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HfTexmc i j^^^;^^?!C»?j'w ;^^ .^^-p^; ,■ ,^*>; .» ■; =5.:> U N G A V A A Tale of Esquimau Land By IRobcrt ^fcbacl 3Qnllm\t^nc Author of "The Dog: Crusoe and his Master, Phe Younir rur-Tra.Iers.- " The Gorilla-Hunters," " The World of Ice," "The Coral Island," &c. NEW EDITION T. NELSON AND SONS LONDON • h DIN BURGH NEIV YORK' • 1894 P?- f 057 - 6/^ cj& m4 ' PREFACE. -♦♦- The following story is intended to illustrate one of the many phases of the fur-trader's life in those wild regions of J^orth America which surround Hudson's Bay. ( Most of its major incidents are facts — fiction being employed chiefly for the purpose of weaving these facts into a readable form. If this volume should chance to fall into the hands of any of those who acted a part in the first settlement of Ungava, we trust that they will forgive the liberty that has been taken with their persons and adventures, remembering that transpositions, modifications, and transformations are necessary in constructing a tale out of the " raw materialj We take this opportunity of expressing to the Leader of the adventurous band our grateful acknowledgments for his kindness in placing at our disposal the ground- work on which this story has been reared. 8S43d ■««;, CONTENTS. ^^ . CHAPTER 1. The forest, and the leaders of the forlorn-hope — A fjood shot — A eonsultation — An ke-Jloe, and a narrow escape in a small ivay 9 CHAPTER II. Head-quarters — The men — Disputation and uncertainty— New uses for the skins of dead boys ! — Mutinous resolves 15 CHAPTER III. Shoivs how Stanley deigned to consult with womankind — The opinions of a child developed — Persuasion fails — Example triumphs — The Jirst volunteers to Unyava 25 CHAPTER IV. Explanatory^ hut not dry! — Murderous desiijns thu'arted by vigorous treat- ment—The cattle pay for it !— Preparations far a long, long voyage.. 33 CHAPTER V. Ice looks unpropitious — The start — An important member of the party nearly forgotten — Chimo 40 CHAPTER VI. Character partially developed — Ducks for supper— A threatened **nip^' — Bundled out on the ice 50 CHAPTER VII. Shoios hov) the party made themselves at home in the bush — Talk round the camp fire — A flash of temper — Turning in 57 CHAPTER VIII. ' Bryan's adventure with, a polar bear, etc 71 ■ iigi w < . f v ^*' > ! Vi CONTENTS. CHAPTER IX. A atorm hreioing — U bursts, and produces consequences — The party take to the water per force — All saved 82 CHAPTER X. The sand-hank — Dismal pi^ospects — Consultations — Internal arrangements ex- posed and detailed 92 CHAPTER XL Start afresh — Superstitious notions — The whirlpool — The interior — Fishing in the old tvay on neio ground, and xchat came of it — A cold hath— The rescue — Saved — Deeper and deeper into the wilderness 100 CHAPTER XII. A neio scene — The Esquimau— Deer slaying — Enemies in the bush 120 CHAPTER XIII. Savage love— A wife purchased — The attack — The flight — The escape — The wounded man 127 CHAPTER XIV. The pursuit — Seal spearing — The gianCs despair 136 CHAPTER XV. End of the voyage — Plans and prospects — Exploring parties sent out 143 CHAPTER XVI. Resources of the country begin to develop — Bryan distinguishes himself— Fish' ing extraordinary 154 CHAPTER XVII. Successes and encouragement — Bryan lost and found 168 CHAPTER XVIII. Outpost-buUding — Fort Chimo—An unexpected arrival, which causes much joy 180 CHAPTER XIX. Bustle and business — A great feast, in which Bryan and La Roche are prime mx)vers — New ideas in the art of cooking 188 CHAPTER XX. Winter approaches — Esquimaux arrive — Effect of a word — A sucking baby — Prospects of trade 200 CONTENTS. vii CHAPTER XXI. Silent conversation — Raw food — Female tails— A terrible battle terminated hy the interposition of a (jiant ...210 CHAPTER XXII. Maximus — Deer spearing— A surprisingly bad shot — Character of the na- tives 218 CHAPTER XXIII. More arrivals — Honesty — Indians come upon the scene — The tribes reconciled — Disease and death change the aspect of things — Philosophic discouj'se... .228 CHAPTER XXIV. Effect of snow on the feelings, not to mention the landscape — A wonderful dome of ice 240 CHAPTER XXV. Buried alive — But not killed— The giant in the snoic-storm 250 CHAPTER XXVI. An excursion — Igloe building, and Jishing under the ice — A snow-table and a good feast — Edith spends the night under a snow-roof for the first but not the last time 203 CHAPTER XXVII. Frank Mortongets into difficulties 273 CHAPTER XXVIII. Edith becomes a heroine indeed 286 CHAPTER XXIX. A dark cloud of sorrow envelops Fort Chimo 295 CHAPTER XXX. An old friend amid neto friends and novelties — A desperate battle, and a glorious victory 302 CHAPTER XXXI. Anothei' desperate battle, and a decided victory — The Esquimaux suffer a severe loss 320 CHAPTER XXXII. Edith xoaxes melancholy, hut her sadness is suddenly turned into joy; and the Esquimaux receive a surprise, and. find a friend, and lose one 330 Vlll CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXXIII. The clouds are broken, the sun hursts through and once more irradiates Fort Chimo — Hopes and fears for Maximus 341 CHAPTER XXXIV. Rough and tumble — A polar hear nmde useful — Fishing, and floundering, and narrow escapes — An unexpected discovery, productive of mingled perplexity and joy 346 CHAPTER XXXV. A stirring period in the life of Maximus 362 CHAPTER XXXVI. Happy meetings and joyous feastings — Love, marriage, desertion, desolation, and conclusion 378 f k f fcr; U N G A V A. CHAPTER I. The forest, anu the leaders oj the forlorn-hope — A good shot — A consultation- An ice-floe, and a imrroio escape in a small ivay. H ALLO ! where are you ? " shouted a voice that rang through the glades of the forest like the hlast of a silver trumpet, testifying to lungs of leather and a throat of brass. The ringing tones died away, and nought was heard save the rustling of the leafy canopy overhead, as the young man, whose shout had thus rudely disturbed the surrounding echoes, leaned on the muzzle of a long rifle, and stood motionless as a statue, his right foot resting on the trunk of a fallen tree, and his head bent slightly to one side, as if listening for a reply. But no reply came. A squirrel ran down the trunk of a neighbouring pine, and paused, with tail and ears erect, and its little black eyes glittering as if with surprise at the temerity of him who so recklessly dared to intrude upon and desecrate with his powerful voice the deep solitudes of the wilderness. They stood so long thus that it seemed as though the little animal and the man had been petrified by the unwonted sound. If so, the spell was quickly broken. The loud report of a fowling-piece r 10 UNGAVA. '!' i i- w£ts heard at a short distance. The squirrel incontinently disappeared from the spot on which it stood, and almost instantaneously reappeared on the topmost branch of a high tree ; while the young man gave a smile of satisfaction, threw the rifle over his shoulder, and, turning round, strode rapidly away in the direction whence the shot proceeded. A few minutes' walk brought him to the banks of a little brook, by the side of which, on the projecting root of a tree, sat a man, with a dead goose at his feet and a fowling-piece by his side. He was dressed in the garb of a hunter ; and, from the number of gray hairs that shone like threads of silver among the black curls on his temples, he was evidently past the meridian of life, — although, from the upright bearing of his tall muscular frame, and the quick glance of his fearless black eye, it was equally evident that the vigour of his youth was not yet abated. " Why, Stanley," exclaimed the young man as he approached, " I've been shouting till my throat is cracked, for at least half-an-hour. I verily began to think that you had forsaken me altogether." " In which ca-se, Frank," replied the other, " I should have treated you as you deserve, for your empty game- bag proves you an unworthy comrade in the chase." " So, so, friend, do not boast," replied the youth with a smile ; " if I mistake not, that goose was winging its way to the far north not ten minutes agone. Had I come up half-an-hour sooner, I suspect we should have met on equal terms ; but the fact is, that I have not seen hair or feather, save a tree-squirrel, siuce I left you in the morning." " Well, to say truth, I was equally unfortunate until 1 met this luckless goose, and fired the shot that brought UXGAVA. 11 liitn clown and brought you up. But I've had enough o' this now, and shall back to the fort again. What say you, — will you go in my canoe or walk ? " The young man w^as silent for a few seconds ; then, without replying to his companion's question, he said, — " By-the-by, is it not to-night that you mean to make another attempt to induce the men to volunteer for the expedition ? " " It is," replied Stanley, with a slight frown. " And what if they still persist in refusing to go ? " " I'll try once more to shame them out of their cowardice. But if they won't agree, I'll compel them to go by means of more powerful arguments than words." " 'Tis not cowardice ; you do the men injustice," said Frank, shaking his head. " Well, well, I believe I do, lad ; you're right," replied Stanley, while a smile smoothed out the firm lines that had gathered round his lips for a few seconds. " No doubt they care as little for the anticipated dangers of the expedition as any men living, and they hesitate to go simply because they know that the life before them will be a lonely one at such an out-o'-the-way place as Ungava. But we can't help that, Fraftk ; the interests of the Company must be attended to, and so go they must, willing or not willing. But I'm annoyed at this unexpected difficulty, for there's a mighty difference between men w^ho volunteer to go and men who go merely because they must and can't help it." The young man slowly rubbed the stock of his rifle with the sleeve of his coat, and looked as if he understood and sympathized with his friend's chagrin. " If Prince were only here just now," said he, looking up, " there would be no difficulty in the matter. These fellows only want a bold, hearty comrade to step forward '^•i ll f 12 UNGAVA. and show them the way, and they will follow to the North Pole if need be. They look upon our willingness to go as a mere matter of course, though I don't see why we should be expected to like banishment more than themselves. But if Prince were — " " Well, well, Prince is not here, so we must do the best we can without him," said Stanley. As he spoke, the trumpet note of a goose was heard in the distance. " There he goes ! — down with you ! " exclaimed Frank, darting suddenly behind the stump of the tree, while his companion crouched beside him, and both began to shout at the top of their voices in imitation of the goose. The bird was foolish enough to accept the invitation immediately, although, had it been other than a goose, it would have easily recognized the sound as a wretched counterfeit of the goose language. It flew directly towards them, as geese always do in spring when thus enticed, but passed at such a distance that the elder sportsman was induced to lower his piece. " Ah ! he's too far ofl". You'd better give him a shot with the rifle, Frank ; but you're sure to miss." "To hit, you mean," cried his companion, flushing with momentary indignation at this disparaging remark. At the same moment he took a rapid aim and fired. For a few yards the goose continued its forward flight as if unhurt ; then it wavered once or twice, and fell heavily to the ground. " Bravo, boy ! " cried Stanley. " There, don't look nettled ; I only jested with you, knowing your weakness on the score of rifle-shooting. Now, pick up your bird, and throw it into the canoe, for I must away." Frank finished reloading his piece as his friend spoke, and went to pick up the goose ; while the ether walked UNGAVA. 13 down to the edge of the rivulet, and disengaged a light birch-bark canoe from the long grass and sedges that almost hid it from view. "Make haste, Frank !" he shouted; "th3re's the ice coming up with the flood-tide, and bearing down on the creek here." ^ At a short distance from the spot where the sportsmen stood, the streamlet already alluded to mingled its waters with a broad river, which, a few miles farther down, flows into James's Bay. As every one knows, this bay lies to the south of Hudson's Bay, in North America. Here the river is about two miles wide ; and the shores on either side being low, it has all the appearance of an extensive lake. In spring, after the disruption of the ice, its waters are loaded with large floes and fields of ice ; and later in the season, after it has become quite free from this wintry encumbrance, numerous detached masses come up with every flood-tide. It was the approach of one of these floes that called forth Stanley's remark. The young man replied to it by springing towards the canoe, in which his companion was already seated. Throwing the dead bird into it, he stooped, and gave the light bark a powerful shove into the stream, ex- claiming, as he did so, " There, strike out, you've no time to lose, and I'll go round by the woods." There was indcv d no time to lose. The huge mass of ice was closing rapidly into the mouth of the creek, and narrowing the only passage through which the canoe could escape into the open water of the river beyond. Stanley might, indeed, drag his canoe up the bank, if so disposed, and reach home by a circuitous walk through the woods ; but by doing so he would lose much time, and be under the necessitj^ of carrying 14 UNGAVA. I , I his gun, blanket, tin kettle, and the goose, on his back. His broad shoulders were admirably adapted for such a burden, but he preferred the canoe to the woods on the present occasion. Besides, the only risk he ran was that of getting his canoe crushed to pieces. So, plunging his paddle vigorously in the water, he shot through the lessening channel like an arrow, and swept out on the bosom of the broad river just as the ice closed with a crash upon the shore and ground itself to powder on the rocks. " Well done ! " shouted Frank, with a wave of his cap, as he witnessed the success of his friend's exploit. " All right," replied Stanley, glancing over his shoulder. In another moment the canoe disappeared behind a group of willows that grew on the point at the river's mouth, and the young man was left alone. For a few minutes he stood contemplating the point behind which his companion had disappeared ; then giving a hasty glance at the priming of his rifle, he threw it across his shoulder, and striding rapidly up the bank, was soon lost to view amid the luxuriant undergrowth of the forest. CHAPTER II. Headquarters- The men — Dispntatinn and uncertainty — Keio uses for the skins of dead boi/s ! — Mutinous resolves. MOOSE FORT, the head-quarters and depot of the fur-traders, who prosecute their traffic in ahiiost all parts of the wild and uninhabited regions of North America, stands on an island near the mouth of Moose River. Like all the establishments of the fur-traders, it is a solitary group of wooden buildings, far removed beyond the influences — almost beyond the ken — of the civilized world, and surrounded by the primeval wilder- ness, the only tenants of which were, at the time we write of, a few scattered tribes of Muskigon Indians, and the wild animals whose flesh furnished them with food and whose skins constituted their sole wealth. There was little of luxury at Moose Fort. The walls of the houses within the stockade, that served more as an ornament than a defence, were of painted, in some cases unpainted, planks. The floors, ceilings, chairs, tables, and, in short, all the articles of furniture in the place, were made of the same rough material. A lofty scaflbld- ing of wood rose above the surrounding buildings, and served as an outlook, whence, at the proper season, longing eyes were wont to be turned towards the sea in expectation of " the ship " which paid the establishment an annual visit from England. Several large iron field- 14, ^d' i UNGAVA. pieces stood before the front j^ate ; but they were more for the sake of appearance than use, and were never tired except for the purpose of sahitiug the said ship on tlie occasions of her arrival and departure. The first boom of the cannon unlocks the long-closed portals of connection between Moose Fort and England ; the second salvo shuts them up again in their frozen domains for another year ! A century and a lialf ago, the band of " adventurers trading into Hudson's Bay " felled the first trees and pitched their tents on the shores of James's Bay, and successive generations of fur-traders have kept the post until the present day ; yet there is scarcely a symptom of the presence of man beyond a few miles round the establishment. Years aijo the fort was built, and there it stands now, with new tenants it is true, but in its general aspect unchanged ; and there it is likely to remain, wrapped in its barrier of all but impregnable solitude, for centuries to come. Nevertheless, Moose is a comfortable place in its way, and when contrasted with other trading establishments is a very palace and temple of luxury. There are men within its walls who can tell of log-huts and starvation, solitude and desolation, compared with which Moose is a terrestrial paradise. Frank Morton, whom we have introduced in the first chapter, said, on his arrival at Moose, that it appeared to him to be the very fag-end of creation. He had travelled night and day for six weeks from what he considered the very outskirts of civilization, through uninhabited forests and almost un- known rivers, in order to get to it ; and while the feeling of desolation that overwhelmed him on his first arrival was strong upon him, he sighed deeply, and called it a " horrid dull hole." But Frank was of a gay, hearty, joyous disposition, and had not been there long ere he loved ^^.^Mk: UNGAVA. 17 icy were more id were never le said ship on ire. The first ►sed portals of nd ; the second n domains for 0, the band of ,y" felled the the shores of of fur-traders y ; yet there is man beyond a rs aizo the fort new tenants it n-ed ; and there irrier of all but le. lace in its way, establishments There are men and starvation, Ihich Moose is a horn we have his arrival at e very fag-end d day for six iry outskirts of land almost un- hile the feeling [first arrival was led it a " horrid hearty, joyous Vf ere he loved the old fort dearly. Poor fellow ! far removed though he was from his fellow-men at Moose, he afterwards learned that he had but obtained an indistinct notion of the signification of the word " solitude." There were probably about thirty human beings at Moose, when Mr. George Stanley, one of the principal fur- traders of the place, received orders from the governor to make preparations, and select men, for the purpose of proceeding many hundred miles deeper into the northern wilderness, and establishing a station on the distant, almost unknown, shores of Ungava Bay. No one at Moose had ever been there before ; no one knew any- thing about the route, except from the vague report of a few Indians ; and the only thing that was definitely known about the locality at all was, that its inhabitants were a few wandering tribes of Esquimaux, who were at deadly feud with the Indians, and generally massacred all who came within their reach. What the capabilities of the country were, in regard to timber and provisions, nobody knew, and, fortunately for the success of the expedition, nobody cared ! At least those who were to lead the way did not ; and this admirable quality of total indifference to prospective dangers is that which, to a great extent, insures success in a forlorn-hope. Of the leaders of this expedition the reader already knows something. George Stanley was nearly six feet high, forty years of age, and endued with a decision of character that, but for his quiet good-humour, would have been deemed obstinacy. He was deliberate in all his movements, and exercised a control over his feelings that quite concealed his naturally enthusiastic disposi- tion. Moreover, he was married, and had a daughter of ten years of age. This might be thought a dis- advantage in his present circumstances ; but the governor 2 UNOAVA. of tho fur-traders, a most energetic and active ruler, thought otherwise. He recommended that tho family should be left at Moose until an establishnu^nt liad been built, and a winter passed at IJngava. Afterwards they could join him there. As for Frank Morton, he was an inch taller than his friend Stanley, and equally powerful ; fair-haired, blue -eyed, hilarious, romantic, twenty- two years of age, and so impulsive that, on hearing of the proposed expedition from one of his comrades, who happened to be present when Stanley was reading the despatches, he sprang from his chair, which he upset — dashed out at tho door, which he banged — and hurried to his friend's quarters in order to be first to volunteer his services as second in command ; which offer was rendered unnecessary by Stanley's exclaiming, the mo- ment he entered his room, — " Ha, Frank, my lad, the very man I wanted to see ! Here's a letter from head-quarters ordering me off on an expedition to Ungava. Now, I want volunteers ; will you go ? " It is needless to add that Frank's blue eyes sparkled with animation as he seized his friend's hand and replied, " To the North Pole if you like, or farther if need be ! " It was evening. The sun was gilding the top of the flag-staff with a parting kiss, and the inhabitants of Moose Fort, having finished their daily toil, were making preparations for their evening meal. On the end of the wharf that jutted out into the stream was assembled a picturesque group of men, who, from the earnest manner in which they conversed, and the energy of their gesticulations, were evidently discussing a subject of more than ordinary interest. Most of them were clad in corduroy trousers, gartered below the knee with in UNGAVA. 19 thongs of deer-skin, and coarse striped cotton shirts, open at the neck so as to expose their sun-burnt breasts. A IVvv wore caps which, wluitever niiglit have been their original form, wore now so much soiled and battered out '>f shapi' by long and severe service that they were nondesciipt ; but most of these harny back- woodsmen were content with tho covering afforded by their thick bushv locks. '* No, no," exclaimed a short, thick-set, powerful man, with a somewhat ascetic cast of countenance ; " I've seen more than enough o' these rascally Huskies.* 'Tis well for me that I'm here this blessed day, an' not made into a dan to bob about in Hudson's Straits at the tail of a white whale, like that poor boy Peter who was shot by them varmints." " What's a dan ? " asked a young half-breed who had lately arrived at Moose, and knew little of Esquimau implements. " What a green-horn you must be, Francois, not to know what a dan is ! " replied another, who was inclined to be quizzical. " Why, it's a sort of sea-carriage that the Esquimaux tie to the tail of a walrus or sea- horse when they feel inclined for a drive. When they can't get a sea-horse they catch a white whale asleep, and wake him up after fastening the dan to his tail. I suppose they have conjurers or wizards among them, since Massan told us just now that poor Peter was — " " Bah ! gammon," interrupted Fran9ois with a smile, as he turned to the first speaker. " But tell me, Massan, what is a dan ? " " It's a sort o' float or buoy, lad, used by the Huskies, and is made out o' the skin o' the seal. They tie it * Esquimaux. - Ji^i-iiaa ww mmmm 20 UNGAVA. with a long line to their whale spears to show which way the fish bolts when struck." " And did they use Peter''' skin for such a purpose ? " inquired Fran9ois, earnestly. " They did,'' replied Massan. " And did you see them do it ? " " Yes, I did." Fran9ois gazed intently into his comrade's face as he spoke ; but Massan was an adept at what is usually called drawing the long bow, and it was with the most imperturbable gravity that he continued — "Yes, I saw them do it ; but I could not render any assistance to the poor child, for I was lying close behind a rock at the time, with an arrow sticking between my shoulders, and a score o' them oily varmints a-shoutin', and yellin', and flourishing their spears in search o' me.'* " Tell us how it happened, Massan. Let's hear the story," chorused the men, as they closed round their comrade. " Well then," began the stout backwoodsman, pro- ceeding leisurely to fill his pipe from an ornamented bag that hung at his belt, " here goes. It was about the year — a — I forget the year, but it don't matter — that we were ordered off on an expedition to the Huskies ; 'xactly sich a one as they wants us to go on now, and — but you've heerd o' that business, lads, haven't you ? " " Yes, yes, we've heard all about it ; go on." " Well," continued Massan, " I needn't be wastin' time tellin' you how we failed in that affair, and how the Huskies killed some of our men and burnt our ship to the water's edge. After it was all over, and they thought they had killed us all, I was, as I said, lyin' behind a great rock in a sort o' cave, lookin' at the dirty villains as they danced about on the shore, and took UNGAVA. 21 possession of all our goods. Suddenly I seed two o* them carry Peter down to the beach, an' I saw, as they passed me, that he was quite dead. In less time than I can count a hundred they took the skin off him, cut off his head, sewed up the hole, tied his arms and legs in a knot, blew him full o' wind till he was fit to bu'st, an' then hung him up to dry in the sun ! In fact they made a dan of him ! " A loud shout of laughter greeted this startling con- clusion. In truth, we must do Massan the justice to say, that although he was much in the habit of amusing his companions by entertaining them with anecdotes which originated entirely in his own teeming fancy, he never actually deceived them, but invariably, either by a sly glance or by the astounding nature of his com- munication, gave them to understand that he was dealing not with fact but fiction. " But seriously, lads," said Francois, whose intelligence, added to a grave, manly countenance and a tall, muscular frame, caused him to be regarded by his comrades as a sort of leader both in action and in council, " what do you think of our bourgeois' plan ? For my part, I'm willing enough to go to any reasonable part o' the country where there are furs and Indians ; but as for this Ungava, from what Massan says, there's neither Indians, nor furs, nor victuals, — nothin' but rocks, and mountains, and eternal winter; and if we do get the Huskies about us, they'll very likely serve us as they did the last expedition to Richmond Gulf." " Ay, ay," cried one of the others, " you may say that, Fran9ois. Nothin' but frost and starvation, and nobody to bury us when we're dead." " Except the Huskies," broke in another, " who would save themselves the trouble by converting us all into dans!" 22 UNGAVA. " Tush, man ! stop your clapper," cried Fran9ois, im- patiently ; " let us settle this business. You know that Monsieur Stanley said he would expect us to be ready with an answer to-night. — What think you, Gaspard ? shall we go, or shall we mutiny ? " The individual addressed was a fine specimen of an animal, but not by any means a good specimen of a man. He was of gigantic proportions, straight and tall as a poplar, and endowed with the strength of a Hercules. His glittering dark eyes and long black hair, together with the hue of his skin, bespoke him of half-breed extraction. But his countenance did not correspond to his fine physical proportions. True, his features were good, but they wore habitually a scowling, sulky ex- pression, even when the man was pleased, and there was more of sarcasm than joviality in the sound when Gaspard condescended to laugh. " I'll be shot if I go to such a hole for the best bourgeois in the country," said he in reply to Francois' question. " You'll be dismissed the service if you don't," re- marked Massan with a smile. To this Gaspard vouchsafed no reply save a growl that, to say the best of it, did not sound amiable. " Well, I think that we're all pretty much of one mind on the point," continued Fran9ois ; " and yet I feel half ashamed to refuse after all, especially when I see the good will with which Messieurs Stanley and Morton agree to go." "I suppose you expect to be a bourgeois too some day," growled Gaspard with a sneer. " Eh, tu gros chien ? " cried Fran9ois, as with flashing eyes and clinched fists he strode up to his ill-tempered comrade. UNGAVA. 23 " Come, come, Francois, don't quarrel for nothing," said Massan, interposing his broad shoulders and pushing him vigorously back. At that moment an exclamation from one of the men diverted the attention of the others. " Voila! the canoe." " Ay, it's Monsieur Stanley's canoe. I saw him and Monsieur Morton start for the swamp this morning." " I wonder what Dick Prince would have done in this business had he been here," said FranQois to Massan in a low tone, as they stood watching the approach of their bourgeois' canoe. " Can't say. I half think he would have gone." " There's no chance of him coming back in time, I fear." " None ; unless he prevails on some goose to lend him a pair of wings for a day or two. He won't be back from the hunt for three weeks good." In a few minutes more the canoe skimmed up to the wharf. " Here, lads," cried Mr. Stanley, as he leaped ashore and dragged the canoe out of the water ; " one of you come and lift this canoe up the bank, and take these geese to the kitchen." Two of the men instantly hastened to obey, and Stanley, with the gun and paddles under his arm, pro- ceeded towards the gateway of the fort. As he passed the group assembled on the wharf, he turned and said, — " You'll come to the hall in an hour, lads ; I shall expect you to be ready with an answer by that time." " Ay, ay, sir," replied several of the men. " But we won't go for all your expectations," said one in an undertone to a comrade. II ! ! 24 UNGAVA. " I should think not," whispered another. " 111 be hanged, and burnt, and frozen if / do," said a third. In the meantime Mr. Stanley walked briskly towards his dwelling, and left the men to grumble over their troubles and continue their debate as to whether they should or should not agree to go on the pending ex- pedition to the distant regions of Ungava. CHAPTER III. Shoivs hoio Stanley dcirfned to consult with 7Vomankind—The opinions of a child developed — Persuasion fails — Example triumphs— The first volunteers to Ungava. ON reaching his apartment, which was in an angle of the principal edifice in the fort, Mr. Stanley- flung down his gun and paddles, and drawing a chair close to his wife, who was working with her needle near a window, took her hand in his and heaved a deep sigh. " Why, George, that's what you used to say to me when you were at a loss for words in the days of our courtship." "True, Jessie," he replied, patting her shoulder with a hand that rough service had rendered hard and long exposure had burnt brown. " But the producing cause then was different from what it is now. Then it was love ; now it is perplexity." Stanley's wife was the daughter of English parents, who had settled many years ago in the fur countries. Being quite beyond the reach of any school, they had been obliged to undertake the instruction of their only child, Jessie, as they best could. At first this was an easy matter, but as years flew by, and little Jessie's mind expanded, it was found to be a difficult matter to carry on her education in a country in most parts of 26 UNGAVA. which books were not to be had and schoolmasters did not exist. When the difficulty first presented itself, they talked of sending their little one to England to finish her education ; but being unable to bring them- selves to part with her, they resolved to have a choice selection of books sent out to them. Jessie's mother was a clever, accomplished, and lady-like woman, and decidedly pious, so that the little flower, which was indeed born to blush unseen, grew up to be a gentle, affectionate woman — one who was a lady in all her thoughts and actions, yet had never seen polite society, save that of her father and mother. In process of time Jessie became Mrs. Stanley, and the mother of a little girl whose voice was, at the time her father entered, ringing cheerfully in an adjoining room. Mrs. Stanley's nature was an earnest one, and she no sooner observed that her husband was worried about something, than she instantly dropped the light tone in which she at first addressed him. "'And what perplexes you now, dear George ? " she said, laying down her work and looking up in his face with that straightforward, earnest gaze that in days of yore had set the stout backwoodsman's heart on fire, and still kept it in a perennial blaze. " Nothing very serious," he replied with a smile ; " only these fellows have taken it into their stupid heads that Ungava is worse than the land beyond the Styx ; and so, after the tough battle that I had with you this morning in order to prevail on you tc remain here for a winter without me, I've had to fight another battle with them in order to get them to go on this expeditiuxi.'' " Have you been victorious ? " inquired Mrs. Stanley. «No, not yet." " Do you really mean to say they are afraid to go ? TJNGAVA. 27 Has Prince refused ? are Fran9ois, Gaspard, and Massan cowards ? " she inquired, her eye kindling with indigna- tion. " Nay, my wife, not so. These men are not cowards ; nevertheless they don't feel inclined to go ; and as for Dick Prince, he has been off hunting for a week, and I don't expect him back for three weeks at least, by which time we shall be off." Mrs. Stanley sighed, as if she felt the utter helpless- ness of woman in such affairs. " Why, Jessie, that's what you used to say to me when you were at a loss for words in the days of our court- ship," said Stanley, smiling. "Ah, George, like you I may say that the cause is now perplexity ; for what can / do to help you in your present difficulty ? " "Truly not much. But I like to tell you of my troubles, and to make more of them than they deserve, for the sake of drawing forth your sympathy. Bless your heart ! " he said, in a sudden burst of enthusiasm, " I would gladly undergo any amount of trouble every day, if by so doing I should secure that earnest, loving, anxious gaze of your sweet blue eyes as a reward ! " Stanley imprinted a hearty kiss on his wife's cheek as he made this lover-like speech, and then rose to place his fowling-piece on the pegs from which it usually hung over the fire-place. At that moment the door opened, and a little girl, with bright eyes and flaxen hair, bounded into the room. " mamma, mamma ! " she said, holding up a sheet of paper, while a look of intense satisfaction beamed on her animated countenance, " see, I have drawn Chime's portrait. Is it like, mamma ? Do you think it like ? " 28 UNGAVA. " Come here, Eda, my darling, come to me,*' said Stanley, seating himself on a chair and extending his arms. Edith instantly left the portrait of the dog in her mother's possession, and, without waiting for an opinion as to its merits, ran to her father, jumped on his knee, threw her arms round his neck, and kissed him. Edith was by no means a beautiful child, but miserable indeed must have been the taste of him who would have pronounced her plain-looking. Her features were not regular; her nose had a strong tendency to what is called snubbed, and her mouth was large ; but to counter- balance these defects she had a pair of large deep-blue eyes, soft golden hair, a fair rosy complexion, and an expression of sweetness at the corners of her mouth that betrayed habitual good-nature. She was quick in all her movements, combined with a peculiar softness and grace of deportment that was exceedingly attractive. " Would you like to go, my pet," said her father, " to a country far, far away in the north, where there are high mountains and deep valleys, inhabited by beautiful reindeer, and large lakes and rivers filled with fish ; where there is very little daylight all the long winter, and where there is scarcely any night all the long bright summer ? Would my Eda like to go there ? " The child possessed that fascinating quality of being intensely interested in all that was said to her. As her father spoke, her eyes gradually expanded and looked straight into his, while her head turned slowly and very slightly to one side. As he concluded, she replied, " Oh ! very, very, very much indeed," with a degree of energy that made both her parents laugh. " Ah, my darling ! would that my lazy men were endued with some of your spirit," said Stanley, patting the child's head. n UNGAVA. 1 were " Is Prince a lazy man, papa ? " inquired Edith anxiously. " No, certainly, Prince is not. Why do you ask ? " " Because I love Prince." " And do you not love all the men ? " " No," replied Edith, with some hesitation ; " at least I don't love them very much, and I hate one ! " " Hate one ! " echoed Mrs. Stanley. " Come here, my darling." Eda slipped from her father's knee and went to her mother, feeling and looking as if she had said something wrong. Mrs. Stanley was not one of those mothers who, whenever they hear of their children having done any- thing wrong, assume a look of intense, solemnized horror, that would lead an ignorant sj>ectator to suppose that intelligence had just been received of some sudden and appalling catastrophe. She knew that children could not be deceived by such pieces of acting. She expressed on her countenance precisely what she felt — a slight degree of sorrow that her child should cherish an evil passion, which, she knew, existed in her heart in common with all the human race, but which she expected, by God's help and blessing, to subdue effectually at last. Kissing Eda's forehead she said kindly, — " Which of them do you hate, darling ? " " Gaspard," replied the child. " And why do you hate him ? " " Because he struck my dog,'' said Eda, while her face flushed and her eyes sparkled ; " and he is always rude to everybody, and very, very cruel to the dogs." " That is very wrong of Gaspard ; but, dearest Eda, do you not remember what is written in God's Word, — * Love your enemies ' ? It is wrong to hate anybody." 30 UNGAVA. "I know that, mamma, and I don't wish to hate Gaspard, but I can't help it. I wish if I didn't hate him, but it won't go away." " Well, my pet," replied Mrs. Stanley, pressing the child to her bosom, " but you must pray for him, and speak kindly to him when you meet him, and that will perhaps put it away. And now let us talk of the far- off country that papa was speaking about. I wonder what he has to tell you about it ! " Stanley had been gazing out of the window during the foregoing colloquy, apparently inattentive, though, in reality, deeply interested in what was said. Turning round, he said, — " I was going to tell Eda that you had arranged to follow me to that country next year, and that perhaps you would bring her along with you." " Nay, George, you mistake. I did not arrange to do so, — you only proposed the arrangement ; but, to say truth, I don't like it, and I can't make up my mind to let you go without us. I cannot wait till next year." " Well, well, Jessie, I have exhausted all my powers of persuasion. I leave it entirely to yourself to do as you think best." At this moment the sound of deep voices was heard in the hall, which was separated from Stanley's quarters by a thin partition of wood. In a few seconds the door opened, and George Barney, the Irish butler and general factotum to the establishment, announced that the " min wos in the hall awaitin'." Giving Eda a parting kiss, Stanley rose and entered the hall, where Fran9ois, Massan, Gaspard, and several others were grouped in a corner. On their bourgeois entering, they doffed their bonnets and bowed. . ' " Well, lads," began Stanley, with a smile, " youVe UNGAVA, 31 bo hate I't hate ng the im, and lat will the far- wonder during though, rurning aged to perhaps ;e to do 1 to say [lind to f: it ear." 1 powers do as 1 heard 1 uarters • le door general ) " min '■ ntered jeveral irgeois ',' rouve thought better of it, I hope, and have come to \oluni '- for this expedition — " He checked himself and froM A, for he saw by their looks that they had come with (ji^ifce a different intention. " What have you to say to me ? " he continued, abruptly. The men looked uneasily at each other, and then fixed their eyes on Francois, who was evidently expected to be spokesman. " Come, FranCj'ois, speak out," said Stanley ; " if you have any objections, out with them, — you're free to say what you please here." As he spoke, and ere Francois could reply, Frank Morton entered the room. '* Ah ! " he exclaimed, as he deposited his rifle in a corner and flung his cap on the table, " in time, I see, to help at the council ! " *• I was just asking Francois to state his objections to going," said Stanley, as his young friend took his place beside him. " Objections ! " repeated Frank ; " what objections can bold spirits have to go on a bold adventure ? The ques- tion should have been, ' Who will be first to volunteer ? ' " At this moment the door of Stanley's apartment opened, and his wife appeared leading Eda by the hand. " Here are two volunteers," she said, with a smile ; " pray put us at the head of your list. We will go with you to any part of the world ! " " Bravo ! " shouted Frank, catching up Eda, with whom he was a great favourite, and hugging her tightly in his arms. " Nay, but, wife, this is sheer folly You know not the dangers that await you — " " Perhaps not," interrupted Mrs. Stanley, " but you know them, and that is enough for me." " Indeed, Jessie, I know them not. I can but guess r^'- If Hi fit I 'i,; 32 UNGxVVA. at thorn. — But, ah ! W(;1I, 'tis useless to arguo further Be it so ; we shall head the list with you and Eda." " And put my name next," said a deep-toned voice from behind the other men. All turned round in surprise. " Dick Prince ! " they exclaimed ; " you here ? " " Ay, lads," said a tall man of about forty, who was not so remarkable for physical development, (though in this respect he was by no means deficient) as for a certain decision of character that l)etrayed itself in every outline of his masculine, intelligent countenance — " ay, lads, I'm here ; an' sorry am I that I've jist comed in time to hear that you're sich poor-spirited rascals as to hang back when ye should jump for'ard." " But how came you so opportunely, Prince ? " inquired Stanley. "I met an Injin, sir, as told me you was goin' off; so I thought you might want me, and comed straight back. And now, sir, I'm ready to go ; and so is Franc^ois," he continued, turning to that individual, who seized his hand and exclaimed, " That am I, my boy, to the moon if ye like ! " " And Massan, too," continued Prince. " All right ; book me for Nova Zembla," replied that worthy. "So, so," cried Mr. Stanley, with a satisfied smile. " I see, lads, that we're all of one mind now. Is it not so ? Are we agreed ? " " Agreed ! agreed ! " they replied with one voice. " That's well," he continued. " Now then, lads, clear out and get your kits ready. — And ho ! Barney, give these men a glass of grog. — Prince, I shall want to talk with you this evening. Come to me an hour hence. — And now," he added, taking Eda by the hand, " come along, my gentle volunteers ; let's go to supper." ',. ill CHAPTER IV. r Explnnatori/, hut not dry !—Murilerous (fcunms thwarted hi/ riffomus treat- lucnt—'Tkc cattle pai/ fur it !—Prci)aratiom for a lony, lowj voi/aije. I N order to render our story intelligible, it is necessary here to say a few words explanatory of the nature and object of the expedition referred to in the foregoing chapters. Many years previous to the opening of our tale, it was deemed expedient, by the rulers of the Hudson's Bay Fur Company, to effect, if possible, a reconciliation or treaty of peace between the Muskigon Indians of James's Bay and the Esquimaux of Hudson's Straits. | The Muskigons are by no means a warlike race ; on the contrary, they are naturally timid, and only plucked up courage to make war on their northern neighbours in consequence of these poor people being destitute of fire- arms, while themselves were supplied with guns and ammunition by the fur-traders. The Esquimaux, how- ever, are much superior to the Muskigon Indians physic- ally, and would have held their adversaries in light esteem had they met on equal terms, or, indeed, on any terms at all ; but the evil was that they never met. The Indians always took them by surprise, and from behind the rocks and bushes sent destruction into their camps with the deadly bullet ; while their helpless foes could only reply with the comparatively harmless arrow a '^. v* UNGAVA. ii I I If " fi and spear. Thus the war was in fact an annual raid of murderers. The conceited Muskigons returned to their wigwams in triumph, with bloody scalps hangin[>" at their belts; while the Esquimaux pushed farther into their ice-bound fastnesses, and told their comrades, with lower- ing brows and heaving bosoms, of the sudden attack, and of the wives and children who had been butchered in cold blood, cr led captive to the tents of the cowardly red men. At such times those untutored inhabitants of the frozen regions vowed vengeance on the Indians, and cursed in their hearts the white men who supplied them with the deadly gnn. But the curse was unmerited. In the councils of the fur-traders the subject of Esqui- mau wrongs had been mooted, and plans for the amelioration of their condition devised. Trading posts were established on Kichmond Gulf and Little Whale River ; but owing to circumstances which it is unneces- sary to detail here, they turned out failures, and were at length abandoned. Still, those in charge of the dis- tricts around Hudson's Bay and Labrador continued to use every argument to prevail on the Indians to cease their murderous assaults on their unoffending neigh- bours, but without much effect. At length the governor of East Main — a territory lying on the eastern shores of James's Bay — adopted an argument which proved eminently successful, at least for one season. His fort was visited by a large band of Muskigons from Albany and Moose districts, who brought a quantity of valuable furs, for which they demanded guns and ammunition, making no secret of their intention to pro- ceed on an expedition against their enemies the Esqui- maux. On hearing of this, the governor went out to them, and, in a voice of extreme indignation, assured M m •*1 UNGAVA. 35 them that they should not have an ounce of supplies for such a purpose. " But we will pay you for what we ask. We are not befjrars ! " exclaimed the astonished Indians, into whose calculations it had never entered that white traders would refuse good furs merely in order to prevent the death of a few Esquimaux. "See," cried the angry governor, snatching up the nearest bale of furs — " see, that's all I care for you or your payment ! " and hurling the pack at its owner's head, he felled him therewith to the ground. " No," he con- tinued, shaking his fist at them, *' I'll not give you as much powder or shot as would blow off the tail of a rabbit, if you were to bring me all the skins in Labrador ! " The consequence of this vigorous conduct was that the Indians retired crest-fallen — utterly discomfited. But in the camp that night they plotted revenge. In the darkness of the night they slaughtered all the cattle around the establishment, and before daybreak were over the hills and far away in the direction of their hunting-grounds, loaded with fresh beef sufficient for the supply of themselves and their families for the winter ! It was a heavy price to pay ; but the poor Esquimaux remained unmolested that year, while the Indians re- ceived a salutary lesson. But the compulsory peace w^as soon broken, and it became apparent that the only effectual w^ay to check the bloodthirsty propensity of the Indians was to arm their enemies with the gun. The destruction of the first expedition to the Esquimaux, and the bad feeling that existed in the minds uf the na- tives of Richmond Gulf consequent thereon, induced the fur-traders to fix on another locality for a new attempt. It was thought that the remote solitudes of Ungava Bay, at the extreme north of Labrador, — where the white ! s 'I i 36 UNGAVA. man s axe had never yet felled the stunted pines of the north, nor the ring of his rifle disturbed its echoes, — would be the spot best suited for the erection of a wooden fort. Accordingly, it was appointed that Mr. George Stanley should select a coadjutor, and proceed with a party of picked men to the scene of action as early in the spring as the ice would permit, and there build a fort as he best could, with the best materials he could find ; live on whatever the country afforded in the shape of food ; establish a trade in oil, whalebone, arctic foxes, etc., etc., if they were to be got ; and bring about a reconciliation between the Esquimaux and the Indians of the interior, if that were possible. With the careful minuteness peculiar to documents, Stanley's instructions went on to point out that he was to start from Moose — with two half -sized canoes, each capable of carrying ten pieces or packages of 90 lbs. weight each, besides the crew — and hove through the ice, if the ice would allow him, till he should reach Richmond Gulf ; cross this gulf, and ascend, if practicable, some of the rivers which fall into it from the height of land supposed, but noi positivelj^ known, to exist somewhere in the interior. Passing this height, he was to descend by the rivers and lakes (if such ex- isted) leading to the eastward, until he should fall upon a river reported to exist in these lands, and called by the natives Ganiapuscaw, or South River, down which he was to proceed to the scene of his labours, Ungava Bay ; on reaching which he was considerately left to the unaided guidance of his own discretion ! Reduced to their lowest term and widest signification, the instruc- tions directed our friend to start as early as he could, with whom he chose, and with what he liked ; travel as fast as possible over terra incognita to a land of ice — perhaps, also, or desolation — and locate himself among UNGAVA. 