V
UNCLE BEN GIVES WARNING
In the beginning Thomas had a decided feeling of uncertaintyconcerning Indian Jake, because of Indian Jake's record of two yearsbefore. The debt that he had left unpaid was for provisions andclothing which had been advanced him by the Hudson's Bay Company thathe might subsist during the hunting season, and with the understandingthat he would pay the indebtedness by trading in at the Company'sstore the furs he trapped.
It was a debt of honor, thought Thomas and the other Bay folk, and thefurs, to their way of thinking, belonged rightfully to the Company;and therefore, in taking them away with him, Indian Jake had actuallybeen guilty of dishonesty. Indian Jake agreed with Thomas, who statedhis opinion plainly to the half-breed.
"I know the furs were the Company's," said Indian Jake, "but I hadreasons for goin'. Now I've come back t' straighten up what I owe. AllI want is a chance, and I can't pay what I owe if nobody gives me thechance, and down t' th' tradin' posts they won't trust me, and nobodyelse wants to, unless you do."
"Well," said Thomas, after a little consideration, "I'll do it. 'Tis afine place for fur where I traps, and you'll make a fine hunt.
"But you'll be huntin' one trail, and if I let Davy go he'll behuntin' another, and Davy'll only see you once a week, _what_ever.'Twill be a wonderful lonely time for Davy between times alone, and hemight have a mishap, for 'tisn't natural for a young lad t' be overcareful. I'm not thinkin' I'll let he go, Jake. You'll have t' huntalone. Davy's too young yet for th' work."
"It's all the same t' me," said Indian Jake, "huntin' alone or withcompany."
"Oh, but, Pop," pleaded David in deep disappointment. "I'll bewonderful careful. I'll 'bide in th' tilts when th' weather's toonasty t' be out. I _wants_ t' go. I'll get _some_ fur, _what_ever, andwe needs un all to pay for th' cure t' Jamie's eyes."
Jamie's eyes! Thomas looked at Jamie, who was standing at the window,vainly trying to peer through the ever-present mist, and as he sawJamie raise his hand to brush the mist away a great lump came into histhroat.
"Davy," said he, after a little silence, "you're a brave lad, andcareful, but 'tis a wonderful lonely place up there, trampin' th'trails. The storms come sudden and awful sometimes, and it takes aman's strength to face un. 'Tis frostier there, too, than here.There's none o' th' comfort o' th' home you've always been used to.I'd never rest easy if I let you go and you never came back."
"But," insisted David, "I'll be careful and come back--and Jamiemustn't be let t' go blind. 'Twould be worse for he than bein' dead._Let_ me go, Pop!"
"I'll think about un--I'll think about un," said Thomas, and he closedhis eyes to think.
At the end of ten minutes, when Thomas opened his eyes again, he haddecided, and turning to Indian Jake, he said:
"I'm thinkin', now, I'll let Davy go, and I'll let Andy go along t'keep Davy company and help he. The two will be company for each other,and doin' th' work together they'll get over th' trail faster thanever Davy could alone, and if they's a mishap, one can help the other.But you'll have t' keep an eye to un, Jake!"
"It's all the same to me, whether one or both of 'em go," said IndianJake. "I'll keep an eye on 'em, so they won't get in trouble."
"Thank you, Pop! I'll be wonderful careful," said David, with vastrelief and satisfaction.
"Are you meanin' _I'm_ t' go t' th' trails, too?" asked Andy, who hadbeen standing with David and Indian Jake by the bedside.
"Aye, Andy, lad," said Thomas, "you'll go along and help Davy."
"Oh--Pop!" exclaimed Andy, which was all his emotions and excitementwould permit him to say.
"Is you glad, now?" asked Thomas with a smile, for he knew very wellhow glad Andy was. It is the greatest wish of every lad on TheLabrador to go to the trails and hunt, as his father does, and eagerlyhe waits for the time when he may go. It is a brave life, that, livingin the midst of the great wilderness, surrounded by its ever-presentmysteries, and what boy is there who does not wish to do brave deeds?'Tis a man's work, following the trails, and the trapper plays a man'sgame, and what boy does not wish to play a man's game?
"Oh, I'm _wonderful_ glad!" exclaimed Andy.
"'Twill be fine t' have Andy along!" broke in David, "and we'll huntfine together."
"We'll hunt un the best ever we can," asserted Andy.
And thus it had been decided, and the plan seemed a good one to DoctorJoe, for it was the only solution of the problem of how to get themoney that would be so necessary the following summer.
Nevertheless, neither Doctor Joe nor Thomas could quite rid himself ofa feeling of anxiety and uncertainty as to the wisdom of permittingthe boys to enter the wilderness with Indian Jake. They could notforget his record, in spite of his fair promises, and try as theywould they could not feel complete confidence in him.
