 !^Ba I m 50 - ""^ IIH •*- -a. I 2.2 IM U 11.6 3 Photographic Sciences corporation 23 WEST MAir: STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14580 (716) 872-4503 180 UNGAVA !*' i!'^^ that you don't let Eda drown herself in the compost before it is tied up. I must hasten to prepare Ihe men." Two minutes later and Stanley stood in the midst of his men, who, having finished their da^'s work, were now busy with supper in their new house, into which they had but recently moved. " Lads," said Stanley, " you have stuck to your work so hard of late that I think it a pity to allow you to fall into lazy habits again. I expect you all to be up by break of day to-morrov/." •* Och ! musha! " sighed Bryan, as he laid down his knife and fork with a look of consternation. " I have invited the ship's crew," continued Stanley, ** to dine with you before they leave us. As the larder is low just now, you'll all have to take to the hills for a fresh supply. Make your arrangements as you please, but see that there is no lack of venison and fish. I'll guarantee the pudding and grog." So saying, he turned and loft the house, followed by a tremendous cheer. " Oh 1 parbleu ! vat shall I do ? " said La Boche, with a look of affected despair. " I am most dead for vant of sleep already. C'est impossible to cook pour everybody demain. I vill be sure to fall 'sleep over de fire, perhaps fall into him." *' Och, Losh, Losh, when will j'e larn to think nothing' o* yoursilf ? Ye'll only have to cook for tlie bourgeois ; but think o' me. All the min, an' the ship's crew to boot ! " The blacksmith concluded by knocking La Eocho's pipe out of his mouth in the excess of his glee at th :; prospective feast ; after which he begged his pardon solemnly in bad French, and ducked his head to avoid the tin can that was hurled at it by the indignant Frenchman. At the first streak of dawn the following morning, and long before the sun looked down into the ravines of Ungava, Massan and Dick Prince were seen to issue » UNGAVA 181 de Ilk tlie the ant nes sue with noiseless steps from the fort, with their guns on their shoulders, and betake themselves to the moun- tains. Half an hour later Bryan staggered out of the house, with a bag on his shoulder, scarcely half awake, rubbing his eyes and muttering to himself in a low tone, as he plunged rather than walked into the ravine which led to the first terrace on the mountain. When the sun rose over the mountain-tops and looked down upon the calm surface of the river, there was not a man remaining in the fort witli the excep- tion of Stanley and l*'rank and their active servant La Eoche. A deep calm rested on the whole scone. The sailors of the vessel, having risen to despatch breakfast, retired to their hammocks again and went to sleep ; Stanley, Frank, and their household, were busy within doors ; Chimo snored in the sunshine at the front of the fort ; and the schooner floated on a sheet of water so placirt, that every spar and delicate rope was clearly reflected. Nothing was heard save the soft ripple on the shore, the distant murmur of mountain streams, and, once or twice through the day, the faint reverberation of a fowling-piece. But as the day advanced evidences of the approach- ing feast began to be apparent. Early in the forenoon Massan and Prince returned with heavy loads of venison on their shoulders, and an hour later Bryan staggered into the fort bending under the weight of a well-filled bag of fish. He had been at his favourita fishing quarters in the dark valley, and was dripping wet from head to foot, having fallen, as usual, into the water. Bryan had a happy facility in falling into the water that was quite unaccountable — and rather enviable in warm weather. As the cooking opera- tions were conducted on an extensive scale, a fire was kindled in the open air in rear of the men's house; round which fire, in the course of the forenoon, Bryan and La Eoche performed feats of agility so extrava- gant, and apparently so superhuman, that they seemed 1 ^bI 182 UN CAVA to involvo an clonicut of -sviclvotlnoss from their very intensity. Of course no largcdinner ever passed through the ordeal of being cooked without some accidents or misfortunes, more or less. Even in civiHsed hfe, where the most intricate appliances are brought to bear on the operation by artUtcs thoroughly ac- quainted with their profession, infallibility is not found. It would be unjust, therefore, to expect that two backwoodsmen should bo perfectly successful, especially when it is remembered that their branch of the noble science was wliat might bo technically termed plain cookery, the pro;;ent being their firbt attempt in the higher branches. Their first difiiculty arose from the larger of the two plum-puddings, which La lloche had compounded nnder the directions of Mrs. Stanley and the super- intendence of Edith. " I say, Losh," cried Bryan to his companion, whoso head at the moment was hid from view in a cloud of steam that ascended from a large pot over which ho bent, apparently muttering incantations. "Veil, fat you want?"' "Faix, and it's just fiit that I don't want," said Bryan, pointing, as he spoke, to the large pudding, which, being mucli too large for the kettle, was stand- ing on the rim thereof like the white ball of foam that caps a tankard of double X. "It's more nor twice too fat already. The kittle won't hould it, no how." "Oh, stuH him down, dat is de way," suggested La Bocho. " Stuff it down, avic, an' what's to come o' tho wather?" said Bryan. " Ah ! true, dat is perplexible, vraiment." At this moment the large pot boiled over and a cloud of scalding steam engulfed the sympathetic Frenchman, causing him to yell with mingled pain and rage as ho bounded backwards. " Musha ! but ye'll come to an early death, Losh, if ye don't be more careful o' yer dried-up body." IMi UNOAVA 183 ** Tai'sez vous, done," muttered liis companion, half anj^rily. •' Taisin* ye? avic, sorra wan o' me's taisin' yo. But since ye can't help nic out o' me throubles, I'll try to help mysilf." In pursuance of this noblo resolve, Bryan went to the Btore and fetched from thence another large tin kettle. He then undid the covering of the unwieldy pudding, which ho cut into two equal parts, and having squeezed them into two balls, tied them up in a cloth, which he divided for the purpose, and put them into the separate kettles, with the air of a man who had overcome a great difficulty by dint of un- fathomable wisdom. It was found, however, that tho smaller pudding, intended for Stanley's table, was also too large for its kettle ; but the energetic blacksmith, whose genius was now thoroughly aroused, overcame this difficulty by cutting off several pounds of it, and transferring the pudding thus reduced to the kettle, saying in an undertone as he did so, " There's more nor enough for the six o' ye yit, av yer only raisonable in yer appetites." But the superfluity of the pudding thus caused became now a new source of trouble to Bryan. "What's to be done wid it, Losh? I don't like to give it to the dogs, an' it's too small intirely to make a dumpHn' of." "You better heat him raw," suggested La Boche. " Faix, an' I've half a mind to ; but it would spile my dinner. Hallo ! look out for the vainison, Losh." "Ah, oui ; oh ! misere! " cried La Roche, springing over the fire, and giving a turn to the splendid haunch of venison which depended from a wooden tripod in front of the blaze, and, having been neglected for a few minutes, was beginning to singe. " What have ye in the pot there? " inquired Bryan. " Von goose, two duck, trois plovre, et von leetle bird — I not know de name of — put him in pour ex- periment." t M 11 4 184 UNGAVA ** Very good, Losh ; out wid the goose and we'll cram the bit 0* dumplin* into him for stuffin'." " Ah ! superb, excellent," cried La Koche, laughing, as he lifted out the goose, into which Bryan thrust the mass of superfluous pudding ; after which the hole was tied up and the bird re-consigned to the pot. Everything connected with this dinner was strikingly suggestive of the circumstances under which it was given. The superabundance of venison and wild-fowl ; the cooking done in the open air ; the absence of women, and the performance of work usually allotted to them by bronzed and stalwart voyageurs ; the wild scenery in the midst of which it took place ; and the mixture of Irish, English, French, Indian, Esquimau, and compound tones, that fell upon the ear as the busy work went on, all tended to fill the mind with a feeling of wild romance, and to suggest powerfully the idea of being, if we may so express it, far, far aivay I As the proceedings advanced towards completion, this feeling was rather increased than removed. Tables and chairs were a luxury that still remained to be introduced at Fort Chimo, when the men found leisure from more urgent duties to construct them. Therefore the dining-table in Stanley's hall was com- posed of three large packing-cases turned bottom up. There was no cloth wherewith to cover its rough boards ; but this was a matter of little importance to the company which assembled round it, punctually at the hour of four. In place of chairs there were good substantial nail-kegs, rather low, it is true, and uncom- monly hard, but not to be despised under the circum- stances. Owing to the unusual demand for dishes, the pewter plates and spoons and tin drinking-cups — for they had little crockery — were of every form and size that the store contained ; and the flooi* on "which it all stood was the beaten ground, for the intended plank flooring was still growing in the mountain glens. But if the equipage was homely and rude, the fare was choice and abundant ; and an odour that might have UNQAVA 185 gladdened the heart of an epicure gi'cetcd the nostrils of the captain and his two mates when they entered the hall, dressed in blue surtouts with bright brass buttons, white duck trousers, and richly-flowered vests. There was a splendid salmon, of twenty pounds weight, at one end of the board ; and beside it, on the same dish, a lake-trout of equal size and beauty. At the other end smoked a haunch of venison, covered with at least an inch of fat ; and beside it a bowl of excellent cran- berry jam, the handiwork of the hostess. A boiled goose and pease-pudding completed the catalogue. Afterwards, these gave place to the pudding which had caused Bryan so much perplexity, and several dishes of raisins and figs. Last, but not least, there was a bottle of brandy and two of port wine; which, along with the raisins and figs, formed part of the limited supply of luxuries furnished by the Hudson's Bay Company to Stanley, in common with all the gentlemen in the service, in order to enable them, now and then, on great occasions, to recall, through the medium of a feast, the remembrance of civilised life. The display in the men's house was precisely similar to that in the hall. But the table was larger and the viands more abundant. The raisins and figs, too, were wanting ; and instead of wine or brandy, tlicre was a small supply of rum. It was necessarily small, being the gift of Stanley out of his own diminutive store, which could not, even if desired, be replenished until the return of the ship next autumn. On the arrival of the guests a strange contrast was presented. The sailors, in white ducks, blue jackets with brass buttons, striped shirts, pumps, and straw hats, landed at the appointed hour, and in hearty good- humour swaggered towards the men's house, where they were politely received by the quiet, manly-looking voyageurs, who, m honour of the occasion, had put on their best capotes, their brightest belts, their gayest garters, and most highly-ornamented moccasins. The French Canadians and half-breeds bowed, shook hands, hi leo UNOAVA and addressed tlio tars as vtr.'i'^icurs. The sailors laughed, shipped their entertainers on the slioulders, and called them messmates. The Indians stood grave and silent, but with looks of good-humour, in the background ; while the Esquimaux raised their fat cheeks, totally shut up their eyes, and grinned per- petually, not to say horribly, from ear to ear. 15ut the babel that followed is beyond the powers of description, therefore we won't attempt it. Here, however, the characteristic peculiarity of our scene ceases. The actual demolition of food is pretty much the same among all nations that are not abso- lutely savage ; and, however much contrast might have been observed in the strange mixture of human beings assembled under the hospitable roof of Fort Chimo, there was none whatever in the manner in which they demolished their viands. As the evening advanced, a message was sent to Monsieur Stanley for the loan of his violin. "Ay," said he, as the instrument was delivered to Bryan, who happened to be the messenger and also the performer — "ay, I thought it would come to that ere long. Don't bo too hard on the strings, lad. 'Twill be a rough ball where there are no women." " Thrue, yer honour," replied the blacksmith, as ho received the instrument, " there's a great want of faymales in thim parts ; but the sailors have consinted to ripresint the purty crayturcs on the present occasion, which is but right, for, ye see, the most o' thim's shorter nor us, an' their wide breeches are more like the petticoats than our leggin's." Many were the stories that were told and re-told, believed, disbelieved, and doubted, on that memorable night ; and loud were the songs and long and strong the dancing that followed. But it was all achieved under the influence of pure animal spirits, for the rum supplied afforded but a thimbleful to each. The con- sequence was that there were no headaches the follow- ing morning, and the men were up by break of day as UNOAVA 187 frcslj and li^lit as larlvs. A fooling of Badnosa, howovor, f^radually cropt over tho hand ars tho dawn advancod and tho schooner prepared for her departure. By six o'clock tho flood-tido turned, and a few minutes later all tho sailors wcro ahoard, hoistinj^ the saiis and anchor, while the men stood silently on the beach where they had just parted from their guests. "Goodbye once more, IMr. Stanley; goodbye, ^Ir. ^Forton," said the captain, as he stepped into liis boat. " 1 wish you a plt^asant winter and a good trade." "Thank you, thank you, captain,** replied Stanley; "and don't forget us out here, in this lonely place, when you drink tho health of absent friends at Christmas time." In a few minutes the anchor was up, and the schooner, bending round with a fair wind and tide, made for the narrows. " Give them a cheer, lads," said Frank. Obedient to the command, the men doffed their caps and raised their voices ; but th(u*o was little vigour in the cheer. It was replied to from the schooner's deck. Just as the flying-jib passed the point a gun was fired, which once more awakened the loud echoes of the place. When the smoke cleared away, the schooner was gone. Thus was severed the last link that bound the civihsed world to the iuhal)itant3 of Fort Chimo. ^■Ij^ 1 ill 'i \ 1 1 1] 1 4 fi 1 » bold, bblo cong ved Irum Icon- low- Ly as CHAPTER XX WINTER ArPROACHBS — ESQUIMAUX ARRIVE — EFFECT Ol^ A WORD — ^A SUCKINQ BABY — PROSPECTS OF TRADE For many days after the ship's departure the work of completing the fort went forward with the utmost rapidity, and not until the houses and stores were rendered water-tight and warm did Stanley consider it advisable to send out hunting and fishmg-partics into the mountains. Now, however, the frosts con- tinued a great part of the day as well as during the night, so it was high time to kill deer and fish in order to freeze and bo prcocrve them for winter's consumption. Up to this time no further trace of Esquimaux had been discovered, and Stanley began to express his fears to Frank that they had left the neighbourhood altogether, in consequence of the repeated attacks made upon them by Indians. Soon after this, how- ever, the fur-traders were surprised by a sudden visit from a party of these denizens of the north. It happened on the afternoon of a beautiful day towards the close of autumn, that charming but brief season which, in consequence of its unbroken serenity, has been styled the Indian summer. The men had all been despatched into the mountains in various directions, some to fish, others to shoot ; and none were left at the fort except its commandant with 188 list DNOAVA 180 lu I hig wife and child, and Oolibuck the Esquimau. Stanley was seated on a stone at the margin of the bay, admiring the vivid alternations of light and shade, as the sun dipped behind the mountains of the opposite shore, when his eye was attracted towards one or two objects on the water near the narrows. Presently they advanced, and were followed by several others. In a few minutes he perceived that they were Esquimaux canoes. Jumping hastily up, Stanley ran to the fort, and bidding his wife and child keep out of sight, put two pair of pistols in his pockets and returned to the beach, where he found Oolibuck gazing at the approaching flotilla with intense eagerness. " Well, Oolibuck, here come your countrymen at last," said Stanley. "Do they look friendly, think you?" " Mo no can tell ; they much too quiet," replied the interpreter. Escjuimaux in general are extremely noisy and full of animated gesticulation on meeting with strangers, especially when they meet on decidedly friendly terms. The silence, therefore, maintained by the natives as they advanced was looked upon as a bad sign. The fleet consisted of nine kayaks, and three large oomiaka full of women and children ; and a curious appearance they presented at a distance, for the low kayaks of the men being almost invisible, it seemed as if their occu- pants were actually seated on the water. The oomiaks being much higher, were clearly visible. On coming to within a quarter of a mile of the fort, the men halted to allow the women to come up; then forming in a crescent in front of the oomiaks, the whole flotilla advanced slowly towards the beach. When within a hundred yards or so, Stanley said, "Now, Oolibuck, give them a hail." " Chimo I Chimo ! Chimo-o-o I " shouted the inter- preter. The v7ord acted like a talisman. V 'J SB Ji J! P li in! 190 UNOAVA ** Cliinio ! " yelled ilio Eaquiniaux in roply, and the kayaks shot liko arrowH upon the Band, whihi the women followed as fast as they could. In another minute a loud chatteiin*,' and a brisk shaking of bands was taking place on shore. The natives were dressed in the sealskin garnicnta with which arctic travellers have made us ail niorv^ ur less acquainted. They were stout burly fellows, with fat, oily, and l)eardcd fares. " Now tell them, Oolibuck, the reason of our coming here," said Stanley. Oolibuck instantly began, by explaining to them that they had come for the purpose of bringing about peace and friendship between them and the Indians ; on hearing which the Esquimaux danced and shouted for nearly a minute with joy. But when the inter- preter went on to say that they intended to remain altogether among them, for the purpose of trading, their delight knew no bounds; they danced and jumped, and whooped and yelled, tossed up their arms and legs, and lay down on the sand and rolled in ecstasy. In the midst of all this, Mrs. Stanley rushed out of the house, followed by Edith, in great terror at the unearthly sounds that had reached lier ears; but on seeing her husband and Oolibuck laugh- ing in the midst of the grotesque group, her fears vanished, and she stood an amused spectator of the scene. Meanwhile, Stanley went down and stepped into the midst of one of the oomiaks, with a few beads and trinkets in his hands ; and while Oolibuck entertained the men on shore, he presented gifts to the women, who received them with the most childish demonstra- tions of joy. There was something irresistibly comic in the childlike simplicity of these poor natives. Instead of the stiff reserve and haughty demeanour of their Indian neighbours, they danced and sang, and leaped and roared, embraced each other and wept, with the most reckless indifferencip. to appearances. ' UiMOAVA 101 jpt, aiul socmcd uj^on all occasions to ^mvo instant vent to the fcelin^frf tluit happtincd to bo uppermost in their nunds. Ar Stanley continued to distribute his pjifts, the women crowded out of th(»- oth(^r ocjmiaks into the ono iu which ho Btood, until they nearly Haul: it ; Bomc of them cxtendin;^ tlu'ir arms for heads, others f^'ivin^' a jolt to the lioods on their l)a(;ks, which liad the ellect of hrinj;in^' to li^dit fat, ^n.asy-faeed little babies, who were poiutc;d to as being peculiarly worthy of attention. At Icn^'th Stanl(!y broke from them and leaped ashore, wtiero he was noon fcjllowed by the entire band. But hero new objects — namely, Mrs. Stanley and Edith — attracted their wondering; attention. Approacliin;pectcdly on the edge of a precipice, was sufficiently intelligible to the trio. The little friends presented a striking and grotesque con- trast. It would have been difficult to say whether the little Esquimaux were boys or girls. If anything, the costume seemed more to indicate the former than the latter. Like their mothers, they wore loose deerskin shirts with the hair on the outside, which gave them a round, soft, burly appearance — an rppearance which was increased by their little boots, whkh were outrageously wide, and quite as long as their legs. The frocks or shirts had hoods and tails, which hitter, according to fashion, were so long that they trailed on the ground. The inconvenience of the tail is so great that the women, while travelling on a journey, get rid of it by drawing it between their legs, and, lifting up the end, fastening it in front to a button sewed to their frock for the purpose. In travelling, therefore, Esquimau women seem to be destitute of this appendage; but, on arriving at camp, they undo the fastening, and walk about with flowing tails behind them ! Edith's costume consisted of a short frock made of dark blue cloth, and a head-dress pecuhar to the Indian women among the Crees. It was preferred by the little wearer to all other styles of bonnet, on account of the case with which it could be thrown off and on. She also wore ornamented leggings and moccasins. Alto- gether, with her graceful figure, flaxen curls, and pic- turesque costume, she presented a strong contrast to I UNGAVA 199 the fat, dark, hairy little creatures who followed her by brook and bush and precipice the livelong day. One morning, about two weeks after the arrival of the Esquimaux, Edith went down to the camp after breakfast, and found her two companions engaged in concluding their morning meal. The elder, whose name was Arnalooa, was peering with earnest scrutiny into the depths of a marrow-bone, from which she had already extracted a large proportion of the raw material. The younger, Okatook, seized a lump of raw seal's flesh, as Edith entered their hut, and, cutting therefrom a savoury morsel, put it into her mouth as she rose to welcome her visitor. ** Oh! how can you?" said Edith, with a look of disgust at this ravenous conduct on the part of her friend. But Edith had said, "Oh! how can you?" and " Oh ! shocking," and "Oh ! why don't you give up eating it raw?" and "Oh! why won't you have it cooked?" nearly every day for the last two weeks, without producing any other effect than a gleeful laugh from the little Esquimaux ; for, although they did not comprehend her words, they clearly understood her looks of disapproval. But although they would not give up the habit of eating raw flesh, which they had been accustomed to from their infancy, they were pre- vailed on so far to break through the habits of their people as to wash their hands and faces before going out to play. This they did because Edith positively refused to go with them unless they did so. Lifting up the end of her tail and wiping Ler mouth therewith, Arnalooa smiled at Edith's look of reproach, and ran laughing towards the shore, where she and Okatook washed their hands, after which they followed Edith and Chimo to their favourite ravine. Although she knew that they did not understand a word of what she said, Edith invariably kept up a running fire of small talk, in reference chiefly to the objects of nature by which they were surrounded. To this the little hairy creatures listened intently with smiling faces. m If-T 200 UNGAVA s 1; i and sometimes tliey laughed prodigiously, as though they understood what was said, so that their companion felt as if she were reallyconversing witlithcm, although she was sadly perplexed Jit the iiUer impossibility of obtaining an intelligible reply to a question when she chanced to put one. "Oh, what a lovely glen!" cried Edith, her eyes beaming with delight, as, on turning the point of a projecting crag, she and her companions found them- selves in a spot which they had not before seen during their rambles. It was a wild, savage gorge, full of fallen rocks, hemmed in with high cliffs, fringed here and there with willows and mosses, among which were a few brilliant wild-flowers. The lights and shadows of the spot were thrown into powerful contrast by a gleam of sunshine which flashed down among the rugged masses, lighting up peaks and sharp edges in some spots, while in others they were thrown into the profoundest gloom. " Oh ! is it not a delightful place ? " cried Edith, as she bounded up the rugged path, followed by Chimo, while the two Esquimau girls buttoned up their tails, and followed her as fast as their more cumbrous habili- ments would permit. For a quarter of an hour the party toiled up the steep ascent, pausing now and then to pluck a flower, or to look back on the wild path by which they had come, until they reached a ridge of rock, beyond which lay a small lake or pool. So dark and still did it lie within the shadow of the overhanging cliffs that it resembled a pool of ink. Here the adventurous explorers sat down to recover breath, and to gaze in childish delight, not unmixed with awe, at the wild scene around them. The peculiar wildness of the spot seemed to exercise an unusual influence over the dog ; for, instead of lying down, as it was wont to do, at the feet of its young mistress, it moved about uneasily, and once or twice uttered a low growl. ** Come here, Chimo/' said Edith, wheu these UNGAVA 201 as lot Pg ice jse symptoms of restlessness had attracted her attention ; "what is the matter with you, my dear dopj? Surely you are not frightened at the appearance of this wild place! Speak, dog — see, Arnalooais laughing at you." Edith might have said with more propriety that Arnalooa was laughing at herself, for the little Esqui- mau was much amused at the serious manner in which her Kublunat friend spoke to her dog. But Chimo refused to be comforted. He raised his snout, snuffed the air once or twice, and then, descending the gorge a short distance, put his nose close to the ground and trotted away. ** That is very odd of Chimo," said Edith, looking into Arnalooa's face with an expression of perplexity. As she spoke Okatook pointed, with an eager glance, up the ravine. Turning her eyes hastily in the direction indicated, Edith beheld a deer bounding towards them. It was closely followed by a savage wolf. The deer seemed to be in the last stage of exhaustion. Its flanks were wet with moisture, its eyes starting from their sockets, and its breath issued forth in deep sobs, as it bounded onwards, seemingly more by the force of its impetus than by any voluntary exertion. More intent on the danger behind than on that Vv'hich lay before it, the deer made straight for the pass in which the three girls stood, and scarcely had they time to spring up the sides of the cliff, when it swept by like an arrow. Instantly after, and ere it had taken two bounds past them, the wolf sprang forward, caught it by the throat, and dragged it to the ground, where, in a few seconds, it worried the noble animal to death. It is probable that the chase now terminated had begun at early dawn that day, for deer being fleeter than wolves they pro- long the chase until overcome by the superior strength and dogged perseverance of their ravenous enemies. Over m.ountain and hill they had bounded along together, through glen and gorge, across river and lake, bursting headlong through bush and brake, or under the shadov^ of frowning chffs, and toiling, at a foot pace and with i \i 20Q UNOAVA 1 1 if: i 1 1 111' panting sides, up the stoop hills, in iho fierce blaze of the Biin — the ono impelled by hunger, the other by fear, until at length the scene clo^^ed in the wild pans, almost at the feet of the three children. But retribution was in store for the savage destroyer. Ere yet the life's blood had ceased to :^\ow from the throat of the dying deer, and while the wolf's fangs were still dripping with its gore, a fierce bark, followed by a terrific growl, rang among tlie cliffs, and Chimo, with his ears laid back and his formidable row of teeth exposed, rushed up the gorge and seized the wolf by the nock ! Thus assailed, the wolf returned the bite with interest, and immediately a fight of the most energetic character ensued. The wolf was much larger and more powerful than Chimo, but was greatly exhausted by its long chase, while the dog was fresh and vigorous. Once or twice Chimo tossed his huge adversary by main strength, but as often he was overturned and dreadfully shaken, while the long fangs of the wolf met in his neck, and mingled the blood of the deer, which bespattered his black muzzle, with the life's blood that began to flow copiously from Chimo's veins. At this moment a shout was heard farther up the ravine. The three girls turned hastily, and saw, on a point of rock which projected from the mountain side and overhung the dark pool, the figure of a man, of such immense proportions that they instinctively shrank back with terror. The position in which he stood made him appear larger than he really was. The scattered gleams and slant rays of sun- shine that played around the spot invested him as wnth a supernatural halo, while a bright glow of light on the cliff behind detached him prominently from the sur- rounding shadows. lie poised a spear in his right hand, and, while Edith gazed at him in terror, the weapon flew whistling through the air and was buried in the side of the wolf. But so close did the spear pass, that Edith involuntarily stepped back as she heard it whiz. In doing so she lost her balance and fell over the cliff. VNGAVA 203 Fortunately Arnalooa caiujjht her by the dross and partially broke her fall, but the descent was sufliciently steep and ruj^'ged to render the child insensible. When Edith recovered consciousness, her first emo- tion was that of terror, on beholding a largo dark bearded face bending over her; but a second glance showed her that the eyes of the stranger gazed upon her with a lof>k of tenderness, and that Arnalooa and Okatook were kneeling beside her with an expression of anxiety. Had anything further been wanting to allay her fears, the sight of Chinio would have done it. It is true the sturdy dog panted heavily, and occasion- ally licked his wounds, as he sat on his haunches at her feet; but* he was wonderfully calm and collected after his recent mortal conflict, and regarded his young mistress from time to time Avith an air of patronising assurance. As Edith opened her eyes, the stranger muttered some unintelligible words, and, rising hastily, went to a neighbouring spring, at which he filled a rude cup with water. In doing this, he revealed the huge pro- portions of the gigantic Esquimau whom we introduced to our reader in a former chapter. He was dressed in the same manner as when we first saw him, but. his face was somewhat altered, and his black eye- brows were marked by that peculiar curve which is expressive of deep melancholy. Eeturning quickly from the spring, he kneeled beside the little girl, and, raising her head on his broad hand, held the goblet to her lips. " Thank you," said Edith faintly, as she swallowed a few drops; *'I think I had better go home. Is Chimo safe? Chnno ! " She started up as the re- collection of the fight with the wolf flashed upon her ; but the fall had stunned her rather severely, and scarcely had she risen to her feet when she staggered and fell back into the arms of the Esqui- mau. Seeing that she was quite unable to walk, he raisec 204 UNOAVA her in his powerful arm as if she had bocn a young lamb. Catching; the dead wolf by the neck as he passed, and springing* from rock to rock with cat- like agility, he bore his burden down the ravine, and strode towards the fort under the guidance of Okatook and Amalooa. 