37 bloody savages. It was hoped that there would be found a sufficiency of trees wherewith to build him a shelter against a prolonged winter ; in the meantime he might enjoy a bright arctic summer sky for his canopy! But it was known, or at least supposed, that the Esquimaux were fierce and cruel savages, if not can- nibals. Their very name implies something of the sort. It signifies eaters of raw flesh, and was bestowed on them by their enemies the Muskigons. They call them- selves Innuit — men, or warriors ; and although they certainly do eat raw flesh when necessity compels them — which it often does — they asserted that they never did so from choice. However, be this as it may, the remembrance of their misdeeds in the first expeditions was fresh in the minds of the men in the service of the fur-traders, and they evinced a decided unwillingness to venture into such a country and among such a people, — an unwillingness which was only at length overcome when Mrs. Stanley and her little daughter heroically volunteered to share the dangers of the expedition in the manner already narrated. Stanley now made vigorous preparations for his de- parture. Some of the men had already been enrolled, as we have seen, and there were more than enough of able and active volunteers ready to complete the crews. " Com.e hither, lads," he cried, beckoning to two men who were occupied on the bank of the river, near the entrance to Moose Fort, in repairing the side of a canoe. The men left their work and approached. They were both Esquimaux, and good stout, broad-shouldered, thick- set specimens of the race they were. One was called Oolibuck,* the other Augustus ; both of which names are * This name is spelt as it should bo pronounced. The correct spelling is Ouligbuck. \ M (j ii i ! ) i !! 38 UNGAVA. now chronicled in the history of arctic adventure as hav- ing belonged to the well-tried and faithful interpreters to Franklin, Back, and Richardson, in their expeditions of north-west discovery. " I'm glad to see you busy at the canoe, boys," said Stanley, as they came up. " Of course you are both willing to revisit your countrymen." " Yes, sir, we is. Glad to go where you choose send us," answered Oolibuck, whose broad, oily countenance lighted up with good-humour as he spoke. " It will remind you of your trip with Captain Frank- lin," continued Stanley, addressing Augustus. " Me no like to 'member dat," said the Esquimau, with a sorrowful shake of the head. " Me love bour- geois Franklin, but tink me never see him more." " I don't know that, old fellow," returned Stanley, with a smile. " Franklin is not done with his discoveries yet ; there's a talk of sending off another expedition some of these days, I hear, so you may have a chance yet." Augustus's black eyes sparkled with pleasure as he heard this. He was a man of strong feeling, and dur- ing his journeyings with our great arctic hero had become attached to him in consequence of the hearty and un- varying kindness and consideration with which he treated all under his command. But the spirit of enterprise had been long slumbering, and poor Augustus, who was now past the prime of life, feared that he should never see his kind master more. " Now I want you, lads, to get everything in readi- ness for an immediate start," continued Stanley, glancing upwards at the sky ; " if the weather holds, we shan't be long of paying your friends a visit. Are both canoes repaired ? " UNGAVA. 39 " Yes, sir, they is," replied Oolibuck. " And the baggage, is it laid out i And — " " Pardon monsieur," interrupted Massan, walking up, and touching his cap. " I've jest been down at the point, and there's a rig'lar nor'-wester a-comin' down. The ice is sweepin' into the river, an' it'll be choked up by to-morrow, I'm afraid." Stanley received this piece of intelligence with a slight frown, and looked seaward, where a dark line on the horizon and large fields of ice showed that the man's surmise was likely to prove correct. " It matters not," said Stanley, hastily ; " I've made arrangements to start to-morrow, and start we shall, in spite of ice or wind, if the canoes will float ! " Massan, who had been constituted principal steersman of the exnedition, in virtue of his well-tried skill and indomitable energy, felt that the tone in which this was said implied a want of confidence in his willingness to go under any circumstances, so he said gravely, — " Pardon, monsieur ; I did not say we could not start." " True, true, Massan ; don't be hurt. I was only grumbling at the weather," answered Stanley, with a laugh. Just then the first puft' of the coming breeze swept up the river, ruffling its hitherto glassy surface. " There it comes," cried Stanley, as he quitted the spot. " Now, Massan, see to it that the crews are assem- bled in good time on the beach to-morrow. We start at daybreak." " Oui, monsieur," replied Massan, as he turned on his heel and walked away. " Parbleu ! we shall indeed start to-morrow, an' it please you, if all the ice and wind in the polar regions was blowed down the coast and crammed into the river's mouth. C'estvrai!" 1 ! ! t (• ' CHAPTER V. Ice looks unpropitious— The start — An important member of the party nearly forgotten — Ghimo. STANLEY'S forebodings and Hassan's prognostica- tions proved partly incorrect on the following morning. The mouth of the river, and the sea beyond, were quite full of ice ; but it was loose, and intersected in all directions by lanes of open water. Moreover, there was no wind. The gray light of early morning brightened into dawn, and the first clear ray of the rising sun swept over a scene more beautiful than ever filled the fancy of the most imaginative poet of the Temperate Zones. The sky was perfectly unclouded, and the surface of the sea was completely covered with masses of ice, whose tops were pure white like snow, and their sides a delicate greenish -blue, their dull, frosted appearance forming a striking contrast to the surrounding water, >yhich shone, when the sun glanced upon it, like bur- nished silver. The masses of ice varied endlessly in form and size, some being flat and large like fields, others square and cornered like bastions or towers — here a miniature temple with spires and minarets, there a crystal fortress with embrasures and battlements ; and, in the midst of these, thousands of broken fragments, having all the varied outlines of the larger masses, [Ul UNGAVA. 41 appearing like the smaller houses, cottages, and villas of this floating city of ice. " Oh how beautiful ! " exclaimed little Edith, as her father led her and Mrs. Stanley towards the canoes, which floated lightly in the water, while the men stood in a picturesque group beside them, leaning on their bright red paddles. " It is indeed, my pet," replied Stanley, a smile almost of sadness playing around his lips. " Come, George, don't let evil forebodings assail you to-day," said Mrs. Stanley in a low tone. " It does not become the leader of a forlorn-hope to cast a shade over the spirits of his men at the very outset." She smiled as she said this, and pressed his arm ; but despite her- self, there was more of sadness in the smile and in the pressure than she intended to convey. Stanlev's countenance assumed its usual firm but cheerful expression while she spoke. " True, Jessie, I must not damp the men ; but when I look at you and our darling Eda, I may be forgiven for betraying a passing glance of anxiety. May the Almighty pro- tect you ! " " Is the country we are going to like this,, papa ? " inquired Eda, whose intense admiration of the fairylike scene rendered her oblivious of all else. "Yes, dear, more like this than anything else you have ever seen ; but the sun does not always shine so brightly as it does just now, and sometimes there are terrible snow-storms. But we will build you a nice house, Eda, with a very large fire-place, so that we won't feel the cold." The entire population of Moose Fort was assembled on the beach to witness the departure of the expedi- tion. The party consisted of fifteen souls. As we I I) m UNGAVA. shall follow them to the icy regions of Ungava, it may be worth while to rehearse their names in order as follows : — Mr. and Mrs. Stanley and Edith. Frank Morton. Massan, the guide. "- Dick Prince, principal hunter to the party. La Roche, Stanley's servant and cook. - Bryan, the blacksmith. Francois, the carpenter. OOLIBUCK, \ Augustus, > Esquimau interpreters. Moses, j Gaspard, labourer and fisherman, OOSTESIMOW, It t ' ^ 11 ,^ V Indian guides and hunters. Ma-istequan,J * The craft in which these were about to embark were three canoes, two of which were large and one small. They ^ were made of birch bark, a substance which is tough, light, and buoyant, and therefore admirably adapted for the construction of craft that have not only to battle against strong and sometimes shallow currents, but have frequently to be carried on the shoulders of their crews over rocks and mountains. The largest canoe was sixteen feet long by five feet broad in the middle, narrowing gradually towards the bow and stern to a sharp edge. Its loading consisted of bales, kegs, casks, and bundles of goods and provi- sions ; each bale or cask weighed exactly 90 lbs., and was called a piece. There were fifteen pieces in the canoe, besides the crew of six men, and Mr. Stanley and his family, who occupied the centre, where their bedding, tied up in flat bundles and covered with oiled cloth, formed a comfortable couch. Notwithstandins: the size ■w UNGAVA. 43 and capacity of this craft, it had heen carried down to the beach on the islioulders of Massan and Dick Prince, who now stood at its bow and stern, preventing- it with their paddles from rubbing its frail sides against the wharf ; for although the bark is tough, and will stand a great deal of tossing in water and plunging among rapids, it cannot sustain the slightest blow from a rock or other hard substance without being cracked, or having the gum which covers the seams scraped off. To those who are unacquainted with travelliijg in the wild regions of the north it would seem impossible that a long journey could be accomplished in such tender boats ; but a little experience proves that, by judicious treatment and careful management, voyages of great length may be safely accom- plished in them — that they are well adapted for the necessities of the country, and can be taken with greater ease through a rough, broken, and mountainous region than ordinary wooden boats, even of smaller size, could be. The second canoe was in all respects similar to the one we have described, excepting that it was a few inches shorter. The third was much snjaller — so small that it could not contain more than three men, with their provisions and a few bales, and so light that it could with the greatest ease be carried on the shoulders of one man. It was intended to serve as a sort of pioneer and hunting craft, w^hich should lead the way, dart hither and thither in pursuit of game, and warn the main body of any danger that should threaten them ahead. It was manned by the two Indian guides, Oostesi- raow and Ma-istequan, and by Frank Morton, who being acknowledged one of the best shots of the party, was by tacit understanding regarded as commissary-general. It might have been said that Frank was the best shot, were it not for the fact that the aim of Dick Prince u UNGAVA u V was perfect, and it is generally admitted that perfection cannot be excelled. Although differing widely in their dispositions and appearance, the men of the expedition were similar at least in one respect — they were all first-rate, and had been selected as being individually superior to their comrades at Moose Fort. And a noble set of fellows they looked, as they stood beside their respective canoes, leaning on their little, brilliantly coloured paddles, await- ing the embarkation of their leaders. They all wore new suits of clothes, which were sufficiently similar to give the effect of a uniform, yet so far varied in detail as to divest them of monotony, and relieve the eye by agreeable contrast of bright colours. All of them wore light -blue cloth capotes with hoods hanging down behind, all had corduroy trousers gartered below the knee, and all wore moccasins, and had fire-bags stuck in their belts, in which were contained the materials for producing fire, tobacco, and pipes. So far they were alike, but the worsted belts of some were scarlet, of others crimson, and of others striped. Some gartered their trousers with thongs of leather, others used elegant bands of bead-work — the gifts, probably, of sorrowing sweethearts, sisters, or mothers — while the fire-bags, besides being composed some of blue, some of scarlet cloth, were ornamented more or less with flowers and fanciful devices elegantly wrought in the gaily-dyed quills of the porcupine. On seeing Stanley and his wife and child approach- ing, Massan gave the order to embark. In a moment every man divested himself of his capote, which he folded up and placed on the seat he was to occupy; then, shaking hands all round for the last time, they stepped lightly and carefully into their places. UNGAVA. 45 " All ready I see, Massan," said Stanley, as he came up, " and the ice seems pretty open. How say you ? shall we make a good day of it ? " Massan smiled dubiously as he presented his thick shoulder as a support to Mrs. Stanley, while she stepped into her place. He remembered the conversation of the previous evening, and determined that, whatever should happen, he at least would not cast the shadow of a doubt on their prospects. But in his own mind he suspected that their progress would be interrupted ere long, as the wind, although very light — almost imper- ceptible — was coming from the north-west. " It'll be full flood in less nor half-an-hour," he replied, " and — (take care. Miss Edith, give me your little hand ; there, now, jump light) — and we'll be past the p'int by that time, and git the good o' the ebb till sun-down." " I fear," said Frank Morton, approaching, " that the ice is rather thick for us ; but it don't much matter, it will only delay us a bit — and at any rate we'll make good way as far as the point." " True, true," said Stanley ; " and it's a great matter to get fairly started. Once off, we must go forward. All ready, lads ? " " Ay, ay, sir." "Now, Frank, into your canoe and show us the way; mind we trust to your guidance to keep us clear of blind alleys among these lanes of water in the ice." At this moment Edith — who had been for the last few minutes occupied in alternately drying her eyes and kissing her hands to a group of little children who had been her play-fellows during her sojourn at the fort — uttered a loud exclamation. "Oh! oh! papa, mamma — Chimo ! Chimo ! Oh me ! don't go away yet ! " ■we ve forgot I ., 46 UNGAVA. m " So we have ! " said her father ; " dear me, how stupid to forget our old friend ! — Hallo ! Frank, F'rank, we've forgot the dog," shouted Stanley to his young comrade, who was on the point of starting. On hearing this, Frank gave a long shrill whistle. " That'll bring him if he's within ear -shot. " When the well-known sound broke upon Chimo's ear, he was lying coiled up in front of the kitchen fire, being privileged to do so in consequence of his position as Edith's favourite. The cook, having gone out a few minutes previously, had left Chimo to enjoy his slumbers in solitude, so that, when he started suddenly to his feet on hearing Frank's whistle, he found himself a prisoner. But Chimo was a peculiarly strong-minded and strong-bodied dog, and was possessed of an iron will! He was of the Esciuimau breed, and bore some resemblance to the Newfoundland, but was rather shorter in the legs, longer in the body, and more powerfully made. Moreover, he was more shaggy, and had a stout, blunt, straightforward appearance, which conveyed to the beholder the idea that he scorned flattery, and would not consent to be petted on any consideration. Indeed this was the case, for he always turned away with quiet contempt from any of the men who attempted to fondle him. He made an exception, however, of little Edith, whom he not only permitted to clap him to any extent, but deliberately invited her to do so by laying his great head in her lap, rubbing himself against her, and wag- ging his bushy tail, as if to say, '* Now, little girl, do what you will with me ! " And Eda never refused the animal's dumb-show request. When she was very young and had not much sense — at which time Chimo was young too, but possessed of a great deal of sense — she formed a strong affection for the Esquimau dog, an UNGAVA. 47 m iron affection which she displayed by putting her little arms round his neck and hugi^iun- jiim until he felt a tendency to Hufibcation ; she also pulled his ears and tail, and stuffed her fat little hands into his eyes and mouth, — all of which dreadful actions she seemed to think, in her childish ignorance, must be very pleasant to Chimo, and all of which the dog appeared really to enjoy. At all events, whether lie liked it or not, lie came regularly to have himself thus treated every day. As Eda grew older she left off choking her favourite and poking out his eyes, and contented herself with caressing him. Chimo also evinced a partiality for Mr. Stanley and Frank Morton, and often accompanied the latter on his hunting excursions ; but he always comported himself towards them with dignified hauteur, accepting their caresses with a slight wag of acknowledgment, but never courting their favour. On jumping up, as we have already said, and observ- ing that the door was shut, the dog looked slowly and calmly round the apartment, as if to decide on what was best to be done ; for Chimo was a dog of great energy of character, and was never placed in any cir- cumstances in which he did not pursue some decided course of action. On the present occasion there was not a hole, except the key-hole, by which he could hope to make his escape. Yes, by-the-by, there was a hole in the window, which was made of parchment ; but as that was merely the bullet hole through which the animal that had given his skin for a window had been shot, and was not larger than a shilling, it did not afford much hope. Nevertheless Chimo regarded it with a steady gaze for a minute or two, then he turned to the fire, and having satisfied himself that the chimney was impracticable, being full of flames and smoke, he faced 48 UNGAVA. i the window once more, and showed his teeth, as if in chagrin. " Whew-ew ! Chimo-o-o ! " came Frank's voice, float- ing faintly from afar. Chimo took aim at the bullet- hole. One vigorous bound — a horrible crash, that nearly caused the returning cook to faint — and the dog was free. " Ah, here he comes ! — ^good dog ! " cried Frank, as the animal came bounding over intervening obstacles towards the canoes. Chimo made straight for the small canoe, in answer to ^i) master's call; but, like many dogs and not a few i: xi, he owned a higher power than that of a master. The voice of his little mistress sounded sweetly in his ear, like the sound of a silver bell. " O Chimo, Chimo ! my darling pet ! come here — ^liere." It was a soft, tiny voice at the loudest, and was quite disowned amid the talking and laughter of the men, but Chimo heard it. Turning at a sharp angle from his course, he swept past the light canoe, and bounding into that of Mr. Stanley, lay down beside Eda and placed his head in her lap, where it was immediately smothered in the caresses of its young mistress. Mr. Stanley smiled and patted his little girl on the shoulder, as he said, " That's right, Eda ; the love of a faithful dog is worth having and cherishing." Then turning towards the stern of the canoe, where Massan stood erect, with his steering paddle ready for action, he said to that worthy,^ — " Now, Massan, all ready ; give the word." " Ho, ho, boys ; forward ! " The paddles dipped simultaneously in the water with a loud, gurgling sound ; the two large canoes shot out into the stream abreast of each other, preceded by the UNGAVA. 49 light one, which, urged forward by the powerful arms of Frank and the two Indians, led the way among the floating fields of ice. The people on shore took off' their caps and waved a last farewell. Dick Prince, who possessed a deep, loud, sonorous voice, began one of those beautiful and wild yet plaintive songs peculiar to the voyageurs of the wilderness. The men joined, with a full, rich swell, in the chorus, as they darted forward with arrow-like speed — and the voyage began. y< I CHAPTER VL Character partially developed — Ducks for stepper — A threatened "nip^'- Bundled out on the ice. FORTUNATELY the wind veered round to the south-east soon after the departure of the canoes from Moose Fort, and although there was not enough of it to ruffle the surface of the river, it had the effect of checking the influx of ice from James's Bay. The tide, too, began to ebb, so that the progress of the canoes was even more rapid than it appeared to be ; and long before the sun set, they were past the point at tl^e mouth of the xiver, and coasting along the shores of the salt ocean. Outside of them the sea was covered with hummocks and fields of ice, some of which ever and anon met in the cross currents caused by the river, with a violent shock. Close to the shore, however, the thickness of the ice caused it to strand, leaving a lane of open water, along which the canoes proceeded easily, the depth of water being much more than sufficient for them, as the largest canoe did not draw more than a foot. Some- times, however, this space was blocked up by smaller fragments, and considerable difficulty was experienced in steering the canoes amongst them. Had the party travelled in boats, they would have easily dashed through many of these checks; but with canoes it is far otherwise. ;1 U I UNGAVA. 61 Not only are their bark sides easily broken, but the seams are covered with a kind of pitch which becomes so brittle in ice-cold water that it chips off in large lumps with the slightest touch. For the sea, therefore, boats are best ; but when it comes to carrying the craft over waterfalls and up mountain sides, for days and weeks together, canoes are more useful, owing to their lightness. " Take care, Massan," said Mr. Stanley, on approach- ing one of these floes. " Don't chip the gum off if you can help it. If we spring a leak, we shan't spend our first night on a pleasant camping-ground, for the shore just hereabouts does not look inviting." " No fear, sir," replied Massan. " Dick Prince is in the bow, and as long as his mouth's shut I keep my mind easy." " You appear to have unlimited confidence in Prince," ^i'^ Stanley, with a smile. " Does he never fail in any- f 'vg, that you are so sure of him ? " , " Fail ! " exclaimed the steersman, whose paddle swept constantly in a circle round his head, while he changed it from side to side as the motions of the canoe required — " fail ! ay, that does he sometimes. Mortal man must get on the wrong side o' luck now and then. I've seen Dick Prince fail, but I never saw him make a mistake." "Well, I've no doubt that he deserves your good opinion. Nevertheless, be more than ordinarily careful. If you liad a wife and child in the canoe, Massan, you would understand my anxiety better." Stanley smiled as he said this, and the worthy steersman replied in a grave tone, — " I have the wife and child of my bourgeois under my care." " True, true, Massan," said Stanley, lying back on his couch and conversinir with his wife in an undertone. w 11 I I if !': it 52 UNGAVA. " 'Tis curious," said he, '* to observe the confidence that Massan has in Prince ; and yet it would be difficult to say- wherein consists the superiority of the one over the other." " Perhaps it is the influence of a strong mind over a weaker," suggested his wife. " It may be so. Yet Prince is an utterly uneducated man. True, he shoots a hair's-breadth better than Massan ; but he is not a better canoeman, neither is he more courageous, and he is certainly less pov/erful : nevertheless Massan looks up to him and speaks of him as if he were greatly his superior. The secret of his power must lie in that steady, never-wavering inflexi- bility of purpose, that characterizes our good bowman in everything he does." " Papa," said Edith, who had been holding a long con- versation with Chimo on the wonders of the scene around them — if we may call that a conversation where the one party does all the talking and the other all the listening — " papa, where shall we all sleep to-night ? " The thought seemed to have struck her for the first time, and she looked up eagerly for an answer, while Chimo gave a deep sigh of indifference, and went to sleep, or pretended to do so, where he was. " In the woods, Eda. How do you think you will like it ? " " Oh, I'm sure I shall like it very much," replied the little one. "I've often wished to live in the woods altogether, like the Indians, and do nothing but wander about and pull berries." " Ah, Jessie," said Stanley, " what an idle little bag- gage your daughter is ! I fear she's a true chip of the old block ! " " Which do you consider the old block," retorted Mrs. Stanley — " you or me ? " UNGAVA. 53 " Never mind, wife ; we'll leave that an open question. — But tell me, Eda, don't you think that wandering about and pulling berries would be a very useless sort of life ? " " No," replied Edith, gravely. J^Mamma often tells me that God wants me to be happy, and I'm quite sure that wandering about all day in the beautiful woods would make me happyT^ " But, my darling," said Stanley, smiling at the sim- plicity of this plausible argument in favour of an idle life, "don't you know that vv^e ought to try to make others happy too, as well as ourselves ? " " Oh yes," replied Eda, with a bright smile, " I know that, papa ; and I would try to make everybody happy by going with them and showing them where the finest flowers and berries were to be found ; and so we would all be happy together, and that's what God wants, is it not ? " Mr. Stanley glanced towards his wife with an arch smile. "There, Jessie, what think you of that ? " " Nay, husband, what think you ? " " I think," he replied in an undertone, " that your sagacious teaching against idleness, and in favour of diligence and attention to duty, and so forth, has not taken very d;:;ep root yet." " And / think," said Mrs. Stanley, " that however wise you men may be in some things, you are all most incom- prehensibly stupid in regard to the development of young minds." " Take care now, Jessie ; you're verging upon meta- physics. But you have only given me your opinion of men ps yet ; you have still to say what you think of Eda's acknowledged predilection for idleness." - "Well," replied Mrs. Stanley, "I think that my 54 UNGAVA, sagacious teaching, as you are pleased to call it, has taken pretty firm root already, and that Eda's speech is one of the first bright, beautiful blossoms, from which we may look for much fruit hereafter ; for to make one's self and one's fellow-creatures happy, because such is the will of God, seems to me a simple and comprehen- sive way of stating the whole duty of man." Stanley's eyes opened a little at this definition. "Hum! multum in parvo ; it may be so," he said ; and casting down his eyes, he was soon lost in a profound reverie, while the canoe continued to progress forward by little impulsive bounds, under the rapid stroke of the paddles. Eda rested her fair cheek on the shaggy brow of Chimo, and accompanied him to the land of nod, until the sun began to sink behind the icebergs on the seaward horizon, where a dark line indicated an approaching breeze. Massan cast an uneasy glance at this from time to time. At length he called to his friend in the bow, " Hallo, Prince ! will it come stiff, think ye ? " " No," replied Prince, rising and shading his eyes with his hand ; " it'll be only a puff ; but that's enough to drive the ice down on us, an' shut up the open water." " It's my 'pinion," said Massan, " that we should hold away for the p'int yonder, an' camp there." Dick Prince nodded assent, and resumed his paddle. As he did so the report of a gun came sharply over the water. " Ha ! " exclaimed Stanley, looking out ahead ; "what's that?" ' " Only Mr. Frank," said Massan ; " he's dowsed two birds. I seed them splash into the water." " That's right," said Stanley ; " we shall have some- thing fresh for the kettle to-night. And, by the way; UNGAVA. we'll need all we can kill, for we haven't much provision to depend on, and part of it must be reserved in case of accidents, so that if Frank does not do his duty, we shall have to live on birch bark, Massan." " That would be rayther tough, I'm afeerd," replied the steersman, laughing. " I've tried the tail o' a deer- skin coat afore now, an' it wasn't much to boast of ; but I niver tried a birch-bark steak. I doubt it would need a power o' chewin' ' By this time the two large canoes had drawn grad- ually nearer to the leading one. As they approached Frank ordered his men to cease paddling. " Well, Frank, what success ? " said Stanley, as they came up. " There's our supper," cried Frank, tossing a large duck into the canoe ; " and there's a bite for the men," he added, sending a huge gray goose into the midst of them. " I saw a herd of reindeer on the other side of the point ; but the ice closed up the passage, and pre- vented me from getting within range. It will stop our further progress for to-night too ; so I waited to advise you to camp here." " There it comes ! " cried Dick Prince. " Jump out on the ice, lads, and unload as fast as you can." As Dick spoke he sprang on to a field of ice which was attached to the shore, and drawing the canoe along- s' e, began hastily to remove the cargo. His example was instantly followed by the men, who sprang over the gunwales like cats : and in less than five minutes the cargoes were scattered over the ice. Meanwhile, the breeze which Massan had observed continued to freshen, and the seaward ice bore rapidly down on the shore, gradually narrowing and filling up the lanes of water among which the travellers had been hitherto wending 56 UNGAVA. their way. Dick Prince's sudden action was caused by his observing a large solid field, which bore down on them with considerable rapidity. His warning was just in time, for the goods were scarcely landed and the three canoes lifted out of the water, when the ice closed in with a crash that would have ground the frail barks to pieces, and the passage was closed up. So completely was every trace of water obliterated, that it seemed as though there never had been any there before. CHAPTER VII. Shows how the party made themselves at home in the bush — Talk round the campjirc — A fiash of temper— Turning in. THE spot where they were thus suddenly arrested in their progress was a small bay, formed by a low point which jutted from the mainland, and shut out the prospect in advance. There was little or no wood on the point, except a few stunted willows, which being green and small would not, as La Roche the cook re- marked, " make a fire big enough to roast the wing of a mosquito." There was no help for it, however. The spot on which Massan had resolved to encamp for the night was three miles on the other side of the point, and as the way was now solid ice instead of water, there was no possibility of getting there until a change of wind should drive the ice off the shore. Moreover, it was now getting dark, and it behoved them to make their preparations with as much speed as possible. Ac- cordingly, Massan and Prince shouldered one canoe, Fran9ois and Gaspard carried the other, and the light one was placed on the shoulders of Bryan the black- smith ; La Roche took the provision-basket and cooking »utensils under his special charge ; while the three Esqui- mau interpreters and the two Indian guides busied themselves in carrying the miscellaneous goods and baggage into camp. As for Chimo, he seated himself 58 UNGAVA. quietly on a lump of iee, and appeared to superin- tend the entire proceedings ; while his young mistress and her mother, accompanied by Frank and Stanley, crossed the ice to the shore, to select a place for their encampment. But it was some ti'ne ere a suitable place could be found, as the point happened to be low and swampy, and poor Eda's first experience of a life in the woods was stepping into a hole which took her up to the knees in mud and water. She was not alone, however, in misfortune, for just at the same moment Bryan passed through the bushes with his canoe, and staggered into the same swamp, exclaiming as he did so, in a rich brogue which many years' residence among the French half-breeds of Rupert's Land had failed to soften, " Thunder an' turf ! such a blackguard counthry I niver did see. Och, Bryan dear, why did ye iver lave yer native land ? " " Pourquoi, why, mon boy ? for ver' goot raison," cried J^a Roche, in a horrible compound of French and broken English, as he skipped lightly past, with a loud laugh, " for ver' goot raison — dey was tired of you to home, vraiment. You was too grande raskale ; dey could not keep you no longer." "Thrue for ye, La Roche," replied the blacksmith, " thrue for ye, boy ; they sartinly could not keep me on nothin', an' as the murphies was all sp'iled wi' the rot, I had to lave or starve." At last, after a long search, Frank Morton found a spot pretty well adapted for their purpose. It was an elevated plot of gravel, which was covered with a thin carpet of herbage, and surrounded by a belt of willows, which proved a sufficient shelter against the wind. A low and rather shaggy willow-tree spread its branches UNGAVA. and loud OVL to dey iind a as an thin lows, A iches over the spot, and gave to it a good deal of the feeling and appearance of shelter, if not much of the reality. This was of little consequence, however, as the night proved fine and comparatively mild, so that the black vault of heaven, spangled witli hosts of brilliant stars, amply compensated for the want of a leafy canopy. Under the willow-tree, Frank and La Roche busied themselves in spreading a very small white tent for Mr. Stanley and his family. Frank himself, although entitled from his position in the Company's service to the luxury of a tent, scorned to use one, preferring to rough it like the men, and sleep beneath the shelter of the small canoe. Meanwhile, Mr. Stanley proceeded to strike a light with his flint and steel, and Bryan, having deposited his burden near the tent, soon collected a sufficiency of drift-wood to make a good fire. Edith and her mother were not idle in the midst of this busy scene. They collected a few bundles of dried twigs to make the lire light more easily, and after the blaze was casting its broad glare of light over the camp, and the tent was pitched, they assisted La Roche in laying the cloth for supper. Of course, in a journey like this, none but neces- sary articles were taken, and these were of the most homely character. The kettle was the tea-pot, the cups were tin pannikins, and the table-cloth was a large towel, while the table itself was the ground, from the damp of which, however, the party in the tent were protected by an ample oil-clotli. AVhen all the things were carried up, and the men assembled, the camp presented the following appearance ; in the centre of the open space, which nature had ar- ranged in the form of a circle, blazed the fire ; and a right jovial, sputtering, outrageous fire it was, sending its sparks flying in all directions, like the artillery of a 60 UNGAVA. Mi 1':,^ beleaj^uered fortress in miniature, and rolling its flames about in fierce and wayward tongues, that seemed bent on licking in and swallowing up the entire party, but more especially La Roche, who found no little diflSculty in paying due attention to his pots and kettles. Some- times the flames roared fiercely upwards, singeing oflf the foliage of the overhanging willow as they went, and then, bursting away from their parent fire, portions of them floated oflf for a few seconds on the night air. On the weather side of this fire stood Mr. Stanley's tent, under the willow -tree, as before described, its pure white folds showing strongly against the darkness of the sky beyond. The doorway, or curtain of the tent, was open, displaying the tea-equipage within, and the smiling countenances of Stanley and his wife, Frank and Eda, who, seated on blankets and shawls around the towel, were preparing to make an assault on the fat duck before mentioned. This duck had been split open and roasted on a piece of stick before the blaze, and how stood with the stumps of its wings and legs extended, as if demanding urgently to be eaten — a de- mand which Chimo, who crouched near the doorway, could scarce help complying with. To the right of the tent was placed the small canoe, bottom up, so as to afford a partial protection to the bedding which Oostesimow was engaged in spreading out for Frank and himself and his comrade Ma-istequan. Facing this, at the other side of the fire, and on the left of the tent, the largest canoe was turned up in a similar manner, and several of the men were engaged in cover- ing the ground beneath it with a layer of leaves and branches, above which they spread their blankets ; while others lounged around the fire and smoked their beloved pipes, or watched with impatient eyes the operations of UNGAVA. 61 Bryan, who, being accustonied to have fttuiiliar dealings with the fire, had been deemed worthy of holding the office of cook to the men, and was inducted accordingly. It is due to Bryan to say that he fully merited the honour conferred upon him ; for never, since the days of Vulcan, was there a man seen who could daringly dabble in the fire as he did. He had a peculiar sleight- of-hand way of seizing hold of and tossing about red- hot coals with his naked hand, that induced one to be- lieve he nuist be made n*' leather, I'lai i',s seemed to have no effect whatever on hi: '^kiewy an) s when they licked around them ; and as for :;n-ok..', he treated it with benign contempt. Not .^^o r„t Koche : :\ith the mercurial temperament of his el ass ho leapeu alout the fire, during his culinary operaiio-ns, in a way that afforded infinite amusement to his comrKdiiS, and not ii7)ireqi "iritly brought him into violent colli sior iviih Br yon. who usually received him on such occasions with a .strong Irish growl, mingled with a disparaghi*:' or contemptuous remark. Beyond the circle of light thrown by f-be fire was the belt of willows which encompassed the cymp on all sides except towards the sea, where a narrow ga,p lornied a natural entrance and afforded a glimpse of tlie ocean with its fields and hummocks of ice floating on its calm bosom and glancing in the Hami lii.lit of the moon, which was then in its first quarter. " How comfortable cmO. snug eveiything is ! " said Mrs. Stanley, as she poured out the tea, while her husband carved the duck, " Yes, isn't it, Eda ? " said Frank, patting his favourite on the head, as he held out her plate for a wing. " There, give her a bit of the breast too," he added. " I know she's ravenously hungry, for I saw her looking at 62 UNGAVA. Chimo, just before we landed, as if she meant to eat him for supper without waiting to have him cooked." '' O Frank, how can you be so wicked ? " said Eda, taking up her knife and fork and attacking the wing with so much energy as almost to justify her friend's assertion. " Snug, said you, Jessie ? yes, that's the very word to express it," said Stanley. " There's no situation that I know of (and I wasn't born yesterday) that is so per- fectly snug, and in all respects comfortable, as an en- campment in the woods on a fine night in spring or autumn." " Or winter," added Frank, swallowing a pannikin of tea at a draught, nodding to Chimo, as much as to say, " Do that if you can, old fellow," and handing it to Mrs. Stanley to be replenished. " Don't omit winter — cold, sharp, sunny winter. An encampment in the snow, in fine weather, is as snug as this." " Rather cold, is it not ? " said Mrs. Stanley. " Cold ! not a bit," replied Frank, making a reckless dive with his hand into the biscuit-bag ; " if you have enough wood to get up a roaring fire, six feet long by three broad and four deep, with a bank of snow five feet high all around ye, a pine-tree with lots of thick branches spreading overhead to keep off the snow, and two big green blankets to keep out the frost — (another leg of that widgeon, please) — you've no notion how snug it is, I assure you." " Hum ! " ejaculated Stanley, with a dubious smile, "you forgot to add — a youthful, robust frame, with the blood careering through the veins like wild-fire, to your catalogue of requisites. No doubt it is pleasant enough in its way ; but commend me to spring or autumn for thorough enjoyment, when the air is mild, UNGAVA. 63 and the waters flov/ing, and the woods green and beautiful." " Why don't you speak of summer, papa ? " said Eda, who had been listening intently to this conversation. " Summer, my pet ! because — " "Allow me to explain," interrupted Frank, laying down his knife and fork, and placing the fore-finger of his right hand in his left palm, as if he were about to make a speech. " Because, Eda, because there is such a thing as heat — long-continued, never-ending, sweltering heat. Because there are such reprehensible and unutterably detestable insects as mosquitoes, and sand-Hies, and bull -dogs ; and there is such a thing as being bitten, and stung, and worried, and sucked into a sort of partial madness ; and I have seen such sights as men perpetually slapping their own faces, and scratching the skin off their own cheeks with their own nails, and getting no relief thereby, but rather making things worse ; and I have, moreover, seen men's heads swelled until the eyes and noses were lost, and the mouths only visible when opened, and their general aspect like that of a Scotch haggis ; and there is a time when all this accumulates on man t^nd beast till the latter takes to the water in desperation, and the former takes to intermittent insanity, and that time is — summer. — Another cup, please, Mrs. Stanley. Ton my conscience it creates thirst to think of it." At this stage the conversation of the party in the tent was interrupted by a loud peal of laughter mingled with not a few angry exclamations from the men. La Roche, in one of his frantic leaps to avoid a tongue of flame which shot out from the fire with a vicious velocity towards his eyes, came into violent contact with Bryan while that worthy was in the act of lifting a seething- 64 UNGAVA. ill! kettle of soup and boiled pork from the fire. Fortu- nately for the party whose supper was thus placed in jeopardy, Bryan stood his ground ; but La Koche, trip- ping over a log, fell heavily among the pannikins, tin plates, spoons, and knives, which had been just laid out on the ground in front of the canoe. " Ach ! mauvais chien," growled Gaspard, as he picked up and threw away the fragments of his pipe, " you're always cuttin' and jumpin' about like a monkey." " Oh ! pauvre crapaud," cried Francois, laughing ; " don't abuse him, Gaspard. He's a useful dog in his way." " Tare an' ages ! you've done it now, ye have. Bad luck to ye ! wasn't I for iver tellin' ye that same. Shure, if it wasn't that ye 're no bigger or heavier than a wisp o' pea straw, ye'd have druve me and the soup into the fire, ye would. Be the big toe o' St. Patrick, not to mintion his riverince the Pope — " " Come, come, Bryan," cried Massan, " don't speak ill o' the Pope, an' down wi' the kettle." " The kittle, is it ? Sorra a kittle ye'll touch, Massan, till it's cool enough to let us all start fair at wance. Ye've got yer mouth and throat lined wi' brass, I believe, an' would ate the half o't before a soul of us could taste it ! " "Don't insult me, you red-faced racoon," retorted Massan, while he and his comrades circled round the kattle, and began a vigorous attack on the scalding mess ; " my throat is not so used to swallowin' fire as your own. I never knowed a man that payed into the grub as you do. Bah ! how hot it is. — I say, Oolibuck, doesn't it remember you o' the dogs o' yer own country, when they gits the stone kettle to clean out ? " ^ Oolibuck's broad visage expanded with a chuckle as UNGAVA. 65 he lifted an enormous wooden spoonful of soup to his ample mouth. " Me tink de dogs of de Innuit * make short work of dis kettle if 'e had 'im." " Do the dogs of the Huskies eat with their masters ? " inquired Francois, as he groped in the kettle with his fork in search of a piee i ( f pork. " Dey not eat nvid der masters, but dey al'ays clean hout de kettle," replied Moses, somewhat indignantly. " Ha ! " exclaimed Massan, pausing for a few minutes to recover breath ; " yes, they always let the dogs finish off the feast. Ye must know, comrades, that I've seed them do it myself — anyways, I've seed a man that knew a feller who said he had a comrade that wintered once with the Huskies, which is pretty much the same thing. An' he said that sometimes when they kill a big seal, they boil it whole an' have a rig'lar feast. Ye must understand, mes gar^ons, that the Huskies make thumpin' big kittles out o' a kind o' soft stone they find in them parts, an' some o' them's big enough to boil a whole seal in. Well, when the beast is cooked, they take it out o' the pot, an' while they're tuckin' into it, the dogs come and sit in a ring round the pot to wait till the soup's cool enough to eat. They knov^s well that it's too hot at first, an' that they must have a deal o' patience ; but afore long some o' the young uns can't hold on, so they steps up somewhat desperate like, and pokes their snouts in. Of course they pulls them out pretty sharp with a yell, and sit down to rub their noses for a bit longer. Then the old uns take courage an' make a snap at it now and again, but very tenderly, till it gits cooler at last, an' then at it they go, worryin', an' scufflin', an* barkin', an' gallopin', just like Moses there, till the pot's as clean as the day it wos made." * Esquimaiix. & m UNGAVA. : I :■ I i \ 1 III i! ! ■I ■ I iii H '' " Ha ! ha ! oh, ver* goot, trfes bien ; ah ! mon coeur, just trfes splendiferous ! " shouted La Roche, whose risi- bility was always easily tickled. " It's quite true, though — isn't it, Moses ? " said Massan, as he once more applied to the kettle, while some of his comrades cut up the goose that Frank had shot in the afternoon. " Why, Moses, what a capacity you have for grub ! " said Francois. " If your countrymen are anything like you, I don't wonder that they have boiled seals and whales for dinner." " It'll take a screamin' kittle for a whale," spluttered Bryan, with his mouth full, " an' a power o' dogs to drink the broth." " You tink you funny, Bryan," retorted Moses, while an oily smile beamed on his fat, good-humoured counte- nance ; " but you not ; you most dreadful stupid." '* Thrue for ye, Moses ; I was oncommon stupid to let you sit so long beside the kittle," replied the Irishman, as he made a futile effort to scrape another spoonful from the bottom of it. " Och ! but ye've licked it as clane as one of yer own dogs could ha' done it." " Mind your eye ! " growled Gaspard, at the same time giving La Roche a violent push, as that volatile worthy, in one of his eccentric movements, nearly upset his can of water. " Oh ! pardon, monsieur," exclaimed La Roche, in pre- tended sorrow, at the same time making a grotesque bow that caused a general peal of laughter. " Why, one might as well travel with a sick bear as with you, Gaspard," said Fran9ois half angrily. " Hold your jaw," replied Gaspard. \ " Not at your bidding," retorted Frangois, half rising from his reclining posture, while his colour heightened. 1! J UNGAVA. 