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A TALE OF THE FAR NORTH. BT ROBERT MICHAEL BALLANTYNE, Esq., AUTIIOK or "anOSON's bat; or, EVEHYDAT UFE in TUE wilds of NOBTH AMEftlCA." «ti« lUit^ CUustrattons bs tlje ^ut[)or. T. NELSON AND SONS, LONDON; EDINBURGH; AND NEW YORK. MDCCCLXI. PREFACE. In writing this book my desire has been to draw Jin exact copy of the picture which is indelibly stamped on my own memory. I have carefully avoided exaggeration in everything of importance. All the chief, and most of the minor incidents are facts. In regard to unimpoi-tant matters I have taken the Ubei*ty of a novelist, — not to colour too highly, or to invent improbabilities, but, — to trans- pose time, place, and circumstance at pleasure ; while, at the same time, I have endeavoured to convey to the reader's mind a truthful impression of the general effect, — to use a painter's language, — ■ of the life and countrv of the Fur Trader. Edimbukoii, 1S(>6. By Sune Author, HUDSON'S BAY: OR, E^'ERYDAY LIFE IN THE WILDS OF NORTH AMERICA. " The name of the author of this bnolc, presnmlnj? him to be a connexion of Sir Walter Scott's printer and partner, is a passpoit throuRh tlie world ofliteratare, and lie travels pleasantly with it. Mr. Bullantyne's boolc is pleasant to read and pleasant to reflect on."— EconomM. "Mr. Bullantyne 1ms n claim on attention fi-om the vivacity of his style, and the lenfrth of his experience in the service of the Hudson's Dav Company, lie has an eye fur minute points of character, and a talent for throwing out a vivid portrait with a few pencil strokes. The occasional brief stories thrown in to illustrate the general nan-ative are told with skill and spirit."— ^^Aencrun. "Mr. Ballantyne writes in a very lively style, and there is some quiet humour in his first impressions of the new scenes and associates into which he suddenly found himself thnist We commend his book which does him great credit — it is unaffected and to the purpose, written in an honest 8traightfor^vard style, and is full of real interest and amusement" — Black* wood's Magazine. M ■Peter A fl ■ gat -^1 1 wa: CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. Plunges the reader into the middle of an arctic winter; conveys him into tlie heart of the wilderness of North America; and introduces him to some of the principal personages of our tule, ....... PAui: CHAPTER II. The old fur-trader endeavours to "fix" his son's "flint," and finds the tiling niuru difficult to do than he expected, . n CHAPTER III. The counting-room, 21 CHAPTER IV. A wulf-hunt in the prairies ; Cliarley astonishes his father, and breaks in the " nuo 'oss " efl'ectually, . . . 82 CHAPTER V. [Peter Mactavish becomes an amateur doctor ; Charley promul- gates his views of things in general to Kate; and Kate waxes sagacious, ...... 51 CHAPTER VI. ISpriug and the voyayeurs, C5 CHAPTER VII. Che store. ;i 1! l! Iv CONTENTP. CHAPTER VIII. PAGU Farewell to Kate ; departure of the brigade ; Charley becomes a voyageur, ..<.... S9 CHAPTER IX. The voyage ; the encampment ; a surprise, ... 95 CHAPTER X. Varieties, yexations, and vicissitudes, .... IH CHAPTER XI. Charley aud Harry begin their sporting career, withont much success ; Whisky-john catching, .... 122 CHAPTER XII. The storm. CHAPTER XIII. The canoe; ascending the rapids; the portage; deer-shuutiug and life in the woods, ..... CHAPTER XIV. The Indian camp ; the new outpost ; Charley sent on a mission to the Indians, ..... CHAPTER XV. The feast ; Charley makes his first speech in public ; meets with an old fviend ; an enemy in the grass, CHAPTER XVI. The return ; narrow escape ; a murderous attempt, which fails ; and a discovery, ...... CHAPTER XVII. The scene changes ; Bachelors' Hall ; a practical juke and its consequences; a snow-shoe walk at night in the forest, 133 l.'a I'iB 101 207 218 CONTEXTS. PAGU I a CHAPTER XV III. TAOB The walk continued ; frozen toes ; an encaini)ment in the snow, 23G CHAPTER XIX. Shews how the accountant and Harry set their traps, and what came of it, . . . . . . . 250 CHAPTER XX. The accountant's story, ...»•. 262 CHAPTER XXI. Ptarmigan-hunting ; Hamilton's shooting powers severely tested ; a snow-storm, ..... 275 CHAPTER XXII. The winter packet ; Harry hears from old friends, and wishes that be was with them, ..... 287 CHAPTER XXIII. Changes ; Harry and Hamilton find that variety is indeed charm- ing ; the latter astonishes the former considerably, . 308 neeta 101 fails ; 207 CHAPTER XXIV. Hopes and fears ; an unexpected meeting ; philosophical talk between the hunter and the parson, . . . 321 CHAPTER XXV. (Jood news and louiantic scenery ; bear-hunting and its results, 336 CHAPTER XXVI. An unexpecte jettled down ;8, with very We must, |the red eyes |r two could, |ver his sun- of life when though not \hhenng. sr seated on itroduced tu unalterablo [e statement, ;e mistaken, it. In fact le hereafter. CHAPTER 11. The old fur-trndcr endeavours to •' fix " Ills son's " flint," 'and finds tlio tl.tng more ditilcult to du than he expected. Near the centre of the colony of lied River, the stream [from which the settlement derives its name is joined by luothei", called the Assinaboine. About five or six Imndred yards from the point where this union takes )lace, and on the banks of the latter stream, stands tlu; [udaon's Bay Company's trading post, Fort Garry. It is massive square building of stone. Four high and thick irulls enclose a space of ground on which are built six or ight wooden lu)uses, some of which are used as dwellings \i' the servants of the Hudson's Bay Company, and ipe before diinier." Old Mr Kennedy gave a shoi't groan of despair, shook Ids fist at tlie form of his retreating son, and accompanied liis friend to the house. It must not be supposed that Frank Kennedy Avas very deei)ly offended with his son, althougli lie did shower on him a considerable amo\int of abuse. On the conti-aiy, he loved him very much. But it Avas the old man's nature to give way to little bui-sts of passion on almost every occasion in which his feelings were at all excited. These bursts, however, were like the little puffs that ripple the surface of the sea on a calm summer's day. They were I -it- FROM THE FAR NORTH. 15 > a bright of white rang into arp crack op. rlr Grant, Lst look at 5 as if she vas rising and then, has taken Teach the visit the of no use 3ome with [\ir, shook jompanied nedy was lid shower contraiy, Ill's nature lost every d. These •ipple the ?hey were over in a second, and left his good-humoured, rough, candid countenance in unruffled serenity. Charley knew this well, and loved his father tenderly, so that his con- science frequently smote liim for raising his anger so often; and he over and over again promised his sister Kate to do his best to refrain from doing anything that was likely to annoy the old man in future. But alas ! Charley's resolves, like those of many other boys, were soon for- gotten, and his father's equanimity was upset generally two or three times a-day; but after the gust was over, the fur-trader would kiss his son, call liim a "rascal," and send him off to fill and fetch his pipe. Mr Grant, who was in charge of Fort Garry, led the way to his smoking apartment, where the two were soon seated in front of a roaring log-fire, emulating each other in the manufacture of smoke. " Well, Kennedy," said Mr Grant, throwing himself back in his chair, elevating his chin, and emitting a long, thin stream of white vapour from his lips, through which he gazed at his friend complacently, " Well, Kennedy, to what fortunate chance am I indebted for this visit ? It is not often that we have the pleasure of seeing vou here." Mr Kennedy created two large volumes of smoke, which, by means of a vigorous puff, he sent rolling over towards his friend, and said, " Charley." " And what of Charley ?" said IVIr Grant, with a smile, for he was well aware of the boy's propensity to fun, and [ of the father's desire to curb it. " The fact is," replied Kennedy, " that Charley must I'O broke. He's the ^vildest colt I ever had to tame, but 111 do it— I will— that's a fact." 16 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS 'f ll If Charley's sulrjugation had depended on the rapidity M-ith which the little white clouds proceeded from his sire'a mouth, there is no doubt that it would have been a " fact" in a very short time, for they rushed from him with the violence of a high wind. Long habit had made the old trader and his pipe not only inseparable com- jiiuiions, but part and parcel of each other — so intimately connected that a change in the one was sure to produce a sympathetic change in the other. In the present instance, the little clouds rapidly increased in size and numbei as the old gentleman thought on the obstinacy of his "colt." " Yes," he continued, after a moment's silence, " I've made up my mind to tame him, and I want ycnij Mr Grant, to help me." Mr Grant looked as if he would rather not undertake to lend his aid in a work that was evidently difficult ; but, l)eing a good-natured man, he said, " And how, friend, can I assist in the operation ?" " "Well, you see, Charley's a good fellow at bottom, and a clever fellow too — at least so says the schoolmaster — thoiigh I must confess, that so far as my experience goes, lie's only clever at finding out excuses for not doing what I want him to. But still, I'm told he's clever, and can use his pen well ; and I know for certain that he can use his tongue well. So I want to get him into the service, and have him placed in a situation where he shall have to stick to his desk all day. In fact, I want to have him broken in to work j for you've no notion, sir, how that boy talks about bears and buffaloes and badgers, and life in the woods among the Indians. I do believe," continued the old gentleman, waxing warm, " that he would willingly '■r * 4 I 1 ne in an vii FROM THE FAR NORTH. 17 rapidity rom hi3 3 been a •om him ad made ale com- timately produce present size and binacy of le, "I've yoiij Mr ndertake ^It j but, , friend, >m, and a taster — ice goes, Ing what md can can use service, have to Lve him )w that md life itinued [illingly go into the woods to-moiTow, if I would let him, and never shew his nose in the settlement again. He's quite incorrigible. But I'll tame him yet ; I will ! " Mr Kennedy followed this up with an indignant grunt, and a puff of smoke, so thick, and propelled with such vigour, that it rolled and curled in fantastic evolu- tions towards the ceiling, as if it were unable to control itself with delight at the absolute certainty of Charley being tamed at last. Mr Grant, however, shook his head, and remained for five minutes in profound silence, during which time the two friends puffed in concert, until they began to grow quite indistinct and ghost-like in the thick atmosphere. At last he broke silence. " My opinion is, that you're wi'ong, Mr Kennedy. No doubt, you know the disposition of your son better than I do ; but even judging of it from what you have said, I'm quite sure that a sedentary life will ruin him." " Ruin him ! Humbug ! " said Kennedy, who never failed to express his opinion at the shortest notice, and in the plainest language, — a fact so well known by his friends, that they had got into the habit of taking no notice of it. "Humbug!" he repeated, "perfect hum- bug ! You don't mean to tell me, that the way to break him in, is to let him run loose and wild whenever and wherever he pleases ?" " By no means. But you may rest assured that tying him do^vn won't do it." "Nonsense!" said Mr Kennedy, testily ; "don't tell nie. Have I not broken in young colts by the score ? tiiid don't I know that the way to fix their flints, is to clap on a good strong curb ?" 18 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS I '* If you luul triivclled fai-tlier south, friend," replied Mr Gmnt, " you would have seen the Spaniards of Mexico Itreak in their wild horses in a very different way ; for, after catching one with the lasso, a fellow gets on his back, and gives it the rein and the whip — aye, and the si»ur, too ; and before tliat race is over, there is no need for a curb." "What!" exclaimed Kennedy, "and do you mean to argue from that, that I should let Charley iiui — and /telp him too ? Send him off to the woods with gun and blanket, canoe and tent, all complete ?" The old gentle- man puffed a furious puff, and broke into a loud sar- castic laugh. " No, no," interrupted Mr Grant ; " I don't exactly mean that ; but I think that you might give him his way for a year or so. He's a fine, active, generous fellow ; and after the novelty wore off, he would be in a much better frame of mind to listen to your proposals. Besides," (and Mr Grant smiled expressively), "Charley is some- what like his father. He has got a will of his own ; and if you do not give him his way, I very much fear that he'll " "What?" inquired Mr Kennedy, abruptly. " Take it," said Mr Grant. The puff that burst from Mr Kennedy's lips, on hearing this, would have done credit to a thirty-six pounder. " Take it ! " said he. " He'd better not." The latter part of this speech was not, in itself, of a nature calculated to con^'^ey much ; but the tone of the old trader's voice, the contraction of his eyebrows, and, above all, the overwhelming flow of cloudlets that followed, imparted to it a significance that induced the belief FUOM THE FAR NORTH. 19 tliat Charley's taking his own way would be pi-oductiNe of uiuio terrilic consequence? than it was in the power of the most highly imaginative man to conceive. " There's his sister Kate, now," continued the old gontlenum ; " she's as gentle and biddable as a lamb. I've (luly to say a word, and she's off like a shot to do my biddins ; and she does it with such a sweet smile too."' There was a touch of pathos in the old trader's voice as he said this. He was a man of strong feeling, and as iin- jtulsive in liis tenderness as in his wi'ath. " But that rascal, Charley," he continued, " is quite different. He's ( ibstinate as a mule. To be sure, he has a good temper ; and I must say for him he never goes into the sulks, which is a comfort, for, of all things in the world, sulking is the most cliildish and contemptible. He generally does \\ hat I bid him, too. But he's always getting into scrapes of one kind or other. And during the last week, not- withstanding all I can say to him, he won't admit that the best tiling for him is to get a place in your counting-room, with the prospect of rapid promotion in the service. Very odd. I can't iindei-stand it at all j " and Mr Kennedy heaved a deep sigh. " Did you ever explain to him the prospects that ho would have in the situation you propose for him ] " inquired Mr Grant. " Can't say I ever did." " Did you ever point out the probable end of a life spent in the woods ? " " No." " Nor suggest to him that the appointment to the otfice here would only be temporary, and to see hoAv he <'( )t on in it ? " 20 SNOWFLAKES AND SUXBEAMS *' Certainly not." " Then, my dear sir, I'm not surprised tluit Charley rebels. You have left him to suppose that, once placed at the desk here, he is a prisoner for life. But see, there lie is," said Mr Grant, pointing, as he spoke, towards the subject of their conversation, who was passing the "window at the moment, " let me call him, and I feel certain that lie will listen to reason in a few minutes." " Humph ! " ejaculated Mr Kennedy, " you may try." In another minute Charley had been summoned, and was seated, cap in hand, near the door. " Charley, my boy," began Mr Grant, standing with his back to the fire, his feet pretty wide apart, and his coat-tails undpr his arms — " Charley, my boy, your father has just been speaking of you. He is very anxious that you should enter the service of the Hudson's Bay Com- jiany ; and as you are a clever boy and a good penman, we think that you would be likely to get on if placed for a year or so in our office here. I need scarcely point out to you, my boy, that in such a position you would be sure to obtain more rapid promotion, than if you were placed in one of the distant outposts, where you would have very little to do, and perhaps little to eat, and no one to converse with, except one or twO men. Of course, we would merely place you here on trial to see how you suited us ; and if you prove steady and diligent, there is no saying how fast you might get on. Why, you might even come to fill my place in course of time ! Come now, Charley, what think you of it ? " Charley's eyes had been cast on the ground while Mr Cirant was speaking. He now raised them, looked at his father, then at his interrogator, and said — FROM THE FAR NORTH. 21 you there I time ! le Mr lat his " It is very kiiul of you both to be so anxious about my prospects. I thank you, indeed, very much; but I»» — a " Don't like the desk 1" said his father, in an angry tone. " Is that it, eh ? " Charley made no reply, but cast down his eyes again and smiled (Charley had a sweet smile, a peculiarly sweet, candid smile), as if he meant to say that his father had hit the nail quite on the top of the head that time, and no mistake. " But consider," resumed Mr Grant, " although you might probably be pleased with an outpost life at first, you would be sure to grow weaiy of it after the novelty wore off, and then you would wish with all your heart to be back here again. Believe me, child, a trader's life is a very hard and not often a very satisfactory one '* " Aye," broke in the father, desirous, if possible, to help the argument, "and you'll find it a desperately wild, unsettled, roving sort of life, too, let me tell you ! full of dangers both from wild beasts and wild men ^" m " Hush," interrupted Mr Grant, observing that the boy's eye kindled when his father spoke of a wild, roving life, and vnld beasts, "your father does not mean that life at an outpost is wild, and interesting^ or exciting. He merely means that — a — it " Mr Gmnt could not very well explain what it was that Mr Kennedy meant, if he did not mean that, so he turned to him for help. " Exactly so," said that gentleman, taking a strong pull at the pipe for inspiration. " It's no ways interest- ing or exciting at all. It's slow, dull, and flat. A »)«) SXOWFLAKKS AND SUNBEAMS iiiisertiMe sort of RobiuMou Cnisoe lite, with reel IndianH iind starvation constantly staring you in the face " " liesides," said Mr Grant, again interrupting the somewhat unfortunate efforts of his friend, who seemed to have a happy facility in sending a brilliant dash of romantic allusion across the dark side of his picture — " besides, you'll not have opportunity to amuse your- self, or to read, as you'll have no books, and you'll have to work hard with your hands oftentimes, like your men " " In fact," broke in the impatient father, resolv(>d, apparently, to carry the point with a grand "coup" — " In fact, you'll have to rough it, as I did, when I went lip the IMackenzie River district, where I was sent to establish a new post, and had to travel for weeks and w eeks through a wild countiy, where none of us had ever been before — where we shot our own meat, caught our own fish, and built our own house, — and were very nea," being murdered by the Indians — though, to be sure, aftcrwaivls they became the most civil fellows in the country, and l»rought us plenty of skins. Ay, lad, you'll rej)ent of your obstinacy when you come to have to hunt your own dinner, as I've done many a day up the Saskatchewan, where Fve had to fight with i-edskins and grizzly bears, and to chase the buffaloes over miles and miles of prairie on rough -going nags till my bones ached and I scarce knew whether I sat on " " Oh ! " exclaimed Charley — starting to his feet, while his eyes flashed and his chest heaved with emotion — " that's the place for me, father ! Do, jjlease, Mr Grant, si'ud me there, and I'll work for yon with all my tnght!" Ills cut] FROM THE FAK NOKTH. 2:) Fnmk Kennedy was uot a man to. stand this im- exjK.'CKjd miscarriage of liis eloquence with equanimity. His tirst action was to throw his pij)e at the head of his enthusiastic hoy, without woi*se effect, however, than Muasliing it to atoms on the opposite wall. Ho then started up and rushed towards his son, wlio, being near the door, retreated precipitately and vanished. " So," said Mr Grant, not very sure whether to laugli or he angiy at the result of their united efforts, "you've Ki^ttled the question now, at all events." Frank Kennedy said nothing, but filled another pilM', pat doggedly down in front of the tire, and siHjedily enveloped himself, and his friend, and all that the room contained, in thick impenetrable clouds of smoke. Meanwhile his worthy son nished off in a state of gieat glee. He had often heard the vojiayeurs of Red Kiver dilate on the delights of roughing it in the woods, and his heart had bounded as they spoke of dangers encountered and overcome among the I'apids of the Far North, or with the bears and bison-bulls of the prairie, but never till now had he heard his father corroborate their testimony by a recital of his own actual exjierience ; and although the old gentleman's intenti(,)n was un- doubteilly to damp tlie boy's spirit, his eloquence had exactly the opposite effect — so that it was with a hop and a shout that he burst into the counting-room, with the occupants of which Charley was a special favourite. *".>* *M SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAM8 CHAPTER III. The Counting-room. Every one knows the general appearance of a counting- room. There are one or two peculiar features about such apartments that are quite unmistakable and very characteristic ; and the counting-room at Fort Garry, although many hundred miles distant from other speci- mens of its race, and, from the peculiar circumstances of its position, not therefore likely to bear them much resemblance, possessed one or two features of similarity, in the shape of two large desks and several very tall stools, besides sundry ink-bottles, rulers, books, and sheets of blotting-paper. But there were other imple- ments there, savouring strongly of the backwoods and savage life, which merit more particular notice. The room itself was small, and lighted by two Mttle windows, which opened into the court-yard. The entire apartment was made of wood. The floor was of unpainted fir boards. The walls were of the same material, painted blue from the floor upwards to about three feet, where tlie blue was unceremoniously stopped short by a stripe of bright red, above which the somewhat fanciful decorator had laid on a coat of pale yellow ; and the ceiling, by way of variety, was of a deep ochre. As the occupants of Red River office were, however, addicted to the use of tobacco KKOM TUK FAU MOUTH. S0 and tallow candles, the original colour of the ceiling had \ aiiishud entirely, and that » f the walla had considerably chaugecL < . , There were throe doors in the room (besides the door of entrance), each opening into another apartment, where the three clerks were wont to court the favour of Morpheus after the labours of the day. No carpets graced the floors of any of these rooms, and, with the exception of the [)aint afore-mentioned, no ornament whatever broke the pleasing uniformity of the scene. Tliis was compensated, however, to some extent, by several scarlet sashes, bright- coloured shot-belts, and gjiy portions of winter costume peculiar to the country, wliich depended from sundry nails in the bedroom walls ; and, as the three doors always stood open, these objects, together with one or two fowling-i)ieces and canoe-paddles, formed quite a brilliant and highly suggestive background to the otherwise sombre picture. A large open fireplace stood in one corner of the [room, devoid of a grate, and so constructed that large logs )f wood might be piled up on end to any extent. And really the fires made in this manner, and in this individual ^fireplace, were exquisite beyond description. A wood [fire is a particularly cheerful thing. Those who have [never seen one can form but a faint idea of its splendour ; especially on a sharp winter night in the arctic regions, [where the thermometer falls to forty degrees below zero, [without inducing the inhabitants to suppose that the Iworld has reached its conclusion. The billets are usually [piled up on end, so that the flames rise and twine round [them with a fierce intensity that causes them to crack land sputter cheerfully, sending innumerable sparks of fire [into the room, and tlu'owing out a rich glow of brilliant 3 1» 2n SXOWFLAKES AXD SUXHEAMS light that svanus a man even to look at it, and rendei'S candles quite unnecessary. The clerks who inhabited this counting-room were, like itself, peculiar. There were three — con*esponding to the bedrooms. The senior was a tall, broad-shouldered, mus- cular man — a Scotchman — very good-humoured, yet a man whose under lip met the upper with that peculiar degree of pi-f'cision that indicated the presence of other qualities besides that of g()0(1-humour. He was book- keeper and accountant, and managed the aflaii*s entrusted to his care with the same dogged pei'severance with which he would have led an expedition of discovery to the iNorth Pole. He was thirty or thereabouts. The second was a small man — also a Scotchman. It is en ri oils to note how numerous Scotchmen are in the wilds (^f North America. This specimen was diminutive and sharp. Moreover, he played the flute, — an accomplishment of which he was so proitd, that he ordered out from England a flute of ebony, so elaborately enriched with silver keys that one's fingers ached to behold it. This beautiful instrument, like most other instruments of a delicate nature, found the climate too much for its con- stitution, and, soon after the winter began, split from top to bottom. Peter Mactavish, however, was a genius by nature, and a mechanical genius by tendency; so that, instead of giving way to despair, he laboriously bound the jlute together with waxed thread, which, although it could not restore it to its pristine elegance, enabled him to play with great effect sundry doleful airs, whose influence, when performed at night, usually sent his companions to sleep, or, failing this, drove them to distraction. The third inhabitant of the office was a mddy smooth- FKOM THE FAU NORTH. 27 d rendei-a were, like ing to the ered, miis- red, yet a bt peculiar e of other was book- i entrusted fvith which Ty to the lan. It is 1 the -wilds lutive and iplishment out from iched with it. This aents of a 3r its con- t from top genius by (\ so that, bound the ;h it could im to play influence, panions to ly smooth- cliiuned youth of about fourteen, who had left home seven months before, in the hope of gratifying a desire to lead a \\ ild life, which he had entertained ever since he read " Jack the Giant Killer," and found himself most un- expectedly fastened, during the greater part of each day, to a stool. His name was Harry Somerville, and a fine cheerful little fellow he was, — full of spirits, and curiously aildicted to poking and arranging the fire, at least every ten minutes — a propensity which tested the forbearanco t)f the senior clerk rather severely, and would liave sur- prised any one not aware of poor Harry's incurable antipathy to the desk, and the yeai'ning desire with which he longed for physical action. Harry was busily engaged with the refractory firo, when Charley, as stated at the conclusion of the last chapter, burst into the room. " Hallo !" he exclaimed, suspending his operations for a moment, "what's up?" "Nothing," said Charley, " but fiither's temper, that's all. He gave me a s[»lendid description of his life in the -"oods, and then threw his ;pipe at me because I admired it too much." " Ho !" exclaimed Harry, making a vigorous thrust at ?4the fire, " then you've no chance now." " No chance ! what do you mean 1" " Only that we are to have a wolf-hunt in the plains to- uni-ow, and if you've aggravated your father, he'll be aking you home to-night, that's all." " Oh ! no fear of that," said Charley, with a look that eemed to imply that there was very great fear of " that," nuch more, in fact, tlian he was willing to admit even to iimself. " My dear old father never keeps his anger lojig. 'ill sure that he'll be all right iigaiii in half-an-hour." M %^ 28 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS I. I }^ 1 "Hope so, but doubt it I do," said Harrj', making another deadly poke at the fire, and returning, with a deep sigh, to his stool. "Would you like to go with us, Charley?" said the senior clerk, laying down his pen and turning round on his chair (the senior clerk never sat on a stool) with a benign smile. " Oh ! very, very much indeed," cried Charley ; " but even should father agree to stay all night at the fort, I have no horse, and I'm sure he would not let me have the mare after what I did to-day.' " Do you think he's not open to persuasion V (said tho senior clerk. " No, I'm sure he's not." " Well, well, it don't much signify ; perhaps we can mount you.!' Charley's face brightened. "Go," he continued, addressing Harry Somerville, " go, tell Tom Whyte I wish to speak to him." Harry sprang from his stool with a suddenness and vigour that might have justified the belief that he had been fixed to it by means of a powerful spring, which had been set free with a sharp recoil, and shot him out at the door, for he disappeared in a trice. In a few minutes he returned, followed by the groom Tom Whyte. " Tom," said the senior clerk, " do you tliink we could manage to mount Charley to-morrow ?" "Why, sir, I don't think as how we could. There aint an 'oss in the stable except them wot's required and them wot's badly." "Couldn't he have the brown pony?" suggested the senior clerk. FROM THE FAR NORTH. 29 Tom Whyte was a cockney, and an old soldier, and stood so bolt upright that it seemed quite a mai-vel how the words ever managed tc climb up the steep ascent of his throat, and turn the corner so as to get out at his mouth. Perhaps this was the cause of his speaking on all occasions with great deliberation and slowness. " Why, you see, sir," he replied, " the brown pony's got cut under the fetlock of the right hind leg ; and I 'ad 'im down to L'Esperance the smith's, sir, to look at 'im, sir ; and he says tc me, says he, * That don't look well that 'oss don't,' — and he's a knowing feller, sir, is L'Esperance, though he is an 'alf-breed " "Never mind what he said, Tom," interrupted the senior clerk ; " is the pony fit for uso ? that's the question." " No, sir, 'e haint." " And the black mare, can he not have that 1 " " No, sir, Mr Grant is to ride 'er to-morrow." "That's unfortunate," said the se. ior clerk; "I fear, Cliarley, that you'll need to ride behind Hariy on his gray pony. It wouldn't improve his speed, to be sure, having two on his back, but then he's so like a pig in his movements at any rate, I don't think it would spoil his pace much." " Couid he not try the new horse ?" he continued, turn- ing to the groom. " The noo 'oss, sir ! he might as well try to ride a mad bufialo bull, sir. He's quite a young colt, sir, only 'alf- broke — kicks like a windmill, sir, and's got an 'ead like a steam-engine ; 'e couldn't 'old 'im in no 'ow, sir. I 'ad 'im down to the smith 'tother day, sir, an' says 'e to me, says 'e, ' That's a screamer, that is.' * Yes,' says I, ' that his a fact: ' WtV ' says 'e ^" r-^. 30 SXOWFLAKES AXD SUNBEAMS " Hang the smith," cried the senior clerk, losing all patience, " can't you answer me without so much talk ? Is the horse too wild to ride ? " " Yes, sir, 'e is," said the groom, with a look of slightly offended dignity, and drawing himself up — if we may use such an expression to one who was always drawn up to such an extent that he seemed to be just balanced on his heels, and required only a gentle push to lay him flat on his back. " Oh ! I have it," cried Peter Mactavish, who had been standing, during the conversation, ^vith his back to the fire, and a short pipe in his mouth — " John Fowler, the miller, has just purchased a new pony. I'm told it's an old bufialo ruAner, and I'm certain he would lend it to Charley at once." " The very thing," said the senior clerk. " Run, Tom ; give the miller my compliments, and beg the loan of his horse for Chai'ley Kennedy. I think he knows you, Charley?" The dinner-bell rang as the groom departed, and the clerks prepared for their mid-day meal. The senior clerk's order to " run " was a mere form of s])eech, intended to indicate that haste was desirable. No man imagined for a moment that Tom Whyte could, by any possibility, tun. He hadn't run since he was dismissed from the army, twenty years before, for incur- able drunkenness ; and most of Tom's friends entertained the belief, that if he ever attempted to run, he would crack all over, and go to pieces like a disentombed Egyptian mummy. Tom, therefore, walked off to the row of build- ings inhabited by the men, where he sat down on a bench in front of his bed, and proceeded leisurely to fill his pipe. FROM THE FAR NORTH. 31 Tlie room in which he sat was a fair .s])ecimea of the dwellings devoted to the emplvtjes of the Hudson's Bay (Jompany throughout ihe country. It wuij large, and low in the roof, built entirely of wood, which was unpaiuted, — a matter, however, of no consequence, as, I'rom long exposure to dust and tobacco- smoke, the floor, walls, and ceiling, had become one deep uniform brown. The men's beds were constructed after the fashion of berths on board ship, being wooden boxes ranged in tiers round the room. Several tables and benches were strewn miscellaneously about the floor, in the centre of which stood a large double iron stove, with the woi-d " Carrot, " stamped on it. This served at once for cook- ing and warming the place. Numerous guns, axes, and canoe-paddles hung round the walls or were piled in corners, and the rafters sustained a miscellflncous mass of materials, the more conspicuous among which were snow- shoes, dog-sledges, axe-handles, and nets. Having filled and lighted his pipe, Tom Whyte thrust his hands into his deer-skin mittens, and sauntered off to perform his errand. 'w -I jT '>0 8N0WFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS CHAPTER IV. A wolf-hunt in tbo prairies— Charley astonishes his father, and breaks in the "noo '088 " effectually. During the long winter that reigns in the northern regions of America, the thermometer ranges, for many months together, from zero down to 20, 30, and 40 degrees below it. In different parts of the country the intensity of the frost varies a little, but not sufficiently to make ,/ appreciable change in one's sensation of cold. At York Fort, on the shores of Hudson's Bay, where the winter is eight months long, the spirit-of-wine (mercury being useless in so cold a climate) sometimes falls so low as 50 degrees below zero ; and away in the regions of Great Bear Lake, it lias been known to fall considerably lower than 60 degrees below zero of Fahrenheit. Cold of such intensity, of course, produces many curious and in- teresting effects ; which, although scarcely noticed by the inhabitants, make a strong impression upon the minds of those who visit the country for the first time. A youth goes out to walk on one of the first shai'p, frosty morn- ings. His locks are brown and his face ruddy. In half- an-hour he returns with his face blue, his nose frost- bitten, and his locks white — the latter effect being pro- duced by his breath congealing on his hair and breast, until both are covered with hoar-frost. Perhaps he is of a sceptical nature, prejudiced, it may })e, in favour of old r ■I FIIOM THE PAR NORTH. 33 so low gions of liderably Cold of and in- d by the ninds of L youth y mom- In half- be frost- habits aud customs, so that, although told, by those who ought to know, that it is absolutely necessary to wear moccasins in winter, he prefers the leather boots to which he has been accustomed at home, and goes out with them accordingly. In a few minutes the feet begin to lose sen- sation. First the toes, as far aa feeling goes, vanish ; then the heels depart, ard ho feels the extraordinary, and peculiar, and altogether disagreeable sensation of one who has had his heels and toes amputated, and is walking about on his insteps. Soon, however, these also fade away, and the unhappy youth rushes frantically home on the stumps of his ankle-bones — at least so it appears to him — and so in reality it would turn out to be, if he did not speedily rub the benumbed appendages into vitality aga'n. The whole country, during this season, is buried jti snow, and the prairies of Red River present the appeax- auce of a sea of the purest white, for five or six months of the year. Impelled by hunger, troops of prairie wolves prowl round the settlement, safe from the assault of man in consequence of their light weight permitting them to scamper away on the surface of the snow, into which man or horse, from their greater weight, would sink, so as to render pursuit either fearfully laborious, or alto- gether impossible. In spring, however, when the first thaws begin to take place, and commence that delightful process of disruption which introduces this charming season of the year, the relative position of wolf and man is reversed. The snow becomes suddenly soft, so that the short legs of the wolf, sinking deep into it, fail to reach the solid ground below, and he is obliged to drag heavily along, while the long legs of the horse enable him to 34 SN'OWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS plunge tlirougli and diush aside the snow at a rate which, although not very fleet, is sufficient, nevertheless, to over- take the chase and give his rider a chance of shooting it. The inhabitants of Red River are not much addicted to this sport, but the gentlemen of the Hudson's Bay Service sometimes practise it ; and it was to a hunt vt' this description that our young friend Charley Kennoily wjis now so anxious to go. The morning was propitious. The sun blazed in dazzling splendour in a sky of deep unclouded blue, while the white prairie glitteied as if it were a sea of diamonds rolling out in an unbroken sheet from the walls of the fort to the horizon, and on looking at which one experi- enced all the pleasurable feelings of being out on a calm day on the wide, wide sea, without the disagreeable con- sequence of being very, very sick. The thermometer stood at 39° in the shade, and " every thin^^," as Tom Whyte emphatically expressed it, " looked like a runnin' of right away into slush." That unusual sound, the trickling of water, so inexpressibly grateful to the ears of those who dwell in frosty climes, was heard all around, as the heavy masses of snow on the house-tops sent a few adventurous drops gliding down the icicles which depended from the eves and gables ; and there was a balmy softness in the air that told of coming spring. Nature, in fact, seemed to have wakened from her long nap, and was beginning to think of getting up. Like people, however, who venture to delay so long as to thmk about it, Nature frequently turns round and goes to sleep again in her icy cradle for a few weeks after the first awakening. The scene in the court-yard of Fort Garry harmonised FROM THE FAR NORTH. 35 with the cheerful spirit of the morning. Tom Whyto, with that upi'ight solemnity which constituted one of his characteristic features, was standing in the centre of a group of horses, whose energy he endeavoured to restrain with the help of a small Indian boy, to whom, mean- while, he imparted a variety of useful and otherwise un- attainable information. " You see, Joseph," said he to the urchin, who gazed gravely in his face with a pair of very large and dark tyes, " ponies is often skittish. Reason why one should be, an' another not, I can't comprehend. P'raps its nat'ral, p'r'aps not, but howsomediver so 'tis, an' if its more nor above the likes o' tne, Joseph, you needn't bo surprised that it's somethink haltogether beyond you." It will not surprise the reader to be told that Joseph made no reply to this speech, having a very imperfect acquaintance with the English language, especially the peculiar dialect of that tongue in which Tom Whyte was wont to express his ideas, when he had any. He merely gave a grunt, and continued to gaze at Tom's lishy eyes, which were about as interesting as the face to which they belonged, and that might have been mistaken for almost anything. " Yes, Joseph," he continued, " that's a fact. There's the hoo brown 'oss now, it's a skittish 'un. And there's Mr Kennedy's gra/ mare, wot's a standin' of beside me, she aint skittish a bit, though she's plenty of spirit, and wouldn't care hanythink for a five-barred gate. Now, wot I want to know is, wot's the reason why ? " We fear that the reason why, however interesting it might prove to naturalists, must remain a profound secret for ever; for, just as the groom was about to ' J«4C\, .'-! 86 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS entertain Joseph with one of his theories on the point, Charley Kennedy and Harry Somerville hastily ap- proached. " Ho, Tom ! " exclaimed the former, " have you got the miller's pony for me 1 " " Why, no, sir; 'e 'adn't got his shoes on, sir, last night " " Oh ! bother his shoes," said Charley, in a voice of great disappointment. " Why didn't you bring him up without shoes, man, eh 1 " " Well, sir, the miller said 'e'd get 'em put on early this mornin', an' I 'xpect 'e'll be 'ere in 'alf a hour at farthest, sir." " Oh, very wpll," replied Charley, much relieved, but still a little nettled at the bare possibility of being late. " Come along, Harry, let's go and meet him. He'll be long enough of coming if we don't go to poke him up a bit." " You'd better wait," called out the groom, as the boys hastened away. "If you go by the river he'll p'r'apa come by the plains, and if you go by the plains he'll p'r'aps come by the river." Charley and Harry stopped and looked at each other. Then they looked at the groom, and as their eyes sur- veyed his solemn, cadaverous countenance, which seemed a sort of bad caricature of the long visages of the horses that stood around him, they burst into a simultaneous and prolonged laugh. " He's a clever old lamp-post," said Harry, at last ; ** we had better remain, Charley." " You see," continued Tom Whyte, " the pony's 'oofs is in an 'orrible state. Last night w'en I see'd 'im, I said FROM THE FAR NORTH. 37 to the miller, says I, * John, I'll take 'im down to tho smith d'rcctly.' ' Very good,' said John. So I 'ad him down to the smith ^" The remainder of Tom's speech was cut short by one of those unforeseen operations of the laws of nature, which are peculiar to arctic climates. During the long winter, repeated falls of snow cover the house-tops with white mantles upwards of a foot thick, which become gradually thicker and more consolidated as winter advances. In spring, the suddenness of the thaw loosens these from the sloping roofs, and precipitates them in masses to the ground. These miniature avalanches are dangerous, people having been seriously injured and sometimes killed by them. Now, it happened that a very large mass of snow, which lay on, and partly depended from, the roof of the house near to which the horses were standing, gave way, and just at that critical point in Tom Whyte's speech when he " 'ad 'im down to the smith," fell with a stunning crash on the back of Mr Kennedy's gray mare. The mare was not " skittish " — by no means — according to Tom's idea, but it would have been more than an ordinary mare to have stood the sudden descent of half-a- ton of snow without some symptom of consciousness. No sooner did it feel the blow, than it sent both heels with a bang against the wooden store, by way of preliminary movement, and then, rearing up with a wild snort, it sprang over Tom Whyte's hejid, jerked the reins from his hand, and upset him in the snow. Poor Tom never bent to anything. The military despotism under which he had been reared having substituted a touch of the cap for a bow, rendered it unnecessary to bend ; prolonged drill, laziness, and rheumatism wade it at last impossible. 38 SXOWPLAKES AND SUNBEAMS When lie stood up, ho did so after the maiinor of a pillar , when ho sat down, ho broke across at two points, much in tho way in which a foot-rule would have dono, had it i\i\t disposed to sit down, and wlu-n he fell, he came down like an overturned lamp-post. On tho j)resent occasion, Tom became horizontal in a moment, and from his unfoi*tunuto propensity to fall straight, his head, reaching much farther than might have been expecteil, cume into violent contact with the small Indian boy, who fell flat likewise, letting go the reins of the hoi-ses, which latter no sooner felt themselves free, than they fled, curvetting and snorting round the court, with reins and mains fl>ing in rare confusion. The two boys, who could scarce stand for laughing, ran to the gates of the lort to prevent the chargers getting free, and in a short time they were again secured, although evidently much elated in spirit. A few minutes after this, Mr Grant issued from the principal house, leaning on Mr Kennedy's arm, and fol- lowed by the senior clerk, Peter Mactavish, and one or two friends who had come to take part in the wolf-hunt. They were all ai'med with double or single barrelled guna or pistols, according to their several fancies. The two elderly gentlemen alone entered upon the scene without any more deadly "weapons than their heavy riding whips. Young Harry Somerville, who had been strongly advised not to take a gun lest he should shoot himself, or his horse or his comi)anions, was content to take the field with a small pocket-pistol, which he crammed to the muzzle with a compound of ball and swan-shot. " It won't do," said Mr Grant, in an earnest voice, to rwOM TIIK PAR NrtRTTI. SO his friend, as tliey walked towards tli« hoi-aes — ** it won't d(» to cliook him too abruptly, my dear sir." It was evid(mt that they were recurring to the aulyect of conversation of the previous day, and it wsw also evi- dent that the father's wrath was in that very uncertain state when a word or a look can throw it into violent Hjiitation. " Just permit me," continued Mr Grant, " to get him sent to the Saskatchewan or Athabasca for a couple r)f year's. By that time he'll have had enough of a rough life, and be only too glad to get a bei-th at head- quartei-s. If you thwart him now, I feel convinced that he'll break through all restraint." " Humph ! " ejaculated Mr Kennedy, with a frown. " Come here, Chai'ley," he said, as the boy approached with a disappointed look, to tell of his failure in getting a horse ; *' I've been talking with Mr Grant again about this business, and he says he can eaaily get you into the counting-room here for a year ; so you'll make arrangements " The old gentleman paused : he was going to have fol- lowed his wonted course, by commanding instantaneous obedience ; but as his eye fell upon the honest, open, tliough disappointed face of his son, a gush of tenderness filled his heart. Laying his hand upon Charley's head, he said, in a kind but abrupt tone, " There now, Charley, lay boy, make up your mind to give in with a good grace. It'll only be hard work for a year or tw^o, and tlieu plain sailing after that, Charley ! " Charley's clear blue eyes filled with tears as the & ccents of kindness fell upon his ear. It is strange that men should frequently he so blind to 40 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS the potent influence of kindness. Independently of the Divine authority, which assures us that " a soft answer tumeth away wrath," and that " love is the fulfilling of the law," who has not, in the course of his experience, felt the overwhelming power of a truly affectionate word ? — not a word which possesses merely an affectionate sig- nification, but a word spoken with a gush of tenderness, where love rolls in the tone, and beams in the eye, and revels in every wrinkle of the face ! And how much more powerfully does such a word, or look, or tone strike home to the heart, if uttered by one whose lips are not much accustomed to the formation of honeyed words or sweet sentences ! Had Mr Kennedy, senior, known more of this power, and put it more frequently to the proof, we venture to affirm that Mr Kennedy, junior, would have allowed his " Jtint to be fixed " (as his father pithily ex- pressed it) long ago. Ere Charley could reply to the question, Mr Grant's voice, pitched in an elevated key, interrupted them. " Eh ! what ? " said that gentleman to Tom Whyte. " No horse for Chariey ! How's that 1 " " No, sir," said Tom. " Where's th«^ brown pony ? " said Mr Grant, abruptly. " Cut 'is fetlock, sir," said Tom, slowly. " And the new horse % " " 'Tant 'alf broke yet, sir." " Ah ! that's bad. It wouldn't do to take an un- broken charger, Charley, for, although you are a pretty good rider, you couldn't manage him, I fear. Let me see." " Please, sir," said the groom, touching his hat, " I've borrowed the miller's pony for 'im, and 'e's sure to bn 'ere in *alf a hour at farthest." FROM THE FAR NORTH. 41 " Oh ! that'll do," said Mr Grant, " you can so6n ovei- tiike us. We shall ride slowly out, siraiglit into tlio prairie, and Harry will remain behind to keep yoii company." So saying, Mr Grant mounted his hoi*se and rode out at the back gate, followed by the whole cavalcade. " Now, this is too bad ! " said Charley, looking with a veiy perplexed air at his companion. " What's to blendid fellow ! I say, ITarry, I'll go out with him." " Yon'd better not." " Why not r " Why ? Just because if you do, Mr Grant will l>e down ui)<)n you, and your father won't be very well pleased." " Nonsense," cried Charley. " Fatlier didn't say 1 wasn't to take him. I don't think he'd care mncli. He's not afraid of my breaking my neck. And, then, i\lr Gi-ant seemed to be only afraid of my being run off with — not of his horse being hurt. Here goes for it!" Ill another moment, Charley had him saddled and bridled, and led him out into the yard. " Why, I declare, he's quite quiet ; just like a lamb," jsiiid Hany, in surpi-ise. " So he is," replied Chai'ley. " He's a capital charger ; and even if he does bolt, he can't nm five hundred miles }(t a stretch. Tf I turn his head to the prairies, the ]v)cky Mountains are the first things that will bring him up. So let him run if he likes — I don't care a fig." And springing lightly into the saddle, he cantered out of the yard, followed by his friend. The young horse was a well-foiined, showy animal, with a good deal of bone — pei'haps too much for elegance. He was of a beautiful dark brown, and carried a high hoad and tail, with a higli-stepping gait, that gave him a iiohle appearance. As Charley cantei'ed along at a steady pacp, he could discover no symptoms of the refractory spirit vvhich had been a-scribed to liinL FROM THE FAR NORTH. 43 " Let us strike out stroiglit for the horizon now," said Harry, after they had galloped half-a-niile or so along the l»eaten track. " See, here are the tracks of our friends." Turning sharp round as he spoke, he leaped his pony over the heap that lined the road, and galloped away til rough the soft snow. At this point the young horse began to shew his evil spirit. Instead of following the other, he suddenly halted and began to back. " Hallo, Harry ! " exclaimed Charley ; " hold on a bit. Here's this monster begun his tricks." *' Hit him a crack with the whip," shouted Hariy. Charley ac^jd upon the advice, which had the effect of making the h- -i shake his head with a sharp snort, and back more \j; . ^' ily than ever. " There, my fine fellow, quiet now," said Charley, in a soothing tone, patting the horse's neck. " It's a comfort to know you can't go far in that direction, anyhow !" he added, as he glanced over his shouldei*, and saw an im- mense drift behind. He was right. In a few n inutes the horse backed into the snow-drift. Finding his hind-quarters imprisoned l>y a power that was too much even for his obstinacy to over- come, he gave another snort and a heavy plunge, which almost unseated his young rider. " Hold on fast," cried Harry, who had now come up. *' No fear," cried Charley, as he clenched his teeth and gathered the reins more firmly. " Now for it, you young villain !" and, raising his whip, he brought it down with a heavy slash on the horse's fiank. Had the snow-drift been a cannt)n, and the hoi-se a bombshell, he could scarcely haNe spi'ung from it witli I '■T?*' 41 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNDEAM? I^catci- v(^l()city. One bound landed him on the road ; nnotlu^r cleared it ; and, in a second more, he stretcher! ont at full speed — his ears flat on his neck, main and tail flyiui;' in the wind, and the bit tight between hLs teeth. "Well done," cried Hany, as he passed; "you're off now, old fellow — good-bye." " Hurrah !" shouted Charley, in reply, leaving his cap ill the snow as a parting souvenir; while, seeing that it w{i.s useless to endeavour to cluick his steed, he became quite wikl with excitement ; gave him the rein ; flourished liis whi]) ; and flew over the white plains, casting up the snow in clouds bc^hind him like a Inuricane ! While this little escapade was being enacted by the boys, the hunters were riding leisurely out upon the snowy sea in search of a wolf. Wvjrds cannot convey to you, dear reader, an adequate conception of the peculiar fascination, the exhilarating splendour of the scene by which our himters were sur- rounded. Its beauty lay not in variety of feature in the landscaj)e, for there was none. One 7ast sheet of white alone met the view, bounded all round bv the blue circle of the sky, and broken, in one or two places, by a patch or two of willows, which, rising on the p'ain appeared like little islands in a frozen sea. It was the glittering sparkle of the snow in the bright sunshine ; the dreamy haziness of the atmosphere, mingling earth and sky as in a. halo of gold ; the first taste — the first smell of spring after a long winter, bursting suddenly upon the senses, lilie the unexpected visit of a long absent, much loved, ami almost forgotten friend ; the soft, warm feeling of the south wind, bearing on its wings the balmy influences of sutniy climes, and recalling vividly the scenes, the FROM THE FAR NORTH. ifl pleasures, the bustling occupations of summer. It was this that caused the hunters' hearts to leap within them as they rode along — that induced old Mr Kennedy to forget his years, and shovit as he had been wont to do in days gone by, when he used to follow the track of the elk, or hunt the wild bufialo ; and it was this that made the otherwise monotonous prairies, on this particular day, so charming. The party had wandered about "vvathout discovering anything that bore the smallest resemblance to a wolf, for upwards of an hour. Fort Gany had fallen astern (to use a nautical phrase) until it had become a mere speck on the horizon, and vanished altogether. Peter Mactavish had twice given a false alarm, in the eagerness of his spirit, and had three times plunged his horse up to the girths in a snow-drift. The senior clerk was waxing impatient, and the horees restive, when a sudden "hallo!" from Mr Grant brought the whole cavalcade to a stand. The object which drew his attention, and to which he directed the anxious eyes of his friends, was a small speck, rather triangular in form, which overtopped a little willow-bush not more than five or six hundred yards distant. " There he is !" exclaimed Mr Grant. " That's a tact," cried Mr Kennedy , and both gentlemen, instantaneously giving a shout, bounded towards the object ; not, how- ever, befoi'e the senior clerk, who was mounted on a fleet and strong hoi'He, had taken the lead by six yards. A. moment afterwards the speck rose up and discovered itself to be a veritable wolf. Moreover, he condescended to shew his teeth, and, then, conceiving it probable that his enemies were too numerous for him, he turned sud- I 46 SMOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS t ;/■*' %. :0i '■# S y5*' :;^ •'i*^ (!*■ #h^.4^^?'^^ ■»•<:?;: ■^'.-■•3r*-' ■t-^v.!, m' i^m^ '^^\ .■,"e<*, r '1*. "SjA ■=!* V*^!'. 18 «.v'm:> ; UK A JUii VP'. ,.i f. , .t«t .'*. %li..»i !• 1 ^v ,, . \jN* HUfht •:''.if;(tJl.y uj baIvu-.-v, a! .li.'UH-ffi-il !*n * . to • j ,..«t» > J'l »> «bc mjuior clerk to ovan^ik^ Itira, »o*i iscad rtu , ♦H-T,-* ^hot into Lis »ide, whioh tunwMi him over .,M .h'>^. how»'ver,]iad a. double eHwt. Ai v"?pt piiPt, >vnd his Atcttlwkyn't.^ *^t*to<;l Ur luud re])ort of tie iOu\ .uy i '. 1 , -idor, Hiid ouusiug liin> iiDiutcntion- ., the congioiiif mtf: of bviiU^ts and Hw»n- . tt.c Hiaik ot'r»*terM!aotavIsU*& hors^; --foiimiaioly . t'lMtiince which reiidcred the shot equivulcut to a 4o/eu very shurp and f»articnliH"ly .■ti/vnfc* '?. ^.' 'u>d f*;ll b»u.k U|j»<»j his rwioi-.iAvho.wns ■ : iho Ml : .'i, of hiilJ • ■ .1, . , . .; . . .;! whether .• .uMi uj>t>«ibvii»g of liirt f'bA>w took ijIjmjw. HUiJ hk d>>ilw»v«}lit?d hcsid H.p|>t^4»(^l, Aitb the t!v ,1,11. wide oj'en, btaviiig on thvm au •^xi/ieshion ttf tiuugUd horror and amazomic^Bt, Mean- wh'ihs tlic «cctmd shot acted likt; a wpxir ou tlie young hf»ri*e, whicli flow pa^t Mr K.^nEut<^l, shirking hi,s ftst at ('hadoy n? he pattsed. iniavley wiw jra^st stopping, miha '■ fthiUi Thi..s sudden .aud iriaa.sW/>i was too 0(iV'> ■ "*iih hi;, bixjwii < with ' * . f.%m ^itt-s 1' n V ■ .jKtutatiou of .ssMxl his aire, (i, and hL' "i^ .Old hi. J "4 5 m i*," CHARLEY TAKcS A BOLD LEAP ON THE "nOO 'OftS." V FftgcSU, '■ ' k horso anitiiii iiidigi FIIOM I'llfi FAR NOUTU. 49 horso tearing along more like an incarnate fiend tlian an animal — a spirit of combined recklessness, consternation, indignation, and glee, took possession of him. He waved his whip wildly over his head, brought it down with a stinging cut on the horse's neck, and uttered a shout of defiance that threw completely into the shade the loudest war-whoop that was ever uttered by the brazen lung- of the wildest savage between Hudson's Bay and Oregon. Seeing and hearing this, old Mr Kennedy wheeled about and dashed off in pursuit with much greater energy than he had displayed in chase of the wolf. The race bade fair to be a long one, for the young hor? u was strong in wind and limb ; and the gray mare, tlv 'Ugli decidedly not " the better horse," was much fresher than the other. The hunters, who were now joined by Harry Sorner- viile, did not feel it incumbent on them to follow this new eliase ; so they contented themselves with watching their flight towards the fort, while they followed at a more lei- surely pace. Meanwhile, Charley rapidly neared lort Garry; and now began to wonder whether the stable door was open ; and, if so, whether it were better for him to take his cjhance of getting his neck broken, or to throw himself into the next snow drift that presented itself. He had not to remain long in suspense. Tbo %'.oodcn fence that enclosed the stable yard lay befo'.e liim. It was between four and five feet high, with a beaten track running along the outr.ide, and a deep snow-drift on the other. Charley felt that the young horse had made up his mind to leap this. As he did not, at the moment, see that there was anything better to be done, he prepared for m ni 50 SNOWFLAKKS AND SUNBEAMS it. As tlie '"')rse bent on liis haunches to spring, he gave him a smart cat with the whip, Avent over like a rocket, and plunged up to the neck in the snow-drift, which Urouglit his career to an abrupt conclusion. The sudden .stoppage of the hoi-se was one thing, but the arresting oi Maater Charley was anotJier, and quite a ditferent tiling. The instant his charger handed, he left the saddle like a harlequin, described an extensive curve in the air, and fell head foremost into the drift, above which his boots and three inches of his legs alone remained to tell the tale. On witnessing this climax, Mr Kennedy, senior, pulled up, dismounted, and ran — with an expression of some anxiety on his countenance — to the helji of his son ; while Tom Whyte came out of the stable just in time to receive the " noo 'oss" as he floundered out of the snow. " I believe," said the groom, as he surveyed the trem- bling charger, '* that your son has broke the noo 'oss, sir, better nor I could 'ave done myself" " I believe that my son has broken his neck," said Mr Kennedy, wrathfully. " Come here and help me to dig liim out." In a few minutes Charley was dug out, in a state of in- sensibility, and carried up to the fort, where he was laid on a bed, antl restoratives actively applied for his recovery. FKOM TlIK FAR NOKTIl. 51 CHAPTER V. Petor Mactuvish becomes an amateur doctor; Charley promiilgates his vipws of things in general to Kate ; and Kate waxes sagacious. Shortly after the catastrophe just related, Charley opened his eyes to consciousness, and aroused himself out of a prolonged fainting fit, under the combined influence of a strong constitution, and the medical treatment of his friends. Mediciil treatment in the wilds of North America, hy the way, is very original in its character, and is founded r>n principles so vague, that no one has ever been found capable of stating them clearly. Owing to the stubborn fact, that there are no doctors in the country, men have been thrown upon their own resources ; and, as a natural consequence, evert/ man is a doctor. True, there ore two, it may be three, real doctors in the Hudson's Bay Com- pany's employment ; but, as one of these is resident on the shores of Hudson's Bay, another in Oregon, and a third in Red River Seifclement, tl^yare not considered available for every case of emergency that may chance to occur in the hundreds of little outposts, scattered far and wide over the whole continent of North America, with miles and miles of primeval wilderness between each. We do not think, therefore, that when we say there are 110 doctors in the country, we use a culpable amount of exaggeration. ijiiiiww I'" * t' V 1 >-. 52 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS f If a man gets ill, he goes on till lie gets better ; and, if lie doesn't get better, lie dies. To avert such an unde- sirable consummation, desperate and random efibrts are made in an amateur way. The old proverb that "ex- tremes meet," is verified. And, in a land where no doctors are to be had for love or money, doctors meet you at every turn, ready to practise on everything, with any- thing, and all for nothing, on the shortest possible notice. As may be supposed, the practice is novel, and, not nn- frequently, extremely wild. Tooth-drawing is considered child's play — mere blacksmith's work ; bleeding is a general remedy for everything, when all else fails ; castor- oil, Epsom salts, and emetics are the three keynotes, the foundations, and the copestones of the system. In lied River there is only one genuine doctor j and, as the settlement is fully sixty miles long, he has enough to do, and cannot always be found when wanted, so that Charley had to rest content with amateur treatment in the mean time. Peter Mactavish was the first to try his powers. He was aware that laudanum had the effect of producing sleep, and, seeing that Charley looked some- what sleepy after recovering consciousness, he thought it advisable to help out that propensity to slumber, and went to the medicine-chest, whence he extracted a small pliial of tincture of rhubarb, the half of which he emptied into a wine-ghiss, vmder the impression that it was laudanum, and poured down Charley's throat ! The poor boy swal- lowed a little, and sputtered the remainder over the bed- clothes. It may be remarked here that Mactavish was a wild, happy, half-mad sort of fellow — wonderfully erudite in regard to some things, and profoundly ignorant in regard to others. WilS satisll frienj a litj gentll Charl <( Medicine, it need scarcely be added, '# FROM THE FAR NORTH. .03 was not his forte. Having accomplished this i(.<\'i to liis satisfaction, lie sat down to watch by the bedsile of his friend. Peter had taken this opportunity to indulge in a little private practice, jnst after several of the other gentlemen had left the office under the impression that Charley had better remain quiet for a short time. " Well, Peter," whispered Mr Kennedy, senior, putting his head in at the door (it was Harry's room in which Charley lay), " how is he now ? " " Oh ! doing capitally," replied Peter, in a hoarse whisper, at the same time rising and entering the office, while he gently closed the door behind him. " T gave him a small dose of physic, which I think has done him good. He's sleeping like a top now." Mr Kennedy frowned slightly, and made one or two remarks in reference to physic, which were not calciilatcd to gratify the ears of a physician. " What did you give him ? " he inquired, abruptly. " Only a little laudanum." " Only, indeed ! it's all trash together, and that's the worst kind of trash you could have given him. Humi)h !" and the old gentleman jerked his shoulders testily. " How much did you give him ?" said the senior clerk, who had entered the apai'tment with Harry a few minutes before. "Not quite a wineglassful," rej)lied Peter, somewhat subdued. " A what !" cried the father, starting from his chair as if he had received an electric shock, and rushing into the adjoining room, up and down which he raved in a state of distraction, being utterly ignorant of what should be done under the circumstances. 1 i )4 k if \ .-..,, J. 5i SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS ( i i' " Oil dear ! " gasped Peter, turning [nile as deatli. Poor Harry Somerville fell rather than leapt off his stool, and dashed into the bedroom, where old Mr Kennedy Wiis occupied in alternately heaping unutterable abuse on the head of Peter Mactavish, and imploring him to advise Nvliat was liest to be done. But Peter knew not. He couhl only make one or two insane proposals to roll Ci^arley about the floor, and see if that would do him any good ; wliile Harry suggested in desperation that he should be hung by the heels, and perhaps it would run out ! Meanwhile the senior clerk seized his hat, with the in- tention of going in search of Tom Whyte, and rushed out at the door ; which he had no sooner done, than he found himself tightly embraced in the arms of that woi-thy, who liappened to be entering at the moment ; and who, in consequence of the sudden onset, was pinned up against the wall of the porch. '■'Oh, my buzzum !" exclaimed Tom, laying his hand on his breast, "you've a'most bu'st me, sir; w'at's wrong, sir?" " Go for the doctor, Tom, quick ! run like the winrightly, clever woman — rather fond of a joke than otherwise — as the term might lead you to ."^uppose. Her corporeal frame was very large, excessively FROM THE FAR NORTH. 09 fat, and remarkably unwieldy j being an appropriate casket in which to enshrine a mind of tlie heaviest anW TM: FAIl NORTH. g:( " Now, Charley, you must not speak so. Fatliei* love>< you tenderly, altliougli he is a little rough nt times. If you only heard how kindly he speaks of you to our mo- ther when you are away, you could not think of giving him so n\uch j)ain. And then, tho Bible says, * n(jnour tliy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee ;' an 1 I / hard, and the sleep that followed it was sound : — scenes and days that were now gone by for ever. Others re- clined against the wooden fence, their arms crossed, their thin white hair waving gently in the breeze, and a kind smile playing on their sunburnt faces, as they observed the swagger and coxcombry of the younger men, or watched the gambols of several dark-eyed little children — embryo buffalo-hunters and voyageurs — whose mothers had brought them to the fort to get a last kiss from papa^ and witness the departure of the boats. Several tender scenes were going on, in out-of-the-way places — in angles of the walls and bastions, or behind the gates — between youthful couples about to be separated for a season. Interesting scenes these of pathos and pleasantry — a combination of soft glances and affectionate, fervent assurances — alternate embraces (that were apparently re- ceived with reluctance, but actually with delight), and proffers of pieces of calico and beads and other trinkets (received both apparently and actually with extreme satis- faction), as souvenirs of happy days that were past, and pledges of unalterable constancy and bright hopes in days that were yet to come. A little apart from tht others, a youth and a girl might be seen sauntering slowly towards the copse beyond the stable. These were Charley Kennedy and his sister Kate, who had retired from the bustling scene to take a last short walk together, ei'e they separated, it might be, for years, perhaps for ever ! Charley held Kate's hand, while her sweet little head rested on his shoulder. " Oh, Charley, Charley, my own dear, darling Charley, I'm quite miserable, and you ought not to go away ; it's very wrong, and I don't mind a bit what you say — I shall or J <-i 1.1 FROM THE FAR NORTH. 