CHAPTER XXIII
The Majority Decides
To the surprise of Katherine, Mrs. Burton was very anxious that Mr.Selincourt's offer should be accepted, and she urged that pointvery strongly.
"If you were a boy, Katherine, I would not say one word toinfluence you either way. Even now it is for your sake, not mine,that I should like to take the chance of getting away from thisplace. For myself, I would rather be here than at any other placein the wide world; but I do know that you are hopelessly buriedalive, and the work you have to do is unsuitable for any girl."
Katherine put up her hand with a pleading gesture, and there wasdistress in her eyes as she said hurriedly: "That is not fair tothe boys, Nellie. I asked that you should all speak foryourselves, not for each other; that can be done afterwards: themain thing is to know how we each feel about the matter personally.Now, Miles, let us know what you think?"
Miles fidgeted, looked supremely uncomfortable, and finally burstout: "I think it is just horrid to go settling things like thisabout Father, as if he were dead, while he is still alive!"
"Just what I feel myself," broke in Katherine, giving Miles anaffectionate squeeze. "Still, dear, the necessity has arisen todiscuss the business, and we must just face it as otherdisagreeables have to be met and overcome. So, putting Fatherentirely out of the question for the moment, tell us what you thinkyou would like best."
"That can be done in a very few words," he said gruffly. "I daresay it sounds beastly selfish, but I'd rather stay here than goanywhere else on the face of the earth. The land is our own; whyshould we not keep it? We have got a good paying businesstogether; why should we give it up? If we could pull through lastwinter and make a profit, we certainly ought to do better stillthis year, for we are all wiser, older, and stronger. It isfearfully hard on Katherine to be obliged to do the journeys, Iknow, but that can stop when I am a bit older, and more of a dab atvaluing pelts."
"Now, Phil, it is your turn," said Katherine quickly; she had seenthat Mrs. Burton was about to speak, and was anxious that Philshould have first chance.
But the boy was half-asleep, and had to be well shaken up by Milesbefore they could bring him to a full understanding of what wasrequired of him. Then he asked drowsily: "If we went to liveanywhere else should I have to go to school in summer as well as inwinter?"
"Of course you would," retorted Mrs. Burton promptly; adding, witha touch of quite unusual severity: "and it would be a very goodthing for you, because in that case you would have no time to playsuch monkey tricks as that which you indulged in to-day."
"Then I'd rather stop here. School in winter is quite tiringenough, but school all the year round would about wear me out.Store work is just play compared with the fag of simple equationsand that sort of thing."
Katherine and Miles laughed merrily, while even Mrs. Burton had tosmile. Phil's attitude towards book-learning had always been oneof utter distaste, although in other things he was a good,hard-working boy, never disposed to shirk nor to waste his time,even if the matter in hand was not entirely to his mind.
"Now you have all said what you think and feel about it," saidKatherine, "I can have my say on the matter, and I might begin byputting the most conclusive argument first, which is that I amquite certain we have no legal or moral right to lay a finger onFather's business affairs at present; I mean, in the way ofupsetting them. If things were different, and the business was notprospering, we might have some excuse for meddling and changing; asit is, we have none."
"Then what did you make all this bother about?" demanded Phil, whohad been roused from his sleepiness by having a wet dishclothtucked firmly round his neck by Miles.
"Because it is a privilege we all share equally to do our very bestfor our father, and no one of us ought to decide anything momentousconcerning him without taking counsel with the others," Katherineanswered, leaning forward and catching the dishcloth, which Philhad aimed at Miles.
"It is all very well for Mr. Selincourt to offer us a fancy pricefor our land, but if there is a fortune in every acre why shouldn'twe have it? I shouldn't in the least mind being a millionaire,"said Miles.
"Of course you would not; neither should I: but the secret of thewhole matter turns, according to Mr. Selincourt, on first of allhaving a fortune to put into the ground before we can get out theone that is there waiting for us," laughed Katherine.
"Very well, we'll stick at the store until we have made our pile,then we can do as we like about throwing it away in order to getanother. Meanwhile we will keep the land, while Mr. Selincourtamuses himself by digging holes and flinging away money on theother side of the river," said Miles, getting up from his chair andyawning widely.