67 it ii Gaspare! had also started up, and it seemed as if the little camp were in danger of becoming a scene of strife, when Dick Prince, who was habitually silent and unobtrusive, preferring generally to listen rather than to speak, laid his hand on Gaspard's broad shoulder and pulled him somewhat forcibly to the ground. " Shame on you, comrades ! " he said, in a low, grave voice, that instantly produced a dead silence ; " shame on you, to quarrel on our first night in the bush ! We've few enough friends in these parts, I think, that we should make enemies o' each other." " That's well said," cried Massan, in a very decided tone. " It won't do to fall out when there's so few of us." And the stout voyageur thrust his foot against the logs on the fire, causing a rich cloud of sparks to ascend, as if to throw additional light on his remark. " Pardon me, mes comrades," cried Fran(;ois ; " I did not intend to quarrel ; " and he extended his hand to Gaspard, who took it in silence, and dropping back again to his recumbent posture, resumed his pipe. This little scene was witnessed by the party in the tent, who were near enough to overhear all that was said by the men, and even to converse with them if they should desire to do so. A shade of anxiety crossed Mr. Stanley's countenance, and some time after, recur- ring to the subject, he said, — " I don't feel quite easy about that fellow Gaspard. He seems a sulky dog, and is such a Hercules that he might give us a deal of trouble if he were high-spirited." A slight smile of contempt curled Frank's lip as he said, " A strong arm without a bold heart is not of more value than that of my Eda here in the hour of danger. But I think better of Gaspard than you seem to do. He's a sulky enough dog, 'tis true ; but he is a good hard 68 UNGAVA. 1 ' worker, and does not <]frumhlo ; and I sometimes have noticed traces of a better spirit tlian usually meets the eye. As for his bulk, I think nothing of it ; he wants high spirit to make it available. Fran^'ois could thrash him any Ii UNGAVA. 89 Mrs. [ her uercy we should have all been lost. I was floundorinc: about beside the canoe when your scream showed nie where you were, and enabled nie to save you. But rest here, in the lee of this bale. I cannot stay by you. Frank is in danger still." Without waiting for a- reply, he sprang from her side and hurried down to the beach. Here everything was in the utmost confusion. The two large canoes had been saved and dragged out of the reach of the waves, and the men were struggling in the boiling surf to rescue the baggage and provisions, on which latter their very lives depended. As Stanley reached the scene of action, he observed several of the men watching the small canoe which contained Frank and his two Indians. It had been left some distance behind by the others, and was now approaching with arrow speed on the summit of a large wave. Suddenly the top of the billow curled over, and in another moment the canoe was turned bottom up ! Like a cork it danced on the wave's white crest, then falling beneath the thundering mass of water, it was crushed to pieces and cast empty upon the beach. But Frank and his men swam like otters, and the party on shore watched them with anxious looks as they breasted manfully over the billows. At last a towering wave came rolling majestically forward. It caught the three swimmers in its rough embrace, and carrying them along on its crest, launched them on the beach, where it left them struggling with the retreating water. Those who have bathed in rough weather on an exposed coast know well how difficult it is to regain a firm footing on loose sand while a heavy wave is sweeping backward into its parent ocean. Frank and the two Indians ex- perienced this ; and they might have struggled there till their strength had been exhausted, were it not for 90 UNGAVA. ii: ! fii Stanley, Prince, and Massan, who rushed simultaneously into the water and rescued them. As the whole party had now, by the goodness of God, reached the land iii safety, they turned their undivided energies towards the bales and boxes which were rolling about in the surf. Many of these had been already collected, and were carried to the spot where Mrs. Stan- ley and Edith lay under the shelter of a bale. As the things were successively brought up they were piled around the mother and child, who soon found themselves pretty well sheltered from the wind, though not from the rain, which still fell in torrents. Soon after Frank came to them, and said that all the things were saved, and that it w^as time to think of getting up some sort of shelter for the night. This was very much needed, for poor Edith was beginning to shiver from the wet and cold. , " Now then, Francois, Massan," shouted Frank, " lend a hand here to build a house for Eda. We'll be all as snug as need be in a few minutes." Despite the cold and her recent terror, the poor child could not help smiling at the idea of building a house in a few minutes, and it was with no little curiosity that she watched the operations of the men. Meanwhile Mr. Stanley brought some wine in a pannikin, and made Edith and his wife drink a little. This revived them greatly, and as the rain had now almost ceased they rose and endeavoured to wring the water out of their gar- ments. In less than half-an-hour the men piled the bales and boxes in front of the largest canoe, which was turned bottom up, and secured firmly in that position by an embankment of sand. Over the top of all three oil- cloths were spread and lashed down, thus forming a complete shelter, large enough to contain the whole gar- UNGAVA. m party. At one end of this curious house Mr. Stanley made a separate apartment for his wife and child, by placing two large bales and a box as a partition ; and within this little space Edith soon became very busy in arranging things, and " putting the house to rights," as she said, as long as the dayliglit lasted, for after it went away they had neither candles nor fire, as the former had been soaked and broken, and as for the latter no wood could be found on the island. The men's clothes were, of course, quite wet, so they cut open a bale of blankets, which had not been so much soaked as the other goods, having been among the first things that were washed ashore. At the time they were wrecked the dashing spray and the heavy rain, together with the darkness of the day, had prevented the shipwrecked voyageurs from ascertaining the nature of the island on which they had been cast ; and as the night closed in while they were yet engaged in the erection of their temporary shelter, they had to lie down to rest in ignorance on this point. After such a day of unusual fatigue and excitement, they all felt more inclined for rest than food ; so, instead of taking supper, they all lay down huddled together under the canoe, and slept soundly, while the angry winds whistled round them, and the great sea roared and lashed itself into foam on the beach, as if disappointed that the little band of adventurers had escaped and were now beyond the reach of its impotent fury. mg a / f w I ii i f! ■;! m i i i it I r. ' , iiii; !! I CHAPTER X. I The sand-hank — Dismal prospects — Consultations— Internal arrangements exposed and detailed. OF all the changes that constantly vary the face of nature, the calm that succeeds a storm is one of the most beautiful, and the most agreeable, perhaps, to the feelings of man. Few conditions of nature convey to the mind more thoroughly the idea of complete repose, — of deep rest after mortal strife, of sleep after ex- hausting toil ; and those who have passed through the violence of the storm and done battle with its dangers are, by the physical rest which they enjoy after it is over, the more fitted to appreciate and sympathize with the repose which reigns around them. When the sun rose, on the morning after the storm, it shone upon a scene so calm and beautiful, so utterly unconnected with anything like the sin of a fallen world, and so typical, in its deep tranquillity, of the mind of Him who created it, that it seemed almost possible for a moment to fancy that the promised land was gained at last, and that all the dark clouds, the storms and dangers, the weary journey ings and the troubles of the wilderness, were past and gone for ever. So glorious was the scene that when Edith, rising from her rude couch and stepping over the prostrate forms of her still slumbering companions, issued from the shelter UNGAVA. 93 of the canoe and cast her eyes abroad upon the glassy sea, she could not restrain her feelings, and uttered a thrilling shout of joy that floated over the waters and reverberated among the glittering crags of the surround- ing icebergs. The island on which the travellers had been cast was a mere knoll of sand, not more than a few hundred yards in circumference, that scarcely raised its rounded summit above the level of the water, and at full tide was reduced to a mere speck, utterly destitute of vege- tation. The sea around it was now smooth and clear as glass, though undulated by a long, regular swell, which rolled, at slow, solemn intervals, in majestic waves to- wards the sand-bank, where they hovered for a moment in curved walls of dark-green water, then, lipping over at their crests, fell in a roar of foam that hissed a deep sigh on the pebbles of the beach, and left the silence greater than before. Masses of ice floated here and there on the surface of the deep, the edges and fantastic points of which were tipped with light. Not far from the northern extremity of the sand-bank a large iceberg had grounded, from the sides of which several pinnacles had been hurled by the shock and now lay stranded on the beach. The shout with which Edith had welcomed the morn- ing roused the whole party, and in a few minutes they were all assembled outside of their little hut, some admiring the scene, others — of a less enthusiastic and more practical turn — examining the circumstances of their position, and considering the best course that should be pursued in their difficulty. Mr. Stanley, Dick Prince, and Massan, as was their wont, held a council upon the existing state of things, and after much gazing round at the sea and up at the 94 UNGAVA. Ill I sky, and considerable grnnting of his deep voice and rubbing of his capacious chin, on the part of tlie 16,tter, he turned to Dick Prince, as if appealing to his superior sagacity, and said, — " Well, ye see, my 'pinion's jist this : yonder's the mainland there" (pc^inting to the eastward, where, about ten miles distant, the rocks and trees were seen distorted and faintly looming through a tremulous haze), "an' there's our canoes there " (jerking his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the large canoes, whose torn sides and damaged ribs, as they lay exposed on the sand, bore sad testimony to the violence of the previous night's storm), " and there's the little canoe yonder " (glancing toward the craft in question, which lay on the beach a hopelessly-destroyed mass of splinters and shreds of bark that projected and bristled in all directions, as if in un- controllable amazement at the suddenness and entirety of its own destruction). " Now, that bein' the case, an' tho baggage all wet, an' the day parfitly beautiful, an' the sun about hot enough to bile the sea, we can't do better nor stay where we are an' mend the canoes, dry the goods, an' start fair to-morrow mornin'." Stanley looked at Prince, as if expecting a remark from him ; but the grave countenance of the silent bowman indicated that he was absorbed in contemplation. " 'Tis quite evident, Massan," said Stanley, " that we must repair the canoes ; but a few hours could do that, and I don't like the idea of staying another night on a strip of sand like this, which, I verily believe, another stiff nor'-wester would blow away altogether. — But what say you, Prince ? Do you advise our remaining ? " " Yes," replied Dick, " I do. Ye see there's no fear of another storm soon. 'Tis a good chance for dryin' the goods, so I vote for stoppin'.' .' " UNGAVA. " Well, then, we shall stay," replied Stanley. " To say truth, J. agreed with you at tirst, Massan, but it's always advisable to look at both sides of a question — " ' " Yes, and ' in the multitude of counsellors there is wisdom,' " said Frank Morton, coming up at the moment, and tapping his friend on the shoulder. " If you will include me in your confabulation, you shall have the benefit of deep experience and far-sighted sagacity." " Come, then. Master Frank," replied Stanley, " what does your sagacity advise on the point of our staying on this sand-bank ? Shall we spend another night on it in order to dry the goods, or shall we up and away to terra Jirma as soon as the canoes are seaworthy ? " " Stay, of course," said Frank. " As to the .sand-bank, 'tis firm enough, to my mind, after resisting the shock of the wave that dashed me ashore last night. Then, we have everything we need — shelter and food, and even fuel." As Frank mentioned the last word, he glanced round with a rueful countenance and pointed to the bark and timbers of his broken canoe. " True, Frank, we have wherewith to boil the kettle, and as the water-cask was full when we started yester- day morning, there will be enough at 'ufist for one or two days." " By the way, that reminds me that Eda and your wife are particularly desirous of having breakfast," said Frank. " In fact they sent me specially to lay their melancholy case before you ; and I have great fears that Eda will lay violent hands on the raw pork if her morn- ing meal is delayed much longer. As for Chimo, he is rushing about the island in a state of ravenous despair ; so pray let us be going." " Be it so, Frank," said Stanley, taking his friend's arm, and sauntering towards the canoe, while Massan UNGAVA. I ■! and Prince went to inform their comrades of the deter- mination of tlieir leader. In an hour after the above discourse breakfast was over, and the men, under Stanley's inspection, arranged and examined the baggage, which, considering that it had Veen rolled about by the surf for a considerable time, was not so much soaked as might have been ex- pected. The two kegs of gunpowder were first inspected, being the most valuable part of the cargo, as on them depended much of their future livelihood. They were found to be quite dry, except a small portion of powder at the seams of the staves, which, having caked with the moisture, had saved the rest from damage. Some of the bales, however, containing knives and other hardware, were very wet, and had to be opened out and their con- tents wiped and spread out to dry. Blankets, too, and other woollen garments that had suffered, were also spread out on the sand, so that in a short time the little island was quite covered with a strange assortment of miscellaneous articles, that gave to it the appearance of a crowded store. The entire wealth of the fur-traders was now exposed to view, and it may perhaps be inter- esting to enumerate the different articles, in order to give some idea of the outfit deemed necessary on such an expedition. And, first, there were two kegs of gunpowder, as before mentioned, containing each thirty pounds, with four bags of ball and three of shot of various sizes — in all, about 250 pounds of lead. Six nets of four and a half inch mesh. A large quantity of twine for making nets — most of the men being able to construct these useful articles. A small bag of gun-flints. Sixty pounds of roll tobacco. Twelve large axes. Six augers. Seven dozen scalping-knives. Six pounds of variously- UNGAVA. or coloured beads. Two dozen fire-steels, and a pretty large assortment of awls, needles, thread, nails, and such like small articles, which, though extremely useful, were too numerous and comparatively insignificant to mention in detail. Besides these, there was a small bale containing gaudy ornaments and attractive articles, which were intended as propitiatory presents to the Esquimaux when they should be met with. Then there were two runlets of salt pork, containing about ninety pounds each, and in the centre of each runlet were two hams. A barrel of flour and a barrel of oatmeal constituted all their provision, if we except a small cask of hard biscuit, and a little tea and sugar, which were the private pro- perty of Stanley and Frank Morton. There was also a large deerskin tent, capable of holding from twenty to thirty men, which was intended to be used while they were enerasfed in buildiiiir their winter residence at of the long Ungava. As to arms, each man had one single-barrelled fowling-pieces that are supplied by the Fur Company to the natives, and are styled Indian guns. Stanley had a double-barrelled flint fowling- piece ; and Frank had a rifle, besides a single gun of a description somewhat finer than that supplied to the Indians. Of course each man carried a scalping-knife and an axe in his belt, not for the purpose of self- defence, but for carving their food and cutting their fuel. It may be well to remark here that the goods and provisions which we have detailed above were merely intended as a supply for their immediate necessities, and to enable them to commence active operations at once on arriving at their destination, while the heavy stores and goods necessary for the year's trade were to be forwarded in a small sloop from the depot direct through Hudson's Straits to Ungava Bay. 7 98 UNGAVA. ). ; ! (;" : I T'[ 11' ( ii When the work of unpacking and exposing the things to dry in the sun was accomplished, it was long past noon, and high time for dinner, so a fire was lighted by Bryan, who cut up another portion of Frank's canoe for the purpose. A rasher of pork and a flour cake were disposed of by each of the party in a surprisingly short time, and then the men bestirred themselves in mending the canoes. This was a more troublesomr^ job than they expected, but being accustomed not only to mend but to make canoes, they worked with a degree of skill and diligence that speedily put all to rights. In Hassan's canoe there was a hole large enough, as Bryan remarked, to stick hi:j head through, though it was a " big wan, an' no mistake." Taking up a roll of bark, which was carried with them for the purpose, Massan cut from it a square patch, which he sewed over the hole, using an awl for a needle and the fibrous roots of the pine-tree, called wattape, for thread. After it was firmly sewed on, the seams were covered with melted gum, and the broken spot was as tight and strong as ever. There were next found several long slits, one of them fully three feet, which were more easily managed, as they merely required to be sewed and covered with gum. Several broken ribs, however, were not so easily re- paired. Had there been any wood on the island, Hassan's quick knife would have soon fashioned new ribs ; as it was, he had to make the best job he could, by splicing the old ones with several pieces abstracted from Frank's little canoe. It was sunset before all was put in complete order, the goods repacked, and placed in readiness for a start at daybreak on the following morning. After all was done, the remains of the small canoe were converted into a bonfire, round which the tired and hungry UNCAVA. w travellers assembled to smoke and cliat, while supper was being prepared by the indefatigable Bryan and his friend La Roche. As the day faded a^^'ay the stars came out, one by one, until they glittered in millions in the sky, while the glare of the fire became every moment more and more intense as the darkness deepened. It was a strange, wild scene, — especially when viewed from the extremity of the little sand-bank, which was so low as to be almost indiscernible in thcj dark night, and seemed scarce a sufficient foundation for the little busy group of human beings who stood radiant in the red light of their camp-fire, like a blazing gem cast upon the surface of the great cold sea. CHAPTER XL im 1' start afresh — Superstitious notions — The whirlpool — The interior — Fishing in the old way on new ground, and what came of it — A cold hath — The rescui — Saved — Deeper and deeper into the wilderness. AS if to make amends for its late outrageous con- duct, the weather, after the night of the great storm, continued unbrokenly serene for many days, enabling our travellers to make rapid progress towards their destination. It would be both tiresome and un- necessary to follow them step by step throughout their journey, as the part of it which we have already de- scribed was, in many respects, typical of the whole voyage along the east coast of Hudson's Bay. Some- timeis, indeed, a few incidents of an unusual character did occur. Once they were very nearly being crushed between masses of ice ; twice the larger canoe struck on a hummock, and had to be landed and repaired ; and frequently mishaps of a slighter nature befell them. Their beds, too, varied occasionally. At one time they laid them down to rest on the sand of the sea-shore ; at another, on the soft turf and springy moss of the woods. Sometimes they were compelled to content themselves with a couch of pebbles, few of which were smaller than a man's fist ; and, not unfrequently, they had to make the best they could of a flat rock, whose unyielding sur- face seemed to put the idea of anything like rest to UNGAVA. 101 flight, causing the thin men of the party to growl and the fat ones to chuckle. Bryan was one of the well- favoured, being round and fleshy ; while his poor little friend La Roche possessed a framework of bones that were so sparingly covered with softer substance, as to render it a matter of wonder liow he and the stones could compromise the matter at all, and called forth from his friend frequent impertinent allusions to " thrid- papers, bags o' bones, idges o' knives, half fathoms o' pump water," and such like curious substances. But whatever the bed, it invariably turned out that the whole party slept soundly from the time they lay down till the time of rising, which was usually at the break of day. Owing to the little Indian canoe having been wrecked on the sand-bank, Frank and his men had to embark in the smaller of the large canoes, a change which was in some respects a disadvantage to the party, as Frank could not now so readily dash away in pursuit of game. However, this did not much matter, as, in a few days afterwards, they arrived at the mouth of the river by which they intended to penetrate into the interior of the country. The name of the river is Deer River, and it flows into Richmond Gulf, which is situated on the east shore of Hudson's Bay, in lat. b6° N. Richmond Gulf is twenty miles long, and about the same in breadth ; but the entrance to it is so narrow that the tide pours into it like a torrent until it is full. The pent-up waters then rush out on one side of this narrow inlet while they are running in at the other, causing a whirl- pool which would engulf a large boat and greatly endanger even a small vessel. Of course it was out of the question to attempt the passage of such a vortex in canoes, except at half flood or half ebb tide, at which I w^ 1'^ n M i¥ 11 102 XJNGAVA. periods the waters become quiet. On arriving at the mouth of the gulf, the travellers found the tide out, and the entrance to it curling and rolling in massive volumes, as if all the evil water-spirits of the north were holding their orgies there. Oostesimow and Ma-istequan, being by nature and education intensely superstitious, told Stanley — after they had landed to await the flow of the tide — that it was absolutely necessary to perform certain ceremonies m order to propitiate the deities of the place, othervv'ir.e thdy could not expect to pass such an awful whirlpool in safety. Their leader smiled, and told them to do as they thought fit, adding, however, that he would not join them, as he did not believe in any deities whatever, except the one true God, who did not require to bo propitiated in any way, and could not be moved by any other means than by prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. The red men seemed surprised a little at this, but, with their proverbial stoicism, refrained from any further or more decided expression of feeling. Nevertheless, the Indians sufficiently showed their faith in their own doctrines by immediately setting about a series of curious and elaborate ceremonies, which it was impossible to comprehend, and decidedly unprofit- able to describe. They appeared, however, to attach much importance to their propitiatory offerings, the chief among which seemed to be a few inches of tobacco, with which it was fondly hoped the deities of the gulf would condescend to smoke the pipe of peace while their red children ventured to trespass a little on their domain; and hard indeed must have been the hearts of the said spirits had they refused so valuable an offering, for tobacco is the life and marrow, the quintessence of ter- restrial felicity, the very joy and comfort of a voyageur, and the poor Indians had but little of it to spare. UNGAVA. 103 While this was going on, Bryan stood with his back to the fire, a remarkably short and peculiarly black pipe in his mouth, and his head inclined sagaciously to one side, as if he designed, by dint of a combination of intense mental abstraction, partial closing of his eyes, severe knitting of his btows, and slow but exceedingly voluminous emission of smoke, to come to a conclusion in regard to the unfathomable subject of Indian supersti- tion. La Roche, steeped in unphilosophic indifference on such matters, and keenly alive to the gross cravings of hunger, busied himself in concocting a kettle of soup ; while the rest cf the party rambled about the beach or among the bushes in search of eggs. In this latter search Frank and Edith were very successful, and returned with pockets laden with excellent eggs of the eider-duck, which were immediately put into the kettle, and tended not a little to increase the excellence of the soup and the impatience of the men. Meanwhile the tide rose, the power of the current was gradually checked, and towards noon they passed the dangerous narrows in safety. From the view that was now obtained of the interior, it became evident that the worst of their journey yet lay before them. On arriv- ing at the mouth of Deer Kiver, the mountains were seen to rise abruptly and precipitously, while far away inland their faint blue peaks rose into the sky. Indeed, from this point the really hard work of the voyage may be said to have commenced ; for, scarcely had they pro- ceeded a few miles up the river, when their further progress, at least by water, was effectually interrupted by a rapid which came leaping madly down its rocky bed, as if the stream rejoiced to escape from the chasms and mountain gorges, and find rest at last on the ample bosom of the great deep. i 104 UNGAVA. " What think ye of that, boy ? " said Stanley to Frank Morton, as they leaped from their respective canoes, and stood gazing at the rugged glen from which the rapid issued, and the wild appearance of the hills beyond. " It seems to me that report spoke truly when it said that the way to Clearwater Lake was rugged. Here is no despicable portage to begin with ; and yonder cliffs, that look so soft and blue in the far distance, will prove to be dark and hard enough when we get at them, I warrant." " When we get at them ! " echoed Mrs, Stanley, as she approached, leading Edith by the hand. " Get at them, George ! Had any one asked me if it were possible to pass over these mountains with our canoes and cargoes, I should have answered, ' Decidedly not ! ' " " And yet you were so foolish and reckless as to be the first to volunteer for this decidedly impossible ex- pedition I " replied Stanley. " There you are inconsistent," said Mrs. Stanley, smil- ing. " If reckless, I cannot be foolish, according to your own showing ; for I have heard you give it as your opinion that recklessness is one of the most essential elements in the leaders of a forlorn-hope. But really the thing does seem to my ignorant mind impossible. — What think you, Eda ? " Mrs. Stanley bent down and looked into the face of her child, but she received no reply. The expanded eyes, indeed, spoke volumes ; and the parted lips, on which played a fitful, exulting smile, the heightened colour, and thick-coming breath, told eloquently of her anticipated delight in these new regions, which seemed so utterly diflferent from the shores of the bay : but her tongue was mute. And well might Mrs. Stanley think the passage over UNGAVA. 105 these mountains impossible ; for, except to men accus- tomed to canoe travelling in the American lakes and rivers, such an attempt would have appeared as hopeless as the passage of a ship through the ice-locked polar seas in winter. Not so thought the * men. Already several of the most active of them were scrambling up the cliffs with heavy loads on their backs ; and, while Stanley and his wife were yet conversing, two of them approached rapidly, bearing the large canoe on their shoulders. The exclamation that issued from the foremost of these proved him to be Bryan. " Now, bad luck to ye, Gaspard ! can't ye go stidy ? It's mysilf that'll be down on me blissid nose av ye go staggerin' about in that fashion. Sure it's Losh, the spalpeen, that would carry the canoe better than you." Gaspard made no reply. Bryan staggered on, growl- ing as he went, and in another minute they were hid from view among the bushes. " What do you see, Frank ? " inquired Stanley ; " you stare as earnestly as Bryan did at the white bear last week. What is't, man ? speak ! " " A fish," replied Frank. " I saw him rise in the pool, and I'm certain he's a very large one." " Very likely, Frank ; there ought to be fish of some sort there. I've been told — hist ! there he's again. As I live, a salmon ! a salmon, Frank ! Now for your rod. my boy." But Frank heard him not, for he was gone. In a few minutes he returned with a fishing-rod, which he was busily engaged in putting up as he hurried towards the rocks beside the pool. Now, Frank Morton was a fisher. We do not mean to say that he was a fisher by profession ; nor do we ;i 106 UNGAVA. merely affirm that he was rather fond of the gentle art of angling, or generally inclined to take a cast when he happened to be near a good stream. By no means. Frank was more than that implies. He was a steady, thorough-going disciple of Izaak Walton; one who, in the days of his boyhood, used to flee to the water-side at all seasons, in all weathers, and despite all obstacles. Not only was it his wont to fish when he could, or how he could, but too often was he beguiled to fish at times and in ways that were decidedly improper ; sometimes devoting those hours which were set apart expressly for the acquirement of Greek and Latin, to wandering by mountain stream or tarn, rod in hand, up to the knees in water, among the braes and woodlands of his own native country. And Frank's enthusiasm did not de- pend entirely on his success. It was a standing joke among his school-fellows that Frank would walk six miles any day for the chance of a nibble from the ghost of a minnow. Indeed he was often taunted by his ruder comrades with being such a keen fisher that he was quite content if he only hooked a drowned cat during a day's excursion. But Frank was good-natured; he smiled at their jests, and held on the even tenor of his way, whipping the streams more pertinaciously than his master whipped A^m for playing truant ; content alike to bear ignominy and chastisement, so long as he was rewarded by a nibble, and overjoyed beyond expres- sion when he could return home with the tail of a two- pounder hanging over the edge of his basket. Far be it from us to hold up to ridicule the weakness of a friend, but we cannot help adding that Master Frank made the most of his tails. His truthful and manly nature, in- deed, would not stoop to actual deception, but he had been known on more than one occasion to otfer to carry .'III !i UNGAVA. 107 a friend's waterproof fishing-boots in his basket, when his doing so rendered it impossible to prevent the tails of his trout from protruding arrogantly, as if to insinuate that there were shoals within. Another of Frank's weaknesses was, upon the hooking of every fish, to assert, with overweening confidence and considerable excitement, that it was a tremendously big one. Ex- perience had, during all his piscatorial career, contra- dicted him ninety-nine times out of every hundred ; but Frank's firm belief in his last minnow being a big trout — at least until it lay gasping on the bank at his feet — was as unshaken after long years of mistaken calcula- tion as when first he sallied forth to the babbling brook with a willow branch, a fathom of twine, and a crooked pin ! Such untiring devotion of course could not fail to make Frank particularly knowing in all the details and minutiae of his much-loved sport. He knew every hole and corner of the rivers and burns within fifteen miles of his father's house. He became mysteriously wise in regard to the weather ; knew precisely the best fly for any given day, and, in the event of being unhappily destitute of the proper kind, could dress one to perfec- tion in ten minutes. As he grew older and taller, and the muscles on his large and well-made limbs began to develop, Frank sluug a more capacious basket on his back, shouldered a heavier rod, and, with a pair of thick shoes and a home-spun shooting suit, stretched away over the Highland hills towards the romantic shores of the west coast of Scotland. Here he first experienced the wild excitement of salmon-fishing ; and here the Waltonian chains, that had been twining and thickening around him from infancy, received two or three addi- tional coils, and were finally rivetted for ever. During 108 UNGAVA. ml 'iiii ' ifi his sojourn in America, he had happened to dwell in places where the fishing, though good, was not of a very exciting nature ; and he had not seen a salmon since the day he left home, so that it is not matter for wonder that his stride was rapid and his eye bright while ho hurried towards the pool, as before mentioned. He who has never left the beaten tracks of men, or trod the unknown wilderness, can have but a faint con- ception of the feelings of a true angler as he stands by the brink of a dark pool which has hitherto reflected only the antlers of the wild deer — whose dimpling eddies and flecks of foam have been disturbed by no fisher since the world began, except the polar bear. Besides the pleasurable emotions of strong hope, there is the additional charm of uncertainty as to what will rise, and of certainty that if there be anything piscatine beneath these fascinating ripples it undoubtedly will rise— and bite too ! Then there is the peculiar satisfac- tion of catching now and then a drop of spray from, and hearing the thunder of, a cataract, whose free, surging bound is not yet shackled by the tourist's sentimental description ; and the novelty of beholding one's image reflected in a liquid mirror whose geographical position is not yet stereotyped on the charts of man. Alas for these maps and charts ! Despite the wishes of scientific geographers and the ignorance of unscientific explorers, we think them far too complete already ; and we can conceive few things more dreadful or crushing to the enterprising and romantic spirits of the world than the arrival of that time (if it ever shall arrive) when it shall be said that terra incognita exists no longer — when every one of those fairy-like isles of the southern seas, and all the hidden wonders of the polar regions, shall be put down, in cold blood, on black and white, exposed UNGAVA. 109 profanely on the schoolroom walls, and drummed into the thick heads of wretched little boys who don't want to learn, by the unsympathizing hands of dominies who, it may be, care but little whether they do or not ! But to return. While Frank stood on the rocks, attaching to the line a salmon-fly which he had selected with much consideration from his book, he raised his eyes once or twice to take a rapid glance at his position and the capabilities of the place. About fifty yards farther up the river the stream curled round the base of a large rock, and gushed into a pool which was encircled on all sides by an overhanging wall, except where the waters issued forth in a burst of foam. Their force, however, was materially broken by another curve, round which they had to sweep ere they reached this exit, so that when they rushed into the larger pool below they calmed down at once, and, on reaching the point where Frank stood, assumed that oily, gurgling surface, dimpled all over with laughing eddies, that suggests irresistibly the idea of fish not only being there, as a matter of course, but being there expressly and solely for the pur- pose of being caught ! A little farther down, the river took a slight bend, and immediately after, recurring to its straight course, it dashed down, for a distance of fifty yards, in a tumultuous rapid, which swept into sudden placidity a few hundred yards below. Having taken all this in at a glance, Frank dropped the fly into the water and raised his rod to make a cast. In this act he almost broke the rod, to his amazement ; for, instead of whip- ping the fly lightly out of the water, he dragged a trout of a pound weight violently up on the bank. " Bravo ! " cried Stanley, laughing heartily at his friend's stare of mingled wonder and amazement, — " bravo, Frank ! I'm no fisher myself, but I've always no UNGAVA. understood that fish required a little play before being lauded. However, you have convinced me of my igno- rance. I see that the proper way is to toss them over your head ! A salmon must be rather troublesome to toss, but no doubt, with your strong arms, you'll manage it easily, hey ? " " Why, what an appetite they must have ! " replied Frank, answering his friend's badinage with a smile. " If the little fellows begin thus, what will not the big ones do ? " • As he spoke, he disengaged the fish and threw it down, and made the next cast so rapidly, that if another trout was waiting to play him a similar trick, it must have been grievously disappointed. The line swept lightly through the air, and the fly fell gently on the stream, where it had not quivered more than two seconds when the water gurgled around it. The next moment Frank's rod bent like a hoop, and the line flew through the rings with whirring rapidity, filling these lonely solitudes for the first time with the pleasant " music of the reel." Almost before Frank had time to take a step in a downward direction, fifty yards were run out, the waters were suddenly cleft, and a salmon sprang like a bar of burnished silver twice its own height into the air. With a sounding splash it returned to its native element ; but scarcely had its fins touched the water, when it darted towards the bank. Being brought up suddenly here, it turned at a tangent, and flashed across the pool again, causing the reel to spin with renewed velocity. Here the fish paused for a second, as if to collect its thoughts, and then coming, apparently, to a summary determination as to what it meant to do, it began steadily to ascend the stream, not, indeed, so rapidly as it had descended, but sufficiently so UNGAVA. Ill SO to give Frank some trouble, by means of rapidly wind- ing up, to keep the line tight. Having bored doggedly towards the head of the rapid, the fish stopped and began to shake its head passionately, as if indignant at being foiled in its energetic attempts to escape. After a little time, it lay sulkily down at the bottom of the pool, where it defied its persecutor to move it an inch. *' What's to be done now ? " asked Stanley, who stood ready to gaff the fish when brought near to the bank. " We must rouse him up," said Fi*ank, as he slowly wound up the line. " Just take up a stone and throw it at him." Stanley looked surprised, for he imagined that such a proceeding would frighten the fish and cause it to snap the line ; but seeing that Frank was in earnest, he did as he was directed. No sooner had the stone sunk than the startled fish once more dashed across the river ; then taking a downward course, it sped like an arrow to the brink of the rough water below. To have allowed the salmon to go down the rapid would have been to lose it, so Frank arrested the spinning of his reel and held on. For a second or two the rod bent almost in a circle, and the line became fearfully rigid. " You'll break it, Frank," cried Stanley, in some anxiety. " It can't be helped," said Frank, compressing his lips ; " he must not go down there. The tackle is new ; I think it will hold him." Fortunately the tackle proved to be very good. The fish was arrested, and after one or two short runs, which showed that its vigour was abated, it was drawn care- fully towards the rocks. As it drew near it rolled over on its side once or twice — an evident sign of being much exhausted. 112 UNGAVA. II " Now, Stanley, bo careful," said Frank, as his friend stepped cautiously towards the fish and extended the gafi*. " I've seen many a fine salmon escape owing to careless gaffing. Don't be in a hurry. Be sure of your distance before you strike, and do it quickly. Now, then — there — give it him — hurrah ! " he shouted, as Stanley passed the iron hook neatly into the side of the fish, and lifted it high and dry on the rocks. The cheer to which Frank gave vent, on this success- ful termination to the struggle, was re-echoed heartily by several of the men who, on passing the spot with their loads, had paused and become deeply interested spectators of the sport, " Powerful big fish, sir," said Bryan, throwing down his pack and taking up the salmon by the gills. " Twinty pounds at laste, av it's an ounce." " Scarcely that, Bryan," said Stanley ; " but it's not much less, I believe." " Ah ! oui, 'tis ver' pritty. Ver' superb for supper." remarked La Roche. The little Frenchman was right in saying that it was pretty. Unlike the ordinary salmon, it was marked with spots like a trout, its head was small and its shoulders plump, while its silvery purity was exceed- ingly dazzling and beautiful. " 'Tis a Hearne-salmon," said Massan, approaching the group. " I've seed lots o* them on the coast to the south'ard o' this, an' I've no doubt we'll find plenty o* them at Ungava." While the n on were discussing the merits of the fish, Frank had hooked another, which, although quite as large, gave him much less trouble to land ; and before the men had finished carrying the canoes and goods over the portage, he had taken three fish out of the UNGAVA. 113 pool. Wisliinpr, however, to try for a 1 same pool, vvisinnpr, nowever, to try tor a uirf^er one nearer the sea, he prociMxlcd to take a cast below tlie rapid. Meanwhile, U* Roche, whose activity had ena])led him to carry over his portion of the car<;o lonj; before his comrades, came to the pool which Frank had just left, and seating himself on a large stone, drew forth his tobacco-pouch. VV'ith a comical leer at the water which had so recently been deprived of its denizens, ho proceeded leisurely to fill a pipe. It is impossible to foresee, and difficult to account for, the actions of an impulsive human being. La Roclie sat down to smoke his pipe, but instead of smoking it, he started to his feet and whirled it into the river. This apparently insane action was followed by several others, which, as they were successively performed, gradually unfolded the drift of his intentions. Drawing the knife which hung at his girdle, he went into the bushes, whence he quickly returned, dragging after him a large branch. From this he stripped the leaves and twigs. Fumbling in his pocket for some time, he drew forth a piece of stout cord, about four yards long, with a cod-hook attached to the end of it. This line had been constructed some weeks before when the canoes were wind-bound at a part of the coast where La Roche, desirous of replenishing the kettle, had made an un- successful attempt at sea-fishing. Fastening this line to the end of his extemporized rod. La Roche proceeded to dress his hook. This he accomplished by means of the feather of a duck w^hich Frank shot the day before, and a tag from his scarlet worsted belt ; and, when finished, it had more the appearance of some hideous reptile than a gay fly. However, La Roche surveyed it for a mo- ment or two with an expression of deep satisfaction, 8 i I 1 H I f i' I !' )!/ lil !' 1 ill' i 114 UNGAVA. and then, hurrying to the brink of the water, made a violent heave. " Oh ! cent milles tonnerres ! " he exclaimed angrily, as the enormous hook caught in the leg of his trousers. The large and clumsy barb was deeply imbedded, so there was no help for it but to use the knife. The second throw was more successful, and the hook alighted in the water with a splash that ought to have sent all the fish in the pool away in consternation. Instead of this, how- ever, no sooner did the reptile trail upon the stream than a trout dashed at it in such violent haste that it nearly missed it altogether. As it was, it hooked itself very slightly, and the excitable Frenchman settled the matter by giving the line a violent tug, in his anxiety to land the fish, that pulled the hook entirely out of its mouth. " Ah ! c'est damage, ver' great ; mais try it encore, my boy," exciaimed the mortified angler. The next throw, although well accomplished, produced nothing; but at the third attempt, ere the reptile had settled on the water for a second, it was engulfed by a salmon fully six pounds weight, and La Roche's rod was almost drawn out of his grasp. " Hilloa, Losh ! what have ye got there ? " exclaimed Bryan, as, with several of the men, he approached to where the Frenchman and the salmon strove in un- certain conflict. " By the mortial, he's hucked a whale ! Out with it, boy, afore it pulls ye in ! " said the Irishman, running to the rescue. Just then the salmon gave a pull of more than or- dinary vigour, at the same moment La Roche slipped his foot, and, ere Bryan could lay hold of him, fell headlong into the water and disappeared. Bryan's hands hung helplessly down, his jaw dropped, and his UNGAVA. 115 eyes opened wide, as he gazed in mute wonderment at the spot where his friend's toes had vanished. Sud- denly he wrenched off his cap and flung it down, and proceeded to tear off his coat, preparatory to leaping into the river to the rescue, when his arms were pinioned to his sides by the powerful gripe of Massan. " Come, Bryan," said he, " you know very well that you can't swim ; you'd only make things worse." " Och ! murder ! he can't swim neither. Let me go, ye black villain. Thunder an' turf ! will ye see the poor lad drownded forenint yer two eyes ? " cried the poor Irish- man, as he made violent but unavailing struggles to get free. But Massan knew that to allow him to escape would only add to the number requiring to be saved, and as he himself could not swim, he saw at once that the only service he could render under the circumstances would be to hold the Irishman down. Clasping him, therefore, as in a vice, he raised his head and gave a shout for help that rolled in deep echoes among the overhanging clifts. Another shout was uttered at the same instant. Edith, who happened to come up just as La Roche's head emerged from the water gasping for breath, uttered a wild shriek that made more than one heart among the absentees leap as they flew to the rescue. Meanwhile La Roche rose and sank several times in the surges of the pool. His face on these occasions exhibited a mingled expression of terror and mischievous wildness ; for although he could not swim a stroke, the very buoyancy of his mercurial temperament seemed partially to support him, and a feeling of desperate determination induced him to retain a death-like gripe of the rod, at the end of which the salmon still struggled. But his strength was fast going, and he sank for the fourth time with a bubbling cry, when a step was heard 116 UNGAVA. crashing through the adjacent bushes, and Dick Prince sprang down the slope like a deer. He did not pause when the scene burst upon his view, but a smile of satisfaction played upon his usually grave face when he saw Edith safe on the banks of the stream. Another spring and an agile bound sent him headlong into the pool about a yard from the spot where La Koche had last sunk. Scarcely had he disappeared when the dog Chimo bounded towards the scene of action, and, with what intent no one could tell, leaped also into the water. By this time Frank, Stanley, and nearly all the party had assembled on the bank of the river, ready to render assistance. In a few seconds they had the satis- faction of seeing Dick Prince rise, holding poor La Roche by the collar of his capote with his left hand, while he swam vigorously towards the shore with his right. But during the various struggles which had taken place they had been gradually sucked into the stream that flowed towards the lower rapid, and it now became apparent to Prince that his only chance of safety was in catching hold of the point of rock that formed the first obstruction to the rush of water. Abandoning all effort, therefore, to gain the bank beside him, he swam with the current, but edged towards the shore as he floated down. " Hallo ! La Roche ! " he exclaimed loudly. " Do you hear ? do you understand me ? " " Ah ! oui, vraiment. I not dead yit." " Then let go that rod and seize my collar, and mind, sink deep in the water. Show only enough o' your face to breathe with, or I'll drown ye."