Reloading quickly, the young hunter advanced towards the trap, where his worst fears were realised, for near to it he found the body of an Indian torn limb from limb, and mostly eaten, except the head, which remained entire. It was evident that the poor man, having set several snares for bears, had gone to visit them, and found this brown bear caught by the head and leg. He seemed to have tried to kill it with arrows, but must have been afraid to go near enough to use his weapons with effect, and the enraged animal, having broken the snare, flew upon him and tore him to pieces.
Brown bears of this kind are very powerful. One traveller in these regions saw the footprints of a large one, which, having seized a moose-deer in a river, dragged it for a quarter of a mile along the sandy banks, and afterwards devoured it all except part of the hind-quarters; and the moose which had been treated in this unceremonious way, judging from the size and hardness of the bones, must have been upwards of a year old, when it would weigh as much as an ox of the same age.
Collecting the scattered remnants of the unfortunate Indian, who was no other than the old womans son, Lawrence covered them over with leaves and sticks. He then skinned the bear and cut off its claws, which he carried away as trophies, along with one or two choice steaks cut from the creatures flank. He also collected the weapons and part of the dress of the Indian, with which he returned to the camp.
Heyday! Lawrence, what have you got there, lad? said Reuben, as his son came up and threw the bundle on the ground.
A brown bear, father.
Well done! exclaimed Reuben, with a look of pride, for although his son had shot many a black bear in the forest, he had never before stood face to face with such a monster as that whose skin and claws now lay at his feet.
It would have been well, father, said Lawrence gravely, if the man who first saw this had owned a gun. His arrows were no better than needles in such a hide. See here!
He drew from his breast the bloody portions of dress which had belonged to the slaughtered Indian.
The son of the old woman has gone to the happy hunting-grounds, said Swiftarrow, referring to the heaven of the Indian, as he lifted and examined the dress.
Ay, ay, said Reuben sadly, tis the chances of the wilderness. Youd better tell the poor old creetur, Swiftarrow; you understand her ways and lingo better than me.
Silently the Indian went to the old woman, and laid the bloody garments before her. At first she did not understand what had happened. Suddenly the truth flashed upon her, and she looked quickly up into the grave countenance of the Indian, but death and sorrow appeared to have already done their worst on her, for she neither spoke nor wept for some time. She took up the shreds of cloth and turned them over tenderly; but neither sign nor groan escaped her. Evidently she had been already so stunned by the horrors which had surrounded her for some time, that this additional blow did not tellat least, not at firstbut Reuben observed, while trying to comfort her some time afterwards, that a few tears were coursing slowly down her withered cheeks.
That night, round the camp-fire, the pioneers held earnest counsel, and resolved, sadly but firmly, that their projected journey must be given up for that season.
Its a hard thing to do, said Reuben, as he lay at full length before the fire after supper, to give up our plans after comin so far; but it aint possible to carry that old ooman along with us an its not to be thought of to leave her behind to starve, so theres nothin for it but to go back an take her wi us to the settlements. I would feel like a murderer if I was to leave one o Gods creeturs to perish in the wilderness. What think you, Lawrence?
I think you are right, father, replied the youth, with a deep sigh.
An what says Swiftarrow?
Go back, was the Indians prompt and laconic answer.
Well, then, were all agreed, so well turn back on our trail to-morrow; but I shall try again next year if Im above ground. I once knowd a Yankee who had what he called a motto, an it was this, Never give in, xcept wen yer wrong. I think Ill take to that motto. It seems to me a good un.
In proof, we presume, of his sincerity, Reuben Guff rolled himself in his blanket, stretched his feet towards the fire, pillowed his head on a bundle of moss, and at once gave in to the seductive influences of sleep; an example which was so irresistible that his companions followed it without delay.
Chapter Three.
Introduces the King of Pioneers
Discarding space and ignoring time, we seize you by the hand, reader, and bound away with you still deeper into the northern wilderness, away into that remote region which, at the time we write of, was the ultima thule of the fur-traders of Canada,beyond which lay the great unknown world, stretching to the pole. Here, amid the grand scenery of the Rocky Mountains, lies the Athabasca Lake, also styled the Lake of the Hills. We prefer the latter name, as being more romantic.
This is no pretty pond such as we in England are wont to visit and delight in during our summer holidays. It is a great sheet of water; a grand fresh-water sea, 200 miles long and 15 miles broada fitting gem for the bosom of the mighty region on which it glitters.
A year has fled since the period of our last chapter, and here, in a birch-bark canoe on the waters of the Lake of the Hills, we find our pioneersReuben Guff, his son Lawrence, and his Indian friend Swiftarrow. There is also a young Indian woman in the canoeSwiftarrows wife.
The kind-hearted red man adopted the old woman who had been rescued on their previous trip, but, not finding her a good substitute for his own mother, he bethought him of adding a young squaw to his establishment. While he meditated on this step, the old woman died. About the same time Reuben Guff made proposals to him to join him on a second vyage of diskivery. The Indian agreed; got married off-hand, and took his bride along with him. We now find them all four at the Lake of the Hills.
It may be as well to observe, in passing, that Indian brides are usually more robust than those of civilised communities. They are quite competent to follow their lords on the most arduous canoe voyages, and, besides being able to wield the paddle with great dexterity, are exceedingly useful in managing what may be styled the domestic matters of the camp. They also keep up a constant supply of the Indians indispensable foot-gearmoccasinswhich are so slender in their nature that a pair may be completely worn-out in a single day of hard hunting.
The brown bride, therefore, was not a hindrance to the party, but a useful member of it, as well as a pleasant companion. True, her companionship consisted chiefly in answering yes and no when spoken to, and in smiling pleasantly at all times; but this was sufficient to satisfy the moderate demands of her male friends upon her intellectual resources.
Fort Chipewyan at last, said Reuben, resting his paddle across the canoe and looking earnestly towards the horizon; I hope we aint too late after all our pushin on. It would be hard to find that Monsieur Mackenzie had started.
Too much ice in the lake, said Swiftarrow. He has not gone yet.
Im not so sure o that, observed Lawrence. If reports be true, Monsieur Mackenzie is not the man to wait until the ice is all off the lakes and nothin but plain sailin lies before him.