"Hear, hear!" echoed Phil, clapping his hands.
"Nellie, dear, it is the majority that decides, and you have lost,"Katherine said, as she hustled the boys off to bed, and prepared toretire herself.
"For my own part, as I said before, I'm not sorry to lose, and I dofeel as you do, that we have no right to dispose of Father'sproperty," Mrs. Burton said. Then she went on, her voice shaken byreal feeling: "But, Katherine, the life you have to lead just aboutbreaks my heart. You are the brightest and cleverest of us all,and should have the best chance, instead of which you just have nochance at all. Take to-day, for instance; we have all been outenjoying ourselves, whilst you have been grubbing at home at work."
"It had to be either Miles or me," Katherine reminded her gently;"and think how he enjoyed it. There are so many pleasures whichcome my way that would not interest him at all, and that makes meso thankful for a chance of giving him a treat like that of to-day."
"I don't mind going out with Miles, because his manners are decent,and he is so quiet," said Mrs. Burton, "but I did not know whereto put my head for very shame when Phil threw that pail of water onto Nick Jones."
"It was very foolish and silly, of course, and I expect Phil willhave to pay pretty dearly for his mischief. If only Nick will payhim back in a manly fashion, without being cruel, I shan't care.Boys learn wisdom quicker through having to bear the consequencesof their own actions, and it does not do for them to be too muchshielded. Did you have a pleasant time?"
"Yes; it was lovely. The captain and the officers were so politeand nice, and the tea was very prettily done. Mary was there, ofcourse, and Mr. Ferrars. I heard a good bit of talk about themtoo," Mrs. Burton said, with a happy little wag of her head. Herown hope and joy in life having become so much a thing of the past,made her much more interested in the concerns of others.
"What sort of talk?" asked Katherine. Of course she knew very wellwhat the answer would be, and that it would make her heart acheworse than ever; but the situation had got to be faced, so thesooner she became hardened to the pain the better for her peace ofmind.
"Oh, the usual things! Mrs. M'Kree said she thought they wouldmake a lovely pair: for though Mary isn't pretty, she is verydistinguished; and Mr. Ferrars has a way of carrying himself whichmakes me think he must come from a very good family indeed. Inoticed that Mary's manner was very different to him to-day, andfrom the way he treated her it looked almost as if they had come toan understanding." Mrs. Burton's air was one of beamingsatisfaction now, for she liked Jervis Ferrars quite well enough tobe glad there was a chance of his marrying a rich wife, and sobeing lifted out of the fierce struggle with narrow means.
Katherine's heart felt sick and cold within her. She rememberedwhat Mary had said about the boon asked by Jervis, which had beendenied, and the denial regretted ever since. Probably that rescuefrom the tidehole had given Jervis the courage and the right to askhis boon again, and this time Mary would know her own heart toowell to refuse happiness, even though it came to her at the handsof a poor man.
She was glad to turn out early next morning and go with Phil to dothe "back-ache" portage, because it took her away from anylikelihood of an encounter with Mary, who would probably bebrimming over with happiness.
"It is quite natural that she
should feel like that, and I am veryglad for her," Katherine announced to herself in a defiant tone, asshe loaded packages of groceries and bundles of dry goods on to thedogs in the morning, for them to carry over the portage to theboathouse above the falls.
It never once occurred to her that she could have made a mistake,or that she had jumped to wrong conclusions in the matter. She wasso used to making up her mind on all sorts of subjects without anywaste of time, that naturally she decided she was right in thisthing also. The dogs trotted up the portage path with a heartygoodwill, for they had the sense to know that the journey was not along one and that their work would soon be over. There were onlythree of them this morning, for Hero was at the house over theriver.
Katherine and Phil followed the dogs. They also carried burdens,and, as the portage path was steep, they were glad not to wastetheir breath in talking while they toiled up the hill. The lastdog, which walked just in front of Katherine, carried two woodenboxes, filled with marmalade for Mrs. M'Kree, and it was funny tosee how careful the creature was to keep right in the middle of thepath, so that its burden did not bump against the rocks whichprojected on either side of the narrow trail.