- The Frenchman obeyed to the extent of seizing Dick's collar and sinking deep in the water, so as not to over- burden his friend ; but nothing could induce him to quit UNGAVA. 117 quit the rod to which he had clung so long and so resolutely. Prince's arms being now free, one or two powerful strokes placed him beyond the influence of the strong current, and as he passed the rocks before mentioned, he seized an overhanging branch of a small shrub, by which he endeavoured to drag himself ashore. This, however, he found to be impossible, partly owing to the steepness of the shelving rock, and partly to the fact that Chimo, in his ill-directed attempts to share in the dangers of his friends, had seized La Roche by the skirts of the coat in order to prevent himself from going down the stream. Those on shore, on seeing Prince make for the rock, ran towards the spot ; but having to make a slight detour round the bend of the river, they did not reach it until he seized the branch, and when Frank, who was the first, sprang down the slope to the rescue, he found them streaming out and waving to and fro in the current, like some monstrous reptile — Dick holding on to the branch with both hands. La Roche holding on to Dick, Chimo holding on by his teeth to La Roche, and the unfortunate salmon holding on to the line which its half -drowned captor scorned to let go. ^^- A few seconds sufficed to drag them dripping from the stream ; and the energetic little Frenchman no sooner found his feet on solid ground than he hauled out his fish and landed it triumphantly with his own hand. " 'Tis a pretty fish. La Roche," said Frank, laughing, as he busied himself in taking down his rod, while several of the men assisted Dick Prince to wring the water out of his clothes, and others crowded round La Roche to congratulate him on his escape — " 'tis a pretty fish, but it cost you some trouble to catch it." " Throuble, indeed ! " echoed Bryan, as he sat on a rock smoking his pipe ; " troth it's more nor him came to 118 UNGAVA. throuble by that same fish : it guve me the throuble o' bein' more nor halt' choked by Massan." "Half choked, Bryan! what mean you?" asked Frank. " Mane ? I just mane what I say ; an' the raison why's best known to himself." A loud peal of laughter greeted Hassan's graphic ex- planation of the forcible manner in which he had pre- vented the Irishman from throwing himself into the river. The party now turned earnestly to the more serious duties of the journey. Already too much time had been lost in this " playing themselves with fish," as Stanley expressed it, and it behoved them to embark as speedily as possible. About a mile above the pool which had nearly proved fatal to La Roche was the head of a series of insurmountable rapids, which extended all the way down to the waterfall. Beyond this was a pretty long reach of calm water, up which they proceeded easily ; but as they advanced the current became so strong that no headway could be made with the paddles, and it was found necessary to send a party of the men ashore with a long line, by means of which the canoes were slowly dragged against the current. At length they came to shallow water, which necessitated another portage ; and as it was about sunset when they reached it, Stanley ordered the tent to be pitched for the night, and the fire lighted, under the shadow of a stupendous mountain, the rocky sides of which were sprinkled with dwarf pine trees, and partially covered with brush and herbage. Here Edith and her mother discovered mul- titudes of berries, the most numerous being cloud and crow berries ; both of which were found to be good, especially the former, and a fragrant dish of these graced the towel that evening at supper. Thus, day by day, our adventurous travellers penetrated UNGAVA. 119 as deeper and deeper into the heart ot* the wilderness, which became more savage and mountainous as they left the coast. Stanley drew forth his quadrant and compass, wherewith he guided the party towards their future home. At night, after the labour of the day was over, he and Frank would spread their charts in the blaze of the camp fire, and study the positions of the land so far as it was laid down ; while Edith sat beside her mother, helping her to repair the torn and way-worn habiliments of her husband and Frank, or listening with breathless interest to the men, as they recounted their experiences of life in the different regions through which they had travelled. Many of these tales were more or less col- oured by the fancy of the narrators, but most of them were founded on fact, and proved an unfailing source of deep interest to the little child. Frank's fishing-rod was frequently in requisition, and often supplied the party with more than enough of excellent fish ; and at every new bend and turn of the innumerable lakes and rivers through which they passed, reindeer were seen bounding on the mountain-sides, or trotting down the ravines to quench their thirst and cool their sides in the waters ; so that food was abundant, and their slender stock of provisions had not to be trenched upon, while the berries that grew luxuriantly everywhere proved a grateful addition to their store. Thus, day by day, they slowly retreated farther and farther from the world of mankind — living in safety under the protection of the Almighty, and receiving the daily supply of all their ne- cessities from His fatherly and bountiful hand ; thus, day by day, they rose with the sun, and lay down at night to rest upon the mountain's side or by the river's bank ; and thus, day by day, they penetrated deeper and deeper into the heart of the unknown wilderness. >:l> CHAPTER XII. A neiv sceiie — The Esquimau — Deer slayimj — Enemies in the hush. TURN we now to another, a more distant, and a wilder scene. Near the bleak shores of Hudson's Straits there flows a river which forms an outlet to the superfluous waters of the almost unknown territory lying between the uninhabited parts of Labrador and that tract of desert land which borders Hudson's Bay on the east, and is known to the fur-traders by the appellation of East Main. This river is called the Caniapuscaw, and discharges itself into Ungava Bay. The scene to which we would turn the reader's atten- tion is upwards of twenty miles from the mouth of this river, at a particular bend, where the stream spreads itself out into a sheet of water almost worthy of being called a lake, and just below which two bold clifls shut out the seaward view, and cause an abrupt narrowing of the river. The scene is peculiar, and surpassingly grand. On each side of the stream majestic mountains raise their bald and rugged peaks almost into the clouds. Little herbage grows on the more exposed places, and nothing, save here and there a stunted and weath r~v.orn pine, breaks the sharp outline of the clifls. But in the gorges and dark ravines — for there are no valleys — clumps of small-sized spruce-fir and larch trees throw a softness over some of the details of a spot whose general UNGAVA. 121 aspect is one of sterility. The mountains rise in a suc- cession of irregular steps or terraces, whose faces are so precipitous that they cannot be ascended. To accomplish the feat of scaling the mountain-tops it would be neces- sary to clamber up a ravine until the first terrace should be gained, then, walking along that, ascend the next ravine, and so on. At the upper end of the lake (as we shall hereafter call this wide part of the river) lies a low island, fringed with a scanty growth of willows ; and not far from this, on the eastern bank of the river, lies a small patch of level sand. This spot is somewhat peculiar, inasmuch as it is backed by a low platform of rock, whose surface is smooth as a table. At the foot of this rock bubbles a little spring, which, meandering through a tangled spot of stunted shrubbery ere it mingles with the sand, gives unusual greenness and vitality to the surrounding herbage. On the edge of this rocky platform sat the figure of a man. It was evening. The declining sun shot its last few rays over the brow of the opposite mountains, and bathed him in mellow light, as he sat apparently contemplating the scene before him. The man's costume bespoke him a native, of the savage region in the midst of which he seemed the only human being. But although an Esqui- mau, he exhibited several physical peculiarities not com- monly supposed to belong to that people. To an altitude of six feet three he added a breadth of shoulder and ex- pansion of chest seldom equalled among men of more highly -favoured climes ; and his real bulk being very greatly increased by his costume, he appeared to be a very giant — no unfitting tenant of such giant scenery. The said costume consisted of an extremely loose coat or shirt of deerskin, having the hair outside, and a capa- cious hood, which usually hung down behind, but covered t 122 UNGAVA. it l! his head at this time, in order to protect it from a sharp north-west breeze that whirled among the gullies of the mountains, and surging down their sides, darkened the surface of the water. A pair of long sealskin boots en- cased his limbs from foot to thigh ; and a little wallet or bag of sealskin, with the hair outside, hung from his shoulders. Simple although this costume was, it had a bulky rotundity of appearance that harmonized well with the giant's frank, good-humoured countenance, which was manly, firm, and massive, besides being rosy, oily, and fat. In the latter peculiarity he partook of the well-known characteristic of his tribe ; but the effeminacy in appearance that is produced by a round fat face was done away in the case of our giant by a remarkably black though as yet downy moustache and beard, of a length suitable to twenty-three winters. His hair was long, straight, and black, besides being uncom- monly glossy — an effect attributable to the prevalence of whale-oil in these regions. On the forehead the locks were cut short, so as to afford free scope to his black eyes and sturdy-looking nose. By his side lay a long hunting spear, and a double-bladed paddle, fully fifteen feet long ; which latter belonged to a kayak, or Esquimau canoe, that lay on the sand close to the water's edge. Sitting there, motionless as the rocks around him, the giant looked like a colossal statue of an Esquimau. He was no figure of stone, however, but a veritable human being, as was proved by his starting suddenly from his reverie and hastening towards the spring before men- tioned, at which he stooped and drank rapidly, like one who had to make up for lost time. After a few hurried gulps, the man strode towards his canoe, but as he went his restless eye became fixed on the branching antlers of a deer, that were tossed in the UNGAVA. 123 air on the summit of a neighbouring cliff'. Like one who is suddenly paralyzed, the Esquimau stood transfixed in the attitude in which he had been arrested. He did not even seem to breathe, as the antlers moved to and fro, clearly defined against the blue sky. At length they disappeared, and the animal to which they belonged slowly descended a ravine towards the river. Then, as if set free from a spell, the man glided into his kayak, and swept rapidly but noiselessly behind a projecting point of rock, where he waited patiently till the deer took to the water. He had not long to wait, however, for in a few minutes afterwards the deer, followed by several com- panions, w^alked out upon the patch of sand, snuffed the air once or twice, and entered the stream with the inten- tion of crossing. But there was an enemy near whom they little dreamed of — not an enemy who would dash excitedly into the midst of them, or awaken the thunders of the place with his noisy gun, but a foe who could patiently bide his time, and take cool and quiet advantage of it when it came. When the deer had proceeded about a hundred yards into the river, the Esquimau dipped his paddle twice, and the narrow, sharp-pointed canoe, which, at a short distance, seemed little more than a floating plank, darted through the water and ranged alongside of the startled animals. The fattest of the herd was sepa- rated from its fellows and driven towards the shore from which it had started, while the others struggled across the river. Once or twice the separated deer endeavoured to turn to rejoin its comrades ; an attempt which was frustrated by the Esquimau, who could paddle infinitely faster over the water in his skin canoe than the deer could swim. As they neared the shore, the giant cast on it one or two glances, and having made up his mind ii^ 124 UNGAVA. as to the most convenient spot for landing, he urged the point of his canoe between the antlers of the deer, and steered it in this manner to the sand-bank. The deer, thus directed, had no resource but to land where its per- secutor chose ; but no sooner did its foot touch ground, than it sprang convulsively forward in the vain hope to escape. The same instant its captor's canoe shot beside it. Grasping the long lance before mentioned in his hand, he placed its glittering point on the deer's side, tickled it slowly to ascertain that it was between two ribs, and, with a quick thrust, stabbed it to the heart. A convulsive shudder, as the deer's head sank in the stream, proved that, though cold-blooded in appearance, the action was more effective and less cruel than many other more approved methods of killing game. Our Esquimau thought neither of the method of slay- ing his deer nor of man's opinion regarding it. His sole object was to procure supper, having tasted nothing since early morning ; and the manner in which ho ate showed at once the strength of his appetite and his total indiffer- ence to cookery, for he ate it raw. There was a certain appearance of haste in all his actions which, however, seemed unaccountable, considering the peaceful nature of the vast solitudes around him. Scarcely had he cut off and devoured a portion of the deer than he hastened again to his canoe, and darted like an arrow from the shore. This is no exaggerated simile. The long, thin, sharp Esquimau kayak is highly suggestive of an arrow in its form, and much more so in its extraordinary speed. It consists of an extremely light frame- work of wood covered with sealskin parchment, which is stretched upon it all over as tight as a drum. The top of the canoe being covered as well as the bottom, it is thus, as it were, decked ; and a small hole in the middle of this UNGAVA. 125 (lock aflmits its occupant. Tho kayak can only lioW one person. The paddle, as already said, is a long pol with a blade at each end. It is dipped alternately oii each side, and is used not only to propel the kayak, but to prevent it from upsetting. Indeed, so liable is it to upset, that nothing but the wonderful adroitness of its occupant prevents it from doing so with every .swing of his body. Quick, however, though the kayak sped over the rip- pling wave, it could not have escaped the messenger of death that seemed about to be despatched after it by a dark-skinned, red-painted Indian, who, at the moment the vessel left the shore, leapt from behind a rocky point, and, levelling a long gun, took a steady aim at the un- conscious Esquimau. A little puff' of powder answered to the click of the lock, as the gun missed fire. With an exclamation of anger the savage seized his powder-horn to reprime, when a rude grasp was laid on his shoulder, and another Indian, who, from the eagle feather in his hair, and his general bearing, appeared to be a chief, exclaimed, — " Fool ! you have the impatience of a woman, and you have not yet shown that you have the heart of a man. Would the scalp of yon Eater-of-raw-flesh pay us for coming so far from our himting-grounds ? If your gun had spoken among these mountains, we would have found the empty wigwams of his people, instead of fringing our belts with their scalps." With a frown of anger the chief turned on his heel and retraced his steps into the ravine from which he had emerged, followed by his abashed and silent com- panion. Meanwhile the Esquimau, ignorant of the fate from which he had just escaped, continued to ply his paddle with 126 UNGAVA. right good- will. The little craft, obedient to the powerful impulse, combined as it was with the current of the ebb- tide, flew rather than floated toward the narrows, through which it passed, and opened up a view of the ice-encum- bered waters of Ungava Bay. Directing his course along the western shores of the river, the Esquimau speedily reached the coast at a point where several low, rough- built summer huts clustered near the shore. Here he ran his kayak into a little creek, and, having lifted it beyond tide mark, l)etook himself to his dwelling. Savage love — A wife pur CHAPTER XIII. •chased— Thr attack— The flight— The escaiiC- icoundcd nian. -The SCARCELY had tho stout Esquimau proceeded a few steps along the shore, when ho was met by a young girl who laid her hand on his arm. Taking her gently by the shoulders, he drew her towards him and kissed her on both cheeks ; an action which caused her to blush deeply as, with a half smile half frown on her face, she pushed him away. Love is the same all the world over, whether it glows beneath the broad-cloth and spotless linen of a civilized gentleman, or under the deerskin coat of a savage. And its expression, we suspect, is somewhat similar everywhere. The coy repulse of pretended displeasure came as naturally from our plump little arctic heroine as it could have done from the most civilized flirt, and was treated with well-simulated contrition by our arctic giant, as they walked slowly towards the huts. But the Esquimau had other matters than love in his head just then, and the girl's face assumed a grave and some- what anxious look as he continued to whisper in her ear. At the little hamlet they separated, and the maiden went to her grandfather's abode, while her lover, lifting the skin-curtain door of a rudely-constructed hut, entered his own humble dwelling. Tlie room was empty, and 128 UNGAVA. I its owner did not seem as if he meant to cheer it with his presence long. In one corner lay a pile of miscella- neous articles, which he removed, and, taking the tusk of a walrus which lay near his hand, began to dig with it in the sand. In a few seconds it struck a hard substance, and the Esquimau, putting his hand into the hole, drew forth a glittering axe, upon which he gazed with supreme satisfaction. Now be it known to you, reader, that among the Esquimaux of the frozen north iron is regarded with about as much delight as gold is by ourselves. And the reason is simple enough. These poor people live en- tirely upon the produce of the chase. Polar bears, seals, walruses, and whales are their staff of life. To procure these animals, spears are necessary ; to skin and cut them up, knives are needful. But bone and stone make sorry knives and spears ; so that, when a bit of iron, no matter how poor its quality or small its size, can be obtained, it is looked on as the most valuable of posses- sions; and the ingenuity displayed by Esquimaux in fashioning the rudest piece of metal into the most useful of implements is truly astonishing, proving, in the most satisfactory way, that necessity is indeed the mother of invention- The precious metal is obtained in two ways : by the discovery of a wreck, w^hich is extremely rare ; and by barter with those tribes which sometimes visit the Moravian settlements of Labrador. But neither source is very productive. Even a nail is treasured as a blessing, while an axe is a fortune ! When our giant, therefore, drew forth the shining implement, and gazed with delight at its keen edge, he experienced as great satisfaction as a miser does when gloating over his banker's book ! Havinsf satisfied himself that the axe was free from all approximation to rust, he stuck it into a belt of raw UNGAVA. 129 hide, wh^ch he put on for the express purpose of sustain- ing it — as Esquimaux do not generally wear belts. He then sallied forth, and walked with the air of a man who wears the grand cross of the Legion of Honour. As he went to the hut in which lived the oldest man of the tribe, the shade of anxiety, which had clouded his brow more than once during the day, again rested on his face. On entering, he observed the old Esquimau listening with anxious countenance to the young girl whom we have already introduced to the reader. Now this girl — Aneetka by name — was by no means an angel in Esquimau habiliments. Among civilized folk probably she would not have been deemed even pretty. Nevertheless, in the eyes of her lover she was most decidedly beautiful, and round, and fat, and rosy, and young, awkward, and comfortable ! And the giant loved her — never so strongly, perhaps, as when he saw her striving to allay the fears of her old grandfather. But this same grandfather was obstinate. He wanted her to become the wife of an Esquimau who lived far to the westward, and who once had dealings with the fur- traders, and from whom he expected to derive consider- able advantages and gifts of bits of hoop-iron and nails. But she wanted to become the giant's wife — so there the matter stood. " The spirits o' the wind and sea protect us, and may the god o' the mist cover us ! " said the old man, as the young Esquimau sat down on a dead seal beside him. "Is it true that you saw the men of fire ? " This was, of course said in the language of the Esquimaux, and we render it as literally as possible. " Yes. it is true," replied the young man. " T saw them at the rapid water in Caniapuscaw and I took kayak to bring the new^s." 9 130 UNGAVA. ■51 Hi m 11 . '. I Various exclamations of mingled surprise and anger escaped from the compressed lips of several stalwart natives, who had crowded into the tent on hearing of the arrival of their comrade. " Yes," continued the young man, " we must go away this night. They had fire-tubes, and there were thirty men. We have only ten." Again a murmur ran through the listeners, but no one spoke for a few seconds. " Did they see you ? " asked the old man, anxiously. " No. I came on them suddenly, when I was chasing deer, and almost ran into their camp ; but I saw, and fell in the grass. I thought the chief raised his head quickly when I fell ; but he looked down again, and I crawled away." In this the young Esquimau was mistaken. He knew little of the craft and the quickness of the red Indian, and easily fell into the snare of his savage enemy, who, having been momentarily startled by the sudden sound of the Esquimau approach, had endeav- oured to throw him off' his guard, by pretending that although he heard the sound he thought nothing of it. But no sooner had the Esquimau retired than he was closely followed and watched by the whole party. They could have easily shot him, but refrained from doing so, that he might unwittingly be their guide to the habita- tions of his people. The rapid flight of his kayak dis- tanced his pursuers at first, but they made up for this during an hour or two in the night, when the tired Esquimau allowed himself a short season of repose to recruit his energies for the following day's journey. During this period the Indians shot far ahead of him, and when he arrived at the coast next day they were not much in the rear. UNGAVA. 131 " And now, old man," said our young Esquimau, " it is time that I should have my wife. If the Allat* come here to-night, as I know they will, I want to have a right to defend her, and carry her away when we flee. Are you willing ? " The young giant said' this with a degree of roughness and decision that at any other time would have made the obstinate old grandfather refuse point blank ; but as there was every probability of having to flee for his life ere the break of another day, and as his old heart trembled within him at the thought of the dreaded guns of the Indians, he merely shook his head and pondered a little. " What will you give me ? " he said, looking up. The young man answered by drawing the axe from his belt and laying it on the ground before him. The old man's eyes glistened with pleasure as he surveyed the costly gift. " Good ; that will do. Take her and go." A second I idding was not needed. The young man arose hastily, took his blushing bride by the hand, and led her from the tent of her grandfather towards his own. Here she set to work instantly to assist her hus- band in hurriedly packing up their goods and chattels ; and, immediately afterwards, the little village became a perfect Babel of confusion, as the alarmed inhabitants, on learning the threatened danger, prepared for instant flight. In less than an hour the most of them were ready. The men launched their kayaks, while the women, having loaded their oomiaks with their goods, tossed their dogs and children on the top of them. The oomiak, or women's boat, is quite a different affair from the kayak, in which the men travel singly. * Esquimau name for Indians. I i I I.';' pi ! I'' * i ! 132 UNGAVA. l''! It is usually made large and capacious, in order to hold the entire household of the Esquimau. Like the kayak it is made of skin, but has no covering above, and is propelled by means of short single-bladed paddles, which are worked by the women, upon whom devolves the entire care and management of the oomiak. It is a clumsy affair to look at, but, like the boats of savages generally, it is uncommonly useful and a good sea-boat. While the Esquimaux were busied in completing their arrangements, one of the dogs rushed towards the bushes that lined the shore just behind the village, and barked vociferously. Instantly it was joined by the whole pack, and the Esquimaux, who, ever since they had heard of the proximity of their Indian foes, were in a state of the utmost trepidation, made a general rush towards their canoes. Before they reached them, how- ever, a volley of musketry was fired from the bushes, and three of their number — a man and two women — tilled the air with their death-shriek, as they fell dead upon the beach ; while the Indians sprang from their concealment, and, brandishing their knives and toma- hawks, rushed with a fearful yell upon the terror-stricken Esquimaux. Shrill and terrible though the Indian war-cry is proverbially known to be, it was excelled in appalling wildness by the shriek which arose from the Esquimaux, as they hurried tumultuously into their canoes and put off* to sea. These poor creatures were naturally brave — much more so, indeed, than their assailants ; but the murderous effects of the terrible gun caused the sternest brow among them to blanch and the stoutest heart to quail. The arrow and the spear, however rapid, could be avoided if observed in time ; but this dreaded im- plement of destruction was so mysterious to them, and UNGAVA. 133 its death-dealing bullet so quick, and the smoke, the fire, and the loud report so awful, that they shuddered even when they thought of it. No wonder, then, that they uttered a despairing cry when it actually sounded in their ears. When the dogs first gave tongue, our tall Esquimau was alone in his hut, having just sent his wife down with a bundle to the oomiak ; when the volley rang in his ears, he rushed towards the beach, supposing that she was there before him. This was not the case, how- ever. Aneetka had gone tow^ards her grandfather's hut, and when the Indians fired she rushed in to assist him to fly. But the old man was already gone. Turning instantly, she sprang nimbly towards the shore. At that moment a single shot was fired, and she saw her husband scumble forward and fall headlong to the earth, where he lay motionless. Her first impulse was to run towards the body and throw herself upon it ; but this intention was effectually checked by a strong, dark- skinned arm which encircled her w^aist, and, despite her cries and struggles, bore her away into the bushes. Her captor was the Indian whose gun once before on that day had been levelled at her lover's head. When the young Esquimau fell, as already related, he was so close to the water that he stumbled into it, and, fortunately, not a yard distant from an oomiak which the women were franticly thrusting into the sea. They had no time to lift so heavy a weight on board, but, as the light craft darted from the shore, an old w^oman, who had often received kind attentions from the good- natured youth, leant over the stern and seized him by the hair. In this manner he was dragged through the water until they were out of gun-shot, when he was lifted inside and laid beside the dogs and children. 134 UNGAVA. Meanwhile the Indians had rushed into the water up to their middle, in the hope of catching the last of the little fleet, but without success. Mad with disappointed rage, they waded back to the shore, and, standing in a line along the edge of the weaves, reloaded their guns with the utmost rapidity. The poor Esquimaux knew well what would follow, and strained every nerve to increase their distance. Once more the guns belched forth their leaden shower, which went skipping over the w^ater towards the flotilla. Only one kayak was hit by the discharge. It was that of the old grandfather already mentioned. The ball ripped up the side of the canoe, which filled and upset, and the poor old man would certainly have been drowned but for the oppor- tune coming up of the oomiak containing his wounded grandson. The old woman who had already saved the life of the young giant of the tribe, again put forth her skinny hand and grasped the patriarch, who was soon hauled on board in safety. A few minutes more placed the whole party out of danger. In the meantime, the Indians, furious with disappoint- ment, scalped the three dead bodies and tossed them into the sea ; after which they went into the huts in order to collect all the valuables that might have been left behind. Very little, however, was to be found, as the entire property of an Esquimau is not worth much to a red man. The most useful thing they laid hands on was the axe which the old grandfather had left behind in his hurried flight. Having taken all they could carry, the savages destroyed the rest, and then, setting fire to the village, they returned to the bush. Here a fire was made, and a council of war held. When the Indian who had captured the Esquimau girl led her forward towards the fire, there was a general UNGAVA. 135 a yell of indignation. Tomahawks were grasped, and more than one knife was unsheathed. But the chief commanded silence. " What does White Heart mean to do with the Eater- of-raw-flesh ? " he inquired, turning to the young man. " He will take her 'to the hunting-grounds of the Crees." " That cannot be," said the chief. " The girl must die, and White Heart must kill her." The young man made no reply. " If," continued the chief sarcastically, " White Heart is afraid to see blood on his knife, another warrior will show him how to do it ! " As he spoke, a dark-visaged savage drew his scalping- knife, and, with one stride, stood beside the trembling girl, who, during the consultation of the savages, had stood silently beside her captor listening intently to the w^ords which she did not comprehend. Seizing her by the shoulder, the savage plunged his knife at her bosom ; but, ere the keen point reached it, the arm was caught by the young Indian, and the scowling savage was hurled violently back. With dilated eye and expanded nostril, the young man, not deigning to bestow a glance upon his fallen comrade, turned to his chief and said, — " Did not I take her ? The girl is mine. I will carry her to my tent and make her my wife." " Be it so," replied the chief abruptly. Then turning to his followers, he gave orders to start immediately. In a few minutes all was ready. The chief led the way into the bush. The Esquimau girl and her captor followed, and the whole band, silently and in single file, commenced to retrace their steps to the far distant hunting-grounds of the Cree Indians. !^ II i: ll CHAPTER XIV. The pursuit — Seal spearing — The giant's despair. , WHEN the young Esquimau began to recover from the lethargic state into which his wound had thrown him, he found himself lying at the bottom of the women's oomiak with his old grandfather by his side, and a noisy crew of children and dogs around him. Raising himself on his elbow, he brushed the clotted blood and hair from his temples, and endeavoured to recall his scattered faculties. Seeing this, the old crone who had saved his life laid down her paddle and handed him a sealskin cup of water, which he seized and drank with avidity. Fortunately the wound on his forehead, although it had stunned him severely at first, was trifling, and in a few minutes after partaking ^f the cool water, he recovered sufficiently to sit up and look around him. Gradually his faculties returned, and he started up with a troubled look. " Where are the Allat ? Where is my wife ? " he exclaimed vehemently, as his eye fell on the prostrate form of his still insensible grandfather. " Gone," answered several of the women. " Gone 1 " repeated the youth, gazing wildly among the faces around him in search of that of his wife. " Gone ! Tell me, is she in one of the other oomiaks ? " >4 The women trembled as they answered, " No." UNGAVA. 137 • Have the Allat got her ? " There was no reply to this question, but he did not need one. Springing like a tiger to the stern of the oomiak, he seized the steering paddle, and turning the head of the boat towards the shore, paddled with all his energy. Nearly two hours had elapsed since they had commenced their flight, and as all danger of pursuit was over the moment the Indians turned their backs on the sea, the Esquimaux had gradually edged in-shore again, so that a few minutes sufficed to run the prow of the oomiak on the shingle of the beach. Without saying a word, the young man sprang over the side, drew a hunting-spear from the bottom of the boat, and hurried back in the dii'cction of the deserted village at the top of his speed. The women knew that nothing- could stop him, and feeling that he was quite able to take care of himself, they quietly put to sea again, and continued their voyage. The limbs of the young Esquimau, as we have already said, were gigantic and powerful, enabling him to traverse the country at a pace which few of his fellows could keep up with ; and although a stern-chase is proverbially a long one, and the distance between two parties travelling in opposite directions is amazingly increased in a short space of time, there is no doubt that he would have overtaken his Indian foes ere many hours had passed, but for the wound in his head, which, although not dangerous, compelled him more than once to halt and sit down, in order to prevent himself from falling into a swoon. Hunger had also something to do with this state of weakness, as he had eaten nothing for many hours. In his hasty departure from the boat, however, he had neglected to take any provisions with him, so that he had little hope of obtaining refreshment I 138 UNGAVA. ^!!'"! ,f ., 1' > ;ii it ^^^ before arrivinp^ at the village, where some scraps might perhaps be picked up. Slowly, and with a reeling brain, he staggered on ; but here no relief awaited him, for every scrap of food had been either taken away or destroyed by the Indians, and it was with a heavy sigh and a feeling akin to despair that he sat down beside the blackened ruins of his late home. But Esquimaux, more than other men, arc accustomed to reverses of fortune, and the sigh with which he regarded the ruins of his hut had no reference whatever to the absence of food. He knew that about this time the mouth of the river would be full of ice, carried up by the flood-tide, and that seals would, in all probability, be found on it; so he started up, and hastening along the beach soon gained the floes, which he examined carefully. A glance or two sufficed to show him that he was right in his conjecture. On a sheet of ice not more than a couple of hundred yards from shore were two seals fast asleep. These he prepared to stalk. Between the floe and the shore ran a stream of water twenty yards broad. Over this he ferried himself on a lump of loose ice ; and, on reaching the floe, he went down on his hands and knees, holding the spear in his right hand as he advanced cautiously towards his victim. The Esquimau seal-spear is a curious weapon, and exhibits iu a high degree the extraordinary ingenuity of the race. The handle is sometimes made of the horn of the narwal, but more frequently of wood. It has a movable head or barb, to which a long line of walrus hide or sealskin is attached. This barb is made of ivory tipped with iron, and is attached to the handle in such a way that it becomes detached from it the instant ■^ UNGAVA. 189 -o the animal is struck, and remains firmly imbedded in the wound with the line t'ahtened to it, while the handle floats away on the water or falls on the ice, as the case may be. When the Esquimau had approached to within a hundred yards, he lay down at full length and slowly worked himself forward. Meanwhile the seals raised their heads, but seeing, as they imagined, a companion coming towards them, they did not make for their holes, which were a few yards distant from them. Having drawn near enough to render the animals suspicious, the young giant now sprang up, rushed forward, and got between one seal and its hole just as its more active companion dived into the water. In another moment the deadly lance transtixed its side and killed it. This was a fortunate supply to the Esquimau, whose powers of endurance were fast failing. He immediately sat down on his victim, and cutting a large steak from its side, speedily made a meal that far exceeded the powers of any alderman whatsoever ! It required but a short time to accomplish, however, and a shorter time to transfer several choice junks to his wallet ; with which replenished store he resumed his journey. Although the man's vigour was restored for a time, so that he travelled with great speed, it did not last long, owing to the w^ound in his head, which produced frequent attacks of giddiness, and at last compelled him, much against his will, to halt for a couple of hours' repose. Glancing round, in order to select a suitable camping ground, he soon observed such a spot in the form of a broad overhanging ledge of rock, beneath which there was a patch of scrubby underwood. Here he lay down with the seal blubber for a pillow, and was quickly buried in deep, untroubled slumber. In 140 UNGAVA. littK^ more than two houi's he nwoke with a start, and, after a second application to the contents of the wallet, resumed his solitary march. The short rest seemed to have quite restored his wonted vigour, for he now stalked up the banks of the river at a rate which seemed only to accelerate as he advanced. As has been already said, these banks were both rugged and precipitous. In some places the rocks jutted out into the water, forming promontories over which it was difficult to climb ; and frequently these capes terminated in abrupt precipices, necessitating a detour in order to advance. In other places the coast was indented with sandy bays, which more than doubled the distance the traveller would have had to accomplish had he possessed a kayak. Unfortu- nately in his hasty departure he neglected to take one with him ; but he did his best to atone for this oversight by making almost superhuman exertions. He strode over the sands like an ostrich of the desert, and clambered up the cliffs and over the rocks — looking, in his hairy garments, like a shaggy polar bear. The thought of his young and pretty bride a captive in the hands of his bitterest foes, and doomed to a life of slavery, almost maddened him, and caused his dark eye to flash and his broad bosom to heave with pent-up emotion, while it spurred him on to put forth exertions that were far beyond the powers of any membei of his tribe, and could not, under less exciting circ"^ stances, have been performed even by himself. As to what were his intentions should he overtake the Indians, he knew not. The agitation of his spirits, combined with the influence of his wound, induced him to act from impulse ; and the wild tumult of his feelings prevented him from calculating the consequences or perceiving the hope- lessness of an attack made by one man, armed only UNGAVA. with knife and it a body of Indi 141 ho jear, aj^ainst a Dociy ot imiians possessed the deadly gun. Alas ! for the sorrows of the poor human race. In all lands they are much the same, whether civilized or savage — virtue and vice alternately triumphing. Bravery, candour, heroism, in fierce contest with treachery, cowardice, and malevolence, form the salient points of the record among all nations, and in all age.s. No puissant knight of old ev(^r buckled on his panoply of mail, seized his sword and lance, mounted his charger, and sallied forth single-handed to deliver his mistress from enchanted castle, in the face of appalling perils, with hotter haste or a more thorough contempt of danger than did our Esquimau giant pursue the Indians who had captured his bride ; but, like many a (hiring spirit of romance, the giant failed, and that through no fault of his. On arriving at the rocky platform beside the spring ^vhere we first introduced him to the reader, the Esquimau sat down, and, casting his spear on the ground, gazed around him with a look of despair. It was not a slight matter that caused this feeling to arise. Not- withstanding his utmost exertions, he had been unable to overtake the Indians up to this point, and beyond this point it was useless to follow them. The mountains here were divided into several distinct gorges, each of which led into the interior of the country ; and it was impossible to ascertain which of these had been taken by the Indians, as the bare rocky land retained no mark of their light moccasined feet. Had the pursuer been an Indian, the well-known sagacity of the race in following a trail, however slight, might have enabled him to trace the route of the party ; but the Esquimaux are unpractised in this stealthy, dog-like quality. 142 UNGAVA. Their habits and the requirements of their condition render it almost unnecessary ; so that, in difficult cir- cumstances, their sagacity in this respect is not equal to the emergency. Add to this the partial confusion created in the young giant's brain by his wound, and it will not appear strange that despair at length seized him, when, after a severe journey, he arrived at a spot where, as it were, half-a-dozen cross-roads met, and he had not the most distant idea which he ought to follow. It is true the valley o the river seemed the most probable route ; but v ' jr pursuing this for a whole day without coming upon a vestige of the party, he gave up the pursuit, and, returning to the spring beside the rock, passed the night there with a heavy heart. When the sun rose on the following morning he quitted his lair, and, taking a long draught at the bubbling spring, prepared to depart. Before setting out, he cast a melancholy glance around the amphitheatre of gloomy hills ; shook his spear, in the bitterness of his heart, towards the dark recesses which had swallowed up the light of his eyes, perchance for ever ; then, turning slowly towards the north, with drooping head, and with the listless tread of a heart-broken man, he retraced his steps to the sea-coast, and, rejoining his comrades, was soon far away from the banks of the Caniapuscaw River. CHAPTER XV. End of the voyage —Plans and prospects — Exploring parties sent out. THREE weeks after the departure of the Esquimaux from the neighbourhood of Ungava Bay, the echoes of these solitudes were awakened by the merry song of the Canadian voyageurs, as the two canoes of Stanley and his comrades swept down the stream and approached the spring at the foot of the flat rock. As the large canoe ran its bow lightly on the sand, the first man who leaped ashore was La Roche. He seemed even more sprightly and active than formerly, but was a good deal darker in complexion, and much travel -stained. Indeed, the whole party bore marks of having roughed it pretty severely for some time past among the mountains. Edith's face was decidedly darker than when she left Moose, and her short frock considerably shorter in consequence of tear and wear. " Bad luck to ye, Losh ! Out o' the way, an* let yer betters land before ye," exclaimed Bryan, as he jumped into the water, and dragged the canoe towards the beach. The only marks that rough travelling had put on Bryan were one or two additional wrinkles in his bat- tered white hat ; as for his face, it was already so thor- oughly bronzed by long exposure, that a week or two more or less made no difference in its hue. 144 UNGAVA. :i;;| " Jump into my arms, Miss Edith," said Fran9ois, as he stood in the water beside the canoe. "Steady, boy; mind tie gum," cried Massan, as Ooli- buck strained the canoe roughly in shouldering a package. " Look out ashore, there," cried Dick Prince, throwing the tent poles on the beach as he spoke. Regardless of the warning, Gaspard did not "look out," and received a rap on the leg from one of the poles, whereat he growled savagely, and threw down a sack, which rested on his shoulder, so violently that it nearly knocked over Ma-istequan, who was passing at the time with the camp-kettle in his hand. " What an ould buffalo it is ! " exclaimed Bryan, pushing Gaspard rudely aside with his left shoulder, and hitching off La Roche's cap with his right, as he sprang back to the canoe for another load. " Pardonay mwa, Losh, may garson," he exclaimed, with a broad grin. " Now thin, boys, out wid the fixin's. Faix it's mysilf is plazed to git ashore anyhow, for there's nothin' gone into my intarior since brickfust this mornin'." At this moment the bow of the other canoe grated on the sand, and Frank Morton leoped ashore. " Capital place to camp, Frank," said Stanley, who had just finished pitching the tent on the scrimp herbage that forced its way through the sand. " There's a splendid spring of pure water below yonder rock. I've just left my wife and Eda busy with the tea-cups, and La Roche preventing them from getting things ready, by way of helping them." " It does indeed seem a good place," replied Frank, " and might do for temporary head-quarters, perhaps, while we make excursions to the coast to fix on a spot for our new home." Stanley gazed contemplatively around him as his UNGAVA. 145 who )age s a I've and 3ady, his friend spoke. " Hand me the telescope, Frank ; it strikes me we are nearer the sea than you think. The water here is brackish, and yonder opening in the mountains might reveal something beyond, if magnified by the glass." After a lengthened survey of the surrounding hills, Frank and Stanley came to the conclusion that they could make nothing of it, at least that night ; and as it was becoming gradually dark, they resolved to postpone all further consideration of the subject till the next day. Meanwhile, the men busied themselves in preparing supper, and Chimo unexpectedly lent them some assist- ance by bringing into camp a ptarmigr,n which he had just killed. True, Chimo had, in his innocence, designed this little delicacy of the season for his own special f ble; but no sooner was he seen with the bird between ' . t eth, than it was snatched from him and transferred to che pot forthwith. The following day was an era in the existence of the travellers. For the first time since commencing their arduous voyage, the cargoes were left behind, and the canoes paddled away, light and buoyant, on a trip of investigation. Stanley had rightly judged that they were now near the sea, and the great breadth of the river led him to believe that there might be water suffi- cient to float the vessel in which the goods for the station were to be forwarded. If this should turn out as he expected, there could not be a better spot for establishing a fort than that on which they had en- camped, as it was situated just below the last rapids of the river ; had a fine spring of fresh water in its vicinity ; and was protected from the cold blasts of winter, to some extent at least, by the surrounding mountains. " Now, Frank/' added Mr. Stanley, after stating his 146 UNGAVA. N'! . opinion on this point, " what I mean to do is this : I shall take the large canoe, with Dick Prince, Francois, Gaspard, La Roche, and Augustus — the last to interpret should we fall in with Esquimaux, whom I am surprised not to have found hereabouts. With these I will pro- ceed to the sea, examine the coast, observe whether there be any place suitable for building on, and, if all goes well, be back to supper before sunset. You will take the other canoe, with Bryan, Massan, Oolibuck, and Ma- istequan, and proceed down the opposite side of the river a short way. Examine the shores there, and above the island ; see whether there be any place better than where we stand for a permanent residence ; and at night we shall compare notes. My wife and Eda shall remain in camp under the care of Oostesimow and Moses." " And pray who is to defend your poor wife and innocent child in the event of an attack by a band of savage natives ? " inquired Mrs. Stanley, as she joined her husband and Frank. " No fear of the wife and child," replied Stanley, patting his better half on the shoulder. " If Indians should find out the camp, Oostesimow can palaver with them ; and should Esquimaux pay you a visit, Moses will do the polite. Besides, had you not interrupted, I was going to have given special instructions to Frank regarding you. So, Master Frank, be pleased to take Eda off your shoulder, and give ear to my instructions. While you are examining the other side of the water, you will keep as much as possible within eye-shot, and always within ear-shot, of the camp. In a still day like this a gun-shot can be heard five or six miles oif ; and should you see any sign of the natives having been here recently, return instantly to the camp." Frank promised implicit obedience to these instruc- UNGAVA. 