91 die if you leave me !" And Kate pressed him tightly to her heart, and sobbed in the depth of her woe. " Now, Kate, my darling, don't go on so ! You know I can't help it '* '% (( I don^t know," cried Kate, inteiTupting him, and speaking vehemently. " I don't know, and I don't be- lieve, and I don't care for anything at all ; it's very hard- hearted of you, and wrong, and not right, and I'm just quite wretched !" P^or Kate was undoubtedly speaking the absolute tnitn j for a more disconsolate and wretched look of woe- begone misery was never seen on so sweet and tender and loveable a little face before. Her blue eyes swam in two lakes of pure crystal, that overflowed continually ; her mouth, which was usually round, had become an elongated oval ; and her nut-brown hair fell in dishevelled masses over her soft cheeks. " Oh, Charley," she continued, " why won't you stay ?" " Listen to me, dearest Kate," said Charley, in a very husky voice. " It's too late to draw back now, even if I wished to do so; and you don't consider, darling, that I'll be back again soon. Besides, I'm a man now, Kate, and I must make my own bread. Who ever heard of a man being supported by his old father ?" " Well, but you can do that here." " Now, don't interrupt me, Kate," said Charley, kissing her forehead ; " I'm quite satisfied with two short legs, and have no desire whatever to make my bread on the top of three long ones. Besides, you know I can write to you ^" *•' But you won't ; you'll forget." " No, indeed, I will not. I'll write you long letters I f {', I . li 92 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS about all that I see and do j and you shall write long letters to me about " " Stop, Charley," cried Kate ; " I won't listen to you. I hate to think of it." And her tears burst forth again with fresh violence. This time Charley's heart sank too. The lump in his throat all but choked him; so he was fain to lay his head upon Kate's heaving bosom, and weep along with her. For a few minutes they remained silent, when a slight rustling in the bushes was heard. In another moment a tall, broad-shouldered, gentlemanly man, dressed in black, stood before them. Charley and Kate, on seeing this personage, arose, and, wiping the tears from their eyes, gave a sad smile as they shook hands with their clergyman. " My poor children," said Mr Addison, affectionately, " I know well why your hearts are sad. May God bless and comfort you ! I saw you enter the wood, and came to bid you farewell, Charley, my dear boy, as I shall not have another opportunity of doing so." " Oh, dear Mr Addison," cried Kate, grasping his hand in both of hers, and gazing imploringly up at him through a perfect wilderness of ringlets and tears, " do prevail upon Charley to stay at home ; please do." Mr Addison could scarcely help smiling at the poor girl's extreme earnestness. " I fear, my sweet child, that it is too late now to attempt to dissuade Charley. Besides, he goes with the consent of his father ; and I am inclined to think that a change of life for a sfiort time may do liim good. Come, Kate, cheer up ! Charley will return to us again ere long, improved, I trust, both physically and mentally." I m FROM THE FAR NORTH. 93 Kate did 7iot cheer up j but she dried her eyes and endeavoured to look more composed, while Mr Addison took Charley by the hand, and, as they walked slowly through the wood, gave him much earnest advice and counsel. The clergyman's manner was peculiar. With a large, warm, generous heart, he possessed an enthusiastic nature, a quick brusque manner, and a loud voice, which, when his spirit was influenced by the strong emotions of pity, or anxiety for the souls of his flock, sunk into a deep soft bass of the most thrilling earnestness. He belonged to the Church of England, but conducted service very much in the Presbyterian form, as being more suited to his mixed congregation. After a long conversation with Charley, he concluded by saying — " I do not care to say much to you about being kind and obliging to all whom you may meet with during your travels, nor about the dangers to which you will be ex- posed, by being thrown into the company of wild and reckless, perhaps very wicked, men. There is but one incentive to every good, and one safeguard against all evil, my boy, and that is the love of God. You may, perhaps, forget much that I have said to you ; but re- member this, Charley, if you would be happy in this world, and have a good hope for the next, centre your heart's affection on our blessed Lord Jesus Christ ; for believe me, boy, his heart's affection is centred upon you." As Mr Addison spoke, a loud hallo from Mr Kennedy apprised them that their time was exhausted, and that the boats were ready to start. Charley sprang towards Kate, locked her in a long, passionate embrace, and then, r I 94 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS \ .'1 t 1 I forgetting Mr Addison altogether in his haste, ran out of the wood, and hastened towards the scene of departure. " Good bye, Charley ! " cried Harry Somerville, mnning up to his friend, and giving him a warm grasp of the liand. " Don't forget mo, Charley. I wish I were going with you, with all my heart ; but I'm an unlucky dog — good bye." The senior clerk and Peter Mactavish had also a kindly word and a cheerful farewell for him as he hurried past. " Good bye, Charley, my lad ! " said old Mr Kennedy, iu an excessivelij loud voice, as if by such means he in- tended to crush back some unusual, but very powerful, feelings that had a peculiar influence on a certain lump in his throat. " Good bye, my lad ; don't forget to write to your old . Hang it ! " said the old man, brushing his coat -sleeve somewhat violently across his eyes, and turning abruptly round as Charley left him and sprang into the boat. " I say. Grant, I — I . "What are you staring at ? — eh ? " The latter part of his speech was addressed, in an angry tone, to an innocent voyageur, who happened accidently to confront him at the moment. " Come along, Kennedy," said Mr Grant, interposing ; and grasping his excited friend by the arm — "Come with me." "Ah, to be sure! — yes!" said he, looking over his shoulder and waving a last adieu to Charley — " Good bye, God bless you, my dear boy ! I say. Grant, come along — quick, man, and let's have a pipe. Yes; let's have a pipe." Mr Kennedy, essaying once more to crush back his rebellious feelings, strode rapidly up the bank, and, entering the house, sought to overwhelm his sorrow in sraok3 : in which attempt he failed. h ■ FBOU THE FAB NORTH. 95 CHAPTER IX Tho Voyage; the Encumpment ; a Surprise. It was a fine sight to see the boats depart for the North. It was a thrilling heart-stirring sight to behold these pic- turesque athletic men, on receiving the word of command from their guides, spring lightly into the long, heavy boats ; to see them let the oars fall into the water with a loud splash ; and then, taking their seats, give way with a will, knowing that the eyes of friends and sweethearts and rivals were bent earnestly upon them. It was a splendid sight to see boat after boat shoot out from the landing-place, and cut through the calm bosom of the river, as the men bent their sturdy backs, until the thick oars creaked and groaned on the gunwales, and flashed in the stream, more and more vigorously at each successive stroke, until their friends on the bank, who were anxious to see the last of them, had to run faster and faster, in order to keep up with them, as the rowers warmed at their work, and made the water gurgle at the bows — their bright blue and scarlet and white trappings reflected in the dark waters in broken masses of colour, streaked with long lines of shining ripples, as if they floated on a lake of liquid rainbows. And it was a glorious thing to hear the wild, plaintive song, led by one clear, sonorous voice, that rang out, full and strong, in the still air, while, at I I I it iif I 96 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS the close of every two lines, the whole brigade bui-st into a loud enthusiastic chonis, that i*olled far and wide over the smooth waters — telling of their approach to settlers beyond the reach of vision in advance, and floating faintly back, a laat farewell, to the listening ears of fathers, mothers, wives, and sisters left behind. And it waa interesting to observe how, as the rushing boats sped onwards past the cottages on shore, groups of men and women and children stood before the open doors, and waved adieu ; while, ever and anon, a solitary voice rang louder than the others in the chorus ; and a pair of dark eyes grew brighter, as a voyageur swept past his home, and recognised his little ones screaming farewell, and seeking to attract their siVe'a attention by tossing their chubby arms, or flourishing round their heads the bright vermilion blades of canoe- paddles. It was interesting, too, to hear the men shout as they ran a small rapid which occurs about the lower part of the settlement, and dashed in fiiU career up to the Lower Fort — ^which stands about twenty miles down the river from Fort Garry — and then sped onward again with unabated energy, until they passed the Indian settle- ment, with its scattered wooden buildings and its small church j passed the last cottage on the bank ; passed the low swampy land at the river's mouth ; and emerged at last, as evening closed, upon the wide, calm, sea-like bosom of Lake Winipeg. Charley saw and heard all this, during the whole of that long, exciting afternoon ; and, as he heard and saw it, his heart swelled as if it would burst its prison-bars ; his voice rang out wildly in the choruses, regardless alike of tune and time, and his spirit boiled within him as he quafied the first sweet draught of a rover's life — a life in '/ FROM THE FAR NORTH. 97 as ] \ in the woods — the wild, free, enchanting woods, where all appeared in his eyes bright, and sunny, and gi-een, and beautiful ! As the sun's last rays sank in the west, and the clouds, losing their crimson hue, began gradually to fade into gray, the boats' heads were turned landward. In a few seconds they grounded on a low point covered with small trees and bushes, which stretched out into the lake. Here Louis Peltier had resolved to bivouac for the night. " Now then, mes garqons" he exclaimed, leaping ashore, and helping to drag the boat a little way on to the beach ; " vite ! vite I a terre I a ierre ! Take the kettle, Pierre, and let's have supper." Pierre needed no second bidding. He grasped a large tin kettle and an axe, with which he hurried into a clump of trees. Laying down the kettle, which he had pre- viously filled with water from the lake, he singled out a dead tree, and with three powerful blows of his axe brought it to the ground. A few additional strokes cut it up into logs, varying from three to five feet in length, which he piled together, first placing a small bundle of dry grass and twigs beneath them, and a few splinters of wood which he cut from off one of the logs. Having accomplished this, Pierre took a flint and steel out of a gaily ornamented pouch, which depended from his waist, and which went by the name of a Jire-bag, in con- sequence of its containing the implements for procuring that element. It might have been as appropriately named tobacco-bog or smoking-bag, however, seeing that such things had more to do with it, if possible, than fire. Having struck a spark, which he took captive by means of a piece of tinder, he placed it in the centre of a very 98 8NOWFLAKE8 AND SUNBEAMS # dry handful of soft grass, and whirled it rapidly round his head, thereby producing a current of air, which blew the spark into a flame ; which, when applied, lighted the grass and twigs ; and so, in a few minutes, a blazing fire roared up among the trees — spouted volumes of sparks into the air, like a gigantic squib, which made it quite a marvel that all the bushes in the neighbourhood were not burnt up at once — glared out red and fierce upon the rippling water, until it became, as it were, red-hot in the neighbourhood of the boats ; and caused the night to become suddenly darker by conti-ast j the night re- ciprocating the compliment, as it grew later, by causing the space around the fire to glow brighter and brighter, until it became a brilliant chamber, surrounded by walls of the blackest ebony. While Pierre was thus engaged, there were at least ten voyageurs similarly occupied. Ten steels were made instrumental in creating ten sparks, which were severally captured by ten pieces of tinder, and whirled round by ten lusty arms, until ten flames were produced, and ten fires sprang up and flared wildly on the busy scene that had a few hours before been so calm, so solitary, and so peaceful, bathed in the soft beams of the setting sun. In less than half-an-hour the several camps were com- pleted ; the kettles boiling over the fires ; the men smoking in every variety of attitude, and talking loudly. It was a cheerful scene j and so Charley thought, as he reclined in his canvas tent, the opening of which faced the fire, and enabled him to see all that was going on. Pierre was standing over the great kettle, dancing round it, and making sudden plunges with a stick into it, in the desperate efibrt to stir its boiling contents — It . FROM THE FAR NORTH. 99 desperate, because the fire was very fierce and largo, and the flames seemed to take a fiendish pleasure in leaping up suddenly just under Pierre's nose, thereby endangering his beard, or shooting out between his legs, and licking round them at most unexpected moments, when the light wind ought to have been blowing them quite in the opposite direction ; and then, as he danced round to the other side to avoid them, wheeling about and roaring viciously in his face, until it seemed as if the poor man would be roasted long before the supper was boiled. Indeed, whau between the ever-changing and violent flames, the rolling smoke, the steam from the kettle, the showering sparks, and the man's own wild grimaces and violent antics, Pierre seemed to Charley like a raging demon, who danced not only round, but above, and on, and through, and in the flames, as if they were his natural element, in which he took special delight. Quite close to the tent, the massive form of Louis the guide lay extended, his back supported by the stump of a tree ; his eyes blinking sleepily at the blaze, and his beloved pipe hanging from his lips, while wreaths of smoke encircled his head. Louis's day's work was done. Few could do a better ; and, when his work was over, Louis always acted on the belief that his position and his years entitled him to rest, and took things very easy in consequence. Six of the boat's crew sat in a semicircle beside the guide and fronting the fire, each paying particular at- tention to his pijie, and talking between the pufis to any one who chose to listen. Suddenly Pierre vanished into the smoke and flames / f 100 8NOWFLAKKS AND SUNBEAMS ^«.- altogother, wlioiico, in uuotlicr niomcut, ho issuoil, bour- iiig iu his hand tho largo tin kotUo, whioh ho dopositod triumphantly at the foot of his couiradea. " Now then," oriod Piorro. It waa unnoccsaary to liavo said ovon tliat much by way of invitation. Voyageurs do not require to have tlioir food pressed upon thorn after a hard day's work. Indeed it was as much as thoy could do to rofmin from laying violent hands on tho kettle long before their v'orthy cook considered its contents sufficiently done. Charley sat in company with Mr Park, — a chief factor, on his way to Norway House. Gibault, one of the men who acted as their servant, had placed a kettle of hot tea before theih, which, vni\\ several slices of buffalo tongue, a lump of pemican, and some hard biscuit and butter, formed their evening meal. Indeed, we may add that these viands, during a great part of the voyage, consti- tuted their every meal. In fact, they had no variety in their fare, except a wild duck or two now and theiij and a goose when they chanced to shoot one. Charley sipped a pannikin of tea as he i-eclined on his blanket, and, being somewhat fatigued in consequence of his exertions and excitement during the day, said nothing. Mr Park for the same reasons, besides being naturally taciturn, was equally mute, so they both enjoyed in silence the spectacle of the men eating their supper. A.nd it was a sight worth seeing. Their food consisted of robbiboo, a compound of flour, pemioan, and water, boiled to the consistency of very thick soup. Though not a species of food that would satisfy the fastidious taste of an epicure, robbiboo is, neverthe- less, very wholesome, exceedingly nutritious, and, withal. PROM THE PAR NORTH. m palatable. Pomican, i^a princiiml oomponent, is made of bufiUlo flosh, which fully ocpials (mtiw think greatly excels) beef. The recipe for /iiuking it 18 aa follows : — First, kill your buffalo — a matter of cousiderablo difli- culty, by the way, as doing so requires you to travel to the buffalo grounds, to arm yourself with a gun, and mount a horse, on which you have to gallop, perhaps, several miles over rough ground and among badger-holes, at the imminent risk of breaking your neck. Then you have to run up alongside of a buffalo and put a ball through his heart, which, apart from the murderous nature of the action, is a diflBcult thing to do. But we will sup- pose that you have killed your buffalo. Then you must skin him ; then cut him up, and slice the flesh into layers, which must be dried in the sun. At this stage of the process, you have produced a substance which, in the fur countries, goes by the name of dried-meat, and is largely used as an article of food. As its name implies, it is very dry, and it is also very tough, and very undesirable if one can manage to procure anything better. But, to proceed. Having thus prepared dried-meat, lay a quan- tity of it on a flat stone, and take another itone, with which pound it into shreds. You must t jii take the animal's hide, while it is yet new, and make bags of it about two feet and a half long, by a foot and a half broad. Into tliis put the pounded meat loosely. Melt the fat of your buffalo over a fire, and, when quite liqmd, pour it into the bag until full ; mix the contents well together ; sew the whole up before it cools, and you have a bag of pemican of about ninety pounds' weight. This forms the chief food of the vo7/ageur, in consequence of its being the largest possible quantity of sustenance I i I H 102 SNOWFLAKKS AND SUNBEAMS compressed into the smallest possible space, and in an ex- tremely convenient, portable shape. It will keep fresh for years, and has been much used, in consequence, by the heroes of arctic discovery, in their perilous journeys along the shores of the frozen sea. The voyageurs used no plates. Men who travel in these countries become independent of many things that are supposed to be necessary here. They sat in a circle round the kettle ; each man armed with a large wooden or pewter spoon, with which he ladled the robbiboo down his capacious tliroat, in a style that not only caused Charley to laugh, but afterwards threw him into a deep reverie on the povers of appetite in general, and the strength of voyageur stomachs in particular. At first the keen edge of appetite induced the men to eat in silence j but, as the contents of the kettle began to get low, their tongues loosened, and at last, when the kettles were emptied and the pipes filled, fresh logs thrown on the fires, and their limbs stretched out around them, the babel of English, French, and Indian that arose was quite overwhelming. The middle-aged men told long stories of what they had done ; the young men boasted of what they meant to do ; while the more aged smiled, nodded, smoked their pipes, put in a word or two as oc- casion offered, and listened. While they conversed, the quick ears of one of the men of Charley's camp detected some unusual sound. " Hist ! " said he, turning his head aside slightly, in a listening attitude, while his comrades suddenly ceased their noisy laugh. " Do ducks travnl in canoes hereabouts ? " said the man, after a moment's silence ; " for, if not, there's some FROM THE FAR NORTH. 103 one about to pay us a visit. I would wager my best gun that I hear the stroke of paddles." " If your ears had been sharper, Francois, you might have heard them some time ago," said' the guide, shaking the aslies out of his pipe and refilling it for the third time. "Ah, Louis, I do not pretend to such shari> ears as you possess, nor to such sharp wit either. But who do you think can be (ti route so late ? " " That my wit does not enable me to divine," said Louis; "but it /ou have any faith in the sharpness of your eyes, I would recommend you to go to the beach and see, as the best and shortest way of finding out." By this time the m-en had risen and were peering out into the gloom in the direction whence the sound came, while one or two sauntered down to the margin of the lake to meet the new-comers. " Who can it be, I wonder ? " said Charley, who had left the tent, and was now standing beside the guide. " Difficult to say, monsieur. Perhaps Injins ; though I thought there were none here just now. But I'm not surprised that we've attracted something to us. Livin' creeturs always come nat'rally to the light, and there's plenty fire on the point to-night." " Eather more than enough," replied Charley, abruptly, as a slight motion of wind sent the flames curling round his head and singed off his eye-lashes. " Why, Louis, it's my firm belief that if I ever get to the end of this journey, I'll not have a hair left on my head." Louis smiled. " Oh, monsieur, you will learn to ohserve tilings before .-' I 104 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS If M i 'i you have been long in the wilderness. If you will edge round to leeward of the fire, you can't expect it to respect you." Just at this moment a loud hurrah rang through the copse, and Harry Somerville sprang over the fire into the ai'ms of Charley, who received him with a hug and a look of unutterable amazement. " Charley, my boy ! " " Harry Somerville, I declare ! " For at least five minutes Charley could not recover his composure suflSciently to declare anything else, but stood with open mouth and eyes, and elevated eyebrows, look- ing at his young friend, who capered and danced round die fire in a manner that threw the cook's performances in that lin^ quite into the shade ; while he continued all the time to shout fragments of sentences that were quite unintelligible to any one. It was evident that Harry was in a state of immense delight at something unknown, save to himself, but which, in the course of a few minutes, was revealed to his wondering friends. " Charley, I'm going ! hurrah ! " and he leaped about in a manner that induced Charley to say, he would not only be going but very soon gone, if he did not keep further away from the fire. " Yes, Charley, I'm going with you ! I upset the stool ; tilted the ink-bottle over the invoice book ; sent the poker almost through the back of the fire-place, and smashed Tom Whyte's best whip on the back of the * noo 'oss' as I galloped him over the plains for the last time — all for joy, because I'm going with you, Charley, my darling !" Here Harry suddenly threw his arms round his friend's wmmmm FROM THE FAR NORTH. 105 neck meditating an embrace. As both boys were rather fond of using their muscles violently, the embrace degeno- I'ated into a wrestle, which caused them to threaten com- plete destructioa to the fire as they staggered in front of it, and ended in their tumbling against the tent and nearly breaking its poles and fastenings, to the horror and indignation of Mr Park, who was smoking his pipe within, quietly waiting till Harry's superabundant gleo was over, that he might get an explanation of his un- expected arrival among them. " Ah ! they will be good voyageurSy^ cried one of the men, as he looked on at this scene. " Oui ! oui ! good boys, active lads," replied the others, laughing. The two boys rose hastily. " Yes," cried Harry, breathless, but still excited, " I'm going all the way, and a great deal farther. I'm going to hunt buffaloes in the Saskatchewan, and grizzly bears in the — the — in fact everywhere ! I'm going down the Mackenzie River — I'm going mad, I believe ;" and Harry gave another caper and another shout, and tossed his cap high into the air : having been recklessly tossed, it came down into the fire : — ^when it went in it was dark blue, but when Harry dashed into the flames, in con- sternation, to save it, it came out of a rich brown colour. "Now, youngster," said Mr Park, "when yovi've done capering I should like to ask you one or two questions. What brought you hei*e ?" " A canoe," said Hariy, inclined to be impudent. " Oh ! and pray, for what purpose have you come here ?" " These are my credentials," handing him a letter. Mr Park opened the note and read. " Ah ! oh ! Saskatchewan — hum — yes — outpost — ^wild I i I I 106 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS boy — just 80 — ^keep him at it — ay ! fit for nothing else. So," said Mr Park, folding the paper, " I find that Mr Grant has sent you to take the place of a young gentle- man we expected to pick up at Norway House, but who is required elsewhere ; and that he wiBhcis you to see a good deal of rough life — to be made a trader of, in fact. Ta that your desire ?" " That's the very ticket !" replied Harry, scarcely able to restrain his delight at the prospect. " "Well, then, you had better get supper and turn in, for you'll have to begin your new life by rising at three o'clock to-morrow morning. Have you got a tent ?" " Yes," said Harry, pointing to his canoe, which had been brought to the fire and turned bottom up by the two Indians to whom it belonged, and who were reclining under its shelter enjoying their pipes, and watching with looks of great gravity the doings of Harry and his friend. " That will return whence it came to-morrow. Have vou no other ?" " Oh, yes," said Harry, pointing to the overhanging branches of a willow close at hand, " lots more." Mr Park smiled grimly, and turning on his heel re- entered the tent and continued his pipe, while Harry flung himself down beside Charley under the bark canoe. This species of " tent" is, however, by no means a per- fect one. An Indian canoe is seldom three feet broad — frequently much narrower — so that it only afibrds shelter for the body as far down as the waist, leaving the extremities exposed. True, one may double up as nearly as possible into half one's length, but this is not a desirable position to maintain throughout an entire night. Some- times, when the weather is very bad, an additional pro- FROM THE FAB NORTH. 107 tection is procured by leaning several poles against the bottom of the canoe, on the weather side, in such a way as to slope considerably over the front ; and over these aro spread pieces of birch bark or branches and moss, so as to form a screen, which is an admirable shelter. But this involves too much time and labour to be adopted during a voyage, and is only done when the travellers are under the necessity of remaining for some time in one place. The canoe in which Harry arrived was a pretty large one, and looked so comfortable when arranged for the night, that Charley resolved to abandon his own tent and Mr Pai'k's society, and sleep with his friend. " I'll sleep with you, Harry, my boy," said he, after Harry had explained to him in detail the cause of his being sent away from Red River; which was no other than that a young gentleman, as Mr Park said, who ivas to have gone, had been ordered elsewhere. " That's right, Charley, spread out our blankets, while I get some supper, like a good fellow." Harry went in search of the kettle while his friend prepared their bed. First, he examined the ground on which the canoe lay, and found that the two Indians had already taken posses- sion of the only level places under it. " Humph !" he ejaculated, half inclined to rouse them up, but imme- diately dismissed the idea as unworthy of a voijageur. Besides, Charley Wiis an amiable, unselfish fellow, and would rather have lain on the top of a dozen stumps than have made himself comfortable at the expense of any one else. He paused a moment to consider. On one side was a hollow, "that," (as he soliloquised to himself) " would break the back of a buffalo." On the other side 1 1 Si 108 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS were a dozen little stumps surrounding three very pro- minent ones, that threatened destruction to the ribs of any one who should venture to lie there. But Charley did not pause to consider long. Seizing his axe, he laid about him vigorously with the head of it, and in a few seconds destroyed all the stumps, which he carefully col- lected, and, along with some loose moss and twigs, put into the hollow, and so filled it up. Having improved things thus fai', he rose and strode out of the circle of light into the wood. In a few minutes he re-appeared, bearing a young spruce-fir tree on his shoulder, which, with the axe, he stripped of its branches. These branches were flat in form, and elastic — admirably adapted for making a bed on ; and when Charley spread them out under the canoe in a pile of about four inches in depth, by four feet broad, and six feet long, the stumps and the hollow were over- whelmed altogether. He then ran to Mr Park's tent, and fetched thence a small flat bundle, covered with oil- cloth, and tied with a rope. Opening this, he tossed out its contents, vhich were two large and very thick blankets — one green, the other white ; a particularly minute feather pillow, a pair of moccasins, a broken comb, and a bit of soap. Then he opened a similar bundle, containing Harry's bed, which he likewise tossed out ; and then kneeling down, he spread the two white blankets on the top of the branches, the two green blankets above these, and the two pillows at the top, as far under the shelter of the canoe as he could push them. Having comj/'cisd the whole in a manner that would have done credit to a chambermaid, he continued to sit on his knees, with his hands in his pockets, smiling complacently, and saying, *' capital — first-rate ! " FROM THE FAR NORTH. 109 ree very pro- 3 the ribs of But Charley axe, he laid md in a few carefully col- vigs, put into )roved things of light into ;d, bearing a with the axe, were flat in iiaking a bed ier the canoe ir feet broad, (V were over- Park's tent, ■ed with oil- le tossed out lick blankets arly minute comb, and a containing and then kets on the ibove these, be shelter of mp'ctsd the credit to a es, with his and saying, 1 I ' Here we are, Charley. Have a second supper — do ! " Harry placed the smoking kettle by the head of the bed j and squatting down beside it, began to eat, as only a boy can eat who has had nothing since breakfast. Charley attacked the kettle too — as he said, " out of sympathy," although he "wasn't hungry a bit." And really, for a man who was not hungry, and had supped half-an-hour before, the appetite of sympathy was wonder- fully strong. But Harry's powers of endurance were now exhausted. He had spent a long day of excessive fatigue and excite- ment, and, having wound it up with a heavy supper, sleep began to assail him with a fell ferocity that nothing could resist. He yawned once or twice, and sat on the bed blinking unmeaningly at the fire, as if he had some- thing to say to it, which he could not recollect just then. He nodded violently, much to his own surprise, once or twice, and began to address remarks to the kettle instead of to his friend. " I say, Charley, this won't do. I'm off to bed ! " and, suiting the action to the word, he took oiF his coat and placed it on his pillow. He then removed his moccasins, which were wet, and put on a dry pair ; and this being all that is ever done in the way of prepara- tion before going to bed in the woods, he lay down and pulled the green blankets over him. Before doing so, however, Harry leant his head on his hands and prayed. This was the one link left of the chain of habit with which he had left home. Until the period of his departure for the wild scenes of the North- west, Harry had lived in a quiet, happy home in the "West Highlands of Scotland, where he had been surrounded by the benign influences of a family, the members of which 110 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS »• " were united by the sweet bonds of Christian love — bonds which were strengthened by the additional tie of amia- bility of disposition. From childhood he had been accus- tomed to the routine of a pious and well-regulated house- liold, where the Bible was perused and spoken of with an interest that indicated a genuine hungering and thirsting after righteousness, and where the name of Jesus sounded often and sweetly on the ear. Under such training, Harry, though naturally of a wild, volatile disposition, was deeply and in-esistibly impressed with a reverence for sacred things, which, now that he was thousands of miles away from his peaceful home, clung to him with the force of old habit and association, despite the jeers of comrades, and thte e\dl influences and ungodliness by which he was surrounded. It is true that he was not altogether unhurt by the withering indifference to God that he beheld on all sides. Deep impression is not renewal of heart. But early training in the path of Christian love saved him many a deadly fall. It guarded him from many of the grosser sins into which other boys, who had merely broken away from the restraints of home, too easily fell. It twined round him — as the ivy encircles the oak — with a soft, tender, but powerful grasp, that held him back when he was tempted to dash aside all restraint — and held him up, when, in the weakness of his human nature, he was about to fall. It exerted its benign sway over him in the silence of night, when his thoughts reverted to home, and during his waking hours, when he wandered from scene to scene in the wide wilderness ; and in after years, when sin pre- vailed, and intercourse with rough men had worn off much of at least the superficial amiability of his character, and to some extent blunted the finer feelings of his nature, 1 PROM THE FAR NORTH. Ill love — ^bonds tie of amia- l been accus- ilated house- n of with an tnd thirsting ssus sounded ning, Harry, L, was deeply 3 for sacred miles away the force of )f comrades, hich he was >ther unhurt •elield on all icart. But saved him lany of the rely broken It twined vith a soft, ck when he eld him up, 3 was about I the silence and during ne to scene len sin pre- rn off much *acter, and his nature, it clung faintly to him still, in the memory of his mother's gentle look and tender voice, and never forsook him alto- gether. Home had a blessed and powerful ii.1uenco on Harry. May God bless such homes, where the ruling l)Ower is love I G od bless and multiply such homes in the earth ! "Were there more of them, there would be fewer heaiii-broken mothei-s, to weep over the memory of the blooming, manly boys they sent away to foreign climes — with trembling hearts, but high hopes — and never saw them more. They were vessels launched upon the troubled sea of time, with stout timbera, firm masts, and gallant sails — with all that was necessary above and below, from stem to stern, for battling with the billows of advei-se foi-tune, for stemming the tide of opposition, for riding the storms of persecution, or bounding with a press of canvas before the gales of prosjierity ; but without the rudder — without the guiding principle that renders the great power of plank and sail and mast available; with which the vessel moves obedient to the o-svner's willj without which, it diifts about with every current, and sails along with every sliiffcing wind that blows. Yes ; may the best blessings of prosperity and peace rest on such families, whose bread, cast continually on the waters, returns to them after many days ! After Harry had lain down, Charley, who did not feel inclined for repose, sauntered to the margin of the lake, and sat down upon a rock. It was a beautiful calm evening. The moon shone faintly tlirough a mass of heavy clouds, casting a pale light on the waters of Lake Winipeg, which stretched, without a ripple, out to the distant horizon. The great fresh-water lakes of America bear a stroncf resemblance I ' 112 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS to the sea, lu storms the waves rise mountains high, and break with heavy sullen roar upon a beach, com- posed, in many places, of sand and pebbles ; while they are so large that one not only looks out to a straight horizon, but may even sail out of sight of land altogether. As Charley sat resting his head on his hand, and listening to the soft hiss that the ripples made upon the beach, he felt all the solemnising influence that steals irresistibly over the mind as we sit on a still night gazing out upon the moonlit sea. His thoughts were sad ; for he thought of Kate, and his mother and Either, and the iiome ho was now leaving. He remembered all that he had ever done to injure or annoy the dear ones he was leaving ; and it is strange how much alive our consciences become, when we are unexpectedly or sud- denly removed from those with whom we have lived and held daily intercourse. How bitterly ^\ti reproach our- selves for harsh words, unkind actions ; and how intensely we long for one word more with them, one fervent embrace, to prove at once that all we have ever said or done was not meant ill ; and, at any rate, is deeply, sincerely repented of now ! As Charley looked up into the starry sky, his mind recurred to the parting words of Mr Addison. With uplifted hands and a full heart, he prayed that God would bless, for Jesus' sake, the beloved ones in Red River, but especially Kate ; for, whether hs prayed or meditated, Charley's thoughts always ended with Kate. A black cloud passed across the moon, and reminded him that but a few hours of the night remained; so, hastening up to the camp again, he lay gently down beside his friend, and drew the green blanket over him. !.f mOM THE FAR NORTH. 113 ains high, ach, oom- '^hile they a straight together, land, and upon the lat steals till night fhts were id &t!ier, berf.d all lear ones ilive our T or sud- feved and •ach oiir- intensely 1 fervent ' said or deeply, ked up parting d a full sake, Kate ; ioughts oiinded ed; so, down him. In the camp all was silent. The men had chosen their several beds according to fancy, under the shadow of a bush or tree. The fires had burnt low — so low, that it was with difficulty Charley as he lay could discern the recumbent forms of the men, whose presence was in- dicated by the deep, soft, regular breathing of tired, but healthy constitutions. Sometimes a stray moonbeam shot through the leaves and branches, and cast a ghost-liko, flickering light over the scene, which ever and anon was rendered more mysterious by a red flare of the fire as an ember fell, blazed up for an instant, and left all shrouded in greater darkness than before. At first, Charley continued his sad thoughts, staring all the while at the red embere of the expiring fire ; but soon his eyes began to blink, and the stumps of trees began to assume the form of voyageurs, and voyageurs to look like stumps of trees. Then a moonbeam darted in, and Mr Addison stood on the other side of the fire. At this sight Charley started, and Mr Addison dis- appeared, while the boy smiled to think how he had been dreaming while only half-asleep. Then Kate appeared, and seemed to smile on him ; but another ember fell, and another red flame spi*ang up, and put her to flight too. Then a low sigh of wind rustled through the branches, and Charley felt sure that he saw Kate again coming thi-ough the woods, singing the low, soft tune that she was so fond of singing, because it was his own favourite air. But soon the air ceased; the fire faded away ; so did the trees, and the sleeping voyageurs ', Kate last of all dissolved, and Charley sank into a deep, untroubled slumber. 114 BNOWFLAKES AND SUNBRAM4 CHAPTER X. [Vf VHrletles, Vexations, and Vicissitudes. Life is chequered — there is no doubt about that ; what- ever doubts a man may entertain upon other subjects, he can have none upon thifj, we feel quite certain. In fact, 80 true is it, that we would not for a moment have drawn the reader's attention to it here, were it not that our experience of life in the backwoods corroborates the truth — and truth, however well corroborated, is none the worse of getting a little additional testimony now and then, in this sceptical generation. Life is chequered, then, undoubtedly. And life in the \)ackwoods strengthens the proverb, for it is a peculiarly striking and remarkable specimen of life's variegated character. There is a difference between sailing smoothly along the shores of Lake Winipeg with favouring breezes, and being tossed on its surging billows by the howling of a nor'-west wind, that threatens destruction to the boat, or forces it to seek shelter on the shore. This difference is one of the chequered scenes of which we write, and one that was experienced by the brigade more than once, during its passage across the lake. Since we are dealing in truisims, it may not, perhaps, be out of place here to say, that going to bed at night is not by any means getting up in the morning — at least so several of our friends found to be the case, when the deep t;( FROM THE FAB NORTH. 110 8onoroi]» voice of Louis Peltier sounded through the camp on the oUowing morning, just as a very faint, scarcely perceptible, light tinged the eastern sky. " Ldve ! leve ! 16ve 1" he cried, " 10 ve ! 16 ve ! moa enfans !" Some of Louis' infants replied to the summons in a way that would have done credit to a harlequin. One or two active little Canadians, on hearing the cry of the awful word, leve, rose to their feet with a quick bound, as if they had been keeping up an appeai'anco of sleep as a sort of practical joke all night, on purpose to be ready to leap as the fii-st sound fell from the guide's lips. Others lay still, in the same attitude in which they had fallen asleep, having made up their minds, apparently, to lie there in spite of all the guides in the world. Not a few got slowly into the sitting position, their hair dishevelled, their caps awry, their eyes alternately winking very hard and staring awfully in the vain effort to keep open, and their whole physiognomy wearing an expression of blank stupidity that is peculiar to man when engaged in that struggle which occurs each morning aa he endeavours to disconnect and shake off the entanglement of nightly dreams, and the realities of the breaking day. Through- out the whole camp there was a low muffled sound, as of men moving lazily, with broken whispers and disjointed sentences uttered in very deep hoarse tones, mingled with confused, unearthly noises, which, upon consideration, sounded like prolonged yawns. Gradually these sounds increased, for the guide's " leve" is inexorable, and the voyageur'a fate inevitable. " Oh, dear ! — ^yei a — a ow" (j/awning); " hang your lever I '• 1 I I. i 116 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS (( Oui, vraiment — ^yei a — a ow — morLleu ! " Eh, what's that 1 Oh, mis^re ! " " Tare an' ages !" (from an Irishman), " an' I had only got to slaape yit ! but — ^yei a — a ow ! " French and Irish yawns are very similar, the only difference being, that whereas the Frenchman finishes the yawn resignedly, and springs to his legs, the Irishman finishes it with an energetic gasp, as if he were hurling it remonstratively into the face of Fate, turns round again and shuts his eyes doggedly — a piece of bravado which he knoiL's is useless and of very short duration. " Love ! 15ve ! ! leve ! ! !" There was no mistake this time in the tones of Louis's voice. " Embark, embark, vifce! vite!"' The subdued sounds of rousing broke into a loud buzz of active preparation, as the men busied themselves in bundling up blankets, carrying down camp-kettles to the lake, launching the boats, kicking up lazy comrades, stumbling over and swearing at fallen trees which were not visible in the cold uncertain light of the early dawn, searching hopelessly, among a tangled conglomeration of leaves and broken branches and crushed herbage, for lost pipes and missing tobacco-pouches. " Hallo ! " exclaimed Harry Somerville, starting sud- denly from his sleeping posture, and unintentionally cramming his elbow into Charley's mouth, "I declare they're all up and nearly ready to start." " That's no reason," replied Charley, " why you should knock ou+^^ all my front teeth, is it ? " Just then Mr Park issued from his tent, dressed and ready to step into his boat. He first gave a glance round the camp to see that all the men were moving, then he i:^ FBOM THE FAR NORTH. 117 looked up tlirough the trees to ascertain the present state, and, if possible, the future prospects of the weather. Having come to a satisfactory conclusion on that head, he drew forth his pipe and began to fill it, when his eye fell on the two boys, who were still sitting up in their lairs, and staring idiotically at the place where the fire had been, as if the white ashes, half-burnt logs, and bits of charcoal, were a sight of the most novel and interesting character, that filled them with intense amazement. Mr Park could scarce forbear smiling. " Hallo, youngsters, precious voyageurs you'll make, to be sure, if this is the way you're going to begin. Don't you see that the things are all aboard, and we'll be ready to start in five minutes, and you sitting there with your neckcloths ofi"?" Mr Park gave a slight sneer when he spoke of neckcloths^ as if he thought, in the first place, that they were quite superfluous portions of attire, and, in the second place, that, having once put them on, the taking of them off at night was a piece of effeminacy altogether unworthy of a Nor'wester. Charley and Harry needed no second rebuke. It flashed instantly upon them that, sleeping comfortably under their blankets when the men were bustling about the camp, was extremely inconsistent with the heroic resolves of the previous day. They sprang up, rolled their blankets in the oil-cloths, which they fastened tightly with ropes ; tied the neckcloths, held in such con- tempt by Mr Park, in a twinkling ; threw on their coats, and in less than five minutes were ready to embark. They then found that they might have done things more leisurely, as the crews had not yet got all their traps on 118 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS board, so tliey began to look around them, and discovered that each had omitted to pack up a blanket. Very much crestfallen at their stupidity, they pro- ceeded to untie the bundles again, when it became apparent to the eyes of Charley that his friend had put on his capote inside out, which had a peculiarly ragged and grotesque effect. These mistakes were soon rectified, and shouldering their beds, they carried them down to the boat, and tossed them in. Meanwhile Mr Park, who had been watching the movements of the boys with a peculiar smile, that filled them with confusion, went round the different camps to see that nothing was left be- hind. The men were all in their places with oars ready, and the boatiS floating on the calm water, a yard or two from shore, with the exception of the guide's boat, the stern of which still rested on the sand awaiting Mr Park. " Who does this belong to ?" shouted that gentleman, holding up a cloth cap, part of which was of a mottled brown and part deep blue. Harry instantly tore the covering from his head, and discovered that among his numerous mistakes he had put on the head-dress of one of the Indians who had brought him to the camp. To do him justice, the cap was not unlike his own, excepting that it was a little more mottled and dirty in colour, besides being decorated with a gaudy but very much crushed and broken feather. " You had better change with our friend here, I think," said Mr Park, grinning from ear to ear, as he tossed the cap to its owner, while Harry handed the other to the Indian, amid the laughter of the crew. " Never mind, boy," added Mr Park, in an encouraging tone, "you'll make a voyngeur yet. Now then, lads, i:i FROM THE FAR NORTH. 119 give way," and, with a nod to the Indians, who stood on the sho ^e watching their departure, the trader sprang into the boat and took his place beside the two boys. " Ho ! sing, mes gargons," cried the guide, seizing the massive sweep and directing the boat out to sea. At this part of the lake there occurs a deep bay or iulet, to save rounding which travellei"s usually strike straight across from point to point, making what is called in voyageur parlance a traverse. These traverses are sub- jects of considerable anxiety, and frequently of delay to travellers, being sometimes of considerable extent, varying from four and five, — and, in such immense seas as Lake Superior, — to fourteen miles. With boats, indeed, there is little to fear, as the inland craft of the fur-traders can stand a heavy sea, and often ride out a pretty severe storm ; but it is far otherwise with the bark canoes that are often used in travelling. These frail craft can stand very little sea, — their frames being made of thin flat slips of wood and sheets of bark, not more than a quarter of an inch thick, which are sewed together with the fibrous roots of the pine (called by the natives wattape), and rendered watertight by means of melted gum. Although light and buoyant, therefore, and extremely useful in a country where portages are numerous, they require very tender usage ; and when a traverse has to be made, the guides have always a grave consultation with some of the most sagacious among the men, as to the probability of the wiiid rising or falling ; — consultations which are more or less marked by anxiety and tediousness in proportion to the length of the traverse, the state of the weather, and the courage or timidity of the guides. On the present occasion there was no consultation, as M V i i (,' I ,t ■ 1 1 i r I 120 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS has been already seen. The traverse was a sliort one, tlie morning fine, and the boats good. A warm glow began to overspread the horizon, giving promise of a splendid day, as the numerous oars dipped with a plash and a loud hiss into the water, and sent the boats leaping forth upon the white wave. " Sing, sing !" cried the guide again, and clearing hia throat, he began the beautiful quick-tuned canoe song, " Rose Blanche," to which the men chorused with such power of lungs, that a family of plovers which, up to that time, had stood in mute astonishment on a sandy point, tumbled precipitately into the water, from which they rose with a shrill, inexpressibly wild, plaintive cry, and fled screaming away to a more secure refuge among the reeds and sedges of a swamp. A number of ducks too, awakened by the unwonted sound, shot suddenly out from the concealment of their n ght's bivouac with erect heads and startled looks, spluttered heavily over the surface of their liquid bed, and rising into the air, flew in a wide circuit, with whistling wings, away from the scene of so much uproar and confusion. The rough voices of the men grew softer and softer, as the two Indians listened to the song of their departing fn'finds, mellowing down and becoming more harmonioViS and more plaintive as the distance increased, anc! the boats grew smaller and smaller, until they were lost in the blaze of light that now bathed both water and sky in the eastern horizon, and began rapidly to climb the zenith, while the sweet tones became less and less audible as they floated faintly across the still water, and melted at last into the deep silence of the wilderness. The two Indians still stood, with downcast heads and I ) FROM THE FAR NORTH. 121 listening ears, as if they loved the last echo of the dying music, while their grave, statue-like forms, added to, ratlier than detracted from, the solitude of the deserted scene. 9 1 122 SNOWFLAKCS AND SUNBEAMS I 'U i « u? li CHAPTEE Xr. Charley and Harry begin their sporting career, without much success; '\Vhi>ky-John catching. The place in the boats usually allotted to gentlemen in the Company's service while travelling is the stern. Here the lading is so arranged as to form a pretty level hollow, where the flat bundles containing their blankets are placetl, and a couch is thus formed that rivals Eastern effeminacy in luxuriance. There are occasions, however, when this couch is converted into a bed, not of thorns exactly, but of corners ; and, really, it would be hard to say which of the two is the more disagreeable. Should the men be careless in ai"ranging the cargo, the inevitable consequence is, that " monsieur" will find the leg of an iron stove, the sharp edge of a keg, or the corner of a wooden box, occupying the place where his ribs should be. So common, however, is this occurrence that the clerks usually superintend the armngements themselves, and so secure comfort. On a couch, then, of this kind, Charley and IJarry now found themselves constrained to sit all morning ; sometimes asleep, occasionally awake, and always earnestly desiring that it was time to put ashore for breakfast, as they had now travelled for four hours without halt, except twice for about five minutes, to let the men light their pipes. FROM THE FxVR NORTH. 123 I success; " Charley," s As Harry spoke, a small white gull, with hright red legs and beak, flew over the boat so close to them that, as the guide remarked, " he could see it wink !" Charley s equanimity, already pretty well disturbed, was entirely upset at the suddenness of the bird's appearance, for he had been gazing intently at the rock when his friend's exclamation drew his attention in time to see the gull within about four feet of his head. With a sudden " Oh ! " Charley threw forward his gun, took a short, wavering aim, and blew the cocktail feather out of Bap- tiste's hat, while the gull sailed tranquilly away, as much as to say, " If that's all you can do, there's no need for me to hurry !" " Confound the boy !" cried Mr Park ; " you'll be the death of some one yet. I'm convinced of that." " Parbleu ! you may say that, c'est vrai," remarked the voyageur, with a rueful gaze at his hat, which, besides having its ornamental feather shattered, was sadly cut up about the crown. The poor lad's face became much redder than the legs or beak of the gull as he sat down in confusion, which he sought to hide by busily reloading his gun ; while the men indulged in a somewhat witty and sarcastic criticism of his powers of shooting, remarking, in flattering terms, on ill} precision of the shot that blew Baptiste's feather into atoms, and declaring that if every shot he fired was as truly aimed, he would certainly be the best in the country. Baptiste also came in for a share of their repartee. " It serves you right," said the guide, laughing, " for wearing such things on the voyage. You should put away such foppery till you return to the settlement, where there are girls to admire you." (Baptiste had coii- 12G SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAM?} u ). tiuuccl to wear tlie tall hat, oniaineiited with gold cordd ami tassels, with which he had left lied llivei-.) " Ah !" cried another, pulling vigorously at his oar, " I fear that Mai'ie won't look at you, now that all your beauty's gone." " 'Tis not (juite gone," said a third ; *' there's all the brim and half a tassel left, besides the wreck of the remainder." *' Oh ! I can lend you a few fragments," retorted Bap- tiste, endeavouring to i)ariy some of the thioists. " Tluy would improve you vastly." " No, no, friend, gather them up and replace them ; they will look more picturesque and becoming now. I believe if you had worn them much longer all the men in tlie Ijoat would have fallen in love with you." " By St Patrick," said IVIike Brady — an Irishman who sat at the oar immediately behind the unfortunate Cana- dian — " there's more than enough o' rubbish scattered over mysilf nor would do to stuff a fither bed with." As Mike spoke, he collected the fragments of feathei's and ribbons with which the \inlucky shot had strewn him, and placed them slyly on the top of the dilapidated hat, which Baj^tiste, after clearing away the wreck, had replaced on his head. " It's very purty," said Mike, as the action was received by the crew with a shoiit of merriment. Baptiste ,/as waxing wrathful under this fire, when the general attention was drawn again towaixls Charley and his friend, who, having now got close to the rock, had quite forgotten their mishap in the excitement of ex- pectation. This excitement in the shooting of such small game FROM THE FAR NOIlTlf. 127 iiiiglit jicrLiips surprise our rcjulcrs, did we not ficcjuaint tiiem witli the fact that neitlier of the hoys had, up to tliat time, enjoyed much opportunity of shooting. It is true that Harry had once or twice borrowed the fowling- piece of the senior clerk, and had sallied forth with a beating heart to pursue the grouse which are found in the belt of woodland skirting the Assinaboine river, near to Fort Garry. But these expeditious were of rare occur- rence, and thev had not sutHced to rub off much of the bounding excitement with which he loaded and fired at anything and everything that came within range of liisj gun. Charley, on the other liand, had never fired a shot before, except out of an old horse-pistol ; having, up to this period, been busily engaged at school, except during the holidays, which he always spent in the society of his sister Kate, whose tastes were not such as were likely to induce him to take up the gun, even if he had possessed siicli a weapon. Just before leaving Red River his father presented him with his own gun, remarking, as he did so, with a sigh, that his day was past now ; and adding, that the gun was a good one for shot or ball, and if he (Charley) brought do^vn half as much game with it as he (Mr Ken- nedy) had brought down in the course of his life, he might consider himself a o, "■Ic shot, undoubtedly. It was not surprising, liierefore, that the two friends went nearly mad with excitation when the whole flock oi gulls rose into the air like a white cloud, and sailed in endless circles and gvi'ations above and around their heads ; — flying so close at times that they might almost have been caught by the hand. Neither was it surprising that innumerable shots were fired, by both sportsmen, without a single bird being a whit the worse for it, nor U>8 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS thoiriHolvos miicli the bettor ; the energetic efl^jrts iniule to liit being rendered abortive by the very cagerne^ia whicli caused tlieni to miss. And this whs the less extra- ordinary, too, when it is remembered that Harry in his haste loaded several times without shot, and Charley rendered the I'ight barrel of his gnu hors de combat at last, by ramming down a charge of shot and omitting powder altogether, whereby he snapped and prime»l, and snapped and primed again, till ho grew desperate, and then sus- picious of the true cause, which he finally rectified with much ditEculty. Frequently the gulls flew straight over the heads of the youtlis, which produced peculiar consequences — as, in such Cii^es, they took aim while the birds were approach- ing, but being somewhat slow at taking aim, the gidls were almost perpendiculai'ly above them ere they were ready to shoot, so that they were obliged to fire liastily in ho2)e, feeling that they were losing their balance, or give up the chance altogether. Mr Park sat grimly in his place all the while, enjoying the scene, and smoking. " Now then, Charley," said he ; " take that fellow." " Which ? Where ? Oh ! if I could only get one" said Charley, looking up eagerly at the screaming birds, at which he had been staring so long, in their varying and crossing flight, that his sight had become hopelessly unsteady. " There ! Look sharp ; fire away ! " Bang went Charley's piece, as he spoke, at a gull which flew straight towards him, but so rapidly that it was directly above his head ; indeed, he was leaning a little backwards at the moment, which caused him to \ I 'fTorts inado f cagoriV'NS 3 less extra- liny in his i:- &:. M^ M -tft'. *»ir^-"-**i', ^.. J'- ^' •t ■J ! T ii I I It i^fcastanlwi I' i f " 1 •> S.SOATLAKKS AlsD SUM>i;".VM3 ihoni'"' '— fji-,;i.;h tliu 'Miittev; the encigctic efloi-ts made V'. Ji f: reJuoiub«-M('d tliat Harrv iii his <- ;] •:-in'.'« sv'itliont .shot, and '.'harley ' ' ,t: 1 'A KLs git"; / ri (!<' rnrnhnt at last, ,. i';,r.. ;-• . ■„■,'■, -4 ;-iM,5-»'' •'• '^^^i -t ar..J 'liiiiltxtiu powdov .. •. ,,., '.( - v h' ■ •. • \;\>i''i ixvA i>rini',.-d. and snapped ;,,, • V ' . v^'i iii: /;'-•-■■■ f|f:-.]/»'(tM^ and then ^iis- ,.•■.•...> .f tjM'. « -uc (■« dmculty I'.'T jiu'iiliy ti'.e p:'ii.lB f!;!sr straight wvor ihu head.-} of t!i'; v.ok aim wad- tlu' Mrds-- woi'<«, appiviuoJi- in«^, but beiiig ^^(.lat wlia' slow at fakitiq ;d:n, the gnil.s wero aliDOt.' ]'.'.p'^'''!v:iug th(:u balau':'.', or ^ivo !•/*.<' 'lA the Nvhiie, enjoyiug *.i> ',»-■ ^.< 'J. ■•• ft •uiu ;a: . *' talso Uiac frllf>w/' • : ;i' I I'Mitd oidy get Om%" .'■. ■! i-X liii.; c-fvoarning bird^, i '.'.J <■'■: h t'g. ill ihcar varying vwn -\^.) bi>i\/!ae hopele:::.f>iy . :\\ <:■* ko spokf'., at a gul' iv. irut SG rapidly that it \\-ai< di'frrly ab'vu hi;^ I .d , i uhad, ho v^M8 hmailig it iitrJo !■ :!vic\va=d..s at im^ i*-? ni'.-ti*. whi-li eaur^cd luui lo -' \Vbi,;h ? iL^aid Cliarb."-'. L'okiiijj- v *; at ■\vliich hn had Ixio;:. ao.d (■ro,s«.n;j; tlig;.'^, th'. •auste.arl\ . '- '{'h.-o 1 Lou^- snaj-j' iifin v. eat, ( ') ,'rit V : V .ji'Ji il"- .V r.tr;i,iL!it t'tw--^ I.I ■/ eageruess ASHORE FOR BREAKFAST. Page 130. FROM THE FAR NORTH. 129 miss again, wMle the recoil of the gun brought matters to a climax, by toppling him over into Mr Park's lap, thereby smashing that gentleman's pipe to atoms. The fall accidently exploded the second barrel, causing the butt to strike Charley in the pit of his stomach, — as if to ram him well home into Mr Park's open arms, — and hitting, with a stray shot, a gull that was sailing high up in the sky in fancied security. It fell with a fluttering crash into the boat, while the men were laughing at the accident. " Didn't I say so ? " cried Mr Park, wrathfully as he pitched Charley out of his lap, and spat out the remnants of his broken pipe. r >rtunately for all parties, at this moment, the boat a) J' 3d a spot on which the guide had resolved to lanu lor breakfast ; and, seeing the unpleasant predica- ment into which poor Charley had fallen, he assumed the strong tones of command with which guides are frequently gifted, and called out — " Ho ! ho ! a terre ! a terre ! to land ! to land ! Break- fast, my boys ; breakfast ! " at the same time sweeping the boat's head shoreward, and running into a rocky bay, whose margin was fringed by a growth of small trees. Here, in a few minutes, they were joined by the other boats of the brigade, which had kept within sight of each other nearly the whole morning. While travelling through the wilds of North America in boats, voyageurs always make a point of landing to breakfast. Dinner is a meal with which they are unac- quainted, at least on the voyage, and luncheon is likewise unknown. If a man feels hungry during the day, the pemican bag and its contents are there ; he may pause in his work at any time, for a minute, to seize tlie axe and 7y--i-5r.- 130 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS f 1. cut off a lump, wliicli he may devour as he best can ; but tliei'e is no going ashore — no resting for dinner. Two great meals are recognised, and the time allotted to their preparation and consumption held inviolable — breakfast and supper; — the first varying between the hours of seven and nine in the morning ; the second about sunset, at which time travellers usually encamp for the night. Of the two meals, it would be difficult to say which is more agreeable. For our own part, we prefer the former. It is the meal to which a man addresses himself with peculiar gusto, especially if he has been astir three or four hours previously in the open air. It is the time of day, too, when the spirits are freshest and highest, animated by th^ prospect of the work, the difficulties, the plea- sures, or the adventures of the day that has begun ; and cheered by that cool, clear buoyancy of Nature, which belongs exclusively to the happy morning hours, and has led poets in all ages to compare these hours to the first sweet months of spring, or the early years of childhood. Voyageurs, not less than poets, have felt the exliilarating influence of the young day, although they have lacked the power to tell it in sounding numbers ; but, where words were wanting, the sparkling eye, the beaming counte- nance, the light step, and hearty laugh, were more powerful exponents of the feelings within. Poet, and painter too, might have spent a profitable hour on the shores of that great sequestered lake; and, as they watched the picturesque groups — clustering round the blazing fires, preparing their morning meal, smoking their pipes, examining and repairing the boats, or sun- ning their stalwart limbs in wild, careless attitudes upon the green sward, — might have found a subject worthy the •:# ♦ FROM THE FAR NORTH. 131 most brilliant effusions of the pen, or the most graphic touches of the penciL An hour sufficed for breakfast. "While it was prepar- ing, the two friends sauntered into tlie forest in search of game, in which they were unsuccessful ; in fact, with the exception of the gulls before mentioned, there was not a feather to be seen, — save, always, one or two whisky- johns. Whisky-johns are the most impudent, puffy, conceited, little birds that exist. Not much larger in reality than sparrows, they nevertheless manage to swell out their feathers to such an extent that they appear to be as large as magpies, which they farther resemble in their plumage. Go where you will in the woods of Rupert's Land, the instant that you light a fire, two or three whisky-johns come down and sit beside you, on a branch, it may be, or on the ground, and generally so near that you cannot but wonder at their recklessness. There is a species of impu- dence which seems to be specially attached to little birds. In them it reaches the highest pitch of perfection. A bold, swelling, arrogant effrontery; a sort of stark, staring, self-complacent, comfortable, and yet innocent impertinence, which is at once irritating and aiixusing, aggravating and attractive, and which is exhibited in the greatest intensity in the whisky-john. He will jump down almost under your nose, and seize a fragment of , biscuit or pemican. He wiU go right into the pemican bag, when you are but a few paces off, and pilfer, as it were, at the fountain-head. Or, if these resources are closed against him, he will sit on a twig, within an inch of your head, and look at you as only a whisky-john can look. -f--^' ^' „ \ i ' I ■ 132 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS " ni catch one of these rascals," said Harry, as he saw them jump unceremoniously into and out of the pemican bag. Going down to the boat, Harry hid himself under the tarpaulin, leaving a hole open near to the mouth of the bag. He had not remained more than a few minutes in this con- cealment, when one of the birds flew down, and alighted on the edge of the boat. After a glance round to see that all was right, it jumped into the bag. A moment after, Harry, darting his hand through the aperture, grasped him round the neck, and secured him. Poor whisky-john screamed and pecked ferociously, while Harry brought him in triumph to his friend ; but so unremit- tingly did the bird scream, that its captor was fain at last to let him off", the more especially as the cook came up at the moment and announced that breakfast was ready. « i FROM THE FAR NORTH. 