1 1 1 nr CHAPTEU XXII MAXIMUS— DEER SPEARING — A SURPRISINGLY BAD SHOT — CHARACTER OF TUE NATIVES "Hallo! what have we here?" exclaimed Stanley, starting from his seat in amazement, as the giant entered the hall of Fort Chimo — his left band grasp- ing a blood-stained wolf by the throat, and Edith rest- ing in his right arm. At first the startled father imagined his child must have been wounded, if not killed, by the savage animal; but his mind was immediately relieved on this point by Edith herself, who was no sooner laid on her bed than she recovered sufliciently to narrate the circumstances attending her fall. "Well, Maximus," said Stanley, returning to the hall and applying to the bulky savage the term that seemed most appropriate to him, " shake hands with me, my good fellow. You've saved Chimo's life, it seems; and that's a good turn I'll not forget. But a — , I see you don't understand a word I say. Hallo ! Moses, Moses ! you deaf rascal, come here 1 " he shouted, as that worthy passed the window. " Yis, mossue," said Moses, entering the hall. ** Oh, me ! what a walrus am dis ! Me do b'lieve him most high as a tree an' more broader nor iveryt'ing ! " ** Hold thy tongue, Moses, and ask the fellow where he came from ; but tell him first that I'm obliged to him for saving Chimo from that villainous wolf." 806 m \ i i * 1 m 206 UNO A VA !|^ Mi While Moses interpreted, Arnalooa and Okatook, being privileged members of the tribe, crossed over to Edith's room. " Well, what says he ? " inquired Stanley, at the end of a long address which the giant had delivered to Moses. " Him say he heered we have come to trade, from Eskeemo to west'ard, and so him come for to see us." "A most excellent reason," said Stanley. "Has he brought any furs ? " " Yis; him brought one two fox, and two free deer. No have much furs in dis country, him say." " Sorry to hear that. Perhaps his opinion may change when he sees the inside of our store. But I would like him to stay about the fort as a hunter, Moses; he seems a first-rate man. Ask him if he will consent to stay for a time." "P'raps he fuss-rate, p'raps not," muttered Moses in a disparaging tone, as he turned to put the question. " Him say yis." "Very good; then take him to your house, Moses, and give him some food and a pipe, and teach him English as fast as you can, and see that it is gram- matical. D'ye hear ? " " Yis, mossue, me quite sure for to teach him dat." As Moses turned to quit the hall, Stanley called him back. " Ask Maximus, by-the-hy, if he knows any- thing of a party of Esquimaux who seem to have been attacked, not long ago, by Indians in this neighbour- hood." No sooner was this question put than the face of Maximus, which had worn a placid, smiling expression during the foregoing conversation, totally changed. His brows lowered, and his lips were tightly com- pressed, as he regarded Stanley for a few moments ere he ventured to reply. Then, in a deep, earnest tone, he related the attack, the slaughter of his people, their subsequent escape, and the loss of his bride. Even Moses was agitated as ho went on, and showed I UNGAVA 207 u ifil >l his teeth like an enraged mastiff when the Esquimau came to speak of his irreparable loss. " Stay one -pomcnt," said Stanley, when Maximus concluded. "I have something to show you;" and hastening into his room, he quickly returned with the little piece of sealskin that had been found at the deserted Indian camp. ''Do you know anything of this, Maximus ? Do you understand these marks? " The Esquimau uttered a cry of surprise when his eye fell on the piece of skin, and h'- seemed much agitated, while he put several quick, earnest questions to Moses, who replied as earnestly and quickly ; then turning rapidly on his heel, he sprang through the doorway, and was soon lost to view in the stunted woods of the ravine above the fort. "That fellow seems in a hurry," exclaimed Frank Morton, entering the room just as the savage made his exit. "Who is he, and wherefore in so great haste?" "As to who he is," answered Stanley, "I'll tell you that after Moses has explained the cause of his sudden flight." "He say that him's wife make dat skin, and de arrow on him skin show dat de Injuns take her to deir tents." " But did you not tell hiin that we found the skin long ago, and that the Indians must be far, far away by this time — nobody knows whore ? " demanded Frank. "Yis, me tell him. But he go for to see de spot. T'ink him find more t'ings, p'raps." " Oh, messieurs, voila!" shouted La Koche, pointing towards the river, as he rushed, breathless with haste, into the hall; " les Esquimaux, dem kill all de deer dans le kontry. Oai, voila 1 dans les kayak. Two dozen at vonce — vraiment ! " Without waiting a reply, the excited Frenchman turned round and rushed out of the house, followed by Stanley and Frank, who seized their guns, which always hung ready loaded on the walls of the apartment. m i k I 208 VNQAVA t ■JLI, On reaching the water's edge, the scene that met their eye was indeed sufficient to account for the excitement of La Eoche. A herd of perhaps fifty or sixty deer, on their way to the coast, and ignorant of the foes who had so recently invaded their solitudes, had descended the ravine opposite the fort, with the intention of crossing the river. The Esquimaux had perceived this, and keeping themselves and their kayaks concealed until moRt of the animals were in the water, and the leaders of the herd more than two-thirds over, then they gave chase, and, getting between the deer and the opposite shore, cut olf their retreat, and drove them towards their encampment. Here the slaughter commenced, and Stanley and Frank arrived at the scene of action while they were in the midst of the wholesale destruction. In all directions the kayaks, with their solitary occupants, were darting about hither and thither lik'^. arrows in the midst of the affrighted animals ; none of which, how- ever, were speared until they were driven quite close to the shore. In their terror, the deer endeavoured to escape by swimming in different directions ; but the long double-bladed paddles of the Esquimaux sent the light kayaks after them like lightning, and a sharp prick on their flanks turned them in the right direction. There were so many deer, however, that a few succeeded in gaining the land ; but here the guns of the traders awaited them. In the midst of this wild scene, Frank's attention was arrested by the cool proceedings of an Esquimau, whose name was Chacooto. He had several times exhibited a degree of shrewdness beyond his fellows during his residence near the fort, and was evidently a man of importance in the tribe. Chacooto had collected together a band of the herd, amounting to fifteen, and, by dint of cool decision and quick movements, had driven them to within a few yards of the shore, exactly opposite the spot whereon his tent stood. One young buck, of about two years old, darted away from the rest more than once, but, with a sweep . n UNGAVA 209 of the paddle and a prick of the lance, Chacooto turned it back again, while a quiet sarcastic smile played on his countenance. Having driven the ..crd close enough in for his purpose, the Esquimau ended the career of the refractory buck with a single tlirust of his lance, and then proceeded coolly to stab them all one after another. " Och, the spalpeen ! " said a voice at Frank's ear. "'Tis himsilf knows how to do it, an' no mistake. Musha! his lance goes out and in like a thailor's needle ; an' he niver strikes more nor wance, the hay then ! " "He certainly does know how to do it, Bryan," replied Frank; " and it's a comfort to know that every thrust kills in a moment. I like to soo as little of the appearance of cruelty as possible in work of this kmd." "Arrah! there's wan that'll chate 'im, anyhow," cried Bryan, throwing forward his gun in nervous haste, as one of the deer gained the land, despite Chacooto's rapidity, and bounded towards the hills. Frank smiled at the eager haste of his companion, who was one of the poor shots of the party, and, conse- quently, always in a hurry. " Now, Bryan, there's a chance. Take your time. Just behind the shoulder ; a httle low, for that gun kicks horribly." " Mm^der and blazes, slie won't go off!" cried the exasperated Irishman, as, after a wavering effort to take aim, he essayed unsuccessfully to pull the trigger. " Half-cock, man ! Cock it ! " said Frank quickly. ** So 'tis, be the mortial! Och, Bryan, yer too cliver, ye are ! " he exclaimed, rectifying his error with a force that nearly tore off the dog-head. At that instant there was a sharp crack, and the deer, bounding into the air, fell dead on the sand at the edge of the willows. " Forgive me, Bryan," said IMassan, chuckHng and reloading his piece as he walked up to his comrade. •* I would not ha' taken't out o' yer teeth, lad, if ye bad H ^m 11 1 ;'1 2J0 UNQAVA till :,ii 1 >.. ■■ Si fi' .r been ready ; but one bound more ^yollld ha' put tho beast beyond the reach o' a bulloi," •* Faix, Massan, ye dcsarve to be 1 ranged for murther. Shure I was waitin' till the poor crayluro got into the bushes, to give it a chance o* its hfe, before I fired. That's the way that gintlemen from the ould country does when we're out sportin'. We always put up the birds first, and fire afterwards ; but you salvages murther a poor brute on the sand, whin it's only two fathoms from ye. Shame on ye, Massan." ** See, Massan," cried Frank, pointing to another deer, which, having escaped its pursuers, had gained the heights above. " That fellow is beyond us both, I fear. Be ready when it comes into view beyond tho cliff there." But Massan did not move ; and when Frank threw forward his gun, he felt his arm arrested. "Pardon me, monsieur," said Massan respectfully; "there's a sure bullet about to start for that deer." As he spoke, he pointed to Dick Prince, who, ignorant of the fact that the deer had been seen by Frank, was watching its re-appearance from behind a neighbouring rock, at some dir^tance from where they stood. In a second it came into view — the bullet sped — and tho deer bounded lightly into the bushes, evidently unhurt ! It is difficult to say whether Dick Prince or hir, comrades exhibited most amazement in their loolis at this result. That the crack shot of the party — the man who could hit a button in the centre at a hundred yards, and cut the head off a partridge at a hundred and fifty — should miss a deer at ninety yards, was utterly incomprehensible. ** Is it yer own gun ye've got ? " inquired Bryan, as the discomfited marksman walked up. ** No ; it's yours," replied Prince. A smile, which resolved itself into a myriad of wrinkles, flitted over the blacksmith's face as he said, — " Ah, Prince ! ye'll requare long practice to come to the parfect use o' that wipon. I've always fired three ■ i .tterly UNO A VA 211 yards, at laste, to tlio left, ivcr since wc fell over tlio hill togithcr. If it's a very long shot, it rcqiiarcs four to take the baste in the Hank, or four nn' a half if 5'o want to hit the shoulder, besides an allowance o' two feet above its head, to make up for the twist I gave it the other day in the forge, in tryin' to put it right ! " This explanation was satisfactory to all parties, especially so to Prince, who felt that his credit was saved ; and if Prince had a weakness at all, it was upon this point. The deer were now all killed, with the exception of those of the band that had been last in entering the river. These, with a few stragglers, had returned to the shore from which they started. The remainder of the evening was devoted to skinning and cutting up the carcasses — an operation requiiing considerable time, skill, and labour. While the people at the fort were thus employed, Maximus (who adopted at once the name given to him by Stanley) returned from his fruitless journey to the Indian camp, and assisted the men at their work. He made no allusion whatever to his visit to the deserted Indian camp ; but, from the settled expression of deep sadness that clouded his countenance, it was inferred that what he had seen there had not tended to raise his hopes. The supply of doer obtained at this time was very seasonable, for the frost had now begun to set in so steadily that the meat could be hung up to freeze, and thus be kept fresh for winter's consumption. Some of it, however, was dried and stored away in baies ; while a small quantity was pounded after being dried, made into pemmican, and reserved for future journeys. As for the Esquimaux, they gave themselves up, during the first night, to feasting and rejoicing. During the short time that they had been at the fort, they had converted the promontory on which they were encamped into a scene of the utmost con- fusion and filth. A regard for truth constrains us to ' III I I '' I V <,' ;f? 212 UNOAVA I m Bay, that although these poor creatures turned out to be honest, and simple, and kind-hearted, they did not by any means turn out to be cleanly; quite the reverse. l"!iey had erected four summer tents on the beach, which were composed of skins sewed together, and supported on poles in such a way as to afford ample room for the acccnmodation of their families. The entrance to each cent was through a passage, which was also made of skins, hung over a line fastened to a pole at the distance of twelve or fifteen feet from the tent. Each side of this entrance was lined with piles of provisions — seals, fish, ducks, and venison, in various stages of decay, which rendered the passage into the interior a trying operation. True, it was intended that the frost should prevent this decay; but, unfortunately, the frost did not always do its duty. The manner in Vv'hich they cut up their dcor a; id prepared them for future use was curious. After cutting the animals into two, without skinning them, they pinned up the front half w^ith the heart and liver in the cavity. The other half they treated in a similar way, minus the heart and liver, and then put them out to freeze until required. When frozen, they were frequently used in their tents as seats, until the gradual diminution of the larder demanded that they should be appropriated to their proper use. The tribe of Esquimaux who resided near Fort Chimo at this time were possessed of an enormous ntone kettle, in which they boiled an entire deer at one time ; and while the good people luxuriated on the llosh of the animal in their tents, the dogs assembled round the boiler to await the cooling of the soup — thus verifying the assertion formerly made by Massan on that head. The dogs resembled those of the Newfoundland breed in some respects, but v/ere sccj-ceiy so large or good- looking, and had erect instead of pendent ears. There were about a dozen of them ; and it was wonderful to observe the patience with v/nich they sat in a circle ■ i UNOAVA 218 II round the kettle, ^^7.\n^ earnestly at the sonp, licking their chaps the while, in anticipation of tlic feast. The successful hunt was rcn^ardod as worthy of being specially celebrated by the distribution of a pjlass of f^rog to the men, and also totlie Esquimaux; for at the time we write of, the Hudson's Bay Company had not yet instituted the w^ise and humane regulation which has since become a standing order throughout all partf? of the country, except where there is opposition — ■ namely, that ardent spirits shall not bo given to the natives. However, Stanley's natural disposition l(>d him to be very circumspect in giving spirits to the men and natives, and the supply now issued was very small. In the men it produced a desire for the violin, and created a tcuidency to sing and tell stories. In tlie Esquimaux it produced at iirst dislike, and afterwards wild excitement, which, in tlie case of Chacooto, ended in a desire to fight. J hit his comrades, assisted by his wives, overpovy'ered him, tied him in a sack made of sealskin, and left him to roar and kick till he f(;il asleep ! The honesty of these natives was exhil)ited very strikingly in all their dealings with the fur-traders. Although iron tools of every description were scattered about the fort, while the men were engaged in erecting the several buildings, not one was missed; and even the useless nails and scraps of metal that were thrown away, when they were found by chance by the Esqui- maux, were always brought to the house, and the question asked, "Yv^t-re tli(;y of any use?" before b(}ing appropriated, They were great beggars, how- ever; which was not surprising, considering the value of the articles possessed l)y the traders, and their own limited means of purchasing them. Their chief wealth at this time lay in boots and deerskins, which the women were constantly employed in preparing; but Stanley urged them to go into the interior and hunt, as, although deerskins and boots were useful, furs 4 I I 2H VNOAVA I ii^. I'/ r .' m Mjf i' ^1 '!■ i \£dM, ; ^vere infinitely more vahiable. But the Esquimaux had much too lively a dread of the Indians to venture av^^ay from the coast, and seemed inclined to hang about the place in comparative idleness much longer than was desirable. CHAPTEn XXIII MORE ARRIVALS— HONESTY — INDIANS COME UPON THE SCENE — THE TRIBES RECONCILED — DISEASE AND DEATH CHANGE THE ASPECT OP THINGS — PHILO- SOPHIO DISCOURSE m A. DAT or two after the successful deer-hunt ahove relat(3d, several bands of Esquimaux arrived at Eort Chimo, and encamped beside their comrades. This unusual influx of visitors soon exhausted the venison that had been procured ; but hunting parties were con- stantly on the alert, and as game of all kinds was plentiful, they lived in the midst of abundance. To all of these Stanley made small presents of beads and tobacco, and recommended them strongly to go and hunt for furs. But they seemed to like their quarters, and refused to move. The new arrivals, along with those who had first come, formed a band of about three hundred, and were found, almost without excep- tion, to be a quiet, inoffensive, and honest people. As a proof of this latter quality, we may mention a circumstance that occurred a few days after the arrival of the last band. Being desirous of taking some addi- tional soundings, Stanley launched his boat by the help of the Esquimaux, for his own men \ycvq all absent hunting and fishing. The boat referred to had been sent to the fort in the ship, and was a most useful and acceptable gift from the Governor of the Fur Company to the gentleman in charge of Ungava. Stanley hoisted 215 ^ ■ I2ld VNQAVA ) i > ■ j v [i' 1 ^ lljgl his sails, and prepared to run down the river; but ere he had advanced a luindrcd yards, he was startled by a burst of loud cries from the shore, and, looking back, he observed the whole band of natives pouring like a torrent into the fort ! Ilis heart leaped within him as he thought of his unprotected wife and child. Turning the boat towards the shore, he ran it on the beach, and, leaving it with all the sails standing, he rushed into the square of the fort, forcing his way through the crush of natives, wlioso vociferous talking rendered what they said, for a time, unintelligible. At length Moses forced his way through the crowd, followed by one of the natives, who led a largo dog by a lino fastened round its neck. "What's the matter, Moses? what's wrong?" cried Stanley. " Oh, not'ing at all," replied Mofx n, casting a look of pity at his countrymen. " Dem are great gooses. Dis man here wid de dog, him say dat de child'n was play in de square of dis fort, an' one o' dem trow stone and broke a window. It was de son oh dis man what do it, an' him say he most awful sorry — an' all de people sorry, so dey bring de dog t( • T)ay for de broken window." " I'm glad it's nothing worse," cried Stanley, much relieved. " Tell them I'm happy to fmd they are sorry, and I hope they will keep the children out of the square in future ; but I don't want the dog. It was an acci- dent, and not worth making such a noise about." The Esquimaux, however, would not agree to look upon this accident as a light matter. They said truly, that glass was not to be got so easily as the ice-blocks with which they formed windoW'S to their own winter houses, so they insisted on the dog being accepted; and at length Stanley gave in, but took care that the native who gave it should not be a loser in consequence of his honesty. Moreover, Stanley begged of them to send up several of their best dogs, saying that he would purchase them, as he was in want of a team for hauling the winter firewood. r^ UNGAVA ^f Next (lay, while Stanley wan v-^ncja^r "* in tb tradir'* Btore with a party of Esquimaux, lie ^" j,3 sur .ised by hoarinfT a volley of musketry fired a; :.he ba ,i of the fort. Snatchinpf np a loaded gun as 1 ; ran hastily out, he found that the shots had been lu-cd by a band of Indians as a Galnte to the fort on their arrival. This was the first time that Indians had made their appearance since the arrival of the fur-trader.s ; and their advent at the present time was most fortunate, as it afforded Stanley an opportunity of commencinf^ his negotiations as peace-maker in the presence of a considerable band of both parties. The Indians, fifteen in number, were all clothed, with the exception of their chief, in deerskin hunting shirts, ornamented moccasins of the same material, and cloth leggings. They wore no head-dress, but their long, straight, black hair was decorated with feathers and small metallic ornaments, among which were several silver thimbles. Their powder-horns and shot-pouches were gaily ornamented with bead and quill v/ork; and they were all armed with long guns, on which they leaned as they stood silently, in a picturesque group, on the flat rocky platform above the spring, which has been more than once alluded to. This platform overlooked the fort, and was a favourite promenade of the traders. At present it formed a sort of neutral ground, on which the Indians took their stand. The red men were overawed by the very superior number of the Esquimaux, and felt that they were safe only so long as they stood on the flat rock, wdiich was the only path leading to the ravine, through which, if need be, they could easily escape into the mountains. The chief of the Indians, unlike his fellows, was dressed in a costume of the most grotesque and brilliant chaiacter, and, certainly, one wdiich, however much it might raise the admiration of his savage companions, did not add to his dignity in the eyes of the traders. wore a lon». bright scarlet coat, richly embroidered .', ) : 'o» 218 UNQAVA 1. U^A'l :• f'^i 1' ■ I it with f^ol(^l laco, with \M<^n cufi'^^, and pjilt huttons; a jpair of bhio cloth trousers, and a vest of the same material ; a broad worsted sash, and a hat in the form of the ordinary beaver or silk hat of Europe. The material, however, was very coarse ; but this was made up for by the silver, and gilt cords, and tassels with which it was profusely decorated. He evidently felt his own import- ance, and stood with a cahn, dignified gaze, waiting to be addressed. Hailing Ma-istequan, who leaned on the axo with which he had been cutting firewood when the volley of the Indians arrested him, Stanley bade him invite them to enter the fort. "We cannot come down," replied the chief, after Ma-istequan had given the invitation. " The Eskimos are in numbers like the stars ; v.'e are few. If the pale-faces are our friends, lot them come up here and take us by the hand and bring us down." " Very reasonable," said Stanley to Frank, who stood beside him ; ** we must take care that the Esquimaux do not take advantage of their numbers to avenge their ancient wrongs." Then, turnmg to the natives, who had now crowded in large numbers into the fort, Stanley addressed them in a serious tone; told them that the time had now come when he hoped to reconcile the Innuit and the Allat* together; and that he expected they would show their gratitude for his many kindnesses to them by treating the Indians, who were his friends, with hos- pitality. The Esquimaux promised obedience, after which Stanley ascended to the promenade, and taking the Indian chief by the hand, led him towards the fort, followed by the whole band in single file. It is not necessary to detail the speeches that followed on both sides on this occasion, and the eloquence that was expended that evening in the cause of peace. Suffice it to say that the Indians and Esquimaux shook hands and exchanged gifts in the presence of the assem- * Esquimau n.ame for Indians. the and VNGAVA 310 Med Rarrison of Fort Chimo. But aliliou^h the traders had reason to congratulate tlioiusclvcs on having so far Bucceedcd in the establishniont of peace, they could not conceal from themselves the fact that ^vhile, on tho one