147 tions, and the whole party then set to woi-k to pile the goods on a ledge in the steep cliffs behind the spring, so that a fortress was soon formed, which, with two such stout and courageous men as Moses and Oostesimow, armed with two guns each, a brace of pistols, two cut- lasses, and an ample supply of ammunition, could have stood a prolonged siege from much more practised ene- mies than Indians or Esquimaux. After having com- pleted these defensive arrangements, and provided occu- pation for those who remained in camp, by laying on them the duty of having the goods examined, in order to see that nothing had been damaged by wet or rough usage, the two canoes pushed from the shore, and bounded lightly away, while the men sang merrily at their easy labour ; for now that the canoes were light, they might have been propelled by two men. Frank directed his course obliquely up the river, towards the island already alluded to, and Stanley proceeded with the current to- wards the narrows beyond which he expected to catch sight of the sea. After passing above the island, which was found to be low and thinly covered with vegetation and a few scrubby bushes, Frank and his men pushed over to the other side and proceeded carefully to examine the coast. It was found to be much the same as that which they had just left. A narrow belt of sandy and shingly beach extended along the margin of the river, or, as it might be more appropriately termed, the lake, at least in as far as appearance went. This strip or belt was indented here and there with numerous bays and inlets, and 'n many places was intersected by rocky capes which jutted out from the mountains. These mountains were bare and precipitous, rising abruptly, like those on the other side, from the edge of the sand, and ascending 1l 148 UNGAVA. in a succession of terraces, whose faces were so steep that it was almost impossible to scale them. They could be ascended in succession, however, by means of the ravines and numerous gullies which rose in rugged and zigzag lines from the beach to the mountain tops. In the very first of these gullies in which the exploring party landed, they found the remains of an Esquimau summer encampment. These consisted of a few stunted trees, which appeared to have been built in the form of rude huts; but they were thrown about in some con- fusion, and altogether bore evidence of having remained in a state of ruin for many years. Another discovery of a more satisfactory kind was made — namely, the tracks of deer, which were so fresh as to induce Frank to take his rifle and mount the ravine in search of the animals, accompanied by Massan, whose natural tem- perament was exceedingly prone to enjoy the excitement of the chase. So much, indeed, was this the case, that the worthy guide had more than once been on the point of making up his mind to elope to the backwood settle- ments of the States, purchase a rifle and ammunition there, don a deerskin hunting-shirt, and " make tracks," as he styled it, for the prairies, there to dwell and hunt until his eye refused to draw the sight and his finger to pull the trigger of a Kentucky rifle. But Hassan's sociable disposition came in the way of this plan, and the thought of leading a solitary life always induced him to forego it. " It's my 'pinion, sir," remarked the guide, as he fol- lowed Frank up the ravine, the sheltered parts of which were covered with a few clumps of stunted pines — " it's my 'pinion that we'll have to cut our logs a long bit up the river, for there's nothin' fit to raise a fort with hereabouts," , : UNGAVA. 149 " True, Massan," replied Frank, glancing from side to side, hunter fashion, as he walked swiftly over the broken ground ; " there's not a tree that I can see big enough to build a backwoods shanty with." "Well, master, 'twill do for firewood, if it's fit for nothin' else, and that's h. blessin' that's not always to be comed by everywhere. Let's be thankful for small matters. I see sticks growin' up them gullies that'll do for stakes for tL^ nets, an' axe handles, an' paddles, an' spear shafts, an' — " The honest guide's enumeration of the various articles into which the small timber of the place might be con- verted was brought to a sudden pause by Frank, who laid his hand on his shoulder, and while he pointed with the butt of his rifle up the ravine, whispered, "Don't you see anything else up yonder besides trees, Massan ? " The guide looked in the direction indicated, and by an expressive grunt showed that his eye had fallen on the object referred to by his companion. It was a deer which stood on an overhanging ledge of rock, high up the clifis — so high that it might easily have been mis- taken for a much smaller animal by less practised sports- men. Below the shelf on which it stood was a yawning abyss, which rendered any attempt to get near the animal utterly hopeless. " What a pity," said Frank, as he crouched behind a pi ^, cting rock, "that it's out of shot. It would take us an hour at least to get behind it, and there's little chance, I fear, of its waiting for us." " No chance whatever," replied Massan decidedly. " But he's big enough to cover from where we stand." " To cover ! Ay, truly, I could point straight at his heart easy enough — indeed I would think it but slight boasting to say I could cover his eye from this spot ; 150 UNGAVA. ;!^ 1-. r but the bullet would refuse to go, Massan ; it's far be- yond shot." " Try, sir, try," exclaimed the guide quickly, for as they spoke the deer moved. " I've been huntin' on the Rocky Mountains afore now, an' I know that distance cheats you in sich places. It's not so far as you think — " He had scarcely finished speaking when Frank's rifle poured forth its contents. The loud echoes of the crags reverberated as the smoke floated away to leeward. The next instant the deer sprang with one wild bound high into the air — over tho cliff — and descending with lightning speed through the dark space, was dashed almost in pieces on the rocks below. Massan gave a low chuckle of satisfaction as he walked up to the mangled animal, and pointing to a small round hole just over its heart, he said, " The old spot, Mr. Frank ; ye always hit them there." Having paid Frank this compliment, Massan bled the animal, which was in prime condition, with at least two inches of fat on his flanks, and having placed it on his shoulders, returned with his companion to the canoe. While Frank was thus engaged, Stanley had descend ad towards the shores of Ungava Bay, which he found to be above twenty-five miles distant from the encamp- ment beside the spring. He made a rapid survey of the coast as they descended, and sounded the river at intervals. When he reached its mouth he had made two important discoveries. The one was that there did not seem to be a spot along the whole line of coast so well fitted in all respects for an establishment as the place whereon their tents were already pitched. The other was, that the river, from its mouth up to that point, was deep enough to float a vessel of at least three or four hundred tons burden. This was very UNOAVA. 151 satiHfactory, and he was about to return to tlie camp when he eanio upon the deserted Ksquiniau villa<^e whicli, a few weeks before, liad been the scene of a murderous attack and a hasty flight. On a careful examination of the place, the marks of a hasty departure were so apparent that . Stanley and his men made a pretty near guess at the true state of affairs ; and the former rightly conjectured that, having made a pre- cipitate flight in consequence of some unexpected attack, there was little probability of their returning soon to the same locality. This was unfortunate, but in the hope that he might be mistaken in these conjectures, and that the natives might yet return before winter, he set up a pole on a conspicuous place, and tied to the top of it a bag containing two dozen knives, one dozen fire-steels, some awls and needles, several pounds of beads, and a variety of such trinkets as were most likely to prove acceptable to a savage people. While Bryan was engaged in piling a heap of stones at the foot of this pole to prevent its being blown down by the wind, the rest of the party re-embarked, and prepared to return home ; for although the camp beside the spring was scarcely one day old, the fact that it was likely to become the future residence of the little party had already invested it with a species of home-like attraction. Man is a strange animal, and whatever un- tra veiled philosophers may say to the contrary, he speed- ily makes himself " at home " anyivheve ! "Hallo, Bryan!" shouted Stanley from the canoe, " look sharp ; we're waiting for you ! " " Ay, ay, yer honour," replied the Irishman, lifting a huge mass of rock ; " jist wan more, an' it'll be stiff' an' stidy as the north pole himself." Then in an undertone he added, " ' Look sharp,' is it ye say ? It's blunt ye ^ I,' 152 UNGAVA. li ■*■ are to spake Miat way to yer betters. Musha ! but it's raysilf wouldn't give a tinpinny for all that bag houlds, twinty times doubled ; an' yit thim haythens, thira pork-faced Huskimos, '11 dance round this here pole wi' delight till they're fit to dhrop. Och ! but salvages is a quare lot ; an', Bryan, yer a cliver boy to come this far all the way to see thim." With this self-complimentary conclusion, Bryan re- sumed his place at the paddle, and the party returned to the camp. • Here they found things in a most satisfactory state. Frank and his party had returned, and the deer, now cut up into joints and steaks, was impaled on a number of stakes of wood, and stuck up to roast round a large and cheering fire. The savoury steam from these, wath the refreshing odour of the tea-kettle, produced a delect- able sensation in the nostrils of the hungry explorers. Stanley's tent was erected with its back towards the mountains and its open door towards the fire, which lighted up its snug interior, and revealed Mrs. Stanley and Edith immersed in culinary operations, and Chimo watching them with a look of deep, grave sagacity — his ears very erect, and his head a good deal inclined to one side, as if that position favoured the peculiar train of his cogitations. La Roche was performing feats of agility round the fire, that led one to believe he must be at least half a salamander. At a respectful distance from Stanley's tent, but within the influence of the fire, the men were employed in pitching, for the first time, the large skin tent which was to be their residence until they should build a house for themselves ; and on a log, within dangerous proximity to the mercurial La Roche, sat Frank Morton, busily employed in entering in his journal the various events of the day. UNGAVA. 153 There was much talk and lond laughter round tho fire that night, for tho ditturent parties had much to tell and much to hear reijardinjj: the discoveries that had been made, and discussions as to the prospects of the expedition were earnest and long. It was generally admitted that first appearances were, upon the whole, favourable, although it could not be denied that the place looked dreadfully barren and rugged. Under the happy influence of this impression, and the happier in- fluence of the savoury steaks on which they had supped, the entire party lay down to rest, and slept so pro- foundly that there was neither sound nor motion to indicate the presence of human beings in the vast soli- tudes of Ungava, save the fitful flame of the fire as it rose and fell, casting a lurid light on the base of the rugged mountains, and a sharp reflection on the dark waters. CHAPTER XVI. licsow'cc'S of the country hcijin to develop— Bryan disttnr/uishes himself— Fishinu cxtraordinart/. i THERE is a calm but deep-seated and powerful pleasure which fills the heart, and seems to per- meate the entire being, when one awakens to the con- viction that a day of arduous toil is about to begin — toil of an uncertain kind, perhaps connected with danger and adventure, in an unexplored region of the earth. Ignorance always paints coming events in glowing colours ; and the mere fact that our adventurers knew not the nature of the country in which their tent was pitched — knew not whether the natives would receive them as ^-iends or repel them as foes — knew not whether the nature and capabilities of the country were such as would be likely to convert the spot on which they lay into a comfortable home or a premature grave ; — the mere fact of being utterly ignorant on these points was, in itself, sufficient to fill the poorest spirit of the band (had there been a poor spirit among them) with a glow of pleasurable excitement, and a firm resolve to tax their powers of doing and suffering to the uttermost. When the sun rose on the following morning the whole party was astir, the fire lighted, and an early break- fast in course of preparation. Much had to be done, and it behoved them to set about it w^ith energy, and at UNGAVA. 155 onco, for the short autumn ot those arctic regions was drawing on apace, and a winter of great length and of the utmost severity lay Ijefore them. There was also one consideration which caused some anxiety to Stanley and Frank, although it wcdgheil little on the reckless spirits, of the men, and this was tho possibility of the non-arrival of the ship with their winter supply of provisions and goods for trade. With- out such a supply a winter on the shrves of Viiigava Bay would involve all the hardships ?ind 'xtiv me perils that too often fall to the lot ot aretv'j discovMrers ; and he who has perused the fascinitiu.': journals of those gallant men, knows that these luj-dsliip"^' and perils are neither few nor light. The h^a/jers nx. the jxpccation were not, indeed, men to .lafciripnio ovils, oi to fe j! unduly anxious about possible dangers : but th«;y wniUi have been more or less than huiiip.n had they beoij aiJe to look at Mrs. Stanley and little EclJth without a feeling of anxiety von their account. This thought, however, did not influence them in their actions ; or, if it did, it only spurred them on to more prompt and vigorous exertions in the carrying out of their iindertp*.king. After breakfast Stanley assembled his meu, and gavo each special directions what to do, One of Lb j laosli important points to ascertain was w^hether there were many fish in the river. On tnis ^inn<', ranch of the future comfort and well-being perhaps even the exist- ence, of the party. Gospard was, therefore, ordered to get out his nets trnJ set them opposite the encamp- ment. Oo^ibiick, being officially an interpreter of the Esquimau language, and, when not employed in his calling, regarded as a sort of male ii:aid-of-all-work, was ordered to assist Gaspard. The next n^atter of primary importance was to ascertain what animals inhabited the t ! 156 UNGAVA. I region, and whether they were numerous. Dick Prince, being the recognized hunter of the party, was directed to take his gun and a large supply of ammunition, and sally forth over the mountains in search of game ; and as Massan was a special friend of his, a good shot, and, moreover, a sagacious fellow, he was ordered to accom- pany him. They were also directed to observe par- ticularly the state of the woods and the quality of the timber growing therein ; but as this last required special attention, the style and size of the future fort being dependent on it, Fran^'ois, the carpenter, was appointed to make a journey of observation up the Caniapuscaw River, in company with Augustus the Esquimau and Ma-istequan the Indian — it being thought probable that if natives were to be met with at all, they would be on the banks of the river rather than in the moun- tains. It was further arranged that Frank Morton should ascend the mountains in company with Bryan, and ascertain if there were any lakes, and whether or not they contained fish. As for Mr. Stanley, he resolved to remain by the camp. On entering his tent after despatching the several parties, he said to his wife, — " I'm going to stay by you to-day, Jessie. All the men, except Moses, Oostesimow, Gaspard, and La Roche, are sent off to hunt and fish in the mountains, and I have kept these four to paddle about this neighbour- hood, in order to take soundings and examine the coast more carefully ; because, you see, it would be an un- fortunate thing if we began our establishment in a place not well suited for it." Mrs. Stanley and Edith were, of course, quite pleased with this arrangement, and while the males of the party were absent, the former employed herself in dress- ing the skin of the deer that had been shot thb day w ■.-■■'■- UNGAVA. 157 before. She accomplished this after the Indian fashion, by scraping and rubbing it with the animal's brains. Afterwards she smoked it over a fire of green wood, and in this way produced a soft, pliant substance similar to chamois leather, but coarser and stouter. As for Edith, she rambled at will among the bushes of the nearest ravine, under the faithful guardianship of Chimo, and hurried back to the camp almost every hour, laden with cloudberries, cranberries, blaeberries, and crow- berries, which grew in profusion everywhere. Opposite to the camp the water was found to be eight fathoms deep. This was of great importance, as affording facility for unloading the ship abreast of the establishment. Higher up the river the ground was more favourable for building, both on account of its being more sheltered and better wooded with timber fit for the construction of house s ; but the water was too shallow to float the ship, and the island before mentioned, which was named Cross Island, proved an effectual barrier to the upward progress of any craft larger than a boat. But as Stanley surveyed the spot on which the tent was pitched, * and observed the sheltering background of mountains, with their succession of terraces ; the creek or ravine to the right, with its growth of willows and stunted pines ; the level parcel of green-sward, with the little fountain under the rock ; and the fine sandy bay in which Gaspard and Oolibuck were busily engaged in setting a couple of nets, — when he surveyed all this, he felt tliat, although not the best locality in the neighbourhood, it was, nevertheless, a very good one, and well suited in many respects for the future establishment. " Please, sir, the net him set," shouted Oolibuck from the shore to his master, who floated in the bay at the 158 UNGAVA. distance of a hundrerl yards, busily engaa^ed with the sotmd- ing-line. On receiving this piece of information, Stanley ran the canoe on the beach, and said to his follower, — " Oolibuck, I have been thinking much about that river which we saw yesterday, off the mouth of this one; and I cannot help fearing that the ship will run into if, instead of into this, for the land is very deceptive." " Me t'ink dat is true," answered the Esquimau, with a look of grave perplexity. " If de ship go into dat riv'r he t'ink we no arrive, and so he go 'way, and we all starve ! " " Nay, Oolibuck, I trust that such would not be the sad result of the ship failing to find us ; but in order to prevent this, if possible, I intend to send you down to the coast, with a few days' provisions, to keep a look- out for the ship, and light a fire if you see her, so that she may be guided to the right place. So get a blanket and your gun as fast as you can, and be off". I can only afford you four days' provisions, Oolibuck, so you will have to prove yourself a good hunter, else you'll starve. Will four days' provisions do ? " Oolibuck's eyes disappeared. We do not mean to say that they fiew away, or were annihilated. But Oolibuck was fat — so fat that, when he laughed, his eyes reduced themselves into two little lines surrounded by wrinkles, a result which was caused by a physical incapacity to open the mouth and eyes at the same time. As a general rule, when Oolibuck's mouth was open his eyes were shut, and when his eyes were open his mouth was shut. Being a good-humoured fellow, and of a risible nature, the alternations were frequent. It was the idea of Stanley doubting the sufficiency of four days* provisions that closed the eyes of the Esquimau on the present occasion. ? UNGAVA. 159 " Two clays' ack. rSLout an hour after this we came upon a deserted camp of Indians. It was so fresh that we think they must have passed but a few weeks ago. The whole camp was strewed with bones of deer, as if the rod varmints had been havin' a feast. An' sure enough, a little farther on, we came upon the dead carcasses of ninety-three deer ! The rascals had taken nothin' but the tongues an' tit-bits, leavin' the rest for the wolves." " Ay, they're a reckless, improvident set," remarked Stanley. " I've been told that the Escpiiniaux are quite different in this respect They never kill what they don't require ; but the redskins slaughter the deer by dozens for the sake of their tonuues." \. -), J } 12 Q 178 UNGAVA. m .11 lY ** We also found the broken hearl of an Esquimau seal-spear, and this little bit of sealskin." Massan handed thes(} as he spoke to Stanley. " I fear," said Frank, " this looks as if they had made an attack on the Esquimaux very recently." " I fear it much," said Stanley, examining the little shred of sealskin, which had V)t'autifully glossy hair on one side, and on the other, which was dressed, there w^ere sundry curious marks, one of which bore a rude resem- blance to an Indian wigwam, with an arrow pointing towards it. " 1 found the bit o' sealskin hano-ino- on a bush a little apart from the place where they camped, an' from what I've seen o' the ways o' redskins, it's my 'pinion that it was put there for some purpose or other." " Very likely. — '^l^ake care of it, Jessie," said Stanley, throwing it to his wife; " it may be explained some day. — Well, Massan, did you see any other animals ? " " Yes, sir, lots o' them. We saw deer on the hill-tops, and might ha' shot more o' them if we could have brought them into camp. An' we saw porcupines in all the pine bluffs. An' we saw fish in the lakes among the mountains. There are lots o' them lakes — small things some o' them — in all the gullies, and fish in most o' them ; but we had neither lines nor hooks, so we catched none." • " Faix, if ye catched none, yer betters catched plinty," said Bryan, who, having concluded supper and changed his garments, was now luxuriating in a smoke. The blacksmith pointed as he spoke to the bag of splendid trout which lay at a short distance from the fire. " 'Tis mysilf's the boy to catch them. I would have brought ye two times as much, if it wasn't that I lost my hook and line. I think it must have bin a fresh-water UNGAVA. IT!) wlmle, tlie last wan, bad luck to it ! for it pullt'd me into tilt' wather three times, an' wint off* at last with two fathom o' cod-line trailin' behind it." "So then, I>ryan,'" said Frank, "it must have been the yells with which .you accompanied your tishiuii; that frightened the deer I was after and caused m«^ to lose him. However, as I got another soon afterwards which must have been frightened towards me by these same lialloos, [ fo.'give you." Ki'nivk now gave tlie party an account of what ho had seen, but as his expei'ience merely corroboi'ated that of Dick Prince and Massan we will not trouble the reader with the (k^tails. The evidence of the various exploring parties, when summed up, was undoubtedly most satisfactory, and while it relieved the mind of the leatlers of tlu; band, it raised and cheered the spirits of the men. 1'imber, although not plentiful or very large, was to be had close to the spot where they pi-oposed to erect their fort ; game of all kinds swarmed in the moun- tains in abundance ; and the lakes and rivers were well stocked with excellent fish : so that, upon the whole, they considered that they had made an auspicious com- mencement to their sojourn in the land of the Esquimaux. ! .. I ^ 51 III III' ' 11 i }i CHAPTER XVIII. Outpost-building— Fo7't Chimo—An unexpected arrival, which causes muchjoi/. THE band of fur-traders now set earnestly about the erection of their winter dwelling. The season was so far advanced that the men could no longer be spared from the work to hunt or fish in the mountains, so that they lived chiefly on the produce of the stake-nets in front of the camp, and a small allow- ance of the provisions with which they had stai»ted from Moose Fort. Occasionally Frank sallied forth and re- turned with the best parts of a deer on his shoulders ; but these excursions were rare, as both he and Stanley worked with the men in the erection of the fort. No one was idle for a moment, from the time of rising — shortly after daybreak — to the time of going to rest at night. Even little Edith found full occupation in assisting her mother in the performance of a host of little house- hold duties, too numerous to recapitulate. The dog Chimo was the only exception to the general rule. He hunted the greater part of the forenoon, for his own special bene- fit, and slept when not thus occupied, or received with philosophical satisfaction the caresses of his young mistress. The future fort was begun on the centre of the level patch of green-sward at the foot of the flat rock by the spring, where the party had originally encamped. A square was traced on the ground to indicate the stockade ; and within this, Stanley marked off an oblong patch, UNGAVA. 181 close to the back stockade, for the principal dwellinor- house, facing the river. Two otlun* spaces were on either side of this — one for a store, the other for a dwelling for the men. When finished, the fort would thus have the form of three sides of a square surrounded V>y a stockade. In tTie centre of this, and the first thing that was erected, was a flag-staff', on which the H.B.C.* riasf was hoisted, and saluted with three cheers as its crimson folds fluttered out in the breeze for the first time. The plan on which the houses were constructed was that on which all the dwellings of the fur-traders are built — namely, a framework of tind^er, the inter- stices of which are filled up with logs sliding into grooves cut in the main posts and beams. This manner of building is so simple that a house can be erected without any other instruments than an axe, an auger, and a large chisel ; and the speed with which it is put up would surprise those whose notions of house-building are limited to stone edifices. '' The axes of the wood-cutters resounded among the gullies and ravines of Ungava, and awakened the numerous echoes of the mountains. The encampment no longer presented a green spot, watered by a tiny rill, but was strown with logs in all stages of formation, and chips innumerable. The frameworks of the dwelling- houses began to rise from the earth, presenting, in their unfinished condition, a bristling, uncomfortable appear- ance, suggesting thoughts in the beholder's mind highly disparaging to art, and deeply .sympathetic with out- raged nature. The tents still stood, and the camp-fire burned, but the superior proportions of the rising fort threw these entirely into the shade. A rude wharf of unbarked logs ran from the beach into the river. It * Hudson's Bay Company. ^^ \^ ^ IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // 1.0 I.I I 1.25 i 1.4 III 1.6 / Photographic Sciences Cbrporalion 23 WiST MAIN STRKT WnSTIR,N.Y. 145M (716)172-4503 ■ 182 UNGAVA. ''ti |!r had been begun and finished in a couple of days, for the convenience of Gaspard while visiting his nets, as he sometimes did before the water left them. Everything, in short, bore evidence of the most bustling activity and persevering energy ; and in a few weeks from the time of their first landing, the dwelling-houses were sufficiently weather-tight to be habitable, and the other portions of the establishment in an advanced condition. The openings between the logs of the houses were calked with a mixture of mud and moss, and left in that condition in the meantime, until the pit-saw could be set to work to produce boards for the better protection of the walls without and within. The window and door frames were also made, and covered temporarily with parchment, until the arrival of the ship should enable them to fill the former with glass and the latter with broad panels. The effect of the parchment-covered door, however, was found to be somewhat troublesome. Being large, and tightly covered, it sounded, when shut violently, with a noise so strongly resembling the report of a distant cannon that, during the first day after its erection, the men more than once rushed down to the beach in the ex- pectation of seeing the long and ardently wished-for ship, which was now so much beyond the time appointed for her arrival that Stanley began to entertain serious appre- hensions for her safety. This ship was to have sailed from York Fort, the principal depot of the fur-traders in Hudson's Bay, with supplies and goods for trade with the Esquimaux during the year. She was expected at Ungava in August, and it was now September. The frost was beginning, even at this early period, to remind the expedition of the long winter that was at hand, and in the course of a very few weeks Hudson's Straits would be im- passable ; so that the anxiety of the traders was natural. UNGAVA. las Just before the partitions of the chief dwelling-house were completed, Stanley went to the tent in which his wife and child were busily employed in sewing. " Can you spare Edith for a short time, wife ? " said he, as his partner looked up to welcome him. " Yes, for a short time ; but she is becoming so useful to me that I cannot afford to spare her long." " I'm afraid," said Stanley, as he took his child by the hand and led her away, " that I must begin to put in my claim to the services of this little baggage, who seems to be so useful. What say you, Eda ; will you allow me to train you to shoot, and fish, and walk on snow-shoes, and so make a trader of you ? " " I would like very much, papa, to learn to walk on snow-shoes, but I think the gun would hurt me — it seems to kick so. Don't you think I am too little to shoot a gun off ? " Stanley laughed at the serious way in which the child received the proposal. " Well, then, we won't teach you to shoot yet, Eda ; but, as you say, the snow-shoe walking is worth learning, for if you cannot w^alk on the long shoes when the snow falls, I fear you'll not be able to leave the fort at all." " Yes, and Fran9ois has promised to make me a pair," said Edith gaily, " and to teach me how to use them ; and mamma says I am old enough to learn now. Is it not kind of Fran9ois ? He is always very good to me." " Indeed it is very kind of him, my pet ; but all the men seem to be very good to you — are they not ? " " Oh yes ! — all of them. Even Gaspard is kind now. He never whips Chimo, and he patted me on the head the other day when I met him alone in the ravine — the berry ravine, you know, w^here I go to gather berries. I wonder if there are berries in all the other ravines ? — r 184 UNGAVA. but I don't care much, for there are thousands and thou- sands of all kinds in my own ravine, and — where are you going, papa ? " This abrupt question was caused by her father turning into the square of the now fort, in which the most of the men were at work. " I'm going to show you our house, Eda, and to ask you to fix on the corner you like best for your own room. The partitions are going to be put up, so we must fix at once." As he spoke they passed through the open doorway of the new dwelling, which was a long, low building ; and, placing his little daughter in the centre of the principal hall, Stanley directed her to look round and choose a corner for herself. For a few minutes Edith stood with an expression of perplexity on her bright face ; then she began to examine the views from each of the corner windows. This could only be done by peeping through the bullet-hole in the parchment skins that in the meantime did duty for glass. The two w;indows at the back corners looked out upon the rocky platform, behind which the mountains rose like a wall, so they were rejected ; but Edith lingered at one of them, for from it she saw the spring at the foot of the rock, with its soft bed of green moss and surrounding willow-bushes. From the front corner on the left hand Cross Island and the valley of the river beyond were visible ; but from the window on the right the view embraced the whole sweep of the wide river and the narrow outlet to the bay, which, with its frown- ing precipices on either side, and its bold flanking moun- tains, seemed a magnificent portal to the Arctic Sea. " I think this is the nicest corner," said Edith, turn- ins: with a smile to her father. UNGAVA. 185 " Then this shall be yours," said Stanley. *' But," exclaimed Edith, as a sudden thought occurred to her, " perhaps Frank would like this corner. I would not like to have it if Frank wants it." " Frank doesn't want it, and Frank shan't have it. There now, run to your mother, you little baggage ; she can't get on without you. Off you go, quick ! " With a merry laugh Edith bounded through the door- way, and disappeared like a sunbeam from the room. On the 25th of September, Stanley was standing on the beach, opposite the fort, watching with a smile of satisfaction the fair, happy face of his daughter, as she amused herself and Chimo by throwing a stick into the water, which the latter dutifully brought out and laid at her feet as often as it was thrown in. Frank was also watching them. " What shall we call the fort, Frank ? " said his com- panion. " We have a Fort Good Hope, and a Fort Resolution, and a Fort Enterprise already. It seems as if all the vigorous and hearty words in the English language were used up in naming the forts of the Hudson's Bay Company. What shall we call it ? " " Chimo ! Chimo ! Chimo ! " shouted Edith to the dog, as the animal bounded along the beach. Both gentlemen seemed to be struck with the same idea simultaneously. " There's an answer to your question," said Frank ; " call the fort ' Chimo.' " " The very thing ! " replied Stanley ; " I wonder it did not occur to me before. Nothing could be more appro- priate. I salute thee. Fort Chimo," and Stanley lifted his cap to the establishment. In order that the peculiar appropriateness of the name may appear to the reader, it may be as well to explain 186 UNGAVA. ■:| ' I :ii< m that Chimo (the i and o of which are sounded long) is an Esquimau word of salutation, and is used by the natives when they meet with strangers. It signifies, Are you friendly? by those who speak tirst, and seems to imply. We are friendly, when returned as an answer. So well known is the word to the fur-traders who traffic with the natives of Hudson's Straits that they frequently apply it to them as a name, and speak of the Esquimaux as Chimos. It was, therefore, a peculiarly appropriate name for a fort which was established on the confines of these icy regions, for the double purpose of entering into friendly traffic with the Esquimaux, and of bringing about friendly relations between them and their old enemies, the Muskigon Indians of East Main. After playing for some time beside the low wharf, Edith and her dog left the beach together, and rambled towards a distant eminence, whence could be obtained a commanding bird's-eye view of the new fort. She had not sat many minutes here when her eye was arrested by the appearance of an unusual object in the distance. Frank, who was yet engaged in conversation with Stanley on the beach, also noticed it. Laying his hand on the arm of his companion, he pointed towards the narrows, where a small, white, triangular object was visible against the dark cliff. As they gazed, a second object of similar form came into view ; then a fore and top sail made their appearance ; and, in another second, a schooner floated slowly through the opening ! Ere the spectators of this silent apparition could give utter- ance to their joy, a puff of white smoke sprang from the vessel's bow, and a cannon-shot burst upon the moun- tains. Leaping on from cliff to crag, it awakened a crash of magnificent echoes, which, after prolonged repeti- tions, died away in low mutterings like distant thunder. * 1 UNGAVA. 187 It was followed hv a loud cheer from the schooner's deck, and the H.B.CJ. Mag was run up to the main, while the Union Jack floated at the peak. " Now, Frank, give the word," cried Stanley, taking off his cap, while the men ran down to the beach en masse. " Hip, hip, hurrah ! " " Hurrah ! " echoed the men, and a cheer arose among the cliffs that moved to the very centre the hearts of those who heard and gave it. Again and again the stirring shout arose from the fort, and was replied to from the schooner. It was no matter of form, or cheer of ceremony. There was a deep richness and a prolonged energy in the tone, which proved that the feelings and lungs of the men were roused to the uttermost in its delivery. It told of long gathering anxieties swept entirely away, and of deep joy at seeing friendly faces in a sterile land, where lurking foes might be more likely to appear. At all times the entrance of a ship into port is a noble sight, and one which touches the heart and evokes the enthusiasm of almost every human being ; but when the ship arriving is almost essential to the existence of those who watch her snowy sails swelling out as they urge her to the land — when her keel is the first that has ever ploughed the waters of their distant bay — and when her departure will lock them up in solitude for a long, long year — such feelings are roused to their utmost pitch of intensity. Cheer upon cheer rose and fell, and rose again, among the mountains of Ungava. Even Edith's tiny voice helped to swell the enthusiastic shout ; and more than one cheer was choked by the rising tide of emo- tion that forced the tears down more than one bronzed cheek, despite the iron wills that bade them not to flow. CHAPTER XIX. RMi V I Bustle and business— A f treat feast, in which Bryan and La Roche are prime tnovers — New ideas in the art of cookiruj. THE scene at Fort Chimo was more bustling and active than ever during the week that followed the arrival of the schooner. The captain told Stanley, as they sat sipping a glass of Madeira in the hall of the new fort, that he had been delayed by ice in the straits so long, that the men were afraid of being set fast for the winter, and were almost in a state of mutiny, when they fortunately discovered the mouth of the river. As had been anticipated by Stanley, the ship entered False River by mistake, unseen by Oolibuck, notwithstanding the vigilance of his lookout. Fortunately he observed it as it came out of the river, just at the critical period when the seamen began to threaten to take the law into their own hands if the search were continued any longer. Oolibuck no sooner beheld the object of his hopes than he rushed to the top of a hill, where he made a fire and sent up a column of smoke that had the im- mediate effect of turning the vessel's head towards him. Soon afterwards a boat was sent ashore, and took the Esquimau on board, who explained, 'in his broken English, that he had been watching for them for many days, and would be happy to pilot the vessel up to the fort. " You may be sure," continued the captain, " that I UNGAVA. 189 was too happy to give the ship in charge to the fellow, who seemed to understand thoroughly what he was about. He is already quite a favourite with the men, who call him Oilybuss, much to his own amusement ; and he has excited their admiration and respect by his shooting, having twice on the way up shot a goose on the wing." " Not an unusual exhibition of skill among fur-traders," said Stanley ; " but I suppose your men are not much used to the gun. And now, captain, when must you start ? " " The moment the cargo is landed, sir," replied the captain, who was distinguished by that thorough self- sufficiency and prompt energy of character which seem peculiar to sea-captains in general. " We may have trouble in getting out of the straits, and, after getting to Quebec, I am bound to carry a cargo of timber to En- gland." " I will do my best to help you, captain. Your coming has relieved my mind from a load of anxiety, and one good turn deserves another, so I'll make my fellows work night and day till your ship is discharged." Stanley was true to his w > nI. Not only did the men work almost without intermission, but he and Frank Morton scarce allowed themselves an hour's repose during the time that the work was going on. Night and day " yo heave ho " of the Jack Tars rang over the water ; and the party on shore ran to and fro, from the beach to the store, with bales, kegs, barrels, and boxes on their shoulders. There were blankets and guns, and axes and knives, powder and shot, and beads and awls, and nets and twine. There were kettles of every sort and size ; cloth of every hue ; capotes of all dimensions, and minute etceteras without end : so that, had it been possible to M 190 UNGAVA. prevail on the spirits of the ice to carry to the Esquimaux intelligence of the riches contained in the store at Chimo, an overwhelming flood of visitors would speedily have descended on that establishment. But no such messen- gers could be found — although Bryan asserted positively that more than " wan o' them " had been seen by him since his arrival ; so the traders had nothing for it but to summon patience to their aid and bide their time. When the work of discharging was completed, and while Stanley and the captain were standing on the beach watching the removal of the last boat-load to the store, the former said to the latter : " Now, captain, I have a favour to request, which is that you and your two mates will dine with me to-morrow. Your men will be the better of a day's rest after such a long spell of hard work. You could not well get away till the evening of to-morrow at any rate, on account of the tide, and it will be safer and more pleasant to start early on the day after." " I shall be most happy," replied the captain heartily. " That's right," said Stanley. " Dinner will be ready by four o'clock precisely ; and give my compliments to your crew, and say that my men will expect them all to dinner at the same hour." Ten minutes after this, Stanley entered his private apartment in the fort, which, under the tasteful manage- ment of his wife, was beginning to look elegant and comfortable. " Wife," said he, " I will order La Roche to send you a box of raisins and an unlimited supply of flour, butter, etc., wherewith you will be so kind as to make, or cause to be made — on pain of my utmost displeasure in the event of failure — a plum-pudding large enough to fill the largest sized washing-tub, and another of about UNGAVA. 191 quarter that size ; both to be ready )>oileil by four to- morrow afternoon." " Sir, your connnanrls shall be obeyed. T suppose you intend to regale the sailors before they leave. Fs it not so?" " You have guessed rightly for once ; and take care that you don't let Eda drown herself ui the compost before it is tied up. I must hasten to prepare the men." Two minutes later and Stanley stood in the midst of his men, who, having finished their day's work, were now busy with supper in their new house, into which they had but recently moved. " Lads," said Stanley, " you have stuck to your work so hard of late that I think it a pity to allow you to fall into lazy habits again. I expect you all to be up by break of day to-morrow." " Och ! musha ! " sighed Bryan, as he laid down his knife and fork with a look of consternation. " I have invited the ship's crew," continued Stanley, " to dine with you before they leave us. As the larder is low just now, you'll all have to take to the hills for a fresh supply. Make your arrangements as you please, but see that there is no lack of venison and fish. I'll guarantee the pudding and grog." So saying, he turned and left the house, followed by a tremendous cheer. " Oh ! parbleu ! vat shall I do ? " said La Roche, with a look of affected despair. " I am most dead for vant of sleep already. C'est impossible to cook pour every- body demain. I vill be sure to fall 'sleep over de fire, prehaps fall into him." " Och, Losh, Losh, when will ye larn to think nothin' o* yoursilf ? Ye'U only have to cook for the bourgeois ; M H ■, \ Sit! 11 II iii i k 192 UNGAVA. but think o' me ! All the inin, an' the ship's crew to boot!" The blacksmith conclutled by knocking La Roche's pipe out of his mouth, in the excess of his glee at the prospective feast ; after which he begged his pardon solenmly in bad French, and ducked his head to avoid the tin can that was hurled at it by the indignant Frenchman. At the first streak of dawn the following morning, and long before the sun looked down into the ravines of Unfjava, Massan and Dick Prince were seen to issue with noiseless steps from the fort, with their guns on their shoulders, and betake themselves to the mountains. Half-an-hour later Bryan staggered out of the house, with a bag on his shoulder, scarcely half awake, rub- bing his eyes and muttering to himself in a low tone, as he plunged rather than walked into the ravine which led to the first terrace on the mountain. When the sun rose over the mountain-tops and looked down upon the calm surface of the river, there was not a man remaining in the fort, with the exception of Stanley and Frank, and their active servant La Roche. A deep calm rested on the whole scene. The sailors of the vessel, having risen to despatch breakfast, retired to their hammocks again and went to sleep ; Stanley, Frank, and their household, were busy within doors ; Chimo snored in the sunshine at the front of the fort ; and the schooner floated on a sheet of water so placid, that every spar and delicate rope was clearly reflected. Nothing was heard save the soft ripple on the shore, the distant murmur of mountain streams, and, once or twice through the day, the faint reverberation of a fowling-piece. But as the day advanced, evidences of the approach- ing feast began to be apparent. Early in the forenoon UNCAVxV. loa Mivssan and Princii I'oturned witli boavv loads of vonison on their shoulders, and an hour later Ih'van stan^crcd into the fort bcndinij unr van, turning away in disi^iist. " All, try it, Bryan," eric*! La Roclu', tnrnin<^ from an Esqnimau f>aV)y, in the contemplation of which he had been ul sorbed " try it ; 'tis ver' <;oot, 1 'sure you. Ver* goot for yonr complaint, Uryan. But come hero, vitement. Just regardez dat hint'aiit. Conio liere, queek ! " Thus urged, Bryan V)rok(! away from his host, who had just split open the shin-bone of a deer, and ofl[ere,ux, Edith went down to the camp after breakfast, and found her two companions engaged in concluding their morning meal. The elder, whose name was Arnalooa, was peering with earnest scrutiny into the depths of a marrow-bone, from which she had al- ready extracted a large proportion of the raw material. The younger, Okatook, seized a lump of raw seal's flesh, as Edith entered their hut, and, cutting therefrom a savoury morsel, put it into her mouth as she rose to welcome hei visitor. " Oh ! how can you ? " said Edith, with a look of dis- gust at this ravenous conduct on the part of her friend. But Edith had said, " Oh ! how can you ? " and " Oh ) shocking," and " Oh ! why don't you give up eating it raw ? " and *' Oh ! why won't you have it cooked ? " nearly every day for the last tw^o weeks, without pro- ducing any other effect than a gleeful laugh from the little Esquimaux ; for, although they did not comprehend her words, they clearly understood her looks of dis- approval. But although they would not give up the habit of eating raw flesh, which they had been accus- tomed to from their infancy, they were prevailed on so far to break through the habits of their people as to wash their hands and faces before going out to play. This they did because Edith positively refused to go with them unless they did so. Lifting up the end of her tail and wiping her mouth She Alto- l pic- to the ir by 7a\ of after ed in name ^ into ad al- iterial. 5 flesh, rom a ose to of dis- friend. "Oh! iing it ked ? " it pro- im the rehend )f dis- ap the accus- on so as to 1 play, to go mouth UNGAVA. 