133 CHAPTi.ll XII. The Storm. Two days after the events of the last chapter, the brigade was making one of the traverses which have already been noticed as of frequent occurrence in the great lakes. The morning was calm and sultry. A deep stillness pervaded nature, which tended to produce a corresponding quies- cence in the mind, and to fill it with those indescribably solemn feelings that frequently arise before a thunder- storm. Dark, lurid clouds hung overhead in gigantic masses, piled above each other like the battlements of a dark fortress, from whose ragged embrasures the artillery of heaven was about to play. " Shall we get over in time, Louis ? " asked Mr Park, as he turned to the guide, who sat holding the tiller with a firm grasp j while the men, aware of the necessity of reaching shelter ere the storm burst upon them, were bending to the oars with steady and sustained energy. " Perhaps," replied Louis, laconically. " Pull, lads, pull ! else you'll have to sleep in wet skins to-night." A low growl of distant thunder followed the guide's words, and the men pulled with additional energy ; while the slow, measured hiss of the water, and clank of oars, an they cut swiftly through the lake's clear surface, alone in- terrupted the dead silence that ensued. Charley and his friend conversed in low whispers ; for 134 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS i! tliere is a stmnge power in a thunder-storm, whether rag- ing oi about to break, that overawes the heart of man — as If Nature's God were nearer then than at other times ; as if He — whose voice, indeed, if listened to, speaks even in the slightest evolution of natural phenomena —were ahoiit to tread the visible earth with more than usual majesty, in the vivid glare of the lightning flash, and in the awful crash of thunder. " I don't know how it is, but I feel more like a coward," said CliJirley, "just before a thunder-storm, than I think I should do in the arms of a polar bear. Do you feel queer, Harry?" " A little," replied Harry, in a low whisper ; " and yet I'm not^frightened. I can scarcely tell what I feel ; but I'm certain it's not fear." " Well, I don't know," said Charley. " When father's V>lack bull chased Kate and me in the prairies, and almost overtook us, as we ran for the fence of the big field, I felt my heart leap to my mouth, and the blood rush to my cheeks, as I turned about and faced him, while Kate climbed the fence ; but after she was over, I felt a wild sort of wickedness in me, as if I should like to tantalise and torment him; and I felt altogether different from what I feel now while I look up at those black clouds. Isn't tliei'e something quite awful in them, Harry 1 " Ere Harry replied, a bright flash of lightning shot athwart the sky, followed by a loud roll of thunder, and in a moment the wind rushed — like a fiend set suddenly free — down upon the boats, tearing up the smooth surface of the water as it flew, and cutting it into gleaming white streaks. Fortunately the storm came down behind the boats, so that, after the fii-st wild burst was over, they I ; 1 FROM THE FAR NORTH. 135 hoisted a small portion of their lug sails, and scudded rapidly before it. There was still a considerable portion of the traverse to cross, and the guide cast an anxious glance over his shoulder occasionally, as the dark waves began to rise, and their crests were cut into white foam by the increas- ing gale. Thundei roared in continued, successive peals, as if the heavens were breaking up ; while rain descended in sheets. For a time the crews continued to ply their oai-s ; but, as the wind increased, these were rendered superfluous. They were taken in, therefore, and the men sought partial shelter under the taipaulin ; while Mr Park and the two boys were covered, excepting their heads, by an oil-cloth, which was always kept at hand in rainy weather. " What think you now, Louis ? " said Mr Park, resum- ing the pipe which the sudden outburst of the storm had caused him to forget. " Have we seen the woret of it 1 " Louis replied abniptly in the negative ; and, in a few seconds, shouted loudly — " Look out, lads ; here conies a squall. Stand by to let go the sheet there ! " Mike Brady, happening to be near the sheet, seized hold of the rope, and prepared to let go ; while the men rose, as if by instinct, and gazed anxiously at the approaching squall, which could be seen in the distance, extending rdong the horizon, like a bar of blackest ink, spotted with flakes of white. The guide sat with compressed lips and motionless as a statue, guiding the boat as it bounded madly towards the land, which was now not more than half-a-mile distant. "Let go!" shouted the guide, in a voice that waa heard loud and clear above the roar of the elements. ^y 136 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS t'^ " Ay, ay," replied the Irishman, untwisting the rope instantly, as, with a sharp hiss, the squall descended on the boat. At that moment the rope became entangled round one of the oars, and the gale burst with all its fury on the distended sail, burying the prow in the waves, which rushed in-board in a black volume, and in an instant half filled the boat. " Let go ! " roared the guide again, in a voice of thunder ; while Mike struggled with awkward energy to disentangle the rope. As he spoke, an Indian, who during the storm had been sitting beside the mast, gazing at the boiling water with a ^rave contemplative aspect, sprang quickly forward, drew his knife, and, with two blows (so rapidly delivered that they seemed but one) cut asunder, first the sheet and then the halyards, which let the sail blow out and fall flat upon the boat. He was just in time. Another moment and the gushing water, which curled over the bow, would have filled them to the gimwale. As it was, the little vessel was so full of water that she lay like a log, while every toss of the waves sent an additional torrent into her. " Bail for your lives, lads," cried Mr Park, as he sprang forward, and, seizing a tin dish, began energetically to bail out the water. Following his example, the whole crew seized whatever came first to hand in the shape of dish or kettle, and began to bail. Charley and Harry Somerville acted a vigorous part on this occasion, the one with a bark dish, (which had been originally made by the natives for the purpose of holding maple sugar,) the other with his cap. FUOM THE FAIl NOllTII. 137 Fur a time, it seemed doubtful whether the curling waves should send most water into the boat, or the crew should bail most out of it. But the latter soon prevailed, and in a few minutes it was so far got under, that three of the men were enabled to leave ofl' bailing and re-set the sail, while Louis Feltier returned to his post at the helm. At fii*st the boat moved but slowly, owing to the weight of water in her ; but, as this grew gradually less, she increased her speed and ueared the land. "Well done, Redfeather," said Mr Park, addressing the Indian as he resumed his seat ; " your knife did us good service that "time, my fine fellow." Redfeather, who was the only pure native in the brigade, acknowledged the compliment with a smile. " Ah 1 oui," said the guide, whose features had now lost their stern expression. ** Them Injins are always ready enough with their knives. It's not the first time my life has been saved by the knife of a redskin." " Humph ! bad luck to them," muttered Mike Brady ; " its not the firat time that my windpipe has been pretty near spiflicated by the knives o' the redskins, the mur- therin' varmints!" As Mike gave vent to this malediction, the boat ran swiftly past a low rocky point, over which the surf was breaking wildly. "Down with the sail, Mike," cried the guide, at the same time putting the helm hard up. The boat flew round obedient to the ruling power, made one last plunge as it left the rolling surf behind, and slid gently and smoothly into still water under the lee of the point. Here, in the snug shelter of a little bay, two of the other boats were found, with their prows already on the 10 » * r " 138 SNOWFLAKIIS AND SLNUKAM.H beach, and their crows actively employed in landing their goods, opening bales that had received damage from the water, and preparing the encampment \ while ever and anon they paused a moment, to watch the various boats as they flew before the gale, and one by one doubleil the friendly promontory. If there is one thing that provokes a voyageur more than another, it is being wind-bound on the shores of a large lake. Kain or sleet, heat or cold, icicles forming on the oai-s, or a broiling sun. glaring in a cloudless sky, tlie stings of sand-flies, or the sharp probes of a million mosquitoes, he will bear with comparative indifterenco ; ]jnt being detained by high wind for two, three, or four days together — lying inactively on shore, when everything else, it may be, is favourable — the sun bright, the sky blue, the air invigorating, and all but the wind propitious — is more than his philosophy can carry him through with equanimity. He grumbles at it ; sometimes makes believe to laugh at it ; very often, we are sorry to say, swear's at it ; does his best to sleep through it, but, whatever he does, he does with a bad gi'ace, because he's in a bad humour and can't stand it. For the next three days this was the fate of our friends. Part of the time it rained, when the whole party slept as nnich as was possible, and then endeavoured to sleep more than was possible, under the shelter afforded by the si)reading branches of the trees. Part of the time was fair, with occasional gleams of sunshine, when the men turned out to eat, and smoke, and gamble round the fires; and the two friends sauntered down to a sheltered place on the shore, sunned themselves in a warm nook among the rocks, while they gazed ruefully at the foaming FROM THE FAR NORTH. 139 billows, told endless stories of what they had dono in time past, and equally endless prospective adventures that tliey earnestly hoped should befall them in time to come. While they were thus engaged, Redfeather, the Iniiiied for the night. He thoiight of the dreary day when he left them all behind, and sailed away, in the midst of strangers, across the wide ocean to a strange land. He thought of them now — without him — accustomed to his absence, and forget- ful, peAaps, at times, that he had once been there. As he thought of all this, a tear rolled down his cheek, and when Charley looked up in his face, that tear-drop told plainly that he too thought sometimes of home. " Let us ask Redfeather to tell us something about the Indians," he said, at length, rousing himself. " I have no doubt he has had many adventures in his life ; shall we, Chariey ? " " By all means. Ho, Hedfeather ! are you trying to stop the wind by looking it out of countenance 1 " The Indian rose and walked towards the spot where the boys lay. " What was Redfeather thinking about," said Charley, adopting the somewhat pompous style of speech occasion- ally used by Indians. " Was he thinking of the white swan and his little ones in the prairie ; or did he dream of giving his enemies a good licking the next time he meets them?" " Redfeather has no enemies,'' replied the Indiuu, FROM THE FAR NORTH. 141 ft them all " He was thinking of the great Manito,* who made the wild winds, and the great lakes, and the forest." " And, pray, good Redfeather, what did your thoughts tell you ? " " They told me that men are very weak, and very foolish, and wicked ; and that Manito is very good and patient to let them live." " That is to say," cried Harry, who was surprised and a little nettled to hear what he called the heads of a ser- mon from a redskin, " that you, being a man, are very weak, and very foolish, and wicked, and that Manito is very good and patient to let you live ? " " Good," said the Indian, calmly ; " that is what I mean." " Come, Redfeather," said Charley, laying his hand on the Indian's arm, " sit down beside us, and tell us some of your adventures. I know that you must have had plenty, and it's quite clear that we're not to get away from this place all day, so you've nothing better to do." The Indian readily assented, and began his story in English. Redfeather was one of the very few Indians who had acquired the power of speaking the English language. Having been, while ii jouth, brought much into contact with the fur-traders ; and, having been induced by them to enter their service for a time, he had picked up enough of English to make himself easily undei-stood. Being engaged at a later period of life as guide to one of the exploring parties sent out by the British Government to discover the famous Noi*th-west Passage, he had learned to read and write, and had become so much accustomed • God. 142 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS \ !J to the habits and occupations of the " pale-faces," that he spent more of his time, in one way or another, with them than in the society of his tribe, which dwelt in the thick woods bordering on one of the great prairies of the interior. He was about thirty years of age ; had a tall, thin, but wiry and powerful frame, and was of a mild, retiring disposition. His face wore a habitually grave expression, verging towards melancholy ; induced, pro- bably, by the vicissitudes of a wild life (in which he had seen much of the rugged side of nature in men and things), acting upon a sensitive heart and a naturally warm temperament. Redfeather, however, was by no means morose, ; and when seated along with his Canadian com- rades round the camp fire, he listened with evidently genuine interest to their stories, and entered into the spirit of their jests. But he was always an auditor, and rarely took part in their conversatiqns. He was fre- quently consulted by the guide in matters of difficulty, and it was obsei-ved that the " redskin's " opinion always carried much weight with it, although it was seldom given unless asked for. The men respected him much because he was a hard worker, obliging, and modest, — three qualities that insure respect, whether found under a red skin or a white one. " I shall tell you," he began, in a soft musing tone, as if he were wandering in memories of the past ; " I shall tell you how it was that I came by the name of Eedfeather." " Ah ! " interrupted Charley, " I intended to ask you about that ; you don't wear one." " I did once. My father was a great warrior in liis tribe," continued the Indian ; " and I was but a youth when I got the name. FROM TUE FAR NORTH. ir3 es," that he other, with welt in the iries of the had a tall, of a mild, iially grave dueed, pro- lich he had I men and irally warm no means adian com- i evidently d into the uditor, and [e was fre- r difficulty, ion always vas seldom him much modest, — Qd under a tone, as if I shall tell sdfeather." ;o ask you ■ior in liis it a youth 4 " My tribe was at war at the tine vith the Chipewyans, and one of our scouts having come ixi with the intelligence that a party of our enemies was in the neighbourhood, our warriors armed themselves to go in pursuit of them. I had been out once before with a war-party, but had not been successful, as the enemy's scouts gave notice of our approach in time to enable them to escape. At the time the information was brought to us, the young men of our village were amusing themselves with athletic games, and loud challenges were being given and accepted to wrestle, or race, or swim in the deep water of the river, which flowed calmly past the green bank on which our wigwams stood. On a uank near to us sat about a dozen of our women, — some employed in ornamenting moccasins with coloured porcupine-quills ; othere making rogans of bark for maple sugar, or nui*sing their young infants ; while a few, chiefly the old women, groiiped themselves together and kept up an incessant chattering, chiefly with refer- ence to the doings of the young men. " Apart from these stood three or four of the principal men of our tribe, smoking their pipes, and although appai'cntly engrossed in conversation, still evidently inter- ested in what was going forward on the bank of the river. " Among the young men assembled, there was one of about my own age, who had taken a violent dislike to me, because the most beautiful girl in all the village pre- ferred me before him. His name was Misconna. He was a hot-tempered, ciaiel youth ; and although I endeavoured as much as possible to keep out ol his way, he sought every opportunity of picking a quarrel with me. I had j\ist been running a race along with several other youths, and, although not the winner, I had kept ahead of 1 144 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS Mist;onna all the distance. He now stood leaning against a tree, burning witli rage and disappointment. I was sorry for tliis, because I bore him no -ill will, and, if it had occuiTed to me at the time, 1 would have allowed him to pass me, since I was unable to gain the race at any rate. " ' Dog ! ' he said, at length, steppii^'* forward and con- fronting me, ' will you wrestle V " Just as he approached, I had turned round to leave the place. Not wishing to have more to do with him, I j)retended not to hear, and made a step or two towards the lodges. * Dog !* he cried again, while lii^ eyes flashed fiercely, and he grasped me by the arm, ' will you wrestle, or are you afraid? Has the bi*ave boy's heart changed into that of a girl V " * No, Misconna,' said I. * You know that I am not afraid ; but I have no desire to quarrel with you.' "'You lie!' cried he, with a cold sneer; 'you are affaid — and see,' he added, pointing towards the women with a triumphant smile, ' the dark-eyed girl sees it and believes it, too !' " I turned to look, and there I saw Wabisca gazing on me with a look of blank amazement. I could see, also, that several of the other women, and some of my companions, shared in her surprise. " With a burst of anger I turned round. * No, Mis- conna,' said I, *I am not afraid, as you shall find ;' and, springing upon him, I grasped him round the body. He was nearly, if not quite, as strong a youth as myself; but I was burning with indignation at the insolence of his conduct before so many of the women, which gave me more than usual energy. For several minutes we swayed to and fro, eacii endeavouring in vain to bend the other's ^sp FROM THE FAR NORTH. 145 Lh,ck ; but we were too well matched for this, and sought t>j accomplish our purpose by taking advantage of au unguarded movement. At last such a movement occurred. My advei-sary made a sudden and violent attempt to throw me to the left, hoping that an inequa- lity in the ground would favour his effort. But he was mistaken. I had seen the danger, and was prepared for it; so that the instant lie attempted it, I threw forward my right leg, and thrust him backwards with all my might. Misconna was quick in his motions. He saw my intention, — too late, indeed, to prevent it altogether, l)ut in time to throw back his left foot and stiffen his body till it felt like a block of stone. The effort waa now entirely one of endurance. We stood, each with his nmscles strained to the utmost, withoixt the slightest motion. At length I felt my adversary give way a little. Slight though the motion was, it instantly removed all doubt as to who should go down. My heart gave a bound of exidtation, and, with the energy which such a feeling always inspires, I put forth all my strength, threw him heavily over on his back, and fell upon him. "A shout of applause from my comrades greeted me as I rose and left the ground ; but at the same moment the at- tention of all was taken from myself arid the baffled Mis- conna, by the arrival of the scout, bringing us information that a party of Chipewyans were in the neighbourhood. In a moment all was bustle and preparation. An Indian war- party is soon got ready. Forty of our braves threw off the l>rincipal parts of their clothing ; painted tlieir faces with stripes of vermilion and charcoal ; armed themselves with guns, bows, tomahawks, and scalping-knives, and in a few minutes left the camp in silence and at a quick paco. M6 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS "One or two of the youths who had been playing on the river's bank were permitted to accompany the party, and among these were Misconna and myself. As we passed a group of women, assembled to see us depart, I observed the girl who had caused so much jealousy between us. She cast down her eyes as we came up, and as we advanced close to the group she dropt a white feather, as if by accident. Stooping hastily down, I picked it up in passing, and stuck it in an ornamented band that bound my hair. As we hurried on, I heard two or three old hags laugh, and say, with a sneer, ' His hand is as white as the feather : it has never seen blood.' The next moment we were ^.id in the forest, and pursued our rapid r coui*se in dead silence. "The country through which we passed was varied, — extending in broken bits of open prairie, and partly covered with thick wood; yet not so thick as to offer, any hindrance to our march. "We walked in single file, each treading in his comrade's footsteps, while the band was headed by the scout who had brought the information. The principal chief of our tribe came next, and he was followed by ti\e braves according to their age or influence. Misconna and I brought up the rear. The sun was just sinking as we left the belt of woodland in which our village stood, crossed over a short plain, descended a dark hollow, at the bottom of which the river flowed, and, following its course for a considerable distance, turned off to the right and emerged upon a sweep of prairie land. Here the scout halted, and taking the chief and two or three .braves aside, entered into earnest consultation with them. " What they said we could not hear j but as we stood FROM THE FAR NORTH. l47 leaning on our guns in the deep shade of the forest, we could observe by their animated gestures that they dif- fered in opinion. We saw that the scout pointed several times to the moon, which was just rising above the tree-tops, and then to the distant horizon, but the chief shook his head, pointed to the woods, and seemed to be much in doubt, while the whole band watched his mo- tions in deep silence, but evident interest. At length they ajipeared to agi'ee. The scout took his place at the head of the line, and we resumed our march, keeping close to the margin of the wood. It was perhaps three hours after this ere we again halted to hold another con- sultation. This time their deliberations were shorter. In a few seconds, our chief himself took the lead and turned into the woods, through which he guided us to a small fountain, which bubbled up at the root of a birch- tree, where there was a smooth green spot of level ground. Here we halted, and prepared to rest for an hour, at the end of which time, the moon, which now shone bright and full in the clear sky, would bo nearly down, and we could resume our march. We now sat down in a circle, and, taking a hasty mouthful of dried meat, stretched our- selves on the ground with our arms beside us, while our chief kept watch, leaning against the birch-tree. It seemed as if I had scarcely been asleep five minutes when I felt a light touch on my shoulder. Springing up, I found the whole party already astir, and, in a few minutes more, we were again huiTying onwards. " We travelled thus until a faint light in the east told us that the day was at hand, when the scout's steps became more cautious, and he paused to examine the ground frequently. At last we came to a place where \->t 148 8KOWFLAKE9 AND SUNBEAMS I fM the gro\md sank slightly, and, at the distance of a hun- dred yards, rose again, forming a low ridge which was crowned with small bushes. Here we came to a halt, and were told that our enemies were on the other side of that ridge, that they were about twenty in number, all Chipewyan warriors, with the exception of one pale-face, — a trapper, and his Indian wife. The scout had learned, while lying like a snake in the grass around their camp, that this man was merely travelling Avith them on his way to the Rocky Mountains, and that, as they were a war-party, he intended to leave them soon. On hearing this the warriors gave a grim smile, and our chief, directing the scout to fall behind, cautiously led the way to the top of the ridge. On reaching it we saw a valley of great extent, dotted with trees and shrubs, and watered by one of the many rivers that flow into the great Saskatchewan. It was nearly dark, however, and we could only get an indistinct view of the land. Far ahead of us, on the right bank of the stream, and close to its margin, we saw the faint red light of watch-fires, which caused us some surprise, for watch-fires are never lighted by a war-pai*ty so near to an enemy's countiy. So we could only conjecture that they were quite ignor- ant of our being in that part of the country — which was, indeed, not unlikely, seeing that we had shifted our camp during the summer. " Our chief now made arrangements for the attack. We were directed to separate and approach individually as near to the camp as was possible without risk of dis- covery, and then, taking up an advantageous position, to await our chief's signal — which was to be the hooting of an owl. We immediately separated. My course lay FIIOM THE FAR NORTH. 149 along the banks of the stream, and, as I strode rapidly along, listening to its low solemn murmur, which sounded clear and distinct in the stillness of a calm summer nijrht, T :,ould not helj) feeling as if it were reproaching me for the bloody work I was hastening to perform. Then the recollection of what the old women said of me, raised a desperate spirit in my heart. Remembering the white feather in my head, I grasped my gun and quickened my pace. As I neared the camp, I went into the woods and climbed a low hillock to look out. I found that it still lay about five hundred yards distant, and that the greater part of the ground between it and the place where I stood, was quite flat, and without cover of any kind. I therefore prepared to creep towards it, although the attempt was likely to be attended with great danger, for Chipe^vyans have quick ears and shai*p eyes. Observing, however, that the river ran close past the camp, I deter- mined to follow its course as before. In a few seconds more, I came to a dark narrow gap where the river flowed between broken rocks, overhung by branches, and from which I could obtain a clear view of the camp within fifty yards of me. Examining the priming of my gun, I i>at down on a rock to await the chiefs signal. "It was evident, from the careless manner in which the fires were placed, that no enemy was supposed to be near. From my concealment I could plainly distinguish ten or fifteen of the sleeping forms of our enemies, among which the trapper was conspicuous, from his superior bulk, and the reckless way in which his brawny arms were flung on the turf, while his right hand clutched his rifle. I could not but smile as I thought of the proud boldness of the palc-facc— lying all exposed to view in the graj light of 150 SNOWPLAKES AND SUNBEAMS I ' ! i dawn, while an Indian's rifle was so close at hand. One Indian kept watch, but he seemed more than half asleep. 1 had not sat more than a minute, when my observations were interrupted by the cracking of a branch in the bushes near me. Starting up, I was about to boimd into the underwood, when a figure sprang down the bank and rapidly approached me. My first impulse was to throw forward my gun, but a glance sufiiced to shew me that it was a woman. "'Wall!' I exclaimed, in surprise, as she hurried for- ward and laid her hand on my shoulder. She was dressed ]>artly in the costume of the Indians, but wore a shawl on her shoulders, and a handkerchief on her head, that shewed fehe had been in the settlements ; and, from the lightness of her skin and hair, I judged at once that she was the trapper's wife of whom I had heard the scout .speak. *' ' Has the light-hair got a medicine bag, or does she speak with spirits, that she has found me so easily V " The girl looked anxiously up in my face as if to read my thoughts, and then said, in a low voice — " * No, I neither carry the medicine bag nor hold palaver vriih. spirits ; but I do think the good Manito must have led me here. I wandered into the woods because I could not sleep, and I saw you pass. But tell me,' she added with still deeper anxiety, * does the white feather come alone 1 Does he approach friends during the dark hours with a soft step like a fox ? ' " Feeling the necessity of detaining her until my com- rades should have time to suri'ound the camp, I said — * The white feather hunts far from his lands. He sees FROM THE FAR NORTH. lol Indians whom lie does ncit know, and must approach witli a liglit step. Perhaps tliey are enemies.' " ' Do Knisteneux Imnt at night, prowling in the bed of a stream 1 ' said the girl, still regarding me with a keen glance. * Speak truth, stranger ' (and she started sud- tlenly back) ; * in a moment I can alarm tlie camp with a cry, and if your tongue is forked ! — but I do not wish to bring enemies upon you, if they are indeed such. I am not one of them. My husband and I travel with them for a time. We do not desire to see blood. Goil knows,' she added, in French, which seemed her native tongue, * I have seen enough of that already.' " As her earnest eyes looked into my face, a sudden thought occurred to me. * Go,' said I, hiistily, * tell your husband to leave the camp instantly, and meet me here ; and see that the Chipewyans do not observe your departure. Quick ! his life and yours may depend on your speed.' " The girl instantly comprehended my meaning. In a m()ment she sprang up the bank ; but as she did so, the loud report of a gun was heard, followed, by a yell, and the war-whoop of the Knisteneux rent the air as they rushed upon the devoted camp, sending arrows and bullets before them. "On the instant, I sprang after the girl and grasped her by the arm. *Stay, white-cheek, it is too late now. You cannot save your husband, but I think he'll save himself. I saw him dive into the bushes like a carriboo. Hide yourself here, perhaps you may escape.' " The half-breed girl sank on a fallen tree with a deep groan, and clasped her hands convulsively before her eyes, 152 8N0WFLAKES AND SUNDEAM8 while I boundcMl over tlio tri'O, intending to join my com- radoa in piirsiiing the enemy. \ "As I did so a slirill cry arose behind me, and, looking hack, I beheUl the trapper's wife prostrate on tlie ground, and Misconna standing over her, liis spear uidifted, and a fierce frown on his dark face. " * Hokl,' I cried, mshing hack and seizing his arm. ' Misconna did not come to kill ivomen. She is not onr enemy.' " * Does tlie young wrestler want another wife ?' he said with a wild laugh, at the same time wrenching his arm from my gripe, and driving his spoar through the fleshy jmrt of the woman's breast and deep into the ground. A shriek rent the air as he drew it out again to repeat the thrust ; but, before he could do so, I struck aim with the butt of my gun on the head. Staggering backwards, he fell heavily among the bushes. At this moment a second whoop rang out, and another of our band sprang from the thicket that surrounded us. Seeing no one but myself and the bleeding girl, he gave me a short glance of sur- prise, as if he wondered why I did not finish the work which he evidently supposed I had begun. " * Wah ! ' he exclaimed ; and uttering another yell plunged his spear into the woman's breast, despite my efforts to prevent him — this time with more deadly effect, as the blood spouted from the wound, while she uttered a piercing scream, and twined her arms round my legs as I stood beside her, as if imploring for mercy. Poor girl ! I saw that she was past my help. The wound was evidently mortal. Already the signs of death overspread her fea- tures, and I felt that a second blow would be one of mercy ; so that when the Indian stooped and passed his long knife > FROM THE FAR NORTH. 153 ihrotigh her lirart, I made but a feeble effort to prevent it. Just as the man rose, with the warm blood dripping from his keen blade, the sharp crack of a rifle was heard, and the Indian fell dead at my feet, shot through the forehead, while the trapper bounded into the open space, his ma-ssive frame quivering, and his sunburnt face dis- torted with rage and horror. From the other side of the brake, six of our band rushed fonvard and levelled their guns at him. For one moment the trapper paused to cast a glance at the mangled corpse of his wife, as if to make quite sure that she was dead ; and then uttering a howl of desjiair, he hurled his axe with a giant's force at the Knisteneux, and disappeared over the precipitous bank of the stream. " So rapid was the action, that the volley which imme- ately succeeded passed harmlessly over his head, while the Indians dashed forward in pursuit. At the same instant I myself was felled to the earth. The axe which the trapper had flung struck a tree in its flight, and, as it glanced off, the handle gave me a violent blow in passing. I fell stunned. As I did so, my head alighted on the shoulder of the woman, and the last thing I felt, as my wandering senses forsook me, was her still warm blood flowing over my face and neck. " Wliile this scene was going on, the yells and screams of the wamors in the camp became fainter and fainter as they pursued and fled through the woods. The whole band of Chipewyans was entirely routed, with the excep- tion of four who escaped, and the trapper whose flight I have described ; all the rest were slain, and their scalps hung at the belts of the victorious Knisteneux warriors, while only one of our party was killed. 11 - r» ' i - l.U SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS 1 ■■ B ' 1 H m 1' n HI M " Not more than a few minutes after receiving the blow that stunned me, I recovered, and rising as hastily as my scattered faculties would permit me, I staggered towards the camp, where I heard the shouts of our men as they collected the arms of their enemies. As I rose, the feather which Wabisca had dropped fell from n>y brow, and, as I picked it up to replace it, I perceived that it was reJ; being entirely covered with the blood of the half- breed girl. " The i)lace where Misconna had fallen was vacant as T passed, and I found him standing among his comrades round the camp fires, examining the guns and other article which they had collected. He gave me a short glance of deep hatred as I passed, and tumud his head hastily away. A few minutes sufficed to collect the spoils, and so rapidly had everything been done, that the light of day was still faint as we silently returned on our track. We marched in the same order as before, Misconna and I bringing up the rear. As we passed near the place where the poor woman had been mur- dered, I felt a strong desire to return to the spot. I could not veiy well understand the feeling, but it lay so strong upon me, that when Ave reached the ridge where we first came in sight of the Chi[)ewyan camp, I fell behind until my companions disa])peared in the woods, and then inin swiftly back. Just as I was about to step beyond the circle of bushes that surrounded the spot, I saw that some one was there before me. It was a man, and, as he advanced into the open space and the ligh+ fell on his face, I saw that it was the ti-a])per. No doubt, he had watched us off tlie ground, and then, when all was safe, returned to biirj his wife. I crouolied to watch him. FROM THE FAR NORTH. lOS Stepping slowly up to the body of his murdered wife, he stood beside it with his arms folded on his breast and quite motionless. His head hung down, for the heart of the wliite man was heavy, and I could see, as the liglit increased, that his brows were dark as the thunder cloud, and the corners of his mouth twitched from a feeling that the Indian scoriiS to shew. My heart is full of sorrow for him now ; " (Redfeather's voice sank as he spoke), " it was full of sorrow for him even then, when. I was taught to think that pity for an enemy was unworthy of a brave. The trapper stood gazing very long.v His wife was young j he could not leave her yet. At length a dee}) groan burst from his heart, as the waters of a great river, long held down, swell up in spring, and burst the ice at last. Groan followed gi'oan as the ti^pper still stood and pressed his arms on his broad breast, as if to crush the heart within. At last he slowly knelt beside her, bending more and more over the lifeless form, until he lay extended on the ground beside it, and, twining liis arms round the neck, he drew the cold cheek close to his and pressed the blood-covered bosom tighter and tighter, while his form quivered with agony as he gave her a last, long embrace. Oh ! " continued E,edfeather, while his brow darkened, and his black eye flashed with an expression of fierceness that his youu^ listeners had never seen before, " may the curse " (he i)aused), " God forgive them! how could they know better? " At length the trapper rose hastily. The cxi)ression of his brow was still the same, but his mouth was altered. Till! lips were pressed tightly like those of a brave when It'd to toiliirc, and tliere was a fierce activity in his motions as iie s]»i-ang do^vll the bank and proceeded to 4 " 156 SNOWFLAKES AKD SUNBEAMS dig a hole in the soft earth. For half an hour he laboured, shovelling away the earth with a large flat stone, and carrying down the body, he buried it there, under the shadow of a willow. The trapper then shouldered his rifle and hurried away. On reaching the turn of the stream which shuts the little hollow out from view, he halted suddenly, gave one look into the prairie he was henceforth to ti ead alone, one short glance back, and then, raising both arms in the air, looked up into the sky, while he stretched liimself to his full height. Even at that distance, I could see the wild glare of his eye and the heaving of his breast. A moment after, and he was gone." " And did you never see him again 1 " inquired Harry Somervllle, eagerly. " No, I never saw him more. Immediately afterwaids I turned to rejoin my companions, whom I soon over- took, and entered our village along with them. I was regsu'ded as a poor warrior, because I brought home no scalps, and ever afterwards I went by the name of Hed- fc.ather in our tribe." " But are you still thought a poor warrior 1 " asked Charley, in some concern, as if he were jealous of the reputation of his new friend. The Indian smiled. " No," he said ; " our village was twice attacked afterwards, and, in defending it. Red- feather took many scalps. He was made a chief ! " " Ah ! " cried Chariey, " I'm glad of that. And Wabisca, what came of her ? Did Misconna get her ? " " She is my wife," replied Redfeather. " Your wife ! Why, I thought I heard the voyageurs call your wife the white swan," I,t illage Red- FROM THE FAR NORTH. 157 « Wabisca is white in the language of the Knisteneux. She is beautiful in form, and my comrades call her the white swan." Redfeather said this with an air of gratified pride. He did not, perhaps, love his wife with more fervour than he would have done, had he remained with his tribe ; but Redfeather had associated a great deal with the traders, and he had imbibed much of that spirit which prompts " white men " to treat their females with deference and respect, a feeling which is very foreign to an Indian's bosom. To do so was, besides, more congenial to his naturally unselfish and afiectionate disposition, so that any flattering allusion to his partner was always received by him with immense gratification. " I'll pay you a visit some day, Redfeather, if I'm sent to any place within fifty miles of your tribe," said Charley, with the air of one who had fully made up his mind. " And Misconna ? " asked Harrv. "Misconna is with his tribe," replied the Indian, and a frown overspread his features as he spoke j " but Red- feather has been following in the track of his white friends ; he has not seen his nation for many moons." i : 158 SXOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS : HI i ^H S r ^B 1 1 1 ■ IB ii jl 1 > hB 11 II ! CHAPTER XIII. The Canoe. Ascending the Rapids, The Porlage. Deer Shooting and Jjife In the Woods. "We must now beg the patient read'r to take a leap with us, not only through space, but als( / through time. We must pass over the events of the remainder of the journey along the phore of Lake Winipcg. Unwilling though we are to omit anything in the history of our friends that would be likely to prove interesting, we think it wise not to run the risk of being tedious, or of dwelling too minutely on the details of scenes which recall p()^\ erfully the feelings and memories of bygone days to the writer, but may, nevertheless, appear somewhat flat to the reader. We shall not, therefore, enlarge ac present on the ar- rival of the boats at Norway House, wliich lies at the north end of the lake, nor of what was said and done by our friends and by several other young comrades whora they found there. We shall not speak of the horror of Harry Somerville, and the extreme disappointment of his friend Charley Kennedy, when the former was told that instead of hunting grizzly bears up the Saskatchewan, he was condemned to the desk again, at York Fort, the de- put on Hudson's Bay, a low swampy i)lace near the sea- shore, where the goods for the interior are anniuilly landed and the furs shipped for England, where the greater part of the summer and much of the winter is occupied by the FROM THE FAR NORTH. 159 clerks, who may be doomed to vegetate there, in making up the accounts of what is termed the Northern De- partment, and where the brigades converge from all the wide-scattered and far distant outposts, and the ship from England — that great event of the ye.ar — arrives, keeping the place in a stute of constant bustle and effervescence until autumn, when ship and brigades finally depart, leaving the residents (about 30 in number) shut up for eight long, dreary months of winter — with a tenantlesa wilderness around and behind them, and the wide, l •wi, frozen sea before. This was among the first of Hany's disappointments. He suffered many aftei-wards, poor fellow ! Neither shall we accompany Charley up the south l)ranch of the Sasikatchewan, where his utmost expectations in the way of hv;nting were more than realised, and where he became so accustomed to shooting ducks and geese, and beai-s and buffaloes, that he could not forbear smiling when lie chanced to meet with a red-logged gull, and remem- bered how he and his friend Harry had comported them- pelves when they ffret met with these birds on the shores of Lake Winipeg ! We shall pass over all this, and the summer, autumn, and winter too, and leap at once into the spring of the following year. On a very bi Ight, cheery morning of that spring, a canoe might have been seen slowly ascending one of the nu- mei'ous streams which meander through a richly-wooded, fertile cotnitry, and mingle their waters with those of the Athabasca river, terminating their united career in a large lake of the same name. The canoe was small — one of the kind used by the natives while engaged in hunting, and capable of holding only two persons conveniently, with ICO SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS their baggage. To any one unacquainted with the nature or capabilities of a Ncrthern Indian canoe, the fragile, bright orange-coloured machine that was battling with the strong current of a rapid, must indeed have appeared an unsafe and insignificant craft ; but a more careful study of its performances in the rapid, and of the immense quan- tity of miscellaneous goods and chattels which were, at a later period of the day, disgorged from its interior, would have convinced the beholder that it was in truth the most convenient and serviceable craft that could be devised for the exigencies of such a covintry. True, it could hold only two men (it viight have taken three at a pinch), because men, and women too, are awk- ward, unyielding baggage, very difficult to stow com- pactly, but it is otherwise with tractable goods. The canoe is exceedingly tliin, so that no space is taken up or rendered useless by its own structure, and there is no end to the amount of blankets, and furs, and coats, and paddles, and tent-covers, and dogs, and baliies, that can be stowed away in its capacious interior. The canoe of which we aie now writing contained two persons, whoso active figures were thrown alternately into every graceful attitude of manly vigour, as, with poles in hand, they struggled to force their light craft against the boiling stream. One was a man apparently of about forty live years of age. He was a square-shouldered, muscular man, and from the mggedness of his general appearance, the soiled hunting-shirt that was strapped round his waist with a parti- coloured worsted belt, the leather leg- gins, a good deal the worse for wear, together with the quiet self-possessed glance of his gray eye, the compressed lip and the sunbui-nt brow, it was evident that he was a lAOM. THE FAR NORTU. 161 hunter, and one who had seen rough work in his day. The expression of his face was pleasing, despite a look of habitual severity which sat upon it, and a deep scar wliich traveitied his brow from the right temple to the top of his nose. It was difficult to teU to what country he belonged. His father was a Canadian, his mother a Scotchwoman. He was bom in Canada, brought up in one of the Yankee settlements on the Missouri, and had, from a mere youth, spent his life as a hunter in the wil derness. He could speak English, French, or Indian with equal ease and fluency, but it would have been hard for any one to say wliich of the three was his native tongue. The younger man, who occupied the stern of the canoe, acting the part of steersman, was quite a youth, apparently about seventeen, but tall and stout beyond his years, and deeply sunburnt. Indeed, were it not for this fact, the unusual quantity of hair that hung in massive curls down his neck, and the voi/ageur costume, we should have recognised our young friend Charley Kennedy again more easily. Had any doubts remained in our mind, the shout of his merry voice would have scattered them at once. " Hold hard, Jacques," l^.e cried, as the canoe trem- bled in the current, " one moment, till I get my pole fixed behind this rock. Now, then, shove ahead. Ah ! " he exclaimed, with chagrin, as the pole slipt on the treach- ex'ous bottom, and the canoe whirled round. " Mind the rock," cried the bowsman, giving an ener- getic thrust with his pole, that sent the light bark into an eddy formed by a large rock, which rose above the turbu- lent waters. Here it rested while Jacques and Charley raised themselves on their knees (travellers in small I 162 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS hP" I canoes always sit in a kneeling position) to survey the rapid. " It's too much for us, I fear, Mr Charles," said Jacques, shading his brow with his horny hand. " I've paddled up it many a time alone, but never saw the water so big as now." " Humph ! we shall have to make a portage, then, I pi-esume. Could we not give it one trial more ] I think we might make a dash for the tail of that eddy, and then the stream above seems not quite so strong. Do you think so, Jacques ? " Jacques was not the man to check a daring young spirit. His motto through life had ever been " Never venture, never win," — a sentiment which his intercourse among fur-traders had taught him to embody in the pithy expression, " Never say die ;" so that, although quite sa- tisfied that the thing was impossible, he merely replied to liis companion's speech by an assenting " Ho," and pushed out again into the stream. An energetic effoi-t enabled them to gain the tail of the eddy spoken of, when Charley's pole snapt across, and, falling heavily on the gunwale, he would have upset the little craft, had not Jacques, whose ^vits were habitually on the qui vive, thrown his own weight at the same moment on the op- posite side, and counterbalanced Charley's slip. The action saved them a ducking ; but the canoe, being left to its own devices for an instant, whirled off again into the stream, and before Charley could seize a paddle to prevent it, they were floating in the still water at the foot of the rapids. " Now, ii,n't that a borel" snid Charley, with a comical look f>f disappointment at his companion. PROM THE FAR NORTH. 163 Jticqiies laughed. " It was well to « i»^ -n .,srt to a. trtp*, where tho b<>ast watched him for •', vii|?ht ' ''s fri^n«Ls, tliJuking that some-' ^^^.■7't Vv*. V. lit U> look for liiiu. (Steady, . ' m mm'-.:- to thw right— -that's it.) .1' U>#« •:*« onlj vtntiired boldly into *?«? ... b» «lj have .i kiUrtd hiiu t^oa" ^> J . iii'l, 1/hi^ canoe giid^.^l twk^ « quiet bay ivy axi tMidy oi'the rapid, whcr*: s,: . jjUII waU^rwaa ■tvung by dense fi»Ji.'ig',\ *' Is the portage a long one?" ask(id Charloy, as lie- stepped out on the bank, and helped to unload the canoe. " About half a mile," replied his companion. " We might make it shorter by poling ap the last rapid ; btit T^' it's stifr work, Mr Charles, and we'll do the thing qiilcker ttu'l cjawitT at oxm lift." Tho t»'o t:raYi>llei>j mr^ i>-mi-^>:*-4f>l *v. mnke a j^orfcigeL . They ]>i'epareci to ."Sktry fchwir tMAi*Ms iuul b^tggage overl.'uid, ; ' a.H to avoid a«Xicccssi*'n of r.'.pids aiid waterfalls whirh jji*^3lc«ip*/Mi their furthe>* pro^rreiis. '•* .2*^3'«r, Jacques, up loading Iwd beet) taken oi.*; bank. The hunkr stooped, h{)' : . • centre bar, lii'\<.4 it out bho aiders, aiiu? aa well; and, indeed^ the strong hunter could lukvxi *jf i«d a canoo of twice tho size witli perfect eaae. Imnu-xlwtely afterwanls Cliarley followed with as mu.h of tl» hiding an ho could carr} , leaving enough on the biuik to i'ornv another load. "; V'hfuiey^ after the ■ MMx^d on tho graiisy • i,v* tho canoe by it« •*ivt>)r, placed it on hia t into the wood.^. This '\uua superior strength. 1,1 \l CHARLEY AND JACQUES "MAKING A PORTAGE. , PagelM. riiHHiiliHiiiahl FROM THE FAR NORTH. 165 : '' The banks of the river were steep ; in some places so much so that Jacques found it a matter of no small tliflS- culty to climb over the broken rocks with the unwieldy- canoe on his back : the more so that the branches inter- laced overhead so thickly as to present a strong barrier, through which the canoe had to be forced, at the risk of damaging its delicate bark covering. On reaching the compai'atively level laud above, however, there was more open space, and the hunter threaded his way among the tree stems more rapidly, making a detour occasionally to avoid a swamp or piece of broken gi-ound ; sometimes descending a deep gorge formed by a small tributary of the stream they were ascending, and which, to an unpractised eye, would have appeared almost impassable, even without the incumbrance of a canoe. But the said canoe never bore Jacques more gallantly or safely over the surges of lake or stream than did he bear u through the intricate mazes of the forest ; now diving down and disappearing altogether in the umbrageous foliage of a dell ; anon re- appearing on the other side and*" scrambling up the bank on all-fours, he and the canoe together looking like some frightful yellow reptile of antediluvian proportions ; and then speeding rapidly forward over a level plain until he reached a sheet of still water above the rapids. Here he deposited his burden on the grass ; and halting only for a few seconds to carry a few drops of the clear water to his lips, retraced his steps to bring over the remainder of the baggage. Soon afterwards Charley made his appearance on the spot where the canoe was left, and, throwing down his load, seated himself on it and surveyed the prospect. Before him lay a reach of the stream, which spread out so widely as to resemble a small lake, in whose clear, still • 166 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS bosom were reflected the overhanging foliage of graceful willows, and here and there the bright stem of a silver birch, whose light green leaves contrasted well with scat- tered groups and solitary specimens of the spruce fir. Keeds and sedges grew in the water along the banks, rendering the junction of the land and the stream un- certain and confused. All this and a gi'eat deal more Charley noted at a glance ; for the hundreds of beautiful and interesting objects in nature that take so long to de- scribe, even partially, and are feebly set forth after all, even by the most grapliic language, flash upon the eye in all their force and beauty, and are drunk in at once in a single glanc^. But Charley noted several objects floating on the water which we have not yet mentioned. These were five gray geese feeding among the reeds at a considerable distance ofi", and all unconscious of the presence of a human foe in their remote domains. The ti-avellers had trusted veiy much to their guns and nets for food, having only a small quantity of pemican in reserve, lest these should fail — an event which was not at all likely, as the country through which they passed was teeming with wildfowl of all kinds, besides deer. These latter, however, were only shot when they came inadvertently within rifle range, as our voyageurs had a definite object in view, and could not alibrd to devote much of their time tc the chase. During the day previous to that on which we have introduced them to our readei-s, Charley and his com- I>anion had been so much occupied in navigating their frail bark among a succession of rapids, that they had not attended to the replenishing of their larder, so that the geese which now shewed themselves were looked upon by FROM THE FAR NORTH. 167 Charley with a longing eye. Unfortunately they were feeding on the opposite side of the river, and out of shot. But Charley was a hunter now, and knew how to over- come slight difficulties. He first cut down a pretty large and leafy branch of a tree, and placed it in the bow of the canoe in such a way as to hang down before it and form a perfect screen, through the interstices of which he could see the geese, while they could only see, what was to them no novelty, the branch of a tree floating down the stream. Having gently launched the canoe, Charley was soon close to the unsuspecting birds, from among which he selected one that appeared to be unusually complacent and self-satisfied, concluding at once, with an amount of wisdom that bespoke him a true philosopher, that such must as a matter of course be the fattest. " Bang" went the gun, and immediately the sleek goose turned round upon its back and stretched out its feet towards the sky, waving them once or twice as if bidding adieu to its friends. The others thereupon took to flight, with such a deal of splutter and noise as made it quite apparent that their astonishment was unfeigned. Bang went the gun again, and down fell a second goose. " Ha ! " exclaimed Jacques, throwing down the re* mainder of the cargo as Charley landed with his booty, " that's well. I was just thinking as I corned across that we should have to take to pemican to-night." " Well, Jacques, and if we had, I'm sure an old hunter like you, who have reughed it so often, need not com- plain," said Charley, smiling. : - ' " As to that, master," replied Jacques, " I've roughed it often enough ; and when it does come to a clear fix, I can eat my shoes without grumblin', as well as any man. 16a SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS But, you see, fresh meat is better than dried meat when it's to be had ; aud so I'm glad to liee that you've been lucky, Mr Charles." " To say truth, so am T ; and these fellows are delight- fully plump. But you spoke of eating your shoes, Jacques ; when were you reduced to that direful extremity 1" Jacques finished reloading the canoe while they conver- sed, and the two were seated in their places, and quietly but swiftly ascending the stream again, ere the hunter replied. "You've heerd of Sir John Franklin, I s'pose?" he inquired, after a minute's consideration. " Yes, often." " An' p'raps you've heerd tell of his first trip of dis- covery along the shores of the Polar Sea?" " Do you refer to the time when he was nearly starved to death, and when poor Hood was shot by the Indian ?" " The same," said Jacques. " Oh, yes — I know all about that. Were you with them ?" inquired Charley, in great surprise. " Why, no — not exactly on the trip ; but I was sent in winter with provisions to them, — and much need they had of them, poor fellows ! I found them tearing away at some old parchment skins that had lain under the snow all winter, and that an Injin's dog would ha' turned up his nose at, — and they don't turn up their snouts at many things, I can tell ye. Well, after we had left all our provisions with them, we started for the fort again, just keepin' as much as would drive ofi" starva- tion ; for, you see, we thought that surely we would git something on the road. But neither hoof nor feather did we see all the way (I was travellin' with an Injin), and our grub was soon done, though we saved it up, aud FROM THE FAR NORTU. IGO only took a mouthful or two the last three days. At last it was done, and we was pretty well used up, and the fort two days ahead of us. So says I to my comrade — who had been looking at me for some time as if he thought that a cut off my shoulder wouldn't be a bad thing — says I, * Nipitabo, I'm afeer'd the shoes must go for it now ; ' so with that I pulls out a i)air o' deerskin moccasins. *They looks tender,* said I, trying to be cheerful. ' Wah,' said the Injin ; and then I held them over the fire till they was done black, and Nipitabo ate one, and I ate the 'tother, with a lump o* snow to wash it down!" " It must have been rather dry eating," said Charley, laughing. " Rayther ; but it was better than the Injin's leather breeches which we took in hand next day. They was uncommon tough, and very dirty, havin' been worn about a yeai' and a half. Hows'ever, they kept us up; an*, as we only ate the legs, he had the benefit o* the stump to arrive with at the fort next day. " "What's yon ahead T' exclaimed Charley, pausing as he spoke, and shading his eyes with his hand. " It's uncommon like trees," said Jacques. " It's likely a tree that's been tumbled across the river ; and, from its appearance, I think we'll have to cut through it." " Cut through it !" exclaimed Charley ; " if my sight is worth a gunflint, we'll have to cut through a dozen trees." Charley was right. The river ahead of them became rapidly narrower j and, either from the looseness of the surrounding soil, or the passing of a whirlwind, dozens of trees had been upset, and lay right across the narrow stream 12 170 SNOWFLARES AND SUNBEAMS in terrible confusion. What made the thing worse was, that the banks on either side, which were low and flat, were covered with such a dense thicket down to the water's edge, that the idea of making a portage to ovei- come the barrier seemed altogether hopelesa " Here's a pretty business, to be sure !" cried Charley, in great disgust. "Never say die, Mister Charles," replied Jacques, taking up the axe from the bottom of the canoe ; " it's quite clear that outtin' through the trees is easier than cuttin' through the bushes, so here goea" For fully three hours the travellers were engaged in cutting their way up the encumbered stream, during which timp they did not advance three miles ; and it was evening ere they broke down the last barrier, and paddled out into a sheet of clear water again. "That'll prepare us for the geese, Jacques," said Charley, as he wiped the perspiration firom his brow ; " there's nothing like warm work for whetting the appetite, and making one sleep soundly," " That's true," replied the hunter, resuming his paddle. " I often wonder how them white-faced fellows in the settlements manage to keep body and soul together — a* sittin', as they do, all day in the house, and a' lyin* all night in a feather bed. For my part, rather than live as they do, I would cut my way up streams like them we've just passed every day and all day, and sleep on top of a flat rock o' nights, under the blue sky, all my life through." "With this decided expression of his sentiments, the stout hunter steered the canoe up alongside of a huge fiat rock, as if he were bent on giving a practical illustration of the latter part of his speech then and there. FROM THE FAR NORTH. 171 "We'd better camp now, Mister Chai-lea, there's a portage o* two miles here, and it'll take us cill sun-down to get the canoe and things over/' " Be it 80," said Charley, landing ; " is there a good place at the other end to camp on ? " " First-rate. It's smooth as a blanket on the turf, and a clear spiing bubbling at the root of a wide tree that would keep off the rain if it was to come down like water-spouts." The spot on which the travellers encamped that evening overlooked one of those scenes in which vast extent, and rich, soft variety of natural objects, were united with much that was grand and savage. It filled the mind with the calm satisfaction that is experienced when one gazes on the wide lawns, studded with noble trees ; the spreading fields of waving grain that mingle with stream and copse, rock and dell, vineyard and garden, of the cultivated lands of civilised men ; while it produced that exulting throb of freedom which stirs man's heart to its centre, when he casts a first glance over miles and miles of broad lands that are yet unowned, unclaimed ; that yet lie in the unmutilated beauty with which the beneficent Creator originally clothed them — far away from the well-known scenes of man's chequered history ; entirely devoid of those ancient monu- ments of man's power and skill, that carry the mind back with feelings of awe to bygone ages ; yet stamped with evidences of an antiquity more ancient still, in the wild primeval forests, and the noble trees that have sprouted and spread and towered in their strength for centuries — trees that have fallen at their posts, while others took their place, and rose and fell as they did, like long-lived sentinels, whose duty it was to keep perpetual guard over the vast solitudes of the great American "Wilderness, r I 172 SNOWPLAKES AND SUNBEAMS The fire was lighted and the cauuo turned bottom up in front of it, under the branches of a spreading tree which stood on an eminence, whence was obtained a bird's-eye view of the noble scene. It was a flat valley, on either side of which rose two ranges of hills, which were clothed to the top with trees of various kinds, the plain of the valley itself being dotted with clumps of wood, among which the fresh green foliage of the plane-tree and the silver-stemmed birch were conspicuous, giving an airy lightness to the scene and enhancing the picturesque effect of the dark pines. A small stream could be traced wind- ing out and in among clumps of willows, reflecting their drooping boughs and the more sombre branches of the spruce-fir aiid the straight larch with which, in many places, its banks were shaded. Here and there were stretches of clearer ground, where the green herbage of spring gave to it a lawn-like appearance, and the whole magnificent scene was bounded by blue hills that became fainter as they receded from the eye and mingled at last with the horizon. The sun had just set, and a rich glow of red bathed the whole scene, which was further enlivened by flocks of wild- fowls and herds of reindeer. These last soon drew Charley's attention from the con- templation of the scenery, and, observing a deer feeding in an open space, towards which he could approach with- out coming between it and the wind, he ran for his gun and hurried into the woods, while Jacques busied himself in arranging their blankets under the upturned canoe, and in preparing supper. Charley discovered, soon after starting, what all hunters discover sooner or later, namely, that appearances are de- ceitful, for he no sooner reached the foot of the hill than PKOM THE FAR NOTITH. 173 ho found, between him and tlie lawu-like country, an iihnost impenetrable thicket of underwood. Our young hero, however, was of that disposition which sticks at nothing, and instead of taking time to search for an open- ing, he took a race and sprang into the middJu of it, in hopes of forcing his way througlL His httpes were not disappointed. Ho got thi*ough — quite through — and alighted up to the armpits in a swamp, to the infinite con- sternation of a flock of teal-ducks that were slumbering peacefully there with their heads under their wings, and had evidently gone to bed for the night. Fortunately he held his gun above the water and kept his balance, so that he was able to proceed with a dry charge, though with an uncommonly wet skin. Half an hour brought Charley within range, and, watching patiently until the animal presented his side towards the place of his con- cealment, he fired and shot it through the heart. "Well done. Mister Charles," exclaimed Jacques, as the former staggered into camp with the reindeer on his shoulders, — " a fat doe too." " Ay," said Charley, " but she hast cost me a wet skin ; 80 pray, Jacques, rouse up the fire, and let's have supper as soon as you can." Jacques speedily skinned the deer, cut a couple of steaks from its flank, and, placing them on wooden spikes, stuck them up to roast, while his young friend put on a dry shirt', and hung his coat before the blaze. The goose which had been shot earlier in the day was also plucked, split open, impaled in the same manner as the steaks, and set up to roast. By this time the shadows of night had deepened, and ere long all was shrouded in gloom, except the circle of ruddy light around the camp fire, in the I -1 If! f i 174 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS centre of which Jacques and Charley sat, with the canoe at their backs, knives in their hands, and the two spits, on the top of which smoked thjir ample supper, planted in the ground before them. One by one the stars went out, until none were visible except the bright, beautiful morning star, as it rose higher and higher in the eastern sky. One by one the owls and the wolves, ill-omened birds and beasts of night, retired to rest in the dark recesses of the forest. Little by little the gray dawn overspread the sky, and paled the lustre of the morning star, until it faded away altogether, and then Jacques awoke with a start, and throwing out his arm, brought it accidently into violent contact with Charley's nose. This caused Charley to awake, not only with a start, but also with a roar, which brought them both suddenly into a sitting posture, in which they continued for some time in a state between sleeping and waking, their faces meanwhile expressive of mingled imbecility and extreme surprise. Bursting into a simultaneous laugh, which degenerated into a loud yawn, they sprang up, launched and reloaded their canoe, and resumed their journey. 7B0M THE FAB NOBTU. 