CHAPTER TWENTY TWO.
MAXIMUS--DEER SPEARING--A SURPRISINGLY BAD SHOT--CHARACTER OF THENATIVES.
"Hallo! what have we here?" exclaimed Stanley, starting from his seat inamazement, as the giant entered the hall of Fort Chimo--his left handgrasping a blood-stained wolf by the throat, and Edith resting in hisright arm.
At first the startled father imagined his child must have been wounded,if not killed, by the savage animal; but his mind was immediatelyrelieved on this point by Edith herself, who was no sooner laid on herbed than she recovered sufficiently to narrate the circumstancesattending her fall.
"Well, Maximus," said Stanley, returning to the hall and applying to thebulky savage the term that seemed most appropriate to him, "shake handswith me, my good fellow. You've saved Chimo's life, it seems; andthat's a good turn I'll not forget. But a--. I see you don'tunderstand a word I say. Hallo! Moses, Moses! you deaf rascal, comehere!" he shouted, as that worthy passed the window.
"Yis, mossue," said Moses, entering the hall. "Oh, me! what a walrus amdis! Me do b'lieve him most high as a tree an' more broader noriveryt'ing!"
"Hold thy tongue, Moses, and ask the fellow where he came from; but tellhim first that I'm obliged to him for saving Chimo from that villainouswolf."
While Moses interpreted, Arnalooa and Okatook, being privileged membersof the tribe, crossed over to Edith's room.
"Well, what says he?" inquired Stanley, at the end of a long addresswhich the giant had delivered to Moses.
"Him say he heered we have come to trade, from Eskeemo to west'ard, andso him come for to see us."
"A most excellent reason," said Stanley. "Has he brought any furs?"
"Yis; him brought one two fox, and two t'ree deer. No have much furs indis country, him say."
"Sorry to hear that. Perhaps his opinion may change when he sees theinside of our store. But I would like him to stay about the fort as ahunter, Moses; he seems a first-rate man. Ask him if he will consent tostay for a time."
"P'raps he fuss-rate, p'raps not," muttered Moses in a disparaging tone,as he turned to put the question.
"Him say yis."
"Very good; then take him to your house, Moses, and give him some foodand a pipe, and teach him English as fast as you can, and see that it isgrammatical. D'ye hear?"
"Yis, mossue, me quite sure for to teach him dat."
As Moses turned to quit the hall, Stanley called him back. "AskMaximus, by-the-bye, if he knows anything of a party of Esquimaux whoseem to have been attacked, not long ago, by Indians in thisneighbourhood."
No sooner was this question put than the face of Maximus, which had worna placid, smiling expression during the foregoing conversation, totallychanged. His brows lowered, and his lips were tightly compressed, as heregarded Stanley for a few moments ere he ventured to reply. Then, in adeep, earnest tone, he related the attack, the slaughter of his people,their subsequent escape, and the loss of his bride. Even Moses wasagitated as he went on, and showed his teeth like an enraged mastiffwhen the Esquimau came to speak of his irreparable loss.
"Stay one moment," said Stanley, when Maximus concluded. "I havesomething to show you;" and hastening into his room, he quickly returnedwith the little piece of sealskin that had been found at the desertedIndian camp. "Do you know anything of this, Maximus? Do you understandthese marks?"
The Esquimau uttered a cry of surprise when his eye fell on the piece ofskin, and he seemed much agitated while he put several quick, earnestquestions to Moses, who replied as earnestly and quickly; then turningrapidly on his heel, he sprang through the doorway, and was soon lost toview in the stunted woods of the ravine above the fort.
"That fellow seems in a hurry," exclaimed Frank Morton, entering theroom just as the savage made his exit. "Who is he, and wherefore in sogreat haste?"
"As to who he is," answered Stanley, "I'll tell you that after Moses hasexplained the cause of his sudden flight."
"He say that him's wife make dat skin, and de arrow on him skin show datde Injuns take her to deir tents."
"But did you not tell him that we found the skin long ago, and that theIndians must be far, far away by this time--nobody knows where?"demanded Frank.
"Yis, me tell him. But he go for to see de spot. T'ink him find moret'ings, p'raps."
"Oh, messieurs, voila!" shouted La Roche, pointing towards the river, ashe rushed, breathless with haste, into the hall; "les Esquimaux, demkill all de deer dans le kontry. Oui, voila! dans les kayak. Two dozenat vonce--vraiment!" Without waiting a reply, the excited Frenchmanturned round and rushed out of the house, followed by Stanley and Frank,who seized their guns, which always hung ready loaded on the walls ofthe apartment.
On reaching the water's edge, the scene that met their eye was indeedsufficient to account for the excitement of La Roche. A herd of perhapsfifty or sixty deer, on their way to the coast, and ignorant of the foeswho had so recently invaded their solitudes, had descended the ravineopposite the fort, with the intention of crossing the river. TheEsquimaux had perceived this, and keeping themselves and their kayaksconcealed until most of the animals were in the water, and the leadersof the herd more than two-thirds over, they then gave chase, and gettingbetween the deer and the opposite shore, cut off their retreat, anddrove them towards their encampment.