213 therewith, Arnalooa smiled at Edith's look of reproach, and ran laughing towards the shore, where she and Okatook washed their hands, after which they followed Edith and Chimo to their favourite ravine. Although she knew that they did not understand a word of what she said, Edith invariably kept up a running fire of small talk, in reference chiefly to the objects of nature by which they were surrounded. To this the little hairy creatures listened intently with smiling faces, and sometimes they laughed prodigiously, as though they understood what was said, so that their companion felt as if she were really conversing with them, although she was sadly perplexed at the utter impossibility of obtaining an intelligible reply to a question when she chanced to put one. " Oh, what a lovely glen ! " cried Edith, her eyes beaming with delight, as, on turning the point of a projecting crag, she and her companions found themselves in a spot which they had not before seen during their rambles. It was a wild, savage gorge, full of fallen rocks, hemmed in with high clifls, fringed here and there with willows and mosses, among which were a few brilliant wild-flowers. The lights and shadows of the spot were thrown into powerful contrast by a gleam of sunshine which flashed down among the rugged masses, lighting up peaks and sharp edges in some spots, while in others they were thrown into the profoundest gloom. " Oh ! is it not a delightful place ? " cried Edith, as she bounded up the rugged path, followed by Chimo, while the two Esquimau girls buttoned up their tails, and followed her as fast as their more cumbrous habili- ments would permit. For a quarter of an hour the party toiled up the steep ascent, pausing now and then to pluck a flower, or to 214 UNGAVA. ■f J look back on the wild path by which they had come, until they reached a ridge of rock, beyond which lay a small lake or pool. So dark and still did it lie within the shadow of the overhanoin*? cliffs that it resembled a pool of ink. Here the adventurous explorers sat down to recover breath, and to gaze in childish delight, not unmixed with awe, at the wild scene around them. The peculiar wildness of the spot seemed to exercise an unusual influence over the dog ; for, instead of lying down, as it was ^vont to do, at the feet of its young- mistress, it moved about uneasily, and once or twice uttered a low growl. " Come here, Chimo," said Edith, when these symptoms of restlessness had attracted her attention ; " what is the matter with you, my dear dog ? Surely you are not frightened at the appearance of this wild place ! Speak, dog — see, Arnalooa is laughing at you." Edith might have said with more propriety that Arnalooa was laughing at herself, for the little Esqui- mau was much amused at the serious manner in which her Kublunat friend spoke to her dog. But Chimo refused to be comforted. He raised his snout, snuifed the air once or twice, and then, descending the gorge a short distance, put his nose close to the ground and trotted away. " That is very odd of Chimo," said Edith, looking into Arnalooa's face with an expression of perplexity. As she spoke Okatook pointed, with an eager glance, up the ravine. Turning her eyes hastily in the direction indicated, Edith beheld a deer bounding towards them. It was closely followed by a savage wulf. The deer seemed to be in the last stage of exhaustion. Its flanks were wet with moisture, its eyes starting from their sockets, and its breath issued forth in deep sobs, as it UNGAVA. 215 bounded onwards, seemingly more by the force of its impetus than by any voluntary exertion. More intent on the danger behind than on that which lay before it, the deer made straight for the pass in which the three girls stood, and scarcely had they time to spring up the sides of the cliftj when it swept by like an arrow. Instantly after, and ere it had taken two bounds past them, the wolf sprang forward, caught it by the throat, and dragged it to the ground, where, in a few seconds, it worried the noble animal to death. It is probable that the chase now terminated had begun at early dawn that day, for deer being fleeter than wolves they pro- long the chase until overcome by the superior strength and dogged perseverance of their ravenous enemies. Over mountain and hill they had bounded along together, through glen and gorge, across river and lake, bursting headlonq; throug-h bush and brake, or under the shadow of frowning cliflfs, and toiling, at a foot pace and with panting sides, up the steep hills, in the fierce blaze of the sun — the one impelled by hunger, the other by fear, until at length the scene closed in the wild pass, almost at the feet of the three children. But retribution was in store for the savage destroyer. Ere yet the life's blood had ceased to flow from the throat of the dying deer, and while the wolf's fangs were still dripping with its gore, a fierce bark, followed by a terrific growl, rang among the clifis, and Chimo, with his ears laid back and his formidable row of teeth exposed, rushed up the gorge and seized the wolf by the neck ! Thus assailed, the wolf returned the bite with interest, and immediately a fight of the most energetic character ensued. The wolf was much larger and more powerful than Chimo, but was greatly exhausted by its long chase, 216 UNGAVA. r I :^ i i if while the dog was fresh and vigorous. Once or twice Chimo tossed his huge adversary by main strength, but as often he was overturned and dreadfully shaken, while the long fangs of the wolf met in his neck, and mingled the blood of the deer, which bespattered his black muzzle, with the life's blood that began to flow copiously from Chimo's veins. At this moment a shout was heard farther up the ravine. The three girls turned hastily, and saw, on a point of rock which projected from the mountain side and overhung the dark pool, the figure of a man, of such immense proportions that they instinctively shrank back with terror. The position in which he stood made him appear larger than he really was. The scattered gleams and slant rays of sun- shine that played around the spot invested him as with a supernatural halo, while a bright glow of light on the cliflf behind detached him prominently from the sur- rounding shadows. He poised a spear in his right hand, and, while Edith gazed at him in terror, the weapon flew whistling through the air and was buried in the side of the wolf. But so close did the spear pass, that Edith involuntarily stepped back as she heard it whiz. In doing so she lost her balance and fell over the cliff. Fortunately Arnalooa caught her by the dress and partially broke iier fall, but the descent was sufficiently steep and rugged to render the child insensible. When Edith recovered consciousness, her first emotion was that of terror, on beholding a large dark bearded face bending over her ; but a second glance showed her that the eyes of the stranger gazed upon her with a look of tenderness, and that Arnalooa and Okatook were kneeling beside her with an expression of anxiety. Had anything further been wanting to allay her fears, the sight of Chimo would have done it. It is UNGAVA. 217 sur- hand, apon the that Iwhiz. cliff, and ntly )tion irded )wed her and )n of lUay litis true the sturdy dog panted heavily, and occasionally licked his wounds, as he sat on his haunches at her feet ; but he was wonderfully calm and collected after his recent mortal conflict, and regarded his young mistress from time to time with an air of patronizing assurance. As Edith opened her eyes, the stranger muttered some unintelligible words, and, rising hastily, went to a neighbouring spring, at which he filled a rude cup with water. In doing this, he revealed the huge proportions of the gigantic Esquimau whom we introduced to our reader in a former chapter. He was dressed in the same manner as when we first saw him, but his face was somewhat altered, and his black eye-brows were marked by that peculiar curve which is expressive of deep melancholy. Returning quickly from the spring, he kneeled beside the little girl, and, raising her head on his broad hand, held the goblet to her lips. " Thank you," said Edith faintly, as she swallowed a few drops ; " I think I had better go home. Is Chimo safe ? Chimo ! " She started up as the recollection of the fight with the wolf flashed upon her ; but the fall had stunned her rather severely, and scarcely had she risen to her feet when she staggered and fell back into the arms of the Esquimau. Seeing that she was quite unable to walk, he raised her in his powerful arm as if she had been a young lamb. Catching the dead wolf by the neck as he passed, and springing from rock to rock with cat-like agility, he bore his burden down the ravine, and strode towards the fort under the guidance of Okatook and Arnalooa. Hv ii' ''t fv CHAPTER XXII Maximus—Dccr sptarmg — A surpmstnglij bad shot — Character of the natives. " T T ALLO ' what have we here ? " exclaimed Stanley, JL J. starting from his seat in amazement, as the giant entered the hall of Fort Chimo — his left hand grasping a blood-stained wolf by the throat, and Edith resting in his right arm. At first the startled father imagined his child must have been wounded, if not killed, by the savage animal ; but his mind was immediately relieved on this point by Edith herself, who was no sooner laid on her bed than she recovered sufficiently to narrate the circumstances attending her fall. " Well, Maximus," said Stanley, returning to the hall and applying to the bulky savage the term that seemed most appropriate to him, " shake hands with me, my good fellow. You've saved Chimo's life, it seems ; and that's a good turn I'll not forget. But a — , I see you don't understand a word I say. Hallo ! Moses, Moses ! you deaf rascal, come here ! " he shouted, as that worthy passed the window. "^-' " Yis, mossue," said Moses, entering the hall. " Oh, me ! what a walrus am dis ! Me do b'lieve him most high as a tree an' more broader nor iveryt'ing ' " " Hold thy tongue, Moses, and ask the fellow where he came from ; but tell him first that I'm obliged to him for saving Chimo from that villanous wolf." UNGAV.i. 210 While Moses interpreted, Arnalooa an«] Okatr '' hoinf privileged iiiombcr.s uf the tribe, crossed over t»' liiditl? j, room. *' Well, what says he ? " inquired Stanley, at tho end of a long address which the giant had delivered to Moses. " Him say he hoered we have come to trade, from Eskeemo to west'ard, and so him couio fur to see ns." '* A most excellent reason," said Stanley. " Has ho brought any furs ? " " Yis ; him brought one two fox, and two free deer. No have much furs in dis country, him say." " Sorry to hear that. Perhaps his opinion may change when he sees the inside of our .store. But I would like him to stay about the fort as a hunter, Moses ; he seems a first-rate man. Ask him it he will consent to stay for a time." " P'raps he fuss-rate, p'raps not," muttered Moses in a disparaging tone, as he turned to put the question. " Him say yis." " Very good ; then take him to your house, Moses, and give him some food and a pipe, and teach him English as fast as you can, and see that it is grammatical, D'ye hear ? " " Yis, mossue, me quite sure for to teach him dat.'' As Moses turned to quit the hall, Stanley called him back. "Ask Maximus, by-the-by, if he knows any- thing of a party of Esquimaux who seem to have been attacked, not long ago, by Indians in this neighbour- hood." No sooner was this question put than the face of Maximus, which had worn a placid, smiling expression during the foregoing conversation, totally changed. His brows lowered, and his lips were tightly compressed, as ■t i i 220 UNGAVA. he regarded Stanley for a few moments ere he ventured to reply. Then, in a deep, earnest tone, he related the attack, the slaughter of his people, their subsequent escape, and the loss of his bride. Even Moses was agitated as he went on, and showed his teeth like an enraged mastitf when the Esquimau came to speak of his irreparable loss. " Stay one moment," saitl Stanley, when Maximus concluded. " I have something to show you ; '* and hastening into his room, he quickly returned with the little piece of sealskin that had been found at the deserted Indian camp. " Do you know anything of this, Maximus ? Do you understand these marks ? " The Esquimau uttered a cry of surprise when his eye fell on the piece of skin, and he seemed much agitated, while he put several quick, earnest questions to Moses, who replied as earnestly and quickly ; then turning rapidly on his hoel, he sprang through the doorway, and was soon lost to view in the stunted woods of the ravine above the fort. " That fellow seems in a hurry," exclaimed Frank Morton, entering the room just as the savage made his exit. " Who is he, and wherefore in so great haste ? " " As to who he is," answered Stanley, " I'll tell you that after Moses has explained the cause of his sudden flight." " He say that him's wife make dat skin, and de arrow on him skin show dat de Injuns take her to deir tents." " But did you not tell him that we found the skin long ago, and that the Indians must be far, far away by this time — nobody know^s where ? " demanded Frank. "Yis, me tell him. But he go for to see de spot. T'ink him find more t'ings, p'raps." UNGAVA. 221 I! "Oh, messieurs, voila'" shouted La Roche, pointing towards the river, as he rushed, breathless with haste, into the hall ; '* les Esquimaux, deiii kill all de deer dans le kontry. Qui, voila ! dans les kayak. Two dozen at vonce — vrainient ! " Without waiting a reply, the ex- cited Frenchman turned round and rushed out of tho house, followed by Stanley and Frank, who seized their guns, which always hung ready loaded on thu walls of the apartment. On reaching the water s edge, the scene that met their eye was indeed sufficient to account for the excitement of La Roche. A herd of perhaps tifty or sixty deer, on their way to the coast, and ignorant of the foes who had so recently invaded their solitudes, had descended the ravine opposite the fort, with the intention of cross- ing the river. The Esquimaux had perceived this, and keeping themselves and their kayaks concealed until most of the animals were in the water, and the leaders of the herd more than two-thirds over, they then gave chase, and, getting between the deer and the opposite shore, cut off their retreat, and drove them towards their encampment. Here the slaughter commenced, and Stanley and Frank arrived at the scene of action while they were in the midst of the wholesale destruction. In all directions the kayaks, with their solitary occupants, were darting about hither and thither like arrows in the midst of the affrighted animals ; none of which, however, were speared until they were driven quite close to the shore. In their terror, the deer endeavoured to escape by swimming in different directions ; but the long double-bladed paddles of the Esquimaux sent the light kayaks after them like lightning, and a sharp prick on their flanks turned them in the right direction. There were so many deer, how- I li i il 222 UNGAVA. M I' ii \i ever, that a few succeeded in gaining the land ; but here the guns of the traders awaited them. In the midst of this wild scene, Frank's attention was arrested by the cool proceedings of an Esquimau, whose name was Chacooto. He had several times exhibited a degree of shrewdness beyond his fellows during his residence near the fort, and was evidently a man of importance in the tribe. Chacooto had collected together a band of the herd, amounting to fifteen, and, by dint of cool decision and quick movements, had driven them to within a few yards of the shore, exactly opposite the spot whereon his tent stood. One young buck, of about two years old, darted away from the rest more than once, but, with a sweep of the paddle and a prick of the lance, Chacooto turned it back again, while a quiet sarcastic smile played on his countenance. Having driven the herd close enough in for his purpose, the Esquimau ended the career of the refractory buck with a single thrust of his lance, and then proceeded coolly to stab them all one after another. " Och, the spalpeen ! " said a voice at Frank's ear. " 'Tis himsilf knows how to do it, an' no mistake. Musha ! his lance goes out and in like a thailor's needle; an' he niver strikes more nor wance, the haythen ! " " He certainly does know how to do it, Bryan," replied Frank ; " and it's a comfort to know that every thrust kills in a moment. I like to see as little of the appear- ance of cruelty as possible in work of this kind." " Arrah ! there's wan that'll chate 'im, anyhow," cried Bryan, throwing forward his gun in nervous haste, as one of the deer gained the land, despite Chacooto's rapidity, and bounded towards the hills. ^ Frank smiled at the eager haste of his companion, who was one of the poor shots of the party, and, con- UNGAVA. 223 of IS as Do's sequently, always in a hurry. " Now, Bryan, there's a chance. Take your time. Just behind the shoulder ; a little low, for that gun kicks horribly." " Murder and blazes, she won't go off ! " cried the exasperated Irishman, as, after a wavering effort to take aim, he essayed unsuccessfully to pull the trigger. " Half-cock, man ! Cock it ! " said Frank quickly. " So 'tis, be the mortial ! Och, Bryan, yer too cliver, ye are ! " he exclaimed, rectifying his error with a force that nearly tore off the dog-head. At that instant there was a sharp crack, and the deer, bounding into the air, fell dead on the sand at the edge of the willows. " Forojive me, Brvan," said Massan, chucklinsx and reloading his piece as he walked up to his comrade. " I would not ha' taken't out o' yer teeth, lad, if ye had been ready ; but one bound more would ha' put the beast beyond the reach o' a bullet." " Faix, Massan, ye desarve to be hanged for murther. Shure I was waitin' till the poor crayture got into the bushes, to give it a chance o' its life, before I fired. That's the way that gintlemen from the ould country does when we're out sportin'. We always put up the birds first, and fire afterwards ; but you salvages murther a poor brute on the sand, whin it's only two fathoms from ye. Shame on ye, Massan." " See, Massan," cried Frank, pointing to another deer, which, having escaped its pursuers, had gained the heights above. " That fellow is beyond us both, I fear. Be ready when it comes into view beyond the cliff there." But Massan did not move ; and when Frank threw forward his gun, he felt his arm arrested. " Pardon me, monsieur," said Massan respectfully ; " there's a sure bullet about to start for that deer. " I ! n 224 UNGAVA. ml 1 m 1 1 1b^\ i . , HI ^1 ■' ^m ' t ' ' WA\ .]■ -^ Vmm\ 1 Wp '■■! H 1 '( .'' As he spoke, he pointed to Dick Prince, who, ignorant of the fact that the deer had been seen by Frank, was watching its re-appearance from behind a neighbouring rock, at some distance from where they stood. In a second it came into view — the bullet sped — and the deer bounded lightly into the bushes, evidently unhurt ! It is difficult to say whether Dick Prince or his comrades exhibited most amazement in their looks at this result. That the crack shot of the party — the man who could hit a button in the centre at a hundred yards, and cut the head off a partridge at a hundred and fifty — should miss a deer at ninety yards, was utterly in- comprehensible. " Is it yer own gun ye've got ? " inquired Bryan, as the discomfited marksman walked up. "No; it's yours," replied Prince. A smile, which resolved itself into a myriad of wrinkles, flitted over the blacksmith's face as he said, — " Ah, Prince ! ye'll requare long practice to come to the parfect use o' that wipon. I've always fired three yards, at laste, to the left, iver since we fell over the hill togither. If it's a very long shot, it requares four to take the baste in the flank, or four an' a half if ye want to hit the shoulder, besides an allowance o' two feet above its head, to make up for the twist I gave it the other day in the forge, in tryin' to put it right ! " This explanation was satisfactory to all parties, espe- cially so to Prince, who felt that his credit was saved ; and if Prince had a weakness at all, it was upon this point. The deer were now all killed, with the exception of those of the band that had been last in entering the river. These, with a few stragglers, had returned to the shore from which they started. The remainder of the evening was devoted to skinning and cutting up the UNGAVA. 225 spe- ved; oint. I of the I to r of the carcasses — an operation requiring considerable time, skill, and labour. While the people at the fort were thus employed, Maximus (who adopted at once the name given to him by Stanley) returned from his fruitless journey to the Indian camp, and assisted the men at their work. He made no allusion whatever to his visit to the deserted Indian camp ; but, from the settled expression of deep sadness that clouded his countenance, it was inferred that what he had seen there had not tended to raise his hopes. The supply of deer obtained at this time was very seasonable, for the frost had now begun to set in so steadily that the meat could be hung up to freeze, and thus be kept fresh for winter'^ consumption. Some of it, however, was dried and stored away in bales ; while a small quantity was pounded after being dried, made into pemmican, and reserved for future journeys. As for the Esquimaux, they gave themselves up, during the first night, to feasting and rejoicing. During the shoi fc time that they had been at the fort, they had converted the promontory on which they were encamped into a scene of the utmost confusion and filth. A regard for truth constrains us to say, that although these poor creatures turned out to be honest, and simple, and kind- hearted, they did not by any means turn out to be cleanly ; quite the reverse. They had erected four summer tents on the beach, which were composed of skins sewed together, and sup- ported on poles in such a way as to afford ample room for the accommodation of their families. The entrance to each tent was through a passage, w^hich was also made of skins, hung over a line fastened to a pole at the distance of twelve or fifteen feet from the tent. Each . i 226 UJ^GAVA. ^ 'I |,l!| ! >'■'■ £1 S; I] I ' side of obis entrance was lined with piles of provisions — seals, fish, ducks, and venison, in various stages of decay, which rendered the passage into the interior a trying operation. True, it was intended that the frost should prevent this decay ; but, unfortunately, the frost did not always do its duty. The manner in which they cut up their deer and prepared them for future use waf. curious. After cutting the animals into two, without skinning them, they pinned up the front half with the heart and liver in the cavity. The other half they treated in a similar way, minus the heart and liver, and then put them out to freeze until required. When frozen, they were frequently used in their tents as seats, until the gradual diminution of the larder demanded that they should be appropriated to their proper use. The tribe of Esquimaux who resided near Fort Chimo at this time were possessed of an enormous stone kettle, in which they boiled an entire deer at one time ; and while the good people luxuriated on the flesh of the animal in their tents, the dogs assembled round the boiler to await the cooling of the soup — thus verifying the assertion formerly made by Massan on that head. The dogs resembled those of the Newfoundland breed in some respects, but were scarcely so large or good- looking, and had erect instead of pendent ears. There were about a dozen of them ; and it was wonderful to observe the patience with which they sat in a circle round the kettle, gazing earnestly at the soup, licking their chaps the while, in anticipation of the feast. The successful hunt was regarded as worthy of being specially celebrated by the distribution of a glass of grog to the men, and also to the Esquimaux ; for at the time we write of, the Hudson's Bay Company had not yet instituted the wise and humane regulation which has UNGAVA. 227 8 cay, ould not b up ious. Liiing , and in a I put they 1 the they ^himo kettle, and f the d the |i£ying d. breed good- There Iful to circle licking being |f grog |e time )t yet bh has since become a standing order throughout all pnrts of the country, except where there is opposition — namely, that ardent spirits shall not be given to the natives. However, Stanley's natural disposition led him to be very circumspect in giving spirits to the men and natives, and the supply now issued was very small. In the men it produced a desire for the violin, nnd created a tendency to sing and tell stories. In the Esquimaux it produced at first dislike, and afterwards wild excitement, which, in the case of Chacooto, ended in a desire to fight. But his comrades, assisted by his wives, overpowered him, tied him in a sack made of seal- skin, and left him to roar and kick till he fell asleep ! The honesty of these natives was exhibited very strikingly in all their dealings with the fur-traders. Although iron tools of every description were scattered about the fort, while the men were engaged in erecting the several buildings, not one was missed ; and even the useless nails and scraps of metal that were thrown away, when they were found by chance by the Esquimaux, were always brought to the house, and the question asked, " Were they of any use ? " before being appro- priated. They were great beggars, however ; which was not surprising, considering the value of the articles possessed by the traders, and their own limited means of purchasing them. Their chief wealth at this time lay in boots and deerskins, which the women were con- stantly employed in preparing ; but Stanley urged them to go into the interior and hunt, as, although deerskins and boots were useful, furs were infinitely more valuable. But the Esquimaux had much too lively a dread of the Indians to venture away from the coast, and seemed inclined to hang about the place in comparative idleness much longer than was desirable. I i i B,M ' CHAPTER XXTIT. More arrivah—HoncMy— Indians comic upon the scene— The tribes reconciled— Disease and death ehanje the aspect of thiihjs — Philosophic discourse. A DAY or two after the successful deer-hunt above related, several bands of Esquimaux arrived at Fort Chimo, and encamped beside their comrades. This unusual influx of visitors soon exhausted the venison that had been procured ; but hunting parties were con- stantly on the alert, and as game of all kinds was plentiful, they lived in the midst of abundance. To all of these Stanley made small presents of beads and to- bacco, and recommended them strongly to go and hunt for furs. But they seemed to like their quarters, and refused to move. The new arrivals, along with those who had first come, formed a band of about three hun- dred, and were found, almost without exception, to be a quiet, inoffensive, and honest people. As a proof of this latter quality, we may mention a circumstance that occurred a few days after the arrival iji the last band. Being desirous of taking some addi- tional soundings, Stanley launched his boat by the help of the Esquimaux, for his own men were all absent hunting and fishing. The boat referred to had been sent to the fort in the ship, and was a most useful and acceptable gift from the Governor of the Fur Company to the gentleman in charge of Ungava. Stanley hoisted id to- hunt \, and those hun- to be bion a Arrival addi- help ibsent been il and bpany loisted 1 UNGAVA. 220 his sails, and prepared to run down the river ; but ere he had advanced a hundred yards, he was startled by a burst of loud cries from the shore, and, looking back, he observed the whole band of natives pouring like a torrent into the fort ! His heart leaped within him as he thought of his unprotected wife and child. Turning the boat towards the shore, he ran it on the beach, and, leaving it with all the sails standing, he rushed into the square of the fort, forcing his way through the crush of natives, whose vociferous talking rendered what they said, for a time, unintelligible. At length Moses forced his way through the crowd, followed by one of the natives, who led a large dog by a line fastened round its neck. " What's the matter, Moses ? what's wrong ? " cried Stanley. " Oh, not'ing at all," replied Moses, casting a look of pity at his countrymen. " Dem are great gooses. Dis man here wid de dog, him say dat de child'n was play in de square of dis fort, an' one o' dem trow stone and broke a window. It was de son ob dis man what do it, an him say he most aw^ful sorry — an' all de people sorry, so dey bring de dog to pay foi- do broken window." " I'm glad it's nothing worse," cried Stanley, much relieved. " Tell them I'm happy to find they are sorry, and I hope they wdll k?ep the children out of the square in future ; but I don't want the dog. It was an acci- dent, and not worth making such a noise about." The Esquimaux, however, w^ould not agree to look upon this accident as a light matter. They said truly, that glass was not to be got so easily as the ice-blocks with which thev formed windows to their own winter houses, so they insisted on the dog being accepted ; and I I il 230 UNGAVA. I .■ ; :"•■ i ■ at length Stanley gave in, but took care that the native who gave it should not be a loser in consequence of his honesty. Moreover, Stanley begged of them to send up several of their best dogs, saying that he would purchase them, as he was in want of a team for hauling the winter firewood. Next day, while Stanley was engaged in the trading store with a party of Esquimaux, he was surprised by hearing a volley of musketry fired at the back of the fort. Snatching up a loaded gun as he ran hastily out, he found that the shots had been fired by a band of Indians as a salute to the fort on their arrival. This was the first time that Indians had made their appearance since the arrival of the fur- traders ; and their advent at the present time was most fortunate, as it afforded Stanley an opportunity of commencing his negotiations as peace-maker in the presence of a con- siderable band of both parties. The Indians, fifteen in number, were all clothed, with the exception of their chief, in deerskin hunting shirts, ornamented moccasins of the same material, and cloth leggings. They wore no head-dress, but their long, straight, black hair was decorated with feathers and small metallic ornaments, among which were several silver thimbles. Their powder-horns and shot-pouches were gaily ornamented with bead and quill work ; and they were all armed with long guns, on which they leaned as they stood silently, in a picturesque group, on the flat rocky plat- form above the spring, which has been more than once alluded to. This platform overlooked the fort, and was a favourite promenade of the traders. At present it formed a sort of neutral ground, on which the Indians took their stand. The red men were overawed by the very su- UNGAVA. 231 )urite sort their ly su- perior number of the Esquimaux, and felt that they were safe only so long as they stood on the flat i-ock, which was the only path leading to the ravine, through which, if need be, they could easily escape into the mountains. The chief of the Indians, unlike his fellows, was dressed in a costume of the most grotesque and brilliant character, and, certainly, one which, however much it might raise the admiration of his savage companions, did not add to his dignity in the eyes of the traders. He wore a long, bright scarlet coat, richly embroidered with gold lace, with large cutis, and gilt buttons ; a pair of blue cloth trousers, and a vest of the same material ; a broad worsted sash, and a hat in the form of the ordinary beaver or silk hat of Europe. The material, however, was very coarse ; but this was made up for by the silver, and gilt cords, and tassels with which it was profusely decorated. He evidently felt his own import- ance, and stood with a calm, dignified gaze, waiting to be addressed. Hailing Ma-istequan, who leaned on the axe with which he had been cutting firewood when the volley of the Indians arrested him, Stanley bade him invite them to enter the fort. " We cannot come down," replied the chief, after Ma-istequan had given the invitation. " The Eskimos arc in numbers like the stars ; we are few. If the pale-faces are our friends, let them come up here and take us by the hand and bring us down." " Very reasonable," said Stanley to Frank, who stood beside him ; " we must take care that the Esquimaux do not take advantage of their numbers to avenge their ancient wrongs." Then, turning to the natives, who had now crowded ^ 232 UNGAVA. ! f t.|.ii in largfe rjumbors into the fort, Stanley addressed them in a serious tone ; told them that the time had now come when ho hoped to reconcile the Innuit and the Allat* together ; and that he expected they would show their gratitude for his many kindnesses to them by treating the Indians, who were his friends, with hos- pitality. The Esquimaux promised obedience, after which Stanley ascended to the promenade, and taking the Indian chief by the hand, led him towards the fort, followed by the whole band in single file. It is not necessary to detail the speeches that followed on both sides on this occasion, and the eloquence that was expended that evening in the cause of peace. Suffice it to say that the Indians and Esquimaux shook hands and exchanged gifts in the presence of the assem- bled garrison of Fort Chimo. But although the traders had reason to congratulate themselves on having so far succeeded in the establishment of peace, they could not conceal from themselves the fact that while, on the one hand, the Esquimaux appeared to be perfectly sincere and cordial in their professions, on the other hand the Indians evinced a good deal of taciturnity at first, and even after their reserve was overcome, seemed to act as men do who are constrained to the performance of a distasteful action. In general character, the Indians of Labrador do not contrast well with the Esquimaux — at least this may with truth be said of those who afterwards became attached to the district of Ungava. The Indian is reserved and taciturn, while the Esquimau is candid, frank, and communicative. Of course there are excep- tions on both sides. On the evening of the same day, Stanley had much " ■* Esquimau name for Tndianf?. h UNOAVA. 2:« nice not imay lame is idid, |cep- mch difficulty in ovcrcomino- the reserve of the Indifins, so as to procure information regardinf]f the interior ; and it was not until their hearts were opened by the influence of tobacco, that they condescended to give the required information. This was to the etl'ect tliat there were not many fur-bearing animals in the immediate vicinity of Ungava, but that there were a good many in the wooded country lying to the southward and eastward. Here, however, the Indians do not care to hunt, pre- ferring rather to keep to the heights of land, and near the coast, where the deer are numerous. In fact, Stan- ley afterwards found that the facility with which the Indians procured deer in this part of the country was a serious drawback to the fur trade, as they contented themselves with trapping just enough of otters, foxes, etc., to enable them to procure a supply of ammunition with which to hunt the deer. The Indians had brought a few beaver and other furs to trade, and, after receiving a good meal and a few presents, they took up their quarters on a plot of ground close to the fort. Here they lived a short time in per- fect friendship with the Esquimaux, visiting them, and hunting in company ; but more than once they exhibited their natural disposition by stealing the goods of their neighbours. On one occasion, two Esquimau children were missed from the camp, and in the course of the day they returned to their parents clothed in Indian costume ! . This was a very polite piece of attention on the part of the Indians, but the effect of it was much marred, the same day, by the abstraction of a knife from an Esquimau tent. Stanley insisted on the article being restored, and severely reprimanded the offender. But, although the general harmony of the camp was sometimes broken by such events, the friend- \ 2^ UNOAVA. ^;'l ship botweon tho two parties soonicd to be gradually increasing, and Stardey saw with satisfaction that the Allat and the Innuit bade fair to become fast friends for the future. But an event occurred at this time which put an end to their intercourse, and very nmch altered the aspect of affairs. For some time past tlie men at the fort had been subject to rather severe attacks of cold, or a species of influenza. This they unfortunately conununicated to the Esquimaux, who seemed to be peculiarly susceptible of the disease. Being very fat and full-blooded, it had the most dreadful effect on the poor creatures, and at a certain staije almost choked them. At last one night it was reported that ten of their number had died from absolute suffocation. All of these had been strong and robust, and they died after two days' illness. One of those who were attacked was Edith's little friend, Arnalooa, and just before the ten Esquimaux died, Edith had gone down to the camp with a present of beads to console her. She found her much better, and, after talking to her for some time, she took her leave, promising to pay her another visit next day. True to her promise, Edith sallied forth after breakfast with a little native basket on her arm. About half-an- hour afterwards, while Stanley was sitting in the hall with his wife and Frank, they were startled by the sudden appearance of Edith, mt of breath from the speed with which she had run Home, and her face over- spread with a deadly paleness. " What is the matter, my darling ? " cried her mother, starting up in alarm. " Oh ! the Esquimaux are lying dead on the sand," gasped Edith, as she laid her head on her mother's breast, " and the rest are all gone." blier, lev's UNGAVA. 235 Witlmiit vvaitinjjf to hoar luoro, Frank nnd Stanley took down their jj;uns an«l lia.sti'n«3(l to the nniq). Here a sceno of the most liorrililo knid prcscntc*! itself. The wholo camp oxliihitod evidences of a hasty tli<;ht, and eij^'ht of the people who had ut the most curious part of tlie nmchine was the substance with which tlie runners were shod, in order to preserve tlieni. This was a pivparation of nuid and water, which was pbistered sinootldy on in a soft condition, and then allowed to freeze. This it did in r few minutes after bein^ exposed to the open air, and thus became a smooth, hani shenthin«(, which was much more durable and le«s Table lo lirak than iron, or indeed any other shfMthing ti ut could be devised. This substance is of course v'Msily repaired., and is always used by the Esquimaux in '^vintri'. Esquimau sledges beiii tended to check the bitter wind that often blew against it, and tempered the slight draught that did force its way through. Altogether the hall at Fort Chimo was curious and comfortable — rather shaggy in its general appearance, but sound and trustworthy at bottom. A small rough table, the work of Frank Morton, stood close to the stove ; and beside it was seated Mrs. Stanley, with a soft yellow deerskin before her, which she was carefully transforming into a hunting coat for her husband. On another and a larger table was spread the tea equipage. Those who would understand this aright must for tea read supper. Among fur-traders the two are combined. Candles — dips made at the fort ■ — had been brought some time ago by La Roche, who entered the hall by a back door which communicated with a passage leading to the kitchen behind. " What can have become of papa, I wonder ? " MrSu *x I 252 UNGAVA. I I c J '/ ^ i c Stanley designated her husband by this epithet, in con- sequence of her desire to keep up the fiction of her being Edith's little sister or playfellow. Frank looked up from the board. " I know not," said he. " I left him giving some orders to the men. We have been getting things made snug about the fort, for we expect a pretty stiff breeze to-night. — Take care, Eda ; your crown's in danger." " Oh ! so it is," cried Edith, snatching back her piece, and looking with intense earnestness at the board. Frank might have observed, had he not been too deeply engaged with his game, that the expected stiff breeze had already come, and was whistling round the fort with considerable vigour. " You'll beat me, Eda, if you play so boldly," said Frank with a smile. " There, give me another crown." " And me too," said Edith, pushing up her piece. As she spoke, the door burst open, and Stanley sprang into the room. " Whew ! what a night ! " he cried, shutting the door with a forcible bang, in order to keep out the snow-drift that sought to enter along with him. Two moves would have made Frank the conqueror, but the gust of wind upset the board, and scattered the men upon the floor. Stanley looked like a man of white marble, but the removal of his cap, coat, and leggings produced a speedy and entire metamorphosis. " Ho ! La Roche ! " ^* Oui, monsieur." L " Here, take my coat and shake the snow off it, and let's have supper as speedily as may be;;j — The draughts without, Frank, are a little too powerful for the draughts within, I fear. — What ! wife, making another coat ? UNGAVA. 253 One would think you had vowed to show your affection for me by the number of coats you made. How many have you perpetrated since we were married ? " " Never mind ; fro and put on one now, and come to supper while it is lioi." " I'm glad it is hue," cried Stanley from his bedroom. " One needs unusual heat within to make up for the cold without. The thermometer is thirty below." While the party in the hall were enjoying their evening meal, the men were similarly employed beside the stove in their own habitation. There was not much difference in the two apartments, save that the confusion in that of the men was much greater, in consequence of the miscellaneous mass of capotes, caps, belts, discarded moccasins, axes, guns, and seal-spears, with which they saw fit to garnish the walls. The fumes of tobacco were also more dense, and the conversation more up- roarious. " 'Tis a howlin' night," observed Massan, as a gust of more than usual violence shook the door on its hinges. " Me t'ink de snow-drift am as t'ick in de sky as on de ground," said Oolibuck, drawing a live coal from the fire and lighting his pipe therewith. " Hould on, boys ! " cried Bryan, seizing his chair with both hands, half in jest and half in earnest, as another blast shook the building to its foundation. The two Indians sat like statues of bronze, smoking their calumets in silence, while Gaspard and Prince rose and went to the window. But the frozen moisture on the panes effectually prevented their seeing out. It was indeed an awful niijht — such a ninfht as had not, until now, visited the precincts of Fort Chimo. Viewed from the rocky platform on the hill, the raging of the storm was absolutely sublime. The wind came 11 254 UNGAVA. sometimes in short, angry gusts, sometimes in prolonged roars, through the narrows, sweeping up clouds of snow so dense that it seemed as though the entire mass had been uplifted from the earth, hurling it upwards and downwards and in circling eddies, past the ravines, and round the fort, and launching it with a fierce yell into the valley of the Caniapuscaw. The sky was not alto- gether covered with clouds, and the broken masses, as they rolled along, permitted a stray moonbeam to dart down upon the turmoil beneath, and render darkness visible. Sometimes the wind lulled for a second or two, as if to breathe ; then it burst forth again, splitting through the mountain gorges with a shriek of intensity ; the columns of snow sprang in thousands x.om every hollow, cliff, and glen, mingled in wild confusion, swayed, now hither, now thither, in mad uncertainty, and then, caught by the steady gale, pelted on, like the charging troops of ice-land, and swept across the frozen plain. Could human beings face so wild a storm as this ? Ay, they could — at least they could dare to try ! There was one traveller out upon the hills on that tremendous night. The giant was in the midst of it ; but weak as the bulrush were the mighty limbs of Maximus before the rushing gale. Several days previous to this the Esquimau had been sent down to his brethren at False River, to procure some seal-meat for the dogs, and to ascertain the condition of the natives, and their success in fishing. On arriving, he found that they had been so far successful, that starvation (their too frequent guest) had not yet visited their dwellings of snow. Bat Maximus found the old woman who had formerly saved his life very ill, and apparently about to die. Having learned from experience the efficacy of Stanley's medi- UNGAVA. 255 cines, he resolved to procure some for the old woman, whom he had tenderly watched over and hunted for ever since the eventful day of the attack. His dogs were exhausted and could not return. But the bold Esquimau was in the prime of life, and animated by the lire of vigorous youth. The storm was beginning to mutter in the distance. What then ? Had he not faced the blasts of the frozen regions many a time before ? Without saying a word, he threw a junk of seal-flesh into his wallet, and, striding back upon his track at the mountain's base, he disappeared in the driving snow. Before reaching the fort, however, the full fury of the storm had burst upon him. It cast him headlong into the snow ; but he rose and staggered on. Again it burst forth, and again he fell before it like a stately pine. Rising to his knees, Maximus drew the hood of his hairy garment close round his head and face, and tried to peer through the driving snow ; but he could not see until a slight lull came ; then he observed a hummock of ice at a short distance, and, rising, made towards it. The lulls w^ere short-lived, however. The storm threw him down again ; instantly he was drifted over with snow ; another blast came, lifted the drift into the air, and left the Esquimau exposed to all its fury. But Maximus was not conquered. He rose again, panting, it is true, but sturdy as ever, and ready to take advantage of the next lull. It came soon ; and he saw a rock, or, it might be, the base of a cliff, close at hand. With a quick run he reached it ; and, going down on his knees, began with his gloved hands to scrape a hollow in the snow. Having made a hole big enough to contain his body, he lay down in it, and, pull- ing the superincumbent snow down upon him, was i ^ 256 UNGAVA. Itu almost buried in the ruin. Scarcely harl he drawn the hood of his coat well over his face, when another burst of the storm dashed a column of curling* drift upon the rock, and the place where he lay was covered up ; not a wrinkle in the diu'L reiuaincd to mark the spot where he was buried ! All that nijjcht the storm roared amoTi<^ preference to a fork or knife. *' I)oy always buil' um so. But not (lis t'in<^," he added, touching the snow-table. " No, I suppose not," said Frank. " T flatter myself tliat that is a recent improvement." " We do great many igloe sometime," continued Maxi- inus, " vid two, free, four, — plenty pass'ges goin' into von a-doder." " What does he mean by that ? " inquired Edith, lauorhin*!;. i^ " I suppose he means that they connect a number of 'n: their igloes together by means of passages. — And do they V\w^ keep them as clean and snug as this, Maximus ? " ^. The Esquimau replied by a loud chuckle, and a full .|t' ■i ifs ff- w|jR T 'kIbI it' «l hooks ; but as cuttiiif^ holi-s in the ico will occupy you somo time, I'll take a short walk along the margin of the lake with my gun. Be careful of Edith till 1 return." So saying, Frank went oHf", taking Chimo along with him ; while Maximus seized the axe and ice-chisel, and began the laborious process of digging through to the water. The ice on the lake was five feet thick, but by ilint of great perseverance the Esquimau succeeded in making several holes through it ere Frank returned. Each hole was large enough to contain the body of a man, but a little wider above than below. In these holes were set stout cod-lines, with hooks of about half- an-inch or more in diameter. They were made of white metal, and clumsy enough to look at ; but fish in the lakes of Ungava are not particular. These hooks were baited with lumps of seal-fat, and ere half- an -hour elapsed the success of the anglers was very decided and satisfactory. Frank hauled up a white-fish of about six pounds weiglit at the first dip, and scarcely had he thrown it on the ice when Maximus gave a galvanic start, hauled up his line a few yards with laughable eagerness, then stopped suddenly, under the impression, apparently, that it was a false alarm ; but another tug set him again in motion, and in three seconds he pulled a fine lake-trout of about ten pounds weight out of the hole. Edith, also, who had a line under her care, began to show symptoms of expectation. " Capital ! " cried Frank, beating his hands violently against his shoulders ; for handling wet lines with the thermometer at twenty below zero is decidedly cold work — " capital ! we must set up a regular fishery here, I think ; the fish are swarming. There's another, —eh ? no— he's ofT— " UNG.WA. 275 itly I the pold |ery ler, " Oil ; oil i ; oh!!!" Hlirit'knl Edith in nnii<^'l«Ml fear and excitcmont, as, at eacli successive *'oh! ' sht; received a j eric that vvuil-iiii;]i jnillcd her into the ic<'-hole. " Hokl liard ! " cried Frank ; "now then, liaul away." Edith pulled, and so did the fish ; Init as it was not more than five pounds weight or so, she overcame it after a severe strugjj^le, and landed a wliite-tish on the ice. The next sliout tlwit Edith i^ave was of so very decided and thrilling a character tluit I'' rank and Maxi- mus darted to her side in alarm, and the latter caught the line as it was torn violently from her grasp. For a few minutes the Esquimau had to allow th(! line to run out, being unahlc; to liold the hsh — at least without the I'isk of breaking his tackle ; but in a few seconds the motion of the line became less rapid, and Maximus held on, w^hile his huge body was jerked violently, not- withstanding; his weight and strenoth. 