175 CHAPTER XTV. The Indian Camp; the new Ontpost; Charley sent on a Mission to the Indians. In the councils of the fur-traders, on the spring previous to that about which vre are now writing, it had been decided to extend their operations a little in the lands tliat lie in central America, to the north of the Sas- katchewan river; and, in furtherance of that object, it had been intimated to the chief trader in charge of the dis- trict, that an expedition should be set on foot, having for its object the examination of a territory into which they had not yet penetrated, and the establishment of an out- post therein. It was furthermore ordered that operations should be commenced at once, and that the choice of men to carry out the end in view was graciously left to the chief trader's well-known sagacity. Upon receiving this communication, the chief trader selected a gentleman, named Mr Whyte, to lead the party; gave him a clerk and five men ; provided him with a boat and a large supply of goods necessary for trade, imple- ments requisite for building an establishment, and sent him off with a hearty shake of the hand, and a recommen- dation to "go and prosper." Charles Kennedy spent part of the previous year at Rocky Mountain House, where he had shewn so much energy in conducting the trade — especially what he r I 176 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS \ called the " rough and tumble " part of it, that he waa selected as the clerk to accompany Mr Whyte to his new ground. After proceeding up many rivera, whose waters had seldom borne the craft of white men, and across innu- merable lakes, the party reached a spot that presented so inviting an aspect, that it was resolved to pitch their tent there for a time, and, if things in the way of trade and provision looked favourable, establish themselves alto- gether. The place was situated on the margin of a large lake, whose shores were covered with the most luxuriant verdure, and whose waters teemed with the finest fish, while the air was alive with wildfowl, and the woods swarming with game. Here Mr Whyte rested awhile ; and, having found everything to his satisfaction, he took his axe, selected a gi'een lawn that commanded an exten- sive view of the lake, and going up to a tall larch, struck the steel into it, and thus put the first touch to an estab- lishment which afterwards went by the name of Stoney Creek. A solitary Indian, whom they had met with on the way to their new home, had informed them that a large band of Knisteneux had lately migrated to a river about four days' journey beyond the lake, at which they halted ; and when the new fort was just beginning to spring up, our friend Charley and the interpreter, Jacques Caradoc, were ordered by Mr Whyte to make a canoe, and then, embarking in it, to proceed to the Indian camp, to inform the natives of their rare good luck in having a band of white men come to settle near their lands to trade with them. The interpreter and Charley soon found birch bark, pine roots for sewing it, and gum for plaster- ing the seams, wherewith they constructed the light %. FROM THE FAR NORTH. 177 machine whose progress we have partly traced in the last chapter, and whicl^ on the following day at sunset, carried them to their journey's end. From some remarks made by the Indian who gave them information of the camp, Charley gathered that it was the tribe to which Redfeather belonged, and furthermore, that Kedfeather himself was there at that time ; so that it was with feelings of no little interest that he saw the tops of the yellow tents embedded among the green trees, and soon afterwards beheld them and their picturesque owners reflected in the clear river, on whose banks the natives crowded to witness the arrival of the white men. Upon the green sward, and under the umbrageous shade of the forest trees, the tents were pitched to the number of perhaps eighteen or twenty, and the whole population, of whom very few were absent on the present occasion, might number a hundred — men, women, and children. They were dressed in habiliments formed chiefly of materials procured by themselves in the chase, but ornamented with cloth, beads, and silk thread, which shewed that they had had intercourse with the fur- ti-aders before now. The men wore leggins of deer- skin, which reached more than half way up the thigh, and were fastened to a leathern girdle, strapped round the waist. A loose tunic or hunting-shirt, of the same material, covered the figure from the shoulders almost to the knees, and was confined round the middle by a belt — in some cases of worsted, in others, of leather gaUy oma- mented with quills. Caps of various indescribable shapes, and made chiefly of skin, with the animal's tail left on by way of ornament, covered their heads, and moccasins for the feet completed their costume. These last may be III 178 SNOWFLAKES AND SX7NBEAMS simply described as leather mittens for the feet without fingers, or rather toes. They were gaudily ornamented, as was almost every portion of costume, with porcu- pines* quills dyed with brilliant colours, and worked into fanciful, and in many cases, extremely elegant figures and des'gns; for North American Indians oftentimes display an amount o^ taste in the harmonious arrangement of colour, that would astonish those who fancy that educa- tion is absolutely necessary to the just appreciation of the beautiful. The women attired themselves in leggins and coats difiering little fix)m those of the men, except that the latter werp longer, the sleeves detached fi:om the body, and fastened on separately — while on their heads they wore caps, which hung down and covered their back? to the waist. These caps were of the simplest construc- tion, being pieces of cloth cut into an oblong shape, and sewed together at one end. They were, however, richly ornamented with silk-work and beads. On landing, Charley and Jacques walked up to a tall good-looking Indian, whom they judged from his demean- our, and the somewhat deferential regard paid to him by the others, to be one of the chief men of the little com- munity. " Ho ! what cheer ? " said Jacques, taking him by the hand after the manner of Europeans, and accosting him with the phrase used by the fur-traders to the natives. The Indian returned the compliment in kind, and led the visitors to his tent, where he spread a bufialo robe for them on the ground, and begged them to be seated. A repast of dried meat and reindeer-tongues was then served, to which our fiiends did ample justice ; while the FROM THE FAR NORTH. 179 women and children satisfied their curiosity by peering at them through chinks and holes in the tent. When they had finished, several of the principal men assembled, and the chief who had entertained them made a speech, to the effect that he was much gratified by the honour done to his people by the visit of his white brothers ; that he hoped they would continue long at the camp to enjoy their hospitality ; and that he would be glad to know what had brought them so far into the coimtry of the red men. During the course of this speech, the diief made eloquent allusion to all the good qualities supposed to belong to white men. in general, and (he had no doubt) to the two white men before him in particular. He also boasted considerably of the prowess and bravery of himself and his tribe ; launched a few sarcastic hits at his enemies, and wound up with a poetical hope that his guests might live for ever in these beautiful plains of bliss, where the sun never sets, and nothing goes wrong anywhere, and everything goes right at all times, and where, especially, the deer are outrageously fat, and always come out on purpose to be shot ! During the course of these remarks, his comrades signified their hearty concurrence in his sentiments, by giving vent to sundry low-toned "hums!" and " has ! " and " wahs ! " and " hos ! " according to cir- cumstances. After it was over, Jacques rose, and, addressing them in their own language, said — " My Indian brethren are great. They are brave, and their fame has travelled far. Their deeds are known even so far as where the Great Salt Lake beats on the shore where the sun rises. They are not women, and when their enemies hear the sound of their name, they grow 180 SNOWPLAKES AND SUNBEAMS palo ; their hearts become like those of the reindeer. My brethren are famous, too, in the use of the snow-shoe, the snare, and the gun. The fur-traders know that they must build large stores when they come into their lands. They bring up much goods, because the young men are active, and require much. The silver fox and the marten are no longer safe when their traps and snares are set. Yes, they are good hunters, and we have now come to live among you (Jacques changed his style as he came nearer to the point), to trade with you, and to save you the trouble of making long journeys with your skins. A few days' distance from your wigwams we have pitched our tents. , Our young men are even now felling the trees to build a house. Our nets are set, our hunters are prowling in the woods, our goods are ready, and my young master and I have come to smoke the pipe of friendship with you, and to invite you to come to trade Nvith us." Having delivered this oration, Jacques sat down amid deep silence. Other speeches, of a highly satisfactory character, were then made, after which "the house adjourned," and the visitors, opening one of their pack- ages, distributed a variety of presents to the delighted natives. Several times during the course of these proceedings, Charley's eyes wandered among the faces of his enter- tainers, in the hope of seeing Kedfeather among them, but without success ; and he began to fear that his friend was not with the tribe. " I say, Jacques," he said, as they left the tent, "ask whether a chief called Redfeather is here. I knew him of old, and half-expected to find him at this place." -. 1 I- FROM THE FAR NORTH. 181 The Indian to whom Jacques put the question, replied that Bedfeather was with them, but that he had gone out on a hunting expedition that morning, and might be absent a day or two. " Ah !" exclaimed Charley, " I'm glad he's here. Come, now, let us take a walk in the wood ; these good people stare at us as if we were ghost&" And, taking Jacques' arm, he led him beyond the circuit of the camp, turned into a path, which, winding among the thick underwood, speedily screened them from view, and led them into a sequestered glade, through which a rivulet trickled along its course, almost hid from view by the dense foliage and long grasses that overhung it. " What a delightful place to live in ! " said Chailey. " Do you ever think of building a hut in such a spot as this, Jacquas, and settling down altogether ?" Charley's thoughts reverted to his sister Kate when he said this. " Why, no," replied Jacques, in a pensive tone, as if the question had aroused some sorrowful recollections; " I can't say that I'd like to settle here now. There was a time when I thought nothin' could be better than to squat in the woods with one or two jolly comrades, and (Jacques sighed) ; but times is changed now, master, and so is my mind. My chums are most of them dead or gone, one way or other. No ; I shouldn't care to squat alone." Charley thought of the hut without Kate; and it seemed so desolate and dreary a dwelling, notwithstanding its beautiful situation, that he agreed with his companion that to "squat" alone would never do at all. "No, man was not made to live alone," continued r ' 182 8X0WFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS Jacques, pursuing the subject; "even the Injins draw together. I never knew but one as didn't like his fellows, and he's gone now, poor fellow. He cut his foot with an axe one day, while fellin' a tree. It was a bad cut ; and havin* nobody to look after him, he half-bled and half- starved to death." "By the way, Jacques," said Charley, stepping over the clear brook, and following the track which led up the opposite bank, "what did you say to these red- skins? You made them a most eloquent speech appa- rently." " Why, as to that, I can't boast much of its eloquence, but I think it was clear enough. I told them that they were a great nation ; for, you see, Mr Charles, the red men are just like the white in their fondness for butter ; so I gave them some to begin with, though, for the matter o' that, I'm not overly fond o* givin' butter to any man, red or white. But I holds that it's as well always to fall in with the ways and customs o' the people a man happens to be among, so long as them ways and customs a'n't contrary to what's right. It makes them feel more kindly to you, an' don't raise any onnecessary ill-wilL However, the Knisteneux are a brave racej and, when I told them that the hearts of their enemies trembled when they heard of them, I told nothing but the truth, for the Chipewyans are a miserable set and not much given to fighting." " Your principles on that point won't stand much sifting, I fear," replied Charley ; " according to your own shewing you would fall into the Chipewyan's way of glo- rifying themselves on account of their bravery, if you chanced to be dwelling among them, and yet you say they FBOM THE FAR NORTH. 183 are not brave. That would not be sticking to truth, Jacques, would it 1 " "Well," replied Jacques, with a smile, "perhaps not exactly, but I'm sure there could be small harm in help- ing the miserable objects to boast sometimes, for theyVe little else than boasting to comfort them." " And yet, Jacques, I cannot help feeling that truth is a grand, a glorious thing, that should not be trifled with even in small matters." Jacques opened his eyes a little. " Then do you think, master, that a man should never tell a lie, no matter what fix he may be in ? " " I think not, Jacques." The hunter paused a few minutes, and looked as if an unusual train of ideas had been raised in his mind by the turn their conversation had taken. Jacques was a man of no religion, and little morality, beyond what flowed from a naturally kind, candid disposition, and entertained the belief that the end, if a good one, always justifies the means, — a doctrine which, had it been clearly exposed to liim in all its bearings and results, would have been spumed by his straightforward nature with the indignant contempt that it merits. " Mr Charles," he said, at length, " I once travelled across the plains to the head wafers of the Missouri with a party of six trappers. One night we came to a part of the plains which was very much broken up with wood here and there, and bein* a good place for water we camped. While the other lads were gettin' ready the sup- per, I started oflf to look for a deer, as we had been un- lucky that day — ^we had shot nothin'. Well, about three miles from the camp, I came upon a band o* somewhere 184 8N0WFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS h * about tLiriy Sicux (ill-lookiug, sneaking dogs thoj arc, too 1 ) and before I could whistle, they rushed upon me, took away my rifle and hunting knife, and were dancing round me like so many devils. At last, a big black- lookin' thief stepped forward, and said in the Cree lan- guage — * White men seldom travel through this country alone ; where are your comrades 1 ' Now, thought I, here's a nice fix I If I protend not to understand, they'll send out parties in all directions, and as sure as fate they'll find my companions in half an hour, and butcher them in cold blood ; for, you see, we did not expect to find Sieux, or, indeed, any Injins in them parts ; so I made believe to be very narvous, and tried to tremble all over and look pale. Did you ever try to look pale and fright* ened, Mr Charles?" " I can't say that I ever did," said Charley, laughing. " You can't think how troublesome it is," continued Jacques, with a look of earnest simplicity; " I shook and trembled pretty well, but the more I tried to grow pale, the more I grew red in the face, and when I thought of the six broad-shouldered, raw-boned lads in the camp, and how easy they would have made these jumping villains fly like chaflf, if they only knew the fix I was in, I gave a frown that had well-nigh shewed I was shamming. Hows'ever, what with sh^Jdn' a little more, and givin' one or two most awful groans, I managed to deceive them. Then I said I was hunter to a party of white men that were travellin' from Red River to St Louis, with all their goods, and wives, and children, and that they were away in the plains about a league oK " The big chap looked very hard into my face when I Btiid tliis, to see if I was telling the truth ; and I tried to FROM THE FAR NORTH. 18d make my teeth chatter, but it wouldn't do, so I took to gioaniu very bad instead. But them Sieux are such awful liars nat'rally, that they couldn't underatand the signs of truth, even if they saw them. *Whitefaced coward,* says he to me, * tell me in what direction your people are.* At this I made believe not to understand j but the big chap flourished his knife before my face, called me a dog, and told me to point out the direction. I looked as simple as I could, and said I would rather not. At this they laughed loudly, and then gave a yell, and said if I didn't shew them the direction they would roast me alive. So I pointed towards a part of the plainH pretty wide o* the spot where our camp was. * Now, lead us to them,* said the big chap, givin' me a shove with the butt of his gun ; * an' if you have told lies * he gave the handle of his scalpiu' knife a slap, as much as to say he'd tickle up my liver with it. Well, away we went in silence, me thinkin' all the time how I wa.s to get out o' the scrape. I led them pretty close past our camp, hopin' that the lads would hear us. I didn't daro to yell out, as that would have shewed them there waa somebody within hearin*, and they would have made uhorl> work of me. Just as we came near the place where my companions lay, a prairie wolf sprang out from under a bush where it had been sleepin,' so I gave a loud huiTah, and shied my cap at it. Giving a loud growl, the big Injin hit me over the head with liis fist, and told me to keep silence. In a few minutes I heard the low distant howl of a wolf. I recognised the voice of one of my com- rades, and knew that they had seen us, and would be on our track soon. Watchin' my opportunity, and walkin' for a good bit as if I was awful tired — all but done up — N 18G SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS fl ^ to throw them off their guard, I suddenly tripped up the big chap aa ho was stepping over a small brook, and dived in among the bushes. In a moment a dozen bullets tore up the bark on the trees about me, and an arrow passed through my hair. The clump of wood into which I had dived was about half a mile long; and as I could run well (I've found in my experience that white men are more than a match for redskins at their own work), I was almost out of range by the time I was forced to quit the cover and take to the plain. When the blackguards got out of the cover, too, and saw me cuttin' ahead like a deer, they gave a yell of disappointment, and sent an- other shower of arrows and bullets after me, some of which came nearer than was pleasant. I then headed for our camp with the whole pack screechin' at my heels. ' Yell away, you stupid sinners,' thought I j * some of you shall pay for your music* At that moment an arrow grazed my shoulder ; and, looking over it, I saw that the black fellow I had pitched into the water was far ahead of the rest, strainin' after raio like mad, and every now and then stopping to try an arrow on me ; so I kept a look out, and when I saw him stop to draw, I stopped too, and dodged, so the arrows passed me, and then we took to our heels again. In this way I ran for dear life, till I came up to the cover. As I came close up I saw our six fellows crouchin' in the bushes, and one o' them takin' aim almost straight for my face. * Your day's come at last,' thought I, looking over my shoulder at tlu big Injin, who was drawing his bow again. Just then there was a sharp crack heard — a bullet whistled past my ear, and the big fellow fell like a stone, while my comrade stood coolly up to reload liis FROM THE FAU AORTH. 187 riilo. Tlio Injins, on sccin' thm, pulled up in a momont ; and our lads stepping forward, delivd'cd a volley that made three more o' them bite tlie dust. There woidd have been six in that fix, but, somehow or other, threo of us pitched upon the same man, who was afterwards found with a bullet in each eye and one through hia heart. They didn't wait for more, but turned about and bolted like the wind. Now, Mr Charles, if I had told the truth that time, we would have been all killed ; and if I had simply said nothin' to their questions, they would have sent out to scour the country, and have found out the camp for sartin, so that the only way to escape waa by tellin' them a heap o' downright lies." Charley looked very much pcrplexod at this. " You have indeed placed mo in a diflSculty. I know not what I would have done. I don't know even what I ought to do under these circumstances. Difficulties may perplex me, and the force of circumstances might tempt me to do what I believed to be wrong. I am a sinner, Jacques, like other mortals, I know ; but one thing I am quite sure of, namely, that, when men speak, it ..?iould always be truth and never falsehood." Jacques looked perplexed too. He was strongly im- pressed with the necessity of telling falsehood in the cir- cumstances in wliich he had been placed, as just related, while at the same time he felt deeply the grandeur and the power of Charley's last remark. " I should have been under the sod now" said he, " if I had not told a lie then. Is it better to die than to speak falsehood ?" " Some men have thought so," replied Charley. " T acknowledge the difficulty oft/our case, and of all similar 188 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS il cases. I don't know what should be done; but I have read of a minister of the gospel whose people were very wicked and would not attend to hie instructions, although tliey could not but respect himself, he was so consistent and Christianlike in his conduct. Persecution ai'ose in the country where he lived, and men and women were cruelly murdered because of their religious belief. For a long time he was left unmolested ; but one day a band of soldiers came to his house, and asked him whether he was a Papist or a Protestant — (Papist, Jacques, being a man who has sold liis liberty in religious matters to the Pope, and a Protestant being one who protests against such an ineffably silly and unmanly rtate of slavery.) WeU, his people urged the good old man to say he was a Papist, telling him that he would then be spared to live among them, and preach the true faith for many years perhaps. Now, if there was one thing that this old man would have toiled for aid died for, it was, that his people should be- come true Christians, — and he told them so, 'but,' he added, ' I will not tell a lie to accomplish that end, my children; no, not even to save my life.' So he told the soldiers that he was a Protestant, and immediately they carried him away, and he was soon afterwards burned to death." " Well," said Jacques, " he didn't gain much by stick- ing to the truth, I think." " I'm not so sure of that. The story gets on to say, that he rejoiced that he had done so, and wouldn't draw back even when he was in the flames. But the point lies here, ^ acques : so deep an impression did the old man's conduct make on his people, that from that day forward they were noted for their Christian life and conduct. They brought up their children with a deeper reverence L FROM THE PAR NORTH. 189 I liuvo jre very Ithough insistent ai'ose in en were ef. For Y a band ether he , being a irs to the ,3 against jr.) WeU, a Papist, ire among ; perhaps, ould have honld be- he added, children; soldiers carried death." by stick- to say, In't draw Doint lies bid man's forward conduct, bcverence for the truth than they would otherwise have done, always bearing in affectionate remembrance, and holding up to them as an example, the unflinching tmthfulness of the good old man who was burned in the year of the terrible persecutions ; and at last their influence and example had such an effect that the Protestant religion spread like wild- fire, far and wide around them, so that the very thing was accomplished for which the old pastor said he would have died : accomplished, too, very much in consequence of his death, and in a way, and to an extent that very likely would not have been the case, had he lived and preached among them for a hundred years." " I don't understand it, nohow," said Jacques, " it seems to me right both ways and wrong both ways, and all up- side do\vn everyhow." Charley smiled. " Your remark is about as clear as my head on the subject, Jacques, but I still remain convinced thai; truth is right and that falsehood is ivrong, and that we should stick to the first through thick and thin." " I s'pose," remarked the hunter, who had walked along in deep cogitation for the last five minutes, and had aj)- parently come to some conclusion of profound depth and sagacity, " I s'pose that it's all human natur' ; that some men takes to preachin' as Injins take to huntin', and that to understand sich things requires them to begin young, and risk their lives in it, as I would in followin' up a grizzly she-bear with cubs." " Yonder is an illustration of one part of your remark. They begin young enough, anyhow," said Chai'loy, pointing as he spoke to an opening in the bushes, where a par- ticularly small Indian boy stood in the act of discharging an arrow. I 190 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS The two men halted to watch his movements. Accord- ing to a common custom among juvenile Indians during the warm months of the year, he was dressed in notliing save a mere rag tied round his waist. His body was very brown, extremely round, fat, and wonderfully diminutive, while his little legs and ai*ms were dis- proportionately smalL He was so young as to be barely able to walk, and yet there he stood, his black eyes glit- tering with excitement, his tiny bow bent to its utmost, and a blunt -headed arrow about to be discharged at a squirrel, whose flight had been suddenly arrested by the unexpected apparition of Charley and Jacques. As he stood theife for a single instant, perfectly motionless, he might have been mistaken for a grotesque statue of an Indian cupid. Taking advantage of the squirrel's pause, the child let fly the arrow, hit it exactly on the point of the nose, and turned it over, dead, — a consummation which he greeted with a rapid succession of frightful yells. " Cleverly done, my lad ; you're a chip of the old block, I see," said Jacques, patting the child's head as he passed, and retraced his steps, with Charley, to the Indian camp. I fllOM THE FAR NOKTH. 191 CHAPTER XV. The Feast; Charley makes his first speech in public; meets with an old triuud; an evening in the grass. Savages, not less than civilised men, are fond of a goo i? from tlic principal chief, in the shape of two quills ; similar invites being issued at the same time to all the braves. Jacques, being accustomed to the doings of Indians, and aware of the fact, that whatever was pro- vided for each man, must be eaten before he quittea xhe scene of operations, advised Charley to eat no breakfast, and to take a good walk as a preparative. Charley had strong faitli. however, in his digestive powers, and felt much inclined, when morning came, to satisfy the cravings of Ids appetite as usual ; but Jacques drew such a, graphic picture of the work that lay before him, that he forbore to urge the matter, and went off to walk with a light step, and an uncomfortable feeling of vacuity about the region 6f the stomach. About noon, the cliiefs and braves assembled in an open enclosure situated in an exposed place on the banks of the river, where the proceedings were watched by the women, children, and dogs. The oldest chief sat himself down on the turf at one end of the enclosure, with Jacques Caradoc on his right hand, and next to him. Charley Kennedy, who had ornamented himself with a blue stripe painted down the middle of his nose, and a red bar across his chin. Charley's propensity for fun had led him thus to decorate his face, in spite of his companion's remonstrances, urging, by way of excuse, that worthy's former argument, " that it was well to fall in with the ways o' the people a man happened to be among, so long as these ways and customs were not con- trary to what was right." Now, Charley was sure there was nothing wi'ong in his painting his nose skyblue, if he tliought fit. Jacques thought it was absurd, and entertained the PROM THE FAR NORTH. 193 opinion that it would be more dignified to leave his face " its nat'ral colour." Charley didn't agree with him at all. He thought it would be paying the Indians a high compliment to foUow their customs as far as possible, and said, that, after all, his blue nose would not be veiy conspicuous, as he (Jacques) had told him that he would " look blue" at any rate, when he saw the quantity of deer's meat he should have to devour. Jacques laughed at this, but suggested that the bar across his chin was red. Whereupon Charley said that he could easily neutralise that by putting a green star under each eye. And then uttered a fervent wish that his friend Harry Somerville could only see him in that guise. Finding him incorrigible, Jacques, who, notwithstanding his remonstrances, was more than half- imbued with Charley's spirit, gave in, and accompanitd him to the feast, himself decorated with the additional ornament of a red night-cap, to whose crown was attached a tuft of white feathers. A fire burned in the centre of the enclosure, round which the Indians seated themselves according to seni- ority, and with deep solemnity ; for it is a trait in the Indian's character that all his ceremonies are performed with extreme gravity. Each man brought a dish or platter, and a wooden spoon. The old chief, whose hair was very gray, and his face covered with old wounds and scars, received either in war or in hunting, having seated himself, allowed a few minutes to elapse in silence, during which the company sat motionless ; gazing at their plates as if they half expected them to become converted into beefsteaks. . J 'il i'': 194 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS While tlicy were seated thus, another party of Indians, who had been absent on a hunting expedition, strode rapidly but noiselessly into the enclosure, and seated themselves in the circle. One of these passed close to Charley, and in doing so stooped, took his hand, and pressed it. Charley looked up in surprise, and beheld the face of his old friend Redfeather, gazing at him with an expression in which was mingled affection, surprise, and amusement at the peculiar alteration in his visage. " Redfeather ! " exclaimed Charley, in delight, half rising ; but the Indian pressed him down. " You' must not rise," he whispered, and, giving his hand another squeeze, passed round the circle, and took his place directly opposite. Having continued motionless for five minutes with becoming gravity, the company began operations by pro- ceeding to smoke out of the sacred stem, a ceremony which precedes all occasions of importance ; and is conducted as follows : — The sacred stem is placed on two forked sticks to pi-event its touching the ground, as that would be con- sidered a great evil A stone pipe is then filled with tobacco, by an attendant appointed specially to that office, and affixed to the stem, which is presented to the prin- cipal chief. That individual, with a gravity and hauteur that is unsurpassed in the annals of pomposity, receives the pipe in both hands?, blows a puff to the east (probably in consequence of its being the quarter wnence the sur; rises) and thereafter pays a similar mark of attention to the other three points. He then raises the pipe above his head, points and balances it in various directions (for what reason and with what end in view is best known to if I : FROM THE FAR NORTH. 195 himself), and replaces it agaiu on the forks. The com- pany meanwhile observe his proceedings with sedate interest, evidently imbued with the idea that they are deriving from the ceremony a vast amount of edification ; an idea which is helped out, doubtless, by the appearance of the women and children, who surround the enclosure, and gaze at the proceedings with looks of awe-struck seriousness that is quite solemnising to behold. The chief then makes a speech relative to the circum- stance which has called them together ; and which is always more or less interlarded with boastful reference to his own deeds, past, present, and prospective, eulogistic remarks on those of his forefathers, and a general con- demnation of all other Indian tribes whatever. These speeches are usually delivered with great animation, and contain much poetic allusion to the objects of nature that surround the homes of the savage. The sjieech being finished, the chief sits down amid a univei'sal " Ho ! " ut- tered by the company with an emphatic prolongation of the last letter — this syllable being the Indian substitute, we presume, for " rapturous applause." The chief who officiated on the present occasion, having accomplished the opening ceremonies thus far, sat down, whUe the pipe-bearer presented the sacred stem to the membei*s of the company in succession, each of whom drew a few whifis and mumbled a few words. " Do as you see the redskins do, Mr Charles," whis- pered Jacques, while the pipe was going round. " That's impossible," replied Charley, in a tone that could not be heard except by his friend. " I couldn't make a face of hideous solemnity like that black thief opposite, if I was to try ever so hard." 196 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS (i " Don't let them think you're laughing at thera,'* re- tiirned the hunter ; " they would be ill-pleased if they thought so." " I'll try," said Charley, " but it is hard work, Jacques, to keep from laughing ; I feel like a high pressure steam- engine already. There's a woman standing out there with a little brown baby on her back; she has quite fascinated me ; I can't keep my eyes off her, and if she goes on contort- ing her visage much longer, I feel that I shall give way." "Hush!" At this moment the pipe was presented to Charley, who j)ut it to his lips, drew three whiffs, and returned it with a bland smile to the bearer. The smile was a veiy sweet one, for that was a peculiar tiuit in the native urbanity of Charley's disposition, and it would have gone far in civilised society to prepossess strangers in his favour ; but it lowered him considerably in the estimation of his red friends, who entertained a wholesome feeling of contempt for any appearance of levity on high occasions. But Charley's face was of that agree- able stamp, that, though gentle and bland when lighted up with a smile, is particularly masculine and manly in expression when in repose, and the frown that knit his brows when he observed the bad impression he had given, almost reinstated him in their esteem. But his popularity became great, and the admiration of his swarthy friends greater, when he rose and made an eloquent speech in English, which Jacques translated -into the Indian lan- guage. He told them, in reply to the chief's oration (wherein that warrior had complimented his pale-faced brothers on their numerous good qualities) that hp was delighted and FROM THE FAR NORTH. 107 proud to meet with his Indian friends; that the object of nis mission was to acquaint them with the fact that a n.w trading fort was established not far off, by himself and his comrades, for their special benefit and behoof; that the stores were full of goods which he hoped they would soon obtain possession of, in exchange for furs ; that he had travelled a great distance on purjiose to see their land and tiscertain its capabilities in the way of fur-bearing animals and game ; that he had not been disappointed in his ex- pectations, as he had found the animals to be as numerous as bees, the fish plentiful in the rivers and lakes, and the country at large a perfect paradise. He proceeded to tell them further that he expected they would justify the report he had heard of them, that they were a brave nation and good hunters, by bringing in large quantities of furs. Being strongly urged by Jacques to compliment them on their various good qualities, Charley launched out into an extravagantly poetic vein, said that he had heard (but he hoped to have many opportunities of seeing it proved) that there was no nation under the sun equal to them in bravery, activity, and perseverance ; that he had heard of men in olden times who made it their profession to fight with wild bulls for the amusement of their friends, but he had no doubt whatever their courage would be made conspicuous in the way of fighting wild bears and bufialoes, not for the amusement, but the benefit of their wives and children (he might have added of the Hudson's Bay Com- pany, but he didn't, supposing that that was self-evident, probably.) He complimented them on the way in which they had conducted themselves in war in times past, com- paring their stealthy approach to enemies' camps, to the insidious snake that glides among the bushes and daits 198 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS unexpectedly on its prey ; said that their eyes were sharp to follow the war-trail through the forest or over the dry sward of the prairie ; their aim with gun or bow true and sure as the flight of the goose when it leaves the lands of the sun, and points its beak to the icy regions of the north ; their war-whoops loud as the thunders of the cataract ; and their sudden onset like the lightning flash that darts from the sky and scattera the stout oak in splinters on the plain. At this point Jacques expressed his satisfiiction at the style in which his young friend was progressing. " That's your sort, Mr Charles. Don't spare the butter, i Lay it on thick. You've not said too much yet, for they are a brave race, that's a fact, as I've good reason to know." Jacques, however, did not feel quite so well satisfied when Charley went on to tell them that, although bravery in war was an admirable thing, war itself was a thing not at all to be desired, and should only be undertaken in case of necessity. He especially pointed out that there was not much glory to be earned in fighting against the Chipe- wyans, who, everybody knew, were a poor, timid set of people, whom they ought rather to pity than to destroy j and recommended them to devote themselves more to the ch.ase than they had done in times past, and less to the prosecution of war in time to come. All this, and a great deal more, did Charley say, in a manner, and with a rapidity of utterance, that surprised himself, when he considered the fact that he had never adventured into the field of public speaking before. All this, and a great deal more — a veri/ gi-eat deal more — did Jacques Caradoc interpret to the admiring Indians, who PKOM THE FAB NOllTII. 199 Hstenod with the utmost gravity and profound attention, gi'ecting tlie close with a very emphatic " Ho ! " Jacques' translation was by no means perfect. Many of the flights into which Charley ventured, especially in regard to the manners and customs of the savages of ancient Greece and Rome, were quite incomprehensible to the worthy backwoodsman — but he invariably pro- ceeded, when Charley halted, giving a flight of his own when at a loss, varying and modifying when he thought it advisable, and altering, adding, or cutting oflf as he pleased. Several other chiefs addressed the assembly, and then dinner, if we may so call it, was served. In Cliarley's case, it was breakfast. To the Indians, it was breakfast, dinner, and supper in one. It consisted of a large platter of dried meat, reindeer tongues (considered a great deli- cacy), and marrow-bones. Notwithstanding the gi'aphic power with which Jacques had prepared his young companion for this meal, Charley's heart sank when he beheld the mountain of boiled meat that was placed before him. He was raven- ously hungry, it is true, but it was patent to his percep- tion at a glance, that no powers of gormandising of which he was capable could enable him to consume the mass in the course of one day. Jacques observed his consternation, and was not a little entertained by it, although his face wore an expression of profound gravity, while he proceeded to attack his own dish, which was equal to that of his friend. Before commencing, a small portion of meat was thrown into the fire, as a sacrifice to the Great Master of Life. " How they do eat, to be sure ! " whispered Charley to Jacques, after he had glanced in wonder at the circle of ii ?, '! 200 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS men wlio wore devouring their food with the most extra/* ordinary rapidity. " Why, you must know," replied Jacques, " that it's considered a point of honour to get it over soon, and the man that is done first gets most credit. But it's hard work " (he sighed and paused a little to breathe), "and I've not got half through yet." " It's quite plain that I must lose credit with them, then, if it depends on my eating that. Tell me, Jacques, is there no way of escape'? JMust I sit here till it is all consumed 1 " " No doubt of it. Every bit that has been cooked must be crammed down our throats somehow or other." Charley heaved a deep sigh, and made another des- perate attiick on a large steak, while the Indians around him made considerable progress in reducing their respec- tive mountains. Several times Charley and Redfeather exchanged glances as they paused in their labours. " I say, Jacques," said Charley, pulling up once more. " how do you get on 1 Pretty well stufied by this time, I should imagine 1 " " Oh, no ! I've a good deal o' room yet." " I give in. Credit or disgrace, it's all one. I'll not make a pig of myself for any redskin in the land," Jacques smiled. " See," continued Charley, " there's a fellow opposite who has devoured as much as would have served me for three days, I don't know whether it's imagination or not, but I do verily believe that he's blacker in the face than when he sat down !" " Very likely," replied Jacques, wiping Ids lips j " now I've done," FBOM THE FAR NORTH. 201 lost OXtlU" " Done 1 you have 1 ft at least a thii-d of your supply." " Time, and I may ua well tell you for your comfort, that there is one way of escape open to you. It is a cus- tom among these fellows, that when any one cannot gulp his share o' the prog, he may got help from any of hia friends who can cram it down their throats ; and as there are always such fellows among these Injins, they seldom have any difficulty." " A moat convenient practice," replied Charley ; '* I'll adopt it at once." Charley turned to his next neighbour with the intent to beg of liim to eat his remnant of the feast. " Bless my heart, Jacques, I've no chance with the fellow on my left hand j he's stuffed quite full already, and is not quite done with his own share." " Never feai*," replied his Mend, looking at the indi- vidual in question, who was languidly lii'ting a marrow- bone to his lips, " he'll do it easy, I knows the gauge o them chaps, and, for ail his sleepy look just now, he's game for a lot more." " Impossible," replied Charley, looking in despair at his unfinished viands and then at the Indian. A glance round the circle seemed further to convince him that if he did not eat it himself, there were none of the party likely to do so. " You'll have to give him a good lump o' tobacco to do it, though J he won't undertake so much for a trifle, I can tell you." Jacques chuckled as he said this, and handed his own portion over to another Indian, who readily undertook to finish it for him. " He'll burst ; I feel certain of that," said Charley, with a deep sigh, as he surveyed his friend on the left. () ^^ ^ ii li I 202 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS At last he took courage to propose the thing to hiin, and, just as the man finished the last morsel of his own repast, Charley placed his own plate before him, with a look that seemed to say, " Eat it, my friend, if you can.'* The Indian, much to his surprise, immediately com- menced to it, and in less than half-an-hour the whole was disposed of. During this scene of gluttony, one of the chiefs enter- tained the assembly with a wild and most unmusical chaunt, to which he beat time on a sort of tambourine, while the wo- men outside of the enclosure beat a similar accompaniment. " I say, master," whispered Jacques, " it seems to my observation that the fellow you called Redfeather eats less than any Injin I ever saw. He has got a comrade to eat more than half of his share ; now that's strange." "It won't appear strange, Jacques, when I tell you that Bedfeather has lived much more among white men than Indians during the last ten years, and although voyageurs eat an enormous quantity of food, they don't make it a point of honour, as these fellows seem to do, to eat much more than enough. Besides, Bedfeather is a very different man from those around him ; he has been partially educated by the missionaries on Playgreen Lake, and I think has a strong leaning towards them." While they were thus conversing in whispers, Bed- feather rose, and, holding forth his hand, delivered himself of the following oration : — " The time has come for Bedfeather to speak. He has kept silence for many moons now ; but his heart has been full of words. It is too fulL He must speak now. Redfeather has fought with his tribe and has been ac- counted a brave, and one who loves his people. FROM THE FAR NORTH. 203 a hiin, is own with a cany [y com- wliole 3 enter- cliaiint, stbewo- Lniinent. A tomy eats less ie to eat * tell you ite men although y don't |to do, to ;her is a Ihas been [en Iiake, 3rs, Red- himself He has Ihas beer lak now. I been ac- le. is true. He does love, even more than they can un- derstand. His friends know that he has never feared to face danger or death in their defence, and that, if it were necessary, he woiild do so stiU. But Redfcather is going to leave his people now. His heart is heavy at the thought. Perhaps many moons will come and go, many snows may fall and melt away before he sees his people again ; and it is this that makes him full of sorrow, it is this that makes his head to droop like the branches of the weeping willow." Redfeather paused at this point, but not a sound escaped from the listening circle : the Indians were evidently taken by surprise at this abrupt announcement. He pro- ceeded : — " When Redfeather travelled not long since with the white men, he met with a pale-face, who came from the other side of the Great Salt Lake towards the rising sun. This man was called by some of the people a missionary. He spoke wonderful words in the ears of Redfeather. He told him of things about the Great Spirit which he did not know before, and he asked Redfeather to go and help him to speak to the Indians about these strange things. Redfeather wotdd not go. He loved his people too much, and he thought that the words of the mission- ary seemed foolishness. But he has thought much about it since. He does not understand the strange things that were told to him, and he has tried to forget them, but he cannot. He can get no rest. He hears strange sounds in the breeze that shakes the pine. He thinks that there are voices in the waterfall; the rivers seem to speak. Redfeather's spirit is vexed. The Great Spirit, perhaps, is talking to him. He has resolved to go to the dwelling of the missionary and stay with liim." 204 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS i. The Indian paused again, but still no sound escaped from his comrades. Dropping his voice to a soft plain- tive tone, he continued — " But Rcdfeatlier loves his kindred. He desires very much that they should hear the things that the missionary said. He spoke of the happy hunting grounds to which the spirits of our fathers have gone, and said that we required a guide to lead us there j that there was but one guide, whoso name, he said, was Jesus. Redfeather would stay and hunt with his people, but his spirit is troubled ; he cannot rest ; he must go ! " Redfeather sat down, and a long silence ensued. His words had evidently taken the whole party by surpiise, although not a countenance there shewed the smallest symptom of astonishment, except that of Charley Ken- nedy, whose intercourse with Indians had not yet been so great as to have taught him to conceal his feelings. At length the old chief rose, and, after complimenting Redfeather on his bravery in general, and admitting that he had shewn much love to his people on all occasions, went into the subject of his quitting them at some length. He reminded him that there were evil spirits as well as good j that it was not for him to say which kind had been troubling him, but that he ought to consider well before he went to live altogether with pale-faces. Several other speeches were made, some to the same effect, and others applauding his resolve. These latter had, perhaps, some idea that liis bringing the pale-faced missionaiy among them would gratify their taste for the marvellous — a taste that is pretty strong in all uneducated minds. One man, however, was particularly urgent in en- deavouring to dissuade him from his purpose. He wa.s a FROM THE FAR NORTH. 205 tiill, low-browed mai ; muscular and well built, but pos- sessed of a most vjllanous expression of countenance. From a remark that fell from one of the company, Charley discovered that his name was Misconna, and so learned, to his surprise, that he was the very Indian mentioned by Redfeather as the man who had been hia rival for the hand of Wabisca, and who had so cruelly killed the wife of the poor trapper the night on which tlie Chipewyan camp was attacked, and the people slaugh- tered. What reason Misconna had for objecting so strongly to Redfeiither's leaving the community no one could tell, although some of those who knew his unforgiving nat\ire suspected that he still entertained the hope of being able, some day or other, to wreak his vengeance on his old rival. But, whatever was his object, he failed in moving Red- feather's resolution ; and it wb. at last admitted by the whole party that Redfeather was a " wise chief ; " that he knew best what ought to be done under the circum- stances, and it was hoped that his promised visit, in com- pany with the missionary, would not be delayed many moons. That night, in the deep shadow of the trees, by the brook that murmured near the Indian camp, while the stars twinkled through the branches overhead, Charley introduced Redfeather to his friend Jacques Caradoc, and a friendship was struck up between the bold hunter and the red-man, that grow and strengthened as each suc- cessive day made them acquainted with their respective good qualities. In the same place, and with the same stars looking down upon them, it was further agreed that Redfeather should accompany his new friends, taking hia ^ 206 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS wife along witli him in another canoe, as far as their several routes led them in the same direction, which was about four or five days' journey ; and that wliile the one party diverged towards the fort at Stoney Creek, the other should pursue its coui*se to the missionary station on the shores of Lake Winipeg. But tliere was a snake in the grass there that they little suspected. Misconna had crept through the bushes after them, with a degi'ee of caution that might have baffled their vigilance, even had they suspected treason in a friendly camp. He lay listening intently to all their plans, and when they returned to their camp, he rose out from tj,mong the bushes, like a dark spirit of evil, clutched the handle of his scalping-knife, and gave utterance to a malicious growl; then, walking hastily after them^ Ma dusky figure was soon concealed among the trees. * , FUOM TH£ FAR NOKTU. 207 CHAPTER XVL The return; nairow escape; a murderous attempt, which fails; and a discovery. All nature was joyous and brilliant, and bright and beau- tiful. Morning was still very young — about an hour old. Sounds of the most cheerful light-hearted chai-acter floated over the waters and echoed through the woods, as birds and beasts hurried to and fro with all the bustling energy that betokened preparation and search for breakfast. Fish leaped in the pools with a rapidity that brought for- cibly to mind that wise saying, " The more hurry, the less speed," for they appeared constantly to miss their mark, although they jumped twice their own length out of the water in the effort. Ducks and geese sprang from their liquid beds with an amazing amount of unnecessary splutter, as if they had awakened to the sudden consciousness of being late for breakfast, then alighted in the water again with a squash, on finding (probably) that it was too early for that meal, but, observing other flocks passing and re-passing on noisy wing, took to flight again, unable apparently to restrain their feelings of delight at the freshness of the morning air, the brightness of the rising sun, and the sweet perfume of the dewy verdure, as the mists cleared away over the tree-tops and lost themselves in the blue sky. Everything seemed instinct not only with life, but with a large amount r I 208 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS I< if of superabundant energy. Earth, air, sky, animal, vege- table and mineral, solid and liquid, all were either ac- tually in a state of lively exulting motion, or had a pecu- liarly sprightly look about them, as if nature had just burst out of prison m masses and gone raving mad with joy- Such was the delectable state of things the morning on which two canoes darted from the camp of the Kniste- neux, amid many expressions of good-will. One canoe contained our two friends, Charley and Jacques ; the other Redfeather and his wife Wabisca. A few strokes of the paddle shot them out into the stream, which carried them rapidly away from the scene ... their late festivities. In five minutes they swept round a point, which shut them out from view, and they were swiftly descending those rapid rivers th^t had cost Charley and Jacques so much labour to ascend. " Look out for rocks ahead, Mr Charles," cried Jacques, as he steered the light bark into the middle of a rapid, which they had avoided when ascending, by making a portage. " Keep well to the left o' yon swirL ParhleUj if we touch the rock there, it'll be all over with us." "All right," was Charley's laconic reply. And so it proved, for their canoe, after getting fairly into the run of the rapid, was evidently under the complete command of its expert crew, and darted forward amid the foaming waters, like a thing instinct with life. Now it careered and plunged over the waves, where the rough bed of the stream made them more than usually turbulent. Anon it flew with increased rapidity through a narrow gap where the compressed water was smooth and black, but deep and powerful, rendering great care necessary to lal, vege- sitlier ac- i a pecu- had just nad with )ming on ) Kniste- 1/ p: )• -.•*'.. .^*f <-. r^': i\#-. ■i'^". j3;j»yl L>,-ti ^'1 .,w «-i«l»««f^^ 1i "l?^ , t>£PAFiTURE OF CHflt iKb tMMlA- •< f 2U8 of ^.f.i > . » „"• ivi 'th, riiiv sky, auimal, v«:gf- ■ '*'•■ ,«*.!.! fwM'. il-pini, iJI .WL-ro ciutcr a<> . fjf .V.S i.Miltiii!,' motion, r.r li;»ea»r io fiMn 11, i..s if naUiro hud jufat ,--■ i .(«..UC' nvsiiig ttiad wiih » li , , ., " •' . .; . • '.*' v-; ■^' ,■ 'f tlu; K'lisU'- ,. i.. , •. , • T, ■ ..xion.s '-l ;.T<'j>(iwi!!. Oao oaooe •...■•.' .,^ i -'Vii-tv* • »i-f nT}. <^'»ft.rlfy and J;u''],;;i.>.s ; the other l?<.:<:'Mirli'-r :\ud Ii> rifo >V{.biMca. A frw B!.r'.ices ' r''!i«-' ];-.!l..iie ^liot tl cm oyio inff I'lf stroaui. \.luch ciu-ritHi U.OTn rajildly awny frora the KCfcijii of xh^'iV V'Aa fi'.:.livi-it;s in t>- o ndnntos they hv/c)»^. iv'iptd'a mint, v,-liioii cilait tJiOJU oat froru ^•icv/•, arxd tbi^'; \W'!«'i f, -vlnly (^-■r■ ' '^;"!; 1 •»>.'( , ''I .-i-iftT-s tJiiA Lad eo.-s Oi;ia! V ■^:i.f ' t'^, ^ • ' •■^i' '/. ^.r t-:^ii:-. •'.,•! id, ' !..•.'.; cvt tir r^'K k- i-J.-ivi, Mr Oharlra/' cviod JuCqut,-;., fcii h.- •>:. Te-l tlio light Turk i»i> {"'^e rniddlo of i.v.ia.pi.u tcu. ti •■.;i.-y hy.J ft''.Hk'>! vd^^ v. ?>soondiir^ by Trjalar-.t/ w t'^it^'''^:'. i" uf\:i A. •' *•«. '.h'l ivil o' you sv-'irl. F'lrhii'H, ii'w«' UiU'.h thc> i.,cIn •'?,-■ •..:''1I bo rll^ovcr with iiR." ■ ''All right, ■■■ vv'jii- ', •.-r'.'-y't '.y.'ouic reply. Ai^d so it prov*^d, for Uif'^; *'aU'>. v,*'/ r ^^'Hting fairly into the r-u of tho- i*a|>id/ *■»*,-'• S" ■ j> ri'-'.or fcac complettj ooTnni.;t.d of its oxi-eft. <•• ' .." .*. ■'- i ibnva"d amid the fo;i:i»i;!j; ■|(^tt«7i, 1 'TO ^x N« .'v' if^^;'..''';^ ssiih lite. II'novv i(; cru-ecr«d aiid j>ik5i»i('Aft <>*• . ti*.. w.^-ir^, wlievo th*^ roiigh bed oi" \\u- tixrmi f>: ii.k U.'i-. moro th;vn iT.aially turba'''ni. Anoiv jt il<-';; -iyvlift iu'";'--^i''-.l r.-!.pidity t.hro igh a ni.now g^} whero ':)> • ''m the sofciu* ."./, vini} tljp-':' Jilt, had cu-4 ' i» * ^y TnakiirCf >v At; J iui it it'i tho ruu •e coinni.^tid lO fo;lIl»ii!g cru-ecr«vi .:mI of \h<' 'in. Anoii laclc, bu^ DEPARTURE OF CHARLEY AND JACQUES FROM THE CAMP OF THE INDIANS. „ „„„ Page 201?. 1*1 •' ■ » 1 1 I r i 1 1 1 \ 1 1 ] 1 1 1 < t • < i i i. 1 •^ £ 1 ■ i 1 \ • * ! 4 \ < I ' 1 i \ ! 1 1 ' ^ ^ t a i 1 1 i a d P j 1 FROM THE FAR NORTU. 209 prevent the canoe's frail sides from being dashed on the rocks. Then it met a curling wave, into which it plunged like an impetuous charger, and was checked for a moment by its own violence. Presently an eddy threw the canoe a little out of its course, disconcerting Charley's intention of shaving a rock which lay in their track, so that he slightly grazed it in passing. "Ah, Mr Charles," said Jacques, shaking his head, " that was not well done ; an inch more would have sent us down the rapids like drowned cats." "True," replied Charley, somewhat crestfallen, "but you see the other inch was not lost, so we're not much the worse for it." " Well, after all, it was a ticklish bit, and I should have guessed that your experience was not up to it quite. I've seen many a man in my day who wouldn't ha' done it half bo slick, an' yet ha' thought no small beer of himself; so you needn't be ashamed, Mr Charles. But Wabisca beats you for all that," continued the hunter, glancing hastily over his shoulder at Redfeather, who followed closely in their wake, he and his modest-looking wife guiding their little craft through the dangerous passage with the utmost sangfroid and precision. " We've about run them all now," said Jacques, as they paddled over a • sheet of still water which inter- vened between the rapid they had just descended and another which thundered about a hundred yards in advance. " I was so engrossed with the one we have just come down," said Charley, " that I quite forgot this one." " Quite right, Mr Charles," said Jacques, in an ap- proving tone ; " quite right. I holds that a man should \, 210 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBRAMS always attend to wliat he'd at, an' to nothin' else. I've lived long in the woods now, and that fact becomes more and more sartin every day. I've know'd chaps, now, as timorsome as settlement girls, that wore always in such a mortal funk about what was to happen, or might happen, that they were never fit for anything that did happen ; always lookin* aliead, and never around them. Of coorse, I don't mean that a man shouldn't look ahead at all, but their great mistake w:is, that they looked out too far aliead, and always kep' their eyes nailed there, just as if tliey had the fixin' o' everything, an' Providence had nothin' to do with it at all. I mind a Canadian o' that sort, that travelled in company with mo once. We were goin' just as we are now, Mr Charles, two canoes of us ; him and a comrade in one, and me and a comrade in t'other. One night we got to a lot < ' lapids, that came one after another for the matter o' three miles or there- abouts. They were all easy ones, however, except the last, but it was a tickler, with a sharp turn o' the land that hid it from sight till ye were right into it, with a foamin' current, and a range o' ragged rocks that stood straight in front o' ye, like the teeth of a cross-cut saw. It was easy enough, however, if a man knew it, and was a cool hand. Well, the pauvre Canadian was in a terrible takin' about this shoot, long afore he came to it. He had run it often enough in boats where he was one of a half-dozen men, and had nothin' to do but look on ; but he had never steered doAvn it before. When he came to the top o' the rapids, his mind was so filled with this shoot, that he couldn't attend to nothin' ; and sci-aped agin' a dozen rocks in almost smooth water, so that when he got little more than half way down, the canoe was as FUOM THE FAR NOUTII. 211 rickotty as if it had juat como off a six mouths' cniiso. At hist we came to the big rapid, and after we'd run down our canoe, I climbed the bank to see them do it. Down they came, the poor Canadian white as a sheet, and his comrade, who was bravo enough, but kuew nothin' about light craft, not very comfortable. At first he could see nothin' for the point, but, in another moment, round they wont, end on, for the big rocks. The Canadian gave a groat yell when ho saw thorn, and plunged at the paddle till I thought he'd have capsized altogether. They ran it well enough, straight between the rocks (more by good luck than good guidance), and sloped down to the smooth water below, but the canoe had got such a battering in the rapids above, where an Injin baby could have steered it in safety, that the last plunge shook it all to pieces. It opened up, and lay down flat on the water, while the two men fell right through the bottom, screechin' like mad, and rolling about among shreds o' birch-bark ! ** While Jacques was thus descanting pliilosophically on his experiences in time past, they had approached the head of the second rapid, and, in accordance witli the principles just enunciated, the stout backwoodsman gave his undivided attention to the work before him. The rapid was short and deep, so that little care was required in descending it, excepting at one point, where the stream rushed impetuously between two rocks about six yards asunder. Here it was requisite to keep the canoe as much in the middle of the stream as possible. Just as they began to feel the drag of the water, Red- feather was heard to shout in a loud warning tone, which caused Jacques and Charley to back their paddles hurriedly. 212 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS " What can the Injin mean, I wonder 1 " said Jacques, in a perjilexed tone. " He don't look like a man that would stop us at the top of a strong rapid for nothin." " It's too late to do that now, whatever is his reason," said Charley, as he and his companion struggled in vain to paddle up stream. " It's o' nr. use, Mr Charles, we must run it now ; the current's too strong to make head against ; besides, I do think the man has only seen a bear, or somethin' o' that sort, for I see he's ashore, and jumpin' among the bushes like a cariboo." Saying this, they turned the canoe's head down stream again, and allowed it to drift, merely retarding its pro- gress a little with the paddles. Suddenly Jacques uttered a sharp exclamation. " Mon DieuP^ said he, " it's plain enough now. Look there ! " Jacques pointed as he spoke to the narrows to which they were now approaching with tremendous speed, which increased every instant. A heavy tree lay directly across the stream, reaching from rock to rock, and placed in such a way that it was impossible for a canoe to descend without being dashed in pieces against it. This was the more curious, inat no trees grew in the immediate vicinity, so that this one must have been designedly conveyed there. " There has been foul work here," said Jacques in a deep tone. "We must dive, Mr Charles; there's no chance any way else, and that's but a poor one." This was true. The rocks on each side rose almost perpendicularly out of the water, so that it was utterly impossible to run ashore, and the only way of escape, as Jacques said, was by diving under the tree, a tiling in- r 1 FROM THE FAR NORTH. 213 4 I volving great risk, as the stream immediately below was broken hy rocks, against which it dashed in foam, and through which the chances of steering one's way in safety by means of swimming, were very slender indeed. Charley made no reply, but, with tightly compressed lips, and a look of stem resolution on his brow, threw off his coat, and hastily tied his belt tightly round his waist. The canoe was now sweeping forward with lightning speed In a few minutes it would be dashed to pieces. At that moment a shout was heard in the woods, and Redfeather darting out, rushed over the ledge of rock, on which one end of the tree rested, seized the trunk in his arms, and exerting all his strength, hurled it over into the river. In doing so he stumbled, and, ere he could recover himself, a branch caught him under the arm aa the tree fell over, and dragged him into the boiling stream. This accident was probably the means of saving his life, for, just as he fell, the loud report of a gun rang through the woods, and a bullet passed through his cap. For a second or two both man and tree were lost in the foam, while the canoe dashed past in safety. The next instant Wabisca passed the narrows in her small craft, and steered for the tree. Redfeather, who had risen and sank several times, saw her as she passed, and, making a ^dolent effoi-t, he caught hold of the gunwale, and was carried down in safety. " I'll tell you what it is," said Jacques, as the party stood on a rock promontory after the events just narrated, "I would give a dollar to have that fellow's nose and the sights o' my rifle in a line at any distance short of two hundred yards." " It was Misconna," said Redfeather. " I did not see 2U SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS him, but there's not another man in the tribe that could do that." " I'm thankful we escaped, Jacqu-es. I never felt so near death before, and had it not been for the timely aid of our friend here, it strikes me that our wild life would have come to an abrupt close. God bless you, Red- feather," said Charley, taking the Indian's hand in both of his and kissing it. Charley's ebullition of feeling was natural. He had not yet become used to the dangers of the wilderness so as to treat them with indifference. Jacques, on the other hand, had risked his life so often, that escape from danger was treated, very much as a matter of course, and called forth little expression of feeling. Still, it must not be inferred from this that his nature had become callous. The backwoodsman's frame was hard and unyielding as iron, but his heart was as soft still as it was on the day on which he first donned the hunting-shirt j and there was much more of tenderness than met the eye in the squeeze that he gave Redfeather's hand on landing. As the four travellers encircled the fire that night, under the leafy branches of the forest, and smoked their pipes in concert, while "Wabisca busied herself in clearing away the remnants of their evening meal, they waxed communicative, and stories, pathetic, comic, and tragic, followed each other in rapid succession. " Now, Redfeather," said Charley, while Jacques rose and went down to the luggage to get more tobacco, " tell Jacques about the way in which you got your name. I am sure he will feel deeply interested in that story, — at least I am certain that Harry Somerville and I did when you told it to us the day we were wind-bound on Lake Winipoff." FKOIX THB FAB NORTH. 215 Redfeather made no reply for a few seconds. " Will Mr Charles speak for me ?" he said, at length ; " his tongue is smooth and quick." "A doubtful kind of compliment," said Charley, laughing ; " but I will, if you don't wish to tell it yoiu'- self" " And don't mention names. Do not let him know that you speak of me or my friends," said the Indian, in a low whisper, as Jacques returned and sat down by the fire again. Charley gave him a glance of surprise ; but, being pre- vented rem asking questions; he nodded in reply, and proceed "^d - -elate to his friend the story that has been recountt i a previous chapter. Redfeather leaned back against a tree, and appeared to listen intently. Charley's powers of description were by no means inconsiderable, and the backwoodsman's face assumed a look of good-humoured attention as the story proceeded. But when the narrator went on to tell of the meditated attack, and the midnight march, his interest was aroused, the pipe which he had been sr oking was allowed to go out, and he gazed at his young friend with the most earnest attention. It was evident that the hunter's spirit entered with deep sympathy into such scenes ; and, when Charley described the attack, and the death of the trapper's wife, Jacques seemed unable to restrain his feelings. He leaned his elbows on his knees, buried his face in his hands, and groaned aloud. " Mr Charles," he said, in a deep voice, when the story was ended, "there are two men I would like to meet with in this world before I die. One is the young lujin who tried to save that girl's life, the other is the 216 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS cowardly villain that took it. I don't mean the one who finished the bloody work, — my rifle sent his accursed spirit to its own place " " Your rifle ! " cried Charley, in amazement. " Ay, mine ! It was my wife who was butchered by these savage dogs on that dark night. Oh ! what avails the strength o' that right arm !" said Jacques, bitterly, as he lifted up his clenched fist ; " it was powerless to save her — the sweet girl who left her home and people to follow mo, a rough hunter, through the lonesome wilder- ness ! " i He covered his face again, and groaned in agony of spirit, "vhile his whole frame quivered with emotion. Jacques remained silent ; and his sympathising friends refi-ained from intruding on a sorrow which they felt they had no power to relieve. At length he spoke. " Yes," said he ; "I would give much to meet with the man who tried to save her. I saw him do it twice ; but the devils about h\m . were too eager to be baulked of their prey." Charley and the Indian exchanged glances. "That Indian's name," said the former, " -was Hedfeather f" " What !" exclaimed the trapper, jumping to his feet, and, grasping Redfeather, who had also risen, by the two shoulders, stared wildly into his face, " was it you that did it r Redfeather smiled, and held out his hand, which the other took and wrung with an energy that would have extorted a cry of pain from any one but an Indian. Then, dropping it suddenly, and clenching hLs hands, he exclaimed — " I said that I would like to meet the villain who FROM THE FAR NORTH. 