CHAPTER NINETEEN.
SHORT ALLOWANCE, AND A SURPRISE.
Once again we return to Silver Lake; but here we do not find affairs aswe left them. True, Roy and Nelly are still there, the hut is as snugas it used to be, and the scenery as beautiful, but provisions havebegun to fail, and an expression of real anxiety clouds the usuallycheerful countenance of Roy, while reflected anxiety sits on the sweetlittle face of Nell. The winter is far advanced, and the prospect ofresuming the journey home is farther off than ever.
One morning Roy entered the hut with a slow step and a sad countenance.
"Nell," said he, throwing down a small fish which he had just caught,"things look very bad now; seems to me that we'll starve here. Since webroke the long line I've only caught little things like _that_; there'sno rabbits in the snares--I looked at every one this mornin'--and, asfor deer, they seem to have said good-bye for the winter. I thought ofgoin' out with the gun this forenoon, but I think it a'nt o' no use, forI was out all yesterday without seeing a feather or a hoof-print."
The tone in which Roy said this, and the manner in which he flunghimself down on the ground beside the fire, alarmed his sister greatly,so that she scarcely knew what to say.
"Don't know what's to be done at all," continued Roy somewhat peevishly.
This was so unlike himself that the little girl felt a strong tendencyto burst into tears, but she restrained herself. After a short silence,she said somewhat timidly--
"Don't you think we might try to pray?"
"What's the use," said Roy quickly; "I'm sure I've prayed often andoften, and so have you, but nothin's come of it."
It was quite evident that Roy was in a state of rebellion. This was thefirst time Nelly had suggested _united_ prayer to her brother; she didit timidly, and the rebuff caused her to shrink within herself.
Roy's quick eye observed the shrinking; he repented instantly, and,drawing Nelly to him, laid her head on his breast.
"Forgive me, Nell, I shouldn't have said it; for, after all, we've hadeverything given to us here that we have needed up to this time. Come,I _will_ pray with you."
They both got upon their knees at once, but, strive as he might, not aword would cross Roy's lips for several minutes. Nelly raised her headand looked at him.
"God help us!" he ejaculated.
"For Jesus' sake," murmured Nelly.
They both said "Amen" to these words, and these were all their prayers.
Roy's rebellion of heart was gone now, but his feelings were not yetcalmed. He leaped up, and, raising his sister, kissed her almostviolently.
"Now, lass, we _have_ prayed, and I _do_ believe that God will answerus; so I'll take my gun and snow-shoes, an' off to the woods to look fora deer. See that you have a roarin' fire ready to roast him three hourshence."
Nelly smiled through her tears and said she would, while Roy slipped hisfeet through the lines of his snow-shoes, threw his powder-horn andbullet-pouch over his shoulder, seized his gun, and sallied forth with alight step.
When he was gone, Nelly began actively to prepare for the fulfilment ofher promise. She took up the axe which Roy had left behind him, andwent into the forest behind the hut to cut firewood. She was veryexpert at this laborious work. Her blows were indeed light, for herlittle arms, although strong for their size, were not strong for suchlabour; but she knew exactly where to hit and how to hit. Every strokefell on the right spot, with the axe at the right angle, so that a chipor two flew off every time. She panted a good deal, and grew uncommonlywarm, but she liked the work; her face glowed and her eyes sparkled, andit was evident that she was not exhausted by it. In little more than anhour she had cut enough of dry wood to make a fire that would haveroasted an entire sheep. Then she carried it to the hut, after whichshe sat down to rest a little.
While resting, she gathered carefully together all the scraps of food inthe hut, and found that there was still enough for two good meals; soshe ate a small piece of dried fish, and began to wish that Roy wouldreturn. Suddenly she was startled by a loud fluttering noise close tothe hut, and went out to see what it could be.