hand, the Esquimaux appeared to be perfectly sincorc and cordial in their professions, on the other hand the Indians evinced a good deal of taciturnity at first, and even after tiieir reserve was overcome, seemed to act as men do who arc constrained to the performance of a distasteful action. In general character, tho Indians of Labrador do not contrast well with the Esquimaux — at least this may with truth be said of those who afterwards became attached to the district of Ungava. The Indian ia reserved and taciturn, while the Esquimau is candid, frank, and communicative. Of course there are excep- tions on both sides. On the evening of the same day, Stanley had much dilliculty in overcoming the reserve of the Indians, so as to procure information regarding the interior; and it was not until their hearts were opened by the influence of tobacco, that they condescended to give the required information. This was to the effect that there were not many fur-bearing animals in the immediate vicinity of Ungava, but that there were a good many in the wooded country lying to the southward and eastward. Here, however, the Indians do not care to hunt, pre- ferring rather to keep to the heights of land, and near the coast, where the deer are numerous. In fact, Stan- ley afterwards found that ihi facility with which the Indians procured deer in this part of the country was a serious drawback to the fur trade, as they contented themselves with trapping just enough of otters, foxes, etc., to enable them to procure a supply of ammunition with which to hunt the deer. The Indians had brought a few beaver and other furs to trade, and, after receiving a good meal and a few presents, thev took up their quarters on a plot of ground close to the lort. Here they lived a short time in per- I ; i Mil 18 ;ll!'l If; r ; 1 I'.f; : m ii (ii '^\ 220 UNGAVA !t|if|: feet friendship with the Esquimaux, visiting them, and hunting in company; but more than once they exhibited their natural disposition by stealing the goods of their neighbours. On one occasion, two Esquimau children were missed from the camp, and in the course of the day they returned to their parents clothed in Indian costume ! This was a very polite piece of attention on the part of the Indians, but the effect of it was much marred, the same day, by the abstraction of a knife from an Esquimau tent. Stanley insisted on the article being restored, and severely reprimanded the offender. But, although the general harmony of the camp was sometimes broken by such events, the friend- ship between the two parties seemed to be gro,dually increasing, and Stanley saw with satisfaction that the Allat and the Innuit bade fair to become fast friends for the future. But an event occurred at this time which put an end to their intercourse, and very much altered the aspect of affairs. For some time past the men at the fort had been subject to rather severe attacks of cold, or a species of influenza. This they unfortunately communicated to the Esquimaux, who seemed to be peculiarly susceptible of the disease. Being veiy fat and full-blooded, it had the most dreadful effect on the poor creatures, and at a certain stage almost choked them. At last one night it was reported that ten of their number had died from absolute suffocation. All of these had been strong and robust, and they died after two days' illness. One of those who were attacked was Edith's little friend, Arnalooa, and just before the ten Esquimaux died, Edith had gone down to the camp with a present of beads to console her. She found her much better, and, after talking to her for some time, she took her leave, promising to pay her another visit next day. True to her promise, Edith sallied forth after breakfast with a little native basket on her arm. About half-an- hour afterwards, while Stanley was sitting in the hall with his wife and Frank, they were startled by the UNGAVA 221 Budden appearance of Edith, out of breath from the speed with which she had run home, and her face over- spread with a deadly paleness. " What is the matter, my darling?" cried her mother, starting up in alarm. "Oh! the Esquimaux are lying dead on the sand," gasped Edith, as she laid her head on her mother's breast, " and the rest are all gone." Without waiting to hear more, Frank and Stanley took down their guns and \astened to the camp. Here a scene of the most horrible kind presented itself. The whole camp exhibited evidences of a hasty flight, and eight of the people who had died during the night were lying exposed on the rocks, with their white faces and ghastly eyeballs turned towards the sky. The other two had been buried on the rocks under a heap of Swones, which did not conceal them entirely from view. "No wonder poor Edith was alarmed," said Stanley sadly, as he leaned on his fowling-piece and surveyed the scene of desolation and death. "I have been told," remarked Frank, "that tha Esquimaux have a superstitious dread of this river. Oolibuck mentioned to me this morning that he has had a good deal of conversation with the natives about this disease, and they told him that it invariably attacks them when they enter this river, and carries them off by dozens; so that they never come into it except when they require wood, and always slay as short a time as possible." "Ah ! that's bad," said Stanley ; " I fear that it will go much against the success of the establishment. But we must hope better things ; and, truly, with this excep- tion, all has gone well hitherto. Said they anything more, Frank? " " Yes ; they hinted, it seems, their intention of flying away from this fatal spot, and taking up their abode for the winter at the mouth of False Eiver, where they can obtain a livelihood by seal-fishing ; but Oolibuck thought they did not mean to put the threat in execu- i 1 m m UNOAVA '•i- ;M ,fi i [ «(■ i r - ' f i ■ \ ' i ! i 1' - tion, and did not imagine that they were in such alarm that they would go off without hurying their dead." " We must do tluit for them, l<'rank," said Stanley, turning to retrace his steps to the fort; " send down as many of the men as you can spare to-day, iind get it done at once." "By the way," said Frank, as they walked along the beach, "it seems that many years ago the Moravian missionaries came to the mouth of this river, and tallied of setting up a trading-fort here ; but, from some cause unknown, they gave up their design and went away. Maximus has been telling me all he knows about the matter; but his reports are vague, and the event must have occurred, if it occurred at all, when he was a child." "Very possibly, Frank. You know the Moravians have settlements along the coasts of Labrador, to the eastward of this. Thoy may have made an attempt long ago to push as far as this. I have always had a high opinion of the energy and perseverance of these missionaries, but I cannot get over the incongruity of their strange way of mingling trade with religion. It seems to me an unnatural sort of thing for missionaries to be fur-traders. I do not mean by this to object to their system, however; I daresay it works well, but I've had no means of judging." " It is strange," replied Frank; " yet it seems a good plan. Tlie missionaries trade there in order that they may live and preach. 'Twould be a good thing for the Indian country if the same principles and practice actuated the traders; with this difference, that instead of missionaries becoming fur-traders, the fur-traders would become missionaries. It does seem a species of infatuation," continued Frank, energetically, as he warmed with the subject, " that men, caUing themselves Christians, should live for years and years among the poor Indians of America and never once name to them the great and saving name of Christ. Of course I do not wonder at those who make little or no profession of Christianity; but there are men in the fur-trade whq UNOAVA 223 good they )r the icticG stead aders )ccie3 13 he elves J tho hem I do ;sion whq seem to be dec^ily impressed with the truUis of God's Word — who are ahvc to tho fact that there is no name under heaven given among men whereby we can bo Bavcd except the name of Clu'ist — who know and feel that the Indians around them arc hviiig without God, and therefore without hope in the world — who feel that Christ is all in all, and that the Christian rehgion, however perfect and beautiful as a code of morals, is utterly worthless as to salvation unless there be in the heart the special love of Jesus Christ; — men who admit and profess to believe all this, yet never speak of Christ to the natives — never mention the name that can alono save them from eternal destruction." "Be not hasty, Frank," replied Stanley. "I agree with you, that it is strange indeed we do not see and hear more of this missionary spirit among the traders, and I, for one, take your words as a deserved rebuke to myself ; but if there are, as you say, many among us who are deeply impressed with the truths of God's Word, how know you that we never mention our Saviour's name to the Indians ? Although fur-traders do not mount the pulpit, they may, in private, make mention of that name, and do an amount of good that will only be fully known when the trader, the trapper, and the Indian shall stand side by side before the judgment-seat of Christ. Observe, I do not say that this is actually the case; I only suggest that this is possible — may I not add, probable? " " It may be so," returned Frank, " it may be so, and God forgive me if I have judged the men of the fur- trade unjustly ; but I certainly know one who has made somewhat of a profession of Christianity in his day, and yet has done next to nothing, and that one is Frank Morton." " I'll not gainsay that, Frank," said Stanley, with a quiet smile ; " and I think v/e are not likely to err much when we apply censure to ourselves. It is curious that you and I should have been thinking of the very same subject. A few days ago, while my wife and I were B' M i M U 224 UNGAVA i'i' conversing together about the Esquimaux, we agreed to dcvoio a good deal of our leisure time next winter to reading and explaining the Bible to our Esquimau interpreters, in the hope that they may afterwards be the means of much good among their poor countrymen." Whether or not the good resolutions made at this time were ever put in practice we cannot say. Let us hope that they were. Not loLg after the sudden flight of the Esquimaux, the Indians struck their tents and took their departure for the interior, with the intention, as they said, of hunting for furs, but more probably, as Ma-istequan suggested, to hunt the deer. During all the time of their residence at the fort, Maximus had kept out of their way as much as possible. He seldom met them without a frown of hatred, for he regarded them as the representatives of a race which had robbed him of his bride ; and there were times when the giant's spirit chafed so fearfully at the sight of the red men, that nothing but the remembrance of his promise to Stanley, to offer them no injury, prevented him from stirring up his tribe to overwhelm and destroy them. It was, therefore, with a feeling of relief that Maximus beheld them march single file over the rocky platform, and disappear in the ravine that led into the mountains. The traders of Ungava were once more left in soli- tude, and from this time forward, until the winter set in, they devoted all their energies to laying up a slock of provisions suihcient to lawt till spring. Dick Prince and Massau were sent after the deer in company. Augustus and Bryan were despatched to a small lake to establish a fishery ; in which they were very successful, and soon caught a large supply of excellent white-fish, trout, and carp, which tiiey gutted and hung up by their tails to dry and freeze. Frank and Moses went to another small lake, about ten miles down the river, and built a hut of willows, in which they dwelt while engaged at the fishery. As there \v as still much to be done in the v/ay of completing the fort, IS. UNOAVA 225 and making furniture, Stanley retained La Roche, Ooli- buck, and the two Indians to assist him in this, as well as in the performance of the miscellaneous minor duties about the station, such as cutting up firewood, covering the roofs of the stores with tarpaulin, shooting such birds and animals as came near the fort, constructing rude chairs and tables, cooking, etc., etc.; while Fran9ois and Gaspard were sent up the river to fell trees, for the purposes both of building and firewood. Edith and her mother found ample occupation — the latter in the use of her needle and the cares of the household ; the former in learning her lessons, visiting her berry-ravine, dressing her doll (for she had a doll, as a matter of course), and in holding long and frequent converse with Chimo. Thus they spent their time ; too busily occupied to take much note of its rapid flight, and scarce noticing the lengthening nights and shortening days, until needles of ice began with slow and silent progress to shoot across and solidify the waters of the bay. !li }er m to a were lly of lutted Frank miles •hich ■^. \\ as fort, 19 ir CHAPTER XXIV EFFECT OF SNOW ON THE FEELINGS, NOT TO MENTION THE LANDSCAPE — A WONDERFUL DOME OF ICE l!i!^^• There are times and seasons, in this peculiar world of ours, when the heart of man rejoices. The rejoicing to which we refer is not of the ordinary kind. It is peculiar ; and, whet ■ or its duration be long or short, its effect powerful or slight, it is quite distinct and emphatic. We do not intend to enter into a detail of the occasions that call forth this feeling of exultation. Far be it from us to venture into such perilous depths of philosophy. Our sole reason for making these preliminary observations is, that we may, with proper emphasis, introduce the statement, that one of these occasions of rejoicing is, when man arises from his couch, on a briUiant, sunny, sparkhng morning, gazes forth from his window, and beholds the landscape — which yesterday was green, and red, and brown, and blue — clad in a soft mantle of whitest snow ! What ! you don't agree with us ? You shudder at the preposterous idea of such a sight being fitted to rejoice the heart of man in any degree whatever? Well, well; do not sneer at our weakness. If we cannot sympathise with each other on this subject, perchance there are other things in which we can. but, whatever be our opinion in regard to this, the point that we have to deal with at present is, the opinion of Edith Stanley, who, on rising hastily one morning, and K26 UNGAVA 227 sand lookinj* forth from hor little wiiKlow, evinced the rejoicing of her heart most emphatically, by her loud exclamation of delight and the sparkling of her bright bine eyes. Independently of the cheerful lightness and tlie virgin purity of the mantle, which, in itself, tended to awaken emotions of gladness in Edith's heart, there was some- thing in its sudden appearance that carried her back violently and vividly to bygone days. The winter garb had no associations, yet, v/ith Ungava ; but it had witli Moose Fort, and the dear companions she used to play with there. It recalled the time when slie and her little friends sallied forth, each with her small wooden sledge drawn after her by a line, to slide tlicreon down the banks of the frozen river with headlong speed, and upset at the bottom amid shouts of laughter. It recalled the time when she made the first attempt to walk in snow-slioes, upon which occasion she tripped and fell into the snow, as a matter of course, and was advised to wait till she v/as older. It recalled the memory of her father's team of dogs, and the delightful drives she used to have over the frozen river ; which drives often resulted in an upset, perhaps several, and always resulted in fun. It recalled the house in the old fort that used to be her ho^ lo ; the row of houses belonging to the men, to w^ich she often went, and was always welcomed as a great favourite ; the water- hole on the river from which the old Canadian drew his daily supply ; and the snow-house in the yard which she built in company with Frank Morton, and which stood the whole winter throu^jh, but gave way at last before the blazing sun of sprmg, and fell — as ill luck would have it — when she and Chimo were sitting there, so that she and the dog together had a hard struggle ere they got free. All these, ard many more thick- coming memories of other days, were aroused by the vision of snow that met Edith's gaze that morning, and caused her L u't with peculiar fervour to rejoice. "Winter had now descended with iron grasp upon iii'lii 228 UNGAVA ■■' I' m: il Ungava. For some weeks the frost had been so intense that every lake and pool was frozen many inches thick, and the salt bay itself was fringed with a thick and ever-accumulating mass of ice. The snow which now fell was but the ceremonial coronation of a king whose reign had commenced in reality long before. But the sunshine did not last long. The rolling fogs and vapours of the open and ice-laden sea beyond ascended over the wild mountains, obscured the bright sky, and revealed the winter of the north in all its stem, cold reality. Every cliff and crag and jagged peak had its crown of snow, and every corrie, glen, and gorge its drifted shroud. In places where the precipices were perpendicular, the gray rocks of the mountains formed dark blotches in the picture ; but, dark although they were, they did not equal in blackness the river, on which floated hundreds of masses of ice and several ponderous icebergs, which had been carried up from the sea by the flood-tide. Over this inky expanse the frost-smoke hung like a leaden pall — an evil spirit, as it were, which never left the spot till protracted and intense frost closed the waters of the river altogether, and banished it further out to sea. But this entire closing of the river very seldom happened, and never lasted long. Fort Chimo itself, at least as much of it as remained unburied, was a m'^re speck on the edge of the white plain at the mountain's foot, scarce distinguishable, at a short distance, from the straggling black pines and willow bushes that seemed thrust out into the waste from the ravines above and below the fort. But on a nearer approach, the fort assumed an air of greater importance ; the influences too, of the cold, cheerless scene we have described, were broken and dissipated by the. sights of comfort and sounds of cheerfulness within. The shout of the water-drawer, as he roused the dogs and went forth with his empty cask, hauled on a little sledge, to draw from the bubbling spring behind the fort ; the sounds of the hammer, the chisel, and the UNOAVA 229 axe, in the carpenter's shop ; the merry clank of Bryan's hammer, and the bright flame that gleamed from the window of the forge, — all bore evidence of the fact, that however powerful the influence of winter might bo without, it had little power within the wooden walls of Fort Chimo, and could not check the life, or heart, or industry of man. The only other human being visible in the open air, besides the water-drawer, was La Ivoche, who, with a fur cap covering his head and ears, and Icatliorn mittons on his hands, hewed and hacked tlie billets with vvhich he purposed to replenish the fire for cooking tlie mid- day meal. Pausing in his labour, and dusting off the hoar-frost that covered his eye-brows and whiskers, he looked at the edge of his hatchet for a few seconds with an ex- pression of contempt. Then, throwing the implement on his shoulder, he crossed the yard and entered the blacksmith's shop. "Bryan," said he, seating himself on the edge of the forge and filling his pipe, while Vulcan's votary scattered a shower of gems from a white-hot bar of iron at every blow of his hammer — "Bryan, you no fit for not'ing. Dat axe is blont encore. Oui, c'est vrai. Now dat is tihs mal. How you not can temper him edge better ?" "Timper it better, is it?" answered Bryan, putting the iron bar in the fire, and regarding his companion earnestly while he blew the bellows. " Faix, 'tis mysilf I'd need to timper better, in order to put up wi' the likes o' you, ye wTetched crature. How can ye expict it to kape its idge when ye lave it for iver lyin' among yer pots and kittles ? " *' Dat is not it," replied La Eoche, applying a glowing coal to his pipe. ** 'Tis de mauvais steel. But I not com for to fight wid you. Your tongue trop long pour dat. I com for ax you to give me turn ov de grind- stone, s'il vous plait." " Ye don't desarve it, Losh ; but wait till I've finished this job and I'll lind ye a hand." «. Wm 414 230 VSOAVA f ( !'■ ' 1 ' ' i '■ 1 M ill''.' ■ ■ V - t - r ll \ ' 1. " Bc-the-by," resumed Bryan, when the metal was cooled, " lias Franc^oia finished that sled for Mis3 Edith?" "Oui," reph'ed La Bocho, seating liimself at the grindstone ("Ah! pas si vite, a Icct more slow, Bryan.) Oui, him make it all ready; only want do ring-bolts." ** Thin it won't want thim long. Ye can take thim over to the shop when ye go across. There they are on the binch." Bryan continued to turn the handle of the stone for some time in silence. " D'ye know, Losh," he resumed, ** whin Mister Frank is goin' to the fishery?" ** He go demain, I b'lieve, and Mademoiselle Edith go too." "None o' the min goin'?" inquired the blacksmith. " Non. Monsieur Frank just go for to try if dere be any fish to be cotch by de hooK; and I t'ink ho go more for to give Edith one drive dan dat." " Very hkely, Losh. The poor purty httle crature. She's very fond o' sledgin* and walkin* in snow-shoes. *Tis well for her, bekase there's a want o* companions for her here entirely." **Ah! mercy, dat is superb, magnifique ! " said the Frenchman, feeling the edge of the axe with his thumb. " It's sharp *nuff to shave do hair off your ogly face, Bryan." " Thin be off wid ye, an' don't kape me longer from my work. An' shut the door quick behind ye ; there's cowld enough in the place already." So saying, Bryan resumed his hojnmer, and La Eoche, following the snow-track across the yard, recommenced his labour of chopping firewood. Next day, Frank and Edith made preparations for the excursion alluded to in the foregoing conversa- tion. The object for which this excursion was undertaken was t\Yofold — first, to ascertain if there were any fish UNOAVA 231 in a lai'fje lako about ion inilon distant from the fort; and, secondly, to f^ivo little Edith a drive for the good of her health. Not that her health was bad, but several weeks of bad weather had confined her much to the house, and her mother thou<^ht the change would be beneficial and agreeable ; and tenderly did that mother's heart yearn over her little child, for she felt that, although she was all to Edith that a mother could be, nature had implanted in her daughter's mind a longing desire for the companionship of little ones of her own age, which could not be satisfied by any substitute — not even that of a tender mother, who sought, by all the means in her power, to become a child again for Edith's sake. Immediately after breakfast that day Frank took Edith by the hand, and led her round by the back of 'the fort, towards the kennel where the dogs were kept, intending to release Chimo, who was to have the honour of hauling the sledge of his young mistress. In passing the spring, Edith paused, as she had often done before during the winter, to gaze with wonder on the transformation that had taken place in the appear- ance of the once green and fertile spot. Not only was it covered with deep snow, but over the spring there was formed a singular dome of ice. This dome was a subject of continual astonishment to every one at Ungava. It had commenced to rise soon after the first hard frosts had sealed up the little fountain from the open air. As time passed by, the covering became thick ice, and was bulged gradually up above the surrounding waste, until it reached an elevation of not much less than twelve or thirteen feet. Inside of this the spring bubbled up as of yore. '* What think you, Edith ? " said Frank, as a sudden thought occurred to him ; *' shall I cut a doorway into that crystal house, and see if the spirit of the spring dwells there ? " Edith clapped her hands with delight at the idea, and urged her companion to begin at once. Then, il ';• 2SI2 VNQAVA *i i. ", i: checking him as he was about to commence the work with his hatchet, she said earnestly — " Do spirits really dwell in the springs, Frank ? " " Why, Eda, we must send to England for a lot of fairy tales to teach you what I mean. I do but jest when I speak of spirits living there. But many books have been written about protended spirits and fairies, which tell us of their wonderful adventures, and what they said and did long ago. I shall tell you some of these stories one of these days. But I daresay there are no spirits in this spring." *' Faix, an* it would be a rale misfortune if thero was, sir," remarked Bryan, who came up at this moment, and touched his cap; "for it would be only sperits and wather, which wouldn't kape in this cowld climate. I've fmishcd the ring-bolts for the sled, sir, an' came to see when 5^0 would have them fixed." " Put them in your pocket, Bryan, for a few minutes, and lend a hand here to cut a hole through this dome." As Frank spoke he drew a small axe from his belt and began to lay about him so vigorously that the icy splinters flew in all directions like a shower of broken crystal. Bryan seconded his efforts, and in less than half-an-hour a block of solid ice, about four feet high and two broad, was cut out and detached from the side of the dome. " That'll do, Bryan," said Frank, when their work was nearly completed ; ** I'll finish it myself now. Go to the carpenter's house, and FranQois will show you what to do with the sled." As Bryan walked away, Frank dealt the mass of ice a blow that split it in several pieces, which he quickly removed, revealing to the astonished and eager gaze of his young companion a cavern of a most beautiful light blue colour. Taking Edith by the hand, he led her into this icy cave. Its walls were quite luminous and delicately blue, except in places where the green moss and earth around the spring had been torn from the ground and lifted up along with the dome. Icicles ^Xl iful led 0U3 een om zlea UNGAVA 388 hunj^ in various places from the roof, and the floor was hard and dry, except in the centre, where the spring bubbled up through it, and cut a channel across towards one side of the icy wall, where it disappeared under the snow. "Oh! what a beautiful palace!" cried Edith, with delight, after she had gazed around her for a few minutes in silent wonder and admiration. " I shall come and live here, Frank. Oh ! do come, and let us get chairs and a small table, and make it onr sitting- room. We can come every day when the sun shines and read, or you can tell me the tales about spirits and fairies you spoke of ! " "A good idea, Eda ; but I fear we would need a stove to keep us warm. It strikes me it will make a capital ice-house in spring to keep our fresh meat in. It will last long after the snow is melted." " Then we shall make a palace of it in winter and a meat-store in spring," cried Edith, laughing, as she walked round this newly-discovered house, ex- amining its blue walls and peeping into the cold black spring. Meanwhile Frank examined it with a view to the utilitarian purpose, and, after both of them had gone round it several times, they continued on their way towards the dog-konnel. The sledge which Francois had constructed for Edith was made after the model of those used by the Esquimaux. There were two stout runners, or skates, made of wood, for sliding over the snow. These were slightly turned up, or rather rounded up, in front, and attached to each other by means of cross bars and thin planks of wood; all of which were fastened, not by nails (for iron-work snaps like glass in such a cold climate as that of Ungava), but by thongs of undressed sealskin, which, although thoy held the fabric very loosely together in appearance, were, nevertheless, remarkably strong, and served their purpose very well. Two short upright bars behind served as a back to lean against. But the most curious part of the machine 1 i ■ ( > i ■ 284 VNOAVA ':,!l ? was the substance with whicli the runners were shod, in order to preserve them. This was a preparation of mud and water, which was plastered smoothly on in a soft condition, and then allowed to freeze. This it did in a few minutes after being exposed to the open air, and thus became a smooth, hard sheathing, which was much more durable and less liable to break than iron, or indeed any other sheathing that could be devised. This