8oon the line relaxed a little, and Maximus ran away from the hole as fast as he could, drawing the line after him. When the fish reached the hole it ofi'ered decided resistance to such treatment; and being influenced, apparently, by the Avell-known proverb, " Time about's fair play," it darted away in its turn, causing the Esquimau to give it line again very rapidly. " He must be an enormously big fellow^" said Frank, as he and Edith stood close to the hole watching the struggle with intense interest. The Esquimau gave a broad grin. " Yis, he most very biggest, — hie ! '* The cause of this exclamation of surprise was the slacking of the line so suddenly that Maximus was in- duced to believe the fish liad escaped. " Him go be-off. Ho yis ! " IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I 11.25 I^|2j8 |2^ ■i^ Uii |Z2 ■luu FhotogFaphic Sciences Corporation 23 WIST MAIN STRUT WIBSTIR,N.Y. U5M (716) •72-4503 '^ ri' t i; i:: I 276 UNGAVA. But he was wrong. Another violent tug convinced him that the fish was still captive — though an unwilling one — and the struggle was renewed. In about a quar- ter of an hour Maximus dragged this refractory lish slowly into the hole, and its snout appeared above water. " Oh ! luhat a fish ! " exclaimed Edith. " Put in de spear," cried the Esquimau. Frank caught up a native spear which Maximus had provided, and just as the fish was about to recommence the struggle for its life, he transfixed it through the gills, and pinned it to the side of the ice-hole. The battle was over ; a few seconds sufficed to drag the fish from its native element and lay it at full length on the ice. And few anglers have ever had the pleasure of be- holding such a prize. It was a trout of fully sixty pounds weight, and although such fish are seldom if ever found in other parts of the world, they are by no means uncommon in the lakes of North America. Having secured this noble fish, Maximus cut it open and cleaned it, after which it was left to freeze. The other fish were then similarly treated, and while the Esquimau v«ras thus engaged, Frank and Edith continued their sport. But daylight in these far northern regions is very short-lived in winter, and they were soon com- pelled unwillingly to leave off. " Now, Maximus," said Frank, as they rolled up their lines, " I don't intend to keep you longer with us. Edith and I can manage the fishing very well, so you may return to your friends at False River, and take the seal-flesh for the dogs up to the forli. Get the loan of some of their dogs and a sled to haul it ; and come round this way in passing, so as to pick up any fish we may have ready for you. The moon will be up in a little, so be off as fast as vou can." UNGAVA. 277 In obedience to these orders, Maximus packed up a small quantity of provisions, and bidding good-bye to his two friends, set off to make the best of his way to the coast. That night Frank and his little charge sat down to sup together in the igloe at the head of their snow- table, and Chimo acted the part of croupier in the room of the Esquimau. And a pleasant evening they spent, chatting, and laughing, and telling stories, by the light of the stone lamp, the mellow flame of which shed a warm influence over the sparkling dome of snow. Before retiring to rest, Frank said that they must be up with the first light, for he meant to have a hard day's fish- ing ; but man little knows what a day may bring forth. Neither Frank nor Edith dreamed that night of the events that were to happen on the morrow. On awaking in the morning they were again roused by the voice of the wolf which had visited them the day before. In order to catch this wolf, Maximus had, just before starting, constructed a trap peculiar to the Esqui- maux. It was simply a hole dug down through the ice at the edge of the lake, not far from the igloe. This hole was just wide enough to admit the body of a wolf, and the depth sufficient to render it absolutely impos- sible for the animal to thrust his snout to the bottom, however long his neck might be. At the bottom a tempting piece of blubber, in very high condition, was placed. The result of this ingenious arrangement was most successful, and, we may add, inevitable. Attracted by the smell of the meat, our friend the wolf came trot- ting down to the lake just about daybreak, and sneaked suspiciously up to the trap. He peeped in and licked his lips with satisfaction at the charming breakfast be- low. One would have thought, as he showed his for- 278 UNGAVA. m i;;) II I ' !' midable white teeth, that he was laucfhinci with delight. Then, spreading out his fore legs so as to place his breast on the ice, he thrust his head down into the hole and snapped at the coveted blubber. But he had mis- taken the depth, and blaming himself, no doubt, for his stupidity, he slid a little further forward, and pushed his head deeper down. What ! not at it yet ? Oh ! this is preposterous ! Under this impression he rose, shook himself, and advancing his shoulders as far as prudence would allow, again thrust down his head and stretched his neck until the very sinews cracked. Then it was, but not till then, that the conviction was forced on him that that precious morsel was totally and absolutely be- yond his reach altogether. Drawing himself back he sat down on his haunches and uttered a snarling bark of dissatisfaction. But the odour that ascended from that hole was too much for the powers of wolfish nature to resist. Showing his teeth with an expression of mingled disappointment and ferocity, he plunged his head into the hole once more. Deeper and deeper still it went, but the blubber was yet three inches from his eager nose. Another shove — no ! dislocation alone could accomplish the object. His shoulders slid very imper- ceptibly into the hole. His nose was within an inch of the pri:2e, and he could actually touch it with his tongue. Away with cowardly prudence ! what recked he of the consequences ? Up went his hind legs, down went his head, and the tempting bait was gained at last ! Alas for wolfish misfortunes ! His fore legs were jammed immovably against his ribs. A touch of his hind foot on the ice would remedy this mishap, but he was too far in for that. Vigorously he struggled, but in vain. The blood rushed to his head, and the keen frost quickly put an end to his pains. In a few minutes UNGAVA. 279 he was dead, and in half-o,n-hour he was frozen, solid as a block of wood, with his hind legs and tail pointing to the sky. It was at the consummation of this event that another wolf, likewise attracted by the blubber, trotted down the wild ravine and uttered a howl of delighted surprise as it rushed forward to devour its dead companion — for such is the custom among wolves. And this was the howl that called Frank forth in time to baulk its purpose. Frank happened to be completely dressed at the time, and as he saw the wolf bound away up the mountain gorge, he seized his gun and snow-shoes, and hastily slung on his powder-horn and shot-belt. " Edith," he cried, as he was about to start, " I must give chase to that wolf. I won't be gone long. Light the lamp and prepare breakfast, dear — at least as much of it as you can ; I'll be back to complete it.^ — Hallo, Chimo ! here, Chimo ! " he shouted, whistling to the dog, which bounded forth from the door of the hut and followed his master up the ravine. Edith was so well accustomed to solitary wanderings among the rugged glens in the neighbourhood of Fort Chimo, that she felt no alarm on finding herself left alone in this wild spot. She knew that Frank was not far off, and expected him back in a few minutes. She knew, also, that wild animals are not usually so daring as to show themselves in open ground after the break of day, particularly after the shouts of human beings have scared them to their dens ; so, instead of giving a thought to any possible dangers that might threaten her, she applied herself cheerfully and busily to the pre- paration of their morning meal. First she lighted the lamp, which instantly removed the gloom of the interior !!' 280 . UNGAVA. u of the igloe, whose little ice-window as yet admitted only the faint light of the gray dawn. Then she melted a little snow and cleaned out the kettle, in which she placed two cuts of fresh trout ; and having advanced thus far in her work, thought it time to throw on her hood and peep out to see if Frank was coming. But there was no sign of Frank, so she re-entered the igloe and began to set things to rights. She folded up the deer- skins on which she had reposed, and piled them at the head of the willow matting that formed her somewhat rough and unyielding mattress, after which she arranged the ottoman, and laid out the breakfast things on the snow-table. Having accomplished all this to her entire satisfaction, Edith now discovered that the cuts of salmon were sufficiently well boiled, and began to hope that Frank would be quick lest the breakfast should be spoiled. Under the influence of this feeling she threw on her hood a second time, and going out upon the lake, surveyed the shore with a scrutinizing gaze. The sun was now so far above the natural horizon that the day- light was pretty clear, but the high mountains prevented any of his direct rays from penetrating the gloom of the valley of the lake. Still there was light enough to enable the solitary child to distinguish the objects on shore ; but Frank's tall form was not visible any- where. Heaving a slight sigh, Edith returned to the hut, so- liloquizing thus as she went — " Dear me ! it is very strange that Frank should stay away so long. I fear that the trout w411 be quite spoiled. Perhaps it would be very good cold. No doubt of it. We shall have it cold, and then I can get the tea ready." ^ In pursuance of this plan, the anxious little house- keeper removed the trout from the kettle, which she UNGAVA. 281 cleaned out and refilled with snow. When this was melted and boiled, she put in the tea. in due time this also was ready, and she sallied forth once more, with a feeling approaching to anxiety, to look for Frank. Still her companion did not make his appearance, and for the first time a feeling of dread touched her heart. She strove to avert it, however, by considering that Frank might have been obliged to follow the wolf further than he expected or intended. Then a thrill of fear passed through her breast as the thought occurred, " What if the wolf has attacked and killed him ? " As time wore on, and no sound of voice or gun or bark of dog broke the dreary stillness of that gloomy place, a feeling of intense horror took possession of the child's mind, and she pictured to herself all kinds of possi]:)le evils that might have befallen her companion ; while at the same time she could not but feel how awful was her unpro- tected and helpless condition. One thought, however, comforted her, and this was that Maximus would cer- tainly come to the hut on his return to the fort. This relieved her mind in regard to herself ; but the very re- lief on that point enabled her all the more to realize the dangers to which Frank might be exposed without any one to render him assistance. The morning passed away, the sun rose above the hills, and the short-lived day drew towards its close ; still Frank did not return, and the poor child who watched so anxiously for him, after many short and timid wanderings towards the margin of the lake, re- turned to the igloe with a heart fluttering from mingled anxiety and terror. Throwing herself on the deerskin couch, she burst into a flood of tears. As she lay there, sobbing bitterly, she was startled by a noise outside the hut, and ere she could spring from her recumbent posi- ! I. 282 UNGAVA. tion, Chimo darto(l through the open door-way, with a cry between a whine and a bark, and laid his head on Edith's lap. '* Oh ! what is it, my dog ? Dear Chimo, where is Frank ? " cried the child passionately, while she em- braced her favourite with feelings of mingled delight and apprehension. " Is he coming, Chimo ? " she said, addressing the dumb animal, as if she believed he under- stood her. Then, rising hastily, she darted out once more, to cast a longing, expectant gaze towards the place where she had seen her companion disappear in the morning. But she was again doomed to disappoint- ment. Meanwhile Chimo's conduct struck her as being very strange. Instead of receiving with his usual quiet satisfaction the caresses she heaped upon him, he kept up a continual whine, and ran about hither and thither without any apparent object in view. Once or twice he darted off with a long melancholy howl towards the hills; then stopping short suddenly, stood still and looked round towards his young mistress. At first Edith thought that the dog must have lost his master, and had come back to the hut expecting to find him there. Then she called him to her and examined his mouth, expect- ing and dreading to find blood upon it. But there were no signs of his having been engaged in fighting with wolves ; so Edith felt sure that Frank must be safe from them at least, as she knew that Chimo was too brave to have left his master to perish alone. The dog submitted with much impatience to this examina- tion, and at last broke away from Edith and ran yelping towards the hills again, stopping as before, and looking back. The resolute manner with which Chimo did this, and the frequency of its recurrence, at length induced Edith UNGAVA. 2as to believe that tlie animal wished her to follow liini. Instantly it occurred that he might conduct lu'r to Frank ; so without bestowing a thought on the danger of her forsaking the igloe, she ran in for lier snow-shoes, and putting on her hood and thick mittens, followed the dog to the margin of the lake. Chimo's impatience seemed to subside immediately, and he trotted rapidly towards the ravine into which Frank had entered in pursuit of the wolf that morning. The dc^g paused ever and anon as they proceeded, in order to give the child time to come up with him ; and so eager was Edith in her adventure, and so hopeful was she that it would ter- minate in her finding Frank, that she pressed forward at a rate which would have been utterly impossible under less exciting circumstances. At the foot of the ravine she found the remains of the wolf which had been caught in the snow -trap that morning. Frank had merely pulled it out and cast it on the snow in passing, and the torn fragments and scattered bones of the animal showed that its comrades had breakfasted off its carcass after Frank had passed. Here Edith paused to put on her snow-shoes, for the snow in the ravine was ^?^t, being less exposed to the hardening action of the wi^id ; and the dog sat down to wait patiently until she was ready. *' Now, Chimo, go forward, my good dog. I will fol- low you without fear," she said, when the lines were properly fastened to her feet. Chimo waited no second command, but threaded his way rapidly up the ravine among the stunted willow bushes. In doing so he had frequent occasion to wait for his young mistress, whose strength was rapidly fail- ing under the unwonted exertion she forced herself to make. At times she had to pause for breath, and as 284 UNGAVA. . ! !! t she cast her eyes upwards and around at the dreary desolation of the rugged precipices, which everywhere met her view, she could with difficulty refrain from shedding tears. But Edith's heart was warm and brave. The thought of Frank being in some mysterious, un- known danger, infused new energy into her soul and strengthened her slight frame. Having now recovered somewhat from the nervous haste which urged her to travel at a rate much beyond her capacity, she advanced into the ravines of the mountains with more of that steady, regular tramp which practice in the use of her snow-shoes had taught her to assume ; so that, being of a robust constitution naturally, she became stronger and more able for her undertaking as she advanced. For nearly two hours Chimo led Edith into the midst of the mountains. The scenery became, if possible, more savage as they proceeded, and at length grew so rugged and full of precipices and dark gorges, or rather splits in the hills, that Edith had much difficulty in avoiding the danger of falling over many of the latter which were partially concealed by, and in some places entirely covered over with, a crust of snow. Fortunately, as daylight waned, a brilliant galaxy of stars shone forth, enabling her to pick her steps. Hitherto they had followed Frank's snow-shoe track undeviatingly, but near the top of a cliff Chimo suddenly diverged to the left, and led his mistress by a steep and tortuous natural path to the bottom. Here he ran quickly forward, uttering a low whine or whimper, and disappeared round the corner of the precipice. Hasten- ing after the dog with a beating heart, Edith speedily gained the projection of the cliff, on turning which she was startled and terrified by hearing a loud snarling bark mingled with a fierce growl. In another moment TTNGAVA. 285 she beheld Cliinio boundini;' towards a gaunt savage- looking wolf, which stood close beside the body of a man extended at full length upon the snow. At first the wolf did not seem inclined to retreat, but the shriek which Edith uttered on suddenly beholding the scene before her induced him to turn tail and fly. In another moment the terrified child sank exhausted on the snow beside the insensible form of Frank Morton. f ! Ml? 51 i m III CHAPTER XXVITT. Edith bccumcs a hcruinc imlccd. THE shock which Edith received on beholding the blood-stained countenance of her companion completely paralyzed her at first, but only for a few minutes. The feeling of certainty that Frank would perish if assistance were not rendered tended to restore her scattered faculties, and nerve her heart for the duties now required of her ; and she rose with a feeling of determination to save her companion or die beside him. Poor child ! she little knew the extent of her own feebleness at that moment ; but she breathed an inward prayer to Him who can, and often does, achieve the mightiest results by the feeblest means. Raising Frank's head from the snow, she placed it in her lap, and with her handkerchief removed the blood from his forehead. In doing this she observed, to her inexpressible relief, that he breathed freely, and seemed rather to be in a state of stupor than insensibility. The place where he lay was a dark rent or split in the mountain, the precipices of which rose on either side to a height of between thirty and forty feet. The top of this chasm was entirely covered over with a crust of snow, through which there was a large gap immediately above the spot where Frank lay, revealing at once the cause of his present sad condition. He had evidently UNGAVA. 287 been crossin<^' the ravine hy means of tlie deceptive platform of .snow unaware of tlie clan<^er of his position, and had been suddenly precipitated to the bottom. In de.scendin^, his head had struck the side of the clilt, which cut it .severely ; but the .softness of the snow into which ho fell .saved him from furtluT injury, except the stunning etlect of the fall. How long he had lain in this state Edith had. no means of knowing, but it nnist have been a considerable time, as Chimo coukl not have left him until after his fall. Fortunately the wolf had not touched him, and the wound in his head did not appear to be very deep. Observing that parts of his face were slightly frost-bitten, Edith commenced to rub them vigorously, at the same tiiuo calling upon him in the most earnest tones to speak to her. The eftect of this roused him a little. In a few minutes he opened his eyes, and gazed languidly into the child's face. " Where am I, Eda ? " he said faintly, while a gentle smile plaj^ed about his lips. " You are in the mountains, Frank. Dear Frank ! do open your eyes again. I'm so glad to hear your voice ! Are you better now ? " The sound of his voice attracted Chimo, who had long ago abandoned the pursuit of the wolf, and was seated beside his master. Rising, he placed his cold nose on Frank's cheek. The action seemed to rou.se him to the recollection of recent events. Starting up on his knees, with an angry .shout, Frank seized the gun that lay beside him and raised it as if to strike the dog ; but he instantlj^ let the weapon fall, and exclaim- ing, " Ah, Chimo, is it you, good dog ? " he fell back again into the arms of his companion. Edith wept bitterly for a few minutes, while she tried in vain to awaken her companion from his state \ I 288 UNGAVA. of lethargy. At length she dried her tears hastily, and, rising, placed Frank's head on her warm cloak, which she wrapped round his face and shoulders. Then she felt his hands, which, though covered with thick leather mittens, were very cold. Making Chimo couch at his feet, so as to imbue them with some of his own warmth, she proceeded to rub his hands, and to squeeze and, as it were, shampoo his body all over, as vigorously as her strength enabled her. In a few minutes the effect of this was apparent. Frank raised himself on his elbow and gazed wildly round him. " Surely I must have fallen. Where am I, Edith ? " Gradually his faculties returned. " Edith, Edith ! " he exclaimed, in a low, anxious voice, " I must get back to the igloe. I shall freeze here. Fasten the lines of my snow-shoes, dear, and I will rise." Edith did as she was desired, and immediately Frank made a violent effort and stood upright ; but he swayed to and fro like a drunken man. " Let me lean on your shoulder, dear Eda," he said in a faint voice. " My head is terribly confused. Lead me ; I cannot see well." The child placed his hand on her shoulder, and they went forward a few paces together — Edith bending be- neath the heavy weight of her companion. " Do I lean heavily ? " said Frank, drawing his hand across his forehead, " Poor child ! " As he spoke he removed his hand from her shoulder ; but the instant he did so, he staggered and fell with a deep groan. " O Frank ! dear Frank ! why did you do that ? " said Edith, anxiously. " You do not hurt me. I don't mind it. Do try to rise again." ^Frank tried, and succeeded in walking in a sort of UNGAVA. 289 said [lind of half -sleeping, half-waking condition for about a mile — stumbling as he went, and often unwittingly crushing his little guide to the ground. After this he fell once more, and could not again recover his upright position. Poor Edith now began to lose heart. The utter hope- lessness of getting the wounded man to advance more than a few yards at a time, and her own gradually in- creasing weakness, induced the tears once more to ttart to her eyes. She observed, too, that Frank was sinking into that state of lethargy which is so dangerous in cold climates, and she had much difficulty in preventing him from falling into that sleep which, if indulged in, is in- deed the sleep of death. By persevering, however, she succeeded in rousing him so far as to creep a short distance, now and then, on his hands and knees — some- times to stagger a few paces forward ; and at length, long after the cold moon had arisen on the scene, they reached the margin of the lake. Here Frank became utterly powerless, and no exer- tion on the part of his companion could avail to rouse him. In this dilemma, Edith once more wrapped him in her warm cloak, and causing Chimo to lie at his feet, hastened over the ice towards the igloe. On arriving she lighted the lamp and heated the tea which she had made in the morning. This took at least a quarter of an hour to do, and during the interval she endeavoured to allay her impatience by packing up a few mouthfuls of pemmican and biscuit. Then she spread the deerskins out on the couch ; and when this was done, the tea was thoroughly heated. The snow on the river being quite hard, she needed not to encumber herself with snow- shoes ; but she fastened the traces of her own little sledge over her shoulders, and, w4th the kettle in her hand, ran as fast as her feet could carry her to the ( 4 290 UNGAVA. place where she had left Frank and Chimo, and found them lying exactly as they lay when she left them. " Frank ! Frank ! here is some hot tea for you. Do try to take some." But Frank did not move, so she had recourse to rubbing him again, and had soon the satisfaction of seeing him open his eyes. The instant he did so, she repeated her earnest entreaiies that he would take some tea. In a few minutes he revived sufficiently to sit up and sip a little of the warm beverage. The effect was almost magical. The blood began to course more rapidly through his benumbed limbs, and in live minutes more he was able to sit up and talk to his companion. " Now, Frank," said Edith, with an amount of de- cision that in other circumstances would have seemed quite laughable, " try to get on to my sled, and I'll help you. The igloe is near at hand now." Frank obeyed almost mechanically, and creeping upon the sled with difficulty, he fell instantly into a profound sleep. Edith's chief anxiety was past now. Harnessing Chimo to the sled as well as she could, she ran on be- fore, and a very few minutes brought them to the snow- hut. Here the work of rousing Frank had again to be acconiplished ; but the vigour which the warm tea had infused into his frame rendered it less difficult than heretofore, and soon afterwards Edith had the satisfac- tion of seeing her companion extended on his deerskin couch, under the sheltering roof of the igloe. Keplenish- ing the lamp and closing the door- way with a slab of snow, she sat down to watch by his side. Chimo coiled himself quietly up at his feet ; while Frank, under the influence of the grateful warmth, fell again into a deep slumber. As the night wore on, Edith's eyes became heavy, and she too, resting her head on the deerskins, UNGAVA. 291 Do fse to ion of 30, she 3 some sit up ict was rapidly !S more of de- seemed I'll help ng upon )rofound Irnessing [1 on he- te snow- tin to be tea had lit than satisfac- deerskin eplenish- slab of lO coiled inder the ;0 a deep |s became Leerskins, slept till the lamp on the snow-shelf expired and left the hut and its inmates in total darkness. Contrary to Edith's expectations, Frank was very little better when he awoke next day ; but he was able to talk to her in a faint voice, and to relate how he had fallen over the cliff, and how afterwards he had to exert his failing powers in order to defend himself from a wolf. In all these conversations his mind seemed to wander a little, and it was evident that he had not recovered from the effects of the blow received on his head in the fall. For two days the child tended him with the affectionate tenderness of a sister, but as he seemed to grow worse instead of better, she became very uneasy, and pondered much in her mind what she should do. At last she formed a strange resolution. Supposing that Maximus must still be at the Esquimau village at the mouth of False River, and concluding hastily that this village could not be very far away, she determined to set out in search of it, believing that, if she found it, the Esquimau would convey her back to the igloe on the lake, and take Frank up to Fort Chimo, where he could be properly tended and receive medicine. Freaks and fancies are peculiar to children, but the carrying of their freaks and fancies into effect is peculiar only to those who are precocious and daring in character. Such was Edith, and no sooner had she conceived the idea of attempting to find the Esquimau camp than she proceeded to put it in execution. Frank was in so de- pressed a condition that she thought it better not to disturb or annoy him by arousing him so as to get him to comprehend what she was about to do ; so she was obliged to commune with herself, sometimes even in an audible tone, in default of any better counsellor. It is due to her to say that, in remembrance of her ' ( 292 UNGAVA. i I Wi. mother s advice, she sought the guidance of her heavenly Father. Long and earnest was the thought bestowed by this little child on the subject ere she ventured to leave her companion alone in the snow-hut. Frank was able to sit up and to assist himself to the articles of food and drink which his little nurse placed within his reach, so that she had no fear of his being in want of anything during the day — or two at most — that she expected to be absent ; for in her childlike simplicity she concluded that if Maximus could travel thither in a few hours, she could not take much longer, especially with such a good servant as Chimo to lead the way. Besides this, she had observed the way in which the Esquimau had set out, and Frank had often pointed out to her the direc- tion in which the camp lay. She knew also that there was no danger from wild animals, bnt determined, never- theless, to build up the door of the igloe very firmly, lest they should venture to draw near. She also put Frank's loaded gun in the spot where he was wont to place it, so as to be ready to his hand. Having made all her arrangements, Edith glided noiselessly from the hut, harnessed her dog, closed the door of the snow-hut, and jumping into the furs of her sledge, was soon far away from the mountain lake. At first the dog followed what she thought must be the track that Maximus had taken, and her spirits rose when, after an hour's drive, she emerged upon a boundless plain, which she imagined must be the shores of the frozen sea where the Esquimaux lived. Encouraging Chimo with her voice, she flew over the level surface of the hard frozen snow, and looked round eagerly in all directions for the expected signs of natives. But no such signs appeared, and she began to fear that the UNGAVA. 293 renly T this e her )le to i and ,ch, so rthing bed to 3luded rs, she 3, good is, she ad set direc- b there never- firmly, so put ont to glided led the of her :e. At I be the when, landless of the iraging Eace of in all Jut no lat the ,■ distance was greater than she had anticipated. Towards the afternoon it began to snow heavily. There was no wind, and the snow fell in large flakes, alighting softly and without any sound. This prevented her seeing any great distance, and, what was worse, rendered the ground heavy for travelling. At length she came to a ridge of rocks, and supposing that she might see to a greater distance from its summit, she got out of the sledge and clambered up, for the ground was too rough for the sledge to pass. Here the view was dreary enough — nothing but plains and hum- mocks of ice and snow met her view, except in one direction, where she saw, or fancied that she saw. a clump of willows and what appeared to be a hut in the midst of them. Running down the rugged declivity, she crossed the plain and reached the spot ; but although the willows were there she found no hut. Overcome with fatigue, fear, and disappointment, she sat down on a wreath of snow and wept. But she felt that her situation was much too serious to permit of her wasting time in vain regrets, so she started up and endeavoured to retrace her steps. This, however, was now a matter of difficulty. The snow fell so thickly that her foot- steps were almost obliterated, and she could not see ten yards before her. After wandering about for a few minutes in uncertainty, she called aloud to Chimo, hoping to hear his bark in reply. But all was silent. Chimo was not, indeed, unfaithful. He heard the cry and responded to it in the usual way, by bounding in the direction whence it came. His progress, however, was suddenly arrested by the sledge, which caught upon and was jammed amongst the rocks. Fiercely did Chimo strain and bound, but the harness was tough and the sledge immovable. Meanwhile the wind arose, and ;: 294 UNGAVA. although it blew gently, it was sufficient to prevent Edith overhearing the whining cries of her dog. For a time the child lost all self-command, and rushed about she knew not whither, in the anxious desire to find her sledge ; then she stopped, and restrained the pantings of her breath, while with both hands pressed tightly over her heart, as if she would fain stop the rapid throbbing there, she listened long and intently. But no sound fell upon her ear except the sighing of the cold breeze as it swept by, and no sight met her anxious gaze save the thickly falling snow-flakes. Sinking on her knees, Edith buried her face in her hands and gave full vent to the pent-up emotions of her soul, as the conviction was at length forced upon her mind that she was a lost wanderer in the midst of that cold and dreary waste of snow. CHAPTER XXIX. ^1 dark cloud of sorrow envelops Fort Chimo. THREE days after the events narrated in the last chapter the fort of the fur-traders became a place of weeping ; for on the morning of that day Maximus arrived with the prostrate form of Frank Morton, whom he had discovered alone in the igloe on the lake, and with the dreadful news that little Edith Stanley was nowhere to be found ! It may be more easily imagined than described the state of mind into which the parents of the child were thrown ; but after the first burst of emotion was past, Stanley felt that a thorough and immediate search was the only hope that remained to him of finding his little one alive. Still, when he considered the intensity of the cold to which she must have been exposed, and the length of time which had already elapsed since she was missed, uis heart sank, and he could scarcely frame words of comfort to his prostrated partner. Maximus had examined the immediate neighbourhood of the lake, in the hope of finding the tracks of the lost one ; but a heavy fall of snow had totally obliterated these, and he wisely judged that it would be better to convey the sick ng^an to the fort as quickly as possible and give the alarm, so that parties might be sent out to scour the country in all directions. I 296 UNGAVA. Frank was immediately put to bed on his arrival, and everything done in order to restore him. In this attempt they succeeded so far as to obtain all the inforuiation he could give concerning his fall ; but he remembered nothing further than that Edith had been the means of bringing him to the snow-hut, where he lay in a deep, torpid slumber, until the voice and hand of Maximus awakened him. When Frank was told that Edith was lost, he sprang from his bed as if he had received an electric shock. The confusion of his faculties seemed swept away, and he began to put on his garments with as much vigour as if he were well and strong ; but ere he belted on his leather coat his cheek grew pale, his hand trembled, and he fell in a swoon upon the bed. This convinced him of the impossibility of doing anything in the search, and he was prevailed on, after two or three similar failures, to leave the work to others. Meanwhile the mountains and valleys of Ungava were traversed far and near by the agonized father and his men. The neighbourhood of the lake was the first place searched, and they had not sought long ere they dis- covered the little sledge sticking fast among the rocks of the sea-coast, and Chimo lying in the traces almost dead with cold and hunger. The dog had kept himself alive by gnawing the deerskin of which the traces were made. Around this spot the search was concentrated, and the Esquimaux of the neighbouring camp were em- ployed in traversing the country in all directions ; but, although scarce a foot of ground escaped the eager scrutiny of one or other of the party, not a vestige of Edith was to be seen — not so much as a footprint in the snow. Days and nights flew by, and still the search was continued. Frank quickly recovered under the affec- i, and empt 3n he thing [iging orpid cened jt, he ectric swept th as ire he hand This ing in three I were id his place dis- rocks ilmost mself were irated, e em- but, eager ige of in the was afFec- UNGAVA. 297 tionato care of the almost heart-broken mother, who found some relief from lier crushing sorrow in minister- ing to his wants. But the instant ho could walk with- out support, and long before it was prudent to do so, Frank joined in the search. At first he could do little, but as day after day passed by his strength returned so rapidly that the only symptoms that remained to tell of his late accident were his pale cheek and the haggard expression of his countenance. But the mysterious dis- appearance of Edith had more to do with the latter than illness. Weeks passed away, but still the dark cloud of sorrow hung over Fort Chimo, for the merry young voice that was wont to awake the surrounding echoes was gone. The systematic search had now been given up, for every nook, every glen, and gorge, and corrie within fifteen miles of the spot where they had found the little sledge, had been searched again and again without success. But hope clung with singular tenacity to the parents* hearts long after it had fled from those of the men of the fort and of the Esquimaux. Every alternate day Stanley and Frank sallied forth with heavy steps and furrowed brows to explore more carefully those places where the child was most likely to have strayed, expecting, yet fearing, to find her dead body. But they always re- turned to the bereaved mother with silent lips and down- cast looks. They frequently conversed together about her, and always in a hopeful tone, each endeavouring to conceal from the other the real state of his own mind. Indeed, except when necessity required it, they seldom spoke on any other subject. One day Stanley and Frank were seated by the blaz- ing stove in the hall conversing as usual about the plan 1 1 ir 298 UNGAVA. of the search for that, flay Mrs. Stanley was busied in preparing; breakfast. «< "^r;. Tis ^oing to blow hard from the north, Frank," said Stanley, rising and looking- out of the window ; " I see the icebergs coming into the river with the tide. You will have a cold march, I fear." Frank made no reply, but rose and approached the window. The view from it was a stranire one. During; the night a more than usually severe frost had congealed the water of the lake in the centre, and the icebergs that sailed towards the Caniapuscaw lliver in stately grandeur went cnxshing through this yoimg ice as if it had been paper, their slow but steady progress receiving no per- ceptible check from its opposition. Some of those bergs were of great size, and in proceeding onwards they passed so close to the fort that the inhabitants feared more than once that a falling pinnacle might descend on the stores, which were built near to the water's edge, and crush them. As the tide gradually rose it rushed with violence into the cavities beneath the solid ice on the opposite shore, and finding no escape save through a few rents and fissures, sent up columns or spouts of white spray in all directions, which roared and shrieked as they flew upwards, as if the great ocean were mad- dened with anger at finding a power strong enough to restrain and curb its might. At intervals the main ice rent with a crash like the firing of artillery ; and as if nature had designed to carry on and deepen this simile, the shore was lined with heaps of little blocks of ice which the constantly recurring action of the tide had moulded into the shape and size of cannon balls. But such sights were common to the inhabitants of Fort Chimo, and had long ago ceased to call forth more than a passing remark. UNGAVA. 299 h to n ice as if mile, )f ice had ^ ts of more " May it not be possibh'," unirmnred Stanley, while ho leant his brow on his hand, " that slic may have goFH3 up False River ? " " I think not," said Frank. "I know not how it is, but I have a stran<^e conviction tliat she is yet alive. If she had perished in the snow, we should certainly have found licr loni,^ ago. I cannot explain my feelings, or give a reason for them, but I feel convinced that darling Eda is alive." " Oh, God grant it!" whispered Stanley in a deep voice, while his wife hastened from the room to conceal the tears which she could not restrain. While Frank continued to gaze in silence on the bleak scene without, a faint sound of sleigh-bells broke upon his ear. " Hark ! " he cried, starting, and opening the door. The regular and familiar sound of the bells came floating sweetly on the breeze. They grew louder and louder, and in a few seconds a team of dogs galloped into the fort, dragging a small sled behind them. They were followed by two stalwart Indians, whose costume and manner told that they were in the habit of associat- ing more with the fur-traders than with their own kindred. The dogs ran the sled briskly into the centre of the fort, and lay down panting on the snow, while the two men approached the hall. " 'Tis a packet," cried Stanley, forgetting for the mo- ment his sorrow in the excitement of this unexpected arrival. In a moment all the men at the fort were assembled in the square. " A packet 1 Where come you from ? " " From Moose Fort," replied the elder Indian, while his comrade unfastened from the sled a little bundle containing: letters. 300 UNOAVA. " Any nows ? Aiv all woll > " chorused tho men. " Ay, all woll. It is many day since wo left. The way is very rouji^h, and wv did not find much dcor. We saw one camp of Indian, but thoy 'fraid to come. I not know why. J^ut 1 sco with tliem one fair flower which grow in tho iiclds of the Esquimaux. I suppose tho Indian phick her, and dare not come back here." Stanley started, and his cheek grew pale. " A fair flower, say you ? Speak literally, man : was it a little white girl that you saw ? " " No," replied the Indian, " it was no white girl we saw. It was one young Esquimau woman." Stanley heaved a deep sigh and turned away, mut- tering, " Ah ! I might have know^n that she could not have fallen into tho hands of Indians .so far to tho south." " Well, lads, take care of these fellows," he cried, crushing down the feelings that had been for a brief moment awakened in his heart by the Indian's words, " and give them plenty to eat and smoke." So saying he went off with the packet, followed by Frank. " Niver fear ye ; come along, honey," said Bryan, grasping the elder Indian by the arm, while the younger was carried off by Massan, and the dogs taken care of by Ma-istequan and Gaspard. On perusing the letters, Stanley found that it would be absolutely necessary to send a packet of despatches to head-quarters. The difficulties of his position required to be more thoroughly explained, and erroneous notions corrected. " \v hat shall I do, Frank ? " said he, with a perplexed look. " These Indians cannot return to Moose, having received orders, I find, to journey in a different direction. Our own men know the way, but I cannot spare the UNOAVA. 901 was inger rould Ltches luired kions lexcd Lving ition. the gtjod ones among them, and the second -rate cannot bo depended on without a liader." Fmnk did not n;i\'t' an immediate reply Ho seemed to he pondering the suhjoct in Ids mind. At h-ngth ho said, ' <^ouKl not Dick Prince bo spared ? " " No ; fie is too uscl'al hero. The fact is, Frank, I think I must send you. It will do you good, my doar boy, and tend to distract your mind tVom a subject wlucll is now hopeless." Frank at first objected strongly to this plan, on tho ground that it would prevent him from assisting in the forlorn search for Edith ; but Stanley pointed out that he and the men could continue it, and that, on the other hand, his (Frank's) personal presence at head-quarters would be of great importance to the interests of the Company. At length Frank was constrained to obey. The route by which he purposed to travel was over- land to Richmond Gulf on snow-shoes ; and as the way was rough, he determined to take only a few days' pro- visions, and depend for subsistence on the hook and gun. Maximus, Oolibuck, and Ma-istequan were chosen to accompany him ; and three better men he could not have had, for they were stalwart and brave, and accustomed from infancy to live by the chase, and traverse trackless wastes, guided solely by that power of observation or instinct with which savages are usually gifted. With these men, a week's provisions, a large supply of ammunition, a small sledge, and three dogs, of whom Chimo was the leader, Frank one morning ascended the rocky platform behind the fort, and bidding adieu to Ungava, commenced his long journey over the interior of East Main. ,i ii f i I ■ I \ CHAPTER XXX. An old friend amid new friends and novelties— A desperate battle, and ' a glorious victory. THE scene of our story is now changed, and we request our patient reader to fly away with us deeper into the north, beyond the regions of Ungava and far out upon the frozen sea. Here is an island which for many long years has formCvl a refuge to the roe-deer during the winter, at which season these animals, having forsaken the main- land in autumn, dwell upon the islands of the sea. At the time of which we write the island in question was occupied by a tribe of Esquimaux, who had built them- selves as curious a village as one could wish to see. The island had little or no wood on it, and the few willow bushes that showed their heads above the deep snow were stunted and thin. Such as they were, how- ever, they, along with a ledge of rock over which the snow had drifted in a huge mound, formed a sort of protection to the village of the Esquimaux, and sheltered it from the cold blasts that swept over the frozen sea from the regions of the far north. There were about twenty igloes in the village, all of which were built in the form of a dome, exactly similar to the hut con- structed by Maximus on the lake. They were of various sizes, and while some stood apart with only a small i: i' UNGAVA. 303 and nd we ith us ^ngava rs has iter, at inain- ,. At bn was them- • see. few deep how- the ort of Itered n sea about ;h lilt in coll- ar ious small igloe attached, others were congregated in groups and connected by low tunnels or passages. The door-ways leading into most of them were so low that the natives were obliged to creep out and in on their hands and knees; but the huts themselves were high enough to permit the tallest man of the tribe to stand erect, and some of them so capacious that a family of six or eight persons could dwell in them easily. We may remark, however, that Esquimau ideas of roominess and comfort in their dwellings differ very considerably from ours. Their chief aim is to create heat, and for this end they cheerfully submit to what we would consider the dis- comfort of crowding and close air. The village at a little distance bore a curious resem- blance to a cluster of white bee-hives ; and the round, soft, hairy natives, creeping out and in continually, and moving about amongst them, were not unlike (with the aid of a little imagination) to a swarm of monstrous black bees — an idea which was further strengthened by the continuous hum that floated on the air over the busy settlement. Kayaks and oomiaks lay about in several places supported on blocks of ice, and seal-spears, paddles, dans, lances, coils of walrus-line, and other implements, were intermingled in rare confusion with sledges, seal- skins, junks of raw meat and bones, on which latter the numerous dogs of the tribe were earnestly engaged. In the midst of this village stood a hut which differed considerably from those around. It was built of clear ice instead of snow. There were one or two other igloes made of the same material, but none so large, clean, or elegant as this one. The walls, which were perpendicular, were composed of about thirty large square blocks, cemented together with snow, and arranged in the form of an octagon. The roof was a dome of snow. t 304 UNGAVA. i n^ A small porch or passage, also of ice, stood in front of the low doorway, which had been made high enough to permit the owner of the mansion to enter by stooping slightly. In front and all around this hut the snow was carefully scraped, and all offensive objects — such as seal and whale blubber — removed, giving to it an appearance of cleanliness and comfort which the neigh- bouring igloes did not possess. Inside of this icy resi- dence, on a couch of deerskin, was seated Edith Stanley ! On that terrible night when the child lost her way in the dreary plain, she had wandered she knew not whither, until she was suddenly arrested by coming to the edge of the solid ice on the shores of Ungava Bay. Here the high winds had broken up the ice, and the black waters of the sea now rolled at her feet and checked her progress. Terrified at this unexpected sight, Edith endeavoured to retrace her steps ; but she found to her horror that the ice on which she stood was floating, and that the wind, having shifted a point to the east- ward, was driving io across to the west side of the bay. Here, in the course of the next day, it grounded, and the poor child, benumbed with cold and faint with hunger, crept as far as she could on to the firm land, and then lay down, as she thought, to die. But it was otherwise ordained. In less than half-an- hour afterwards she was found by a party of Esquimaux. These wild creatures had come from the eastv/ard in their dog-sledges, and having passed well out to the seaward, in order to avoid the open water off the mouth of False River, had missed seeing their countrymen there, and therefore knew nothing of the establishment of Fort Chimo. In bending towards the land again after passing the bay they came upon Edith's tracks, and after a short search they found her lying on the snow, lii UNGAVA. 