The days that followed were busy ones at The Jug. It was the middle ofthe first week in September, and Indian Jake was eager to be away tothe trapping grounds the following Monday, for it would be a threeweeks' journey, and with the coming of October the lakes might beexpected to freeze at any time. They would travel by boat andtherefore it was essential that they arrive at their destination onSeal Lake before the freeze-up came.
And so there was great hustle and bustle, assembling the outfit andgetting all in readiness. And Margaret, too, was no less busy than theothers, working early and late preparing the warm clothing that theboys would need.
Each was to be supplied with two adikys, one of heavy kersey cloth andone of moleskin. The latter, with its close-woven, smooth surface,would be an excellent protection from the wind, and snow would notreadily cling to it, and it was made large enough to wear over theformer. Both garments were fitted with hoods, and the hood on thekersey adiky was trimmed with fur around the face to add to its warmthand comfort. These garments were to be drawn on over the head like asweater, but were loose and roomy. There were no buttons, and noopenings where snow could sift in, and a drawstring around the facepermitted them to be adjusted snugly to the cheeks, though there wasno attempt to have them cover nose or mouth, for were that done themoisture from the breath would freeze upon the face and cause painfulfrostbite.
Then in each outfit there were a half dozen pairs of slippers, orsocks, made of heavy woolen blanket duffle, to wear inside thebuckskin moccasins, and two pairs of mittens of the same material towear inside buckskin mittens, and each had a pair of moleskin clothleggins.
Some of these things the boys already possessed, as they did round,peakless muskrat skin caps that could be drawn down over the ears andworn inside the adiky hood, but Margaret went carefully over all, tobe quite sure everything was in the best of order.
Other clothing and equipment consisted of moleskin trousers, severalpairs of buckskin moccasins for winter wear, and kneehigh sealskinboots for the milder weather of autumn and spring; buckskin mittens,underwear, heavy outer shirts, ordinary knit socks, a sleeping bag foreach lined with Hudson's Bay Company blankets, cooking utensils, axes,files for sharpening axes, and a mending kit containing needles andthread for making repairs. And each was supplied with a 44-40 carbine,and a quantity of ammunition. These were their especial pride. Davidhad been presented with his rifle the previous winter by Thomas, andAndy was to have an old one which his father had used before hepurchased one of a later model.
Indian Jake assembled the general camp equipment and the provisions,the latter consisting chiefly of flour, pork, tea, a small keg ofmolasses, and salt, packing everything into snug, convenient packages,that could be handled easily.
Jamie was vastly interested in the preparations. He did little thingsto help the boys, and Indian Jake permitted him to hold open themouths of the bags as he packed them, to Jamie's delight, and made thelad feel that he was really of much assistance, and the two became thebest of friends.
Doctor Joe had gone home to Break Cove on the evening that the boyshad returned from the post with Indian Jake, and was not expected backuntil Sunday. They were surprised, therefore, to see his b
oat comingup the bight on Saturday morning, and astonished when Doctor Joeannounced upon his arrival that he had decided not to go to his oldtrapping grounds that winter.
"I've been thinking matters over," he explained, "and if you'll letme, I'll make The Jug my home this winter. I'll hunt up here, Thomas,where you used to hunt before you took the Seal Lake trail, when thechildren were small, and you had to be home o' nights. My old trail ispretty well hunted out, anyhow, and I'll do better here where therehasn't been any trapping since you quit."
"'Tis wonderful good of you," said Thomas.
"I know well enough," continued Doctor Joe, "that unless you'rewatched pretty closely, and I see you every day you'll be trying touse that leg some day before you should, and perhaps break it again.With this arrangement I'll be here every night and keep track of you,and look after Jamie's eyes, if they need it. Once a week isn't oftenenough. I can feed the dogs, too, and do the other rough work that'stoo hard for Margaret, and that she shouldn't try to do."
"I were thinkin' o' Margaret feedin' th' dogs," said Thomas, "and Idon't like to have her do it. They knows a lass can't master un, andthey'd be like t' turn on her some time."
And thus it was arranged, to the vast satisfaction of Thomas andMargaret, as well as Doctor Joe, that The Jug was to be his home whilethe boys were away. And Jamie was mightily pleased, for Doctor Joewould be jolly company of evenings, singing in his fine voice, as noother in the Bay could sing, and telling him stories such as no oneelse could tell.
Everything was in readiness on Saturday night, in order that Sundaymight be observed as a day of rest. Thomas would permit no work to bedone about his home on Sunday that could as well be done another day.Like most of the Bay folk, his faith was simple and literal.
"'Tis wrong t' work and 'tis wrong t' shoot on a Sunday," said he,"and anything that 'tis wrong t' do brings bad luck in th' end if youdoes un. 'Tis goin' contrary t' th' Almighty."
And so the day was spent in quietude and rest indoors, which pleasedJamie greatly, for he was no less excited than David and Andy, and hewas glad to have them near. They had suddenly become heroes in hissight, and indeed they _were_ heroes, aye, and soldiers, too, goinginto the deep wilderness to battle with death-dealing blizzards andbitter, changeless cold for the sake of those they loved.