substance is of course easily repaired, and is always used by the Esquimaux in winter. Esquimau sledges being heavy, and meant for carrying a number of people, require large teams of dogs. But Edith's sledge — or sled, as the men called it — was little. Moreover, Edith herself was little and light, therefore Chimo was deemed sufficiently powerful to draw it. So thoroughly correct were they in this supposition, that when Edith was seated in her sledge for a trial trip, and Chimo harnessed, he ran away with her, and gave Frank a chase of half-a-mile over the river ere he condescended to stop in his wild career. But the intended excursion was suddenly interrupted and postponed, by an event which we shall relate in the next chapter. m I iT ' y i IB? 1 - 1 i i '' IB 1; . * ' ■ r ' (1 ■ ^f^if li f CnAPTEii XXV BUllIED ALIVE- -LUT NOT KILLED- SKOW-STOllM -TUE GIANT IN THB The event which prevented the excursion referred to in the last chapter was neither more nor less than a snow-storm. "Was that all?" say you, reader? Nay, that was not all. Independently of the fact that it v/as a snow-storm the like of which you have never seen, unless you have travelled in northern climes, it was a snow-storm that produced results. Of these, more hereafter. The storm began with a sigh — a mysterious sigh, that swept over the mountains of Ungava with a soft, mournful wail, and died slowly away in the distant glen of the Caniapuscaw, as if the spirit of the north wind grieved to think of the withering desolation it was about to launch upon the land. The gathering clouds that preceded and accompanied this sigh induced Frank Morton to countermand his orders for the intended journey. In order to console Edith for the disappointment, he went with her into the hall, and, drawing a low stool towards the blazing stove, placed a draught board upon it. Then he placed another and a lower stool beside the first, on which he seated Edith. Spreading a deerskin robe upon the ground, he stretched himself thereon at full length, and began to arrange the men. The hall, which was fnnr»crly such a comfortless ■m mi 286 VNGAVA ■:Ri • • I 'i't' A >'<:^ 'fi . .1 I i ",' apartment, was now invested with that degree of com- fort which always gathers, more or less, round a place that is continually occupied. The ceiling was composed of a carpet of deerskin stretched tightly upon the beams. The walls were hung all round with the thick heavy coats and robes of leather and fur belonging to the inmates, and without which they never ventured abroad. The iron stove in the centre of the apartment, with its pipe to conduct away the smoke, and its radiant fire of logs, emitted a cheerful glow in its immediate vicinity; which glow, however, was not intense enough to melt the thick ice, or rather hoar- frost, an inch deep, with which the two windows were encrusted, to the almost total exclusion of the view and the serious diminution of the light. The door was padded all round its edges with fur, which tended to check the bitter wind that often blew against it, and tempered the slight draught that did force its way through. Altogether the hall at Fort Chimo was curious and comfortable — rather shaggy in its general appearance, but sound and trustworthy at bottom. A small rough table, the work of Frank Morton, stood close to the stove ; and beside it was seated Mrs. Stanley, with a soft yellow deerskin before her, which she was carefully transforming into a hunting coat for her husband. On another and a larger table was spread the tea equipage. Those who would under- stand this aright must for tea read supper. Among fur-traders the two are combined. Candles — dips made at the fort — had been brought some time ago by La Roche, who entered the hall by a back door which communicated with a passage leading to the kitchen behind. " What can have become of papa, I wonder ? '* Mrs. Stanley designated her husbund by this epithet, in consequence of her desire to keep up the fiction of her being Edith's little sister or playfellow. Frank looked up from the board. **I know not," Baid he. ** I left him giving some orders to the men. I I. It, ,11 UNGAVA 237 We have been getting things made snug about the fort, for we expect a pretty stiff breeze to-night. — Take care, Eda; your crown's in danger." "Oh! so it is," cried Edith, snatching back her piece, and looking with intense earnestness at the board. Frank might have observed, had he not been too deeply engaged with his game, that the expected stiff breeze had already come, and was whistling round the fort with considerable vigour. ** You'll beat me, Eda, if you play so boldly," said Frank with a smile. " There, give me another crown." "And me too," said Edith, pushing up her piece. As she spoke, the door burst open, and Stanley sprang into the room. " Whew ! what a night ! " he cried, shutting the door with a forcible bang, in order to keep out the snowdrift that sought to enter along with him. Two moves would have made Frank the conqueror, but the gust of wind upset the board, and scattered the men upon the floor. Stanley looked hke a man of white marble, but the removal of his cap, coat, and leggings produced a speedy and entire metamorphosis. "Ho! LaEoche!" " Oui, monsieur." " Here, take my coat and shake the snow off it, and let's have supper as speedily as may be. — The draughts without, Frank, are a little too powerful for the draughts within, I fear. — What ! wife, making another coat ? One would think you had vowed to show your affection for me by the number of coats you made. How many have you perpetrated since we wcro married ? " " Never mind ; go and put on one now, and come to supper while it is hot." "I'm glad it is hot," cried Stanley from his bed- room. " One needs unusual heat withm to make up for the cold without. The thermometer is thirty below." \m fil 'i J ii ■M v| •31 1 ' 1 ?:r 2i51 VNiJA VA V'f l.'l :?i ) :;^h I Ml :f. ;'4 Mi While tliG party in the hall were cjijoying their evening uical, the men were similarly employed beside the stove in their own habitation. There was nou much diHercncc in the two apartments, save that the confusion in that of the men was much greater, in consequence of the miscellaneous mass of capotes, caps, belts, discarded moccasins, axes, guns, and seal-spears, with which they saw fit to garnish the walls. The fumes of tobacco were also more dense, and the con- versation more uproarious. *' 'Tis a howlin' night," observed Massan, as a gust of more than usual violence shook the door on its hinges. " Me t'ink de snow-drift am as t'ick in de sky as on do ground," said Oolibuck, drawing a live coal from the fire and lighting his pipe thcrcwitli. " HoiJ-d on, boys!" cried Bryan, seizing his chair with both hands, half in jest and half in earnest, as another blast shoolv the ])uilding to its foundation. The two Indians sat like statues of bronze, smoking their calumets in silence, while Gaspard and Prince rose and went to the window. 13ut the frozen moisture on the panes effectually prevented their seeing out. It was indeed an awful night — such a night as had not, until now, visited tho precincts of Fort Chimo. Viewed from the rocky platform on the hill, the raging of the storm was absolutely sublime. The wind came sometimes in short, angry gusts, sometimes in pro- longed roars, through the narrows, sweeping up clouds of snow so dense that it seemed as though the entire mass had been uplifted from the earth, hurling it upwards and downwards and in circling eddies, past the ravines, and round the fort, and launching it with a tierce yoll into the valley of the Caniapuscaw. The sky was not altogether covered with clouds, and the broken masses, as they rolled along, permitted a stray moonbeam to dart down upon the turmoil beneath, and render darkness visible. Sometimes the wind lulled for a second or two, as if to breathe ; then it 1 ; !^ ! : !{! ! .1 ■ ■ ' i i^^^'l ' -I • m " It cast him headlons: into the snow." ;iL'(j!<7 f/'cTJTf -'>V t: li; UNGAVA 239 burst forth again, si)liiting ilu'oii<,'h tlio mountain gorges witli a shriek of intensity ; the cohinins of snow sprang in thousands from every hollow, cliff, and glen, mingled in wild confusion, swayed, now hither, now thither, in mad uncertainty, and then, caught by the steady gale, pelted on, like the charging troops of ice- land, and swept across the frozen plain. Could human beings face so wild a storm as this ? Ay, they could — at least they could dare to try ! There was one traveller out upon the hills on that tremendous night. The giant was in the midst of it ; but weak as the bulrush were the mighty limbs of Maximus before the rushing gale. Several days pre- vious to this the Esquimau had been sent down to his brethren at False Kiver, to procure some seal-meat for the dogs and to ascertain the condition of the natives, and their success in fishing. On arriving, he found that they had been so far successful, that starva- tion (their too frequent guest) had not yet visited their dwellings of snow. But Maximus found the old woman who had formely saved his life very ill, and apparently about to die. Having learned from experience the efficacy of Stanley's medicines, he resolved to procure some for tho old woman, whom he had tenderly watched over and hunted for ever since the eventful day of the attack. His dogs were exhausted and could not return. But the bold Esquimau was in the prime of life, and animated by the fire of vigorous youth. The storm was beginning to mutter in the distance. What then ? Had he not faced the blasts of the frozen regions many a time before ? Without saying a word, he throw a junk of seal-flesh into his wallet, and, striding back upon his track at the mountain's base, he disappeared in the driving snow. Before reaching the fort, however, the full fury of the storm had burst upon him. It cast him headlong into the snow ; but he rose and staggered on. Again it burst forth, and again he fell before it like a stately pine. Rising to his knees, Maximus drew the hood of 1 V '■ ' J^Bl ' ( : ,J^ III::; .1, > ■ ■■• n :i ){ -It 240 UNOAVA ill ' '' '■ -l! his hairy garment close round his head and face, and tried to peer through the driving snow ; but he could not see until a slight lull came ; then he observed a hummock of ice at a short distance, and, rising, made towards it. The lulls were short-lived, however. The storm threw him down again ; instantly he was drifted over with snow; another blast came, lifted the drift into the air, and left the Esquimau exposed to all its fury. But Maximus was not conquered. He rose again, panting, it is true, but sturdy as ever, and ready to take advantage of the next lull. It came soon ; and he saw a rock, or, it might be, the base of a cliff, close at hand. With a quick run he reached it ; and, going down on his knees, began with his gloved hands to scrape a hollow in the snow. Having made a hole big enough to contain his body, he lay down in it, and, pulling the superincumbent snow down upon him, was almost buried in the ruin. Scarcely had he drawn the hood of his coat well over his face, when another burst of the storm dashed a column of curling drift upon the rock, and the place where he lay was covered up ; not a wrinkle in the drift remained to mark the spot where he was buried ! All that night the storm roared among the mountains with bitter fury ; but next day the wind was subdued, and the sun shone brightly on the gray rocks and on the white wreaths of snow. It shone in all the lustre of an unclouded winter sky. Not only did the sun smile upon the scene, but two mock suns or parheHa, almost as bright as himself, shone on either side of him. Yet no ray of light illuminated the dwellings of the fur-traders. All was darkness there, until Stanley rose from his couch and lighted a candle, for the purpose of examining his watch. " Hallo ! Frank, Frank ! " he cried, entering the hall, while he hastily threw on his garments ; *' turn out, man ; there's something wrong here. "Tis past noon, and dark as midnight. Bring your watch ; per- haps I'm wrong." 0, and could cved a , made The drifted e drift all its e rose [ ready 1 ; and F, close , going nds to 3le big t, and, m, was wn the r burst ion the p ; not where intains bdued, nd on lustre iG sun ;rhelia, side of ngs of )tanley or the ig the **tum s past ; per- UNGA VA 241 Frank yawned vociferously, and sprang from his bed In two seconds more he niado bis appearmice in bis trousers and shirt. *' Past twelve, no doubt of — yea — o — ow ! That accounts for my waking three times, and going off again ; but " "Hey! what have we here?" cried Stanley, as he opened the front door, and disclosed to view a solid wall of snow. " Snowed up; dear me! eh! that's odd," said Fnink. beginning to comprehend the state of matters Snowed up they were, undoubtedly; so thoroughly snowed up that there was not a ray of daylight within their dwelling. Had Frank been above the snow, instead of below it, he would have seen that the whole fort was so completely buried that nothing was visible above the surface except the chimneys and the flag- staff. After the first few moments of s'lrprise had passed, it occurred to Stanley that they might ascend to the regions above by the chimney, which vvas wide enough, he thought, to admit a man ; but, on looking up, he found that it also was full of drifted snow. This, however, could have been easily removed ; but there was a bar of iron stretching across, and built into the clay walls, which rendered escape by that passage impossible. '* There's nothing for it, Frank, but to dig ourselves out, so the sooner we begin the better." By this time they were joined by Edith and her mother, who, although much surprised, were not at all alarmed ; for rough travelling in a wild land had taught them to regard nothing as being dangerous until it was proved to be so. Besides, Stanley had assured them they had nothing to fear, as the only evil he anticipated would be the trouble they were sure to have in getting rid of the superabundant snow. While they were talking, the back door was opened violently, and La Koche, in a state of dishabille, burst into the room. 16 im i !i iil UNfJAVA m' J : : ■ h-\ ■{ I I! ¥ d, f i I U: !■,# " Oh, messieurs, c'est fini ! Oui, le world him shut up tout togedder. Oh, miserc ! Fat shall ve to doV " "Hold your tongue, La Roche," said Frank, "and bring the kitchen shovel." The cook instantly turned to obey, and as he rushed towards the kitchen his voice was heard cxcliuming in the passage, — " Ah, c'est terrible ! Mais, I ver' mosho f<3ar de shovel be out in de neigc. Ah, non ; here it is. C'est bien." Returning in haste to the hall, he handed a much dilapidated iron shovel to Erank, who threw off hi.j coat and set to work with vigour. The tables and chairs, and all the furniture, were removed into thtj inner apartments, in order to afford room for the snow which Frank dug from the open door-way and shovelled into the centre of the room. As only one at a time could work in the narrow door-way, the three men wrought v/ith the shovel by turns ; Jind while one was digging the tunnel, the other two piled the debris in a compact mound beside the stove. As no fire had yet been kindled, the snow, of course, did not melt, but remained crisp and dry upon the floor. Meanvvhih) Edith looked on with deep interest, and occasionally assisted in pihng the snow ; while her mother, seeing that her presence was unnecessary, retired to her own room. " There," cried Frank, pausing and surveying an im- mense cavern which he had dug into the drift, " that's a good spell. Take a turn now, La Roche, and dig upwards ; we should see daylight soon." "Ah, vraiment, it be time, for it am von o'clock,'' replied La Roche, as he plied the shovel. The tunnel was cut in such a way as that, while it ran outwards, it also sloped upwards ; and, from the angle at which it lay, Stanley calculated that thirty feet or thereabouts would bring them to the surface. In this he was correct, for when La Roche had worked for half-an-hour, the snow above became slightly luminous. UNGAVA 948 J5ut the labour of conveying it from the end of the tunnel into the ball became, of course, greater as the work advanced. At length the light penetrated so clearly that La Koche was induced to thrust his shovel upwards, in the expectation of penetrating the mass. The effect of this action was striking and unexpected. Instantly the roof fell in, and a flood of sunshine poured into the tunnel, revealing the luckless Frenchman struggling amid the ruins. *'0h, pull me hout," he spluttered, as Frank and Stanley stood laughing heartily at his misfortune. One of his legs happened to protrude from the mass as he made this earnest request, so Frank seized it, and dragged the poor man by main force from his un- comfortable position. Immediately afterwards they all three scrambled through the aperture and stood in open day. The. sight that met their eyes was a curious though not a satisfactory one. All that remained visible of Fort Chimo were, as we have said, the chimneys and the flag-staff. In regard to the general aspect of the neighbourhood, however, there was a little alteration ; for the change of position in the drifts among the mountain gorges, and the addition to their bulk, made no striking alteration in the rugged landscape. In some places the gale had cleared the sides of the moun- tains and left their cliffs exposed to view ; in other spots the gorges and ravines were choked up, and the pine tops nearly covered ; and the open water in the lake was more encumbered than usual with icebergs. " Now, La Koche," said Stanley, after they had sur- veyed the desolate scene for a few minutes m silence, " go fetch the shovel and we'll dig out the men. I daresay, poor fellows, they're beginning to wonder at the length of the night by this time.** La Koche prepared to descend into the tunnel, when their attention was arrested by a strange sound beneath the snow. In a few minutes the crust began to crack, at a spot not more than two yards from where they 11 1 1 ll »'> 344 UNQAVA I :i[ i't\ stood ; then IIkto was a Buddon rupture, accompanied hy a f,'rowl, and followed by the appuaraucu of the dishevelled head and arms of a man. " Musha, boys, but I'm out ! " Bryan coupjhed the snow from around his mouth, and winked it from his eyes, as he spoke. The first sight that met his be- wildered gaze was three pairs of expandt^l eyeballs and three double rows of grinning teeth, u i'cw feet from his face. Uttering a cry of terror, he fell back into the hole, the snow closed over him, and he was gone ! It need scarcely bo added that Frank and Stanley commenced to dig into this hole with as much vigour as their fxequent explosions of laughter would allow. In a few minutes it was re-opened, and the men issued one by one from durance vile. *' Och, sirs, ye gave me a mortial start I " exclaimed Bryan as he rose to view the second time. " I thought for sartin ye were all polar bears. Faix we've had a job o't down there. I'll be bound to say there's twinty ton o' snow — bad luck to it — in the middle o' the floor." " There's work for us here that'll last two weeks, I guess," said Massan, as he and several of the others stooped down and gazed into the tunnel leading to the hall, at the end of which Edith's laughing face met their view. " When did you awake, and begin to suspect that something was wrong?" inquired Stanley of Dick Prince. "Awake!" cried Bryan, answering the question; '* we awoke at laste a dozen times. I suppose it must have bin the time for brikfust ; for, ye see, although we could ha' slept on long enough, our intariors couldn't, be no manes, forget their needcessities." ** We shall have to work a bit yet ere these necessities are attended to, I fear," said Stanley. " Go, Fran9ois, and one or two of you, and open up the dog-kennel. The rest of you get all the shovels you can lay hands on, and clear out the houses as fast as you can." UNGAVA 946 *' Clear out de chimblcya fust, mes gardens," cried La Roche, looking up from the tunael. " Den ve vill git dejeuner ready touto suite." " That will we, lad," said Bryan, shouldering a spade and proceeding towards the chimney of the hall ; while the rest of the party, breaking up into several groups, set to work, with spades, shovels, and such implements as were suitable, to cut passages through the square of the fort towards the doors of the several buildings. As Massan had said, it proved to be no light work. The north-west P: Tiji H! 1 i fii hooks; but as cutting holes in the ice will occupy you some time, I'll take a short walk along the marf,Mn of the lake with my gun. Be careful of Edith till 1 return." So saying, Frank went off, taking Chimo along with him; while Maximus seized the axe and ice-chisel, and began the laborious process of digging through to the water. The ice on the lake was five feet thick, but by dint of great perseverance the Esquimau succeeded in making several holes through it ere Franlc returned. Each hole was large enough to contain the body of a man, but a little wider above than below. In these holes were set stout cod-lines, with hooks of about half-an-inch or more in diameter. They were made of white metal, and clumsy enough to look at ; but fish in the lakes of Ungava are not particular. These hooks were baited with lumps of seal-fat, and ere half-an-hour elapsed the success of tbo anglers was very decided and satisfactory. Frank hauled up a white-fish of about six pounds weight at the first dip, and scarcely had he thrown it on the ice when Maximus gave a galvanic start, hauled up his line a few yards with laughable eagerness, then stopped suddenly, under the impression, apparently, that it was a false alarm ; but another tug set him again in motion, and in three seconds he pulled a fine lake-trout of about ten pounds weight out of the hole. Edith, also, who had a line under her care, began to show symptoms of expectation. " Capital ! " cried Frank, beating his hands violently against his shoulders ; for handling wet lines with the thermometer at twenty below zero is decidedly cold work — "capital! we must set up a regular fishery here, I think; the fish are swarming. There's another, —eh? no— he's off— " " Oh ! oh I! oh ill " shrieked Edith in mingled fear and excitement, as, at each successive " oh ! " she received a jerk that well-nigh pulled her into the ice-hole. iiiiii; py yo^ min of till 1 ig with i-chisel, ough to t thick, quimau 3 Frank tain the below, looks of 3y were look at ; rticular. fat, and lers was pounds irown it hauled ss, then jarently, set him d a fine tie hole. )egan to nolently vith the dly cold fishery another, rled fear !" she nto the i VSOAVA ^6d " ITold hard ! " cried Frank ; " now then, haul away." Edith pulled, and so did the fish; but ay it was not more than five pounds weight or so, she over- came it after a severe struggle, and landed a white-fish on the ice. The next shout that lOditli gave was of so very decided and thrilling a character that Frank and Maximus darted to her side in alarm, and the latter caught the line as it was torn violently from her gr^fp. For a few minutes the Esquimau had to allow the line to run out, being unable to hold the fish — at least without the risk of breaking his tackle ; but in a few seconds the motion of the lino became less rapid, and Maximus held on, while his huge body was jerked violently, notwithstanding his weight and strength. Soon the line relaxed a little, and Maximus ran away from the hole as fast as he could, drawing the line after him. When the fish reached the hole it offered decided resistance to such treatment; and being infiuenced, a})parently by the well-known proverb, "Time about's fair play," it darted away in its turn, causing the Esquimau to give it line again very rapidly. " He must be an enormously big fellow," said Frank, as he and Edith stood close to the hole watch- ing the struggle with intense interest. The Esquimau gave a broad grin. " Yis, he most very biggest, — hie ! " The cause of this exclamation of surprise was the slacking of the line so suddenly that Maximus was induced to believe the fish had escaped. "Himgobe-off. Ho yis ! " But he was wrong. Another violent tug convinced him that the fish was still captive — though an unwilling one — and the struggle was renewed. In about a quarter of an hour Maximus dragged this refractory fish slowly into the hole, and its snout appeared above water. " Oh ! what a fish ! " exclaimed Edith. t I ■: H 'H y ' ( .h'\ 360 tJNGAVA M : I If!'' ''■ Mi " Put in de spear," cried the Esquimau. Frank caught up a native spear which Maximus had provided, and just as the fish was about to recommence the struggle for its life, he transfixed it through the gills, and pinned it to the side of the ice-hole. The battle was over; a few seconds sufficed to drag the fish from its native element and lay it at full length on the ice. And few anglers have ever had the pleasure of behold- ing such a prize. It was a trout of fully sixty pounds weight, and although such fish are seldom if ever found in other parts of the world, they are by no means un- common m the lakes of Norish America. Having secured this noble fish, Maximus cut it open and cleaned it, after which it was left to freeze. The other fish were then similarly treated, and wh'Ie the Esquimau was thus engaged, Frank and Edith con- tinued their sport. But daylight in these far northern regions is very short-lived in winter, and they were soon compelled unwillingly to leave off. " Now, Maximus," said Frank, as they rolled up their lines, "I don't intend to keep you longer with us. Edith and I can manage the fishing very well, so you may return to your friends at False Elver, and take the seal-flesh for the dogs up to the fort. Get the loan of some of their dogs and a sled to haul it ; and come round this way in passing, so as to pick up any fisli we may have ready for you. The moon will be up in a little, so be off as fast as you can." In obedience to these orders, Maximus packed up a small quantity of provisions, and bidding good-bye to his two friends, set off to make the best of his way to the coast. That night Frank and his little charge sat down to sup together in the igloe at the head of tlieir snow- table, and Chimo acted the part of croupier in the room of the Esquimau. And a pleasant evening they spent, chatting, and laughing, and telling stories, by the light of the stone lamp, the mellow flame of which f .11:!! h Ml, i V ^ UNGAVA 261 'i: 3 ' f ■ US had imence gh the . The ;he fish on the behold- pounda r found ans un- it open 3. The bile the ith con- lorthern 3y were lied up with us. so you nd take 10 loan 1 come fish we up in a cd up a -bye to wav to down to r snow- in the Dg they ries, by f which u shed a warm influence over the sparkling dome of snow. Before retiring to rest, Frank said that they must be up with the first light, for he meant to have a hard day's fishing ; but man little knows what a day may bring forth. Neither Frank nor Edith dreamed that night of the events that were to happen on the morrow. On awaking in the morning they were a»ain roused by the voice of the wolf which had visited them the day before. In order to catch this wolf, Maximus had, just before starting, constructed a trap peculiar to the Esquimaux. It was simply a hole dug down through the ice at the edge of the lake, not far from the igloe. This hole was just wide enough to admit the body of a wolf, and the depth sufficient to render it absolutely impossible for the animal to thrust his snout to the bottom, however long his neck might be. At the bottom a tempting piece of blubber, hi very high condition, was placed. The result of this ingenious arrangement was most successful, and, we may add, inevitable. Attracted by the smell of the meat, our friend the wolf came trotting down to the lake just about daybreak, and sneaked suspiciously up to the trap. He peeped in and licked his lips with satisfac- tion at the charming breakfast below. One would have thought, as he showed his formidable white teeth, that he was laughing with delight. Then, spreading out his fore legs so as to place his breast on the ice, he thrust his head down into the hole and snapped at the coveted blubber. But he had mistaken the depth, and blaming himself, no doubt, for his stupidity, he slid a little further forward, and pushed his head deeper down. What ! not at it yet ? Oh ! this is preposterous ! Under this impression he.