217 killed her — yes, I said it in passion, when your worda La4 roused all my old feelings again ; but I am thankful — I bless God, that I did not know this sooner — that you did not tell me of it when I was at the camp, for I serily believe that I would not only have fixed him, but half the warriors o' your tribe too, before they had settled me! It need scarcely be added, that the friendship which already subsisted between Jacques and Redfeather was now doubly cemented ; nor will it create surprise when we say that the former, in the fulness of his heart, and from sheer inability to find adequate outlets for the ex- pression of his feelings, ofiered Redfeather in succession all the articles of value he possessed, even to his much- loved rifle, and was seriously annoyed at their not being accepted. At last he finished ofi* by assuring the Indian that he might look out for him soon at the missionarv settlement, where he meant to stay with him evermore in the capacity of hunter, fisherman, and jack-of-all- trades to the whole clan. lii / ' ! 11 if! i 111 2J3 SKOWFLAKES AND SUNBELVJIS CHAPTEE XVIL The scene changes ; Bachelor's Hall ; a practical Joke and its consequences ; a snow-shoe walk at night in the forest. Leaving Charley to pursue liis adventurous career among the Indians, we will introduce our reader to a new scene, and follow, for a time, the fortunes of our friend Harry Somerville. It will be remembered that we left him labouring under severe disappointment, at the idea of having to spend a year, it might be many years, at the depot ; and being condemned to the desk, instead of realis- ing his fond dreams of bear-hunting and deer-stalking in the woods and prairies. It was now the autumn of Hany's second year at York Foi-t. This period of the y^ar happens to be the busiest at the depot, in consequence of the preparation of the annual accounts for transmission to England, in the soli- tary ship which visits this lonely spot once a year ; so that Hany was tied to his desk all day and the greater part of the night too, till his spirits fell infinitely below zero, and he began to look on liimself as the most miserable of mortals. His spirits rose, however, with amazing rapidity, after the ship went away, and the "young ^n\- tlemen," as the clerks were styled eti masse, were i)ermit- ted to run wild in the swamps and woods for the three weeks succeeding that event. During this glimpse of FROM THE FAU NOIITII. 219 sTUisliiue they reciniited their exhausted frames, by pad- dling about all day in Indian canoes, or wandering through the mai'shes, sleeping at nights in tents or under the pine-trees, and spreading dismay anvug the feathered tribes, of which there were immense ii aiibersof all kinds. After this they returned to their regular work at the desk, but, as this was not so severe as in summer, and wiia farther lightened by Wednesdays and Saturdays being devoted entirely to recreation, Harry began to look on things in a less gloomy aspect, and at length regained his wonted cheerful spirits. Autumn i^assed away. The ducks and geese took their departure to more genial climes. The swamps froze up and became solid. Snow fell in great abundance, covering every vestige of vegetable nature, except the dai-k fir- trees that only helped to render the scenery more dreary, and winter settled down upon the land. Within the pickets of York Fort, the thii-ty or forty souls who lived there were actively employed in cutting their firewood ; putting in double window-frames, to keep out the severe cold; cutting tracks in the snow from one house to another ; and otherwise preparing for a winter of eight months' duration, as cold as that of Nova Zembla, and in the course of which the only new faces they had any chance of seeing were those of the two men who conveyed the annual winter packet of lettera from the next station. Outside of the fort all was a wide, waste wilderness for thousands of miles around. Death-like stillness and soli' tude reigned everywhere, except when a covey of ptarmigan whirred like large snowflakes athwart the sky, or an arctic Ibx prowled stealthily through the woods in search of prey. As if in opposition to the gloom, and stillness, and soli- 4 4 li !i; til • s?: I* \i\ I •1 r.i ;i 4 IM 220 SXOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS tude outside, the interior of the clerks' house presented a striking contrast of ruddy warmth, cheerful sounds, and bustling activity. It was evening, but, although the sun had set, there was still sufficient daylight to render candles unnecessary, though not enough to prevent a bright glare from the stove in the centre of the hall taking full effoct in the darkening chamber, and making it glow with fiery red, Harry Somerville sat in front, and full in the blaze of this stove, resting after the laboui's of the day ; his arms crossed on his breast ; his head a little to one side, as if in deep contemplation, as he gazed earnestly into the fire, and his chair tilted on its hind legs so as to balance with such nicety that a feather's weight additional, outside its centre of gravity, would have upset it. He had divested himself of his coat — a practice that prevailed among the young gentlemen when at home, as being free- and-easy as well as convenient. The doctor, a tall, broad-shouldered man, with red hair and whiskers, paced the room sedately, with a long pipe depending from his lips, wliich he removed occasionally to address a few remarks to the accountant, a stout heavy man of about thii-ty, with a voice like a Stentor, eyes sharp and active as those of a ferret, and a tongue that moved with twice the ordinary amount of lingual rapidity. The doctor's remai'ks seemed to be particularly humorous, if one might judge from the peals of laughter with which they were received by the accountant, who stood with his back to the stove in such a position that, while it warmed him from his heels to his waist, he enjoyed the additional benefit of the pipe or chimney, which rose upwards, parallel with his spine, and, taking a sudden bend near ! ' FROM THE FAR NORTH. 221 the roof, passed over his head — thus producing a genial and equable warmth from top to toe. " Yes," said the doctor, " I left him hotly following up a rabbit-track, in the firm belief that it was that of a silver fox." "And did you not undeceive the greenhorn?" cried the accountant, with another shout of laughter. " Not I," replied the doctor, " I merely recommended him to keep his eye on the sun, lest he should lose his way, and hastened home; for it just occurred to me that I had forgotten to visit Louis Blanc, who cut his foot with an axe yesterday, and whose wound required redressing, so I left the poor youth to learn from experience." " Pray, who did you leave to that delightful fate ? " asked Mr Wilson, issuing from his bedroom and ap- proaching the stove. Mr Wilson was a middle-aged, good-humoured, active man, who filled the onerous offices of superintendent of the men, trader of furs, seller of goods to the Indians, and general factotum. " Our friend Hamilton," answered the doctor, in reply to his question. " I think he is, without exception, the most egregious nincompoop I ever saw. Just as I passed the long swamp on my way home, I met him crashing through the bushes in hot pursuit of a rabbit, the track of which he mistook for a fox. Poor fellow, he had been out since breakfast, and only shot a brace of ptarmigan, although they are as thick as bees and quite tame. 'But then, do you see,' said he, in excuse, ' I'm so very short- sighted ! Would you believe it, I've blown fifteen lumps of suuAv to atoms, in the belief that they were ptarmi- gan ! ' and then he rushed off again." 222 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNDKA-MS " No doubt," said Mr Wilson, smiling, " the lad is very green — but he's a good fellow for all that." " I'll answer for that," said the accountant ; " I found him over at the men's houses this morning doing ^our work for you, doctor." " How so 1 " inquired the disciple of -^^^sculapius. " Attending to your wounded man, Louis Blanc, to he Burc; and he seemed to speak to him as wisely as if he had walked the hospitals, and reg\darly passed for an M.D." " Indeed ! " said the doctor with a mischievous gi'in. "Then I must pay him off for interfering with my patients." " Ah, doctor, you're too iond of pmctical jokes. You never let slip an opportunity of ' paying off' your friend!^ for something or other. It's a bad habit. Practical jokes are very bad things — shockingly bad," said Mr Wilson, as he put on his fur cap, and wound a thick shawl round his throat, preparatory to leaving the room. As Mr Wilson gave utterance to this opinion, he passed Hany Somerville, who was still staring at the tire in deep mental abstraction, and, as he did so, gave his tilted chair a very slight push backwards with his finger, — an action which caused Harry to toss np his legs, grasp convulsively with both hands at empty air, and fall with a loud noise and an angry yell to the gi*ound, while his persecutor >'anislied from the scene. " O you oiitrageous villain ! " cried Harry, shaking his fist at the door, as he slowly gathered himself up ; " I might have expected that." " Quite so," said the doctor, " you might. It was very neatly done, undoubtedly. Wilson desei'vcs credit for the way in which it was executed." FUOM THE FAR NOUTH. 2'2^^ *• ilo deserves to he cxeciitecl for doing it at all," replied Harry, rubbing his elbow as he resumed his seat. '* Any bark knocked offT' inquired the accountant, as he took a piece of glowing charcoal from the stove, where- with to light his pipe. " Try a whiff, Harry. It's good for such things ; bruises, sores, contusions, sprains, rheu- matic affections of the back and loins, carbuncles and earache — there's nothing that smoking won't cure — eh, doctor?" " Certainly. If applied inwardly, there's nothing so j^ood for digestion when one doesn't require tonics. Try it, Hariy, it will do you good, I assure you." " No, thank you," replied Harry, " I'll leave that to you and the chimney. I don't wish to make a soot-bag of my mouth. But tell me, doctor, what do you mean to do with that lump of snow there 1 " Harry pointed to a mass of snow, of about two feet s(|uare, which lay on the floor beside the door. It had been placed there by the doctor sometime previously. " Do with it 1 Have patience, my friend, and you shall see. It is a little surprise I have in store for Hamilton." As he spoke, the door opened, and a short, square- l)uilt man rushed into the room, with a pistol in one liand, and a bright little bullet in the other. " Hallo, skipper !" cried Harry, "what's the row ?" "All right," cried the skipper, "here it is at last, solid as the fluke of an anchor. Toss me the powder- flask, Hany ; look sharp, else it'll melt." A powder-flask was immediately produced, from which the skipper hastily charged the pistol, and mmmed down the shining bullet. 224 SNOWFLAKES AND 8UNDEAM9 " Now then," said he, " look out for squalls. Clear the decks there." And, rushing to the door, ho flung it open, took a 8teady aim at something outside, and fired. " Is the man mad ? " said the accountant, as, with a look of amazement, ho beheld the skipper spring through the doonvay, and immediately return boaniig in his anns a large piece of fir plank. " Not quite mad yet," he said, in reply, " but I've sent a ball of quicksilver through an inch plank, and that's not a thing to be done every day — even here, although it IS cold enough sometimes to freeze up one's very ideas." " Dear me," interrupted Harry Somerville, looking as if a new thought had struck him, " that must be it ! I've no doubt that poor Hamilton's ideas are frozen, wliich accounts for the total absence of any indication of his possessing such things." " I observed," continued the skipper, not noticing the intenoiption, " that the glass was down at 45 degrees below zero this morning, and i)ut out a bullet-mould full of mercuiy, and you see the result ; " as he spoke, he held up the perforated plank in triumph. The skipper was a sti*ange mixture of qualities. To a wild, ofi'-hand, sailor-like hilarity of disposition, in houw of leisure, he imited a grave, stem energy of character while employed in the performance of his duties. Duty was always paramount with him. A smile could scarcely be extracted from him, while it was in the course of per- formance. But, the instant his work was done, a new spirit seemed to take possession of the man. Fun, mis- chief of any kind, no matter how childish, he entered into with the greatest delight and enthusiasm. Among other FROM THE FiVR NORTH. 225 peculiarities, lie had become deeply imbued with a thirst lor scientific knowledge, ever since ho had acquired, with infinite labour, the small modicum of science necessary to \ navigation ; and his doings in pursuit of statistical infor- mation relative to the weather, and the phenomena of nature generally, were very peculiar, and in some cai<.< outrageoua His transaction with the quicksilver -v, /^ in consequence of an eager desire to see that metal fror.ori, (an eflect which takes jJace when the spirit-of-winc tlu i ■ niometer falls to 39 degrees below zero of Falirenhelb,) ainl a wish to be able to boast of having actually firoil :•. mei' curial biUlet through an inch plank. Having nii'xle a careful note of the fact, with all the relative circ'i.ni- stances attending it, in a very much blotted book, v.^hich he denominated his scientific log, the wc^-thy skipper threw ofi" his coat, drew a chair to the stove, arv , "hand me those bits of stick, Hariy ; quick, min. stir your stumps. Now then, skipper, fij; them in so, wliile I hold this up." The skipper lent willing and cfiective aid, so that in a few minutes the snow was placed in such a position, that, upon the opening of the door, it must inevitably fall on the head of the first person who should enter the room. % !i r- |li: I !■ 1 J i . Hi ■1 1 *»% SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS "So," said the skipper, "that's rigged up in what I call a ship-shape fashion." " Tnie," remarked the doctor, eying the arrangement with a look of approval; " it will do, I think, admii'ably." " Don't you think, skipper," said Harry Somerville, gravely, as he resumed his seat in front of the fire, " that it would be worth while to make a careful and minute entry in your private log of the m«>nner in which it was put up, to be after\vards followed by an account of its effect ? You might write an essay on it, now ; and call it the extraordinary effects of a fall of snow in latitude so and so; eh.1 "What think you of it?" The skipper vouchsafed no reply, but made a significant gesture with his fist, which caused Harry to put himself in a posture of defence. At this moment, footsteps were heard on the wooden platform in front of the building. Instantly all became silence and expectation in the hall, as the result of the practical joke was about to be realised. Just then another step was heard on the plat- form, and it became evident that two persons were ap- proaching the door. " Hope it'll be the right man," said the skipper, with a look savouring slightly of anxiety. As he spoke, the door opened, and a foot crossed the threshold ; the next Instant, the miniature avalanche descended on the head and shoulders of a man, who reeled forward from the weight of the blow, and, covered from head to foot with snow, fell to the ground amid shouts of laughter. With a convulsive stamp and shake, the prostrate figure sprang up and confronted the party. Had the FROM THE FAR NORTH. 227 c-iist-irou stove suddenly bui*st into atoms, and blown the loof off the house, it could scarcely have created greater consternation than that which filled the merry jesters when they beheld the visage of Mr Rogan, the supei'in- tondent of the fort, red with passion, and fringed with snow. " So," said he, stamping violently with his foot, partly from anger, and partly with the view of shaking off the unexpected covering, which stuck all over his dress in little patches, producing a somewhat piebald effect, "so you are pleased to jest, gentlemen. Pray, who placed that piece of snow over the door?" Mr Rogan glared fiercely round upon the culprits, who stood speechless before him. For a moment he stood silent, as if uncertain how to act ; then, turning short on his heel, he strode quickly out of the room, nearly overturning Mr Hamilton, who at the same instant entered it, carrying his gun and snow-shoes under his arm. " Dear me, what has happened ?" he exclaimed, in a peculiarly gentle tone of voice, at the same time regard- ing the snow and the horror-stricken circle with a look of intense surprise. " You see what has happened," replied Harry Somer- ville, who was the first to recover his composure ; " I presume you intended to ask, * What has caused it to happen V Perhaps the skipper will explain. It's beyond me, quite." Thus appealed to, that worthy cleared his throat, and said — " Why, you see, Mr Hamilton, a great phenomenon of meteorology has happened. We were all standing, you 228 SNOWPLAKES AND SUNBEAMS IM must know, at the open door, taking a squint at the weather, when our attention was attracted by a curious object that appeared in the sky, and seemed to be coming down at the rate of ten knots an hour, right end-on for the house. I had just time to cry, ' Clear out, lads,' when it came slap in through the doorway, and smashed to shivers there, where you see the fragments. In fact, it's a wonderful aerolite, and Mr Rogan has just gone out v/ith a lot of the bits in his pocket, to make a careful examination of them, and draw up a report for the Geo- logical Society in London. I shouldn't wonder if he were to send off an express to-night ; and maybe you will have to convey the news to head-quartera ; so you'd bettet go and see him about it soon." Soft although Mr Hamilton was supposed to be, he was not quite prepared to give credit to this explanation ; but, being of a peaceful disposition, and altogether unac- customed to retort, he merely smiled his disbelief, as he proceeded to lay aside his fowling-piece, and divest him- self of the voluminous out-of-door trappings with which he was clad. Mr Hamilton was a tall, slender youth, of about nineteen. He had come out by the ship in autumn, and was spending his first winter at York Fort. Up to the period of his entering the Hudson's Bay Company's service, he had never been more than twenty miles from home ; and, ha\'ing mingled little with the world, was somewhat unsophisticated, besides being by nature gentle and unassuming. Soon after this, the man who acted as cook, waiter, and butler to the mess, entered, and said that Mr Rogan desired to see the accountant immediately. \\\ FROM THE FAR NOKIH. 229 " Wlio am I to say did it?" inquired that gentleman, as he rose to obey the summons. " Wouldn't it be a disinterested piece of kindness if you were to say it was yourself?" suggested the doctor. " Perhaps it would, but T won't," replied the account- ant, as he made liis exit. In about half-an-hour, Mr E-ogan and the accountant re-entered the apartment. The former had quite regained his composure. He was naturally amiable ; which happy disposition was indicated by a habitually cheerful look and smile. " Now, gentlemen," said he, " I find that this practical joke was not intended for me, and therefore look upon it as an unlucky accident; but I cannot too strongly express my dislike to practical jokes of all kinds. I have seen great evil, and some bloodshed, result from practical jokes ; and I think that, being a sufierer in consequence of your fondness for them, I have a right to beg that you will abstain from such doings in future,— at least from such jokes as involve risk to those who do not choose to enter into them." Having given vent to this speech, Mr Rogan left his volatile friends to digest it at their leisure. " Serves us right," said the skipper, pacing up and down the room in a repentant frame of mind, with his thumbs hooked into the arm-holes of his vest. The doctor said nothing, but breathed hard, and smoked vigorously. While we admit most thoroughly with Mr Kogan that practical jokes are exceedingly bad, and productive, fre- quently, of far more evil than fun, we feel it our duty, I ''I 230 SNOWFLAKES AifD SUNBEAMS : 1 It II as a faithful delineator of manners, customs, and charac- ter in these regions, to urge in palliation of the offence committed by the young gentlemen at York Fort, that they had really about as few amusements, and sources of excitement, as fall to the lot of any class of men. They were entirely dependent on their -wn unaided exertions, during eight or nine months of the year, for amusement or recreation of any kind. Their books were few in number, and soon read through. The de- solate wilderness around afforded no incidents to form subjects of convei'sation, further than the events of a day's shooting, which, being nearly similar every day, soon lost all interest. No newspapers came to tell of the doings of the busy world from which they were shut out, and nothing occurred to vary the dull routine of their life j so that it is not matter for wonder that they were driven to seek for relaxation and excitement, occa- sionally, in most outrageous and unnatural ways, and to indulge, now and then, in the perpetration of a practical joke. For some time after the rebuke administered by Mr Rogan, silence reigned in Bachelors Hall, as the clerks' house was termed. But at length symptoms of ennvi began to be displayed. The doctor yawned, and lay down on his bed to enjoy an American newspaper about twelve months old. Harry Somerville sat down to re-read a volume of Franklin's travels in the Polar Regions, which he had perused twice already. Mr Hamilton busied himself in cleaning his fowling-piece ; while the skipp(ir conversed with Mr Wilson, who' was engaged in his room in adjusting an ivory head to a walking-stick. Mr Wilson was a jack-of-all-trades, who could make shift, one way FROM THE FAR NORTH. 231 or other, to do anything. The accountant paced the uiicarpeted floor in deep contemplation. At length he paused, and looked at Han-y Somerville tor some time. " "What say you to a walk through the woods to North River, HaiTy?" " Ready," cried Hany, tossing down the book with a look of contemi)t, — " ready for anything," " Will you come, Hamilton ?" added the accountant. Hamilton looked up in surprise. " You don't mean, surely, to take so long a walk in the dark, do you? It is snowing, too, very heavily, and I think you said that North River was five miles off, did you not ?" " Of coui-se I mean to walk in the dark," replied the accountant, " unless you can extemporise an artificial light for the occasion, or prevail on the moon to come out for my special benefit. As to snowing, and a short tramp of five miles, why, the sooner you get to think of such things as trijles the better, if you hope to be fit for any- thing in this country." " I do7it think much of them," replied Hamilton, softly, and with a slight smile ; " I only meant that such a walk was not very attractive so late in the evening." " Attractive ! " shouted Ha.jy Somerville, from his bedroom, where he was equipping himself for the walk, *' what can be more attractive than a sharp mn of ten miles through the woods on a cool night, to visit your traps, with the prospect of a silver fox, or a wolf, at the end of it, and an extra sound sleep as the result 1 Come, man, don't be soft ; get ready, and go along with us." " Besides," added the accountant, " I don't mean to come back to-night. To-morrow, you know, is a holi- 232 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS day, so we can camp out in the snow, after visiting tlie traps, — have our supper, and start early in the morning to search for ptarmigan." " Well, I will go," said Hamilton, after this account of the pleasures that were to be expected ; " I am exceed- ingly anxious to learn to shoot birds on the wing." " Bless me ! have you not learned that yet 1" asked the doctor, in affected surprise, as he sauntered out of his bedroom to relight his pipe. The various bedrooms in the clerks' house were ranged round the hall, having doors that opened directly into it, so that conversation carried on in a loud voice was heard in all the rooms at once, and was not unfrequently sus- tained in elevated tones from different apartments, when the o^^cupants were lounging, as they often did of an evening: in their beds. " No," said Hamilton, in reply to the doctor's question, " I have not learned yet, although there were a great many grouse in the part of Scotland where I was brought up. But my aunt, with whom I lived, was so fearful of my shooting either myself oi some one else, and had such an aversion to firearms, that I determined to make her mind easy, bj promising that I would never use them, so long as I remained under her roof." " Quite right ; very dutiful and proper," said the doctor, with a grave patronising air. " Perhaps you'll fall in with more fox tracks of the same sort as the one you gave chase to this morning," shouted the skipper, from Wilson's room. " Oh ! there's hundreds of them out there," said the accountant ; " so let's off at once." The trio now proceeded to equip themselves for the FROM THE FAR NORTH. 233 walk. Their costumes were peculiar, and merit descrij)- tion. As they were similar in the chief points, it will suffice to describe that of our friend Harry. Ou his head he wore a fur cap made of otter-skin, with a flap on each side to cover the ears, the frost being so iutense in these climates that, without some such pro- tection, they would inevitably freeze and fall off. As the nose is constantly in use for the purpos(?s of respiration, it is always left uncovered to fight with the culd as it best can ; but it is a hard battle, and there is no doubt that, if it were possible, a nasal covering would V>o extremely pleasant. Indeed, several desperate efforts have been made to construct some sort of nose-bag, but hitherto without success, owing to the uncomfortable fact that the breath issuing from that organ immediately freezes, and converts the covering into a bag of snow or ice, which is not agreeable. Round his neck, Harry wound a thick shawl of such portentous dimensions, that it entirely enveloped the neck and lower part of the face ; thus the entire head was, as it were, ecli})sed, the eyes, the nose, and the cheek-bones alone being visible. He then threw on a coat made of deer-skin, so prepared that it bore a slight resemblance to excessively coarse chamoia leather. It was somewhat in the form of a long, wide svirtout, overlapping very much in front, and confined closely to the figure by means of a scarlet woi*sted belt instead of buttons, and was ornamented round the foot by a number of cuts, which produced a fringe of little toils. Being lined with thick flannel, this portion of attire was rather heavy, but extremely necessary. A pair of blue cloth leggins, having a loose flap on the outside, were next drawn on over the trousera, as an additional protec- 16 # i'6- 2.U SNOWFLAKES AND SUN'nriAM.S Hon to the knec3. The feet, besides being portions of the body that are peculiarly suceptible of cold, had further to contend against the chafing of the lines which attach them to the snow-shoes, so that special care in their pre- paration for duty was necessary. First were put on a pair of blanketing or duffle sock.s, which were merely ()l)long in form, without sewing or making up of any kind. These were wrapped round the feet, which were next thrust into a pair of made-up socks, of the same material, having ankle pieces ; above these were put another pair, without flaps for the ankles. Over all was drawn a pair of mocciisins made of stout deer-skin, similar to that of th^ coat. Of coui"se, the elegance of Harry's feet wa.s entii'ely destroyed, and had he been met in this guise by any of his friends in the " old country," they would infal- libly have come to the conclusion that he was afflicted with gout. Over his shoulders he slung a powder-horn and shot-pouch, the latter tastefully embroidered witli dyed quill work. A j)air of deer-skin mittens, having a little bag for the thumb, and a large bag for the Angel's, completed his costume. While the three were making ready, with a running accompaniment of grunts and groans at refractory pieces of apparel, the night without became darker, and the snow fell thicker, so that, when they issued suddenly out sf their warm abode, and emerged into the sharp frosty air, which blew the snowdrift into their eyes, they felt a momentary desire to give up the project and rettirn ^.o tlieir comfortable quarteiu "What a dismal-looking night it is I" said the accountant, a.^ he led the way along the wooden platform towards the gate of the fort. i;t FROM THE FAR NORTH. 235 " Very ! " replied Hamilton, witli an involuntary shudder. " Keep up your heart," said Harry, in a cheerful voice, <-ht. " It is strange," said Harry, in a low tone, as ho walked beside Hamilton, " that such a scene as this always makes me think more than \isual of home." " And yet it is natural," replied the other, "because it reminds us more forcibly than any other that we are in a foreign land — in the lonely wilderness — far away from home." B(^th Harry and Hamilton had been trained h. families where the Almighty was feai'cd and loved ; and where their minds had been early led to reflect xqwn tho Creator when regarding tlio works of his hand; theit FllOil THE FAR NORTH. 241 tlioujjlits, therefore, naturally reverted to another home, (.ompared with which, this world is indeed a cold, lonely wilderness ; but on such subjects they feared to convei-si;, [)ai'tly from a dread of the ridicule of reckless com- panions, partly from ignorance of each other's feelings on religious matters, and, although their minds were busy, their tongues were silent. The ground over which the greater part of their path l;iy was a swam^i, which, being now frozen, was a beauti- ful white plain, so that their advance was more rapid, \uitil they approached the belt of woodland that skirts North River. Here they again encountered the heavy suow, which had been such a source of diiEculty to Ha- milton at setting out. He had profited by his former experience, however, and, by the exercise of an excessive degree of caution, managed to scramble through the woods tolerably well, emerging at last, along with his companions, on the bleak margin of what appeared to be the frozen sea. North Iliver, at this place, is several miles broad, and the opposite shore is so low, that the snow causes it to appear but a slight undulation of the frozen bed of the liver. Indeed, it would not be distinguishable at all, weie it not for the willow bushes and dwarf pines, whose tops, rising above the white garb of winter, indicate that terra Jiniia lies below. " What a cold, desolate-looking place ! " said Hamilton, as the party stood still to recover breath before taking their way over the plain to the spot where the account- ant's traps were set. " It looks much more like the frozen sea than a river." " It can scarcely be called a river at this place," rr)- i? 1 I ill I 212 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNIJEAMS Hi; (I inarkeil the accountant, " seeing that the water liere- ahouts is brackish, and the tides ebb and flow a good way np. In fact, this is the extreme mouth of North River, and if you turn your eyes a little to the right, towards yonder ice-hummock in the plain, you behold the frozen 8ea itself." " Where are your traps set ? " inquired Harry. " Down in the hollow behind /on point covered with brushwood." " Oh, we shall soon get to them, then ; come along," cried Harry. Harry was mistaken, however. He had not yet learned by experience the extreme difficulty of judging of distance in the xincertain light of night ; a difficulty that was incro rsed by his ignorance of the locality, and by the gleams of moonshine that shot through the driving clouds, and threw confused, fantastic shadows over the plain. The point which he had at fii'st supposed was covered with low bushes, and about a hundred yards off, proved to be clad in reality with large bushes and small trees, and lav at a dintance of two miles. " I think you have been mistaken in supposing the point so near, Harry," said Hamilton, as he tioidged on beside his friend. " A fact, evident to the naked eye," replied HaiTV. " How do your feet stand it, eh ? Beginning to lose bark yet ? " Hamilton did not feel quite sure. " I think." snid he, Boftly, " that there is a blister under the big toe of my left foot. It feels veiy painful." " If you fe<>l at all uncertain about it, }'ou may rest itssured that there is a blister. These tilings don't gi\'e PROM TUE F.VR NORTH. 243 naich pain at first. I'm sorry to tell you, my dear fellow, that you'll be painfully aware of tlie fact to- morrow. However, don't distress yourself. It's a part of the experience that eveiy one goes through in this countiy. Besides," said Harry, smiling, " we can send to the fort for medical advice." " Don't bother the poor fellow, and hold your tongue, Il^rry," said the accountant, who now began to tread more cautiously as he approached the place where the traps were set. " How many traps have you 1 " inquired Harry, in a low tone. " Three," replied the accountant. " Do you know I have a very strange feeling about my heels — or, rather, a want of feeling," said Hamilton, smiling dubiously. " A want of feeling ! what do you mean ? "' cried the accountant, stopping suddenly and confronting his younj^ ffiend. " Oh ! I daresay it's nothing," he exclaimed, looking iis if ashamed of having spoken of it, " onl} I feel exactly i\s if both my heels were cut off, and I were walking on tip-toe ! " " Say you so 1 then right-about wheel. Your heels are frozen, man, and you'll lose them if you don't look sharp." " Frozen !" cried Hamilton, with a look of incredulity. " Ay, frozen ; and it's lucky you told mo. I've a place up in the woods here, wliicli I call my v/iiiter canrp, where we can get you put tu rights ; but step out ; the longer we are about it, the worse for you." J J any Somcrville was at first disposed to think that 244 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS ■I *l! the accountant jested, but seeing that he turned his back towards his traps, and made for the nearest point of the thick woods, with a stride thpt betokened thorough sin- cerity, he became anxious too, and followed as fast as possible. The pla'j to which the accountant led his young friends was a group of fir trees which grew on a little knoll, tliat rose a few feet above the surrounding level country. At the foot of this hillock, a small rivulet or burn ran in summer, but the only evic'cnce of its presence now was the absence of willow bxshes all along its covered narrow bed. A level track was thus formed by natvire, free from all underwood, and running inland about the distance of a mile, where it was lost in the swamp whence the stream issued. The wooded knoll, or hillock, lay at the mouth of this brook, and, being the only elevated spot in the neighbourhood, besides having the largest trees growing on it, had been selected by the accountant as a convenient place for " camping out " on, when he visited his traps in winter, and happened to be either too late, or disinclined, to return home. Moreover, the spreading fir branches afforded an excellent shelter alike from wind and snow in the centre of the clump ; while from the margin was obtained a partial view of the river and the sea beyond. Indeed, from this look-out there was a very fine prospect on clear winter nights of the white landscape, enlivened occasionally by groups of arctic foxes, which might be seen scampering about iu sport, and gambolling among the hummocks of ice like young kittens. " Now we shall turn up here," said the accoimtant, as lie walked a short way up the brook before-nientioucd, i! FROM THE FAR NOHTII. 2\0 f\ti(l halted in front of what appeared to be an impenetrable mass of bushes. " We shall have to cut our way, then," said Harry, looking to the right and left, in the vain hope of dis- covering a place where, the bushes being less dense, they might effect an entrancu into the knoll or grove. " Not so. I have taken cai-e to make a passage into my winter camp, although it was only a whim after all to make a coucealed entrance ; seeing that no one ever passes this way, except wolves and foxes, whose noses render the use of their eyes in most cases unnecessary," So saying, the accountant turned aside a thick branch, and disclosed a naiTow track, into which he entered, followed by his two companions. A few minutes brought them to the centre of the knoll. Here they found a cleur space of about twenty feet in diameter, around which the trees circled so thickly, that in daylight nothing could be seen but tree stems as fiir as the eye could penetrate, while overhead the broad flat branches of the firs, with their evergreen verdure, spread out and intei'laced so thickly, that very little light pene- trated into the space below. Of course at night, even in moonlight, the place was pitch dark. Into this retreat the accountant led his companions, and, bidding them stand still for a minute lest they should tumble into the fireplace, ho proceeded to strike a light. Those wlio have never travelled in the wild parts of this world can form but a faint conception of the extraordinary and sudden change that is produced, not only in the scene, but in the mind of the beholder, when a blazing fire is lighted in a dark night. Before the fire is kindled, and you stand, perhaps, (as Harry and his friend did on the i \vi 24G SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS 'M mW (I I I iiih present occiisiou) shivering in the cohl, the heart sinks, and sad gloomy thoughts arise, while your eye endeavours to pierce the thick darkness, which, if it succeed in doing so. only adds to the effect by disclosing the pallid snow, the cold, chilling beams of the moon, the wide vistas of savage scenery, the awe-inspiring solitudes that tell of your isolated condition, or stir up sad memories of other and far distant scenes. But the moment the first spark of fire sends a fitful gleam of light upwards, these thoughts and feelinjjs take winjj and vanish. The indistinct seen- ery is rendered utterly invisible by the red light, whicli attracts and rivets the eye as if by a species of fiscin.ition. The* deep shadows of the woods immediately around you grow deeper and blacker as the flames leap and sparklt; \ipwards, causing the stems of the surrounding trees, and the foliage of the overhanging brsinches, to stand out in bold relief, liathed in a ruddy glow, which converts Mio forest chamber into a snug home-like place, and fills the mind with agreeable, home-like feelings and meditations. It seems as if the spirit, in the one case, were set loose and.etherealiscd to enable it to spread itself over the plains of cold, cheerless, illimitable space, and left to dwell upon objects too wide to grasp, too indistinct to comprehend ; — while, in the other, it is recalled and concentrated upon matters circurasciibed and congenial, things of wh. !i it has long been cognisant, and which it can appreciate and enjoy without the effort of a thought. Some such thoughts and feelings passed rapidly through the minds of Harry and Hamilton, wliile the accountant stitick a light and kindled a roaring fire of logs, which he had cut and arranged there on a previous occasion. lu the middle of th.e space thus brilliantly illuminated, FKOM THE FAR NORTir, 247 the snow had been cleared awav till the moss was \u\- covered, thus leaving a hole of about ten feet in diameter. As the snow was quite four feet deep, the hole was sur- rounded with a pure white wall, whose height was further increased by the masses, thrown out in the process of digging, to a height of nearly six feet. At one end of this space was the large fire which had just been kindled, and which, owing to the intense cold, only melted a very little of the snow in its immediate neighbourhoofl. At the other end lay a mass of flat pine bi'anches, which were piled up so thickly as to form a pleasant elastic couch, the upper end being slightly raised so as to fonn a kind of bolster, while the lower extended almost into the fire. Indeed, the branches at the extremity were burnt quite brown, and some of them charred. Besi«le the bolster lay a small wooden box, a round tin kettle, an iron tea-kettle, two tin mugs, a hatchet, and a large bundle tied up in a green blanket. There were thus, as it were, two apart- ments, one within the other ; namely the outer one, whose Willis were formed of tree-stems and thick darkness, and the ceiling of gi*een boughs ; and then the inner one with walla of snow, that sparkled in the fii'elight as if set with pre- cious stones, and a carpet of evergreen branches. Within this latter our three liiends were soon actively employed. Poor Hamilton's moccasins were speedily re- moved, and his friends, going down on their knees, began to rub his feet with a degree of energy that induced him to beg for mercy. " Mercy ! " exclaimed the accountant, without pausing for an instant, " faith, it's little mercy there would be in stopping just now. Rub away, Harry. Don't give in. They're coming rig'.it at la,si.* ; 248 SyOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS After a veiy severe rubbing, the heels "began to .sliew symptoms of returning vitality. They were then wrapped up in the folds of a thick blanket, and held sufficiently near to the fire to prevent any chance of the frost getting at them again. " Now, my boy," said the accountant, as he sat down to enjoy a pipe and rest himself on a blanket, which, along with the one wrapped round Hamilton's feet, had been extracted from the green bundle before mentioned — ** Now, my boy, you'll have to enjoy youi-self here as you best can for an hour or two, while Harry and I visit the traps. Would you like supper before we go, or shall we have it on our return ? " "Oh, I'll wait for it by all means till you return. I don't feel a bit hungry just now, and it will be much more cheerful to have it after all your work is over. Besides, I feel my feet too painful to enjoy it just now." " My poor follow," said Harry, whose heart smote him for having been disposed at fii*st to treat the thing lightl}', " I'm really sorry for you. AVould you not like me to stay with you 1 " " By no means," replied Hamilton, qiiickly. " Yon can do nothing more for me, Harry; and I should be very sorry if you missed seeing the traps." " Oh, never mind the traps. I've seen traps, and sot them too, fifty times before now. I'll stop with you, old boy, I will;" said Harr;'^, doggedly, while he made arrange- ments to settle down for the evening. " Well, if 1/ou won't go, I will," said Hamilton, coolly, as he unwound the blanket from his feet and began to pull on Ills socks. " Bravo, my lad ! " exclaimed the accountant, patting 'n mOM THE FAK NORTH. 249 him approvingly on the back ; " I didn't think you liad liiilf so much pluck in you. But it won't do, old fellow. You're in my castle just now, and must obey orders. You couldn't walk half a mile for your life ; so just be pleased to pull off your socks again. Besides, I want Hariy to help me to carry up my foxes, if there are any j so get ready, sirrah !" " Ay, ay, captain," cried Harry, with a laugh, while he sprang up and put on his snow-shoes. " You needn't bring your gun," said the accountant, shaking the ashes from his pipe as he prepared to depart ; " but you may as well shove that axe into your belt ; you may want it. Now, mind, don't roast your feet," he added, turning to Hamilton. " Adieu ! " cried Hariy, with a nod and a smile, as he turned to go. " Take care the bears don't find you out." " No fear j good bye, Harry," replied Hamilton, as his two friends disappeared in the wood and left him to Lia solitary meditations. 17 250 SNOWFLAKLS AND SUNBEAMS CILVPTER XIX. Ill: ) SI.CW8 how the accountant and Harry set their traps, and v liat came of .'t. TiiK moon was still up, and the sky loss overcast, wlicii our amateur trappers (piittecl tlit encauipment, and, dv>- oeiifling to the mouth of the little brook, took their way ovor North River in the direction of the accountant's traps, liei^ig somewhat fatigued both in mind and body by tJie unusual exertions of the night, neither of them spoke foi* some time, but continued to walk in silence, contempla- tively gazing at their long shadows. " Did you ever trap a fox, Harry 1 " said the account- ant, nt length. " Yes, I used to set traps at Red River ; but the foxes til ere are not numerous, and are so closely watched by the dogs, that they have become suspiciou.s. I caught but few." " Then you know how to set a trap 1 " " Oh, yes ! I've set botli steel and snow traps often. You've heard of old Labonte, who used to carry one of tlie winter packets from Red River until within a few \ liars back 1 " " Yes, I've heard of him : his name is in my ledger, at least if you mean Pierre Labonte, who came down last fall wvth the brigade." '* The same. Well, he was a great frind of mine. Hw little cabin lay about two miles from Fort Carry, ami V < rUOM TlIK KAU NOKTH. 251 after work wtus over in the otlicr, I used to go down to sit and chat witli him by the firo ; and nuiny a time I luiv«! sat ui) ludf the night listening to him as he recounted his ad ventures. The ohl man never tired of relating tliem, and of smoking twist tobacco. Among otlier tilings, he set my mind upon trapping, by giving me an account of an expedition he made, when quite a ymith, to the llocky Mountains ; so I got him to go into the woods and teach lao how to set traps and snares, and I flatter myself he found me an apt pvipil." "Humph!" (ijaculated the accountant; "I iiave no doubt you do Jlatter yoiu'self. Hut here we are. Tlie traps are just beyond that mound; so look out, and don't stick your feet into them." " Hist!" exclaimed Harrv, lavinc; his hand suddenlv on his cora])anion's arm. ** Do you see tlmt'f''' pointing towards the place where the traps were said to be. " You have sharp e} es, younker ; I do see it, now that you point it out. It's a fox, and caught, too, as I'm a scrivener." *' You're in luck, to-night," exclaimed Harry, eagerly. *' It's a silver fox. I see the white tip on its tail." " Nonsense," cried the accoinitant, hastening forward ; "' but we'll soon settle the point." Ifariy proved to be right. On reaching the spot they ftnmd a beautiful black fox, caught by the fore leg in a steel trap, and gazing at them with a look of terror. The skin of the silver fox — so called from a slight sprinkling of pure white hairs covering its othenviso jet black body — is the most valuable fur obtained by the fur-tmders, and fetches an enormous price in the British market — so much as tliiriy pounds sterling being fre- I ! "f^. V v^ IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I i^|2£ 12.5 |io •■■■ ■■■ ui US ^ U& 12.0 IL25 III 1.4 III 1.6 V] yl jV 'V^ Photographic Sciences Corporation ^ ,\ .V •SJ \ :\ rv 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. M5B0 (716) 872-4503 >" cS^ i li I 252 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMf3 quently obtained for a single skin. The foxes vary in colour from jet black, which is the most valuable, to a light silvery hue, and are hailed as great prizes by the Indians and trappers when they are so fortunate as to catch them. They are not numerous, however, and being exceedingly wary and suspicious, are difficult to catch. It may be supposed, therefore, that our friend the accountant ran to secure his prize with some eagerness. " Now then, my beauty, don't shrink," he said, as the poor fox backed, at liis approach, as far as the chain which fastened the trap to a log of wood would permit ; and then, standing at bay, shewed a formidable row of teeth. That grin was its last ; another moment, and the handle of the accountant's axe stretched it Jifeless on the snow. " Isn't it a beauty !" cried he, surveying the animal with a look of triumphant pleasure : and then feeling as if he had compromised his dignity a little by betraying so much glee, he added, " But come now, Harry, we must see to the other trp.ps. It's getting late." The others were soon visited ; but no more foxes were caught. However, the accountant set them both off to see that all was right; and then re-adjusting one himself, told Harry to set the other, in order to clear bimself of the charge of boasting. Harry, nothing loath, went down on his knees to do so. The steel trap used for catching foxes is of exactly the same form as the ordinary rat-trap, with this difference that it has two springs instead of one, is considerably larger, and has no teeth, as these latter would only tend to spoil the skin. Owing to the strength of the springs, FROM THE FAR NORTH. 253 a pretty strong effort is required to set the trap, and clumsy fellows frequently calich the tails of their coats or the ends of their belts, and, not unfrcquently, the ends of their fingers, in their awkward attempts. Having set it without any of the above untoward accidents occurring, Harry placed it gently on a hole wliich he had previously .scraped ; placing it in such a manner that the jaws and plate, or trigger, were a haii*sbreadth below the level of the snow. After this he spread over it a very thin sheet of paper, observing as he did so that hay or grass was ))referable; but, as there was none at hand, paper would do. Over this he sprinkled snow very lightly, until every vestige of the trap was concealed from view, and the whole was made quite level with the sun-ounding plain, so that even the accountant himself, after he had once removed his eyes from it, could not tell where it lay. 8ume chips of a frozen ptarmigan were then scattered around the spot, and a piece of wood left to mark its whereabouts. The bait is always scattered round and not on the trap, as the fox, in running from one piece to another, is almost certain to set his foot on it, and so get caught by the leg ; whereas, were the bait j^laced vpon the trap, the fox would be apt to get caught while in tlie act of eating, by the snout, which, being wedge-like iu form, is easily dragged out of its gripe. " Now then, what say you to going farther out on the river, and making a snow trap for white foxes ?" said the accountant. "We shall still have time to do so before the moon sets." " Agreed," cried Harry " Come along." Without further parley iiiey left the spot and stretched out to«vards Ine jea. «, *- • i*' 2U SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBKAM3 The .snow on the river avjis quite hard on itfi surface, so that snow-shoes being unnecessary, they carried them over their shoulders, and advanced niucli more rapidly. It is ti'ue tliat their road was a good deal liroken, and jagged pieces of ice protruded their sharp corners so as to render a little attention necessary in walldng; Lut one or two severe bumps on their toes made our friends sensitively alive t(j these minor dangers of the way. "There goes a pack of them !" exclaimed Harry, as a troiip of wliite foxL!S scampered past, gambolling as they went, and, coming suddenly to a halt at a short distance, wheeled about and .sat down on their haunches, apparently resolved to have a good look at the strangers who dared to venture into their wild domain. " Oh ! they are the most stupid brutes alive," said the accountant, as he regarded the pack with a look of con- tempt. " I've seen one of them sit down and look at me while I set a trap right before his eyes; and I had not got a hundred yards from the spot when a yell informed me that the gentleman's curiosity had led him to put his foot right into it." "Indeed!" excLumed Harry. "I had no idea that tliey were so tame. Certainly no other khid of fox would do tluit." " No, that's certain. But these fellows liave done it to me again and again. I sln)uldn't wonder if we got one to- night in the very same way. I'm sure, by the L^ok of these rascjds, that they would do anything of a leckless, stupid nature just now." " Had we not better make our trap here, then ? There is a point, not fifty yards off, with trees on it large enough for our purpose." FROM THE FAR NORTH. a.-)/) " Ycs5, it will do very well here ; now, then, to work. Go to the wood, Hariy, and fetch a log or two, while i cut out the slabs." So saying, the accountant drew the axe which he always carried in his belt ; and, while J larry entered the wood and began to hew off the branch of a tree, he proceeded, as he had said, to " cut out the slabs." With the point of his knife he fii-st of all marked out an oblong in the snow, then cut down three or four inches with the axe, and, j)utting the handle under tlie cut, after the manner of a lever, detached a thick solid slab of about three inches thick, which, although not so hard as ice, was quite hard enough for the pui-pose for which it wiis intended. He then cut two similar slabs, and a smaller one, the same in thickness and breadth, but only half the length. Having accomplished this, he raised himself to rest a little, and observed that Harry aj)- [iroached, staggering under a load of wood, and that the foxes were still sitting on their haunches, gazing at him M ith a look of deej) interest. " If I only had my gun here ! " thought he. But not having it, he merely shook liis fist at them, stooped down again and resumed his work. With Harry's assistance the slabs were placed in such a way as to form a soi-t of box or house, having one end of it open. This was fur- ther plastered with soft snow at the joinings, and banked up in such a way that no animal could break into it easily, — at least such an attempt would be so difficult as to make an entrance into the interior by the open side much more probable. When this was finished, they took the logs that Harry had cut and carried with so much diffi- culty from the wood, and began to lop ofi" the smaller branches and twigs. One large log was placed across the :f' 4 t ■ 'I ^- 2oQ SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS Opening of the ti*ap, while the others were piled on one end of it so as to press it down with their weight. Three small pieces of stick were now prepared ; two of them being about half a foot long, and the other about a foot. On the long i)iece of stick the breast of a ptarmi- gan was fixed as a baitj and two notches cut, the one at the end of it, the other about four or five inches further down. All was now ready to set the trap. "Kaise the log now while I place the trigger," said Harry, kneeling down in front of the door, while the accountant, as directed, lifted up the log on which the others lay so as to allow his companion to introduce the bait-stick, in such a manner as to support it, while the slightest pull on the bait would set the stick with the notches free, and thus permit the log to fall on the back of the fox, whose effort to reach the bait would necessarily place him under it. While Harry was thus engaged, the accountant stood vip and looked towards the foxes. They had approached so near in their curiosity, that he was induced to tlirow his axe frantically at the foremost of the pack. This set them galloping ofi", but they soon halted and sat down as before. "What aggravating brutes they are, to be sure!" said Harry, with a laugh, as his companion returned with the hatchet. "Humph ! yes, but we'll be upsides with them yet Come along into the wood, and I wager that in ten minutes we shall have one." They immediately hurried towards the wood, but ha;! not walked fifty paces, when they were startled by a lou^i yell behind them. t FROM THE FAR NORTH. 257 i; " Dear me ! " exclaimed the accountant, while he anil Harry turned round with a start. " It cannot surely be possible that they have gone in already." A loud howl fol- lowed the remark, and the whole pack fled over the plain like snowdrift and disappeared. " Ah ! that's a pity, something must have scared them, to make them take wing like that. However, we'll get one to-morrow for certain; so come along, lad, let us make for the camp." " Not so fast," replied the other ; " if you hadn't pored over the big ledger till you were blind, you would see that there is one prisoner already." This proved to be the case. On returning to the spot they found an arctic fox in his last gasp, lying flat on the snow, with the heavy log across his back, which seemed to be broken. A slight tap on the snout with the account- ant's deadly axe-handle completed his destruction. " We're in luck to-night," cried Harry, as he kneeled again to re-set the trap. "But after all, these white brutes are worth very little; I fancy a hundred of their skins would not be worth the black one you got tii-st." " Be quick, Harry. The moon is almost down, and poor Hamilton will think that the polar bears have got hold of us." " All right ! now then, step out," and, glancing once more at the trap to see that all was properly arranged, the two friends once more turned their faces homewards, and travelled over the snow with rapid strides. The moon had just set, leaving the desolate scene in deep gloom, so that they could scarcely find their way to tlie forest ; and, when they 'Jid at last reach its shelter, I 2r>s SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS the niglit became so intensely dark that they had ahnfM;i to grope their way, and would certainly have lost it alto- gether were it not for the accountant's thorough know- hxlge of the locality. To add to their discomfort, as they stumbled on, snow began to fall ; and, ere long, a pretty steady breeze of wind drove it sharply in their faces. ]rowevcr, this mattered but little, as they penetrated deeper in among the trees, which proved a complete shel- ter both from wind and snow. An hour's march brought them to the mouth of the brook, although half that time would have been sufficient had it been daylight^ and, a few minutes later, they had the satisfaction of hearing Hamilton's voice hailing them as they pushed aside the bushes, and sprang into the cheerful light of their en- campment. " Hurrah ! " shouted Harry, as he leapt into the space before the fire, and flung the two foxes at Hamilton's feet. " "What do you think of t/iatf old fellow 1 How are the heels ? Rather sore 1 eh ! Now for the kettle. * Polly, put the kettle on, we'll all have ' My eye ! where's the kettle, Hamilton ? Have you eaten it ? " "If you compose yourself a little, Harry, and look at the fire, you'll see it boiling there." " Man, what a chap you are for making unnecessary speeches. Couldn't you tell me to look at the fire, without the preliminary piece of advice to compose myself? Be- sides, you talk nonsense, for I'm composed already, of blood, bones, flesh, sinews, fat, and " " Humbug," interrupted the accountant. " Lend a hand to get supper, you young goose ! " " And so," continued Harry, not noticing the interru]>- tion, " I cannot be expected, nor is it necessary, to com- FROM THE FAR NORTH. 2r)0 ]iose iiiyriclf over a^'ain. IJut, to be serious," lie addcil, " it was very kind and considerate of you, ITauimy, to put (Ml the kettle, wlien your heels were in a manner npiKi- lUDSt." " Oil ! it was nothing at all ; my heels are much l>ettei', tliaiik you, and it kept me from wearying." " Poor fellow," said the accountant, while he Inisied liiiiiself in preparing their evening meal, '■' you must be rpiite lavenous by this time, at least / am, which is the same tiling. Supper was soon ready. It consisted of a large kettle of tea, a lump of pemican, a handful of broken biscuit and tluee ptarmigan; all of which were produced from the Miiall wooden box which the accountant was wont to call liis camp-larder. The ptarmigan had been shot two weeks hefore, and carefully laid up for future use, the intense frost being a sufficient guarantee for their preservation for many months, had that been desired. It Avould have done you good, reader, (supposing }ou tu hi' possessed of .sympathetic feelings) to have witnes.-^ed those three nor' westers enjoying their supper in th* snowy camp. The fire h.ad been replenished with logs, till it roared and crackled again, as if it were endued with a \'icious spirit, and wished to set the very snow in flames. The walls shone like alabaster studded Avith diamonds, Avhilo the green boughs overhead and the stems around were of a deep red colour in the light of the fierce blii/o. The tea kettle hissed, fumed, and boiled over into the fire. A mass of pemican simmered in the lid in front of it. Three pannikins of tea reposed on the green branches, their refreshing contents sendhig up little clouds of steam, while the ptarmigan, now split up, skewered, and roasted, 200 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS were being heartily devoured by our thice hungiy friends. Tlic pleasures that full to the lot of man are transient. Doubtless they are numerous and oft recurring, — still they arc transient, and so — supper came to an end. "Nowfor a pipe," said the accountant, disjHDsing his limbs at full length on a gi*een blanket. "O thou precious weed, what should we do without thee ! " " Smoke tea, to bo sure," answered Hany. " Ah ! true, it is possible to exist on a pipe of tea- leaves for a time, but onl)/ for a time. I tried it myself once, in desperation, when I ran short of tobacco on a journey, and found it execrable, but better than nothing." ''Pity we can't join you in that," remarked Harry. " Tnie, but perhaps since you cannot pipe, it might prove an agreeable diversification to dance." " Thank you, I'd rather not," saiii Harry ; " and as for Hamilton, I'm convinced that his mind is made up on the subject. How go the heels now ? " "Thank you, pretty well," he replied, reclining his head on the pine branches, and extending his smitten members towards the fire. " I think they will be quite well in the morning." " It is a curious thing," remarked the accountant, in a soliloquising tone, " that sofl fellows never smoke ! " " I beg your pardon," said Harry ; " I've often seen hot loaves smoke, and they're soft enough fellows, in all conscience ! " " Ah ! " sighed the accountant, " that reminds me of poor Peterkin, who was so soft that he went by the nanie of ' Butter.' Did you ever hear of what he did the sum- mer before last with an Indian's head 1 " FROM THE FAR NORTH. 2GI " No, never ; Avliat was it ] " " I'll tell you the story," replied the accountant, drawing a few vigorous whiffs of smoke, to prevent his pipe going (•lit whJe he spoke. As the story in question, however, depicts a new phasu of society in the woods, it deserves a chapter to itself. 2(1-' SXOWFLAKIIS AND SUiNUi:AM8 CHArTKPt XX. The arcountimt's at'.ry. " Spbinq had passed away ; and York Fort was filled mth all the bustle and activity of suiumer. Brigades came pouring in upon us with furs from the interior, and aa every boat brought a C. T. or a clerk, our mess-tablo began to overflow. " You've not seen the summer mess-room filled yet, Hamilton. That's a treat in store for you." " It was pretty full last autumn, I think," suggested Hamilton, " at the time I arrived from England." " Full ! why, man, it was getting to feel quite lonely at that time. I've seen more than fifty sit down to tabic there, and it was worth going fifty miles to hear the row they kicked up. Telling stories without .end (and some- times without foundation) about their wild doings in the interior, where every man-jack of them having spent at least eight months almost in perfect solitude, they hadu't had a chance of letting their tongues go till they cauie down here. But to proceed. When the ship came out in the fall, she brought a batch of new clerks, and among them was this miserable chap Peterkin, whom we soon nicknamed Butter. He was the softest fellow I ever knew, (far worse than you, Hamilton), and he hadn't been here a weok before the wild blades from the interior, who FUUM THE FAR NOUTII. 2G3 (> wcro bursting with fun and niiscliiuf, bcgiui to play tdV all kiiuls of practical jokes upcjii him. The very fii-st clay ho sat down at the iness-tablc, our worthy governor (wlio, you are awaro, detesta practical jokes) played him a trick, (|uito unintentionally, which raised a laugh against him lor many a day. You knoM' that old Mr Kogan is ratln-r absent at times ; well, the first day that I'ctcrkiu came t mess (it was breakfast), the old governor asked him, in a ]);itronlsing sort of way, to sit at his right hand. Accord- ingly, down ho sat, and Laving never, I fancy, been away tVom his mother's apron-string before, he seemed t Hamilton looked down and said nothing, at least with his mouth, though his eyes evidently remarked, " I don't believe you." In future years, however, the evidence of these same eyes convinced him that what the accountant said upon this occasion was but too true. Brt^akfast was a repetition of the supper of the previous evening. During its discussion they planned proceedings for the day. " My notion is," said the accountant, intemipting the flow of words ever and anon to chew the morsel with winch his mouth was filled, " my notion is, that, as it's a fine clear day, we should travel five miles through the couuury parallel with North River. I know the ground, and can guide you easily to the spots where there are lots of willows, and, therefore, plenty of ptarmigan, seeing that they feed on willow tops; and the snow that fell last .xight will help us a little." " How will the snow help us ?" inquired Hamilton. "By covering up all the old tracks, to be sure, and shew- ing only the new ones." w PKOM THE FAR NORTH. 