805 It of fh to •ping mow -such it an eigh- resi- nley ! • way V not ing to Bay. d the t and sight, found ating, east- bay. d the mger, then df-an- imaux. Ird in io the louth [•ymen iment again |s, and lOW, Words cannot convey an adequate impression of the unutterable amazement of these poor creatures as they beheld the fair child, so unlike anything they had ever seen or imagined ; but whatever may have been their thoughts regarding her, they had sense enough to see that she was composed of flesh and blood, and would infallibly freeze if allowed to lie there much longer. They therefore lifted her gently upon one of the large sleighs, and placed her on a pile of furs in the midst of a group of women and children, who covered her up and chafed her limbs vigorously. Meanwhile, the drivers of the sledges, of which there were six, with twenty dogs attached to each, plied their long whips energetically ; the dogs yelled in consternation, and, darting away with the sledges as if they had been feathers, the whole tribe went hooting, yelling, and howling away over the frozen sea. The surprise of the savages when they found Edith was scarcely if at all superior to that of Edith when she opened her eyes and began to comprehend somewhat confusedly her peculiar position. The savages watched her movements, open-mouthed, with intense curiosity, and seemed overjoyed beyond expression when she at length recovered sufficiently to exclaim feebly, — " Where am I ? where are you taking me to ? " We need scarcely add that she received no reply to her questions, for the natives did not understand a word of her language, and with the exception of the names of one or two familiar objects she did not understand a word of theirs. Of how far or how long they travelled Edith could form no idea, as she slept profoundly during the journey, and did not thoroughly recover her strength and faculties until after her arrival at the camp. Foi" many days after reaching the Esquimau village 20 I i i 306 UNGAVA. ffi • 'I poor Edith did nothing but weep ; for, besides the miser- able circumstances in which she was now placed, she was much too considerate and unselfish in her nature to forget that her parents would experience all the misery of supposing her dead, and added to this was the terrible supposition that the natives into whose hands she had fallen might never hear of Fort Chimo. The distracted child did her utmost by means of signs to make them understand that such a place existed, but her efforts were of no avail. Either she was not eloquent in the language of signs, or the natives were obtuse. As time abated the first violence of her grief, she began to entertain a hope that ere long some wandering natives might convey intelligence of her to the fur-traders. As this hope strengthened she became more cheerful, and resolved to make a number of little ornaments with her name inscribed on them, which she meant to hang round the necks of the chief men of the tribe, so that should any of them ever chance to meet with the fur-traders, these ornaments might form a clue to her strange resi- dence. A small medal of whalebone seemed to hcT the most appropriate and. tractable material, but it cost her many long and weary hours to cut a circular piece of this tough material with the help of an Esquimau knife. When she had done it, however, several active boys who had watched the operation with much curiosity and interest, no sooner understood what she wished to make than they set to work and cut several round pieces of ivory or walrus-tusk, which they presented to their little guest, who scratched the name EDITH on them and hung them round the necks of the chief men of the tribe. The Esquimaux smiled and patted the child's fair head kindly as they received this piece of attention, UNGAVA. 307 iiser- L, she ature L the ii was jvhose Ihimo. signs d, but ►quent >btuse. began latives 5. As il, and Lth her round should raders, e resi- most many d£ this knife. rs who ty and make leces of Ir little and I of the I child's lention, which they flattered themselves, no doubt, was entirely disinterested and complimentary. Winter wore gradually away, and the ice upon the sea began to show symptoms of decay opposite to the camp of the Esquimaux. During the high winds of spring the drift had buried the village so completely that the bee-hives were scarcely visible, and the big black bees walked about on the top of their igloes, and had to cut deep down in order to get into them. For some time past the natives had been unsuccessful in their seal-hunting, and as seals and walruses constituted their chief means of support they were reduced to short allowance. Edith's portion, however, had never yet been curtailed. It was cooked for her over the stone lamp belonging to an exceedingly fat young woman whose igloe was next to that of the little stranger, and whose heart had been touched by the child's sorrow : afterwards it was more deeply touched by her gratitude and affection. This woman's name was Kaga, and she, with the rest of her tribe, having been instructed care- fully by Edith in the pronunciation of her own name, ended in calling their little guest Eeduck ! Kaga had a stout burly husband, named Annatock, who was the best hunter in the tribe ; she also had a nephew about twelve or fourteen years old, named Peetoot, who was very fond of Edith and extremely attentive to her. Kaga had also a baby — a mere bag of fat — to which Edith became so attached that she almost constituted herself its regular nurse ; and when the weather was bad, so as to confine her to the house, she used to take it from its mother, carry it off to her own igloe, and play with it the whole day, much in the same way as little girls play with dolls — with this difference, however, that she considerately restrained herself from 308 UNGAVA. banging its nose against the floor or punching out its eyes ! It was a bright, clear, warm clay. Four mock suns encircled and emulated in brilliancy their great original. The balmy air was beginning to melt the surface of the snow, and the igloes that had stood firm for full half a year were gradually becoming dangerous to walk over and unsafe to sit imder. Considerable bustle prevailed in the camp, for a general seal-hunting expedition was on foot, and the men of the tribe were preparing their dog-sledges and their spears. Edith was in her igloe of ice, seated on the soft pile of deerskins which formed her bed at night and her sofa by day, and worrying Kaga's baby, which laughed vociferously. The inside of this house or apartment betokened the taste and neatness of its occupant. The snow-roof, having begun to melt, had been removed, and was replaced by slabs of ice, which, with the trans- parent walls, admitted the sun's rays in a soft bluish light, which cast a fairy-like charm over the interior. On a shelf of ice which had been neatly fitted into the wall by her friend Peetoot lay a rude knife, a few pieces of whalebone and ivory (the remains of the material of which her medals had been made), and an ivory cup. The floor was covered with willow matting, and on the raised half of it were spread several deerskins with the hair on. A canopy of willow boughs was erected over this. On another shelf of ice, near the head of the bed, stood a small stone lamp, which had been allowed t^ go out, the weather beincr warm. The on^\^ ccher articles of furniture in this simple apartment were a square table and a square stool, both made of ice-blocks and covered with sealskins. While Edith and her living doll were in the height UNGAVA. 301) b its suns final. : the half over mailed was their b pile d her aghed tment The noved, trans- bluish terior. to the I pieces ial of cup. m the bh the over le bed, t. go Irticles square :s and height of their uproarious intercourse, they were interrupted by Peetoot, who burst into the room, more like a hairy wild- man-o'-the- wood than a human being. He carried a short spear in one hand, and with the other pointed in the direction of the shore, at the same time uttering a volley of unintelligible sounds which terminated with an emphatic " Eeduck ! " Edith's love for conversation, whether she made her- self understood or not, had increased rather than abated in her peculiar circumstances. " What is it, Peetoot ? Why do you look so excited ? Oh dear, I wish I understood you — indeed I do ! But it's of no use your speaking so fast. — (Be quiet, baby darling). — I see you want me to do or say something ; what can it be, I wonder ? " Edith looked into the boy's face with an air of per- plexity. Again Peetoot commenced to vociferate and gesticulate violently ; but seeing, as he had often seen before, that his young friend did not appear to be much enlightened, he seized her by the arm, and, as a more summary and practical way of explaining himself, dragged her towards the door of the hut. " Oh, the baby ! " screamed Edith, breaking from him and placing her charge in the farthest and safest part of the couch. " Now I'll go with you, though I don't understand what you want. Well, I suppose I shall find out in time, as usual." Having led Edith towards the beach, Peetoot pointed to his uncle's sledge, to which the dogs were already harnessed, and made signs that Edith should go with them. " Oh, I understand you now. Well, it is a charming day ; T think I will. Do you think Annatock will let I [ f i i If V 310 UNGAVA. ? .1! t "ff me ? Oh, you don't understand. Never mind ; wait till I put on my hood and return the baby to its mother." In two minutes Edith reappeared in her fur cloak and Indian hood, with the fat baby sprawling and laughing on her shoulder. That baby never cried. It seemed as though it had resolved to substitute laughing in its stead. Once only had Edith seen tears in its little black eyes, and that was when she had given it a spoonful of soup so hot that its mouth was scalded by it. Several of the sledges had already left the island and were flying at full speed over the frozen sea, deviating ever and anon from the straight line in order to avoid a hummock of ice or a gap of open water caused by the separation of masses at the falling of the tide, while the men shouted, and the dogs yelled as they observed the flourish of the cruelly long and heavy lash. " Shall I get in ? " said Edith to Annatock, with an inquiring look, as she approached the place where the sledge was standing. The Esquimau nodded his shaggy head and showed a row of remarkably white teeth environed by a thick black beard and moustache by way of reply to the look of the child. With a laughing nod to Kaga, w^ho stood watching them, Edith stepped in and seated herself on a deerskin robe ; Annatock and Peetoot sat down beside her ; the enormous whip gave a crack like a pistol-shot, and the team of fifteen dogs, uttering a loud cry, bounded away over the sea. The sledge on which Edith was seated was formed very much in the same manner as the little sled which had been made for her at Fort Chimo. It was very much larger, however, and could have easily held eight or ten persons. The runners, which were shod with UNGAVA. 311 wait .her." cloak and • IV Thing n its [1 it a by it. 1 and iating roid a ►y the le the id the .th an :e the lowed thick look bching jrskin the Id the away )rmed ^hich very eight with frozen mud (a substance that was now becoming nearly unfit for use owing to the warm weather), were a perfect wonder of ingenuity, as indeed was the whole machine, being pieced and lashed together with lines of raw hide in the most complicated manner and very neatly. The dogs were each fastened by a separate line to the sledge, the best dog being placed in the centre and having the longest line, while the others were attached by lines proportionably shorter according to the distance of each from the leading dog, and the outsiders being close to the runners of the sledge. All the lines were attached to the front bar of the machine. There were many advantages attending this mode of harnessing, among which were the readiness with which any dog could be attached or detached without affecting the others, and the ease with which Annatock, when so inclined, could lay hold of the line of a refractory dog, haul him back without stopping the others, and give him a cuffing. This, however, was seldom done, as the driver could touch any member of the team with the point of his whip. The handle of this terrible instrument was not much more than eighteen or twenty inches long, but the lash was upwards of six yards ! Near the handle it was about three inches broad, being thick cords of walrus-hide platted ; it gradually tapered towards the point, where it terminated in a fine line of the same material. While driving, the long lash of this whip trails on the snow behind the sledge, and by a peculiar sleight of hand its serpentine coils can be brought up for instant use. No backwoodsman of Kentucky was ever more perfect in the use of his pea-rifle or more certain of his aim than was Annatock with his murderous whip. He was a dead shot,, so to speak. He could spread intense alarm ) i I I n I' 1 ii I s *f 812 UNGAVA. amonpf the doofs by causiiin' tlic heavy coil to whiz over them within a hair's-breadth of their lieads ; or he could j^ently touch the extreme tip of the ear of a skulker to remind liini of his duty to his master and his comrades ; or, in the event of the warning being neglected, lie could bring the point down on liis flank with a crack like a pistol-shot, that would cause skin and hair to fly, and spread yelping dismay among the entire pack. And how they did run ! The sledge seemed a m(3re feather behind the powerful team. They sprang forth at full gallop, now bumping over a small hummock or diverging to avoid a large one, anon springing across a narrow gap in the ice, or sweeping like the snowdrift over the white plain, while the sledge sprang and swung and bounded madly on behind them ; and Annatock shouted as he flourished his great whip in the excitement of their rapid flight, and Pee toot laughed with wild delight, and Edith sat clasping her hands tightly over her knees — lier hood thrown back, her fair hair blown straight out by the breeze, her cheeks flushed, her lips parted, and her eyes sparkling with emotion as they whirled along in their mad and swift career. In half-an-hour the low village was out of sight, and in half-an-hour more they arrived at the place where a number of the Esquimaux were scattered in twos and threes over the ice, searching for seal-holes, and pre- paring to catch them. " What is that man doing ? " cried Edith, pointing to an Esquimau who, having found a hole, had built a semicircular wall of snow round it to protect him from the light breeze that was blowing, and was sitting, when Edith observed him, in the attitude of one who listened intently. The hood of his sealskin coat was over his UNC.AVA. ifl^ and ing to lilt a from I when ttened jr his head, so that Ins featuri's were conccalo) At 1 i> feet lay a stout barbed seal-spear, tlie handb; »t' whi^ch was made of wood, and the barb and lower part of ivoiy. A tough line was attached to this, and the other end of it was fastened round th(5 man's waist ; for wlien an Esquimau spears a seal, he prepares to conquer or to die. If he does not haul the animal out of the hole, there is every probability that it will haul him into it. But the Esquimau has laid it down as an axiom that a man is more than a match for a seal ; thtirefore he ties the line round his waist — which is very much like nail- ing the colours to the mast. There seems to be no allowance made for the chance of an obstreperously large seal allowing himself to be harpooned by a pre- posterously small Esquimau ; but we suppose that this is the exception to the rule. As Edith gazed, the Esquimau put out his hand with the stealthy motion of a cat and lifted his spear. The next instant the young ice that covered the hole was smashed, and, in an instant after, the ivory barb was deep in the shoulder of an enraged seal, which had thus fallen a sacrifice to his desire for fresh air. The Esqui- mau immediately lay back almost at full length, with his heels firmly imbedded in two notches cut in the ice at the edge of the hole ; the seal dived, and the man's waist seemed to be nearly cut in two. But the rope was tough and the man was stout, and although the seal was both, it was conquered in the course of a quarter of an hour, hauled out, and thrown exultingly upon the ice. This man had only watched at the seal-hole a couple of hours, but the natives frequently sit behind their snow-walls for the greater part of a day, almost with- out moving hand or foot. !i !l 314 UNGAVA. Having witnosscd this cnptnro, Aiinatock drove on until the nio.st of his countrymen wore l<3ft behind. Suddenly ho called to the doo's to halt, and .spoke in a deep, earnest tone to his nephew, while both of them gazed intently towards a particular quarter of the sea. Edith looked in the same direction, and soon saw the object that attracted their attention, but the oidy thing it seemed like to her was an enormous cask or barrel. " What is it ^ " said she to Peetoot, as Annatock selected his largest spear, and hastened towards the object. Of course Edith received no reply save a broad grin ; but the little fellow followed up this remark, if we may so call it, by drawing his finger through his lips, and licking them in a most significant manner. Meanwhile Annatock advanced rapidly towards the object of interest, keeping carefully behind hummocks of ice as he went, and soon drew near enough to make certain that it was a walrus, apparently sound asleep, with its blunt snout close to its hole, ready to plunge in should an enemy appear. Annatock now advanced more cautiously, and, when within a hundred yards of the huge monster, lay down at full length on his breast, and began to work his way towards it after the manner of a seal. He was so like a seal in his hairy garments that he might easily have been mistaken for one by a more intellectual animal than a walrus. But the walrus did not awake, and he approached to within ten yards. Then, rising suddenly to his feet, Annatock poised the heavy weapon, and threw it with full force against the animal's side. It struck, and, as if it had fallen on an adamantine rock, it bounded off and fell upon the ice, with its hard point shattered and its handle broken in two. UNOAVA. 315 re on ihiml. 3 in a them 10 sea. w the thing •rel. latock is the broad ark, if rjh his lanner. is the imocks ) make asleep, plunge when down is way so like r have ,1 than nd he idenly and e. It ock, it point For one instant Annatock's face blazed with sur- prise ; the next, it relapsed into tifty dimples, us he roared and tossed up liis arms with delight at the dis- covery that the walrus had been frozen to death beside its hole ! This catastrophe is not of unfrequent occurrence to these (iephaiiU of the northern seas. They ai(3 in the liabit of coming up occasionally through their holes in the ice to breathe, and sometimes they crawl out in order to sleep on the ice, secure, in the protection of their superabundant fat, from being frozen — at least easily. When they have haut the complex machinery of this world is set in motion and guided by One whose power and wisdom infinitely transcend those of the most exalted of his creatures ; and it is a truth well worthy of being reiterated and re-impressed upon our memories, that in His hands those events that seem most adverse to man often turn out to be for his good. lope ' f 1 i\ *' dlen ium- (sult lich bant fcars, dies ii \ CHAPTER XXXII. Edith waxes mclanrholi/, hut her sadnei^a is suddaihi turned into jofj ; and the Esquiiiiaxr "ceive a surprise, andjind a friend, and lose one. m H THE sea ! How many stout hearts thrill and manly bosoms swell at the sound of that little word, or, rather, at the thought of all that it conveys ! How many there are that reverence and love thy power and beauty, thy freedom and majesty, O sea ! Wherein consists the potent charm that draws mankind towards thee with such irresistible affection ? Is it in the calm tranquillity of thy waters, when thou liest like a sheet of crystal, with a bright refulgent sky reflected in thy soft bosom, and the white ships resting there as if in empty space, and the glad sea-mews rippling thy surface for a brief moment and then sailing from the blue below to the deeper blue above, and the soft song of thy wavelets as they slide upon the shingly shore or lip among the caves and hollows of the rocks ? Or is it in the loud roar of thy billows, as they dash and fume and lash in fury on the coasts that dare to curb thy might ? — that might which, commencing, mayhap, in the torrid zone of the south, has rolled and leaped in majesty across the waste of waters, tossed leviathans, as playthings, in its strength, rushed impetuously over half the globe, and burst at last in helplessness upon a bed of sand ! Or does the charm lie in the yet fiercer strife of the tem- tJNGAVA. m ystal, )Osom, space, brief o the 3ts as the loud sh in ■that zone s the \n its and Or tern- I \ I I pest and the hurricane, when the elementvS, let loose, sweep round the shrinking world in fury ; or in the ever-changing aspect of thy countenance, now bright and fair, now ruffled with the rising breeze, or darkened by the thunder-cloud that bodes the coming storm ? Ah, yes ! methinks not one but all of these combined do constitute the charm which draws mankind to thee, bright ocean, and fills his soul with sympathy and love. For in the changeful aspects of thy visage there are talismans which touch the varied chords that vibrate in the hearts of men. Perchance, in the bold whistle of thy winds, and the mad rolling of thy waves, an emblem of freedom is recognized by crushed and chafing spirits longing to be free. They cannot wall thee round. They cannot map thee into acres and hedge thee in, and leave us naught but narrow roads between. No ploughshare cleaves thee save the passing keel ; no prince or monarch owns thy haughty waves. In thy hidden caverns are treasures surpassing those of earth ; and those who dwell on thee in ships behold the wonders of the mighty deep. We bow in adoration to thy great Creator ; and we bow to thee in love and reverence and sympathy, O sea ! Edith sat on tlie sea-shore. The glassy waves were no longer encumbered with ice, but shone like burnished gold in the light of the summer sun. Here and there, however, a large iceberg floated on the deep — a souvenir of winter past, a guarantee of winter yet to come. At the base of these blue islands the sea, calm thousfh it was, broke in a continual roar of surf, and round their pinnacles the circling sea-birds sailed. The yellow sands on which the child sat, the green willows that fringed the background of brown rocks, and the warm sun, contrasted powerfully with the vestiges of winter on ^ I a) i f ■f. V '/ /^ Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WeST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. M5S0 (716)872-4503 '^ 370 UNGAVA. pass the trco ai^ainst which leaned the two guns belong- ing to her friends. They had escaped notice during the Tncle'c of the j^i'evious day, and, with the shot-belts and powder-horns, remained where tliey had been placed when she and her companions landed. The old woman eagerly seized these, and clambered with them over the rocks at a rate that would have done credit to more voutliful limbs. On reaching a ridffe of rock that over- looked the cave where Maximus was sheltered, Old Moggy became aware of how matters stood. She could also see, from her elevated position, that a track, or the bed of a dried-up watercourse, led through the bushes towards the cave. Without a moment's delay she de- scended it ; but, on drawing near to the cave, she found that there was a barren spot of about thirty yards in extent between the place of refuge and the edge of the bushes. This open space was completely exposed to the view of the natives, who at that time were firing across it into the cavern ; for, after their consultation, they had changed their position and renewed the fusillade. Moggy was now in despair. She knew that it would be im- possible to pass the open ground without being shot, and she also felt certain that, when the Indians found their present attempts were fruitless, they would resort to others, in prosecuting which they would in all probability discover her. While she meditated thus, she looked earncvstly towards the cave, and observed the astonished gaze of Maximus fixed upon her ; for, from his position behind the ledge of rock, he could see the old woman without exposing himself to the Indians. While they gazed at each other a thought occurred to Old Moggy. She made a series of complicated signs, which, after fre- quent repetition, were understood by Maximus to mean that he was to expose himself to the view of the Indians. UNGAVA. 371 in )hey fre- Iiistantly compreliendinf]^ lier meaning, tlie Esquimau stepped boldly from his place of concealment and shook his fist contemptuously in the face of his enemies. A shower of bullets and a yell of rage followed the act. This was just what Old Moggy had expected and desired. Not a gun remained undischarged, and before they could re-load, she passed quickly over the open ground and bounded into the cave, where she turned and shook aloft the two guns with a hoarse laugh of triumph ere she sought the shelter of the ledge of rock. The Indians were so filled with fury, at being thus outwitted by an old woman, that they forgot for a moment their usual caution, and rushed in a body up the slope ; but ere they had accomplished half the dis- tance two of their number fell to rise no more. This was sufficient to check their career. Howling with baffled rage, and without waiting to pick up their fallen comrades, they darted right and left to seek the shelter of the bushes, for they could no longer remain in the open ground now that their enemies were armed. For nearly an hour after this all was silence. Maxi- mus and his companions could only form conjectures as to the movements of the Indians, for none of them were to be seen. However, as they had no resource but to remain in their retreat until night-fall, they endeavoured to make the place as comfortable as possible, and busied themselves in cleaning their arms. It happened that from the cave's mouth they could see their canoe, which still lay on the beach where they had originally left it ; and, while they were looking at it, they perceived one of the Indians stealing down towards it. Fortunately Maximus had a gun in his hand ready loaded, and the instant the Indian appeared 372 UNGAVA. he fired and shot him. No second Indian dared to venture towards the little craft, although it lay only a few yards distant from the edge of the forest ; for they knew that the watchful eye of the Esquimau was upon them, and that instant death would be the fate of him who should make the attempt. The little canoe now became an object of intense interest to both parties. The Indians knew that if their foe should succeed in reaching it he could easily escape. This, of course, he could not hope to do as long as daylight lasted ; nor. even when night should arrive, unless it were a very dark one. But, on the other hand, they knew that they did not dare to venture near it so long as there was sufficient light to enable Maximus to take aim at them with his deadly gun. Both parties, therefore, remained silent and apparently inactive during the re- mainder of the day. But the busy brains both of Indians and Esquimaux were, during this weary interval, employed in planning how to circumvent each other. As the shades of night deepened, each became more watchful. Once only did Maximus move from his post, in order to go to the farther end of the cave, where the large powder-horn had been placed for safety. As he did so, Chimo, who was tied to a rock, tried to follow him, and on finding that he was restrained, uttered a loud, mournful howl. This cry sent a thrill to the heart of Maximus, for it immediately occurred to him that any attempt to leave the cave stealthily would instantly be intimated to the watchful foe by the dog, and to take Chimo with them was impossible. " The dog must die," said Old Moggy, who divined at once what was passing in the man's mind. Maximus shook his head sadly. TJNGAVA. 373 " T cannot kill Chimo," he said to Aneetka ; " he is Ediths dog." ' Aneetka made no reply, for she felt the power of her husband's objection to injure the dog of his little favour- ite ; yet she could not but perceive that the cry — which was invariably repeated when any of the party moved away from the animal — would betray them in the moment of danger. Nothing further was said for some time, but Old Moggy, who had no tender reminiscences or feelings in regard to the dog, proceeded quietly and sig- nificantly to construct a running-noose on the stout thong of leather that encircled her waist and served as a sash. While she was thus engaged the sun's last rays faded away and the night began to deepen around them. To the satisfaction of both parties the sky was draped with heavy clouds, which gave promise of a night of intense darkness. This was absolutely essential not only to the Indians but to Maximus, who had at length formed a plan by which hi hoped to turn the dreaded cry of the dog to good account, although he had little hope of sav- ing it from the Indians should he succeed in escaping with the women. As the night grew darker he began to put this plan in execution. Taking his station at the entrance of the cave, he took a long and steady aim at the bow of the canoe, which could now be only seen dimly. Having adjusted the gun to his satisfaction he marked its position exactly on the rock, so that, when the canoe should be entirely hid from sight, he could make certain of hitting any object directly in front of it. Then he ordered Moggy and his wife to keep moving about the cave, so that the howling of Chimo should be kept up continually, and thus not appear unusual when they should really forsake the cave and attempt their escape. In order to show 374 UNGAVA. that he was still on the alert, he shortly after aimed at the canoe, which was now quite invisible, and tired. The efibct was more startling than had been expected. A death-cry rent the air and mingled with the rever- berations of the shot, proving that it had taken deadly effect on one of the Indians, who, under cover of the darkness, had ventured to approach the coveted canoe. A volley was instantly tired in the direction of the cave from various parts of the bushes, but without effect. Maximus now kept up a continued fire, sometimes discharging a succession of rapid shots, at other times firing at irregular intervals of from three to ten minutes. This he did purposely, with a view to his future plans. In the meantime the dog was made to keep up a con- tinuous howling. " Now, Aneetka," said Maximus, as the ring of his last shot died away, "go, and may the Great Spirit guide thee ! " Without a word of reply, the two women glided noiselessly b'ke shadows into the thick darkness. About two minutes after they had disappeared, Maximus again fired several shots, taking care, however, to point con- siderably to the right of the canoe. Then he ceased for three minutes, and again fired several shots irregularly. At the last shot he passed from the cave so silently and quickly that even Chimo was deceived, and snuffed the air for a moment ere it renewed its sad wailing. In less than two minutes the Esquimau had glided, with the noiseless tread of a panther, to the spot where the canoe lay. Here he found his wife and the old woman crouching beside it. The water's edge was about ten yards distant. A few seconds would suffice to lift the light bark in his powerful arms and launch it. Aneetka and the old woman, who had already received minute UNGAVA. 375 instructions what to do, had rm binding: Price 2m. €J. each. Beyond the Himalayas. A B<)«>k for Boys. By John Oeduik, F.R.G.8., Author of "The Lake Regions of Central Africa," etc. With 9 Engravings. The Castaways. A Story of Ad- venture in the Wilds of Borneo. By Captain Mayne Reid. - Frank Redcliffe. A Story of Tra- vel and Adventure in the Forests of Venezuela. A Book for Boys. By Achilles Daunt, Author of "The Three Trappers," etc. With numerous Illustrations. In the Land of the Moose, the Bear, and the Beaver. Adven- tures in the Forests of the Atha- basca. By Achilles Daunt, Author of ' ' The Three Trappers. " With Illustrations. In the Bush and on the Trail. Adventures in the Forests of North America. A Book for Boys. By M. Benedict Revoil. With 70 Illustrations. The Lake Reg^ions of Central Africa. A Record of Modem Discovery. By John Geddie, F. R. G. S. With 32 Dlustrations. Lost in the Backwoods. A Tale of the Canadian Forest. By Mrs. / Traill, Author of "In the For- V/ est," etc. With 32 Engravings. The Meadows Family ; or, Fire- side Stories of Adventure and Enterprise. By M. A. Paull, Authdi- of " Tim's Troubles," etc. With Illustrations. The Three Trappers. A Book for Boys. By Achii.lrh Daunt, Author of "In the Land of the Moose, the Bear, and the Beaver. " With 1 1 Engravings. Wrecked on a Reef ; or, Twenty Months in the Auckland Isles. A True Story of Shipwreck, Ad- venture, and Suffering. With 40 Illustrations. Ralph's Year in Russia. A Story of Travel and Adventure in East- ern Europe. By Robert Rich- ardson, Author of "Almost a Hero," etc. With 8 Engrav- ings. Scenes with the Hunter and the Trapper in Many Lands. Stories of Adventures with Wild Ani- mals. With Engravings. The Forest, the Jungle, and the Prairie ; or, Tales of Adventure and Enterprise in Pursuit of Wild Animals. With numerous En- gravings. The Island Home ; or. The Young Castaways. A Story of Adven- ture in the Southern Seas. With Illustrations. T. nelson and sons, LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW TOBK. W. H. G. Kingston's Books for Boys. -♦♦- In the Eastern Seas; or, The Regions of the Bird of Paradise. A Tale for Boys. With 111 Illustrations. Crown 8vo, gilt edges. Price 5s. A tale of voyage and adventure among the islands of the Malay Archipelago, with descriptiotis of scenery and objects of natural history. In the Wilds of Africa. With upwards of 70 Illustrations. Crown 8vo, gilt edges. Price 5s. An interesting account of adve^ittires by a shipwrecked party who are landed on the west coast of Africa, and make their way to the south through many dangers. On the Banks of the Amazon ; or, A Boy's Journal of his Adventures in the Tropical Wilds of South America. Profusely Illustrated. Crown 8vo, gilt edges. Price 5s. In Vie course of the narrative some of the numberless animals, as well as a few of the most interesting of the vegetable prodiictions, of the Amazonian Valley are described. Saved from the Sea ; or, The Loss of the Viper, and the Adventures of her Crew in the Great Sahara. With 30 Full-page Engravings. Crown Svo, gilt edges. Price 5s. A young sailor's account of his own adventures, along with three shipwrecked comrades. The South Sea Whaler. A Story of the Loss of the Champion, and the Adventures of her Crew. With upwards of 30 Engravings. Crown 8vo, gilt edges. Price 5s. A tale of mutiny and shipwreck in tlie South Seas, tlie captain having his son and daughter on board with him. In the Wilds of Florida. With 37 Engravings. Crown Svo, gilt edges. Price 5s. A tale of warfare a nd hunting. Twice Lost With 36 Engrav- ings. Crown Svo, gilt edges, 5s. A young sailor's story of shipivreck, and perilous adventures in tlie wilda oj Australia. A Voyage Round the World. A Tale for Boys. With 42 En- gravings. Crown Svo, gilt edges. Price 5s. A yoimg sailor's account of his own adventures by sea and land, the scenes being laid chiefly in South America, the South Sea Islands, and Japan. Old Jack. A Sea Tale. With 66 Engravings. Crown Svo, gilt edges. Price 5s. An old sailor's account of his own ad- ventures, during times of peace and oJ war, in many parts of the world. The Wanderers ; or. Adventures in the Wilds of Trinidad and up the Orinoco. With 30 Full-page Engravings. Crown Svo, gilt edges. Price 5s. A Pennsylvanian merchant sets out with his family to South America, and meets with many adventures by sea and land, which are related by his son. The Young Llanero. A Story of War and Wild Life in Venezuela. With 44 Engravings. Crown Svo, gilt edges. Price 58. A thrilling and fascinating narrative of adventures in Soidh America. The Young Rajah. A Story of Indian Life and Adventure. With upwards of 40 Full-page Engrav- ings. Crown Svo, gilt edges. 5s. A story of the Indian Mutiny; the hero a young Indian prince, who had received an English education and be- come a Christian. My First Voyage to Southern §cas. With 52 Engravings. Crown Svo, gilt edges. Price Bs. A young sailor's story, descriMng Cape Colony, Ceylon, Aden, etc. * Also to he had in uniform cloth binding as *' The Kingston Library for Boys." Price JfS. per volume. T. NELSON AND SONS, LONDON, KDINBUKOH, AND NEW YORK. Travel and Adventure. Jack Hooper. Hia Adventures at Sea and in South Africa. By Verney Lovett Cameron, C.B. , D.C L. , Commander Royal Navy; Author of "Across Africa," etc. With 23 Full-page Illustrations. Price 4s. , or with gilt edges, 5s. " Our author has the immense advan- tage over many writers of bnys' stories that he describes what he has seen, and docs not merely draw on his imagination and on boofcs."— Scotsman. With Pack and Rifle in the Far South - West. Adventures in New Mexico, Arizona, and Central America. By Achilles Daunt, Author of "Frank Red- clifiFe," etc. With .SO Illustra- tions. 4s. , or with gilt edges, Ss. A delightful book of travel and adven- ture, with much valuable information as to the geography and natural history of the vnld American " Far West." In Savag^e Africa ; or, The Ad- ventures of Frank Baldwin from the Gold Coast to Zanzibar. By Verney Lovett C am ekon, C.B., D.C.L., Commander Royal Navy ; Author of "Jack Hooper," etc. With 32 Illustrations. Crown 8vo, cloth extra, gilt edges. Price 4s. , or with gilt edges, 5s. Early English Voyag-ers ; or. The Adventures and Discoveries of Drake, Cavendish, and Dampier. Numerous Illustrations. Price 4s. , or with gilt edges, 5s. The title of this work describes the con- tents. It is a handsome volume, which will be a valuable gift for young persons generally, and boys in particular. There are ificluded many interesting illustra- tions and portraits of the three great voyagers. Sandford and Merton. A Book for the Young. By Thomas Day. Illustrated. Post 8vo, cloth ex- tra. Price 2s. 6d. Our S^a-Coast Heroes; or, Tales of Wreck and of Rescue by the Lifeboat and Rocket. By Achil- les Daunt, Author of "Frank Redcliffe," etc. With numerous Illustrations. Price 2s. 6d. Robinson Crusoe. The Life and Strange Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner. Writ- ten by Himself. Carr/uUi/ He- printed from the Oriijinal Edition. With Memoir of De Foe, a Me- moir of Alexander Selkirk, and other interesting additions. Il- lustrated with upwards of Seventy Engravings by Keeley Hals- WELLE. Ci-own 8vo, cloth ex. 3s. An edition that every boy would be pleased to include in his library. It is handsomely bound, and the numerous illustrations assist greatly in the realiza- tion of this famous story. The Swiss Family Robinson ; or. Adventures of a Father and his Four Sons on a Desolate Island. Unabridged Translation. With 300 Illustrations. Price 38. A capital edition of this well-known work. As the title suggests, its character is somewhat similar to that of the famous " Robhison Crusoe." It combines, in a high degree, the tivo desirable qualities in a book, — instr^iction and amusement. Gulliver's Travels into Several Remote Regions of the World. With Introduction and Explana- tory Notes by the late Mr. Robert Mackenzie, Author of "The 19th Century," " America," etc. With 20 Illustrations. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 3s. "A very handsome edition, under the editorship of Mr. Robert Mackenzie, who has supplied for it a well-written intro- duction and explanatory notes.... We have also here the curious original maps and a mimber of modern illustrations of much merit. Altogether this is a most attractive re-appearance of a famous ftoofc."— Glasgow Herald. T. NELSON AND SONS, LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW YORK. Works on Nature and Natural History. -♦♦- Chips from the Earth's Crust; or, Short Studies in Natural Science. By John Gibson, Natu- ral History Department, Edin- burgh Museum of Science and Art ; Author of " Science Glean- ings in Many Fields," etc. With 29 Illustrations. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 2s. 6d. " A popular account of the Earth's sur- face and formation, such as may interest and instruct boys of an inquiring habit of mind. It comprises chapters on earth- quakes, meteors, tornadoes, and other p/icnojftejia."— Satijuday Rkview. Science Gleanings in Animal Life. By John Gibson, Natural History Department, Edinburgh Museum of Science and Art. With 18 Illus- trations. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 2s. 6d. The reader will find " Science Olean- ings " ri:h in iiiformation regarding such interesting topics as animal intelligence, animal mimicry, the weapons of animals, ttieir partnerships, and their migrations. Much iT\formMtion is also given regard- ing food fishes and about animals with which, iohether as friends or foes, man has more especially to do. Great Waterfalls, Cataracts, and Geysers. Described and Illus- trated. By John Gibson, Natural History Department, Edinburgh Museum of Science and Art ; Au- thor of " Chips from the Earth's Crust," etc. With 32 Illustra- tions. Post Svo, cloth extra. Price 2s. 6d. Earthquakes : Their History, Phe- nomena, and Probable Causes. By MUxNoo Ponton, F.R.S.E. New and Revised Edition, with an Account of Recent Earth- quakes, by the Author of " Chips from the Earth's Crust, ' etc. Post Svo, cloth extra. 2s. In the Polar Regions ; or, Nature and Natural History in the Frozen Zones. With ^ecdotes and Stoi.'es of Adventure and Travel. 46 Illustrations. Post Svo, cloth extra. Price 28. 6d. In the Tropical Regions; or, Nature and Natural History in the Torrid Zone. With Anec- dotes and Stories of Adventure and Travel. 78 Illustrations. Post Svo, cloth extra. 28. 6d. In the Temperate Regions; or. Nature and Natural History in the Temperate Zones. With Anecdotes and Stories of Adven- ture and Travel. 72 Illustrations. Post Svo, cloth extra. 2s. 6d. "In the Polar," "In the Tropical," and "In the Temperate Regions," are three companion volumes, though each is complete in itself. The full title suggests the character of the books. They are re- pUte with information on theanimal and vegetabl •■ life of the countries described, and abc und in ilhistrations in elucida- tion of ihe text. Good books either for school or home libraries. Gaussen's World's Birthday. ' Il- lustrated. Foolscap Svo. 2s. 6d. Lectures delivered to an audience of you7>g people, in Geneva, on the first chapter of Genesis. The discoveries of astronomical and geological science are simply explained, and harmonized unth the statements of Scripture. Nature's Wonders ; or, How God's Works Praise Him. By the Rev. Richard Newton, D.D. With 5.3 Engravings. Post Svo. 2s. 6d. Addresses to young persons, on various stibjects of science and natural history, to show "how God's works praise him." With illustrative anecdotes and engrav- ings. T. NELSON AND SONS, LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW YORK. 1 "Living to Purpose" Series. -♦♦- I 4 s; or, ^1 General Grant's Life. (From the Tannery to the White House.) Story of the Life of Ulysses S. Orant : his Boyhood, Youth, Manhood, Public and Private Life and Services. By William M. Thayer, Author of "From Log Cabin to White House," etc. With Portrait, Vignette, etc. Reprinted complete from the American Edition. 400 pages. Crown 8vo, cloth extra, gilt side and edges. Price 3a, 6d. Cheaper Edition, 2s. 6d. Success in Life. A Book for Young Men. With Plates. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 3s. The great jmnciples of action which, under God, secure " success in life " — per- severance, industry, integrity, economy, etc. — illustrated by many examples. " Yet There is Rooin." Loving' Work in the Highways and Bjrways. 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By the Author of "The Copsley An- nals," "Father's Coming Home," etc. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 2a. 6d. No Cross no Crown. A Tale of the Scottish Reformation. By the Author of "The Spanish Broth- ers." Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 28. 6d. A taUtf more of facts than fiction, oj the plague in Dundee, ISltlt, and Hie life and times of George Wishart. Records of Noble Lives. By W. H. Davenport Adams. PostSvo, cloth extra. Price 2s, 6d. A most suitable volume for a prize or a present. Its object is to insjnre, by graphic biographical notices of great and good men. i , Masters of the Situation ; or. Some Secrets of Success and Power. A Book for Young Men. By William James Tilley, B. D. Post 8vo, cloth extra. 313 pp. Price 2s. 6d. " One of the books which must be rend Will be invaluable to young men." — Sword and Trowel. The Life and Letters of W. Fleming Stevenson, D.D., Dublin. By his Wife. With Portrait. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 2s. 6d. T. NELSON and SONS, LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW YORK. Good Purpose Tales and Stories. -♦♦- What shall I be? or, A Boy's Aim in Life. With Frontispiece and Vignette. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 28. A tale for the young. The good results of good home example and training ap- pearing in the end, after discipline and failings. At the Black Rocks. A Story for Boys. By the Rev. Edward A. Rand, Author of " Margie at the Harbour Light," etc. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 28. A story the leading characters of which are two youths. One is always full of great schemes, which invariably end in smoke, and often bring their author into trouble and humiliation; while the other, a simple, unassuming lad, says little, but always does exactly what is needed, and earns general respect and confidence. The Phantom Picture. By the Hon. Mrs. Greene, Author of " The Grey House on the Hill," ' ' On Angels' Wings, " etc. With Illustrations. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 2s. A story of two brothers and the misery brought upon both by one of them dis- - obeying a command of their father. The innocent boy is for a while suspected and made unhappy in consequence; but at la^t truth prevails and all ends vxll. Archie Digby ; or, An Eton Boy's Holidays. By G. E. W. , Author of * ' Harry Bertram and his Eighth Birthday." Post 8vo, cl. ex. 2s. A very interesting tale for boys. Hie hero, a clever, thoughtless young Etonian, learns during a Christmas holiday tims, by humbling experience, lessons full of value for all after life. Rhoda's Reform; or, "Owe no Man Anything." By M. A. Paull, Author of " Tim's Troubles," " The Children's Tour," etc. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 2s. Martin's Inheritance ; or. The Story of a Life's Chances. A Temperance Tale. By E. Van SoMMER, Author of " Lionel Franklin's Victory," "By Uphill Paths," etc. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 2s. True Riches ; or. Wealth Without Wings. By T. S. Arthur. Il- lustrated. Post 8vo, cloth extra. Price 2s. Teaches lessons such as cannx)t be learned too early by those who are engaged in the active and all-absorbing duties oj life. Culm Rock ; or. Ready Work for Willing Hands. A Book for Boys. By J. W. Bradley. Foolscap 8vo. With Engravings. 2s. It narrates the experiences and adven- tures of a boy compelled by circumstances to a hard life on a stem and stormy coa^t. After Years. A Story of Trials and Triumphs. By the Author of, and forming a Sequel to, "Culm Rock." With Illustra- tions. Foolscap 8vo, cloth extra. Price 2s. An American tale, the seqwl to " Culm Rock," showing how well Noll Trafford, in after years, fulfilled the fair promise of his early boyhood. Conquest and Self-Conquest; or, Which Makes the Hero ? Fools- cap 8vo. Price 2s. A tale very suitable for a lad under fifteen. It teaches the important lesson that the greatest of victories is the victory gained over self. Home Principles in Boyhood. Foolscap 8vo, cloth extra. 2s. The story of a lad who, in spite of apparent self-interest to the contrary, held firmly to the priruiples in which he had been instructed by Christian parents. T. NELSON AND SONS, LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW YORK.