CHAPTER FIVE.
CARRIED OFF.
While Robin Gore and his companions were anxiously searching the woodsaround Fort Enterprise for the lost children, a war-party of savages wasmaking its way swiftly towards the Fort.
A chief of the Indians, named Hawk, who was a shrewd as well as a badman, had suspected Wapaw's intentions in quitting the camp of his peoplealone and in such unnecessary haste. This man had great influence overhis fellows, and easily prevailed on them to set off on their murderousexpedition against the Fort of the "pale-faces" without delay.
Being well supplied with food, they travelled faster than their starvingcomrade, and almost overtook him. They finally encamped within a shortdistance of the Fort the day after Wapaw's arrival, and prepared toassault it early next morning.
"If the wicked skunk has got there before us," said Hawk to his fellows,as they prepared to set out before daybreak, "the pale-faces will beready for us, and we may as well go back to our wigwams at once; but ifthat badger's whelp has been slow of foot, we shall hang the scalps ofthe pale-faces at our belts, and eat their food this day."
The polite titles above used by Hawk were meant to refer to Wapaw.
Indians are not naturally loquacious. No reply was made to Hawk'sremark, except that one man with a blackened face, and a streak of redochre down the bridge of his nose, said, "Ho!" and another with anequally black face, and three red streaks on each of his cheeks, said,"Hum!" as the war-party put on their snowshoes and prepared to start.
They had not gone far when Hawk came to a sudden pause, and stoodtransfixed and motionless like a dark statue. His comrades also stoppedabruptly and crouched. No question was asked, but Hawk pointed to aspark of fire, which every Indian in the band had observed the instanttheir leader had paused. Silently they crept forward, with guns cockedand arrows fitted to the bowstrings, until they all stood round anencampment where the fire was still smouldering, and in the centre ofwhich lay a little boy and girl, fast asleep and shuddering with cold.
Poor Roy and Nelly had told each other stories until their eyes wouldnot remain open; then they fell asleep, despite their efforts to keepawake, and, as the fire sank low, they began to shiver with the cold.Lucky was it for them that the Indians discovered them, else they hadcertainly been frozen to death that night.
Hawk roused them with little ceremony. Roy, by an impulse which wouldappear to be natural to those who dwell in wild countries, whether youngor old, seized his axe, which lay beside him, as he leaped up. Hawkgrinned, and took the axe from him at once, and the poor boy, seeingthat he was surrounded by dark warriors, offered no resistance, butsought to comfort Nelly, who was clinging to him and trembling withterror.
Immediately the savages sat down in the encampment, and began an earnestdiscussion, which the children watched with great eagerness. Theyevidently did not agree, for much gesticulation and great vehemencecharacterised their debate. Some pointed towards the Fort, and touchedtheir tomahawks, while others pointed to the woods in the directionwhence they had come, and shook their heads. Not a few drew theirscalping knives partially from their sheaths, and, pointing to thechildren, showed clearly that they wished to cut their career shortwithout delay, but several of the more sedate members of the partyevidently objected to this. Finally, Hawk turned to Roy, and saidsomething to him in the Indian tongue.
Roy did not understand, and attempted to say so as well as he could bysigns, and the use of the few words of the Cree language which hisfather had taught him. In the course of his speech (if we may use thatterm), he chanced to mention Wapaw's name.
"Ho! ho! ho!" said one and another of the Indians, while Hawk grinnedhorribly.
A variety of questions were now put to poor Roy, who, not understanding,of course could not answer them. Hawk, however, repeated Wapaw's name,and pointed towards the Fort with a look of inquiry, to which Royreplied by nodding his head and repeating "Wapaw" once or twice, alsopointing to the Fort; for he began to suspect these must be Wapaw'scomrades, who had come to search for him. He therefore volunteered alittle additional information by means of signs; rubbed his stomach,looked dreadfully rueful, rolled himself as if in agony on the ground,and then, getting up, pretended to eat and look happy! By all of whichhe meant to show how that Wapaw had been on the borders of starvation,but had been happily saved therefrom.
Indians in council might teach a useful lesson to our members ofparliament, for they witnessed this rather laughable species ofpantomime with profound gravity and silence. When Roy concluded, theynodded their heads, and said, "Ho! ho!" which, no doubt, was equivalentto "Hear hear!"
After a little more discussion they rose to depart, and made signs tothe children to get up and follow. Roy then pointed out the brokenstate of his snow-shoe, but this difficulty was overcome by Hawk, whothrew it away, and made him put on his sister's snow-shoes. A stoutyoung warrior was ordered to take Nelly on his back, which he didwithout delay, and the whole party left the encampment, headed by theirchief.
The children submitted cheerfully at first, under the impression thatthe Indians meant to convey them to the Fort. Great, however, was theirhorror when they were taken through the woods by a way which they knewto be quite in the opposite direction.
When Roy saw this he stopped and looked back, but an Indian behind himgave him a poke with the butt of his gun, which there was no resisting.For a moment the lad thought of trying to break away, run home, and tellhis father of Nelly's fate; but a second thought convinced him that thiscourse was utterly impracticable. As for Nelly, she was too far fromher brother in the procession to hold converse with him; and, as sheknew not what to do, say, think, she was reduced to the miserableconsolation of bedewing with her tears the shoulders of the youngwarrior who carried her.
The storm which had commenced the day before still continued, so that,in the course of a few hours, traces of the track of the war-party werealmost obliterated, and the chance of their being followed by Robin andhis friends was rendered less and less likely as time ran on.
All that day they travelled without halt, and when they stopped at nightto encamp, Roy was nearly dead from exhaustion. "My poor Nell," saidhe, drawing his sobbing sister close to him, as they sat near the campfire, after having eaten the small quantity of dried venison that wasthrown to them by their captors, "don't despair; father will be sure tohunt us down, if it's in the power of man to do it."
"I don't despair," sobbed Nelly; "but oh! what will darling mother dowhen she finds that we're lost, and I'm so afraid they'll kill us."
"No fear o' that, Nell; it's not worth their while. Remember, too, whatmother often told us--that--that--what is it she used to read so oftenout of the Bible? I forget."
"I think it was, `Call upon Me in the time of trouble, and I willdeliver thee.' I've been thinkin' of that, Roy, already."
"That's right, Nell; now, come, cheer up! Have you had enough to eat?"
"Yes," said Nelly, with a loud yawn, which she did not attempt to check.
Roy echoed it, as a matter of course, (who ever did see anyone yawnwithout following suit?) and then the two lay down together, spread overthemselves an old blanket which one of the Indians had given them, andfell asleep at once.
Day succeeded day, night followed night, and weeks came and went, yetthe Indians continued their journey through the snow-clad wilderness.Roy's snow-shoes had been picked up and repaired by one of the savages,and Nelly was made to walk a good deal on her own snowshoes; but it isjustice to the Indians to say that they slackened their pace a littlefor the sake of the children, and when Nelly showed symptoms of beingfatigued, the stout young warrior who originally carried her took her onhis shoulders.
At length the encampment of the tribe was reached, and Nelly was handedover to Hawk's wife to be her slave. Soon after that, the tents werestruck, and the whole tribe went deeper into the northern wilds.Several gales arose and passed away, completely covering theirfootprints, so that no tracks were left behind them.
/>