It might be supposed that a little girl in such solitary and unprotectedcircumstances would have felt alarmed, and thought of wolves or bears;but Nelly was too well accustomed to the dangers and risks of thebackwoods to be much troubled with mere fancies. She was well awarethat wolves and bears, as a rule, shun the presence of human beings, andthe noise which she had heard was not of a very alarming character.
The first sight that greeted her was a large bird of the grouse species,sitting on a tree not three yards from the hut. She almost felt that byspringing forward she could seize it with her hands, and her firstimpulse was to throw the axe at it; but, checking herself, she wentnoiselessly back into the hut, and quickly reissued with the bow and acouple of arrows.
Fitting an arrow to the string, she whispered to herself, "Oh, how I_do_ hope I won't miss it!" and took a careful aim. Anxiety, however,made her hand unsteady, for, the next moment, the arrow was quivering inthe stem of the tree at least three inches below the bird.
A look of deep disappointment was mingled with an expression ofdetermination as she pursed her little mouth and fitted the second arrowto the string. This time she did not take so careful an aim, but letfly at once, and her shaft entered the bird's throat and brought it tothe ground. With a cry of delight she sprang upon her prize, and boreit in triumph into the hut, where she speedily plucked it. Then shesplit it open, and went down to the lake and washed it quite clean andspread it out flat. Her next proceeding was to cut a short stick, abouttwo feet in length, which she pointed at both ends, making one pointthinner than the other. This thin point she thrust through the bird,and stuck it up before the fire to roast, placing a small dish, made ofbirch bark, below it to catch the dripping.
"I hope he won't come back till it's ready," she muttered, as the skinof the bird began to brown and frizzle, while a delicious odour began tofill the hut.
Just as the thought was uttered, a footstep was heard outside, thecovering of the doorway was raised, a tall figure stooped to enter, andthe next instant a gaunt and half-naked savage stood before her.
Nelly uttered a faint cry of terror, but she was so paralysed that shecould make no effort to escape, even had escape been possible.
The appearance of the Indian was indeed calculated to strike terror to astouter heart than that of poor Nelly; for besides being partially cladin torn garments, his eyes were sunken and bloodshot, and his wholeperson was more or less smeared with blood.
As the poor child gazed at this apparition in horror, the Indian said,"Ho!" by way of salutation, and stepping forward, took her hand gentlyand shook it after the manner of the white man. A gleam of intelligenceand surprise at once removed the look of fear from Nelly's face.
"Wapaw!" she exclaimed breathlessly.
"Ho!" replied the Indian, with a nod and a smile, as he laid aside hisgun and snowshoes, and squatted himself down before the fire.
There was not much to be gathered from "ho!" but the nod and smileproved to Nelly that the intruder was indeed none other than her oldfriend Wapaw.
Her alarm being now removed, she perceived that the poor Indian wassuffering both from fatigue and wounds--perhaps from hunger too; butthis latter idea was discarded when she observed that several birds,similar to the one she had just killed, hung at the Indian's belt. Sherose up quickly, therefore, and, running down to the lake, soon returnedwith a can of clear water, with which she purposed bathing Wapaw'swounds. Wapaw seized the can, however, and emptied the contents downhis throat, so she was constrained to go for a second supply.
Having washed the wounds, which were chiefly on the head and appeared toher to be very severe, although, in reality, they were not so, she setthe roasted bird before him and desired him to eat.
Of course she had put a great many questions to Wapaw while thusoccupied. Her residence with the Indians had enabled her to speak andundersta
nd the Indian tongue a little, and, although she had somedifficulty in understanding much of what Wapaw said in reply, shecomprehended enough to let her know that a number of white men had beenkilled by the savages, and that Wapaw was fleeing for his life.
On first hearing this a deadly paleness overspread her face, for sheimagined that the white people killed must be her own kindred; but Wapawquickly relieved her mind on this point.
After this he devoted himself entirely to the roasted bird, and Nellyrelated to him, as well as she could, the particulars of her own andRoy's escape from the Indians.