279 " Well, captain," said Harry, as he raised a can of tea to his lips, and nodded to Hamilton, as if drinking his health, " go on with your proposals for the day. Five miles up the river to begin with then " "Tlien, we'll pnU up," continued the accountant; " make a fire, rest a bit, and eat a mouthful of pemican ; after which we'll strike across country for the southern woodcutters' track, and so home." " And how much will that be ] " " About fifteen miles." "Ha!" exclaimed Hany; "pass the kettle, please. Thanks. Do you think you're up to that, Hammy '] " " I will try what I can do," .replied Hamilton. " If the snow-shoes don't cause me to fall often, I think I shall stand the fatigue very well." " That's right," said the accountant ; " faint heart, &c., you know. If you go on as you've begun, you'll be chosen to head the next expedition to the north pole." " Well," replied Hamilton, good - humouredly, " pray head the present expedition, and let us be gone." " Right ! " ejaculated the accountant, rising. " I'll just put my odds and ends out of the reach of the foxes, and then we shall be ofi"." In a few minutes everything was placed in security, guns loaded, snow-shoes put on, and the winter camp deserted. At first the walking was fatiguing, and poor Hamilton more than once took a sudden and eccentric plunge ; but, after getting beyond the wooded country, they found the snow much more compact, and their march, therefore, much more agreeable. On coming to the place where it was probable that they might fall in with ptarmigan, Hamilton became rather excited, and 280 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAM3 apt to imagine that little lumps of snow, which hung upon the bushes here and there, were birds. \ " There now," he cried, in an energetic and slightly positive tone, as another of these masses of snow suddenly- met his eager eye — " that's one, I'm quite sure." The accountant and Harry both stopped short on hear- ing this, and looked in the direction indicated. " Fire away, then, Hammy," said the former, endea- vouring to suppress a smile. " But do you think it really is one ? " asked Hamilton, anxiously. " Well, I don't see it exactly, but then, you know, I'm near-sighted." ^* Don't give him a chance of escape," cried Harry, seeing that his friend was undecided. " If you really do see a bii'd, you'd better shoot it, for they've got a strong propensity to take wing when disturbed." Thus admonished, Hamilton raised his gun and took aim. Suddenly he lowered his piece again, and looking round at Harry, said in a low whisper — " Oh ! I should like so much to shoot it while flying. Would it not be better to set it up first ? " " By no means," answered the accountant. " 'A bird in the hand,' &c. Take him as you find him — look sharp ; he'll be ofi" in a second." Again the gun was pointed, and, after some difficulty in taking aim, fired. " Ah ! what a pity you've missed him," shouted Harry; " but see, he's not off yet ; how tame he is, to be sure; give him the other barrel, Hammy." This piece of advice proved to be unnecessary. In his anxiety to get the bird, Hamilton nad cocked both barrels, FROM THE FAR NORTH. 281 ch Imng . slightly suddenly ; on hear- 3r, endea- Hamilton, know, I'm ed Harry, u really do ot a strong and took md looking hile flying. |< -i 286 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS lay in shelter all the way to the fort. Poor Hamilton, it is true, took one or two of his occasional plunges by the way, but without any serious result, — not even to the extent of stuffing liis nose, ears, neck, mittens, pockets, gun-barrels, and everjrthing else with snow, because, these being quite full and hard packed already, there was no room left for the addition of another particle. FROM THE FAR NOIITIL 287 CHAPTER XXII. The winter packet; Harry hears from old friends, and wishes that lie was with them. Letters from home ! What a burst of sudden emotion — what a riot of conflicting feelings, of dread and joy, expectation and anxiety — what a flood of old memories — what stirring up of almost forgotten associations, these three words create in the hearts of those who dwell in distant regions of this earth, far, far away from kith and kin — from friends and acquaintances — from the much-loved scenes of childhood, and from home! Letters from home ! How gratefully the sound falls upon ears that have been long unaccustomed to sounds and things connected with home, and so long accustomed to wild, savage sounds, that these have at length lost their novelty, and become everyday and commonplace, while the first have gradually grown strange and unwonted. For many long months, home and all connected with it has become a dream of other days, and savage-land a present reality. The mind has by de- grees become absorbed by surrounding objects— objects so utterly unassociated with, or unsuggestive of any other land, that it involuntarily ceases to think of the scenes of childhood with the same feelings that it once did. As time rolls on, home assumes a misty, undefined character, as if it were not only distant in reality, but were also slowly I 'if 288 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS retreating further and further away — growing gradually faint and dream-like, though notle8sdear,tothementalview " Letters from home ! " shouted Mr Wilson, and the doctor, and the skipper, simultaneously, as the sportsmen, after dashing through the wild storm, at last reached the fort, and stumbled tumultuously into Bachelorfi' Hall. « What ! — Where ! -- How ! — You don't mean it ! " they exclaimed, coming to a sudden stand, like three pil- lars of snow-clad astonishment. " Ay," replied the doctor — who affected to be quile cool upon all occasions, and rather cooler than usual if the occasion was more than ordinarily exciting — " ay, we do mean it. Old Bogan has got the packet, and is even no\^ disembowelling it." " More than that," interrupted the skipper, who sat smoking as usual by the stove, with his hands in his breeches -pockets — " more than that, I saw him dissect- ing into the very marrow of the thing ; so, if we don't storm the old admiral in his cabin, he'll go to sleep over these prosy yarns that the governor-in-chief writes to him, and we'll have to whistle for our letters till mid- night." The skipper's remark was interrupted by the opening of the outer door and the entrance of the butler. " Mr Rogan wishes to see you, sir," said that worthy to the accountant. " I'll be with him in a minute," he replied, as he threw off his capote and proceeded to unwind himself as quicklj as his multitudinous haps would permit. By this time Harry Somerville and Hamilton were busily occupied in a similar manner, while a running fire of question and answer, jesting remark and bantering I;l FROM THE FAR NORTH. 289 reply, was kept up between the young men, from their various apai-tmenta and the hall. The doctor was cool, as usual, and impudent. He had a habit of walking up and down while he smoked, and was thus enabled to look in upon the inmates of the several sleeping rooms, and make his remarks in a quiet, sarcastic manner, the galling effect of which was heightened by his habit of pausing at the end of every two or three words, to emit a few puffs of smoke. Having exhausted a good deal of small talk in this way, and having, moreover, finished his pipe, the doctor went to the stove to re-fill and re-light. " What a deal of trouble you do take to make yourself comfortable," said he to the skipper, who sat with his chair tilted on its hind legs, and a pillow at his back. " No harm in that, doctor," replied the skipper, with a smile. " No harm, certainly; but it looks uncommonly lazy- like." "What does?" " Why, putting a pillow at your back, to be sure." The doctor was a full-fleshed, muscular man, and, owing to this fact, it mattered little to him whether his chair happened to be an easy one or not. As the skipper sometimes remarked, he carried padding always about with him ; he was, therefore, a little apt to sneer at the attempts of his brethren to render the ill-shaped, wooden- bottomed chairs, with which the hall was ornamented, bearable. " Well, doctor," said the skipper, " I cannot see how you make me out lazy. Surely it is not an evidence of laziness my endeavouring to render these instruments of torture less tormenting? Seeking to be comfortable, if i I 290 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBKAMS it docs not inconvenience any one else, is not laziness. Why, what is comfort ?" The skipper began to wax philosophical at this point, and took the pipe from his mouth as he gravely propounded the momentous ques- tion. " What is comfort ? If I go out to camp in the woods, and, after turning in, find a sharp stump sticking into my ribs on one side, and a pine root driving in the small of my back on the other side, is that comfort 1 Certainly not. And if I get up, seize a hatchet, level the stump, cut away the Toot, and spread pine brush over the })lace, am I to be called lazy for doing so 1 Or if I sit down on a chair, and, on trying to lean back to r^Bst myself, find that the stupid lubber who made it, has so constructed it, that four small hard points alone touch my person, — two being at the hip-joints, and two at the shoulder-blades j and if, to relieve such physical agony, I jump up and clap a pillow at my back, am I to be called lazy for doing that ?'* " What a glorious entry that would make in the log !" said the doctor, in a low tone, soliloquisingly, as if he made the remark merely for his own satisfaction, while he tapped the ashes out of his pipe. The skipper looked as if he meditated a sharp reply; but his intentions, whatever they might have been, were interrupted by the opening of the door, and the entrance of the accountant, bearing under his arm a packet of letters. A general rush was made upon him, and in a few minutes a dead silence reigned in the hall, broken only at intervals by an exclamation of surprise or pathos, as the inmates, in the retirement of their separate apart- ments, perused letters from friends in the interior of the PROM THE PAR NORTH. I.» 201 country, and frienda at Lome, — letters that wore old — bome of them bearing dates many months back — and travel-stained, but new, and fresh, and cheering, never- theless, to their owners, as the clear bright sun in winter, or the verdant loaves in spring. Hany Somorville's letters were numerous and long, lie had several from friends in Red River, besides one or two from other parts of the Indian country, and one — it was very thick and heavy- -that bore the post-marks of Britain. It was late that night ore the lost candle was extinguished in the hall, and it was late too before Harry Somerville ceased to peruse and re-peruse the long letter from home, and found time or inclination to devote to his other correspondents. Among the rest was a letter from his old friend and companion, Chai'ley Kennedy, which ran as follows : — My dear Harry, — It really seems more than an ago since I saw you. Your last epistle, written in the pertur- bation of mind consequent upon being doomed to spend another winter at York Fort, reached me only a few days ago, and filled me with pleasant recollections of other days. Oh ! man, how much I wish that you were with me in this beautiful country ! You are aware that I have been what they call " roughing it " since you and I parted on the shores of Lake "Winipeg ; but, my dear fellow, the idea that most people have of what that phrase means, is a very erroneous one indeed. " Roughing it " I certainly have been, inasmuch as I have been living on rough fare, associating with rough men, and sleeping on rough beds under the stany sky ; but I assure you, that all this is not half so rough upon the constitution as what they ; f 1 i 292 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS call leading an easy life ; whicli is simply a life that makes a poor fellow stagnate, body and spirit, till the one comes to be unable to digest its food, and the other incompetent to jump at so much as half an idea. Anything but an easy life, to my mind. Ah ! there's nothing like roughing it, Harry, my boy. Why, I am thriving on it ; growing like a young walrus; eating like a Canadian voj/ageur, and sleeping like a top. This is a splendid country for sport, and, as our Bourgeois* has taken it into his head that I am a good hand at making friends with the Indians, he has sent me out on several expeditions, and afforded me some famous opportunities of seeing life amqng the redskins. There is a talk just now of establishing a new outpost in this district, so, if I succeed in persuading the governor to let me accompany the party, I shall have something interesting to write about in my next letter. By the way, I wrote to you a month ago, by two Indians who said they were going to the missionary station at Norway House. Did you ever get it? There is a hunter here just now, who goes by the name of Jacques Caradoc. He is a fii-st-rater — can do anything, in a wild way, that lies within the power of mortal man, and is an inexhaustible {vuecdote-teller, in a quiet way. He and I have been out buffalo-hunting two or three times, and it would have done your heart good, Harry, my dear boy, to have seen us scouring over the prairie together on two big-boned Indian horses; — regular trained buffalo-runners, that didn't need the spur to urge, nor the rein to guide them, when once they caught siglit of the black cattle, and kept a sharp look-out for badger ♦ The gentleman in charge of an establishment is always designated the Bourgeois. FROM TUE FAR NORTH. 293 holes, just as if they had been reasonable creatures. The first time I went out I had several rather ugly falls, owing to my inexperience. The fact is, that if a man has never run bufialoes before, he's sure to get one or two upsets, no matter how good a horseman he may be. And that monster, Jacques, although he's the best tellow I ever met with for a hunting companion, always took occasion to grin at my mishaps, and gravely to read me a lecture to the effect that they were all owing to my own clumsiness or stupidity; which, you will acknowledge, was not calculated to restore my equanimity. The very first run we had cost me the entire skin of my nose, and converted that feature into a superb Roman for the next three weeks. It happened thus. Jacques and I were riding over the prairie in search of buffaloes. The place was interspersed with sundry knolls covered with trees, slips and belts of woodland, with ponds scattered among them, and open sweeps of the plain here and there ; altogether a delightful country to ride through. It was a clear early morning, so that our horses were fresh and full of spirit. They knew, as well as we ourselves did, what we were out for, and it was no easy matter to restrain them. The one I rode was a great long-legged beast, as like as possible to that abominable kangaroo that nearly killed me at Eed Kiver; as for Jacques, he was mounted on a first-rate chu-rger. I don't know how it is, but, somehow or other, everything about Jacques, or belonging to him, or in the remotest degree connected with him, is always first-rate ! He generally owns a first-rate horse, and if he happens by any unlucky chance to be compelled to mount a bad one, it immediately becomes another animal. He seems to infuse some of hii 294 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS own wonderful spirit into it ! "Well, as Jacques and I Curvetted along, skirting the low bushes at the edge of a wood, out burst a whole herd of buffaloes. Bang went Jacques' gun, almost before I had winked to make sure that I saw rightly, and down fell the fattest of them all, while the rest tossed up their tails, heels, and heads, in one grand whirl of indignant amazement, and scoured away like the wind. In a moment our horses were at full stretch after thera. on their own account entirely, and without any reference to us. When I recovered my self- possession a little, I threw forward my gun and fired, but, owing to my endeavouring to hold the reins at the same time, I nearly blew off one of my horse's ears, and only knocked up the dust about six yards ahead of us ! Of course Jacques could not let this pass unnoticed. He was sitting quietly loading his gun, as cool as a cucumber, while his horse was dashing forward at full stretch, with the reins hanging loosely on liis neck. "Ah ! Mister Charles, " said he, with the least possible grin on his leathern visage, " that was not well done. You should never hold the reins when you fire, nor try to put the gun to your shoulder. It a'nt needful The beast '11 look aiiier itself, if it's a riglav buffalo runner ; anyways holdin' the reins is of no manner of use. I once know'd a gentleman that came out here to see the buffalo huntin'. He was a good enough shot in his way, an' a first-rate rider. But he was full o' queer notions, he would load his gun with the ramrod in the riglar way, instead o' doin' as we do, tumblin' in a drop powder, spittin' a ball out your mouth down the muzzle, and hittin' the stock on the pommell of the saddle to send it home. And he had them miserable things — the somethin' FROM THE FAR NORTH. 205 'cussion-caps, and used to fiddle awaj with them, while we were kiockin' over the cattle in all directions. Moreover ht had a notion that it was altogether wrong to let go his reins even for a moment, and so, what between the ramrod, and the 'cussion-caps, and the reins, he was worse than the greenest clerk that ever came to the country. He gave it up in despair at last, after lamin' two horses, and finished off by runnin' after a big bull, that turned on him all of a suddent, crammed its head and horns into the side of his horse, and sent the poor fellow head over heels on the green grass. He wasn't much the worse for it, but his fine double-barrelled gun was twisted into a shape that would almost have puzzled an Injin to tell what it was." "Well, Harry, all the time that Jacques was telling me this we were gaining on the buffaloes, and at last we got quite close to them, and as luck would have it, the very thing that happened to the amateur sporfcsi. ^an happened to me. I went madly after a big bull in spite of Jacques' remonstrances, and, just as I got alongside of him, up went his tail, (a sure sign that his anger was roused) and round he came, head to the front, stiff as a rock, my poor charger's chest went right between his horns, and, as a matter of course, I continued the race upon nothing, head first, for a distance of about thirty yards, and brought up on the bridge of my nose. My poor dear father used to say I was a bull- headed rascal, and, upon my word, I believe he was more literally correct than he imagined, for, although I fell with a fearful crash, head first, on the hard plain, I rose up immediately, and in a few minutes was able to resume the chase again. My horse was equally fortunate, for, al- though thus brought to a sudden stand while at full gallop, till 296 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS :il he wheeled about, gave a contemptuous flourish with his heels, and cantered after Jacques, who soon caught him again. My head bothered me a good deal for some time after this accident, and swelled up till my eyes became almost undistinguishable ; but a few weeks put me all right again. And who do you think this man Jacques is ? You'd never guess. He's the trapper whom Red- feather told us of long ago, and whose wife was killed by the Indians. He and Redfeather have met and are very fond of each other. How often in the midst of these wild excursions have my thoughts wandered to you, Harry! The fellows I meet with here are all kind- hearted, merry companions, but none like yourself. I sometimes say to Jacques, when we become communica- tive to each other beside the camp-fire, that my earthly felicity would be perfect if I had Harry Somerville here, and then I think of Kate, my sweet, loving sister Kate, and feel that, even although I had you with me, there would still be something wanting to make things perfect. Talking of Kate, by the way, I have received a letter from her, the first sheet of which, as it speaks of mutual Red River friends, I herewith enclose. Pray keep it safe, and return per first opportunity. "We've loads of furs here and plenty of deer-stalking — not to mention gallop- ing on horseback on the plains in summer, and dog-sledg- ing in winter. Alas ! my poor friend, I fear that it is Tather selfish in me to write so feelingly about my agree- able circumstances, when I know you are slowly dragging out your existence at that melancholy place, York Fort ; but, believe me, I sympathise with you, and I hope ear- nestly that you will soon be appointed to more genial scenes. I have much very much to tell you yet, but am FROM THE FAR NORTH, 297 oompelled to reserve it for a future epistle, as the packet which is to convey this is on the point of being closed. Adieu, my dear Harry, and wherever you may happen to pitch your tent, always bear in kindly remembrance your old friend, Charles Kennedy. The letter was finished, but Harry did not cease to hold intercourse with his friend. With his head resting on his two hands and his elbows on the table, he sat long, silently gazing on the signature, while his mind revelled in the past, the present, and the future. He bounded over the wilderness that lay between him and the beauti- ful plains of the Saskatchewan. He seized Charley round the neck, and hugged and wi'estled with him as in days of yore. He mounted an imaginary charger and swept across the plains along with him ; — listened to anecdotes innumerable from Jacques, attacked thousands of buf- faloes, singled out scores of wild bulls, pitched over horses' heads and alighted precisely on the bridge of his nose, always in close proximity to his old friend. Gradually his mind returned to its prison-house, and his eye fell on Kate's letter, which he picked up and began to read. It ran thus : — My dear, dear, darling Charley, — I cannot tell you how much my heart has yearned to see you, or hear from you, for many long, long months past. Your last delight- fid letter, which I treasure up as the most precious object I possess, has indeed explained to me how utterly impos- sible it was to have written a day sooner than you did ; but that does not comfort me a bit, or make those weary packets more rapid and frequent in their movements, or 20 298 SN0WFLAKE9 AND SUNBEAMS the time that passes between the periods of hearing from you less dreary and anxious. God bless and protect you, my darling, in the midst of all the dangers that surround you. But I did not intend to begin this letter by murmuring, so pray foi-give me, and I shall tiy to atone for it by giving you a minute account of everybody here, about whom you are interested. Our beloved father and mother, I am thankful to say, are quite well. Papa has taken moid than ever to smoking since you went away. He is seldom out of the summer-house in the garden now, where I very frequently go, and spend hours together in reading to and talking with him. He very often speaks of you, and I am certain that he misses you far more than we expected, although I tliink he cannot miss you nearly so much as I do. For some weeks past, indeed ever since we got your last letter, papa was engaged all the forenoon in some mysterious work, for he used to lock himself up in the summer-house, — a thing he never did before. One day I went there at my usual time, and instead of having to wait till he should unlock the door, I found it already open and entered the room, which was so full of smoke that I could hardly see. I found papa writing at a small table, and the moment he heard my footstep, he jumped up with a fierce frown, and shouted, " Wlio's there 1 " in that terrible voice that he used to speak in long ago when angry with his men, but which he has almost quite given up for some time past. He never speaks to me, as you know very well, but in the kindest tones, so you may imagine what a dreadful fright I got for a moment, but it was only for a moment, because the instant he saw that it was me, his dear face changed, and he folded me in his arms, sajdng, " Ah ! Kate, forgive me, my darling ! I did 1.! FROM THE FAR NORTH. 299 not know it was you, and I thought I had locked the door, and was angry at being so unceremoniously interrupted." He then told me he was just finishing a letter of advice to you, and, going up to the table, pushed the papers hurriedly into a drawer. As he did so, I guessed what had been his mysterious occupation, for he seemed to hiive covered quires of paper with the closest writing. Ah ! Charley, you're a lucky fellow to be able to extort such long letters from our dear father. You know how difficult he finds it to write even the shortest note, and you remember his old favoui'ite expression, " I would rather skin a wild bufialo bull alive than write a long letter." He deserves long ones in return, Charley; but I need not urge you on that score — ^you are an excellent correspondent. Mamma is able to go out every day now for a drive in the prairie. She was confined to the house for nearly three weeks last mouth, with some sort of illiiCoLV that the doctor did not seem to understand, and at one time I was much frightened, and very, very anxious about her, she became so weak. It would have made your heart glad to have seen the tender way in which papa nursed her through the illness. I had fancied that he was the very last man in the world to make a sick- nurse, so bold and quick in his movements, and with such a loud grufi" voice — ^for it ts gruflf, although very sweet at the same t'me. But the moment he began to tend mamma he spoke more softly even than dear Mr Addison does, md he began to walk about the house on tiptoe, and per- severed so long in this latter that all his moccasins began to be worn out at the toes, while the heels remained quite strong. I begged of him often not to take so much trouble, as / was naturally the proper nurse for mamma. V,' 300 SNOWFLAKKS AND SUNBEAMS tl 1 !. I ii! i ^! but he wouldn't hear of it, and insisted on carrying breakfast, dinner, and tea to her, besides giving her all her medicine. He was for ever making mistakes, how- ever, much to his own sorrow, the darling man ; and I had to watch him pretty closely, for more than once he has been on the point of giving mamma a glass of laudanum in mistake for a glass of poii; wine. I was a good deal frightened for him at fii-st, as, before he became accus- tomed to the work, he tumbled over the chairs and tripped on the carpets while carrying trays with dinners and breakfasts, till I thought he would really injure himself at last, and then he was so terribly angry with himself at making such a noise and breaking the dishes — I think he has broken nearly an entire dinner and tea set of crockery. Poor George, the cook, has suflFered most from these mishaps, for you know that dear papa cannot get angry without letting a little of it out upon somebody; and whenever he broke a dish or let a tray fall, he used to nish into the kitchen, shake his fist in George's face, and ask him, in a fierce voice, what he meant by it. But he always got better in a few seconds, and finished ofi" by telling him never to mind, that he was a good servant on the whole, and he wouldn't say any more about it just now, but he had better look sharp out and not do it again. I must say, in praise of George, that on such occasions, he looked very sorry indeed, and said he hoped that he would always do his best to give him satisfaction. This was only proper in him, for he ought to be very thankful that our father restrains his anger so much ; for you know he was rather violent once, and you've no idea, Charley, how great a restraint he now lays on himself. He seems to me quite like a lamb, and I am beginning to !.l FROM 1HE FAR NORTH. 301 foel somehow as if we had been mistaken, and that ho never was a passionate man at all. I think it is partly owing to dear Mr Addison, who visits us very frequently now, and papa and he are often shut up together for many hours in the smoking-house. I was sure that papa would soon come to like him, for his religion is so free from everything like severity or affected solemnity. The cook, and Rosa, and my dog that you named Twist, are all quite welL The last has grown into a very large and beautiful animal, something like the stag-hound in the picture-book we used to study together long ago. He is exceedingly fond of me, and I feel him to be quite a protector. The cocks and hens, the cow and the old mare, are also in per- fect health ; so now, having told you a good deal about ourselves, I will give you a short account of the doings in the colony. Fii-st of all, your old friend Mr Kipples is still alive and well, and so are all our old companions in the school. One or two of the latter have left, and young Naysmith has joined the Company's service. Betty Peters comes very often to see us, and she always asks for you with great earnestness. I think you have stolen the old wo- man's heart, Charley, for she speaks of you with great affection. Old Mr Seaforth is still as vigorous as ever, dashing about the settlement on a high-mettled steed, just as if he were one of the youngest men in the colony. He nearly poisoned himself, poor man, a month ago, by taking a dose of some kind of medicine by mistake. I did not hear what it was, but I am told that the treatment was rather severe. Fortunately the doctor happened to be at home when he was sent for, else our old friend would, I fear, have died. As it was, the doctor cured him 302 SXOWFLAKES AND SUXBEAMS with great difficulty. He first gave him an emetic, then put mustard blisters to the soles of his feet, and afterwards lifted him into one of his own carts, without springs, in which he drove him for a long time over all the ploughed fields in the neighbourhood. If this is not an exaggerated account, Mr Seaforth is certainly made of sterner stuff than most men. I was told a funnv anecdote of him a few days ago, which I am sure you have never heard, other- wise you would have told it to me, for there used to be no secrets between us, Charley, — alas ! I have no one to con- fide in, or advise with, now that you are gone. You have often heard of the great flood — not Noah's one — but the flood that nearly swept away our settlement, and did do much damage before you and I were bom. Well, you recollect that people used to tell of the way in wldch the river rose after the breaking up of the ice, and how it soon overflowed all the low points, sweeping ofi" everything in its course. Old Mr Seaforth's house stood at that time on the little point, just beyond the curve of the river, at the foot of which our own house stands, and as the river con- tinued to rise, Mr Seaforth went about actively securing his property. At first he only thought of his boat and canoes, which, with the help of his son Peter and a Cana- dian, who happened at the time to be employed about the place, he dragged up and secured to an iron staple in the side of liis house. Soon, however, he found that the dan- ger was greater than at first he imagined. The point became completely covered with water, which brought down great numbers of half-drowned and quite-drowned cattle, pigs, and poultry ; and stranded them at the gar- den fence, so that in a short time poor Mr Seaforth could scarcely move about his overcrowded domains. On seeing I,! FROM THE FAR NORTH. 303 this, he drove liis own cattle to the highest hmd in his neighbourhood and hastened back to the house, intending to cany as much of the furniture as possible to the same place. But during his short absence, the river had risen so rapidly, that he was obliged to give up all thoughts of this, and think only of securing a few of his valuables. The bit of land round his dwelling was so thickly covered ^vith the poor cows, sheep, and other animals, that he could scarcely make his way to the house, and you may fancy his consternation on reaching it, to find that the water was more than knee-deep round the walls, while a few of the cows and a whole herd of pigs had burst open the door (no doubt accidentally) and coolly entered the dining-room, where they stood with drooping heads, very wet, and apparently very miserable. The Canadian was busy at the back of the house, loading the boat and canoe with everything he could lay hands on, and was not aware of the foreign invasion in front. Mr Seaforth cared little for this, however, and began to collect all the things he held most valuable, and threw them to the man, who stowed them away in the boat. Peter had been left in charge of the cattle, so they had to work hard. While thus employed the water continued to rise with fearful rapidity, and rushed against the house like a mill-race, so that it soon became evident that the whole would, ere long, be swept away. Just as they finished loading the boat and canoes, the staple which held them gave way ; in a moment they were swept into the middle of the river, and carried out of sight. The Canadian was in the boat at the time the staple broke, so that Mr Seafoi-th was now left in a dwelling that bid fair to emulate Noah's ark in an hour or two, without a chance of escape, and with 304 SXOWFLAKES AND 8UNBEA3I8 uo better company than five black oxen, in the dining-room, besides three sheep that were now scarcely able to keep their heads above water, and three little pigs that were already drowned. The poor old man did his best to push out the intrudera, but only succeeded in ejecting two sheep and an ox. All the others positively refused to go, so he was fain to let them stay. By shutting the outer door, he suc- ceeded in keeping out a great deal of water. Then he waded into the parlour, where he found some more little pigs floating alx)ut and quite dead. Two, however, more adventurous than their comrades, had saved their lives by mounting firat on a chair and then upon the table, where they were comfortably seated, gazing languidly at their lAother, a very heavy fat sow, which sat, with what seemed an expression of settled depair, on the sofa. In a fit of wrath, Mr Seaforth seized the young pigs and tossed them out of the window, whereupon the old one jumped down, and half-walking, half-swimming, made her way to her companions in the dining-room. The old gentleman now ascended to the garret, where, from a small window, he looked out upon the scene of devastation. His chief anxiety was about the foundation of the house, which, being made of a wooden fi'amework, like almost all the others in the colony, would certainly float if the water rose much higher. His fears were better founded than the house. As he looked up the river, which had by this time overflowed all its banks and was spreading over the plains, he saw a fresh burst of water coming down, which, when it dashed against his dwelling, forced it about two yards from its foundation. Suddenly he remembered that there was a large anchor and chain in the kitchen, both of which he had brought there one day, to serve as a sort FROM THE FAR NORTH. 305 of anvil, when he wanted to do some blacksmith world Hastening down, he fastened one end of the chain to the sofa, and cast the anchor out of the window. A few minutes afterwards another rush of water struck the building, which yielded to pressure, and swung slowly down until the anchor arrested its further progress. This was only for a few seconds, however. The chain was a slight one. It snapped, and the house swept majestically down the stream, while its terrified owner scrambled to tiie roof, which he found already in possession of his fa- vourite cat. Here he had a clear view of his situation. The plains were converted into a lake, above whose surface rose trees and houses, several of which, like his own, were floating on the stream or stranded among shallows. Set- tlers were rowing about in boats and canoes in all directions, but, although some of them noticed the poor man sitting beside his cat on the house-top, they were either too far off or had no time to render him assistanc<>. For two days nothing was heard of old Mr Seaforth. Indeed, the settlers had too much to do in saving them- selves and their families to think of others ; and it waa not until the third day that people began to inquire about him. His son Peter had taken a canoe and made diligent search in all directions, but although he found the house sticking on a shallow point, neither his father nor the cat were on, or in it. At last he was brought to the island, on which nearly half the cv»lony had collected, by an Indian who had passed the house and brought him away in his canoe, along with the old cat. Is he not a wonderful man, to have come through so much in his old age ] and he is still so active and hearty ! Mr Swan of the mill is dead. He died of fever last week. Poor old fli I* V : 306 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS Mr Cordon is also gone. His end was very cad. About a month ago he ordered his horse and rode off, intending to visit Foi-t Garry. At the turn of the road, just above Grant's House, the horse suddenly sweived, and its rider was thrown to the ground. He did not live more than half an hour after it. Alas ! how very sad to see a man, after escaping all the countless dangers of a long life in the woods, (and his, you know, was a very adventurous one,) thus cut violently down in his old age ! Charley, how little we know what is before us ! How needful to have our peace made with God through Jesus Christ, so that we may be ready at any moment when our Father calls us away. There are many events of gteafc interest that have occurred here since you left. You will be glad to hear that Jane Patterson is married to our excellent friend Mr Cameron, who has taken up a store near to us, and intends to run a boat to York Fort next summer. There has been another marriage here, which will cause you astonishment at least, if not plea- sure. Old Mr Peters has married Marie Peltier ! "What could have possessed her to take such a husband ? I can- not understand it. Just think of her, Charley, a girl of eig^iceen, with a husband of seventy-five ! At this point the writing, which was very close, and very small, terminated. Harry laid it down with a deep sigh ; wishing much that Charley had thought it advis- able to send him the second sheet also. As wishes and regrets on tliis point were equally unavailing, he endea- voured to continue it in imagination, and was soon as deeply absorbed in following Kate through the well-re- inembered scenes of Red River, as he had been, a short M FROM THE FAR NORTH. 307 time before, in roaming -with her brother over the wide prairies of the Saskatchewan. The increasing cold, how- ever, soon warned him that the night was far spent. He rose and went to the stove, but the fire had gone out, and the abnost irresistible frost of these regions was already cooling everything in Bachelora' Hall down to the freez- ing point. All his companions had put out their candles, and were busy, doubtless, di*eaming of the friends whose letters had struck and re-awakened the long dormant chords that used to echo to the tones and scenes of other days. With a slight shiver, Harry returned to his apart- ment, and kneeled to thank God for protecting and pre- serving his absent friends, and especially, for sending him "good news from a far land." The le^ter with the British post-marks on it was placed under his pillow. It occupied his waking and sleeping thoughts that night, and it was the first thing he thought of and re-read on the following morning, and for many mornings after- wards. Only those can fully estimate the value of such letters, who live in distant lands, where letters are few — very, very few — and far between. ? 308 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS CHAPTER XXIII. Changes; Harry and Hamilton find that variety is indeed charming; the latter astonishes the former considerably. i !: Three montlis passed away, but the snow still lay deep, and white, and undiminished around York Fort. Win- ter — cold, silent, unyielding winter — still diew its white mantle closely round the lonely dwelling of the fur- t^'aders of the far north. Icicles hung, as they had done for months before, from the eves of every house, from the tall black scaffold on which the great bell hung, and from the still taller erection that had been put up as an outlook for "the sliip " in summer. A-t the present time, it commanded a bleak view of the frozen sea. Snow covered every house-top, and hung in ponderous masses from their edges, as if it were about to fall; but it never fell, it hung there in the same position day after day, unmelted, unchanged. Snow covered the whole land, and the frozen I'iver, the swamps, the sea-beach and the sea itself, as far as the eye could reach, seemed like a pure white car- pet. Snow lined the upper edge of every paling, filled up the key-hole of every door, embanked about half of every window, stuck in little knobs on the top of every picket, and clung in masses on every drooping branch of the pine-trees in the forest. Frost — sharp, biting frost — solidified, surrounded, and pervaded everything. Mercury FROM THE FAR NORTH. 1:1 309 was congealed by it ; vapour was condensed by it ; iron was cooled by it until it could scai'cely be touched with- out (as the men expressed it) " burning " the fingers. The water-jugs in Bachelors' Hall and the water-buckets were frozen by it, nearlj'^ to the bottom ; though there was a good stove there, and the Hall was not usually a cold place by any means. The breath of the inhabitants was congealed by it on the window-panes, until they had become coated with ice an inch thick. The breath of the men was rendered white and opaque by it, ac they panted and hurried to and fro about their ordinary avocations ; beating their gloved hands together, and sf.il I incc their well-wrapped-up feet on the hard beaten sr ) u "jeep them warm. Old Robin's nose seemed to be entii eiy shrivelled up into his face by it, as he drove his ox-caii; to the river to fetch his daily supply of water. The only things that were not affected by it were the fires, which crackled and roared as if in laughter, and twisted and leapt as if in uncontrollable glee at the bare idea of John Frost acquiring, by any artifice whatever, the smallest possible influence over them ! Three months had elapsed, but frost ana snow, instead of abating, had gone on increasing and intensifying, deepening and ex- tending its work, and riveting its chains. Winter — cold, silent, unyielding winter — still reigned at York Fort, as though it had made it a sine qua non of its existence at all that it should reign there for ever ! But although everything was thus wintry and cold, it was by no means cheerless or dreary. A bright sun shone in the blue heavens with an intenseness of brilliancy that was quite dazzling to the eyes, that elated the spirits, and caused man and beast to tread with a more elastic r \ •.\ 310 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS step than usual. Although the sun looked down upon • the scene with an unclouded face, and found a min'or in every icicle, and in eveiy gem of hoarfrost with which the objects of nature were loaded, there was, however, no perceptible heat in his rays. They fell on the white earth with all the brightness of midsummer, but they fell powerless as moonbeams in the dead of winter. On the frozen river, just in front of the gate of the fort, a group of men and dogs were assembled. The dogs were four in number, harnessed to a small flat sledge of the slender kind used by Indians to drag their furs and provisions over the snow. The group of men was com- posed of Mr Rogan, and the inmates of Bachelors' Hall, one or two men who happened to be engaged there at the time in cutting a new water-hole in the ice, and an Indian, who, to judge from his carefully adjusted costume, the snow-shoes on his feet, and the short whip in his hand, was the driver of the sledge, and was about to start on a journey. Harry Somerville and young Hamilton were also wrapped up more carefully than usual. " Good-bye, then, good-bye," said Mr Rogan, advancing towards the Indian, who stood beside the leading dog, ready to start. "Take care of our young friends; they've not had much experience in travelling yet j and don't over- drive your dogs. Treat them well and they'll do more work. They're like men in that respect." Mr Rogan shook the Indian by the hand, and the latter immediately flourished the whip and gave a shout, which the dogs no sooner heard than they uttered a simultaneous yell, sprang forward with a jerk, and scampered up the river, closely followed by their dark-skinned driver. ** Now, lads, farewell," said the old gentlemen, turning // l;i FROM THE FAR NORTH. 311 with a kiadly smile to our two friends, who were shaking hands for the last time with their comrades. " I'm sorry you're going to leave us, my boys. You've done your duty well while here, and I would willingly have kept you a little longer with me, but our governor wills it other- wise. However, I trust that you'll be happy wherever you may be sent. Don't forget to write to me — God bless you — farewell." Mr Rogan shook them heartily by the hand, turned short round, and walked slowly up to his house, with an expression of sadness on his mild face, while Hany and Hamilton, having once more waved farewell to their friends, marched up the river side by side in silence. They followed the track left by the dog-sledge, which guided them with unerring certainty, although their Indian leader and his team were out of sight in advance. A week previous to this time, an Indian arrived from the interior, bearing a letter from head-quarters, which directed that Messrs Somerville and Hamilton should be forthwith despatched on snow-shoes to Norway House. As this establishment is about three hundred miles from the sea-coast, the orde ; involved a journey of nearly two weeks' duration, through a country that was uttei'y destitute of inhabitants. On receiving a command from Mr Rogan to prepare for an early start, Harry retired pre- cipitately to his own room, and there, after cutting unheard-of capers, and giving vent to sudden incompre- hensible shouts, all indicative of the highest state of delight, he condescended to tell his companions of his good fortune, and set about preparations without delay. Hamilton, on the contrary, gave his usual quiet smile on being informed of his destination, and, returning some- N 312 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS what pensively to Bachelors' Hall, proceeded leisurely to make the necessary arrangements for departure. As the time drew on, however, a perpetual flush on his counten- ance, and an unusual brilliancy about his eye, shewed that he was not quite insensible to the pleasures of a change, and relished the idea more than he got credit for. The Indian who had brought the letter was ordered to hold himself in readiness to retrace his steps and conduct the young men through the woods to Norway House, where they were to await further orders. A few days later, the tliree travellers, as already related, set out on their journey. After walking a mile up the river, they passed a point bf land which shut out the fort from view. Here they paused to take a last look, and then pressed forward in silence, the thoughts of each being busy with mingled recollections of their late home, and anticipations of the future. After an hour's sharp walking they came in sight of the guide, and slackened their pace. " Well, Hamilton," said Hany, throwing off his reverie with a deep sigh, " are you glad to leave York Fort, or sorry?" "Glad, undoubtedly," replied Hamilton, "but sorry to part from our old companions there. I had no idea, Harry, that I loved them all so much; I feel as if I should be glad were the order for us to leave them countermanded even now." . "That's the very thought," said Harry, "that was passing through my own brain, when I spoke to you. Yet, somehow, I think I should be uncommonly sorry, after all, if we were really sent back. There's a queer contradiction, Hammy; we're sorry and happy at the 7# FROM THE PAR NORTH. 313 same time ! If I were the skipper, now, I would found a philosophical argument upon it." "Which the skipper would carry on r.itli untiring vigour," said Hamilton, smiling, " and afterwards make an entry of in his log. B' I think, Harry, that to feel the emotion of sorrow and joy at the same time is not such a contradiction as it at first appears." " Perhaps not," replied Harry ; " but it seems very contradictory to we, and yet, it's an evident fact — for I'm very sorry to leave them, and I'm very happy to have you for my companion here." " So am I, so am I," said the other, heartily. " 1 would rather travel with you, Harry, than with any of our late companions — although I like them all very much." The two friends had grown, almost imperceptibly, in each other's esteem during their residence under the same roof, more than either of them would have believed pos- sible. The gay, reckless hilarity of the one, did not at first accord with the quiet gravity, and, as liis comrades styled it, softness, of the other. But character is frequently misjudged at fii*st sight — and someticaes men, who, on a first acquaintance, have felt repelled from each other, have, on coming to know each other better, discovered traits and good qualities that, ere long, formed enduring bonds of sympathy, and have learned to love those whoni at first they felt disposed to dislike or despise. . Thus, Harry soon came to know that what he at first thought, and, along with his companions, called, softness in Ham- ilton, was in reality gentleness of disposition, and thorough good-nature, united in one who happened to be utterly unacquainted with the knowing ways of this peculiarly 21 •9>?. 314 SNOWPLAKES AND SUNBEAMS sliarp and clever world ; while, in the course of time, new qualities shewed themselves in a quiet, unobtrusive way that won upon his affections and raised his esteem. On the other hand, Hamilton found tliat, although Hany wa.s volatile, and possessed of an irresistiblj tendency to fun and mischief, he never by any chance gave way to anger, or allov/ed malice to enter into his practical jokes. Indeed, lie often observed him restrain his natural tendencies when they were at all likely to give pain — though Iliury never dreamed that such efforts were known to any one but himsel£ Besides this, Harry was peculiarly unselfish; and when a man is possessed of this inestimable disposi- tion, he is, not quite but vei'j/ nearlij, perfect ! After another pause, during which the party had left the open river and directed their course through the woods, where the depth of the snow obliged them to tread in each others footsteps, Harry resumed the conversation. " You have not yet told roe, by the bye, what old Mr llogan said to you just before we started. Did he give you any liint as to where you might be sent to after reaching Norway House ? " " No, he merely said he knew that clerks were wanted both for Mackenzie River and the Saskatchewan districts, but he did not know which I was destined for." " Hum ! exactly what he said to me, with the slight addition tliat he strongly suspected that Mackenzie River '.v'ould be my doom. Are you aware, Haramy, my boy, that the Saskatchewan district is a sort of terrestrial paradise, and Mackiensie River equivalent to Botany ]ky ? " " I have heard as much during our convei*sations in Bachelors' Hall, but Stop a bit, Harry, these snow* M FROM THE FAR NORTH. 315 shoo lines of mine have got loosu netl with tearing through tiiis deep snow, and these shockingly thick bu.shes. There — they are right now ; go on, I was going to say that I don't oh ! " This last exclamation was elicited from Hamilton hy a sharp blow, caused by a branch which, catching on part of Harry's dress, as he plodded on in front, suddenly re- bounded and struck him across the face. This is of com- mon occurrence in travelling through the woods, especially to those who, from inexperience, walk too closely on the heels of thoir companions. " What's wrong now, Hammy 1 " inquired his friend, looking over his shoulder. " Oh, nothing worth mentioning — rather a sharp blow from a branch, that's all." "Well, proceed; you've interrupted yourself twice in what you were going to say ; — perhaps it'll come out if you try it a third time." " I was merely going to say, that I don't much care where I am sent to, so long as it is not to an outpost where I shall be all alone." " All very well, my friend ; but, seeing that outposts are, in comparison with princij)al forts, about a himdred to one, your chance of avoiding them is rather slight. However, our youth and want of experience is in our favour, as they like to send men who have seen some service to outposts. But I fear that, with such brilliant characters as you and I, Hammy, youth will only be an additional recommendation, and inexperience won't last long. — Hallo ! what 's going on yonder 1 " Harry pointed as he spoke to an open spot in the woods, about a quarter of a mile in advance, where a 816 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS (lark object was seen lying on the snow, writhing about, now coiling into a lump, and anon extending itself like a huge snake in agony. As the two friends looked, a prolonged howl floated towards them. " Something wrong with the dogs, I declare ! " cried Harry. ^ " No doubt of it," replied his friend, Inirrying foi-ward, as they saw their Indian guide rise from the ground and flourish his whip energetically, while the howls rapidly increased. A few minutes brought them to the scene of action, where they found the dogs engaged in a fight among themselves; and the driver, in a state of vehement passion, alternately belabouring and trying to separate them. Dogs in these regions, like the dogs of all other regions, we sup- pose, are very much addicted to fighting ; a propensity which becomes extremely unpleasant, if indulged while the animals are in harness, as they then become peculiarly savage, probably from their being unable, like an ill- assorted pair in wedlock, to cut or break the ties that bind them. Moreover, they twist the traces into such an ingeniously complicated mass, that it renders disen- tanglement almost impossible, even after exhaustion has reduced them to obedience. Besides this, they are so absorbed in worrying each other, that, for the time, they are utterly regardless of their driver's lash or voice. This naturally makes the driver angry ; and sometimes irascible men practise shameful cruelties on the poor dogs. When the two friends came up, they found the Indian glaring at the animals, as they fought and writhed in the snow, with every lineament of his swarthy face 1 1 FROM THE FAR NORTU. 317 distorted with passion, and panting from his lato exer- tions. Suddenly he threw himself on the dogs again, and lashed them furiously with the whip. Finding that this had no effect, he twined the lash round his hand, and struck tliem violently over their heads and snouts with the handle ; then, fulling down on his knees, he caught the most savage of the animals by the throat, and seizing its nose between his teeth, almost bit it off. The appalling yell that followed this cruel act seemed to subdue the dogs, for they ceased to fight, and crouched, whining, in the snow. With a bound like a tiger, young Hamilton sprang upon the guide, and, seizing him by the throat, hurled him ^'iolently to the ground. " Scoundrel ! " he cried, standing over the crestfallen Indian with flushed face and flashing eyes, " how dare you thus treat the creatures of God?" The young man would have spoken more, but his indiffnation was so fierce that it could not find vent in words. For a moment he raised his fist, as if he medi- tated dashing the Indian again to the ground as he slowly alrose; then, as if changing his mind, he seized him l)y the back of the neck, thrust him towards the panting dogs, and stood in silence over him with the whip grasped firmly in his hand, while he disentangled the tnices. This accomplished, Hamilton ordered him, in a voice of suppressed anger, to " go forward " — an order which the cowed guide promptly obeyed — and, in a few minutes more, the two friends were again alone. " Hamilton, my boy," exclaimed Harry, who, up to this moment, seemed to have been» petrified, " you have l)ertectly amazed me ! I'm utterly bewildered." t 318 8N0WFLAKES AND SUMJCAMS " Indeed, I fear that I have been very violent," said Hamilton, blusliing deeply. " Violent ! " exelainied hi« friend. " Why, man, I've completely mistaken your character. I, I " " I hope not, Harry," said Hamilton, in a subdued tone ; " I lioi)e not. Believe me, I am not naturally violent j I should be very soiTy were you to think so. Indeed, I never felt thus before, and, now that it is over, I am itmazed at myself; but surely you'll admit that there was great provocation. Such terrible cruelty to " " My dear fellow, you quite misunderstand me. I'm amazed at your pluck, your energy. Softj indeed ! we liave been most egregiously mistaken. Provocation ! I just think you had ; my only sorrow is, that you didn't give him a little more." " Come, come, Harry j I see you would be as cruel to him, as he was to the poor dog. Biit let us press for- ward ; it is already gi'owing dark, and we must not let the fellow out of sight a-head of us." "Allans donc,^' cried Harry; and, hasltening their steps, they travelled silently and rapidly among the stems of the trees, while tlie shades of night gathered slowly round them. That night, the three trfivellers encamped in the snow, under the shelter 'of a spreading pine. The encampment was formed ahnost exactly in a similar manner to that in which they had slept on the night of their exploits at North River. They talked less, however, than on that occasion, and slept moi*e soundly. Before retiring to rest, and while Harry was extended, half-asleep and half-awake, on his green blanket, enjoying the delightful repose that FROM THE PAR NORTH. 319 follows a lianl dny's inarch and a good supper, IlauiUton drew Tiear to the Indian, who sat sullenly sinoking, a little apart from the young men. Sitting down beside him, ho administered a long rebuke, in a low, grave tone of voice. Like rebukes generally, it had tho effect of making tho visage of the Indian still m'^ro sulh.a. But; the young man did not appear to notice *his; he svll continued to talk. As ho went on, the jouk gvov.' less- iind less sullen, until it faded entirely away, anit was suc- ceeded by the grave, quiet, respectful expression j/cculi/j. to the face of the North American Indian, Day succeeded day, night followed n:gl.t, and still found them plodding laboriously tluoiigh tlio w» vy waste of snow, or encamping \inder the trees of the ^' r«ibt The two friends went through all the varied Etaf';eti of experience which are included in whai; is called '' becom- ing used to the work," which is sometim.'s a modified meaning of the expression, " used up." They ptwted with a degree of vigour that one would have thought no amount of hard work could possibly abate. They became aware of the melancholy fact, that fatigue uns'-rings the youngest and toughest sinews. They pressed on, hov\- ever, from stern necessity, and found, to t'leir deligiit, that young muscles recover their elasticity, even in the midst of severe exei'tion. They rIM |«r.5sscd on, and discovered, to their dismay, that +Ms recovery was only temporaiy, and that the s-n ;nnd state of exhaustion was infinitely "w^orse thr-ti llie first. Still they pressed on, and raised blistei-s on their feet and toes, that caused them to limp wofully ; then they learned that blistei-s break, and take a long time to heal, and are much worse to walk upon during the healing process than they are f. 320 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS at. tlie commencement, — at which time they innocently fancied that nothing could be more dreadful. Still they pressed on, day after day, and found, to their satisfaction, that such things can be endured and overcome, — that feet and toes can become hard like leather, that muscles can grow tough as India-rubber, and that spirits and energy can attain to a pitch of endurance which nothing witliin the compass of a day's march can by any possibility over- come. They found also, from expert '^^ce, that their con- versation changed, both in manner and subject, as they progi'essed on their journey. At fii'st they conversed fre- quently, and on various topics, chiefly on the probability of their being sent to pleasant places, or the reverse. Then they spoke less frequently, and growled occasionally, as they advanced in the painful process of ti-aining. After that, as they began to get hardy, they talked of the trees, the snow, the ice, the tracks of wild animals they happened to cross, and the objects of nature generally tliat came under their observation. Then, as their muscles hardened, and their sinews grew tougli, and the day's march at length became, first, a matter of indifference, and, ulti- mately, an absolute pleasure, they chatted cheerfully on any and every subject, or sang occasionally, when tlio sun shone out, and cast an appearance of warmth across their path. Thus onward they pressed, without halt or stay, day after day, through wood and brake, over river and lake, on ice and on snow, for miles and miles together, through the great, uninhabited, frozen wilderness. FUOM THE FAR NORTIt. 321 CHAPTER XXIV. Hopes and fears; an unexpected meeting; philosophical talk between the hunter and the parson. On arriving at Norway House, Harry Somerville and liia friend Hamilton found that tliey were to remain at that establishment during an indefinite period of time, until it should please those in whose hands their ultimate des- tination lay, to direct them how and where to proceed. This was an unlooked-for trial of their patience ; but, after the first exclamation of disappointment, they made up their minds, like wise men, to think no more about it, but bide their time, and make the most of present circumstances. " You see," remarked Hamilton, as the two friends, after having had an audience of the gentleman in charge of the establishment, sauntered towards the rocks that ovcrliang the margin of T>laygreen Lake, " you see, it is of no use to fret about what we cannot possibly help. Nobody within three hundred miles of us knows where wo are destined to spend next winter. Perhaps orders may come in a couple of weeks, perha})s in a couple of months, but they will certainly come at last. Anyhow, it is of no use thinking about it, so we had better forget it, and make the best of things as we find them." " Ah !" exclaimed Hany, " your advice is, that we 'S r I 322 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS should by all means be happy, and if we can't be happy, be as happy as we can. Is that it ? " v " Just so. That's it exactly." " Ho ! But then, you see, Hammy, you're a philosopher, and I'm not, and that makes all the difference. I'm not given to anticipating evil, but I cannot help dreading that they will send me to some lonely, swampy, out-of- the-way hole, where there will be no society, no shooting, no riding, no work even, to speak of, — nothing, in fact, but the miserable satisfaction of being styled * bourgeois' by five or six men, wretched outcasts like myself." " Come, Harry," cried Hamilton, " you are taking the very worst view of it. There certainly are plenty of isuch outposts in the country, but you know very well that young fellows like you are seldom sent to such places." "I don't know that," interrupted Harry; "there's young M'Andrew ; he was sent to an outpost up the Mackenzie his second year in the service, where he was all but starved, and had to live for about two weeks on boiled parchment. Then there's poor Forrester ; he was shipped off to a place — the name of which I never could remember — somewhere between the head waters of the Athabasca Lake and the North Pole. To be sure, he had good shooting, I'm told, but he had only four labour- ing men to enjoy it with ; and he has been there tm years now, and he has more than once had to scrape the rocks of that detestable stuff called triipe de roche to keep himself alive. And then there's " " Very true," interrupted Hamilton ; " then there's your friend Charles Kennedy, whom you so often talk about, and many other young fellows we know, who h&vo .li- r.\ PROM THE PAR NORTH. 323 been sent to the Saskatchewan, a la to the Columbia, and to Athabasca, and to a hos*. of other capital places, where they have enough of society — male society, at least — and good sport." The young men had climbed a rocky eminence, which commanded a view of the lake on the one side, and the fort, with its background of woods, on the other. Here they sat down on a stone, and continued for some time to admire the scene in silence. " Yes," said Harry, resuming the thread of discourse, " you are right ; we have a good chance of seeing some pleasant parts of the country. But suspense is not plea- sant. Oh, man, if they would only send me up the Saskatchewan river ! I've set my heart upon going there. I'm quite sure it's the very best place in the whole country." " You've told the truth that time, master," said a deep voice behind them. The young men turned quickly round. Close beside them, and leaning composedly on a long Indian fowling- piece, stood a tall, broad-shouldered, sun-burnt man, apparently about forty years of age. He Wiis dressed in the usual leathern hunting coat, cloth leggins, fur cap, mittens, and moccasins, that constitute the winter garb of a hunter ; and had a gi*ave, firm, but good-humoured ex- pression of countenance. " You've told the truth that time, master," he repeated, without moving from his place. " The Saskatchewan is, to my mind, the best place in the wbole country, and liavin' seen a considerable deal o' places in my time, I can speak from experience." " Indeed, friend," said Harry, " I'm glad to hear you 324 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS say so. Come, sit down beside us, and let's hear some- thing about it. Thus invited, the hunter seated himself on a stone, and laid his gun on the hollow of his left arm. " Fii-st of all, friend," continued Harry, " do you belong to the fort here V* r ■ " No," replied the man, " I'm stayin' here just now, but I don't belong to the place." " Where do you come from, then ; and what's your name 1 " " Why, I've comed d'rect from the Saskatchewan with a packet o' letters. I'm payin' a visit to the missionary village, yonder ; " the hunter pointed, as he spoke, across the lake; " and when the ice breaks up I shall get a canoe and return again." " And your name ? " " Why I've got four or five names. Somehow or other, l)eople have given me a nickname wherever I ha' chanced to go. But my true name, and the one I hail by just now, is Jacques Caradoc." " Jacques Caradoc !" exclaimed Hany, starting with sur- prise. "You knew a. Charley Kennedy in the Saskat- chewan, did you 1 " " That did I. As fine a lad as ever pulled a trigger." " Give us your hand, friend," exclaimed Hany, spring- ing foi-waid and seizing the hunter's large, hard fist in both hands. " Why, man, Charley is my dearest friend, and I had a letter from him some time ago, in which he speaks of you, and says you're one of the best fellows he ever met." "You don't say so," replied the hunter, returning Harry's grasp warmly, while his eyes sparkled with plea- FROM THE FAR NORTH. 325 sure, and a quiet smile played at the comers of liis mouth. " Yes I do," said Harry, " and I'm very nearly as glad to meet witJi you, friend Jacques, as I would be to meet with him. But come. It's cold work talking here. Let's go to my room. There's a fire in the stove. Come along, Hammy," and taking his new friend by the arm, he hur- ried him along to his quarters in the fort. Just as they were passing under the fort gate, a large mass of snow became detached from a house-top, and fell heavily at their feet, passing within an inch of Hamilton's nose. The young man started back with an exclamation, and became very red in the face. " Hallo ! " cried Harry, laughing, " got a fright, Ham- my ? That went so close to your chin, that it almost saved you the ti ouble of shaving." " Yes, [ got a little fright from the suddenness of it," said Hamilton, quietly. " What do you think of my friend there 1 " said Harry to Jacques, in a low voice, pointing to Hamilton, who walked on in advance. " I've not seen much of Mm, master," replied the hun- ter. " Had I been asked the same question about the fame lad twenty years agon^ I should ha' said he was soft, and perhaps chicken-heai-ted. But I've learned from ex- perience to judge better than I used to do. I niver thinks o' formin' an opinion o' any one till I've seen them called to sudden action. It's astonishin' how some faint-hearted men will come to face a danger, and put on an awful look o' courage, if they only get wamin' — but take them by surprise ; that's the way to try them," " Well, Jacques, that is the very reason why 1 a^k ^Hr-' 326 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMa your opinion of Hamilton. He was pretty well taken by surprise that time, I think." " True, master, but that kind o' start don't prove much. Hows'ever, I don't think he's easy upset. He does look uncommon soft, and his face grew red when the snow fell, but his eyebrow and his under lip shewed that it wasn't from fear." During that afternoon and the greater pai-t of that night the three friends continued in close conversation, Harry sitting in front of the stove, with his hands in his pockets, on a chair tilted as usual on its hind legs, and pouring out volleys of questions, which were pithily an- swered by the good-huirjoured, loquacious hunter, who sat behind the stove, resting his elbows on his knees, and smoking his much-loved pipe; while Hamilton reclined on Hai'ry's bed, and listened with eager avidity to anec- dotes and stories, which seemed, like the narrator's pipe, to be inexhaustible. " (Jood night, Jacques, good night," said Harry, as the latter rose at last to depart, " I'm delighted to have had a talk with you. You must come back to-morrow. I want to hear more about your friend Redfeather. "Where did you say you left him ? " " In the Saskatchewan, master. He said that he would wait there, as he'd lieer'd the missionary was comiu' up to pay the Injins a visit." " By the bye, you're going over to the missionary's place to-morrow, are you not 1 " " Yes, I am." " Ah ! then, that'll do. I'll go over with you. How far off is it ? " '^ Three miles, or thereabouts." FROM THE FAR NORTH. 