"Good dog! You shall have a smear of marmalade on your biscuit forsupper to-night, if I don't forget it," Katherine said, when theboathouse was reached without any danger to the consignment ofmarmalade.
"Pity to waste good stuff like that on a creature which can'tappreciate it. Now, I am very gone on marmalade," remarked Phil,as he put the two boxes into the boat.
"You shall have some for supper too; but you must not begrudge thepoor dog just a little taste," Katherine said, as with a brief wordof command she sent two of the dogs hurrying back to the store forsome bundles of meal and flannel that had been left behind for asecond journey.
While the dogs were gone, she and Phil stowed into the boat all thegoods which had been brought over, then they sat down to wait forthe remainder of the load, and Phil's tongue began to be busy onthe events of yesterday.
"I'm downright glad we've got to do the backache portage to-day,because, as we can't be in two places at once, I shan't be found atthe store if anyone comes to see me special," he said, winking upat a bluebird which sat on a bough above his head. The bird gave alittle chirp, whisked its tail, and then stayed motionless, as ifmuch interested in the talk.
"Who would be likely to make a special visit to you to-day?" askedKatherine, momentarily forgetting Phil's prank of yesterday.
"Nick Jones, of course. I guess if I had been minding storeto-day, and had seen him coming in at the door, my heart would haveabout gone down into my boots," admitted Phil, with great candour.
"But he may come to-morrow, you know," suggested Katherine.
"No, he won't, for a lot of them start the next morning in the_Mary_ for a week's fishing off the Twins; and Mr. Ferrars is goingtoo, I know, because I heard him say so," replied Phil.
"The Twins are those two islands east of Akimiski, are they not?"asked Katherine.
"I suppose so; they are out in the Bay somewhere, I know, and theyare very dangerous, because there are such strong currents allround them and no end of hidden rocks," Phil said in a cheerfultone, as if he were rather pleased than otherwise that his enemyhad to face so much danger in the near future.
"That must be the place where a boat was wrecked two years ago andall the people were drowned. I wonder they are taking the _Mary_,"said Katherine, for that was the biggest and best of the new boats,built by Astor M'Kree in the previous winter.
"They are taking her because she is such a good boat; no use havinga leaky old tub for such work. Here come the dogs!" and Philjumped up in such a hurry that the bluebird flew away in alarm.
The dogs were unloaded, the things they had brought being packedinto the boat; then Katherine and Phil took their up-river way, andthe dogs went back to the store to spend the morning as theythought fit.
Phil's news, had puzzled Katherine a great deal. It seemed sostrange to her that Jervis Ferrars should go off to the rough,dangerous work of fishing off the shores of the inhospitable Twinsif he were really engaged to Mary. His absence from Seal Covewould mean that someone would have to do his work there, as theboats coming in had to have their cargoes totalled and entered,while the drying, sorting, and packing needed constant supervision.Perhaps some little ghost of a hope crept into her heart thatmorning; at any rate, the pull up river seemed easier, and it wasnot such hard work as usual doing the second portage, even thoughshe had to carry the wooden boxes, with the jars of marmalade forMrs. M'Kree, swung across her own shoulders, a heavy, uncomfortableburden to be carried through the hot sunshine.
Backwards and forwards they went along the portage path, but theydid not have to carry the boat, fortunately, as a birchbarkbelonging to Astor M'Kree was always available for their use on thelong portage--a great convenience this, as Katherine and Phil wouldhardly have managed the burden of the boat between them. Mrs.M'Kree as usual received Katherine literally with open arms, andpressed her to remain on her way back for tea. This invitationKatherine would have promptly refused, but for an appealing lookfrom Phil, whose courage regarding a meeting with his enemy wasfast evaporating.
"You are very kind. We ought to be back about four o'clock, thenperhaps we can stay for an hour," Katherine said, accepting onPhil's behalf, although her own desires were solely and entirelyfor getting home as fast as she could.
"A regular brick you are, Katherine!" exclaimed Phil, as theysettled themselves in the birchbark for the journey up to the longportage. "I just wish to be as late home as possible this evening,and then most likely I shall be tired enough to want to go to beddirectly I get there."