"And you and Andy makes a good hunt, and gets th' fur t' pay forhavin' th' mist took out o' my eyes," said Jamie, passing his handbefore his eyes in a pitiful little attempt to brush the mist awaythat he might see David's features more plainly, "and th' great doctorcures un, _I'll_ go to Seal Lake some time and hunt, too."
"We'll do our best, now," assured David, "an' _we'll_ get th' fur,never fear."
"That we will," said Andy, squaring his shoulders.
"Pop says you'll have t' keep plenty o' grit," warned Jamie.
"We'll keep plenty o' grit," said Andy.
"And a stout heart, like a man's," added Jamie.
"And we'll keep our hearts stout like a man's," said Andy proudly.
It was to be a long time before the family should be together again,and Margaret had the dinner table set close to Thomas's bunk. DoctorJoe had shot a great fat goose the day before--the first of theseason--and Margaret cooked it for their Sunday dinner. Then there wasbread and tea, and a fine big tart of bake-apple berries. And a cozyfeast they had, with the fire in the big stove crackling merrily, forit was raw and cold outside. And though Thomas must needs lie flatupon his back he enjoyed the feast as well as any of them, forMargaret attended to that, in her gentle, thoughtful way.
When dinner was cleared away Doctor Joe told them stories, and atMargaret's request sang for them, and when he sang some hymns they alljoined with him--even Thomas, with a great bellowing voice. It was aday to be remembered, and David and Andy were to think of it often inthe months to come, as they wearily tramped silent white trails, orsat of evenings in lonely tilts.
It was after candlelight, and they were at tea, that evening, whensuddenly the door opened and in walked Uncle Ben Rudder and HiramMuggs. Uncle Ben led Hiram directly to Thomas's bed, and Thomasgreeted them warmly.
"Good gracious! Good gracious!" exclaimed Uncle Ben. "To think, now,that Thomas Angus went and broke his leg! Dear eyes!"
"'Twas a sorry mishap," sympathized Hiram, a wiry, active little manof few words.
"Aye," agreed Thomas, "but it might ha' been worse. I were thinkin'how hard 'twould ha' been when the children were little, or a seasonwhen th' fishin' were poor, and I were in debt with nothin' ahead forth' winter."
"H-m-m-m," grunted Uncle Ben. "I suppose nothin's so bad it couldn'tbe worse, but bad's bad enough for all that. Good gracious, yes!"
"Well," said Thomas, "we have t' take things as they come, good orbad, and th' best way, t' my thinkin', is t' take un withoutcomplaint. But set in now, and have tea."
When tea was cleared away, and Indian Jake and Hiram and Doctor Joewere smoking their pipes comfortably at the other end of the room,Uncle Ben seated himself by Thomas's bed and asked:
"How about th' huntin', Tom? I says to myself, when Davy tells me youbroke your leg, 'Tom'll need some one, now, t' hunt his trail onshares. Good gracious, yes!' and so I speaks t' Hiram, and Hiram sayshe'll hunt un, and here Hiram is, ready t' go."
"Why, I got un all fixed for Indian Jake t' hunt un, along with Davyand Andy, and they starts in th' marnin'," explained Thomas.
"H-m-m-m!" grunted Uncle Ben. "Th' Lard helps them that's got commonsense. Good gracious! What's Indian Jake like t' do? You know IndianJake. He's like t' make off with all th' fur. Good gracious, you know_him_!"
"Well," said Thomas, a tinge of regret in his voice, for Hiram wasboth a good hunter and reliable man, "Indian Jake has my word he's t'go, and Tom Angus never goes back on his word."
Uncle Ben grunted and grunted, and was soon in such ill humor becauseThomas would not listen to his arguments to change his plan that hespread his blankets upon the floor, crawled into them, and waspresently snoring uproariously.
And there was no doubt that Thomas had some misgivings about IndianJake, because of Indian Jake's bad record. And there was no doubt,too, that these misgivings had been increased by Uncle Ben, whoseadvice the folk of the Bay were accustomed to heed, for Uncle Ben'sjudgment was in the long run uncommonly sound.
"But a man's word is a man's word," said Thomas to himself, "and whena man gives un there's no goin' back on it, for that wouldn't bestraight dealin', and first to last the man that keeps his word anddeals straight comes out on top."
And so Thomas kept his word and stuck to his bargain, as any manshould, and in the twilight of Monday morning the boat was loaded, andwhen David and Andy said farewell Thomas told them to do their best,and Doctor Joe told them to stand up to their work like men, and Jamietold them to keep their grit, and Margaret cried a little, for The Jugwas to be a lonely place now.
And then, with David and Andy waving to those on shore, the boat moveddown the bight and out into the bay, until it passed from view aroundthe point, and the three voyageurs were on their way at last to thegreat wilderness which was to hide them in its silent and mysteriousdepths for many long months.