327 '•' Very good. Call in here aa you pass, and my friend Ifamilton and I will accompany you. Good night." Jacques thrust his pipe into his bosom, held out his homy hand, and giving his young friends a hearty shake, turned and strode from the room. On the following day, Jacques called, according to pro- mise, and the three friends set off together to visit the Indian village. This missionary station was under the management of a Wesleyan clergyman. Pastor Conway by name, an excellent man, of about forty-five years of age, with an enei-getic mind and body, a bald head, a mild, expressive countenance, and a robust constitution. He was admirably qualified for his position, having a natural aptitude for every sort of work that man is usually called on to perform. His chief care was for the instruc- tion of the Indians, whom he had induced to settle around him, in the great and all-important truths of Christianity. He invented an aljAabet, and taught them to write and read their own language. He commenced the laborious task of translating the Scriptures into the Cree language; and, being an excellent musician, he instructed his converts to sing in parts the psalms and Wesleyan hymns, many of which are exceedingly beautiful. A school was also established, and a church built, under his superintendence, so that the natives assembled, in an orderly way, in a commodious sanctuary, every Sabbath-day, to worship God ; while the children were instructed, not only in the Scriptures, and made familiar with the nan*ative of the humiliation and exalt- ation of our blessed Saviour, but were also taught the elementary brandies of a secular education. But good Pastor Conway's; cnei^gy did not stop here. ' Nature had 328 SNOW FLAKES AND SUNBEAMS gifted him with that peculiar genius which is powerfully expressed in the term, " a jack-of-all-t7'ades" He could turn his hand to anything ; and being, as we have said, an energetic man, he did turn his hand to almost every- thing. If anything happened to get broken, the pastor could either mend it himself, or direct how it was to be done. If a house was to be built for a new family of red men, who had never handled a saw or hammer in their lives, and had lived up to that time in tents, the pastor lent a hand to begin it, drew out the plan (not a veiy complicated thing, certainly), set them fairly at work, and kept his eye on it until it was finished. In short, the worthy pastor was everything to everybody, "that by all means he might gain some." Under such management, the village flourished, as a matter of course, although it did not increase very rapidly, owing to the almost unconquerable avereion of North Amercian Indians to take up a settled habitation. It was to this little hamlet, then, that our three friends directed their steps. On arriving, they found Pastor Conway in a sort of workshop, giving directions to an Indian, who stood with a soldering-iron in one hand, and a sheet of tin in the other, which he was about to apply to a curious-looking half-finished machine, that bore some resemblance to a canoe. " All, my friend Jacques !" he exclaimed, as the hunter approached him, " the very man I wished to see ; but I beg pardon, gentlemen, — strangers, I perceive. You are heartily welcome. It is seldom that I have the pleasure of seeing new friends in my wild dwelling. Pray come with me to my house." Pastor Conway shook hands with Harry and Hamilton PROM THE FAR NORTH. 329 with a dcgi'ee of warmth that evinced the sincerity of his words. The young men thanked him, and accepted the invitation. ' As they turned to quit the workshop, the pastor observed Jacques' eye fixed, with a puzzled expression of countenance, on his canoe. " You have never seen anything like that before, I dare say," said he, with a smile. " No, sir ; I never did see such a queer machine afore." " It is a tin canoe, with which I hope to pass tlirough many miles of country this spring, on my way to visit a tribe of Northern Indians ; and it was about tliis very thing that I wanted to see you, my friend." Jacques made no reply, but cast a look savouring very slightly of contempt on the unfinished canoe as they turned and went away. The pastor's dwelling stood at one end of the village, a view of which it commanded from the back windows, while those in front overlooked the lake. It was plea- santly situated, and pleasantly tenanted, for the pastor's ■wife was a cheerful, active, little lady, like-minded with himself, and delighted to receive and entertain strangersi. To her care Mr Conway consigned the young men, after spending a short time in conversation with them ; and then, requesting his wife to shew them through the village, lie took Jacques by the arm, and sauntered out. " Come with me, Jacques," he began, " I have some- what to say to you. I had not time to broach the subject when I met you at the Company's fort, and have been anxious to see you ever since. You tell me that you have met with my friend Redfeather ?" " Yes, sir ; I spent a week or two with him last fall. 22 f •4f .■!»■ 330 SNOWFLAKES AND SINIIKAMS I fouD(l him stayin' with his tribo, and wo started io come down here together." " Ah ! that is the very point," exclaimed the pastor, " that I wislied to inquire about." I firmly believe that God has opened that Indian's eyes to see the truth ; and I fully expected, from what he said when we last met, that he would have made up his mind to come and stay here." " As to what the Almighty has done to him," said Jacques, in a reverential tone of voice, " I don't pretend to know ; he did for sartin speak and act too in a way that I never seed an Injin do before; — but, about his comin' here, sir, you were quite right; he did mean to come, and I've no doubt will come yet." " What prevented him coming with you, as you tell me he intended?" inquired the pastor. " Well, you see, sir, he, and I, and his squaw, as I said, set off to come here together, but when we got the lengtli o' Edmonton House, we heerd that you were comin' up to pay a visit to the tribe to which Redfeather bdongs; and so seein' that it was o' no use to come down here- away just to turn about an' go up agin, he stopped there to wait fov you, for he knew you would want him to interpret " "Ay," interrupted the pastor, "that's true. I have two reasons for wishing to have him here. The primary one is, that he may get good to his immortal soul ; and then, he understands English so well, that I want him to become my interpreter ; for, although I vnderstand the Cree language pretty well now, I find it exceedingly difficult to explain the doctrines of the Bible to my people in it. But pardon me, I interrupted you." FROM THE FAR NORTH. 331 " I was only going to say," resumed Jacques, " that I made up my mind to stay with liim ; but they wanted a man to bring the winter packet here ; so, as they pressed me very hard, an' I liad nothin' particuhir to do, I 'greed and came ; though I wouKl rather ha' stopped, for Red- foather an' I lia' stnick up a friendship togitlier, — a thing that I would niver ha' thought it poss'ble for me to do with a red Injin." " And why not with a red Indian, friend 1 " inquired the pastor, while a shade of sadness passed over his mild features, as if unpleasant thoughts had been roused by the hunter's speech. "Well, it's not easy to say why," rejoined the other, " I've no partic'lar objection to the redskins. There's only one man among them that I bears a grudge agin, and even that one I'd rayther avoid than otherwise." " But you should forgive him, Jacques ; the Bible tells us not only to bear our enemies no grudge, but to love them and to do them good." The hunter's brow darkened. " That's imjwssible, sir," he said ; " I couldn't do hin a good turn if I was to try ever so hard. He may bless his stars that I don't want to do him mischief; but to love him, it's jist imposs'ble." " With man it is impossible, but with God all things are possible," said the pastor, solemnly. Jacques' naturally philosophic, though untutored mind, saw the force of this. He felt that God, who had formed his soul, his body, and the wonderfully complicated ma- cliinery and objects of nature, which were patent to his observant and reflective mind wherever he went, must, of necessity, be equally able to alter, influence, and re-mould tliem all according to his wilL Common sense was suf- '!%.■ ^ *- # r 332 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS ficioTit to teacli him this ; and the bohl hiinter exhihitcil no ordinary amount of common sense in admitting the fact at onco ; although, in the case \inder discussion, (tlio loving of his enemy), it sc(!mod utterly irapossiblo to his feelings and experience. The frown, therefore, passed from his brow, while he said res[)ectfully, " What you say, sir, is true ; I believe, though I can't fid it. But I s'pose the reason I nivcr felt much drawn to the redskins is, that all the time I lived in the settlements, I was used to hear them called and treated as thievin' dogs, an' when I com'd among them I didn't see much to alter my opinion. Here an' tliere I have found one or two honest Injins, an' Red- feather is as true as steel ; but the most o' them are no better than they should be. I s'pose T don't think much o' them just because they are redskins." " Ah, Jacques, you will excuse me if I say that there is not much sense in that reason. An Indian cannot help being a red man any more than you can help being a white one, so that he oiight not to be despised on that account. Besides, God made him what he is, and to de- spise the vjork of God, or to undervalue it, is to despise God himself. You may indeed despise, or i*ather, abhor, the sins that red men are guilty of j but if you despise them on this ground, you must much more despise white men, for they are guilty of greater iniquities than Indians are. They have more knowledge, and are therefore more inexcusable when they sin ; and any one who has travelled much must be aware, that, in regard to general wickedness, white men are at least quite as bad as Indians. Depend upon it, Jacques, that there will be Indians found in heaven at the last day as well as white men, God is no respecter of persons." niOM THE FAR NOHTII. 333 "I niver thought much on that subject afore, sir," roturnod the hunter ; " what you say seems reasonable < iiougli. I'm sure an' sartin, any way, that if there's a redskin in heaven at all, Redfeather will bo there, an' I only hope that I may bo there too to keep him company." ** I hope so, my friend," said the pastor, earnestly, " I hope so too, with all my heart. And if you will accept of this little book, it will shew you how to get there." The missionary drew a small, plainly-bound co|»y of the Bible from his pocket, as he spoke, and presented it to Jacques, who received it with a smile, and thanked him ; saying, at the same time, that ho " was not much up to book-larnin', but he would read it with pleasure." "Now, Jacques," said the pastor, after a little farther conversation on the subject of the Bible, in which ho endeavoured to impress upon him the absolute necessity of being acquainted with the blessed truths which it con- tains — "Now, Jacques, about my visit to the Indians. I intend, if the Almighty spares me, to embark in yon tin canoe that you found me engaged with, and, with six men to work it, proceed to the country of the Knisteneux lutlians, visit their chief camp, and preach to them there as long as the weather will permit. When the season is pretty well advanced and winter threatens to cut off my retreat, I shall re-embark in my canoe and return home. By this means I hope to be able to sow the good seed of Christian truth in the hearts of men, who, as they will not come to this settlement, have no chance of being brought under the power of the gospel by any other means." Jacques gave one of his quiet smiles on hearing this. " Right sir, right," he said, with some energy ; " I have always thought, although I niver made bold to say it 334 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS Hi I' "before, that there was not enough o' tliis sort o' tbiii^f, It has always seemed to me a kind o' madness (excuse my plainness o' speech, sir) in you pastors, thinkin' to make the redskins come an' settle round you like so many squaws, and dig up an' grub at the ground, when its quite clear that their natur' and the natur' o' things about them meant them to be huntei-s. An' surely since the Almighty made them huntei"S, He intended them to he huntei-s, au' won't refuse to make them Christians on that account. A redskin's natur' is a huntin' natur', an' nothin' on ai-tli '11 ever make it anything else." "There is much tnith in what you observe, friend," njoined the pastor ; " but you are not altogether right. Their nature may be changed, although, certainly, nothing on earth will change it. Look at that frozen Like." Ho pointed to the wide field of thick snow-covered ice that stretched out for miles like a sheet of white maible before them. " Could anything on earth break up or sink or melt that ? " " Nothin'," replied Jacques, laconically. " But the warm beams of yon glorious sun can do it," continued the pastor, pointing upwards as he spoke, " and do it effectually too; so that, altliough you can scarcely observe the process, it nevertheless turns the hard, thick, solid ice into limpid water at last. So is it in regard to man. Nothing on earth can change his heart or alter his nature ; but our Saviour, who is called the Sun of righte- ousness, can. When he shines into a man's soul, it melts. The old man becomes a little child — tliC wild savage a Christian. But I agree with you in tliinking that we have not been suiUciently alive to the necessity of seeking to con- vert the Indians before trying to gather them round us. FROM THE FAR NORTU. 33j The one would follow as a natural consequence, I think, of the other ; and it is owing to this conviction that I intend, as I have already said, to make a journey in spring to visit those who will not or cannot come to visit Hie j and now, what I want to ask is, whether you will agree to accompany me as steei-smau and guide on my expedition ? " The hunter slowly shook his head. "I'm afeerd not, sir j I have already promised to take charge of a canoe for the Company. I would much rather go with you, but I must keep my word." " Certainly, Jacques, certainly, that settles the question, you cannot go with me — unless " the pastor paused as if in thought for a moment — " unless you can persuade them to let you off." " Well, sir, I can try," returned Jacques. " Do, and I need not say how happy I shall be if you succeed. Good day, friend, good-bye;" so saying, the missionary shook hands with the hunter, and returned to his house, wliile Jacques wended his way to the village in search of Harry and Hamilton. I' !:|i I' ft 33G SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBLAMS CHAPTER XXV, Good news and romantic scenery ; bear-hunting and its results. Jacques failed in his attempt to break off his engagement with tlie fur-tradei's. The gentleman in charge of Norway House, albeit a good-natured, estimable man, was one who could not easily brook disappointment, especially in matters that involved the interests of the Hudson's Bay Company ; so Jacques was obliged to hold to his compact, and the pastor had to search for another guide. Spring came, and with it the awakening (if we may use the expression) of the country from the long, lethargic •sleep of winter. The sun bui"st forth with irresistible power, and melted all before it. Ice and snow quickly dissolved, and set free the watei-s of swamp and river, lake and sea, to leap and sparkle in their new-found liberty. Birds renewed their visits to the regions of tlic north ; frogs, at last unfrozen, opened their leathern jaws to croak and whistle in the marshes ; and men began their preparations for a summer campaign. At the commencement of the season an express arrivetl with lettei-s from head-quarters, which, among other mattere of importance, directed that Messi"s Somerville and Hamilton should be despatched forthwith to the Saskatchewan district, where, on reaching Fort Pitt, they Avei'e to place themselves at the disposal of the gentleman FROM THE FAR NORTH. 337 in charge of the district. It need scarcely be added that the young men were overjoyed on receiving this almost xmhoped-for intelligence, and that Harry expressed his satisfaction in his usual hilarious manner, asserting some- what profanely, in the excess of his glee, that the govemor- in-chief of Rupert's Land was a "regular brick." Hamilton agreed to all his friend's remarks with a quiet smile, accompanied by a slight chuckle, and a somewhat des- perate attempt at a caper, which attempt, bordering as it did on a region of buffoonery into which our quiet and gentlemanly friend had never dared liitherto to venture, proved an awkward and utter failure. He felt this and blushed deeply. It was further arranged and agreed upon that the young men should accompany Jacques C.uadoc in his canoe. Having become sufficiently expert canoe-men to handle their paddles well, they scouted the idea of taking men with them, and resolved to launch boldly forth at once as hond-Jide voyageurs. To this arrangement, Jacques, after one or two trials to test their skill, agreed; and very shortly after the arrival of the express, the trio set out on their voyage, amid the cheers and adieus of the entire population of Norway House, who were assembled on the end of the \vooden wharf to witness their departure, and with whom they had managed, during their short residence at that place, to become special favourites. A month later, the pastor of the Indian village, having procured a trusty guide, embarked in hh tin canoe with a crev/ of six men, and followed in their track. In process of time, spring merged into summer, — a season chiefly characterised, in those clines, by excessive III i a 338 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS heat and innumerable clouds of mosquitoes, •whose vicious and incessant attacks render life, for the time being, ii burden. Our three voyageuvs, meanwhile, ascended the Saskatchewan, penetrating deeper each day into the heart of the North American continent. On arriving at For* Pitt, they were graciously permitted to rest for three days, after which they were forwarded 1 o another district, where fresh efforts were boiiig made to extend the fur trade into lands hitherto almost unvisited. This con- tinuation of their travels was quite suited to the tastes and inclinations of Hairy and Hamilton, and was hailed by them a,5 an additional reason for self-gratulation. As for Jacques, he cared little to what part of the world he chanced to be sent. To hunt, to toil in rain and in sun- shine, in heat and in cold, at the paddle or on the snow- shoe, was his vocation, and it mattered little to the bold hunter whether he plied it upon the plains of tho Saskatchewan, or among the woods of Athabasca. Besides, the companions of his travels were young, active, bold, adventurous ; and, therefore, quite suited to his taste. Redfeather, too, his best and dearest friend, had been induced to return to his tribe for the purpose of mediat- ing between some of the turbulent members of it, and the white men who had gone to settle among them, so that the prospect of again associating with his red friend was an additional element in his satisfaction. As Charley Kermedy was also in this district, the hope of seeing him once more was a subject of such unbounded delight to Harry Somerville, and so, sympathetically, to yonng Hamilton, that it was with difficulty they could realise the full amount of their good fortune, or give adequate expression to their feelings. It is therefore probable that ose vicioiia FROM THE FAK NORTH. 33a thcj'e never were three happier travellers than Jacques, Harry, and Hamilton, as they shouldered their guns and paddles, shook hands with the inmates of Fort Pitt, and, with light steps and lighter hearts, launched their canoe, turned tlieir bronzed faces once more to the summer sun, and dipped their paddles again in the rippling waters of the Saskatchewan river. As their bark was exceedingly small, and buithened with but little lading, they resolved to abandon the usual route, and penetrate the wilderness through a ma.e of lakes and small rivers well known to their guide. By this arrangement they hoped to travel more speedily, and avoid navigating a long sweep of the river by making a number of poi-tages ; while, at the same time, the change- fvd nature of the route was likely to render it more interesting. From the fact of its being seldom traversed, it was also more likely that they should find a supply of game for the journey. Towards sunset, one fine day, about two weeks after their departure from Fort Pitt, our voyageurs paddled their canoe round a wooded point of land that jutted out from, and partially concealed, the mouth of a large river, down whose stream they had dropped leisurely during the last three days, and swept out upon the bosom of a large lake. This was one of those sheets of water which gliticr in hundreds on the green bosom of America's forests, and are so numerous and comparatively insignifi- cant, as to be scarce distinguished by a name, unless when they lie directly in the accustomed route of the fur- traders. But although, in conipaiison with the fresh- water oceans of the Far West, this lake was unnoticed and ahnost unknown, it would by no means hav^e been |i^; \^ I 10:1 mi 340 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS I i ! ' rogarJed in such a liglit had it been transported to tlie plains of England. In regard to picturesque beauty, it was perhaps unsurpassed. It might be about six miles wide, and so long that the land at the further end of it was faintly discernible on the horizon. "Wooded hills, sloping gently down to the water's edge — jutting pro- montories, some rocky and barren, others more or less covered with trees — deep bays, retreating in some places into the dark recesses of a savage-looking gorge, in others into a distant meadow-like plain, bordered with a strijje of yellow sand — beautiful islands of various sizes, scattered along the shores as if nestling there for security, or standing barren and solitary in the centre of the lake, like bulwarks of the wilderness, some covered with luxuriant vegetation, others bald and grotesque in out- line, and covered with gulls and other waterfowl, — this was the scene that broke upon the view of the travellers as they rounded the point, and, ceasing to paddle, gazed upon it long and in deep silence, tLeir hands raised to ahade their eyes from the sun's rays, which sparkled in the water, and fell, here in bright spots and broken patches, and there in yellow floods, upon the rocks, the trees, the forest glades and plains around them. " What a glorious scene ! " murmured Hamilton, almost unconsciously. " A perfect paradise ! " said Harry, with a long-drawn sigh of satisfaction. "Why, Jacques, my friend, it's a matter of wonder to me that you, a free man, without relations or friends to curb you, or attract you to other [)arts of the world, should go boating and canoeing all over the country at the beck of the fur-traders, when you might come and pitch your tent here for ever ! " FROM THE FAR NORTH. 311 " For ever ! " eclioed Jacques. " Well, I mean as long as you live in this world." " Ah, master," rejoined the guide, in a sad tone of voice, " it's just because I have neither kith, nor kin, nor friends to draw me to any partic'lar spot on artli, that T don't care to settle down in this one, beautiful though it be." " Tnie, true," muttered Harry, " man's a gregarious ciiiimal, there's no doubt of that." " Anon 1 " exclaimed Jacques. " I meant to say that man naturally loves company," replied Harry, smiling. " An' yit I've seen some as didn't, master, though to be sure that was onnat'ral, and there's not many o' them, by good luck. Yes, man's fond o' seein' the flice o' man." " And woman too," interrupted Hany. " Eh ! Hamil- ton, what say you ? — • woman I in our hours of ease, Uncertain, coy, and tiard to please, i Wlien puin and anguish wring the brow, A ministering an/rel thoul' Alas ! Hammy, pain and angiiish and everything else may wring our unfortunate brows here long enough before woman, * lovely woman,' will come to our aid. What a rare sight it would be, now, to see even an ordinary house-maid or a cook out here ! It would be good for sore eyes. It seems to me a sort of horrible untruth to say that I've not seen a woman since I left Ked River, and yet it's a frightful fact, for I don't count the copper- coloured nondescripts one meets with hereabouts to be women at all. I suppose they are, but they don't look like it." " Don't be a goose, Hany," said Hamilton, !i'j] s 312 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS " Cciiainly not, my fiiend. If I were under the dis- agreeable necessity of being anything but what I am, I should rather be something that is not in the habit of being shot," replied the other, paddling with renewed vigour in order to get rid of some of the superabundant spirits that the beautiful scene and brilliant weather, act- ing on a young and ardent nature, had called forth. " Some of these same redskins," remarked the guide, " are not such bad sort o' women, for all their ill looks. I've know'd more than one that was a first-rate wife, an' a good mother j though it's time tliey liad little edica- tion, beyond that o' the woods." " No doubt of it," replied Harry, laughing gaily. " How shall I keep the canoe's head, Jacques?" " Right away for the pint that lies jist between you an' the sun." " Yes ; I gi^'e them all credit for being excellent wives and mothers, after a fashion," resumed Harry ; " I've no wish to asperse the character of the poor Indians ; but you must know, Jacques, that they're very different from the women that I allude to, and of whom Scott sung. His heroines were of a vc7-f/ diflerent stamp and colour ! " " Did he sing of niggers ?" inquired Jacques, simply. " Of niggers !" shouted Harry, looking over his shoulder at Hamilton, \vith a broad grin ; " no, Jacques, not exactly of niggers " " Hist ! " exclaimed the guide, with that peculiar sub- dued energy that at once indicates an unexpected dis- covery, and enjoins caution, while, at the same moment, by a deep, powerful back -stroke of his paddle, he sud- denly checked the rapid motion of the canoe. FROM THE FAR XORTH. 3t3 llent wives ilany and liis friend glanced quickly over thoir slionlders with a look of surprise. " What's in the wind now?" whispered the former. " Stop paddling, masters, and look ahead at the rock yonder, jist under the tall cliff. There's a bear a-sittin' there, an' if we can only got to shore afore he sees us, we're sartin sure of him." As the guide spoke, he slowly edged the canoe towards the shore, while the young men gazed with eager looks in tlie direction indicated, where they beheld what appeared to be the decayed stump of an old tree, or a mass of l»rown rock. While they strained their eyes to see it more clearly, thb object altered it's fomi and position. " So it is," they exclaimed, simultaneouly, in a tone tliat wiis equivalent to the remark, " Now we believe, because we see it." In a few seconds the bow of the canoe touched the land, so lightly as to be quite inaudible, and Harry, stepping gently over the side, drew it forward a couple of feet, while his companions disembarked. " Now, Mister Harry," said the guide, as he slung a powder-horn and shot -belt over his shoulder, " we've no need to circumvent the beast, for he's circumvented hisself." " How so 1 " inquired the other, drawing the shot from his fowling-piece, and substituting in its place a leaden bullet. Jacques led the way through the somewhat thinly scattered undei'wood, as he replied, " You see, Mister Harry, the place where he's gone to sun hisself is jist at tlie foot o' a sheor precipice, which runs round ahead of him, and juta out into the water, so that he's got thrco i r,\ 31 1 SNOWFTvAKES AN'D SUNBEAMS ways to choose between. lie must clumli'T up the i»reci- pice, which'n t;iko liim some time, I guess, if he can do it at all ; or ho must take to the water, which he don't like, and won't do if he can help it ; or ho must run out the way he went in, but as we shall go to meet him by the same road, he'll have to brt-ak our ranks before he gains the woods, an' that '11 be no easy job." The party soon reached the narrow pass, between the lake and the near end of the cliff, where they advanced with greater caution, and, peeping over the low bushes, beheld bruin, a large brov n fellow, sitting on his haunches, and rocking himself slowly to and fro, aa he gazQd ab- stractedly at the water. He was scarcely within good shot, but the cover was sufficiently thick to admit of a nearer approach. " Now, Hamilton," said Harry, in a low whisper, " take the fii-st shot. I killed the last one, so it's your turn this time." Hamilton hesitated, but could make no reasonable objection to this, although his unselfish nature prompted l)im to let his friend have the first chance. However, Jacques decided the matter, by saying, in a tone that savoured strongly of command, although it was accom- panied with a good-humoured smile — " Go for'ard, young man ; but you may as well put in the primin' fii'st." Poor Hamilton hastily rectified this oversight, with a deep blush, at the same time muttering that he never would make a hunter ; and then advanced cautiously through the bushes, slowly followed at a short distance by his companions. On reaching a bush within seventy yards of the bear, FROM THE FAR NORTH. U5 lio prcci- can do it ou t like, 1 out the 111 by the, 3 lie gains tween tlic advanced )W bushes, haunches, gazQd ab- ithin good admit of a BV whisper, po it's your reasonable prompted However, tone that Iwas accom- |well pnt in Iffht, with a it he never cautiously )rt distance lof the beai-, Hamilton pushed the twigs aside with the muzzle of his gun ; his eye flashed, and his courage mounted, as ho gazed at the truly formidable animal before him, and he felt more of the hunter's spirit within him at that moment than he would have believed possible a few minutes before. Unfortunately, a hunter's .spiiit does not necessarily imjjly a hunter's eye or hand. Having with much care, and long time, brought his piece to bear exactly where he supposed the brute's heart should bo, he observed that the gun was on half-cock, by nearly break- ing the trigger in his convulsive efforts to fire. By the time that this error was rectified, bruin, who seemed to feel intuitively that some imminent danger threatened him, rose, and began to move about uneasily, which so alarmed tlie young hunter lest he should lose his shot, that he took a hasty aim, fired, and missed. Harry asserted aftenvards that he even missed the clifi*! On hearing the loud report, which rolled in echoes along the preci- pice, biniin started, and, looking round with an undecided air, saw Harry step quietly from the bushes, and fire, sending a ball into his flank. This decided him. With a fierce growl of pain, he scampered towards the water j then, changing his mind, he wheeled round, and dashed at the cliif, up wliich he scrambled with wonderful speed. "Come, Mister Hamilton, load again; quick. I'll have to do the job myself, I fear," said Jacques, as ho leaned quietly on his long gun, and, with a half-pitying smile, watched the young man, who madly essayed to re- charge his piece more rapidly than it was possible for mortal man to do. Meanwhile, Harry had re-loaded and fired again ; but, owing to the perturbation of his young spirits, and the frantic efforts of the bear to escape, he missed. z I J 1 J IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I L£|2j8 |2.5 1^ us, 12.0 ||l.25 Iju II& ^ 6" - » '/ ^ ^^:? ^Jyj Hiotographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 ^^!^ "^ Is <\ ^^ ^ v^ »^ 346 SNOWFLAKES AND SUli BEAMS Another moment, and the animal would actually liavo reached the top, when Jacques hastily fired, and brought it tumbling down the precipice. Owing to the position of the animal at the time he fired, the wound was not mortal; and, foreseeing that bruin would now become the aggressor, the hunter began rapidly to re-load, at the same time retreating with his companions, who, in their excitement, had forgotten to re-charge their pieces. On reach- ing level ground, bruin rose, shook himself, gave a yell of anger on beholding his enemies, and rushed at tliem. It was a fine sight to behold the bearing of Jacques at this critical juncture. Accustomed to bear-hunting fi:om his youth, and utterly indifierent to consequences when danger became imminent, he saw at a glance the probabili- ties of the case. He knew exactly how long it would take him to load his gun, and regulated his pace so as not to interfere with that operation. His features wore their usual calm expression. Every motion of his hands was quick and sudden, yet not hurried, but performed in a way that led the beholder irresistibly to imagine that he could have done it even more rapidly if necessary. On reaching a ledge of rock that overhung the lake a few feet, he paused, and wheeled about, — click went the dog- head, just as the bear ix>se to grapple with him, — another moment, and a bullet passed through the brute's heart, while the bold hunter sprang lightly on one side, to avoid the dash of the falling animal. As he did so, young Hamilton, who had stood a little behind him with an up- lifted axe, ready to finish the work should Jacques' Lre prove inefiective> received bruin in his arms, and tumbled along with him over the rock, headlong into the water, • I:) FROM THE FAB NOllTH. 347 f liave ight it Dion of nortalj gresBor, le time tement, reach- gave a ished at tcques at king from ces when probabili- it would ace so aa ires wore his hands formed in gine that accessary, ake a few the dog- another )e's heart, s, to avoid io, young Lth an up- sques' iJ'6 tumhled dIio water, from which, however, he speedily arose unhurt, spluttering and coughing, and dragging the dead hear to the shore. " Well done, Hammy," shouted Harry, indulging in a prolonged peal of laughter, when he ascertained that his friend's adventure had cost him nothing more than a ducking ; " that was the most amicable, loving plunge I ever saw," " Better a cold bath in the arms of a dead bear, than an embrace on dry land with a live one," retorted Hamilton, as he wrung the water out of his dripping garments. " Most true, sagacious diver ! But the sooner we get a fire made the better ; so come along." While the two friends hastened up to the woods to kindle a fire, Jacques drew his hunting-knife, and, with dofied coat and upturned sleeves, was soon busily em- ployed in divesting the bear of his natural garment. The carcase, being valueless in a country where game of a more palatable kind was plentiful, they left behind aa a feast to the wolves. After this was accomplished, and the clothes dried, they re-embarked, and resumed their journey, plying the paddles energetically in silence, as their adventure had occasioned a considerable loss of time. It was late, and the stars had looked down for a full hour into the profound depths of the now dark lake, ere the party reached the ground at the other side of the point, on which Jacques had resolved to encamp. Being somewhat wearied, they spent but little time in discuss- ing supper, and partook of that meal with a degree of energy that implied a sense of duty as well as of plca- Hiiro. Shortly after, they were buried in repose, under the scanty shelter of their canoe. 348 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS CHAPTEK XXVL An nnexpected meeting, and an unexpected deer-bnnt; arriral at the ontpost; disagreement witli tlie natives; an enemy discovered, and a murder. Next morning, they rose with the sun, and, therefore, also with the birds and beasts. A wide traverse of the lake now lay before them. This they crossed in about two hours, during which time they paddled unremittingly, as the sky looked rather lowering, and they were well aware of the danger of being caught in a storm in such an egg-shell craft as an Indian canoe. " "We'll put in here now, Mister Harry," exclaimed Jacques, as the canoe entered the mouth of one of those small rivulets, which are called in Scotland, hums, and in America, creeks ; " it's like that your appetite is sharpened after a spell like that. Keep her head a little more to the left — straight for the pint — so. It's likely we'll get some fish here if we set the net." " I say, Jacques, is yon a cloud or a wreath of smoke above the trees in the creek 1" inquired Harry, pointing with his paddl ^ towards the object referred to. "It's smoke, master; I've seed it for some time, and mayhap we'll find some Injins there who can give us news of the traders at Stoney-creek." "And, pray, how far do you think we may now be from that place ? " inquired Harry. 1:1 FROM THE FAB NORTH. 349 " Foi-ty miles, more or less." As lie spoke, the canoe entered the shallow water of the creek, and began to ascend the current of the stream, which at its mouth was so sluggish as to be scarcely per- ceptible to the eye. Not so, however, to the arms. The light bark, which, while floating on the lake, had glided buoyantly forward as if it were itself consenting to the motion, had now become apparently imbued with a spirit of contradiction, bounding convulsively forward at each stroke of the paddles, and perceptibly losing speed at each interval. Directing their course towards a flat rock on the left bank of the stream, they ran the prow out of the water and leaped ashore. As they did so, the unexpected figure of a man issued from the bushes and sauntered towards the spot. Harry and Hamilton advanced to meet him, while Jacques remained to unload the canoe. The stran- ger was habited in the usual dress of a hunter, and carried a fowling-piece over his right shoulder. In general appearance, he looked like an Indian; but, though the face was burnt by exposure to a hue that nearly equalled the red skins of the natives, a strong dash of pink in it, and the mass of fair hair which encircled it, proved that, as Harry paradoxically expressed it, its owner was a white man. He was young, considerably above the middle height, and apparently athletic. His address and language, on approaching the young men, put the question of his being a white man beyond a doubt. " Good morning, gentlemen," he began. " I presume that you are the party we have been expecting for some time past to reinforce our stafl^at Stoney-creek. Is it not so?" To this query, young Somerville, who stood in ad- 350 SNOWPLAKES AND SUNBEAMS vance of his friend, made no reply, but, stepping hastily forward, laid a hand on each of the stranger's shoulders, and gazed earnestly into his face ; exclaiming as he did so^ " Do my eyes deceive me 1 Is Charley Kennedy be- fore me — or his ghost 1 " "What ! eh !" exclaimed the individual thus addi'essed, returning Harry's gripe and stare with interest, "is it possible! no — it cannot — Harry Somerville, my old, dear, unexpected friend ! " — and, pouring out broken sentences, abrupt ejaculations, and incoherent questions, to which neither vouchsafed replies, the two friends gazed at and walked round each other, shook hands, partially embraced, and committed sundry other extravagances, utterly uncon- scious of, or indifferent to the fact, that Hamilton was gazing at them, open-mouthed, in a species of stupor, and that Jacques was standing by, regarding them with a look of mingled amusement and satisfaction. The discovery of this latter personage was a source of renewed delight and astonishment to Charley, who was so much upset by the commotion of his spirits, in consequence of this, so to speak, double shot, that he became rambling and incohe- rent in his speech, during the remainder of that day, and gave vent to frequent and sudden bursts of smothered en- thusiasm, in which it would appear, from the occasional muttering of the names of .Hedfeather and Jacques, that he not only felicitated himself on his own good fortune, but also anticipated renewed pleasure in witnessing the joyful meeting of these two worthies ere long. In fact, this meeting did take place on the following day, when Kedfeather, returning from a successful hunt, with part of a deer on his shoulders, entered Charley's tent, in which FROM THE FAR NORTH. sai the travellers had spent the previous clay and night, and discovered the guide gravely discussing a venisou steak before the fire. It would be vain to attempt a description of all that the re-united friends said and did during the first twenty- four hours after their meeting ; — how they talked of old times, -as they lay extended round the fire, inside of Char- ley's tent, and recounted their adventures by flood and field since they last met ; — how they sometimes diverged into questions of speculative philosophy, (as conversations ivill often diverge, whether we wish it or not), and broke short off to make sudden inquiries after old friends; — how this naturally led them to talk of new friends, and new scenes, until they began to forecast their eyes a little into the ftiture ; and how, on feeling tliat this was an uncon- genial theme under present circumstances, they reverted again to the past, and, by a peculiar train of conversation, — ^to retrace which were utterly impossible, — ^they invari- ably arrived at old times again. Having in course of the evening pretty well exhausted their powers, both mental and physical, they went to sleep on it, and resumed the colloquial melange in the morning. "And now tell me, Charley, what you are doing in this uninhabited part of the world, so far from Stoney- creek," said Harry Somerville, as they assembled round the fire to breakfast. " That is soon explained," replied Charley. " My good friend and superior, Mr Whyte, having got himself com- fortably housed at Stoney-creek, thought it advisable to establish a sort of half outpost, half fishing-station about twenty miles below the new fort, and, believing (very justly) that my talents lay a good deal in the way of fish- * 352 SXOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS ing and shooting, sent me to superintend it during the summer months. I am, therefore, at present monarch of that notable establishment, which is not yet dignified with a name. Hearing that there were plenty of deer about twenty miles below my palace, I resolved the other day to gratify my love of sport, and, at the same time, l)rocure some venison for Stoney-creek ; accordingly, I took Eedfeather with me, and — here I am." "Very good," said Harry; " and can you give us the least idea of what they are going to do with my friend Hamilton and me when they get us 1 " " Can't say. One of you at any rate will be kept at the creek, to assist Mr Whyte ; the other may, perhaps, be i appointed to relieve me at the fishing for a time, while / am sent off to push the trade in other quarters, but I'm only guessing. I don't know anything definitely, for Mr Whyte is by no means communicative." " An* please, master," put in Jacques, " when do you mean to let us off from this place? I guess the bourgeois won't be over pleased if we waste time here." " We'll start this forenoon, Jacques. I and Redfeather shall go along with you, as I intended to take a run up to the creek about this time at any rate. Have you the skins and dried meat packed, Redfeather?" To this the Indian replied in the affirmative, and the others having finished breakfast, the whole party rose to prepare for departure, and set about loading their canoes forthwith. An hour later they were again cleaving the waters of the lake, with this difference in arrangement, that Jacques was transferred to Redfeather's canoe, while Charley Kennedy took his place in the stern of that occupied by Harry and Hamilton. # .;^ ««. **'^t5H;, iPEAPlNG DEir«r iH THS r^n '^- 3.52 RNM^^PL^itiJ* .iVfi J^e^Bk'ASs itig aiui »h(K>ting» .it -v. io 'in|!(.. 'V '•• 'th UM Hid — h<'r« I ara, " ' V<-.( V <,''»'*(!/' wn.i llirry, " ami cau you give »i^ * - l'-»vMt idivi I J' wluit they ai'o |^"ing to do with my iVUtsv; ilHiniluju juul ij;i> wiioti tliuy gi.t u,s?" *' (Jan'c ;:;iy. Oiio of yoii ut any rate will IJo kept «i n? creok, to iussist Mr W'S; ,t.(^ ; tbo nilior iixay, pcrk*i}> at *,}iu (i.Mng for a time, i^'b;** jaii HcuL off tu" j»ur»ii t'-e Irjvli Jm utJier qnaiiei'>«, l/^if .» .- .ui5iy guy.sii.ii(g, I (Inii't kiK^u u' vtf.hig (.leiiuiteiy, At H' Wii^U: i:> by no lai-;^ , r •'^^«»''ai.^fttivc." "All' pi'»4W!, w.-M,'** ^. '>}». en .I'lcqiics, " wljcn do f-. >no*u U^ 1-. us, i^/l f. u. ?a:fi {m*:»;'/ i giU'tes the bouiT^r* v w.)u"t *Xf tnv- ,;• .,1 lir.t- i;*^i^te tiino hero." '' AVr"l ;it^(rt tjii.i foreO' ^ p. .itcqiioa. I nii'l Uodioiite: ? tjie cr*etik aV'f-ni '.t.^i luut m xtiy rftte. llavo yu ?«; skins aiivi diit<\ a.-^<. ^c-t-lu-'i. P»t Unit her?" To lU.- till- ««. dliTt:renc& in arrangi-wr ?. that Jaci^nci WM/- ! '■ *. "■ J to E»<'.1 leather's canoe, *»^ Oharky .K-ni-od) •. " .' r*U place in tljo stern ol' t' *^. occupied ]>y Harry '(•-' ^^^..c-tajtoiu *» / II SPEARINQ DEER IN THE FAR NORTH. Page ;)fi-l. FROM THE FAR NORTH. 353 The establishment of which our friend Charley pronounced himself absolute monarch, and at which they arrived in the course of the same afternoon, con- sisted of two small log-houses or huts, constructed in the rudest fashion, and without any attempt whatever at architectural embellishment. It was pleasantly situated on a small bay, whose northern extremity was sheltered from the arctic blast by a gentle rising ground clothed with wood. A miscellaneous collection of fishing appara- tus lay scattered about in front of the buildings, and two men in a canoe completed the picture. The said two men and an Indian woman were the inhabitants of the place; the king liimself, when present, and his prime minister, Redfeather, being the remainder of the popu- lation. "Pleasant little kingdom that of yours, Charley," remarked Harry Somei-ville, as they passed the station. " "Very," waa the laconic reply. They had scarcely passed the place above a mile, when a canoe, containing a solitary Indian, was observed to shoot out from the shore and paddle hastily towards them. From this man they learned that a herd of deer waa passing down towards the lake, and would be on its banks in a few minutes. He had been waiting their arrival when the canoes came in sight, and induced him to hurry out so as to give them warning. Having no time to loose, the whole party now paddled swiftly for the shore, and reached it just a few minutes before the branching antlers of the deer came in sight above the low bushes that skirted the wood. Harry Somerville embarked in the bow of the strange Indian's canoe, so aa to lighten the other and enable all parties to have a fair chance. • !i ^■« .. 354 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS After snuffing the breeze for a few seconds, the foremost animal took the water and commenced shimming towards the opposite shore of the lake, which, at this particular spot, was narrow. It was followed by seven others. After sufficient time was permitted to elapse, to render their being cut off, in an attempt to return, quite certain, the three canoes darted from the shelter of the overhang- ing bushes, and sprang lightly over the water in pursuit. " Don't hurry, and strike sure," cried Jacques, to his young friends, as they came up with the terrified deer, that now swam for their lives. " Ay, ay," was the reply. In another moment, they shot in among the struggling group. Harry Somei-ville stood up, and seizing the Indian's spear, prepared to strike, while his companions directed their course towards others of the herd. A few seconds sufficed to bring him up with it. Leaning backwards a little, so as to give additional force to the blow, he struck the spear deep into the animal's back. With a convul- sive struggle, it ceased to swim, its head slowly sank, and, in another second, it lay dead upon the water. Without waiting a moment, the Indian immediately directed the canoe towards another deer; while the remainder of the party, now considerately separated from each other, despatched the whole herd by means of axes and knives. "Ha!" exclaimed Jacques, as they towed their booty to the shore, " that's a good stock o' meat. Mister Charles. It will help to furnish the larder for the winter pretty weU." " It was much wanted, Jacques ; weVe a good many mouths to feed, betsides treating the Indians now and then. And this fellow, I think, will claim the most of FROM THE FAR KORTH. 355 our hunt as his own. We should not have got the deer but for him." " True, true, Mister Charles. They belong to the redskin by rights, that's sartin." After this exploit, another night was passed under the trees ; and at noon, on the day following, they ran their canoe alongside the wooden wharf, at Stoney- creek. " Good day to you, gentlemen," said Mr Whyte to Harry and Hamilton as they landed ; " I've been looking out for you these two weeks past. Glad you've come at last, however. Plenty to do, and no time to lose. You have dispatches, of course. Ah ! that's right," (Harry drew a sealed packet from his bosom, and presented it with a bow) " that's right. I must peruse these at once. Mr Kennedy, you will shew these gentlemen their quarters. We dine in half an hour." So saying, Mr Whyte thrust the packet into his pocket, and, without further remark, strode towards his dwelling, while Charley, as instructed, led his friends to their new residence; not forgetting, however, to charge Redfeather to see to the comfortable lodgment of Jacques Caradoc. " Now it strikes me," remarked Harry, as he sat down on the edge of Charley's bed, and thrust his hands dog- gedly down into his pockets, while Hamilton tucked up his sleeves and assaulted a washhand-basin, which stood on an unpainted wooden chair in a comer, " it strikes me that if thais his usual style of behaviour, old Whyte is a pleasure that we didn't anticipate." "Don't judge from first impressions, they're often deceptive," spluttered Hamilton, pausing in his ablutions to look at Lis friend through a mass of soap-suds, — an act 356 SNOWPLAKES AND SUNBEAMS which afterwards cost him a good deal of pain and a copious flow of unbidden tears. " Right," exclaimed Charley, with an approving nod to Hamilton. "You must not judge him prematurely, Harry. He's a good-hearted fellow at bottom j and if he once takes a liking for you, he'll go through fire and water to serve you, as I know from experience." " Which means to say three things," replied the impla- cable Harry — " first, that for all his good-heartedness at bottom, he never shews any of it at top, and is, therefore, like unto truth, which is said to lie at the bottom of a well — so deep, in fact, that it is never got out, and so is of use to nobody; secondly, that he is possessed of that amount of afiection which is common to all mankind, (to a great extent, even to brutes) — ^which prompts a man to be reasonably attentive to his friends; and, thirdly, that you. Master Kennedy, enjoy the peculiar privilege of being the friend of a two-legged polar bear ! " " Were I not certain that you jest," retorted Kennedy, " I would compel you to apologise to me for insulting my friend, you rascal ! But see, here's the cook coming to tell us that dinne waits. If you don't wish to see the teeth of the polar bear, I'd advise you to be smart." Thus admonished, Harry sprang up, plunged his hands and face in the basin and dried them, broke Charley's comb in attempting to pass it hastily through his hair, used his fingers savagely as a substitute, and overtook his companions just as they entered the mess-room. The establishment of Stoney-creek was comprised within two acres of ground. It consisted of eight or nine houses — ^three of which, however, alone met the eye on approaching by the lake. The " great " house, as it was FBOM THE FAR NOBTH. 357 termed, on account of its relative proportion to the other buildings, "was a small edifice, built substantially but roughly of unsquared logs, partially whitewashed, roofed with shingles, and boasting six small windows in front, with a large door between them. On its east side, and at) right angles to it, was a similar edifice, but smaller, having two doors instead of one, and four windows instead of six. This was the trading-shop and provision - store. Opposite to this was a twin building which con- tained the furs and a variety of miscellaneous stores. Thus was formed three sides of a square, from the centre of which rose a tall flagstaff. The buildings behind those just described were smaller and insignificant — the prin- cipal one being the house appropriated to the men; the othera were mere sheds and workshops. Luxuriant forests ascended the slopes that rose behind and encircled this oasis on all sides, excepting in front, where the clear waters of the lake sparkled like a blue mirror. On the margin of this lake the new arrivals, left to enjoy themselves as they best might for a day or two, sauntered about and chatted to their hearts' content of things past, present, and future During these wanderings, Harry confessed that his opinion of Mr Whyte had somewhat changed; that he believed a good deal of the first bad impression was attri- butable to his cool, not to say impolite, reception of them ; and that he thought things would go on much better with the Indians if he would only try to let some of his good qualities he seen through his exterior. An expression of sadness passed over Charley's face as his friend said this. " You are right in the last particular,'' he said, with a r \ 358 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS sigh — "Mr "Whyte is so rough and overbearing, that the Indians are beginning to dislike him. Some of the more clear-sighted among them see that a good deal of this lies in mere manner, and have penetration enough to observe that in all his dealings with them he is straightforward and liberal ; but there are a set of them who either don't see this, -"^ are so indignant at the rough speeches he often makes, and the rough treatment he sometimes threatens, that they won't forgive him, but seem to be nursing their wrath. I sometimes wish he was sent to a district where the Indians and traders are, from habitual intercourse, more accustomed to each other's ways, and so less likely to quarreL" "Have the Indians, then, used any open threats)" asked Harry. " No, not exactly ; but, through an old man of the tribe, who is well affected towards us, I have learned that there is a party among them who seem bent on mischief." "Then we may expect a row, some day or other. That's pleasant ! what think you, Hammy 1 " said Harry, turning to his friend. " I think that it would be anything but pleasant," ho replied ; " and I sincerely hope that we shall not have occasion for a row." " You're not afraid of a fight, are you, Hamilton 1" asked Charley. The peculiarly bland smile with which Hamilton usually received any remark that savoured of banter, overspread his features as Charley spoke, but he merely replied — " No, Charley, I'm not afi-aid." FBOM THE FAB ITOBTH. 359 " Do you know any of the Indians who are so anxious to vent their spleen on our worthy bourgeois?" asked Harry, as he seated himself on a rocky eminence, com- manding a view of the richly-wooded slopes, dotted with huge masses of rock that had fallen from the beetling cliffs behind the creek. " Yes, I do," replied Charley ; " and, by the way, one of them — the ringleader — ^is a man with whom you are acquainted, — at least by name. You've heard of an Indian called Misconna?" " What !" exclaimed Harry, with a look of surprise, "you don't mean the blackguard mentioned by Red- feather, long ago, when he told us his story on the shores of Lake Winipeg, — the man who killed poor Jacques' young wifel" " The same," replied Charley. " And does Jacques know he is here ?" "He does; but Jacques is a strange, unaccountable mortal. You remember that, in the struggle described by Kedfeather, the trapper and Misconna had neither of them seen each other, Redfeather having felled the latter before the former reached the scene of action, — a scene which, he has since told me, he witnessed at a distance, while rushing to the rescue of his wife, — so that JNIis- conna is utterly ignorant of the fact that the husband of his victim is now so near him ; indeed, he does not know that she had a husband at all. On the other hand, although Jacques is aware that his bitterest enemy is within rifle-range of him at this moment, he does not know him by sight ; and this morning he came to me, begging that I would send Misconna on some expedi- tion or other, just to keep him out of his way." 360 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS " And do you intend to do so ?" " I shall do my best," replied Charley ; " but I cannot get him out of the way tiU to-morrow, as there is to be a gathering of Indians in the hall this very day, to have a palaver with Mr Whyte about their grievances, and Mis- conna wouldn't miss that for a trifle; — ^but Jacques won't be likely to recognise him among so many ; and, if he does, I rely with confidence on his powers of restraint and forbearance. By the way," he continued, glancing up- wards, " it is past noon, and the Indians will have begun to assemble, so we had better hasten back, as we shaU be expected to help in keeping order." So saying, he rose, and the young men returned to the fort. On reaching it, they found the hall crowded with natives, who sat cross-legged around the walls, or stood in groups conversing in low tones, and, to judge from the expression of their dark eyes and lowering brows, they were in extremely bad humour. They became silent and more respectful, however, in their demeanour when the young men entered the apartment and walked up to the fire-place, in which a small fire of wood burned on the hearth, more as a convenient means of re-kindling the pipes of the Indians when they went out, than as a means of heating the place. Jacques and Redfeather stood leaning against the wall near to it, engaged in a whis- pered conversation. Glancing round as he entered, Charley observed Misconna sitting a little apart by him- self, and apparently buried in deep thought. He had scarcely perceived him, and nodded to several of his par- ticular friends among the crowd, when a side-door opened, and Mr Whyte, with an angry expression on his countenance, strode up to the fire-place, planted himself 1:1 FROM THE FAB NORTH. 361 before it, vrith his legs apart and his hands behind him, while he silently surveyed the group. > " So," he began, " you have asked to speak with me : well — ^here I am. What have you to say 1 " Mr "Whyte addressed the Indians in their native tongue, having, during a long residence in the country, learned to speak it aa fluently as English. For some moments there was silence. Then an old chief — ^the same who had officiated at the feast described in a former chapter — rose, and, standing forth into the middle of the room, made a long and grave oration, in which, besides a great deal that was bombastic, much that was irrelevant, and more that was utterly fabulous and nonsensical, he recounted the sorrows of himself and liis tribe, concluding with a request that the great chief would take these things into consideration — ^the principal " ihinga " being, that they did not get anything in the shape of gratuities, while it was notorious that the In- dians in other districts did, and that they did not get enough of goods in advance, on credit of their future hunts. Mr Whyte heard the old man to the end in silence ; then, without altering his position, he looked round on the assembly with a frown, and said — " Now, listen to me : I am a man of few words. I have told you over and over again, and I now repeat it, that you shall get no gratuities until you prove yourselves worthy of them ; I shall not increase your advances by so much as half an inch of tobacco, till your last year's debts are scored off, and you begin to shew more activity in hunting and less disposition to grumble. Hitherto you have not brought in anything like the quantity of furs that the capabilities 2 a 362 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS of the country led me to expect. You are lazy. Until you become better hunters, you shall have no redress from me." As he finished, Mr Whyte made a step towards the door by which he had entered, but was arrested by an- other chief, who requested to be heard. Besuming his place and attitude, Mr Whyte listened with an expression of dogged determination, while guttural ginints of unequi- vocal dissatisfaction issued fix)m the throats of several of the malcontents. The Indian proceeded to repeat a few of the remarks made by his predecessor, but more con- cisely, and wound up by explaining that the failure in the hunts of the previous year was owing to the will of the Great Manito, and not by any means on account of the supposed laziness of himself or his tribe. " That is false," said Mr Whyte ; " you know it is not true." ' ' As this was said, a murmur of anger ran round the apartment, which was interrupted by Misconna, who, apparently unable to restrain his passion, sprang into the middle of the room, and, confronting Mr Whyte, made a short and pithy speech, accompanied by vio- lent gesticulation, in which he insinuated that, if redress was not granted, the white men would bitterly repent it. During his speech, the Indians had risen to their feet and drawn closer together, while Jacques and the three young men drew near their superior. Redfeather re- mained apart, motionless, and with his eyes fixed on the ground. "And, pray, what dog — ^what misei-able thieving cur are you, who dare to address me thus?" cried Mr Wliyte, FROM THE FAR NORTH. 363 as he strode, with flashing eyes, up to the enraged Indian. MiBconna clenched his teeth, and his fingers worked conyulsively about the handle of his knife, as he ex- claimed — "I am no dog. The palefaces are dogs. I am a great chie£ My name is known among the braves of my tribe. It is Misconna '* As the name fell from his lips, Mr Whyte and Charley were suddenly dashed aside, and Jacques sprang towards the Indian, his face livid, his eyeballs almost bursting from their sockets, and his muscles rigid with passion. For an instant he regarded the savage intently as he shrank appalled before him — ^then his colossal fist fell like lightning, with the weight of a sledge-hammer, on Mis- conna's forehead, and drove him against the outer door, which, giving way before the violent shock, burst from its fastenings and hinges, and fell, along with the savage, with a loud crash to the ground. For an instant every one stood aghast at this precipi- tate termination to the discussion, and then, springing forward in a body, with drawn knives, the Indians rushed upon the white men, who, in a close phalanx, with such weapons as came first to hand, stood to receive them. At this moment Bedfeather stepped forward unarmed be- tween the belligerents, and turning to the Indians, said — " Listen ! Redfeather does not take the part of his white friends against his comrades. You know that he never failed you in the war-path, and he would not fail you now if your cause were just. But the eyes of his comrades are shut. Redfeather knows what they do not know. The white hunter " (pointing to Jacques) " is a friend of Redfeather. He is a friend of the Knistencux. 364 8N0WFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS He did not strike because you disputed with his bouT' geoisjhe struck because Misconna ia hia mortal foe. But the stoiy is long. Kedfeather will tell it at the council fire." '' He is right," exclaimed Jacques, who had recovered his usual grave expression of countenance, "Bedfeather is right. I bear you no iU-will, Injins, and I shall explain the thing myself at your council fire." As Jacques spoke, the Indians sheathed their knives, and stood with frowning brows, as if uncertain what to do. The unexpected interference of their comrade in arms, coupled with his address and that of Jacques, had excited their curiosity. Perhaps the undaunted deport- ment of their opponents, who stood ready for the en- counter with a look of stem determination, contributed a little to allay their resentment. While the two parties stood thus confronting each other, as if uncertain how to act, a loud report was heard just outside the doorway. In another moment, Mr Whyte fell heavily to the ground, shot through the heart. » FROM THE FAR NORTU. 3G5 CHAPTER XXVII. The chase; the fight; retribution. Low spirits and good news. The tragical end of the consultation related in the last chapter, had the effect of immediately reconciling the dis- putants. "With the exception of four or five of the most depraved and discontented among them, the Indians bore no particular ill-will to the unfortunate principal of Stoney-creek ; and, although a good deal disappointed to find that he was a stem, unyielding trader, they had, in reality, no intention of coming to a serious rupture with him, much less of laying violent hands either upon master or men of the establishment. When, therefore, they beheld Mr Whyte weltering in his blood at their feet, a sacrifice to the ungovernable pa.ssion of Misconna, who was by no means a favourite among his brethren, their temporary anger was instantly dissipated, and a feeling of deepest indignation roused in their bosoms against the miserable assassin who had perpetrated the base and cowardly murder. It was, therefore, with a yell of rage that several of the band, immediately after the victim fell, sprang into the woods in hot pursuit of him whom they now counted their enemy. They were joined by several men belonging to the fort, who had hastened to the scene of action on hearing that the people in the hall were likely to come to blows. Bedfeather was the first who had bounded like a 3C6 8N0WFLAK£S AND SUKBKAM3 doer into tho woods in pursuit of the ftigitivo. Thosfl who remained assisted Charley and his friends to convey tlic body of Mr Whyte into an adjoining room, whcro they placed him on a bed. He was quite dead ; the mur- derer's aim having been terribly true. Finding that ho was post all human aid, the young men returned to tho hall, which they entered just as Red- feather glided quickly through the open doorway, and, approaching the group, stood in silence beside them, with Iiis armSkfolded on his breast. " You have something to tell, Redfeather," said Jacques, in a subdued tone, after regarding him a few seconds. " Is the scoundrel caught 1 " " Misconna's foot is swift," replied the Indian, " and the wood is thick. It is wasting time to follow him through the bushes." " "What would you advise, then ? " exclaimed Charley, in a hurried voice. " I see that you have some plan to propose." " The wood is thick," answered Redfeather, " but the lake and the river are open. Let one party go by tho lake, and one party by the river." " That's it, that's it, Injin," interrupted Jacques, ener- getically, " yer wits are always jumpin'. By crossin' over to Duck River, we can start at a point five or six miles above the lower fall, an' as it's thereabouts he must cross, we'll be time enough to catch him. If he tries the lake, the other party'll fix him there; an' he'll be soon poked up if he tries to hide in the bush." " Come, then, we'll all give chase at once," cried Charley, feeling a temporary reKef in the prospect of ener- getic action, from the depressing efiects of the calamity f;l ruOM THE FAR NUKTU. 