"It strikes me that it is not your strength which is likely to giveout, but your nerve," Katherine answered with a laugh; then went onin a graver tone: "I don't scold you when you play monkey tricks,as you did yesterday, but it is hard work not to despise you when Isee you trying to escape the consequences of what you have done bysneaking off to bed, pretending you are tired, when in reality youare only afraid."
Phil reddened, looked dreadfully ashamed of himself for about twominutes, then said in a cheerful tone: "It is rather nice of me tobe willing to play round with those sticky M'Kree babies, as if Iwere a kid myself."
"I suppose it is; yet down underneath I dare say you rather likethe playing round, as you call it," laughed Katherine, and then sheworked on in silence up the solitary reaches of the river, with theglaring sunshine on her unsheltered back, and swarms of fliestormenting her unprotected face and neck. These last became suchan intolerable nuisance after a time, that she was forced to swatheherself in a hot and cumbering veil.
The "back-ache" portage was worthy of its name that day, and it wasconsiderably past noon before they arrived at the Indian village towhich they were bound. At first they could not find anyone athome, the whole community being away in the forest peeling barkfrom the birch trees for the making of canoes. But the same kindof thing had happened before, so Katherine was not at a loss.Picking up a tin pan, she commenced beating a military tattoo uponit with a thick stick; while Phil, with a trumpet improvised from aroll of birchbark, produced an ear-splitting din which must havecarried far through the quiet woods. It was not long before theircustomers arrived on the scene, and then the business of barterbegan. A very long business it proved to-day, for, the weatherbeing warm and comfortable, the red men and women seemed tothoroughly enjoy sitting round at their ease and taking time toconsider whether they wished to be purchasers or not.
Bartering with the Indians]
But Katherine was patient and tactful too. After all, the trainingof a teacher is not lost in the buying and selling of a backwoodsstore. The same gifts of persuasion are needful in both cases, andthe same gentle firmness is useful in settling the bargain whichhas come to completion. It was four o'clock before Katherine wasable to turn her back on the Indian village, but by then she hadsold every article which had been brought up river, and w
as ladenwith a currency of valuable furs and some specimens of narwhalivory, very beautiful, but apparently of great age. The same kindof thing had happened before, and she could never quite make outwhere it had come from, for the narwhal was so rarely met with inthe Hudson Bay waters now, and was a creature so fierce, that itwas puzzling to know how people in birchbark canoes, armed onlywith spears, could ever manage to secure it. A theory held by herfather in his days of health was, that in places along thoselittle-known shores the tusks of narwhals dead centuries beforemight be found by the Indians buried in the sands, and it was findsof this sort which they dug up and offered for sale.
Their stay at Mrs. M'Kree's house was very short after all, thoughKatherine was thankful indeed for the cup of tea awaiting herthere, and much too grateful for the kindness to be fastidiousabout its overdrawn condition. As a matter of fact, the tea hadbeen gently on the boil for more than two hours, but this was aminor detail in the comfort of people who had an outdoor life andworked hard from dawn to dark.
It was pleasant to slip down on the swift current of the river whenthe cool of the evening came on. Katherine was almost sorry whenthe home portage was reached, for it was like taking up the burdenof life again, and she was tired enough to feel that rest was aluxury indeed. The dogs were soon over at the boathouse to helpwith the parcels, and then Katherine and Phil, both heavily laden,passed up the portage path, and night came down.
There were lights twinkling in and about the store when theyreached it, and Katherine laughed to see how Phil crept past thedoor of the store, making for the entrance to the house instead.
But she did not call him back, being quite willing to shield hisretreat so far as she could possibly do so, for a ducking at thattime in the evening would not be pleasant; moreover, Mrs. Burtonwould have his clothes to dry, which was another consideration ofimportance just then.
Nick Jones was not in the store when she entered, and she noticedat once that the crowd of evening loungers was less than usual.They were busily talking, too, and although they all bade her acivil good evening, went on with their talk where they had droppedit.
"Mr. Ferrars came up to see you this evening," Miles whispered,when she went to help him with some boxes which were beyond hisreach.
"To see me?" Katherine asked in surprise.
"Yes, he even went over the portage to see if you were coming, buthe could not wait, because the _Mary_ sailed with the evening tide,"answered Miles.