* rose, shook himself, and advancing his shoulders as far as prudence would allow, again thrust down his head and stretched his neck until the very sinews cracked. Then it was, but not till then, that the conviction was forced on him that tliat precious morsel was totally \-i j 'I t 262 UNQAVA ■■n . [ I ij ii i ) 5 and absolutely beyond his reach altogether. Drawing himself back he sat down on his haunches and uttered a snarling bark of dissatisfaction. But the odour that ascended from that hole was too mucli for the pow(^rs of wolfish nature to resist. Showing his teeth with an expression of mingled disappointment and ferocity, he plunged his head into the hole once more. Deeper and deeper still it went, but the blubber was yet three inches from his eager nose. Another shove — no ! dislocation alone could accomplish the object. His shoulders slid very imperceptibly into the hole. His nose was within an inch of the prize, and he could actually touch it with his tongue. Away with cowardly prudence ! what recked he of the consequences ? Up went his hind legs, down went his head, and the tempting bait was gained at last I Alas for wolfish misfortunes ! His fore legs were jammed immovably against his ribs. A touch of his hind foot on the ice would remedy this mishap, but he was too far in for that. Vigorously he struggled, but in vain. The blood rushed to his head, and the keen frost quickly put an end to his pains. In a few minutes he was dead, and in half-an-hour he was frozen, solid as a block of" wood with his hind legs and tail pointing to the sky. It was at the consummation of this event that another wolf, likewise attracted by the blubber, trotted down the wild ravine and uttered a howl of delighted surprise as it rushed forward to devour its dead com- panion — for such is the custom among wolves. And this was the howl that called Frank forth in time to baulk its purpose. Frank happened to be completely dressed at the time, and as he saw the wolf bound away up the mountain gorge, he seized his gun and snow-shoes, and hastily slung on hia powder-horn and shot-belt. "Edith/' he cried, as he was about to start, "I must give chase to that wolf. I won't be gone long. I^ight the lamp and prepare bror\kfa«t, dear — at least i UNGAVA 263 L>rawing [ uttered our that I powers ;th with ferocity, Deeper ^et three ve — no ! 2t. His )le. HiR he could cowardly es? Up and the egs were jh of his p, but he ^\eA, but the keen n a few he was lind legs ent that r, trotted delighted ead com- es. And I time to at the up the )w-shoes, ahot-belt. start, "I one long, -at least as much of it as you can ; 1*11 be back to complete it. Hallo, Chimo ! here, Chime ! " he shouted, whistling to the dog, which bounded forth from the door of the hut and followed his master up the ravine. Edith was so well accustomed to solitary wanderings among the rugged glens in the neighbourhood of Fort Chimo, that she felt no alarm in finding herself left alone in this wild spot. She knew that Frank was not far off, and expected him back in a few minutes. She knew, also, that wild animals are not usually so daring as to show themselves in open ground after the break of day, particularly after the shouts of human beings have scared them to their dens ; so, instead of giving a thought to any possible dangers that might threaten her, she applied herself cheerfully and busily to the preparation of their morning meal. First she lighted the lamp, which instantly removed the gloom of the interior of the igloe, whose little ice-wmdow as yet admitted only the faint light of the gray dawn. Then she melted a little snow and cleaned out the kettle, in which she placed two cuts of fresh trout ; and having advanced thus far in her work, thought it time to throw on her hood and peep out to see if Frank was coming. But there was no sign of Frank, so she re-entered the igloe and began to set things to rights. She folded up the deerskins on which she had reposed, and piled them at the head of the willow matting that formed her somewhat rough and unyielding mattress, after which she arranged the ottoman, and laid out the breakfast things on the snow-table. Having accomplished all this to her entire satisfaction, Edith now diicoveied that the cuts of salmon were sufficiently well boiled, and began to hope that Frank would be quick lest the breakfast should be spoiled. Under the influence of this feeling she threw on her hood a second time, and going out upon the lake, surveyed the shore with a scrutinising gaze. The sun was now so far above the natural horizon that the daylight was pretty clear, but the high moiintains prevented any of his direct rays •*^ i!l 264 UNOAVA t i 1 from penetrating the gloom of the valley of the lakr. Still there was light enough to enable the solitary chilu to distinguish the objects on shore ; but Frank's tall form was not visible anywhere. Heaving a sHght sigh, Edith returned to the hut, soliloquising thus as she went — "Dear me! it is verj strange that Frank should stay away so long. I fear that the trout will be quite spoiled. Perhaps it would be very good cold. No doubt of it. We shall have it cold, and then I can get the tea ready." In pursuance of this plan, the anxious little house- keeper removed the trout from the kettle, which she cleaned out and refilled with snow. When this was melted and boiled, she put in the tea. In due time this also was ready, and she sallied forth once more, with a feeling approaching to anxiety, to look for Frank. Still her companion did not make his appear- ance, and for the first time a feeling of dread touched her heart. She strove to avert it, however, by co^i- sidering that Frank might have been obliged to follow the wolf further than he expected or intended. Then a thrill of fear passed through her breast as the thought occurred, " What if the wolf has attacked and killed hina?" As time wore on, and no sound of voice or gun or bark of dog broke the dreary stillness of that gloomy place, a feeling of intense horror took possession of the child's mind, and she pictured to herself all kinds of possible evils that might have befallen her com- panion ; while at the same time she could not but feel how awful was her unprotected and helpless condition. One thought, however, comforted her, and this was that Maximus would certainly come to the hut on his return to the fort. This relieved her mind in regard to herself ; but the very relief on that point enabled her all the more to realise the dangers to which Frank mi^ht be exposed without any one to render him assistance. The morning passed away, the sun rose above the \i\\\^, and the short-ljv^d day drew towards its close ; il e lakr. y chilu i's tall le hut, is verj I fear 1 would bave it house- ich she lis was 16 time ) more, )ok for appear- iouched 3y coxi- ) follow Then hought I killed oice or of that session 1 kinds com- \ut feel idition. lis was Ion his jard to led her ] Frank Ir him WQ the 1 close : UNOAVA 2ft5 still Frank did not return, and the poor child who watched so anxiously for him, after many short and timid wanderings towards the margin of the lake, returned to the igloe with a heart fluttering from mingled anxiety and terror. Throwing herself on the deerskin couch, she burst into a flood of tears. As she lay there, sobbing bitterly, she was startled by a noise outside the hut, and ere she could spring from her recumbent position, Chimo darted through the open door-way, with a cry between a whine and a bark, and laid his head on Edith's lap. "Oh ! what is it, my dog? Dear Chimo, where is Frank ? " cried the child passionately, while she em- braced her favourite with feelings of mingled delight and apprehension. " Is he coming, Chimo ? " she said, addressing the dumb animal, as if she believed he understood her. Then, rising hastily, she darted out once more, to cast a longing, expectant ^aze towards the place where she had seen her companion disappear in the morning. But she was agaiii doomed to dis- appointment. Meanwhile Cbimo's conduct struck her as being very strange. Instead of receiving with his usual quiet satisfaction the caresses she heaped upon hira, he kept up a continual whine, and ran about hither and thither without any apparent object in view. Once or twice he darted off with a long luelan- cl;oIy howl towards the hills ; then stopping short suddenly, stood still and looked round towards his young mistress. At first Edith thought that the dog must have lost his master, and had come back to the hut expecting to find him there. Then she called him to her and examined his mouth, expecting and dreading to rind blood upon it. But there were no signs of his having been engaged in fighting with wolves ; so Edith felt sure that Frank must be safe from them at least, as she knew that Chimo was too brave to have left his master to pensh alone. The dog submitted with much impatience to this examination, and at jant broke away from Edith 8.nd ran yelping towards V u <■ I n i Mi] Ml ^i->m-^^l.-''\v 260 UNQAVA 4 i? the hills agrain, stopping as before, and looking back. The resolute manner with which Chimo did this, and the frequency of its recurrence, at length induced Edith to believe that the animal wished her to follow him. Instantly it occurred that he might conduct her to Frank ; so without bestowing a thought on the d linger of her forsaking the igloe, she ran in for her snow-shoes, and putting on her hood and thick mittens, followed the dog to the margin of the lake. Chimo's impatience seemed to subside immediately, and he trotted rapidly towards the ravine into which Frank had entered in pursuit of the wolf that morning. The dog paused ever and anon as they proceeded, in order to give the child time to come up with him ; and so eager was Edith in her adventure, and so hopeful was she that it would terminate in her finding Frank, that she pressed forward at a rate which would havc^ been utterly impossible under less exciting circum- stances. At the foot of the ravine she found the remains of the wolf which had been caught in the snow-trap that morning. Frank had merely pulled it out and cast it on the snow in passing, and the torn fragments and scattered bones of the animal sliowed that its comrades had breakfasted off its carcass after Frank had passed. Here Edith paused to put on her snow-shoes, for the snow in the ravine was soft, being less exposed to the hardening action of the wind ; and the dog sat down to wait patiently until she was ready. " Now, Chimo, go forward, my good dog. I will follow you without fer!,r," she said, when the lines were properly fastened to her feet. Chimo waited no second command, but threaded his way rapidly up the ravine among the stunted willow bushes. In doing so he had frequent occasion to wait for his young mistress, whose strength was rapidly failing under the unwonted exertion she forced herself to make. At times she had to pause for breath, and as looking did this, induced :o follow iduct her , on the I for he I' mittens, Chimo's and he h Frank 1^. The in order ; and so peful was g Frank, luld havc^ circura- mains of trap that id cast it ents and comrades passed. 3, for the 3d to the down to I will ihe lines jaded his d willow to wait rapidly d herself h, and as UNGAVA 267 I she cast her eyes upwards and around at the dreary desolation of the rugged precipices, which everywhere met her view, she could with dilliculty refrain from shedding tears. But Edith's heart was warm and bravo. The thought of Frank being in some mysterious, un- known danger, infused new energy into her soul and strengthened her slight frame. Having now recovered somewhat from the nervous haste which urged her to travel at a rate much beyond her capacity, she advanced into the ravines of the mountains with more of that steady, regular tramp which practice in the use of her snow-shoes had taught her to assume; so that, being of a robust constitution naturally, she became stronger and more able for her undertaking as she advanced. For nearly twQE Jiours Chimo led Edith into the midst of the mountains. The scenery became, if possible, more savage as they proceeded, and at length grew so rugged and full of precipices and dark gorges, or rather S2^lits in the hills, that Edith had much difficulty in avoiding the danger of falling over many of the latt(^r which were partially concealed by, and in some places entirely covered over with, a crust of snow, b'ortunately, as daylight waned, a brilliant galaxy of stars shone forth, enabling her to pick her steps. Hitherto they had followed Frank's snow-shoe track undeviatingly, but near the top of a cliff Chimo suddenly diverged to the left, and led his mistress by a steep and tortuous natural path to the bottom. Here he ran quickly forward, uttering a low whine or whimper, and disappeared round the corner of the precipice. Hasten- ing after the dog with a beating heart, Edith speedily gained the projection of the chil', on turning which she was startled and terrified by hearing a loud snarl- ing bark mingled with a fierce growd. In another moment she beheld Chimo bounding towards a gaimt sitvage-looking wolf, which stood close beside the body of a man extended at full length upon the snow. 'U n ,# I .M: ff ^V ■I V-: It'! '*'■'! i'. i ■M •■^ V MH • I 268 UNGAVA At firfit the wolf did not seem inclined to retreat, but the shriek which Edith uttered on suddenly beholding the scene before her induced him to turn tail and fly. In another moment the terrified child sank exhausted on the snow beside the insensible form of Frank Morton. ' 1' ■1; ■•,,'1 ;- i '■ I I? » CHAPTER XXVIII EDITH BECOMES A HEROINE INDEED The shock whicli Edith received on beholding the blood-stained countenasice of her companion com- pletely paralysed her at first, but only for a few minutes. The feeling of certainty that Frank would perish if assistance were not rendered tended to restore her scattered faculties, and nerve her heart for the duties now required of her ; and she rose with a feeling of determination to save her companion or die beside him. Poor child! she little knew the extent of her own feebleness at that moment ; but she breathed an inward prayer to Him who can, and often does, achieve the mipjhtiest results by the feeblest means. Eaising Frank's head from the snow, she placed it in her lap, and with her handkerchief removed the blood from his forehead. In doing this she observed, to her inexpressible relief, that he breathed freely, and seemed rather to be in a state of stupor than insensibility. The place where he lay was a dark rent or split in the mountain, the precipices of which rose on either side to a height of between thirty and forty feet. The top of this charm was entirely covered over with a crust of snow, through which there was a large gap immediately above the spot where Frank lay, revealing at once the cause of his present sad condition. He had evidently been crossing the ravine by means of the deceptive platform of snow unaware of the danger of his position, . 1 ' i < K I' ■%^^' 270 VNQAVA 1 ¥ and had been Ruddtrnly precipitated to the bottom. In desceuding, his head had stnick the side of the cHff, which cut it severely ; but the softness of the snow into which he fell saved him from further injury, except the stunning effect of the fall. How long he had lain in this state Edith had no means of knowing, but it must have been a considerable time, as Chi mo couM not have left him until after his fall. Fortunately the wolf had not touclied him, and the wound in his head did not appear to be very deep. Observi?ig that parts of his face were slightly frost-bitten, Edith commenced to rub them vigorously, at the same time calling upon him in the most earnest tones to speak to her. The effect of this roused him a little. In a few minutes he opened his eyes, and gazed languidly into the child's face. " Where am I, Eda ? " he said faintly, while a gentle smile played about his lips. " You are in the mountiiins, Frank. Doar Frank ! do open your eyes again. I'm so glad to hear your voice ! Are you better now ? " The sound of his voice attracted Chimo, who had long ago abandoned the pursuit of the wolf, and was seated beside his master. Kising, he placed his cold nose on Frank's cheek. The action seemed to rouse him to the recollection of recent events. Starting up on his knees, with an angry shout, Frank seized the gun that lay beside him and raised it as if to strike the dog; but he instantly let the weapon fall, and exclaim- ing, '^Ali, Chimo, is it you, good dog?" he fell back again into the arms of his companion. Edith wept bitterly for a few minutes, while she tried in vain to awaken her companion from his state of lethargy. At length she dried her tears hastily, and, rising placed Frank's head on her w.irm cloak, which she wrapped round his face and shoulders. Then she felt his hands, which, though covered with thick leather mittens, were very cold. Making Chimo couch at his feet, so as to imbue them with some of his own warmth, i% Is I UNQAVA 371 n. In e cliff, 5 snow except id lain , but it 3 couM ely the is head it parts menced ig upon r. The Lutcs he i child's ; title a g«.: •ank! do ir voice ! ^ho had ind was his cold () rouse ting up zed the rike the xclaim- 11 back lile she lis state |ily, and, :, which [hen she leather at his rarmtb, i she procoodcd to rub his hands, and to squeeze and, as it were, shampoo his body all over, as vigorously an her strength enabled her. In a few minutes the eiToct of this was apparent. Frank raised himself on his elbow and gazed wildly round him. " Surely I must have fallen. Wliere am I, Edith ? " Gradually his faculties returned. " Edith, Edith ! " he exclaimed, in a low, anxious voice, '* I must get back to the igloe. I shall freeze here. Easten the lines of my snow-shoes, dear, and I will rise." Edith did as she was desired, and immediately Frank made a violent effort and stood upright; but he swayed to and fro like a drunken man. " Let me lean on your shoulder, dear Eda," he said in a faint voice. " My head is terribly confused. Lead me ; I cannot see well." The child placed his hand on her shoulder, and they went forward a few paces together — Edith bending beneath the weight of her heavy companion. "Do I lean heavily?" said Frank, drawing his hand across his forehead. ** Poor child ! " As he spoke he removed his hand from her shoulder; but the instant he did so, he staggered and fell with a deep groan. " O Frank ! dear Frank ! why did you do that?" said Edith, anxiously. ** You do not hurt me. I don't mind it. Do try to rise again." Frank tried, and succeeded in walking in a sort of lialf-sleeping, half-waking condition for about a mile — stumbhng as he went, and often unwittingly crushing his little guide to the ground. After this he fell once more, and could not again recover his upright position. Poor Edith now began to lose heart. The utter hope- lessness of getting the wounded man to advance more than a few yards at a time, and her own gradually increasing weakness, induced the tears once more to start to her eyes. She observed, too, that Frank was sinking into that state of lethargy which is so dangerous in cold climates, and she had much difficulty in pre- ',f I ij >i !■: i ■ ■ i '1'. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I 1^ 128 1 2.5 Ao ill! 2.0 12.2 1.8 1.25 1.4 1.6 < 6" — ► v: n ■c '>:> v: y /^ Photographic Sciences Cc poralion 33 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 ^ ^ ^^^> ^^%' ..* :. ^' ■i;l''i'i pjloe on ^here he but the pccuhar laracter. dved tho than she n so de- r not to get him I she was even in )unscllor. ;c of her heavenly id by this leave her is able to food and reach, so anything pected to oncluded lOurs, she 3h a good this, she n had set the direc- hat there ermined, loe very ar. She e he was th glided closed the irs of her VNGA VA 276 sledge, was soon far away from the mountain lake. At first the dog followed what she thought nmst be tho track that Maximas had taken, and her spirits rose when, after an hour's drive, she emerged upon a boundless plain, which she imagined must be the shores of the frozen sea where the b^squimaux lived. Encouraging Chimo with her voice, slie flew over the level surface of the hard frozen snow, and looked round eagerly in all directions for the expected signs of natives. Jiut no such signs appeared, and she began to fear that the distance wasgrealor than she had anticipatcHl. Towards the afternoon it began to snow In^avily. There was no wind, and tlie snow fell in largo (lalcoM, alighliTig sofdy and without any kouikI. This [jrevcntc^d her seeing any great distanc(\ and, what was worse, rendered the ground heavy for travc^lling. At length she came to a ridge of rocks, and supposing that she miglit see to a greater distance; from its summit, she got out of the sledge and clamh(!red u[>, lor the ground was too rough for the sledge to pass. ][• re the view was dreary (>nough — nothing but plain=; and hum- mocks of ice and snow met her view, except in one direction, where she saw, or fancied that she saw, a clump of willows and what appeared to be a hut in the midst of them. Kunning down the rugged declivity, she crossed the plain and reached the spot; but although the willows were there she found no hut. Overcome with fatigue, fear, and disappointment, she sat down on a wn^ath of snow and wept. J)ut she, felt that her situation was much too serious to perniit of her wasting time in vain regrets, so she started up and encUavoured to retrace her steps. This, however, was now a matter of diliiculty. The snow fell so thickly that her foot- steps were almost obliterated, and she could not sec; ten 3'ards before her. After wandering about for a few minutes in uncertainty, she called aloud to Cln'mo, hoping to hear his hark in rc^ply. Pmt all uas silent. Chimo was not, indeed, unfaithful. lie heard th'. cry and responded to it in the usual way, by bounding I- 1 ;l ; . 1 ■:■,, ■ ■ i i ! . ■ 1 ■'J 1 1 ■t ! ii t 1' • ■' . i (i-j 276 VNGAVA f in the direction whence it came. His progress, how- ever, was suddenly arrested by the sledp^e, which caught upon and was jammed amongst the rocks. Fiercely did Chimo strain and bound, but the harness was tough and the sledge immovable. Meanwhile the wind avose, and although it blew gently, it was sufficient to prevent Edith overhearing the whining cries of her dog. For a time the child lost all self-command, and rushed about she knew not whither, in the anxious desire to find her sledge; then she stopped, and restrained the pan tings of her breath, while with both hands pressed tightly over her heart, as if she would fain stop the rapid throbbing there, she listened long and intently. l)ut no sound fell upon her ear except the sighing of the cold breeze as it swept by, and no sight met her anxious gaze save the thickly falling snow-flakes. Sinking on her knees, Edith buried her face in her hands and gave full vent to the pent-up emotions of her soul, as the conviction was at length forced upon her mind that she was a lost wanderer in the midst of that cold and dreary waste of snow. N : 'I |: ii f n ,.- m^^f I 1,11 I ■;i'i il ' [ 3S3, hoW- ;h caught 5 reel y did as tough lid avose, o prevent g. For a ned about find her 1 pantings ed tightly the rapid itly. liut ing of the er anxious Lce in her ions of her . upon her dst of that CHAPTER XXIX A DARK CLOUD OF SORROW ENVELOPS FORT CHIMO Three days after the events narrated in the last chapter the fort of the fur-traders became a place of weeping ; for on the morning of that day Maximus arrived with the prostrate form of Frank Morton, whom he had discovered alone in the igloe on the lake, and with the dreadful news that little Edith Stanley was nowhere to be found ! It may be more easily imagined than described the state of mind into which the parents of the child were thrown ; but after the first burst of emotion was past, Stanley felt that a thorough and immediate search was the only hope that remained to him of finding his little one alive. Still, when he considered the intensity of the cold to which she must have been exposed, and the length of time which had already elapsed since she was missed, his heart sank, and he could scarcely frame words of comfort to his prostrated partner. Maximus had examined the immediate neighbourhood of the lake, in the hope of finding the tracks of the lost one ; but a hea>^y fall of snow had totally obliterated these, and he wisely judged that it would be better to convey the sick man to the fort as quickly as possible and give the alarm, so that parties might be sent out to scour the country in all directions. Frank was immediately put to bed on his arrival, and everything done in order to restore him. In this U :!f I ! ill ;, r 278 UNOAVA ■ I '^!l i' a attempt they succeeded so far as to obtnin all the information he could f^ive concerning hif. fall ; but he remembered nothing further than that Ediih had been the means of bringing him to the snow-hut, where ho lay in a deep, torpid slumber, until the voice and hand of Maximus awakened him. When Frank was told that Edith was lost, he sprang from his bed as if he had received an electric shock. The confusion of his faculties seemed swept away, and he began to put on his garments with as much vigour as if he were well and strong ; but ere ho belted on his leather coat his cheek grew pale, his hand trembled, and he fell in a swoon upon the bed. This convinced him of the impossibility of doing anything in the search, and he was prevailed on, after two or three similar failures, to leave the work to others. Meanwhile the mountains and valleys of Ungava were traversed far and near by the agonised father and his men. The neighbourhood of the lake was the first place searched, and they had not sought long ere they discovered the little sledge sticking fast among the rocks of the sea-coast, and Chimo lying in the traces almost dead with cold and hunger. The dog had kept himself alive by gnawing the deerskin of which the traces were made. Around this spot the search was concentrated, and the Esquimaux of the neighbouring camp were employed in traversing the country in all directions; but, although scarce a foot of ground escaped the eager scrutiny of one or other of the party, not a vestige of Edith was to be seen — not so much as a footprint in the snow. Days and nights flew by, and still the search was continued. Frank quickly recovered under the affec- tionate care of the almost heart-broken mother, who found some relief from her crushing sorrow in minister- ing to his wants. But the instant he could walk with- out support, and long before it was prudent to do so, Frank joined in the search. At first he could do little, but as day after day pasjjed by his strength returned so iiiiji n all the 1 ; but he had beeu where ho and hand was told I as if he ion of his to put on e well and his cheek 1 a swoon possibility prevailed 3 the work £ Ungava father and IS the first y ere they ,mong the the traces had kept which the carch was ghbouring :ry in all ground er of the n — not so arch was the affec- ther, who minister- ^^alk with- to do so, i do little, iturned so UNOAVA 279 rapidly that the only symptoms that remained to tell of his late accident were his pale cheek and the ha^^gard expression of his countenance. But tht^ niyst(^rious disappearance of Edith had more to do with the latter tlian illiuiss. Weeks passed away, l)iit still the dark cloud of rorrow himg ov(t I'urt Chiiiio, for the merry young voice that was wont to awakti the surrounding echoes was gone. Tho systematic search had now been given up, for every nook, every glen, and gorge, and corrie within fifteen miles of the spot where they had found the little sledge, had been searched again and again without success. But hope clung with singular tenacity to the parents' hearts long after it had (led from those of the men of the fort and of the Esquimaux. P^very alternate day Stanley and Frank sallied forth with heavy steps and furrowed brows to explore more carefully those places where the child was most likely to have strayed, expecting, yet f(\aring, to find her dead body. But they always returned to the bereaved motlier with silent lips atid downcast looks. They frequently conversed together about her, and always in a hopeful tone, each endeavouring to conceal from the other the real state of his own mind. Indeed, tjxcept when necessity required itj they seldom spoke on any other subject. One day Stanley and Frank \> 3re seated by the blazing stove in the hall conversing as usual about the plan of the search for that day. Mrs. Stanley was Lusied in preparing breakfast. " 'Tis going to blow hard from the north, Frank," said Stanley, ri?;ing and looking out of the window; " I see the icebergs coming into the river with the tide. You will have a cold march, 1 fear." Frank made no reply, but rose and approached the window. The view from it was a strange one. During the night a more than usually severe frost