367 that had so suddenly b^jilJlon him in the loss of liia chief aud friend. Little time was needed for preparation. Jucquog, Charley, and Harry proceeded by the river ; while Red- feather and Hamilton, with a couple of men, launched their canoe on the lake, and set off in pursuit. Grossing the country for about a mile, Jacques led his party to the point on the Duck lliver to which he had previously referred. Here they found two canoes, into one of which the guide stepped with one of the men, a Canadian, who had accompanied them ; wlule Hany and Charley embarked in the other. In a few minutes they were rapidly descending the stream. " How do you mean to act, Jacques 1 '* inquired Charley, as he paddled alongside of the guide's canoe. " Is it not likely that IVIisconna may have crossed the river already ? In which case we shall have no chance of catching him." • " Niver fear," returned Jacques. " He must have longer legs than most men if he gets to the flat-rock fall before us, an' as that's the spot where he'll nat'rally cross the river, being the only straight line for *■'' 3 hills that escapes the bend o' the bay to the south o' k.i/oney-creek, we're pretty sartin to stop Mm there." " True ; but that being, as you say, the natural route, don't you think it likely he'll expect that it will be guarded, and avoid it accordingly "J " " He would do so. Mister Charles, if he thought we were here; but there are two reasons agin this. He thinks that he's got the start o' us, an' won't need to double by way o' deceivin' us ; an' then he knows that the whole tribe is after him, and, consekintly, won't take 3G8 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS a long road, when there's a short one, if he can help it But here's the rock. Look out, Mr Charles. We'll have to run the fall, which isn't very big just now, and then hide in the bushes at the foot of it till the blackguard shews himself. Keep well to the right, an' don't mind the big rock ; the rush o' water takes you clear o' that without trouble." * With this concluding piece of advice, he pointed to the fall, which plunged over a ledge of rock about half a mile ahead of them, and which was distinguishable by a small column of white spray that rose out of it. As Charley beheld it, his spii'its rose, and forgetting, for a moment, the circumstances which called him there, he cried out — " I'll run it before you, Jacques. Hurrah ! Give way, Harry ! " and, in spite of a remonstrance from the guide, he shot the canoe ahead, gave vent to another reckless shout, and flew, rather than glided, down the stream. On seeing this, the guide held back, so as to give him sufficient time to take the plunge ere he followed. A few strokes brought Charley's canoe to the brink of the fall, and Harry was just in the act of raising himself in the bow to observe the position of the rocks, when a shout was heard on the bank close beside them. Look- ing up, they beheld an Indian emerge from the forest, fit an arrow to his bow, and discharge it at them. The winged messenger was truly aimed, it whizzed tlirough the air and transfixed Harry Somerville's left shoulder just at the moment they swept over the fall. The arrow completely incapacitated Harry from using his arm, so that the canoe, instead of being directed into the broad current, took a sudden turn, dashed in among a mass of broken rocks, between which the water foamed with '(,'.'(0 ci..i'i 3G8 BN(>Vr'FT.AKK!« XSiJ SaNBKAJT:-! a loiiy: rojwl, whuti tJ' fv , « ^^iovt one, ii he c;i« i*^-^- 15va hcni's tli.* '-^i.jifc J-'^.k <>«t, Mr- Oliiu-Ibti. ''^ to nm thtu r«.i! -^t'hM?*- ^-iv'ii very })ig' jiwi uow, a«i4' . »> liiilo in *^li*^' hwK;^ »t ihe fo>i of it tiii tli'-i Wm%¥'< '*>■ viit brj', :-'k (•!»•.■ iu.t th'> canoo ah"iKl, gave vent to-aii.-vV;;, i\!ckIc«HS sh''i3t, a.ii Hot.', rotJii t thau Grlided, div^^'/n .,>" .-(.riAJu- v.h. *.^e 'v^ ^hiH, tfie £raiucl)eld back, so li-'^ '■<• .,. !ii."i;i safti'NT'WV »-v'^t- u? takf ilic pluD^'o ore he f(dl >••>' ■ A f-.v -.^irVi's '.^ ,vi;ht V'harloy's cfinoc to the hm ^ t!i' fail, 3nd Ihi^rry "*ai; ii;«f. i". tho act of raising h,- >■■. u\ the l>'.* curreat, t»>ok n .«udd'.n '>i'n. fiarilitd in among a m.'.i.s« brok'^n rock,-?, Vv.t^'et-^i wiii.oh the wator foanivd w'*'- an n l.•^^')^^' tv) !i.i4 I' -^ vsinged mesaeni:;' r v. tliR air :ind trp ^.•'i<'- '1 V A FLYING SHOT. . I>age»U8. violence, its owner to set it f] to accomj Jacques \ fears wer cataract, leaving J By their righted, a: as the In( order to g the banks tunately, " This i landed an from thei that our j varmint k lin'." " But vi we don't e " Humj lock of his that's plai reptile has pretty lor behind, concerted j contempt, " Never But I forg FROM THE FAR NORTH. 369 violence, and upset. Here the canoe stuck fast, while its owners stood up to their waists in the water, stiniggling to set it free, — an object which they were the more anxious to accomplish that its stem lay directly in the spot where Jacques would infallibly descend. The next instant their fears were realised. The second canoe glided over the cataract, dashed violently against the firet, and upset, leaving Jacques and his man in a similar predicament. By their aid, however, the canoes were more easily righted, and embarking quickly they shot forth again, just as the Indian, who had been obliged to make a detour in order to get within range of their position, re-appeared on the banks above, and sent another shaft after them, — for- tunately, however, without effect. " This is unfortunate," muttered Jacques, as the party landed and endeavoured to wring some of the water from their dripping clothes, "an' the worst of it is that our guns are useless after sich a duckin', an' the varmint knows that, an' will be down on us in a twink- lin'." " But we are four to one," exclaimed Harry. " Surely we don't need to fear much from a single enemy." " Humph ! " ejaculated the guide, as he examined the lock of his gun. " You've had little to do with Injins, that's plain. You may be sure he's not alone, an' the reptile has a bow with arrows enough to send us all on a pretty long journey. But we've the trees to dodge behind. If I only had one dry charge ! " and the dis- concerted guide gave a look, half of perplexity, half of contempt, at the dripping gun. " Never mind," cried Charley, " we have our paddles. But I forgot, Harry, in all this confusion, that you are 1 I ..^•-* r\ \ 370 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS wounded, my poor fellow — we must have it examinnd before doing anything farther." " Oh ! it's nothing at all — a mere scratch, I think ; ut least I feel very little pain." As he spoke the twang of a bow was heard, and an aiTow flew past Jacques' ear. " Ah ! so soon ! " exclaimed that worthy, with a look of surprise, as if he had unexpectedly met with an old friend. Stepping behind a tree, he motioned to his friends to do likewise ; an example which they followed somewhat hastily on beholding the Indian who had wounded HaiTy step from the cover of the underwood and deliberately let fly another arrow, which passed through the hair of the Canadian they had brought with them. From the several trees behind which they had leaped for shelter, they now perceived that the Indian with the bow was Misconna, and that he was accompanied by eight others, who appeared, however, to be totally un- armed; having, probably, been obliged to leave their weapons behind them, owing to the abruptness of their flight. Seeing that the white men were unable to use their guns, the Indians assembled in a group, and, from the hasty and violent gesticulations of some of the party, especially of Misconna, it was evident that a speedy attack was intended. Observirg this, Jacques coolly left the shelter of his tree, and, f:oing up to Charley, exclaimed, " !"• v/_, Mister Charles, I'm goin' to run away, so you'd better come along with me." "That I certainly will not! Why, what do you mean ? " inquired the other, in astonishment. FKOM THE FAR NOUTH. 371 (( I mean that these stujnd redskins can't make up their minds what to do, an', as I've no notion o' stoppiu' here all day, I want to make them do what will suit us best. You see, if they scatter through the wood and attack us on all sides, they may give us a deal o' trouble, and git away after all j whereas, if we run away, they'll bolt after us in a body, and then we can take them in hand all at once, which '11 be more comfortable like, an easier to manage." As Jacques spoke, they were joined by Harry and the Canadian; and, being observed by the Indians thus grouped together, another arrow was sent among them. " Now, follow me," said Jacques, turning round with a loud howl, and running away. He was closely followed by the others. As the guide had predicted, the Indians no sooner observed this than they rushed after them in a body, uttering horrible yells. " Now, then ; stop here ; down with you." Jacques instantly crouched behind a bush, while each of the party did the same. In a moment the savages came shouting up, supposing that the white men were still running on in advance. As the foremost, a tall, muscular fellow, with the agility of a panther, bounded over the bush behind which Jacques was concealed, he was met with a blow from the guide's fist, so poweifully delivered into the pit of his stomach, that it sent him violently back into the bush, where he lay insensible. This event, of course, put a check upon the head- long pursuit of the others, who suddenly paused, like a group of infuriated tigers, unexpectedly baulked of their prey. The hesitation, however, was but for a moment. Misconna, who was in advance, suddenly drew his bow r I 372 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS again, and let fly an arrow at Jacques, which the latter dexterously avoided \ and, while his antagonist lowered his eyes for an instant to fit another arrow to the string, the guide, making use of his paddle as a sort of javelin, threw it with such force and precision that it struck Misconna directly between the eyes, and felled him to the earth. In another instant, the two parties rushed upon each other and a general melie ensued, in which the white men, being greatly superior to their adversaries in the use of their fists, soon proved themselves more than a match for them all although inferior in numbers. Charley's first antagonist, making an abortive attempt to grapple with him, received two rapid blows, one on the chest and the other on the nose, which knocked him over the bank into the river, while his conqueror sprang upon another Indian. Harry, having unfortunately selected the biggest savage of the band, as his special property, rushed upon him and dealt him a vigorous blow on the head with his paddle. The weapon, however, was made of light wood, and, instead of felling him to the ground, broke into shivers. Springing upon each other, they immediately engaged in a fierce st"^iggle, in which poor Hany learned, when too late, that his wounded shoulder was almost powerless. Meanwhile, the Canadian having been assaulted by three Indians at once, floored one at the onset, and immediately began an impromptu war-dance round the other two, dealing them occasionally a kick or a blow, which would speedily have rendered them liors de combat, had they not succeeded in closing upon him, when all three fell heavily to the ground. Jacques and Charley having succeeded in overcoming their respective opponents, immediately has- FROM TUE FAR NORTH. 373 tuned to his rescue. In the mean time, Harry and his foe had struggled to a considerable distance from the others, gradually edging towards the river's bank. Feel- ing faint from his wound, the former at length sank under the weight of his powerful antagonist, who endea- voured to thrust him over a kind of cliflf, which they had approached. He was on the point of accomplishing his purpose, when Charley and his friends perceived Harry's imminent danger, and rushed to the rescue. Quickly though they ran, however, it seemed likely that they would be too late. Harry's head already overhung the bank, and the Indian was endeavouring to loosen the gripe of the young man's hand from his throat, preparatory to tossing him over, when a wild cry rang through the forest, followed by the reports of a double-barrelled gun, fired in quick succession. Immediately after, young Hamilton bounded like a deer down the slope, seized the Indian by the legs, and tossed him over the cliff, where he turned a complete summersault in his descent, and fell with a sounding splash into the water. . " Well done, cleverly done, lad !" cried Jacques, as he and the rest of the party came up and crowded round Harry, who lay in a state of partial stupor on the bank. At this moment Redfeather hastily but silently ap- proached; his broad chest was heaving heavily, and his expanded nostrils quivering with the exertions he had made to reach the scene of action in time to succour his friends. "Thank God," said Hamilton, softly, as he kneeled beside Harry, and supported his head, while Charley bathed his temples, "thank God that I have been in time ! Fortunately I was walking by the river consider* 374 SNOWFLAKES Am> SUNBEAMS *r ably iu advance of Redfeather, who waa bringing up the canoe, when I heard the sounds of the fray, and hastened to your aid." At this moment, Harry opened his eyes, and, saying faintly that he felt better, allowed himself to be raised to a sitting posture, while his coat was removed and his wound examined. It was found to be a deep flesh wound in the shoulder, from which a fragment of the broken arrow still protruded. " It's a wonder to me. Mister Harry, how ye held on to that big tliief so long," muttered Jacques, as he drew out the splinter and bandaged up the shoulder. Having completed the surgical operation after a rough fashion, they collected the defeated Indians. Those of them that were able to walk, were bound together by the wrists and marched off to the fort, under a guard which was strengthened by the arrival of >»everal of the fur-traders, who had been in pursuit of the fugitives, and were attracted to the spot by the shouts of the combatants. Harry, and such of the party as were more or less severely injured, were placed in canoes and conveyed to Stoney-creek by the lake, into which Duck River runs at the distance of about half a mile from the spot on whicli the skirmish had taken place. Misconna was among tlie latter. On arriving at Stoney-creok, the canoe party found a large assemblage of the natives awaiting them on the wharf, and, no sooner did Misconna land, than they ad- vanced to seize him. "Keep back, friends," cried Jacques, who perceived their intentions, and stepped hastily between them. "Come here, lads," lie continued, turning to his coiii- ! '^^ FROM THE FAR NORTH. 375 panions, " surround Misconna. He is our prisoner, and must ha' fair justice done him, accordin' to white law." They fell back in silence on observing the guide's deter- mined manner, but, as they hurried the wretched culprit towards the house, one of the Indians pressed close upon their rear, and, before any one could prevent him, dashed his tomahawk into Misconna's brain. Seeing that the blow was mortal, the traders ceased to offer any further opposition, and the Indians rushing upon his body, bore it away amid shouts and yells of execration to their canoes, to one of which the body was fastened by a rope, and dragged through the water to a point of land that jutted out into the lake near at hand. Here they lighted a lire and burned it to ashes. « • » » * * There seems to be a period in the history of eveiy one, when the fair aspect of tiiis world is darkened ; when everything, whether past, present, or future, assumes a hue of the deepest gloom — a period when, for the first time, the sun, wliich has shone in the mental firmament with more or less brilliancy from childhood upwards, entirely disappears behind a cloud of thick darkness, and leaves the soul in a state of deep melancholy — a time when feelings somewhat akin to despair pervade us, as we begin gradually to look upon the past as a bright, happy vision, out of which we have at last awakened to view the sad realities of the present, and look forward with sinking hope to the future. Various are the causes which pro- duce this, and diverse the effects of it on differently con- stituted minds; but there are few, we apprehend, who have not passed through the cloud in one or other of its phases, and who do not feel that this Jirst period of r " I - 376 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS pi'ulougcd sorro\¥ is darker, and heavier, and worse to boar, than many of the more truly grievous ufllictionB that sooner or later fall to the lot of most men. Into a state of mind somewhat similar to that which we have endeavoured to describe, our friend Charley Ken- nedy fell immediately after the events just narrated. The sudden and awful death of his friend Mr Whyte fell upon his young spirit, unaccustomed as ho was to scones of bloodshed and violence, with overwhelming power. From the depression, however, which naturally followed, he would probably soon have rallied had not Harry Somcr- ville's wound in the shoulder taken an unfavourable turn, and obliged him to remain for many weeks in bed, under the influence of a slow fever, so that Charley felt a desola- tion creeping over his soul, that no effort he was capable of making could shake off. It is true, he found both occupation and pleasure in attending upon his sick friend ; but as Harry's illness rendered great quiet necessary, and as Hamilton had been sent to take charge of the fishing-station mentioned in a former chapter, Charley was obliged to indulge his gloomy reveries in silence. To add to his wretchedness, he received a letter from Kate about a week after Mr Whyte's burial, telling him of the death of his mother. Meanwhile, Redfeather and Jacques, — both of whom, at their young master's earnest solicitation, agreed to winter at Stoney-creek, — cultivated each other's acquaintance sedulously. There were no books of any kind at the out- post, excepting three Bibles — one belonging to Charley, and one to Harry, the third being that which had been pre- sented to Jacques by Mr Conway the missionary. This single volume, however, proved to be an ample library to FHOM TUR FAR NOIITIT. 37 Jacques and ; iIb Indian friend. Neither of these Rons of the forest were much accustomed to reading ; and neither of them would have for a moment entertained the idea of taking to literature as a pastime ; but Rcdfoather loved the Bible for the sake of the great truths which he dis- covered in its inspired pages, though much of what he read was to him mysterious and utterly incomprehensible. Jacques, on the other hand, read it, or listened to his friend, with that philosophic gravity of countenance, and earnestness < ^ .Purpose, which he displayed in regard to everything ; and deep, serious, and protracted were the discussions they plunged into, as, night after night, they sat on a log, with the Bible spread out before them, and read by the light of the blazing fire, in the men's house at Stonoy-creek. Their intercourse, however, was brought to an abrupt conclusion by the unexpected arrival, one day, of Mr Conway, the missionary, in his tin canoe. This gentleman's appearance was most welcome to all partici?. It was like a bright ray of sunshine to Charley, to meet with one who could fully sympathise with him in his present sorrowful frame of mind. It was an event of some conse« quence to Harry Somerville, inasmuch as it provided him with an amateur doctor, who really understood somewliat of his physical complaint, and was able to pour balm, at once literally and spiritually, into his wounds. -It was an event productive of the liveliest satisfiiction to Red- feather, who now felt assured that his tribe would hnw those mysteries explained, which he only imperfectly understood himself; and it was an event of much rejoic- ing to the Indians themselves, because their curiosity had been not a little roused by what they heard of the doings and sayings of the white missionary, who lived on the 25 378 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS borders of the great lake. The only jiereon, perhaps, oil whom Mr Conway's arrival acted with other than a pleasing influence, was Jacques Caradoc. This worthy, although glad to meet with a man whom he felt inclined both to love and respect, was by no means gratified to find that his friend Redfeather had agreed to go with tlie missionary on his visit to the Indian tribe, and thereafter to accompany him to the settlement on Playgreeu Lake. But, with the stoicism that was natural to hiiu, Jacques submitted to circumstances which he could not alter, and contented himself with assuring RedfoatlitT that if he lived till next spring, he would most certainly " make tracks for the great lake," and settle down at tlio missionary's station along with him. This promise was made at the end of the wharf of Stoney-creek, the morning on which Mr Conway and his party embarked in their tin canoe, — the same tin canoe at which -Jacques had curled his nose contemptuously when he saw it in process of 1 »eing constructed, and at which he did not by any means curl it the less contemptuously now that he saw it finished. 'JMie little craft answered its purpose marvellously well, however, and bounded lightly away under the vigorous strokes of its crew, leaving Charley and Jacques on the ])ier gazing wistfully after their friends, and listening sadlv to the echoes of their parting song, as it floated more and more fointly over the lake. Winter came ; but no ray of sunshine broke througli tlie dark cloud that hung over Stoney-creek. Harry Somerville, instead of becoming better, grew worse and vorse every day, so that when Charley despatched tlio winter packet, he represented the illness of his friend to t);e powers at head-quarters as being of a nature that re- FUOM THE FAR NORTH. 379 quired serious and immediate attention, and change of scene. But the word immediate bears a slightly different sifjnification in the backwoods to what it does in the lands of railroads and steamboats. The letter containing this hint took many weeks to traverae the waste wilderness to its destination — months passed before the reply was written, and many weeks more elapsed ere its contents were perused by Charley and his friend. When they did read it, however, the dark cloud that had hung over them so long bui'st at last — ^a ray of sunshine streamed down Itrightly upon theii* huai-ts, and never forsook them again, although it did lose a little of its brilliancy after the first tiiish. It was on a rich, dewy, cheerful morning in early s])i-ing when the packet arrived, and Charley led Harry, who was slowly recovering his wonted health and spirits, to their favourite rocky resting-place on the margin of the lake. Here he placed the letter in his friend's hand, witL a smile of genuine delight. It ran as follows : — m Iv worse aiul JMy dear Sir, — Your letter, containing the accouTit of Mr Somerville's illness, has been forwarded to me ; and I am instructed to inform you that leave of absence, for a short time, has been granted to him. I have had a con- versation with the doctor here, who advises me to recom- mend that, if your friend has no other summer residence ill view, he should spend part of his time in Red River settlement. In the event of his agreeing to this, I would suggest that he should leave Stoney-creek with the first brigade in spring, or by exi)ress canoe, if you think it ailvisable. — I am, »fec. " Short but sweet, uncommonly sweet!" said Harry, /•I ;80 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS as a Jeep flush of joy crimsoned his pale cheeks, while his own merry smile, that had been absent for many a wearv day, returned once more to its old haunt, and danced round its accustomed dimples like a repentant -.vanderer who has been long absent from, and has at last returned to, his native home. " Sweet, indeed !" echoed Charley. " But that's not all ; here's another lump of sugar for you." So saying, he pulled a letter from his pocket, unfolded it slowly, spread it out on his knee, and, looking up at his expectant friend, winked. " Go on, Charley ; pray don't tantalise me." " Tantalise you ! My dear fellow, nothing is farther from my thoughts. Listen to this paragraph in my dear old father's letter : — " ' So, you see, my dear Charley, that we have managed to get you appointed to the charge of Lower Foii; Garrj', and as I hear that poor Harry Somerville is to get leave of absence, you had better bring him along with you. I need not add that my house is at his service as long as he may wish lo remain in it.' " There ! what think ye of that, my boy?" said Charley, as he folded the letter, and returned it to his pocket. " I think," replied Harry, " that your father is a dear old gentleman, and I hope that you'll only be half as good when you come to his time of life ; and I think I'm so happy to-day, that I'll be able to walk without the assistance of your arm to-morrow; and I think we had better go back to the house now, for I feel, oddly enough, as tired as if I had had a long w^alk. Ah ! Charley, my dear fellow, that letter will prove to be the beFt FIIOM THE FAR NORTH. 381 doctor r have bad yet. But now tell me what you intend to dc." Charley assisted his friend to rise, and led him slowly back to the house, as he replied — " Do, my boy ? That's soon said. I'll make things square and straight at Stoney-creek; I'll send for Hamilton, and make him interim commander-in-chief; I'll write two letters, one to the gentleman ir. charge of the district, telling him of my movements ; the other (containing a screed of formal instructions) to the miserable mortal who shall succeed me here ; I'll take the best canoe in our store, load it with provisions, put you carefiilly in the middle of it, stick Jacques in the bow, and myself in the stern, and start, two weeks hence, neck and crop, liead over heels, through thick and thin, wet and dry, o^'er portage, river, fall, and lake, for Red River settle- ment ! " > . ^ i; 1 I 382 /• SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAllS CHAPTER XXVIII. Old friends and scenes; coining events cast their shadows before. Mr Kennedy, senior, was seated in his own comfortable arm-chair before the fire, in his own cheerful little par- lour, in his own snug house, at Red River; with his own highly characteristic breakfast of buffalo-steaks, tea, and pemican before him, and his own beautiful, affectionate daughter Kate presiding over the tea-pot, and exercising \mwan-antably despotic sway over a large gray cat, whose sole happiness seemed to consist in subjecting Mr Kennedy to perpetual annoyance, and whose main object in life was to catch its master and mistress off their guard, that it might go quietly to the table, the meat-safe, or the pantry, and there — deliberately — steal ! Kate had grown very much since we saw her last. She was quite a woman now, and well worthy of a minute description here; but we never could describe a woman to our own satisfaction. We have frequently tried and failed ; so we substitute, in place, the remarks of Kate's friends and acquaintances about her — a criterion on which to form a judgment, that is a pretty coiTect one, especially when the opinion pronounced happens to be favourable. Her father said she was an angel, and the only joy of his life. This latter expression, we may remark, was false; for Mr Kennedy frequently said to Kate, confidentially, that Charley was a great happiness to him ; and we are quite sure that the pipe had something FROM THE FAR NORTH. 383 to do with the felicity of his existence. But the old gentleman said that Kate was the only joy of his life, and that is all we have to do with at present. Several ill- tempered old ladies in the settlement said that Miss Kennedy was really a quiet modest girl ] — testimony tliis (considering the source whence it came) that wjus quite conclusive. Then, old Mr Grant remarked to old Mr Kennedy, over a confidential pipe, that Kate was cer- tainly, in his opinion, the most modest and the prettiest girl in Red River. Her old school companions called her a darling. Tom Whyte said " he never see'd nothink like her nowhere." The clerks spoke of her in terms too glowing to remember; and the last arrival among them, the youngest, with the slang of the " old country " fresh on his lips, called her a stunner! Even Mrs Grant got up one of her half-expressed remarks about her, which every- body would have supposed to be quizzical in its nature, were it not for the frequent occurrence of the terms " good girl," " innocent creature," which seemed to contradict that idea. There were also one or two hapless swains who said nothing, but what they did and looked was, in itself, unequivocal. They went quietly into a state of kIow, di'ivelling imbecility whenever they happened to meet with Kate ; looked as if they had become shockingly unwell, and were rather pleased than otherwise that their friends should think so, too; and, upon all and every occa- sion in which Kate was concerned, conducted themselves with an amount of insane stupidity (although sane enough at other times), that nothing could account for, save the idea that their admiration of her was inexpressible, and that that was the most effective way in which they could express it. 384 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS " Kate, my darling," said Mr Kennedy, as he finished the last mouthful of tea, " wouldn't it be capital to got another letter from Charley ? " " Yes, dear papa ; it would, indeed 1 But I am quite sure that the next time we shall hear from him will be when he anives here, and makes the house ring with liis own dear voice." " How so, girl ? " said the old trader, with a smile. It may as well be remarked here that the above opening of couvei-sation was by no means new. It was stereotyped now. Ever since Charley had been appointed to the management of Lower Fort Garry, his father had been so engrossed by the idea, and spoke of it to Kate so fre- quently, that he had got into a way of feeling as if the event so much desired would happen in a few days, although he knew quite well that it could not, in the course of ordinary or extra-ordinary circumstances, occur ill less than several months. However, as time rolled on, he began regularly, every day or two, to ask Kate ques- tions about Charley that she could not by any possibility answer, but which, he knew from experience, would lead her into a confabulation about his son, which helped a little to allay his impatience. " Why, you see, father," she replied, " it is three months since we got his last, and you know there haa been no opportunity of forwarding letters from Stoney- creek since it was despatched. Now, the next opportu- nity that occurs ^" " Mee-aow ! " interrupted the cat, which had just finished two pats of fresh butter without being detected, and began, rather recklessly, to exult. " Hang that cat ! " cried the old gentleman, angrily, PROM THE PAR NORTH. 385 three Bre has toney- portu- Ld just kected, Ingrily, ** it'll be the death o' me yet ; " and, seizing the firat thing that came to hand, which happened to be the loaf of bread, discharged it with such violence, and with so correct an aim, that it knocked, not only the cat, but the tea-pot and sugar-bowl also, off the table. " dear papa ! " exclaimed Kate. " " Really, my dear," cried Mr Kennedy, half-angry and half-ashamed, " we must get rid of that brute immedi- ately. It has scarcely been a week here, and it has done more mischief already than a score of ordinary cats would have done in a twelvemonth." - " But then, the mice, papa " ■ "Well, but — but — oh! hang the mice !" " Yes ; but how are we to catch them 1 " said Kate. At this moment, the cook, who had heard the sound of breaking crockery, and judged it expedient that he ^hould be present, opened the door. . ^.i " How now, rascal!" exclaimed his master, striding up to him. " Did I ring for you ? eh ] " "No, sir; but " . . . , : " But ! eh ! but ! no more buts, you scoundrel, else I'll The motion of Mr Kennedy's fist warned the cook to make a precipitate retreat, which he did at the same moment that the cat resolved to run for its life. This caused them to meet in the doorway, and, making a com- pound entanglement with the mat, they both fell into the passage with a loud crash. Mr Kennedy shut the door gently, and returned to his chair, patting Kate on the head as he passed. " Now, darling, go on with what you were saying ; and don't mind the tea-pot — let it lie." /■•• 38G SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS " Well," resumed Kate, with a smile, " I was sa3ring that the next opportunity Charley can have will be by the brigade in spring, which we expect to arrive hero, you know, a month hence, but we won't get a letter by that, as I feel convinced that he and Harry will come by it themselves." i " And the express canoe, Kate — the express canoe," said Mr Kennedy, with a contortion of the left side of his head that was intended for a wink, — "you know they got leave to come by express, Kate." " Oh, as to the express, father, I don't expect them to come by that, as poor Harry Somerville has been so ill that they would never think of venturing to subject him to all the discomforts, not to mention the 'dangers, of a canoe voyage." " I don't know that, lass — I don't know that," said Mr Kennedy, giving another contortion with his left cheek. " In fact, I shouldn't wonder if they arrived this very , " I never tried his nerves in that way," said Kate, with a smile ; " perhaps he would shy at that : he has a good deal of spirit— oh, I do dislike a lazy horse, and I do delight in a spirited one ! " Kate gave her horse a smart cut with the whip, half involuntarily, as she spoke. In a moment it reared almost perpendicularly, and then bounded forward — not, however, before Jacques' quick eye had observed the danger, and his ever-ready hand arrested its course. " Have a care. Miss Kate," lie said, in a warning voice, while he gazed in the face of the excited girl with a look of undisguised admiration. "It don't do to wallop a skittish beast like that." " Never fear, Jacques," she replied, bending forward to pat her charger s arching neck, — " see, he is becoming quite gentle again." "If he runs away, Kate, we won't be able to catch you again, for he's the best of the four, I think," said Harry, with an uneasy glance at the animal's flashing eye and expanded nostrils. "Ay, its as well to keep the whip off him," said Jacques. " I know'd a young chap once in St Louis, who lost his sweetheart by usin' his whip too freely." "Indeed," cried Kate with a merry laugh, as they emerged from one of the numerous thickets and rode out upon the open plain at a foot pace, " how was that Jacques ? Pi'ay tell us the story." " As to that, there's little story about it," replied the 400 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS hunter. " You see, Tim Roughead took a'rter his name, an' was always doin' some mischief or other, which more than once nigh cost him his life ; for the young trappers that frequent St Louis are not fellows to stand too much jokin', I can tell ye. Well, Tim fdl in love with a gal there, who had jilted about a dozen lads afore ; and, bein' an oncommon handsom', strappin' fellow, she encouraged him a good deal. But Tim had a suspicion that Louise was rayther sweet on a young storekeeper's clerk there ; so, bein' an oflf-hand sort o' critter, he went right up to the gal, and says to her, says he, * Come, Louise, its o' no use humbuggin' with me any longer. If you like me, you like me ; and if you don't like me, you don't. There's only two ways about it. Now, jist say the word at once an' let's have an end on't. If you agree, I'll squat with you in whativer bit o' the States you like to name ; if not, I'll bid you good-bye this blessed momin', an' make tracks right away for the Rocky Mountains afore sun-down. Aye or no, lass ; which is't to be ? * "Poor Louise was taken all aback by this, but she knew well that Tim was a man who never threatened in jest, an' moreover, she wasn't quite sure o' the young clerk; so she agreed, an' Tim went off to settle with her father about the weddin'. Well, the day came, an' Tim, with a lot o' his comrades, mounted their horses, and rode off to the bride's house, which was a mile or two up the river out of the town. Just as they were startin', Tim's horse gave a plunge that well-nigh pitched him over its head, an' Tim came down on him with a cut o' his heavy whip that sounded like a pistol-shot. The beast was so mad at this that it gave a kind o' squeal an' another plunge that burst the girths. Tim brought the whip down on its PROM THE FAR NORTH. I i 401 flank again, which macle it shoot forward like an arrow out of a bow, leavin' poor Tim on the ground. So slick did it fly away, that it didn't even throw him on his back, but let him fall sittin'-wise, saddle and all, plump on the spot where he sprang from. Tim scratched his head an' grinned like a half-worried rattlesnake, as his comrades almost rolled off their saddles with laughin'. But it was no laughin' job, for poor Tim's leg was doubled under him, an' broken across at the thigh. It was long before he was able to go about again, and when he did recover, he found that Louise and the young clerk were spliced an' away to Kentucky." , " So you see what are the probable consequences, Kate, if you use your whip so obstreperously again," cried Charley, pressing his horse into a canter. Just at that moment a rabbit sprang from under a bush and darted away before them. In an instant Harry Som- erville gave a wild shout, and set off in pursuit. Whether it was the cry, or the sudden flight of Harry's horse, we cannot tell, but the next instant, Kate's charger performed an indescribable flourish with its hind legs, laid back its ears, took the bit between its teeth, and ran away. Jacques was on its heels instantly, and, a few seconds afterwards, Charley and Harry joined in the pursuit, but their utmost efforts failed to do more than enable them to keep their ground. Kate's horse was making for a dense thicket, into which it became evident they must cer- tainly plunge. Harry and her brother trembled when they looked at it, and realised her danger ; even Jacques' face shewed some symptoms of perturbation for a moment, as he glanced before him in indecision. The expression 402 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS ** vanished, however, in a few seconds, and his cheerful, self-possessed look returned, as he cried out — " Pull the left rein hard. Miss Kate ; try to edge up the slope." Kate heard the advice, and, exerting all her strength, succeeded in tiirning her horse a little to the left, which caused him to ascend a gentle slope, at the top of which part of the thicket lay. She was closely followed by Hany and her brother, who urged their steeds madly forward in the hope of catching her rein, while Jacques diverged a little to the right. By this manoeuvre, the latter hoped to gain on the runaway, as the ground along which he rode was compai'atively level, with a short but steep ascent at the end of it, while that along which Kate flew like the wind was a regular ascent, that would prove very trying to her horse. At the margin of the thicket gi'ew a row of high bushes, towards which they now galloped with frightful speed. As Kate came up to this natu- ral fence, she observed the trapper approaching on the other side of it. Springing from his jaded steed, without attempting to check its pace, he leaped over the undei'wood like a stag, just as the young girl cleared the bushes at a bound. Grasping the reins, and checking the horse violently with one hand, he extended the other to Kate, who leaped unhesitatingly into his arms. At the same instant, Charley cleared the bushes, and pulled sharply up ; while Harry's horse, unable, owing to its speed, to take the leap, came crashing through them, and dashed his rider with stunning violence to the ground. Fortunately no bones were broken, and a draught of clear water, brought by Jacques from a neighbouring pond, speedily restored Harry's shaken faculties. ■_,?!^ PROM THE FAR NORTH. 403 " Now, Kate," said Charley, leading forward the horse which he had ridden, " I have changed saddles, as you see ; this lioi-se will suit you better, and I'll take the shine out of your charger on the way home." " Thank you, Charley," said Kate, with a smile, " I've quite recovered from my fright, if, indeed, it is worth calling by that name ; but I fear that Harry has " " Oh ! I'm all right," cried Harry, advancing as he spoke to assist Kate in mounting. " I am ashamed to think that my wild cry was the cause of all this." In another minute they were again in their saddles, and, turning their faces homeward, they swept over the plain at a steady gallop, fearing lest their accident should be the means of making Mr Kennedy wait dinner for them. On arriving, they found the old gentleman engaged in an animated discussion with the cook about laying the table-cloth, which duty he had imposed on himself, in Kate's absence. ^ " Ah ! Kate, my love, " he cried, as they entered, " come here, lass, and mount guard. I've almost broke my heart in trying to convince that thick-headed goose that he can't set the table properly. Take it off my hands, like a good girl. Charley, my boy, you'll be pleased to hear that your old friend Redfeather is here." " Redfeather, father ! " exclaimed Charley, in surprise. " Yes ; he and the parson, from the other end of Lake Wiuipeg, arrived an hour ago in a tin kettle, and are now on their way to the upper fort." " That is, indeed, pleasant news ; but I suspect that it will give much greater pleasure to our friend Jacques, who, I believe, would be glad to lay down his life for him, simply to prove his affection." 404 BNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS I--*:. " Well, well," said the old gentleman, knocking the anhes ont of his pipe, and refilling it ao aa to be ready for an after-dinner smoke, " Kedfeather haa come, and the parson's come, too, and I look upon it as quite miraculous that thoy have come, considering the thing they came in. What they've come for is more than I can tell, but I sup- pose it's connected with Church affairs. Now, then, Kate, what's come o' the dinner, Kate 1 Stir up that grampus of a cook ! I half expect that he has boiled the cat for dinner, in his wrath, for it has been badgering him and me the whole morning. Hallo, Harry, what's wrong 1 " The last exclamation was in consequence of an ex- pression of pain whioh crossed Harry's face for a moment. " Nothing, nothing," replied Harry, " I've had a fall from my horse, and bruised my arm a little. But I'll see to it after dinner." " That you shall not," cried Mr Kennedy, energetically, dragging his young friend into his bedroom. " Off with your coat, lad. Let's see it at once. Ay, ay," he con- tinued, examining Harry's left arm, which was very much discoloured, and swelled from the elbow to the shoulder, " that's a severe thump, my boy. But it's nothing to speak of; only you'll have to submit to a sling for a day or two." " That's annoying, certainly, but I'm thankful it's no worse," remarked Harry, as Mr Kennedy dressed the arm after his own fashion, and then returned with him to the dining-room. FROM THE FAR NORTH. il 405 CHAPTER XXY, Lovo. Old Mr Kennedy puts his foot In It. One morning, about two weeks after Chajie;/'s an-irri vX Red River, Harry Somerville found hxriself alcio in MV Kennedy's parlour. The old gentler.:. in himayli Lad just galloped away in the direction of the iowa* fort, to vJsi.t Charley, who was now formally installed thero. Kate was busy in the kitchen giving direction 3 abouu diniier, and Jacques was away with Redfeather visiting Lis numerous friends in the settlement ; so that, for the first time since his arrival, Harry found himself ufc th/i I j;jup of ten in the morning utterly lone^ end with nothing very definite to do. Of course, the two weeks that had elapsed were not without their signs and symptoms, ♦^^htir nn*nor accidents and incidents, in regard to the subject that filled his thoughts. Harry had fifty times been trsjei aHor- nately from the height of hope to the 'lepth of despair, from the extreme of felicity to tbw utteriftost verge of sorrow, and he began seriousl7 co reflect, when he re- membered his desjpcrate yesolution on the first night of his arrival, that if he did not " do," he certainly would " die. " This was quite a mistake, however, on Harry's part. Nobody ever did die of unrequited love. Doubt- less many people have hanged, drowned, arf' shot them- selves because of it ; but, generally speaking, if the patient can be kept from maltreating himself long enough, time I i? r \ 406 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS will prove to be an infallible remedy. O youthful reader ! lay this to heart ; but, pshaw ! why do I waste ink on so hopeless a task ? Every one, we suppose, resolves once in a way to die of love \ so — die away, my young friends — only, make sure that you don't kill your- selves, and I've no fear of the result. But to return. Kate, likewise, was similarly affected. She behaved like a perfect maniac — mentally, that is — and plunged herself, metaphorically, into such a succession of hot and cold baths, that it was quite a marvel how her spiritual constitution could stand it. But we were wi'ong in saying that Harry was alone in the parlour. The gray cat was there. On a chair before the fire it sat, looking dishevelled and somewhat hlase^ in consequence of the ill-treatment and worry to which it was continually subjected. After looking out of the window for a short time, Harry rose, and, sitting down on a chair beside the cat, patted its head, — a mark of attention it was evidently not averse to, but which it received, nevertheless, with marked suspicion, and some indications of being in a condition of armed neutrality. Jnst then the door opened and Kate entered. " Excuse me, Harry, for leaving you alone," she said, " but I had to attend to several household matters. Do you feel inclinec' for a walk ? " " I do, indeed," replied Harry ; " it is a charming day, and I am exceedingly anxious to see the bower that you have spoken to me about once or twice, and which Charley told me of long before I came here." " Oh ! I shall take you to it, with pleasure," replied Kate ; *' my dear father often goes there with me to smoke. If you will wait for two minutes, I'll put on my FROM THE FAR NORTH. 407 bonnet," and she hastened to prepare herself for the walk, leaving Harry to caress the cat, which he did so ener- getically, when he thought of its young mistress, that it instantly declared war and sprang from the chair with a remonstrative yell. On their way down to the bower, which was situated in a picturesque, retired spot on the river's bank, about a mile below the house, Harry and Kate tried to converse on ordinary topics, but without success, and were at last almost reduced to silence. One subject alone filled their minds — all others were flat. Being sunk, as it were, in an ocean of love, they no sooner opened their lips to speak than the waters rushed in, as a natural cons quence, and nearly choked them. Had they but opened their mouths wide and boldly, they would have been pleasantly drowned together; but as it was, they lacked the requisite courage, and were fain to content themselves with an occasional frantic struggle to the surface, where they gasped a few words of uninteresting air, and sank again instantly. On arriving at the bower, however, and sitting down, Harry plucked up heart, and, heaving a deep sigh, said — "Kate, there is a subject about which I have long desired to speak to you - -" Long as he had been desiring it, however, Kate thought it must have been nothing compared with the time that elapsed ere he said anything else ; so she bent over a flower, which she held in her hand, and said, in a low voice — "Indeed, Harry; what is it 1" Harry was desperate now. His usually flexible tongue was stiff as stone, and dry as a bit of leather. He could vo more give utterance to an intelligible idea, than he could change himself into Mr Kennedy's gray cat, — a ■^ 408 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS change that he would not have been unwilling to make at that moment. At last he seized his companion's hand, and exclaimed, with a burst of emotion that quite startled her — " Kate ! Kate ! dearest Kate, I love you ! I adore you ! I At this point poor Harry's powers of speech again failed j so, being utterly unable to express another idea, he suddenly threw his arms round her, and pressed her fervently to his bosom. Kate was taken quite aback by this summary method of coming to the point. Kepulsing him energetically, she exclaimed, while she blushed crimson — " Oh, Hany — Mr Somerville ! " and burst into tears. Poor Harry stood before her for a moment, his head hanging down, and a deep blush of shame on his face. " Oh, Kate," said he, in a deep, tremulous voice, " for- give me ! Do — do forgive me ! I knew not what I said. I scarce knew what I did " (here he seized her hand). " I know but one thing, Kate, and tell it you I will, if it should cost me my life. I io^'e you, Kate, to distraction, and I wish you to be my wife. I have beau rude— very rude. Can you forgive me, Kate 1 " Now, this latter part of Harry's speech was particu- larly comical, the comicality of it lying in this — ^that, while he spoke, he drew Kate gradually towards him, and, at the very time when he gave utterance to the penitential remorse for his rudeness, Kate was enfolded in a much more vigorous embrace than at the first; and, what is more remarkable still, she laid her little head quietly on his shoulder, as if she had quite changed her .lt<-4'. ' FltOM THE FAR NC.tTH. 409 mind in regard to what was and wl.itt was not rude, and rather enjoyed it than otherwise. "While the lovers stood in this interesting position, it became apparent to Harry's olfactory nerves that the atmosphere was impregnated with tobacco smoke. Look- ing hastily up, he beheld an apparition that tended some- what to increase the confusion of his faculties. In the opening of the bower stood Mr Kennedy, senior, in a state of inexpressible amazement. We say inexpressible advisedly, because the extreme pitch of feel- ing which Mr Kennedy experienced at what he beheld before him, cannot possibly be expressed by human visage. As far as the countenance of man could do it, however, we believe the old gentleman's came pretty near the mark on this occasion. His hands were in his coat-pockets, his body bent a little forward, his head and neck outstretched a little beyond it, his eyies almost starting from the sockets, and, certainly, the most pro- minent feature in his face ; his teeth firmly clenched on his beloved pipe, and his lips expelling a multitude of little clouds so vigorously, that one might liave taken him for a sort of self-acting intelligent steam-gun, that had resolved utterly to annihilate Kate and Harry at short range in the course of two minutes. "When Kate saw her father, she uttered a slight scream, covered her face with her hands, rushed from the bower, and disappeared in the wood. " So, young gentleman," began Mr Kennedy, in a slow, deliberate tone of voice, while he removed the pipe from his mouth, clenched his fist, and confronted Harry, " you've been invited to my house as a guest, sir, and you seize the opportunity basely to insult my daughter ! " 27 V .'. 410 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNllEAMS 'r« " Stay, stay, my dear sir," interrupted Harry, laying liis hand on the old man's shonlder, and gazing earnestly into his face — " Oh 1 do not, even for a moment, imagine tliat I could be so base as to trillo with the affections of your daughter. I may have been presumptuous, hasty, foolish, mad, if you will, but not bsise. God forbid that I should treat her witli disrespect, even in thought ! I love her, Mr Kennedy, as I never loved before ; I have aakcd her to be my wife, and — she " "Whew!" whistled old Mr Kennedy, repl^^'ng his pipe between his teeth, gazing abstractedly at the ground, and emitting clouds innumerable. After standing thus a few seconds, he turned his back slowly upon Harry, and smiled outrageously once or twice, winking at the same time, after his own fashion, at the river. Turning abruptly round, he regarded Harry with a look of affected dignity, and said — " Pray, sir, what did my daughter say to your veiy peculiar proposal V . ' ' " She said ye — ah ! that is — she didn't exactly saf/ any- thing, but she — indeed I " " Humph ! " ejaculated the old gentleman, deepening his frovrn as he regarded his young friend through the smoke. " In short, she said nothing, I suppose, but led you to infer, perhaps, that she would have said Yes, if I hadn't interrupted you." - - \ ^ . • - Harry blushed, and said nothing. ' " Now, sir," continued Mr Kennedy, " don't you think that it would have been a polite piece of attention on your part to have asked niT/ permission before you addressed my daughter on such a subject ? eh?" " Indeed," said Harry, " I acknowledge that I havo been hasty, but I must disclaim the charge of disrespect FROM THE FAll NORTH. 411 to you, sir ; I had no intention wliatover of broacliing the subject to-day, but my feelings unhappily earned me away, and — and — in fact " " Well, well, sir," interrupted Mr Kennedy, with a look of offended dignity, " your feelings ought to be kept more under control ; but come, sir, to my house. I must talk further with you on this subject. I must read you a lesson, sir — a lesson, humph 1 that you won't forget in a hurry." " But, my dear sir " began Harry. " No more, sir — no more at present," cried the old gentleman, smoking violently as he pointed to the foot- path that led to the house; "lead the way, sir, I'll follow." The foot-path, although wide enough to allow Kate and Harry to walk beside each other, did not permit of two gentlemen doing so, conveniently, — a circumstance which proved a great relief to Mr Kennedy, inasmuch as it enabled him, while walking behind his companion, to wink convulsively, smoke furiously, and punch his own ribs severely, by way of opening a few safety-valves to his glee, without which there is no saying what might have happened. He was nearly caught in these eccentri- cities more than once, however, as Harry turned half round, with the intention of again attempting to excul- pate liimself, — attempts which were as often met by a sudden start, a fierce frown, a burst of smoke, and a com- mand to " go on." On approaching the house, the track became a broad road — affording Mr Kennedy no excuse for walking in the rear, so that he war. under the neces- sity of laying violent restraint on his feelings, — a restraint which, it was evident, could not last long. At that ^ ,- '« -s. 412 SNOWPLAKES AND SUNBEAMS moment, to his great relief, his eye suddenly fell on tKe gray cat, which happened to be reposing innocently on the door-step. " That's it I There's the whole cause of it at last ! " cried Mr Kennedy, in a perfect paroxysm of excitement, fling- ing his pipe violently at the unoffending victim as he rushed towards it. The pipe missed the cat, but went with a sharp crash through the parlour window, at which Charley was seated, while his father darted through the doorway, along the passage, and into the kitchen. Here the cat, having first capsized a pyramid of pans and ket- tles in its conscemation, took refuge in an absolutely unassailable position. Seeing this, Mr Kennedy violently discharged a pailful of water at the spot, strode rapidly to his own apartment, and locked himself in. "Dear me, Harry, what's wrong? My father seems unusually excited," said Charley, in some astonishment, as Harry entered the room and flung himself on a chair wit h a look of chagrin. " It's difiicult to say, Charley ; the fact is, I've asked \ our sister Kate to be my wife, and your father seems to have gone mad with indignation." "Asked Kate to be your wife !" cried Charley, starting up, and regarding his friend with a look of amazement. " Yes I have," replied Harry, with an air of ofiended dignity ; " I know very well that I am unworthy of her, but I see no reason why you and your father should take such pains to make me feel it." " Unworthy of her, my dear fellow 1" exclaimed Char- ley, grasping his hand and wringing it violently; "no doubt you are, and so is everybody, but you shall have her ' ■ ■ ' ' ' ^C - - • FROM THE FAR NORTH. 413 for all that, my boy. But tell me, Harry, have you spoken to Kate herself?" "Yes I have." " And does she agree 1 " i " Well, I think I may say she does." " Have you told my father that she does 1" '. * " Why, as to tliat," said Harry, with a perplexed smile, "he didn't need to be told, he made Ajmse//' pretty well aware of the facts of the case." ;' - , •^ " Ah ! I'll soon settle him," cried Charley ; " keep your mind easy, old fellow, I'll very soon bring him round." With this assurance, Charley gave his friend's hand another shake that nearly wrenched the arm from his shoulder, and hastened out of the room in search of his refractoi7 father. -^ asked ■ t- ; ■ >. , >emB to H , f.w, ;'""' -t starting H < nent. H ' .-' .. >ffended ■ of her, I ~ V.- dd take H "•■' ■T-' d Char- 1 y; "^^ 1 ' * . i' Lave her H - r^H.--- *f,v k 5?"- * , v»«»' ■ ;■< r 4U SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS vM. , •^.: »'.• CHAPTER XXXI. The course of true lore, cnrioasly enough, runs smooth for once ; and the curtain falls. .J Time rolled on, and with it the sunbeams of summer went — the snowflakes of winter came. Needles of ice began to shoot across the surface of Red River, and gradu- ally narrowed its bed. Crystaline trees formed upon the window panes. Icicles depended from the eves ot the houses. Snow fell in abundance on the plains; liquid nature began rapidly to solidify, and, not many weeks after the first frost made its appearance, every- thing was (as the settlers expressed it) " hard and fast." Mr Kennedy, senior, was in his parlour, with his back to a blazing wood fire that seemed large enough to roast an ox whole. He was standing, moreover, in a semi- picturesque attitude, with his right hand in his breeches pocket and his left arm round Kate's waist. Kate was dressed in a gown that rivalled the snow itself in white- ness. One little gold clasp shone in her bosom ; it was the only ornament she wore. Mr Kennedy, too, had somewhat altered his style of costume. He wore a sky- blue swallow-tailed coat, whose maker had flourished in London half a century before. It had a velvet collar about five inches deep ; fitted uncommonly tight to the figure, and had a pair of bright brass buttons, veiy close together, situated half a foot above the wearer's natimil rilOM THE FAR NORTH. 415 waist. Besides this, he liail on a canary-coloured vest, aud a pair of white duck trowsers, in the fob of which evidently reposed an irnmenso gold watch of the olden time, with a bunch of seals that would have served very well as jin anchor for a small boat. Although the dress was, on the whole, slightly comical, its owner — with his full, fit, broad figure — looked remarkably well in it nevertheless. It wsis Kate's marriage-day, or, i-ather, maniage even- ing, for the sun had set two hours ago, and tho moon Wiis now sailing in the frosty sky, its pale rays causing the whole country to shine with a clear, cold, silvery whiteness. The old gentleman had been for some time gazing in silent admiration on the fair brow and clustering ringlets of his daughter, when it suddenly occurred to him that the company would arrive in half an hour, and there were several things still to be attended to. " Hallo, Kate ! " he exclaimed, with a start, " we're forgetting ourselves. The candles are yet to light, and lots of other things to do ; " saying this, he began to bustle about the room in a state of considerable agita- tion. " Oh ! don't wony yourself, dear father," cried Kate, running after him and catching him by the hand. " Miss Cookumwell, and good Mrs Taddipopple, are arranging everything about tea and supper in the kitchen j and Tom Whyte has been kindly sent to us by Mr Grant, with orders to make himself generally useful, so he can light the candles iu a few minutes, and you've nothing to do but to kiss me and receive the company." Kate pulled her father gently towards the fire again, and re- placed his arm round her waist. 410 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS "Receive company! Ah! Kate, my love, that's just what I know nothing about. If they'd let me receive tliem in my own way, I'd do it well enough ; but that abominable Mrs Taddi — what's her name, has quite addled my brains and driven me distracted with trying to get mo to undei-stand what she calls etiguctte.^' Kate laughed, and said she didn't care hou^ he i-eceived them, as she was quite sure that, whichever way he did it, he would do it pleasantly and well. At that moment the door opened, and Tom Whyte entered. He was thinner, if possible, than he used to be, and considerably stiflbr, and more upright. " Please, sir," said he, with a motion that made you expect to hear his back creak, (it was intended for u bow) — " please, sir, can I do hany think for yer ? " *' Yes, Tom, you can," replied Mr Kennedy ; " light these candles, my man, and then go to the stable and see that everything there is arranged for j;utting up the horses. It will be pretty full to-night, Tom, and will require some management ; then, let me see — ah ! yes, bring me my pipe, Tom, my big meerschaum, I'll sport that to-night in honour of you, Kate." " Please, sir," began Tom, with a slightly disconcerted air, " I'm afeer'd sir, that — um " ^ " Well, Tom, what would you say ] Go on." " The pipe, sir," said Tom, growing still more discon- certed ; " says I to cook, says I, * Cook, wots been an' done it, d'ye tliink?' 'Dun know, Tom,* says he, 'but it's smashed, that's sartin. I think the gray cat * " " What ! " cried the old trader, in a voice of thunder, while a frown of the most portentous ferocity darkened his brow for an instant. It was only for an instant, how- PROM THE FAU NORTH. 417 ever. Clearing liis brow quickly, he said with a smile, " But it's your wedding-day, Kate, my darling. It won't do to blow up anybody to-day — not even the cat. There, be off, Tom, and see to things. Look sharp ! I hear sleigh-bells already." • As ho spoke, Tom vanished perpendicularly; Kate hastened to her room, and the old g^htleman himself went to the front door to receive his guests. ; The night was of that intensely calm And still charac- ter that invariably accompanies intense frost, so that the merry jingle of the sleigh-bells that struck on Mr Kennedy's listening ear, continued to sound, and grow louder as they drew near, for a considerable time ere the visitors ari'ived. Presently, the dull, soft tramp of horaes' hoofs was heard in the snow, and a well-known voice shouted out lustily, " Now, then, Mactavish, keep to the left. Doesn't the road take a turn there? Mind the gap in the fence. That's old Kennedy's only fault. He'd rather risk breaking his friends' necks, than mend his fences ! " " All right, here we are," cried Mactavish, as, the next instant, two sleighs emerged out of the avenue into the moonlit space in front of the house, and da.shed up to the door amid an immense noise and clatter of bells, harness, hoofs, snorting, and salutations. " Ah ! Grant, my dear fellow," cried Mr Kennedy, (Springing to the sleigh and seizing his friend by the hand as he dragged him out. " This is kind of you to come early — and Mrs Grant, too — ^take care, my dear madam, step clear of the haps — now, then — cleverly done" (as ]Mrs Grant tumbled into his arms in a confused heap) — "come along now — there's a capital fire in here — don't 4Id BNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS mind tlio horses, Mactavisli— follow us, my lacl — Tom Wliyto will^ttend to them." Uttering such disjointed remarks, Mr Kennedy led Mrs Grant into the house, and made her over to Mrs Taddij)opple, who hurried her away to an inner apart- ment, while Mr Kennedy conducted her spouse, along with Mactavisli and our friend the head clerk at Fort Garry, into the parlour. , "Hany, my dear fellow, I wish you joy," cried Mr Grant, as the former grasped his hand. " Lucky dog you are. Where's Kate 1 eh ! Not visible yet, I suppose." " No, not till the parson comes," interrupted Mr Kennedy, convxUsing his left cheek. " Hallo, Charley, where are you 1 Ah ! bring the cigars, Charley. Sit down, gentlemen ; make yourselves at home. I say, Mrs Taddi — Taddi — oh ! botheration — popple ! — that's it — your name, madam, is a puzzler — but — we'll need more chairs I think. Fetch one or two, like a dear ! " As he spoke, the jingle of ))ells was heard outside, and Mr Kennedy rushed to the door again. " Good evening, Mr Addison," said he, taking that gentleman warmly by the hand as he resigned the reins to Tom Whyte. " I am delighted to see you, sir — look after the minister's mare, Tom — glad to see you, my dear sir — some of my friends have come already — this way, Mr Addison." The worthy clergyman responded to Mr Kennedy's greeting in his own hearty manner, and followed him into the parlour, where the guests now began to assemble rapidly. " Father," cried Charley, catching his sire by the arm, *' I've been looking for you everywhere, but you dance FROM THE FAR NORTH. 419 ubout like a will-o'-tlio-wisp. Do you know IVo invited my friends Jacques and Kedfeathur to come to-ped ojiportunely before 422 SNOWFLAKES AND SUNBEAMS them, as if from the clouds ; there was au extraordinary and al>ru2)t pause in the hum of conversation, and, ere Kate was well aware of what was ahout to liappen, she felt herself suddenly embraced by her husband, from whom she was thereafter violently torn, and all but smothered by her sympathising friends. Poor Kate ! she had gone through the ceremony almost meclumically — recklessly, we might be justified in saying ; for not having raised her eyes off the floor, from its com- mencement to its close, the man whom she accepted for better or for woiise might have been Jacques or Red- feather, for all that she knew. Immediately after this, there Wiis heard the sound of a fiddle, and an old Canadian wius led to the upper end of the room, placed on a chair, and hoisted, by the powerful arms of Jacques and Louis, upon a table. In this conspi- cuous position the old man seemed to be quite at his ease. He spent a few nxinutes in bringing his instrument into perfect tune ; then, looking round with a mild patronising glance to see that the dance I's were ready, he suddenly struck up a Scotch reel with an amount of energy, preci- sion, and spirit tliat might have shot a pang of jealousy through the heart of Neil Gow himself The noise that instantly commenced, and was kept up from that moment, with but few intervals, during the whole evening, was of a kind that is never heard in fashionable drawing-rooms. Dancing, in the backwood settlements, is dancing. It is not walking ; it is not sailing ; it is not undulating ; it is not sliding ; no, it is bona fide dancing ! It is the perform- ance of intricate evolutions with the feet and legs that makes one wink to look at. Performed in good time too, and by people who look upon all their muscles as being FllOM Till: FAB NOUTir. 423 iisofxil niacliines, not moroly tilings of wliich a select few, that cannot bo dispensed with, are brought into daily operation. Consequently the thing was done with an amount of vigour that was conducive to the health of performers, and productive of satisfaction to the eyes of beholders. When the evening wore on apace, however, and Jacques' modesty was so far overcome as to induce him to engage in a reel, along with his friend Louis Pel- tier and two bouncing young ladies, whose father had FROM THE FAR NORTH. 429 "Ameu." In another moment, tho travellers resumed their march. On reaching the summit of a slight emi- nence, where the prairies terminated and tlio woods began, they paused to wave a last adieu ; then Jacques, putting liimself at the head of the little party, plunged into the forest, and led them away towarda the snowy regions of the Far North. THE END. KOINBUROH: rBINTItn BT T. NEr,SON AND SOW!.