had con- gealed the water of the lake in the centre, and the icebergs that sailed towards the Cauiapuscaw liiver ia f iil ^ m m :l :i< !4 ■;' '■ • if hLM 1 c«^apmm^^^^H 280 UNO A VA , i .1 2i 'li';' :' s i j II! hilll statoly gr.'indf'ur went crashinp; thronp;h tliis yning ice :is if it luid bcicn papor, their slow but steady p ogress r(>C(;iving no p(rc<>ptihlc check from its opposition. Some of tlu3se Ijcr^^^s were of great size, and in proceed- ing onwards th(^y passed so close to the fort that the inhabitants feared more than once that a falling [)inna(;le might descciiid on the stores, which were built near to the wafer's edge, and crush them. As the tide gradually rose it rushed with violence into the cavities beneath the solid ice on the opposite shore, and finding no escape save through a few rents and fissures, sent up cohnnns or s[)Outs of white spray in all directions, which roared and shrieked as they ilew upwards, as if the great ocean were maddened with anger at finding a power slrong enough to restrain and curb its might. At intervals the main ice rent with a crash like the firing of artillery; and as if nature had designed to carry on and deepen this simile, the shore was lined with heaps of little blocks of ice which the constantly recurring action of the tide had moulded into the shape and size of cannon balls. But such sights were common to the inhabitants of Fort Chimo, and had long ago ceased to call forth more than a passing remark. " May it not be possible," munnured Stanley, while he leant his brow on his hand, " that she may have gone up False Kiver?" " I think not," said Frank. *' I know not how it is, but I have a strange conviction that she is yet alive. If she had perished in the snow, we should certainly have found her long ago. I cannot explain my feelings, or give a reason for them, but I feel convinced that (lading Eda is alive." "Oh, God grant it ! " whispered Stanley in a deep voice, while his wife hastened from the room to conceal the tears she could not restrain. While FVank continued to gaze in silence on the bleak scene without, a faint sound of sleigh-bells broke upon his ear. 111 ill hill ning ice J ogress )Of5ition. u'occcd- ihat the , falling Di'o built the tide cavities 1 finding res, sent rections, rds, as if t finding ,s might. like the dgned to /as lined instantly into the (itants of lall forth iy, while lay have low it is, ^et alive. jertainly lain my mvincL'd a deep room to on the lis broke Vt^QAYA 281 '• llark ! " he cried, starting, and opening the door. The regular and familiar sound of the bells came floating sweetly on the breeze. They grew louder and louder, and in a few seconds a team of dogs galloped into the fort, dragging a small sled behind them. They were followed by two stalwart Indians, whose costume and manner told that thc^y were in the habit of associating more with the fur-traders than with their own kindred. The dogs ran the sled briskly into the centre of the fort, and lay down panting on the snow, while the two men approached the hall. *' 'Tis a packet," cried Stanley, forgetting for the moment his sorrow in the excitement of this unexpected arrival. In a moment all the men at the fort were assembled in the square. " A packet 1 Where come you from ? *' "From Moose Fort," replied the elder Indian, while his comrade unfastened from the sled a little bundle containing letters. " Any news? Are all well ? " chorused the men. " Ay, all well. It is many day since we left. The way is very rough, and we did not find much deer. We saw one camp of Indian, but they 'fraid to come. I not know why. But I see with them one fair flower which grow in the fields of the Esquimaux. I suppose the Indian pluck her, and dare not come back here." Stanley started, and his cheek grew pale. ** A fair flower, say you ? Speak literally, man: was it a little white girl that you saw? " " No," replied the Indian, " it was no white girl we saw. It was one young Esquimau woman." Stanley heaved a deep sigh and turned away, mutter- ing, "Ah 1 I might have known that she could not have fallen into the hands of Indians so far to the south." "Well, lads, take care of these fellows," he cried, crushing down the feelings that had been for a brief moment awakened in his heart by the Indian's words, i i M lilH'l i ' , ■ ! ( 2SQ UNOAVA 'U-^ii lyM n iff ill P'jii il! mil " and Rive thoin plenty to oat and smoko." So sayin;^ he went off with tlic packet, followed by Frank. "Nivor fear ye; come along, honey," said ]>ryan, grasping the eld(T Indian by the arm, while the younger was carried ofT by Massan, and the doga taken care of hy Ma-istcqu:in and Claspard. On perusing the Letters, Stanley found tliat it would be al)Holut('iy necessary to send a packet of despatches to head-quarters. The dilliculties of his ]K)sition re- quired to l>e more thoroughly explained, and erroneous notions corrected. " What shall I do, Frank?" said he, with a perplexed look. " These Indians cannot return to Moose, having received orders, I find, to journey in a different direc- tion. Our own men know the way, but I cannot spare the good ones among them, and the second-rate cannot be depended on without a leader." Frank did not give an immediate reply. He seemed to he pondering the snbjoct in his mind. At length he said, •* Could not Dick Prince be spared?" "No; he is too useful here. The fact is, Frank, I think I must send you. It will do you good, my d^-ar boy, and tend to distract your mind from a subject which is now hopeless." Frank at first objected strongly to this plan, on the groujid that it would prevent him from assisting in the forlorn search for Edith ; but Stanley pointed out that he and the men could continue it, and that, on the other hand, his (Frank's) personal presence at head-quarters would be of great importance to the interests of the Company. At length Frank was constrained to obey. The route by which he purposed to travel was over- land to Richmond Gulf on snow-shoes ; and as the way was rough, he determined to take only a few days* pro- visions, and depend for su]bsistence on the hook and gun. Maximus, Oolibuck, and Ma-istequan were chosen to accompany him ; and three better men he could not have had, for they were stalwart and brave, and accus- tomed from infancy to live by the chase, and traverse UNGAVA 2ft8 So sayinf^ [ik. id Bryan, while the ogs takeu t it would lespatche3 DHition re- erroneoua trackless wastes, pnidcd solely by that power of ol)sorva- tion or instinct with which savages are usually gifted. With these men, a week's provisions, a large supply of aniniiinitiou, a small shidge, and three dogs, of wliom (Uiiruo was the leader.Frank one morning as('end«:d the roeky platform behind the fort, and bidding adieu to Ungava, commenced his long journey over tlie interior of Kast Main. , pcrple\(^d )se, having rent direc- I cannot ,econd-rate [Te seemed i length he 3, Frank, I , my d('ar a subject an, on the ting in the id out that n the other d-quarters ests of the d to obey, was over- as the way days' pro- ik and gun. chosen to could not ,nd accus- d traverse '.t CHAPTER XXX AN OLD FRIEND AMID NEW FRIENDS AND NOVELTIES- A DESPERATE BATTLE, AND A GLORIOUS VICTORY M' : Mi ■'I •I 'i. 1,1 1. 'Sil'i I li't The scene of our story is now changed, and we request our patient reader to fly away with us deeper into the north, beyond the regions of Ungava and far out upon the frozen sea. Here is an island which for many long years has formed a refuge to the roe-deer during the winter, at which season these animals, having forsaken the main- land in autumn, dwell upon the islands of the sea. At the time of which we write the island in question was occupied by a tribe of Esquimaux, who had built them- selves as curious a village as one could wish to see. The island had little or no wood on it, and the few willow bushes that showed their heads above the deep snow were stunted and thin. Such as they v/ere, how- ever, they, along with a ledge of rock over which the snow had drifted in a huge mound, formed a sort of protection to the village of the Esquimaux, and sheltered it from the cold blasts that swept over the frozen sea from the regions of the far north. There were about twenty igloes in the village, all of which were built in the form of a dome, exactly similar to the hut con- structed by Maximus on the lake. They were of various sizes, and while some stood apart with only a small igloo attached, others were congregated in groups and connected by low tunnels or passages. The door-wayg 'ELTIE3 — ^Q request : into the ' out upon years has winter, at the niain- ■ sea. At stion was uilt theni- ;h to see. the few the deep [^ere, how- vhich the a sort of sheltered frozen sea lere ahont built in hut con- lof various a small poups and loor-ways VNGAVA CiBS leading into most of them were so low that the natives were obliged to creep out and in on their hands and knees ; but the huts themselves were high enough to permit the tallest man of the tribe to stand erect, and some of them so capacious that a family of six or eight persons could dwell in them easily. We may remark, however, that Esquimau ideas of roominess and comfort in their dwellings differ very considerably from ours. Their chief aim is to create heat, and from this end they carefully submit to what we would consider the discomfort of crowding and close air. The village at a little distance bore a curious resem- blance to a cluster of white bee-hives; and the round, soft, hairy natives, creeping out and in continually, and moving about amongst them, were not unlike (with the aid of a little imagination) to a swarm of monstrous black bees — an idea which was further strengthened by the continuous hum that floated on the air over the busy settlement. Kayaks and oomiaks lay about in several places supported on blocks of ice, and seal-spears, paddles, dans, lances, coils of walrus-line, and otlier implements, were intermingled in rare confusion with sledges, seal-skins, junks of raw meat and bones, on which latter the numerous dogs of the tribe were earnestly engaged. In the midst of this village stood a hut which differed considerably from tho.so around. It was built of clear ice instead of snow. There were one or two other igloes made of the same material, but none so large, clean, or elegant as this one. The walls, which were perpen- dicular, were composed of about thirty large square blocks cemented together with snow, and arranged in the form of an octagon. The roof was a dome of snow. A small porch or passage, also of ice, stood in front of the low door-way, which had been made high enough to permit the owner of the mansion to enter by stooping slightly. In front and all around this hut the snow was carefully scraped, and all offensive objects — such as seal and whale blubber — removed, giving to it an if :■ ;t ;. J •? t;Hi • M^ t !l' :ui |l!? ;■( iMl%n,i I i! 286 UNGAVA li'' 1} U;'!-; h ■! nppoaranc*'. of cloanliiiess and comfort which the neigb- houriiif; ipjloos did not posso^s. Inside of this icy residence, on a couch of deerskin, was seated Edith Stanley ! On that terrihle niglit when the child lost her way in [he dreary plain, she had wandered she knew not whither, until she was suddenly arrested by cominpj to the ec]rrQ of the solid ice on the shores of Ungava P»ay. Here the high winds had broken up the ice, and the black waters of the sea now rolled at her f(^et and chci'lved her progress. Tc^rriiied at this unexpected sight, Edith endeavoured to ret.race her steps; but she found to her horror that the ice on which she stood was float- ing, and that the wind, having shifted a point to the eastward, was driving it across to the west side of the bay. Here, in the course of the next day, it groundf^l, and the poor child, benumbed with cold and faint with hunger, crept as far as she could on to the Ann land, and then lay down, as she thought, to die. But it was otherwise ordained. In less than half-an- hour afterwards she was found by a party of Esquimaux. These wild creatures had come from the eastward in their dog-sledges, and having passed well out to the seaward, in order to avoid the open water off the mouth of False liiver, had missed seeing their countrymen there, and therefore knew nothing of the establishment of Fort Chimo. In bending towards the land again after passing the l)ay they came upon l^jdith's tracks, and after a short search they found her lying on the snow. Words cannot convey an ad(^quate impression of the unutterable amazement of these poor creatures as they beheld the fair child, so unlike anything they had ever seen or imagined ; but whatever may have been their thoughts regarding her, they had sense enough to see that she was composed of flesh and blood, and would infallibly freeze if allowed to lie there much longer. They therefore lifted her gently upon one of the large sleighs, and placed her on a pile of furs in the midst of :!i UNGAVA 287 le neigh- this icy 3d Editii her wa^y mew not oiuinp; to ava r>ay. , and the f(^ct and ;ted sight, slie found was float- nt to tlie do of the groun(l<^d, faint with firm land, n half-an- quimaux. stward in ut to the he mouth un try men Ihhshment md again 's tracks, g on the Ion of the is as they had ever j>ecn their |,gh to S(^e bud would Ih longer. the large midst of a group of women and children, who covered hor up nnl chafed her limbs vigorously. Meanwhile, the drivcirsof the sledges, of which there were six, with twenty dogs attached to each, plied their long whips energetically ; the dogs yelled in consternation, and, darting away with the sledges as if they had been feathers, the whole triho went hooting, yelling, and howhng away over the frozen sea. The surprise of the savages when they fr)und r.diih was scarcely if at all superior to that of J*jdith when she opened her eyes and began to comprehend somewhat confusedly her peculiar position. The savages watched her movements, open-mouthed, with intense curiosity, and seemed overjoyed beyond expression when she at length recovered sufficiently to exclaim feebly, — " Where am I ? where are you taking me to ? " We need scarcely add that she received no n^ply to her questions, for the natives did not understand a word of her language, and with the exc(?ption of the names of one or tw^o familiar objects she did not understand a word of theirs. Of how far or how long they travelled ]<]dith could form no idea, as she slept profoundly during the journey, and did not thoroughly recover her strength and faculties until after her arrival at the camp. For many days after reaching the Esquimau village poor Edith did nothing but weep ; for, besides the miserable circumfitances in which she was now placed, she was much too considerate and unselfish in her nature to forgot that her parents would experience all the misery of supposing her dead, and added to this was the terrible supposition that the natives into whose hands she had fallen might never hear of Fort Chi mo. The distracted child did her utmost by means of signs to make them understand that such a place existed, but her efforts were of no avail, l^jithcr she was not eloquent in the language of signs, or the natives were obtuse. As time abated the first violence of her grief, she began to entertain a hope that ere long some iH m 1 i \ 1 • ;l i^^ m •i. i ■ \p i r ii ^ . . «i ill ■III'., Pi i.) iiv 1 I'iti':;": Hill 288 UrfOAVA wiindering natives might convey intelligence of her to the fur- traders. As this hope strengthened she becanie more cheerful, and resolved to make a number of litllo ornaments with her name inscribed on them, whicli she meant to hang round the necks of the chief men of the tribe, so that should any of them ever chance to meet with the fur-traders, these ornaments might form a clue to her strange residence. A small medal of whalebone seemed to her the most appropriate and tractable material, but it cost her many long and weary hours to cut a circular piece of this tough material with the help of an Esquimau knife. When she had done it, however, several active boys who had watched the operation with much curiosity and interest, no sooner understood what she wished to make than they set to work and cut several round pieces of ivory or walrus-tusk, which they presented to their little guest, who scratched the name EDITH on them and hung them round the neck of the chief men of the tribe. The Esquimaux smiled and patted the child's fair head kindly as they received this piece of attention, which they flattered themselves, no doubt, was entirely disinterested and complimentary. Winter wore gradually away, and the ice upon the sea began to show symptoms of decay opposite to the camp of the Esquimaux. During the high winds of spring the drift had buried the village so completely that the bee-hives were scarcely visible, and the big black bees walked about on the top of their igloes, and had to cut deep down in order to get into them. For some time past the natives had been unsuccessful in their seal-hunting, and as seals and walruses constituted their chief means of support they were reduced to short allowance. Edith's portion, however, had never yet been curtailed. It was cooked for her over the stone lamp belonging to an exceedingly fat young woman whose igloe was next to that of the little stranger, and whose heart had been touched bv the child's sorrow : afterwards it was more deeply touched by her gratitude of her to le becanui r of litllo m, which ef men of jhance to light form the most i her many ce of this 11 au knife. 3 boys who iosity and 3d to make (1 pieces of their Uttle them and aen of the the child's attention, as entirely upon the Isite to the winds of [completely le big black |s, and had For some l1 in llicir jonstituted id to short never yet the stone ig woman [anger, and I's sorrow : Ir gratitude f y this time the little boy had come up with l^.tlith and the shul'^e, so Annatock ordered him to take the dogs behind a hummock to k(!ep them out of sight, while he selected several strong harpoons and a lance from the sledge. Giving another lance to Peetoot, he signed to Edith to sit on the hummock while he attacked the grisly monster of the deep. While these preparations were being made, the walrus dived, and while it was under water, the man and the boy ran quickly forward a short distance, and then lay down benind a lump of ice. Scarcely had they done so when the walrus came up again with a loud snort, splashing the water with its broad heavy flippers — which seemed a sort of compromise between legs and fins — and dashing waves over the ice as it rolled abou^ ii VNOAVA 297 its large nnwicKly carcass. It was truly a savage- looking monster, as larp^c^ as a siniill elephant, and having two tusks of a foot iind a half long. The face hore a horn! K' resonil/lance to tliat of a man. Its crown was rourul and bulging, its face broad and massive, and a thick, bristling mo'istiche — rough as the spines of a porcupine — covered its uppor lip, and depended in a sha^'gy diipi)ing mass over its mouth. After spluttering al'oiit a short time it dived again. Now wan Annatock's time. Seizing a harpoon and a coil of line, he muttered a few words to the boy, sprang up, and running out upon the smooth ice, stood by the edge of the open water. He had not waited here more than a few seconds when the black waters were cleft by the blacker head of the monster, as it once more ascended to renew its elephantine gambols in the pool. As it rose, the Esquimau threw up his arm and poised the harpoon. For one instant the surprised animal raised itself breast high out of tlio water, and directed a stare of intense astonishment at the man. That moment was fatal. Annatock buried the harpoon deep under the loft Hipper. With a fierce bellow the briiie dash(^d itself against the ice, (endeavouring in its fury to reach its assailant ; but the ice gave way under its enornous weiglit, whih^ Annatock ran back as far as the line attached to the harpoon would permit him. The walrus, seeing that it could not reach its enemy in this way, seemed now to be actually endued with reason. It took a long gaze at Annatock, and then dived. Bat the Esquimau was prepared for this. He changed his position hastily, and played his line the meanwhile, fixing the point of his lance into the ice, in order to give him a more effective hold. Scarcely had he done so than the spot he had just left was smashed up, and the head of the walrus appeared, grinning and bellowing as if in disappointment. At this moment Peetoot handed his uncle a harpoon, and, ere the animal dived, the weapon was fixed in his side. Once more It ; 298 UNGAVA "" * N'V: tl i I t#| I:;: :,r! 1 |! liSi,'! ■!;i'! n ■il! "i 4, Annatock changed his position; and once again the spot on which he had been standing was burst upwards. It was a terrible sight to see that unearthly-looking monster smashing the ice around it, and lashing the blood-stained sea into foam, while it waged such mortal war with the self-possessed and wary man. How mighty and strong the one ! how comparatively weak and seemingly helpless the other ! It was the triumph of mind over matter — of reason over blind brute force. But Annatock fought a hard battle that day ere he came off conqueror. Harpoon after harpoon was driven into the walrus; again and again the lance pierced deep into its side, and drank its life-blood ; but three hours had passed away defore the dead carcass was dragged from the deep by the united force of dogs and man. During this terrible combat Edith hadlookedonwith such intense interest that she could scarcely believe her eyes when she found, from the position of the sun, that the day was far advanced. It was too late now to think of cutting up the carcasses without assistance, so Annatock determined to return home and tell his countrymen of his good fortune. It is a custom among the Esquimaux to consider every animal that is killed as the common property of all — the successful hunter being entitled to all the tit- bits, besides his portion of the equal dividend ; so that Annatock knew he had only to give the signal, and every able-bodied man in the village, and not a few of the women and children, would descend like vultures on the spoil. Jumping into his sledge, he stretched out his exhausted frame at full length beside Edith, and committed the whip to Peetoot. "I'm so glad," cried Edith, with a beaming face, " that we have killed this beast. The poor people will have plenty to eat now." "Hal ha I ha!" roared Peetoot, giving increased emphasis to each successive shout, and prolonging the last into a yell of delight, as he cracked the ponderous whip from side to side like a volley of pistolry. .1* UNGA VA 299 " Peetoot ! " exclaimed Edith in a remonstrative tone, as the sledge swayed to and fro with the rate at which they were sweeping over the plain, " don't drive so fast ; you will kill the poor dogs ! " " Ho ! ho ! ho-o-o ! Eeduck ! " roared the boy, aiming a shot at the leader'.; left ear, and bringing the thick end of the whip down on the flanks of the six hindmost dogs. Thus, amid a volley of roars, reraonstranceh, yells, yelps, and pistolry, Edith and her friends scoured over the frozen sea, and swept into the Esquimau camp like a whirlwind. :f- CIIArTEK XXXI f|;: b :vf;': iii, ^'l m 'V ifi ^rf I 'M' ANOTHER DESPERATE BATTLE, AND A DECIDED VICTORY — THE ESQUIMAUX SUFFER A SEVERE LOSS Tub night that followed the day of which we have given an account in the last chapter was a night of rest to Edith, but not to the Esquimaux. Scarcely allowing themselves time to harness their dogs, after the news reached them, they set off for the scene of action in a body, Every sledge was engaged, every able-bodied male and female started. None were left in camp except the sick, of whom there were few — and the aged, of whom there were fewer. While en- gaged in the hurried preparations for departure the women sang with delight, for they had been Hving on very short allowance for some weeks past, and starva- tion had been threatening them ; so that the present success diffused among these poor creatures a uni- versal feeling of joy. But their preparations wore not numerous. A short scene of excited bustle followed Annatock's arrival, a few yells from the dogs at starting, and the deserted camp was so silent and desolate that it seemed as if human beings had not been there for centuries. It did not continue long, however, in this state. Two or three hours later, and the first of the return parties arrived, groaning under the burdens they carried and dragged behind them. The walrus-flesh was packed on the dog-sledges ; but as for the few seals ^ BOO tyNQAVA 801 that had been caught, they were sledges to themsel^' s — cords being tied to their tails, to which a dozen natives attached themselves, and dragged the carcasses over the snow. Peetoot, whose spirit that night seemed to be intoxi- cated with success, and who felt that he was the lion of the night (after Annatock!), seated himself astride of one of the dead seals, and was dragged into camp on this novel sledge, shouting a volley of unintelligible jargon at the top of his voice, in the midst of which "Eeduck" frequently resounded. At length the last lingerer arrived, and then began a feast of the most extraordinary kind. The walrus-flesh was first con- veyed to the igloe of Annatock, where it was cut up and distributed among the native s. The women seemed quite frantic with joy, and went about from hut to hnt embracing one another, by way of congratulation, k^jon the lamps of the village were swimming with oil, the steaks stewing and roasting, the children provided with pieces of raw blubber to keep them quiet while the larger portions were being cooked, and the entire community gormandising and rejoicing as savages are wont to do when suddenly visited with plenty in the midst of stiirvatioii. Daring all this scene Edith went al)Out from hut to hut enjoying herself. Nay, reader, be not horrified ; thou knowest not the pliable and accommodating nature of humanity. Edith did not enjoy tlie filth by which she was surrounded — far from it; neither did she Liijoy the sight of , raw blubber being sucked by little 1 abies, especially by her own favourite; but she did enjoy the sight of so much plenty where, but a few hoars ago, starvation had begun to threaten a visit ; and she did enjoy and heartily sympathise with the un(loul)ted and great happiness of her hospitable friends. A very savouiy dish, with a dae proportion of lean to the fat, cut specially to suit her taste, smoked on Eedaok's table that night, and Peetoot and the baby helped her to eat it. Keally it would be a matter cf ■^ II •.m UNOAVA Mil , 1% j M :!r1i 'I 'ft .;| ',1, nice calculation to ascertain whether Pcetoot or the baby laughed most on this jovial occasion. Un- doubtedly the former had the best of it in regard to more noise ; nevertheless the pipe of the latter was un- commonly shrill, and at times remarkably racy and obstreperous. But as the hours flew by, the children throughout the camp generally fell asleep, while their seniors sat quietly and contentedly round their kettles and lamps, eating and slumbering by turns. The amount of food consumed was enormous, and ouite beyond the belief of men accustomed to the appetites of temperate zones; but we beg them to remember that arctic frosts require to bo met with arctic stinni- hints, and of these an immense quantity of unctuous food is the best. Next morning the Esquinmux were up and away by daybreak, with their dogs and sledges, to bring home the remainder of the walrus-meat ; for these poor people are not naturally improvident, and do not idle their time in luxurious indolence until n''eoRsity urges them forth again in search of food. In this respect they are superior to Indians, who are notoriously improvident and regardless of the morrow. This day was signalised by another piece of success on the part of Annatock and his nephew, who went to the scene of yesterday's battle on foot. Edith remained behind, having resolved to devote herself entirely to the baby, to make up for her neglect of the previous day. On reaching the place where the walrus had been slain, Annatock cut off and bound up a portion with which he intended to return to the camp. While he was thus emploj'ed, along with a dozen or more of his countrymen, Peetoot came running towards him, saying that bethought he saw a seal lying on the ice far ahead. Having a harpoon and two spears with them, Annatock left his work and followed his nephew to the spot where it was supposed to be lying. But on reaching the place they found that it was gone, and a few bells floating at the surface of the hole showed where it had made its ii- ji 'iil||i| Jli J a ail UNGAVA ^0'6 )t or tlio on. Un- regard to r was uri- racy and ) children hilo their Mr kettles ens. The and quite appetit(^-s remember tic stimu- unctuous i away by ring hon\e -)Oor people i their time them forth they are iiprovident of success o went to ]i remained mtirely to le previous Is had been trtion with While he tore of his ^im, saying far ahead. Annatock spot where the place [floating at made its descent to the element below. With the characteristic indifference of a man accustomed to the vicissitudes and the disappointments of a hunter's life, the elder Esquimau uttered a grunt and turned away. J^ut he had not proceeded more than a few paces when his eye became riveted on the track of some animal on the ice, which appeared to his practised eye to be quite fresh. Upon examination this proved to be the case, and Annatock spoke earnestly for a few minutes with hih nephew. The boy appeared from his gestures to be making some determined remarks, and seemed not a little hurt at the doubting way in which his uncle shook his head. At length Peetoot seized a spoar, and, turning away, followed the track of the animal with a rapid and determined air ; while Annatock, grasping the other spear, followed in the boy's track. A brisk walk of half-an-hour over the ice and hum- mocks of the sea carried them out of sight of their com- panions, but did not bring them up with the animal of which they were in chase. At length Peetoot halted, and stooped to scrutinise the track more attentively. As he did so an enormous white bear stalked out from behind a neighbouring hummock of ice, and after gazing at him for a second or two, turned round and walked slowly away. The elder Esquimau cast a doubtful glance at his nephew, while he lowered the point of his spear and semed to hesitate ; but the boy did not wait. Level- ling his spear, he uttered a wild shout and ran towards the animal, which instantly turned towards the ap- proaching enemy with a look of defiance. If Annatock had entertained any doubts of his nephew's conrnge before, he had none now ; so casting aside all further thoughts on the subject, he ran forward along with him to attack the bear. This was a matter attended with much danger, however, and there was some reason in the man feeling a little uncertainty as to the courage of a youth who, he was aware, now faced a bear for the first time in his life ! 304 UNOAVA i'.i li u ! 1':' f .r^; 'Si «i . ;;t , ■*■ ' ' ' ' t : ,1:' At first the two hunters advanced side by side towards the fierce-looking monster, but as they drew near they separated, and approached one on the right, the other on the left of the bear. As it was determined that An- natock should give the death-wound, he went towards the left side and hung back a moment, while Peetoot advanced to the right. When about three yards distant the bear rose. This action had a powerful and visible effect upon the boy, for as polar bears are comparatively long-bodied and short-legged, their true proportions are not fully displayed until they rear on their hind legs. It seemed as if the animal actually grew taller and more enormous in the act of rising, and the boy's cheek blanched while he shrank backwards for a moment. It was only for a moment, however. A quick word of encouragement from Annatock recalled him. He stepped boldly forward, as the bear was glancing savagely from side to side, uncertain which enemy to attack first, and, thrusting his lance forward, pricked it sharply on the side. This decided the point. With a ferocious growl the animal turned to fall upon his insignificant enemy. In doing so its left shoulder was exposed to Annatock, who, with a dart like lightning, plunged his spear deep into his heart. A powerful shudder shook the monster's frame as it fell dead upon the ice. Annatock stood for a few minutes leaning on his npcar, and regarding the bear with a grim look of satis- faction, while Peetoot laughed, and shouted, and danced around it like a maniac. How long he would have con- tinued these wild demonstrations it is difficult to say — probably until he was exhausted — but his uncle brought them to a speedy termination by bringing the butt-end of his spear into smart contact with Peeto'^t's flank. Wil^h a howl, in whicli consternation mingi-^d with his glee, the boy darted away over the ice like a reindeer to convey the glad news to his friends, and to fetch a sledge for the bear's carcass. On returning to the village there was immediately in- ill i I im UNGAVA 805 3 towards lear they the other that An- t towards 3 Peetoot ds distant ,nd visible paratively jrtions are hind legs, taller and )oy's cheek I, moment, ck word of him. He ,s glancing n enemy to i, pricked it ^t. With a I upon his .oulder was J Hghtning, ^. powerful dead upon ling on his )ok of satis- and danced Id have con- ilt to say— Icle brought [he butt-end loot's flank. I- d with his a reindeer to fetch a lediately in- stituted another royal feast, which continued from day to day, gradually decreasing in joyous intensity as the provender decreased in bulk, until the walruses, the bear, and the seals were entirely consumed. Soon after this the weather became decidedly mild, and the power of the sun's rays was so great that the snow on the island and the ice on the sea began to bo resolved into water. Durin*^ this period several impor- tant changes took place in tlio manners and customs of the Esquimaux. The women, who had worn deerskin shoes during the winter, put on their enormous water- proof summer boots. The men, when out on the ice in search of seals, used a pair of wooden spectacles, with two narrow slits to peep through, in order to protect their eyes from the snow blindness caused by the glare of the sun on the ice and snow — a complaint which is apt to attack all arctic travellers in spring if not guarded against by some such appliance as the clumsy wooden spectacles of the Esquimaux. Active preparations were also made for the erection of skin summer tents, and the launching of kayaks and oomiaks. Moreover, little boys were forbidden to walk, as they had been wont to do, on the tops of the snow-houses, lest they should damage the rapidly-decaying roofs; but little boys in the far north inherit that tendency to disobedience which is natural to the children of Adam all the world over, and on more than one occasion, having ventured to run over the igloes, were caught in the act by the thrusting of a leg now and then through the roofs thereof, to the indignation of the inmates below. A catastrophe of this sort happened to poor Peetoot not long after the slaying of the polar bear, and brought the winter camp to an abrupt termination. Edith had been amusing herself in her house of ice all the morning with her adopted baby, and w^as in the act of feeding it with a choice morsel of seal-fat — par- tially cooked, to avoid doing violence to her own prejudices, and very much under-done in order to suit the Esquimau baby's taste — when Peetoot rushed mvJ i ' It 'ir h ■ ■■!<{' ; Wll ■«t:;r; «l- im'U wli violently into the hut, shouted Ecduck with a bois- terous smile, seized the baby in his arms, and carried it off to its mother. Edith was accustomecl to have it thus torn from her by the boy, who was usually sent as a messenger when Kaga happened to desire the loan of her offspring. The igloe in which Kaga and her relations dwelt was the largest in the village. It was fully thirty feet in diameter. The passage leading to it was a hundred yards long, by five feet wide and six feet high, and from this passage branched several others of various lengths, leading to different storehouses and to other dwellmgs. The whiteness of the snow of which this princely man- sion and its offices were composed was not much altered on the exterior; but in the interior a long winter of cooking and ^*;ev^ng and general filthiness had turned the walls and roofs quite black. Being somewhat lazy, Peetoot preferred the old plan of walking over this palace to going round by the entrance, which faced the south. Accordingly, he hoisted the fat and smiling infant on his shoulder, and bounded over the dome- shaped roof of Kaga's igloe. Alas for the result of disobedience ! No sooner had his foot touched the key-stone of the arch than down it went. Dinner was being cooked and consumed by twenty people below at the time. The key-stone buried a joint of walrus-beef, and instantly Peetoot and the baby lay sprawling on the top of it. But this was not all. The roof, unable to support its own weight, cracked and fell in with a dire crash. The men, women, and children struggled to disentomb themselves, and in doing so mixed up the oil of the lamps, the soup of their kettles, the black soot of the walls and roof, the dogs that had sneaked in, the junks of cooked, half-cooked, and raw blubber, and their own hairy-coated persons, into a, conglomerate so atrocious to behold, or even think upon, that we are constrained to draw a curtain over the scene and spare the reader's feelings. This event caused the Esqui- maux to forsake the igloes, and pitch their skin tentg UNOAVA 807 a bois- jarried it have it illy sent the loan [welt waa :y feet in hundred and from s lengths, Iwelhngs. cely man- .ch altered winter of ad turned what lazy, over this 1 faced the id smiling the dome- 3 result of uched the )inner was le below at ralrus-beef, ling on the , unable to with a dire iruggled to 1 up the oil aok soot of ^ed in, the lubber, and omerate so Ihat we are and spare Ithe Esqui- skin tentg on a spot a little to the southward of their wintcrinj]; ground, which, being more exposed to the sim's rays, was now free from snow. They had not been encamped here more than three days when an event occurred which threw the camp into deep grief for a time. This was the loss of their great hunter, Annatock, the husband of Kaga. One of those tremendous north-west gales, which now and then visit the arctic seas and land with such devastating fury, had Bet in while Annatock was out on the ice-floe in search of seals. Many of his comrades had started with him that day, but, being a bold man, he had pushed beyond them all. When the gale came on the Esquimau hunters prepared to return home as fast as possible, fearing that the decaying ice might break up and drift away with them out to sea. Before starting they were alarmed to find that the seav/ard ice was actually in motion. It was on this ice tliat Annatock was em- ployed ; and his countrymen would fain have gone to warn him of his danger, but a gap of thirty feet already separated the floe from the main ice, and although they could perceive their friend in the far distance, busily employed on the ice, they could not make their voices heard. As the gale increased the floe drifted faster out to sea, and Annatock was observed running anxiously towards the land ; but before he reached the edge of the ice-raft on which he stood, the increasing distance and the drifting cloud of snow hid him from view. Then his companions, fearful for their own safety, hastened back to camp with the sad news. At first Kaga seemed quite inconsolable, and Edith exerted herself as a comforter without success ; but as time wore on the poor woman's grief abated, and hope began to revive within her bosom. She recollected that the event which had befallen her husband had befallen some of her friends before in exactly similar circum- stances, and that, although on many occasions the result had been fatal, there were not a few instances in which the lost ones had been driven on their ice-raft to m 'i ■fi .A. i .1 ':^ cm \\ li s ■ Tm 808 UNOAVA m i; distant parts of the shore, and after months, sometimes years of hardship and suifering, had returned to their families and homes. Still this hope was at best a poor one. For the few instances there were of return from such dangers, there were dozens in which the poor Esquimaux were never heard of more ; and the heart of the woman sank within her as she thought of the terrible night on which her husband was lost, and the great, stormy, ice-laden sea, over whose surging bosom be was drifted. But the complex machinery of this world is set in motion and guided by One whose power and wisdom infinitely transcend those of the most exalted of His creatures; and it is a truth well worthy of being reiterated and re-impressed upon our memoncjs, that in His hands those events that seem most adverse to man often turn out to be for his good. I' Dctimes to their the few dangers, ,ux were lan sank light on stormy, 3 drifted, is set in i wisdom d of His of being nes, that dverse to CHAI^TEB XXXII EDITH WAXES MELANCHOLY, BUT HER SADNESS IS SUDDENLY TURNED INTO JOY; AND THE ESQUIMAUX RECEIVE A SURPRISE, AND FIND A FRIEND, AND LOSE ONE The sea ! How many stout hearts thrill and manly bosoms swell at the sound of that little word, or, rather, at the thought of all that it conveys ! How many there are that reverence and love thy power and beauty, thy freedom and majesty, sea ! Wherein consists the potent charm that draws mankind towards thee with such irresistible affection? Is it in the calm tranquillity of thy waters, when thou liest like a sheet of crystal, with a bright refulgent sky reflected in thy soft bosom, and the white ships resting there as if in empty space, and the glad sea-mews rippling thy surface for a brief moment and then sailing from the blue below to the deeper blue above, and the soft song of thy wavelets as they glide upon the shingly shore or lip among the caves and hollows of the rocks ? Or is it in the loud roar of thy billows, as they dash and fume and lash in fury on the coasts that dare to curb thy might? — that might which, commencing, mayhap, in the torrid zone of the south, has rolled and leaped in majesty across the waste of waters, tossed leviathans, as playthings, in its strength, rushed impetuously over half the globe, and burst at last in helplessness upon a bed of sand ! Or does the charm lie in the yet fiercer strife of the 809 |:;l I 810 UNOAVA ',( i;!|-,- ^fU': II ;|| :.3 111! «5 illiji tempest and the luirricano, when the elements, let loose, sweep round the shrinkinof world in fury ; or in the ever-changing aspect of thy countenance, now bright and fair, now ruftled with the rising breeze, or darkened by the thunder-cloud that bodes the coming storm ? All, yes ! mcthinks not one but all of these combined do constitute the charm which draws mankind to thee, bright ocean, and fills his soul with sympathy and love. For in the changeful aspects of thy visage there are talismans which touch the varied chords that vibrate in the hearts of men. Perchance, in the bold whistle of thy winds, and the mad rolling of thy waves, an emblem of freedom is recognised by crushed and chafing spirits longing to be free. They cannot wall thee roimd. They cannot map thee into acres and hedge thee in, and leave us naught but narrow roads between. No ploughshare cleaves thee save the passing keel ; no prince or monarch owns thy haughty waves. In thy hidden caverns are treasures surpassing those of earth ; and those who dwell on thee in ships behold the wonders of the mighty deep. We bow in adoration to thy great Creator ; and we bow to thee in love and reverence and sympathy, sea ! Edith sat on the sea-shore. The glassy waves were no longer encumbered with ice, but shone like burnished gold in the light of the sanimer sun. Here and there, however, a large iceberg lloated on the deep — a souvenir of winter past, a guarantee of winter j^et to come. At the base of these blue islands the sea, calm though it was, broke in a continual roar of surf, and round their pinnacles the circling sea-birds sailed. The yellow sands on which the child sat, the green willows that fringed the background of brown rocks, and the warm sun, contrasted powerfully with the vestiges of winter on the sea, while a bright parhelia in the sky enriched and strengthened these characteristics of an arctic summer. There was busy life and commotion in the Esquimau enta, let :y ; or in ice, now »reeze, or e coming combined a to thee, and love, there are [it vibrate Id whistle svaves, an shed and Lnnot wall acres and :row roads he passing tity waves, sing those ips behold adoration love and vaves were burnished and there, -a souvenir come. At I though it oimd their ^he yellow Hows that the warm of winter y enriched an arctic Esquimau VNOAVA 811 camp, from which Edith had rctirod to some distance to indulge in solitude the sad reveries of home, which weighed more heavily on her mind as the time flew by and the hope of speedy delivery began to fade. " O my own dear mother ! " sighed the child aloud, whi" J a tear trickled down each cheek, " shall I never see you more? My heart is heavy with wishing, always wishing. But no one comes. I never see a boat or a ship on that wide, wide sea. Oh, when, when will it come ? " She paused, and, as she had often done before, laid her face on her hands and wept. But Edith soon recovered. These bursts of grief never lasted long, for the child was strong in hope. She never doubted that deliverance would come at last ; and she never failed to supplicate at the throne of mercy, to which her mother had early taught her to fly in every time of trouble and distress. Soon her attention was attracted from the sea, over whose wide expanse she had been gazing wistfully, by the loud voices of the Esquimaux, as a number of them prepared to embark in their kayaks. Several small whales had been descried, and the natives, ever on the alert, were about to attack them. Presently Edith observed Peetoot running along the beach towards her with a seal-spear or harpoon in his hand. This youth was a remarkably intelligent fellow, and had picked up a few words and sentences of English, of which ho made the most. "Eeduck! Eeduck ! " he cried, pointing to one of the oomiaks which the women were launching, ** you go — kill whale — funny ; yes, Eeduck." " I don't think it will be very funny,'* said Edith, laughing ; " but I'll go to please you, Peetoot." "Goot, Eeduck; you is goot," shouted the boy, while he flourished his harpoon, and seizing his com- panion by the hand, dragged her in the direction of the kayaks. In a few minutes Edith was ensconced in the centre r t ii ^•1 1 ! mi'. -I m !■:■ I .A) ir ?i!t' 1 ; \'i iM sn VNQAVA m I ijii M li'^ fffS Is-:! iv.! 1:^ ■'li; ''lit l:|iilV:i of the oomiak amid a pack of noisy Esquimau women, whose tongues wore loosed and spirits raised by the hope of a successful hunt. They went merely for the purpose of witnessing the sport, which was to be pro- secuted by twelve or thirteen men, each in his arrow- like kayak. The women sat round their clumsy boat with their faces to the bow, each wielding a short, broad paddle, with which they propelled their craft at good speed over the glassy wave ; but a few alternate dips of the long double-bladcd paddles of the kayaks quickly sent the men far ahead of them. In the stern of the oomiak sat an old gray-headed man, who filled the office of steersman ; a duty which usually devolves upon old men after they become unfit to manage the kayak. Indeed, it requires much vigour as well as practice to paddle the kayak, for it is so easily upset that a man could not sit in it for a minute without the long paddle, in the clever use of which lies the security of the Esquimau. When the flotilla had paddled out a short distance a whale rose, and lay as if basking on the surface of the water. Instantly the men in the kayak shot towards it, while the oomiak followed as fast as possible. On drawing near, the first Esquimau prepared his harpoon. To the barb of this weapon a stout line, from eight to twelve fathoms long, was attached, having a dan, or float, made of a sealskin at the other end of it. The dan was large enough to hold fifteen gallons or more. Having paddled close to the whale, the Esquimau fixed the harpoon deep in its side, and threw the dan overboard. The whale dived in an agony, carrying the dan down along with it, and the Esquimau, picking up the liberated handle of the harpoon as he passed, paddled in the direction he supposed the whale must have tai.en. In a short time the dan re-appeared at no great distance. The kayaks, as if shot from a bow, darted towards the spot, and before the huge fish could dive a second time, it received two more harpoons and several deep stabs from the lances of the Esquimaux. UNGAVA 813 women, by the T for the I be pro- s arrow- Qsy boat a short, craft at ilternate e kayaks ,he stern 7ho filled devolves ,nage the well as 3ily npset ihout the 3 security Ustance a ce of the towards ble. On larpoon. eight to dan, or it. The r more. iisquimau the dan rying the icking up J passed, ale must ,red at no a bow, sh could oons and uimaux. 11 Again it dived, carrying two additional dans down with it. But the dragging tendency of these three large floats, combined with the deep wounds it had received, brought the fish sooner than before to the surface, where it was instantly met and assailed by its relentless pur- suers, who, in the course of little more than an hour, killed it, and dragged it in triumph to the shore. The natives were still occupied in towing the captured fish, when one of the men uttered a wild shout, and pointed eagerly out to sea. At first Edith imagined that they must have scon another whale in the distance ; but this opinion was quickly altered when she observed the 3ager haste with which they paddled towards the land, and the looks of surprise with which, ever and anon, they regarded the object on the horizon. This object seemed a mere speck to Edith's unaccustomed eyes ; but as she gazed long and earnestly at it, a thought flashed across her mind. She sprang up ; her sparkling eyes seemed as though they would burst from their sockets in her eager desire to make out this object of so great interest. At this moment the oomiak touched the land. With a bound like a gazelle Edith sprang on shore and ran panting with excitement to the top of a rocky eminence. Here she again directed her earnest gaze out to sea, while her colour went and came as she pressed her hands upon her breast in an agony of hope. Slowly but surely the speck came on ; the wind shifted a point, which caused a gleam of sunlight to fall upon a sail. It was a boat ! there could be no doubt of it — and making directly for the island I Unable to contain herself, Edith, uttering a piercing cry, sank upon the ground and burst into a passionate flood of tears. It was the irresistible impulse of hope long deferred at length realised ; for the child did not entertain a doubt that this was at length the answer to her prayers. Meanwhile the Esquimaux ran about in a state of extraordinary excitement. These people had very probably heard of the ships which once a year pass m B f si' ■V' I h' ii K* I' f I i|i. frill |,i ;^;| III i,|! w GMl ylli- Nilil iif- n:i 'ii' I ill 814 CrjiTGilFil through Hudson's Straits on their way to the depots on the shores of Hudson's Bay ; but they had never met with them, or seen a Kublunat (white face) before that great day in their annals of discovery when they found httle Edith fainting in the snow. Their sharp eyes had at once detected that the approaching boat was utterly different from their own kayaks or oomiaks. And truly it was ; for as she drew near with her white sails bending before the evening breeze that had recently sprung up, and the Union Jack flpng from her peak, and the foam curling before her sharp prow, she seemed a very model of grace and symmetry. There were only three figures in the boat, one of whom, by the violent gesticulations that he made as they approached, bespoke himself an Esquimau; the Qther two stood erect and motionless, the one by the tiller, the other by the sheet. "Let go," said a deep soft voice, when the boat was within a stone's-cast of the shore. The sheet flapped in the wind as the peak fell, and in another instant the keel grated on the sand. For one moment a feeling of intense disappointment filled Edith's heart as she sought in vain for the face of her father or Frank ; then with a cry of joy she sprang forward and flung herself into the arms of her old enemy, Gaspard ! " Thank God ! " said Dick Prince, with a tremulous voice, as he leaped lightly from the boat and clasped the child in his arms; '* thank God we have found you. Miss Edith ! This will put new life into your poor mother's heart." "Oh! how is she? Whv did she not come with you? " sobbed Edith ; while Dick Prince, seating him- self on a rock, drew her on his knee and stroked her fair head as she wept upon his shoulder. Meanwhile Annatock was being nearly devoured by his wife and child and countrymen, as they crowded round him to obtain information, and to heap upon him congratulations; and Gaspard, in order to restrain, UNGAVA S15 he depots bad never bce) before vhen they heir sharp ;hing boat >r oomiaks. her white that had lying from larp prow, letry. oat, one of le made as Liimau; the one by the he boat was ak fell, and .nd. appointment |r the face of she sprang of her old a tremulous land clasped found you, your poor come with seating him- stroked her levoured by ley crowded heap upon to restrain, and at the same time relieve his feelings, essayed to drag the boat out of the water, in which attempt, giant though he was, being single-handed, he utterly failed. After the first eager questions were answered on both sides, the natives were informed by their comrade of the nature and objects of the establishment at Ungava, and they exhibited the most extravagant signs of joy on hearing the news. "When their excite- ment was calmed down a little, they conducted the party to their principal tent, and set before them the choicest viands they possessed, talking vehemently all the while, and indulging in a few antics occasionally, expressive of uncontrollable delight. "Ye see. Miss Edith," began Prince, when he and Gaspard were seated before a round of walrus-beef, "the way we came to know your whereabouts was this : Gaspard and me was sent down to the coast to hunt seals, for we were getting short o' blubber, and did not like to be obleeged to give deers-meat to the dogs. Your father gave us the boat; *for,' says he, * Prince, it'll take ye down faster than the canoe with this wind ; and if ye see any o' the natives, be sure ye don't forget to ask about /icr, Prince.* Y^'e see, Miss Edith, ever since ye w^as lost we never liked to mention your name, although we often spoke of you, for we felt that we might be speakin* o' the dead. Hows'ever, away we went for the shores o' the bay, and coasted along to the westward a bit. Then we landed at a place where there was a good lot o' field-ice floatin*, w^ith seals lyin' on it, and we began to catch them. One day, when we was ^oin* down to the ice as usual, we saw a black object sittin' on a floe that had drifted in the night before with a stiff breeze. " * That's a queer-lookin* seal,' says Gaspard. " * So 'tis,' said I. * If there was ever black bears up hereabouts, I should say it was one o' them.* " * Put a ball in yer gun,' says Gaspard ; for ye see, as we had been blazin' at small birds the day before, M- *■ 'V ill: Si ill . 1 I H 'i. Ill;;' !v my: ill is 11 :y!; ^ It !i'': \m m !s k >ti:|;i i 816 UNQAVA there was nothing hut shot in it. So I put in a ball, and took aim at the beast, intendin* to give it a long shot. But I was marcifully prevented from firin*. Jist as I squinted along the barrel, the beast rose straight up, and held up both its fore-paws. * Stop ! * roars Gaspard in an awful fright ; and sure enough I lowered my gun, and ihe beast hailed us in the voice of a man, and began to walk to the shore. He seemed quite worn out when he landed, and I could under- stand enough of his jargon to make out that he had been blown out to sea on the floe, and that his name was Annatock. ** While we were talkin* to the Esquimau, Gaspard cries out, * I say, Prince, look here ! There's a sort o' medal on this chap's neck with somethin' written on it. You're a larned fellow, Prince, see if ye can make it out.* So I looked at it, and rubbed my eyes once or twice, I can tell you, for, sure enough, there was EDITH as plain as the nose on my face." " Oh," exclaimed Edith, smiling through her tears, " that was the medal I hung round his neck long, long ago! I hoped that it might be seen some day by people who knew me." ** I thought so, miss," returned Prince — " I thought as much, for I knew that the Esquimau could never have invented and writ that out of his own head, ye see. But Gaspard and me had most awful trouble to get him to explain how he came by it, and where he came from. Hows'ever, we made out at last that he came from an island in this direction, so we just made up our minds to take the boat and come straight away for the island, which we did, takin' Annatock to pilot us." " Then does my father not know where you are, or anything about your having heard of me?" inquired Edith, in surprise. " Why, no. Miss Edith," replied Prince. " You see, it would have lost us two or three days to have gone back to Fort Chimo; and, after all, we thought it UNGAVA 317 in a ball, it a long )ni firin'. east rose * Stop ! ' enough I le voice of [e seemed lid under- at he had his name 1, Gaspard 's a sort o' ?vritten on 1 can make (Tes once or there "waa it her tears, long, long le day by I thought pould never m head, ye trouble to where he bst that he just made [aight away |ck to pilot you are, or '* inquired ** You see, have gone [thought it might turn out a false scent, and only raise your poor mother's hopes for nothin*. Besides, we were pent away for a week or two, so we knew they wouldn't wonder at our al)sence ; so we thought, upon the whole, it would be best to come at once, 'specially since it was sich a sliort distance." " A short distance ! " repeated Edith, starting up. ** I thought we must bo miles and miles, oh, ever so far away ! Is the distance really short ? " " Ay, that it is, little one," said Prince, pattin;^ the child on the head. " It is not more than three days' rowing from this island, and a stiff breeze on the quarter would carry us there in less than two." " And Frank, where is Frank ? " said Edith, with a look of eager inquiry. " Ah, miss," rephed Prince, *' he has been away almost as long as yourself. Soon after you were lost a packet came from the south, and he was oblecged to give up the sarch after you — though he was loath to do it — and set out with three o' the men for Moose. From that day to this we've heerd nothin* of him. But the journey he had to make was a long one — havin* to go round all the way to York Fort — so we didn't expect to hear o' him afore now. But I'll tell ye more about all j^our old friends when we git things ready for a start to-morrow." The remainder of that day was spent in making pre- parations for setting sail on the following morning. The first intimation of the existence of the new trading-fort had thrown the child-like natives into rapturous delight ; but when Prince told them he intended to go off the next day with the child who had been as a bright spirit in their camp so long, they fell into the depths of grief. Indeed, there was manifested a slight desire to offer forcible opposition to this ; but when Edith told them, through the medium of Peetoot, who acted as her interpreter, that the distance to her father's fort was not great, and that she would expect them to come often there, and stay long, they became P 1 f| ■:m 818 UNGAVA SvMI; If ■v. .,1 m .1 reconciled to her departure ; and when she sought to turn their minds (a work of no great difficulty at any time) away from that subject by describing to them the treasures of the trading-store, they danced and laughed and sang like very children. Even Kama's baby crowed with a racy richness of feeling, and smiled with an oily brilliancy of expression, compared to which all its former exhibitions were mere child's play. But when the hour of departure really came, and Edith bade farewell to her kind friends, whose rude but warm hospitaUty she had enjoyed so long, they were again plunged into the deepent distress ; and when the little boat finally put to sea, there was not a tearless eye among the tribe, while Edith was swiftiy borne from their island shore before a strong and favouring breeze. : I: il;^ I'' m .'I icught to by at any to them need and n Kaga's nd smiled ipared to ild's play, jame, and e rude but they were L when the a tearless itiy borne , favouring CIIAPTEE XXXIII THE CLOUDS ARE BROKEN, THE SUN BURSTS THROUGH AND ONCE MORE IRRADIATES FORT CHIMO — HOPES AND FEARS FOR MAXIMU3 The wings of time moved slowly and heavily along at Fort Chimo. Hope long deferred, expectation fre- quently reviving and so often disappointed, crushed the spirits of the little party. The song, and jest, and laugh seldom sounded from the houses of the me. i, who went through their dailv avocations almost ir oiJence. Not only had the loss of Edith — the bright spirit of the place, the tender rosebud in that savage wilderness — cast an overwhelming gloom upon the fort, but the failure of the trade, to a great extent, had added to the general depression, and now fresh anxiety was begin- ning to be felt at the non-appearance of Frank Morton. " Jessie," said Stanley one day, as he rose from the desk at which he had been writing, and put on his cap with the intention of taking a stroll along the beach, " will you come with me to-day ? I know not how it is, but every time I go out now I expect to hear the ship's gun as it comes through the. "larrows." Mrs. Stanley rose, and throwing ou a shawl and hood, accompanied her husband in silence. "Perhaps," she said at length, " you expect to hear the gun because the vessel ought to be here by this time." B19 I 1^1.:'' H« '1 il % !1 if S20 UNGAVA I 1 I 1- W €^ tf: As she spoko, La Eoche came up and touched his cap. Please, madame, vat you vill have pour dinner? " " Whatever you please, La Eochc. Ecpeat yester- day's," answered Mrs. Stanley, with the air of one who did not wish to be troubled further on the subject. But La Eoche was not to be so easily put down. "Ah, madame! pardonncz moi. Dat is impossible. Vo have fresh fish yesterday, dere be no fresh fish to-day. More de pity. C'est damage — dat Ga^;pard him gone away — " La Eoche was intcrruplod by a sudden cxclaraout the Lpon the 2re little she-bear jre quite r to the 13 a sure ^te to the ' that the 1 regions, to fish in lumerous ould find ne I had lucted by immence- le flatness • we went id to the )led, over until we plish the far, and :avel, and was well End geese [usands of the midst gulf I ras one of reaching it we were much struck with a curious barrier of ice that was jammed across it. On examination I saw that the ice had given way some time before we arrived there, and an enormous cake, of many yards surface and fully six feet thick, had, while being hurled along by the swelling water, caught upon the rugged rocks and been tilted upon end. Thus it formed a temporary barrier, against which other masses were forced until the outlet was completely checked, and the water be^an to rise with great rapidity. As we stood on the high cliff, looking down on the wild ravine in which this was going on, I heard a loud crack. In another instant the obstructing barrier burst like a thunder-clap, and the pent-up waters leaped with one mighty roar into their accustomed channel! The devastation created was inconceivably grand. Bocks of many tons weight were torn up, cast like playthings on the rushing ice, and hurled on the cliffs below, I other Indians in the bush whose weapons were levelled at the breast of Maxinius, and the next moment would have been his last but for a stone thrown from the cliiTs above, which struck him on the forehead, and stretched him bleeding and insensible upon the ground. When Maximus recovered from the effects of the blow, he found himself lying on the cold earth in total darkness, and firmly bound hand and foot. It is impossible to describe tbc agony of that bold spirit as he lay writhing on the ground, in the vain effort to burst the cords that bound him. lie thought of Ancctkaand his own utter helplessness, while she was, no doubt, in urgent need of his strong arm to deliver her. The thought maddened him, and again he strove in vain to burst his fetters, and yelled aloud in despair. The echoing rocks gave back his cry, and then all was silence. The dreadful thought now flashed across him that the Indians had buried him alive in some dark cavern, and brave though he v/as, he trembled in every limb with agony. Thus Maximus lay until the gray dawn shone in upon him, and showed that he was in a cave. Scarcely had he noted this fact when the figure of a man darkened the cave's mouth and approached him. As the Indian bent over his helpless foe he revealed the savage features of Meestagoosh. For an instant he cast a look of mingled hatred and triumph on his enemy ; then drawing a scalping-knife from his girdle, ho stooped and cut the thong that bound his feet, at the same time signing to him to rise, for he knew that Maximus did not understand Indian. The Esquimau obeyed, and was led by the Indian through the woods towards the cliff where the struggle of the previous night had taken place. Ilere they came suddenly into view of the Indian camp. There were no tents: several ^een blankets that lay on the moss under the trees indicated where the party had lain during the night ; and at a considerable distance apart from these sat Old Moggy, with her face UNOAVA 848 buried in her skinny hands. Beside her stood Aneetka, with a calm but slightly anxious expression on her ?ale countenance. Chimo was held in a leash by an ndian. From the fa^^.t of the Indians being without tents or women, ani iiaving their faces daubed with red paint, besides being armed with knives, guns, and tomahawks, Maximus concluded that they composed a war party. On seeing her husband, Aneetka uttered a suppressed cry and bounded towards him ; but ere she had pro- ceeded two paces an Indian laid his hand on her arm, and led her back to where the old woman sat. Mecstagoosh led Maximus to the same spot, and having confronted him with his wife, he said to the latter, — ** Now, she-bear of the north, translate between us. If I think you tell lies, the dogs shall have your bones to pick." Aneetka replied meekly, " You cannot hurt one hair of our heads unless the Great Spirit permits you." " We shall sec," retorted the Indian with a scornful laugh. " Tell the polar bear," continued Meestagoosh in a contemptuous tone, " that I did not expect to catch him so soon. I have been fortunate. It was kind of him to come in my way, and to bring his she-bear with him. Tell him that I and my braves are going to pay a visit to his nation, to take a few scalps. I let him know this piece of good news because he will never know it from his friends, as he shall be food for dogs very soon." On this being translated, the face of Maximus assumed an expression of deep gravity mingled with sadness. His mind flew to the far north, and he thought of the midnight assault and the death-cry of women and children. The nature of the Esquimau was too noble and generous to be easily ruffled by the contemptuous tone of such a n.an as Meestagoosh; but his heart sank within him when he thought of the ii ■i ' r -'fi:; I ■I • i :|S.i 11 '1*'^ tj 844 VNOAVA ^i ■^■r !■: ^a.i' I' > i s. 'i 1 ,-, iJiWIf power as well as the will that the Indian had to put his threat in execution. ** Tell him," said Maximus quietly, ** that I have no wish to talk with him, but remind him that Indians are not gods, they are men." *' Yes, he says truly," retorted Meestagoosh, " the Indians are men, but Esquimaux are dogs." While this conversation was goin;]f on, and the Indians were intent upon the scene. Old Moggy, who was not deemed worthy of being noticed, contrived unobserved to possess herself of a knife, and springing suddenly towards Maximus with an agility of which she seemed utterly incapable, she endeavoured to cut the thongs that bound his arms. Iler hand was caught, however, by Meestagoosh, in time to frustrate her intention. Without deigning a word of remark, the Indian struck her a heavy blow on the cheek with the back of his open hand, which nearly stunned her. Staggering backward, she fell upon the ground with a low wail. The bosom of Maximus felt as if it would burst with rage. Before any one could prevent him, he raised his foot and struck Meestagoosh so violently on the chest that he fell as if he had been shot. In a moment he recovered, drew his knife, and springing like an infuriated tiger at his enemy, drove it with deadly force at his throat. Fortunately the arms of Maximus were tied in front of him, so that by raising them he was enabled to guard his chest and receive the stab on his wrist. The knife passed quite through the fleshy part of his left arm, but in doing so it severed one of the cords that bound him. Thought is not quicker than the mighty wrench with which the Esquimau burst the remaining cord and dashed his opponent to the ground. Before the astonished Indians could level their guns, Maximus had seized Aneetka in his arms and was bounding madly towards the cliff, which was not more than fifty yards distant. Every ^un poured forth its deadly contents before he gained it ; but his Kf UNOAVA 846 I to put have no Indians ih, "the and the Tgy, who contrived springing of which 3d to cut and was frustrate E remark, leek with nned her. nd with a •urst with [raised his ithe chest ment he Hke an ,h deadly JMaximus them he |e stab on ,he fleshy d one of quicker squimau lonent to •uld level is arms Ihich was poured but his very nearness to the Indians seemed to contribute to his safety, and the suddenness of his flight rendered their hasty aim uncertain. In another moment he was round the point and behind the sheltering cliff, while the Indians uttered a terrific yell and darted forward in pursuit. Just about thirty paces beyond the point of the cliff that hid him for a few moments from view was the cave in which Maximus had spent the night. Quick as thought he sprang up the steep short ascent that led to its narrow entrance and darted in. Scarcely had he placed Aneetka behind a projection that formed an ample shelter at the mouth of the cave, when Chimo, who had broken from his captors, also darted in and crouched at his master's feet. Mean- while the Indians came sweeping round the point, and seeing by the entrance of the dog where the fugitives had taken shelter, they bounded up the ascent. The first who reached the cave's mouth rashly passed the entrance. Ere he could fire his piece he received a blow from the fist of the Esquimau that fractured his skull, hurled him down the steep ascent, and dashed him against his comrades in the rear. This sudden repulse effectually checked the Indians, who are notoriously bad at storming. Indeed they would never have ventured to enter the cave in this manner had they not known that Maximus was totally unarmed. Withdrawing to a distance of about forty yards, the Indians now formed in a Hne, and loading their guns, fired volley after volley into the cave's mouth. But Maximus and his wife crouched with the dog behind the ledge of rock at the entrance, and remained there in perfect safety. In a few minutes the Indians ceased firing, and one of their number cautiously approached the cave, supposing, no doubt, that the fusillade must have wounded if it had not killed those within; but the instant he passed the entrance, knife in hand, he was caught in the powerful arms of Maximus and hurled down the slope. A yell of indignation from the Indians followed this !<' di9 VNOAVA ni \i ■ ^ ,| •J ■jV/ ■' u: :> H-n' feat, and another volloy was fiicd into the cave, but without effect; and tho sava;:jcs, scein.!^ that it was impossible in this way to dislodge their I'oe, assembled in a grouj) to consult. Mijanwhile Old ]\ro^rrf:y liad made good use of tho opportunity thus affonlod her to cftcct her escape. Bhe darted into the hush(\s and matlo for the rocky ground in tho rear of the camp. In doing so sho happened to pass the tree a.qainst which leaned tho two guns belonging to her friends. They had escap^^l notice during the mclce of tlie previous day, and, ^^ith the shot-belts and powder-horns, remained where they had been placed when she and her companions landed. The old woman eagerly seized these, and clambered with them over tho rocks at a rate that would have done credit to more 3'outhful limbs. On reaching a ridge of rock that over-looked the cave where Maximus was sheltered, Old Moggy became aware of how matters stood. She could also s(^e, from her elevated position, that a track, or the bed of a dried-up watercourse, led through the bushes towards the cave. Without a moment's delay she descended it ; but, on drawing near to the cave, she found that there was a barren spot of about thirty yards in extent ])etween the place of refuge and the edge of the bushes. This open space was completely exposed to the view of the natives, who at that time were firing across it into the cavern ; for, after their consultation, they had changed their position and renewed the fusillade. IMoggy was now in despair. She knew that it would be impossible to pass the open ground without being shot, and she also felt certain that, when the Indians found their present attempts were fruitless, they would resort to others, in prosecuting which they would in all probability discover her. While she meditated thus, she looked earnestly towards the cave, and observed the astonished gaze of Maximus fixed upon her; for, from his position behind the ledge of rock, he could see the old woman without exposing himself to the Indians. While they cave, but lat it was assembled isG o£ tbo cr escape, the rocky ncj so sbo ed the two id csca}vnl , and, with where tbey ons landed, clambered iN'Ould have reaching a re Maximus low matters cd position, rcoiirse, led Without a in drawing as a barren n the place open space ,he natives, the cavern ; anged their igy was now apossible to .nd she also Ihoir present to others, in probability she looked e astonished his position old woman While they ill: " She turned, and shook aloft the two guns." « ;^oint below ; after which they were to assemble in the yard, for the double purpose of palavering and receiving a present of tobacco. That night was spent by the inhabitants of Fort Chimo in rejoicing. In her own littl(3 room Edith entertained a select tea-party, composed of Arnalooa, Okatoolc, Peetoot, Chimo, and the baby; and really it would be difficult to say which of them made most noise or which behaved most obstreperously. Upon mature consideration we think that Chimo behaved best; but that, all things considered, is not saying much for him. We rather think the baby behaved worst. Its oily visage shone again like a lustrous blob of fat, and its dimples ghded about the surface in an endless game of hide-and-seek. As for Peetoot, he laughed and yelled until the tears ran over his cheeks, and more than once, in the excess of his glee, he rubbed noses with Chimo — a piece of familiarity which that Bagacious animal w*as at length iml viced to resent and ■ I UNQAVA 859 put a stop to by a gentle and partial display of two tremendous rows of white ivory. In the hall Stanley held a levee that lasted the greater part of the evening ; and in the men's house a ball was got up in honour of the giant's return with his long-lost Aneetka. Ah, reader ; although the countenances of the men assembled there were sun-burnt and rough, and their garments weather-worn and coarse, and their language and tones unpolished, think not that their hearts were less tender or sympathetic than the hearts of those who are nurtured in softer scenes than the wilds of Ungava. Their laugh was loud and uproarious, it is true, but there was genuine, hcart-fclt reality in it. Their sym- pathy was boisterously expressed, mayhap, if expressed at all, but it was truly and deeply felt, and many an unbidden tear glanced from the bronzed cheeks of these stalwart men of the north, as they shook their gigantic comrade by the hand and wished him joy, and kissed his blooming bride. Aneetka had long since laid aside her native garb, and wore the more graceful and womanly costume of the Indian women, and Maximus wore the capote and leggings of the voyageur. But there were not wanting gentlemen from the camp at the point wlio?e hairy garments and hoods, long hair and beards, did honour to the race of the Esquimaux ; and there were present ladies from the some place, each of whom could a tail unfold that would have been the admiration and envy of tadpoles, had any such creatures been there to see them. They wore boots too, to which, in width at least, those worn by lishermen are nothing. Some of them carried babies in their hoods — little naked imps — whose bodies and heads were dumplings (suet dumplings, we may add, fur the iufonnation of the curious), and whose arms and legs were sausages. Bryan was great that night — he was majestic ! The fiddle all but spoke, and produced a sensation of dancing in the toes of even those who happened to be seated. ;* M 860 UNGAVA Bryan was ^reat as a linguist, too, and exhibited hia powers in this respect with singular felicity in the vocal entertainment that followed the dancing. The Esquimau language seemed a mere trifle to him, and he conversed, while playing the violin, with several **purty cra3rtures'* in their native tongue, with an amount of volubility quite surprising. Certainly it cannot be said those whom he addressed expressed much intelligence; but Esquimaux are not usually found to be quick in their perceptions. Perchance Bryan was metaphysical ! Mirth, hearty, real mirth reigned at the fort, not only that day, but for many a day afterwards ; for the dangers, and troubles, and anxieties of the first year were past. Hope in the future was strong, despite the partial failures that had been experienced ; and through the goodness of God, all those who composed the original band of the " forlorn-hope " were re-united, after many weary months of travel, danger, and anxiety, during part of which a dark and dreary cloud (now happily dispelled) had settled down on Fort Chimo. Years have rolled away since the song and shout of the fur-trader first awakened the echoes of Ungava. Its general aspect is still the same, for there is no change in the everlasting hills. In summer the deer still wander down the dark ravines and lave their flanks in the river's swelling tide, and in winter the frost- smoke still darkens the air and broods above the open water of the sea ; but Fort Chimo, the joy and wonder of the Esquimaux and the hope of the fur-trader, is gone, and a green patch of herbage near the flat rock beside the spring alone remains to mark the spot wh^re once it stood. In the course of time the changes that took place in the arrangements of the Fur Company required the presence of Stanley at another station, and he left Ungava with his wife and child. The gentleman who Bucceeded him was a bold, enterprising Scottish High- ifft^ UNOAVA 861 ted his le vocal quimau iversed, ytures" ty quite horn he [uimaux eptions. ort, not for the rst year spite the through )sed the 3-united, jer, and i dreary lown on shout of Ungava. re is no the deer ir flanks lie frost- ,he open wonder ader, is at rock t)t whore [place in ired the he left lan who High- lander, whose experience in the fur trade and energy of character were a sufficient guarantee that the best and the utmost would be done for the interests of the Company in that quarter. But however resolute a man may be, he cannot make furs of hard rocks, nor convert a scene of desolation into a source of wealth. Vigorously he wrought and long he suffered, but at length he was compelled to advise the abandon- ment of the station. The Governor of the Company — a man of extraordinary energy and success in deve- lo^'ng the resources of the sterile domains over whit m h idled — was fain to admit at last that the trade of l ^ ngava would not pay. The order to retreat was as prompt and decisive as the command to advance. A vessel was sent out to remove the goods, and in a brief space of time Fort Chimo was dismantled and deserted. The Esquimaux and Indians soon tore down and appropriated to their own use the frames of the buildings, and such of the materials of the fort as had been left standing; and the few remnants that were deemed worthless were finally swept away and every trace of them obliterated by the howling storms that rage almost continually around these desolate moun- tains. And now, reader, it remains for me to dismiss the characters who have played their part in this brief tale. Of most of them, however, I have but little to say, for they are still alive, scattered far and wide throughout the vast wilderness of Rupert's Land, each acting his busy part in a new scene ; for it is frequently the fate of those who enter this wild and stirring service to be associated for a brief season under one roof, and then broken up and scattered over the land, never again to be re-united. George Stanley, after a long sojourn in the backwoods, retired from the service, and, with his family, proceeded to Canada, where he purchased a small farm. Here Edith waxed strong and beautiful, and committed m 862 UNQAVA im '■H appallinp; havoc amonp; the hearts of the young men for thirty mileg around her father's farm. But she favoured no one, and at the ago of seventeen acquired the name of being the coldest as well as the most beautiful and modest girl in the far west. There was a thin young man, with weak limbs and a tendency to fall into a desponding state of mind, who lived about throe m'les from Mr. Stanley's farm. This young man's feelings had been so often lacerated by hopes and fears in reference to the fair Edith, that he mounted his pony one evening in desperation and galloped away in hot haste to declare his passion, and realise or blast his hopes for ever. As he approached the villa, however, he experienced a sensation o£ emptiness about the region of the stomach, and regretted that he had not taken more food at dinner. Having passed the garden gate, he dismounted, fastened his pony to a tree, and struck across the shrubbery towards the house with trembling steps. As he proceeded, he received a terrific shock by observing the flutter of a scarf, which he knew intuitively belonged to Edith. The scarf disappeared within a bower which stood not more than twenty yards distant from him, close beside the avenue that led to the house. By taking two steps forward he could have seen Edith, as she sat in the bower gazing with a pensive look at the distant prospect of hill and dale, river and lake, in the midst of which she dwelt ; but the young man coald as easily have leaped over Stanley's villa, farm and all, as have taken these two steps. He essayed to do so ; but he was rooted to the ground as firmly as the noble trees under which he stood. At length, by a great effort, he managed to crawl — if we may so express it — to within a few yards of the bower, from which he was now concealed only by a few bushes; but just as he had screwed up his soul to the sticking point, and had shut his eyes pre- paratory to making a rush and flinging himself on his knees at Edith's feet, he was struck powerless by the UNOAVA 893 sound of A deep sij;h, and, a moment after, was all but annihilated by a cough ! Suddenly the sound of horse-hoofs was heard clatter- ing up the avenue. On came the rider, as if in urgent haste. In a few seconds a curve in the avenue brought him into view. He was a man of handsome and massive proportions, and bestrode a black charger that might have carried a heavy dragoon like a feather. A wheel- barrow had been left across the track, over which the steed went with an easy yet heavy bound, betokening well-balanced strength and weight ; and a bright smile lighted up the rider's bronzed face for an instant, as his straw-hat blew off in the leap and permitted his curling hair to stream out in the wind. As he passed the bower at a swinging gallop, an exclamation of surprise from Edith attracted his attention. The charger's hoofs spurned the gravel while he was reined up so violently that he was thrown on his haunches, and almost before the thin young man could wink in order to clear his vision, this slashing cavalier sprang to the ground and entered the bower. There was a faint scream, which was instantly followed by a sound so peculiar that it sent a thrill of dismay to the cavity in which the heart of the weak young man had once lodged. Stretching out his hand he turned aside the branches, and was brought to the climax of consternation by beholding Edith in the arms of the tall stranger ! Bewildered in the intellect, and effectually crippled about the knees and ankles, he could only gaze and listen. *' So you have come — at last ! " whispered Edith, while a brilliant blush overspread her fair cheek. " Edith ! " murmured the stalwart cavaHer, in a deep musical voice, " how my heart has yearned for this day ! How I have longed to hear your sweet and well-remembered voice ! In the desolate solitudes of the far north I have thought of you. Amid the silent glades of the forest, when alone and asleep on my mossy couch or upon my bed of snow, I have dreamed vS^ w ^ ^>. 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