Here the slaughter commenced, and Stanley and Frank arrived at the sceneof action while they were in the midst of the wholesale destruction. Inall directions the kayaks, with their solitary occupants, were dartingabout hither and thither like arrows in the midst of the affrightedanimals; none of which, however, were speared until they were drivenquite close to the shore. In their terror, the deer endeavoured toescape by swimming in different directions; but the long double-bladedpaddles of the Esquimaux sent the light kayaks after them likelightning, and a sharp prick on their flanks turned them in the rightdirection. There were so many deer, however, that a few succeeded ingaining the land; but here the guns of the traders awaited them. In themidst of this wild scene, Frank's attention was arrested by the coolproceedings of an Esquimau, whose name was Chacooto. He had severaltimes exhibited a degree of shrewdness beyond his fellows during hisresidence near the fort, and was evidently a man of importance in thetribe. Chacooto had collected together a band of the herd, amounting tofifteen, and, by dint of cool decision and quick movements, had driventhem to within a few yards of the shore, exactly opposite the spotwhereon his tent stood. One young buck, of about two years old, dartedaway from the rest more than once, but, with a sweep of the paddle and aprick of the lance, Chacooto turned it back again, while a quietsarcastic smile played on his countenance. Having driven the herd closeenough in for his purpose, the Esquimau ended the career of therefractory buck with a single thrust of his lance, and then proceededcoolly to stab them all one after another.
"Och, the spalpeen!" said a voice at Frank's ear. "'Tis himsilf knowshow to do it, an' no mistake. Musha! his lance goes out and in like athailor's needle; an' he niver strikes more nor wance, the haythen!"
"He certainly does know how to do it, Bryan," replied Frank; "and it's acomfort to know that every thrust kills in a moment. I like to see aslittle of the appearance of cruelty as possible in work of this kind."
"Arrah! there's wan that'll chate 'im, anyhow," cried Bryan, throwingforward his gun in nervous haste, as one of the deer gained the land,despite Chacooto's rapidity, and bounded towards the hills.
Frank smiled at the eager haste of his companion, who was one of thepoor shots of the party, and, consequently, always in a hurry. "Now,Bryan, there's a chance. Take your time. Just behind the shoulder; alittle low, for that gun kicks horribly."
"Murder and blazes, she won't go off!" cried the exasperated Irishman,as, after a wavering effort to take aim, he essayed unsuccessfully topull the trigger.
"Half-cock, man! Cock it!" said Frank quickly.
"So 'tis, be the mortial! Och, Bryan, yer too cliver, ye are!" heexclaimed, rectifying his err
or with a force that nearly tore off thedog-head. At that instant there was a sharp crack, and the deer,bounding into the air, fell dead on the sand at the edge of the willows.
"Forgive me, Bryan," said Massan, chuckling and reloading his piece ashe walked up to his comrade. "I would not ha' taken't out o' yer teeth,lad, if ye had been ready; but one bound more would ha' put the beastbeyond the reach o' a bullet."
"Faix, Massan, ye desarve to be hanged for murther. Shure I was waitin'till the poor crayture got into the bushes, to give it a chance o' itslife, before I fired. That's the way that gintlemen from the ouldcountry does when we're out sportin'. We always put up the birds first,and fire afterwards; but you salvages murther a poor brute on the sand,whin it's only two fathoms from ye. Shame on ye, Massan."
"See, Massan," cried Frank, pointing to another deer, which, havingescaped its pursuers, had gained the heights above. "That fellow isbeyond us both, I fear. Be ready when it comes into view beyond thecliff there."
But Massan did not move; and when Frank threw forward his gun, he felthis arm arrested.
"Pardon me, monsieur," said Massan respectfully; "there's a sure bulletabout to start for that deer."
As he spoke, he pointed to Dick Prince, who, ignorant of the fact thatthe deer had been seen by Frank, was watching its reappearance frombehind a neighbouring rock, at some distance from where they stood. Ina second it came into view--the bullet sped--and the deer boundedlightly into the bushes, evidently unhurt!
It is difficult to say whether Dick Prince or his comrades exhibitedmost amazement in their looks at this result. That the crack shot ofthe party--the man who could hit a button in the centre at a hundredyards, and cut the head off a partridge at a hundred and fifty--shouldmiss a deer at ninety yards, was utterly incomprehensible.
"Is it yer own gun ye've got?" inquired Bryan, as the discomfitedmarksman walked up.
"No; it's yours," replied Prince.
A smile, which resolved itself into a myriad of wrinkles, flitted overthe blacksmith's face as he said--
"Ah, Prince! ye'll requare long practice to come to the parfect use o'that wipon. I've always fired three yards, at laste, to the left, iversince we fell over the hill togither. If it's a very long shot, itrequares four to take the baste in the flank, or four an' a half if yewant to hit the shoulder, besides an allowance o' two feet above itshead, to make up for the twist I gave it the other day in the forge, intryin' to put it right!"
This explanation was satisfactory to all parties, especially so toPrince, who felt that his credit was saved; and if Prince had a weaknessat all, it was upon this point.
The deer were now all killed, with the exception of those of the bandthat had been last in entering the river. These, with a few stragglers,had returned to the shore from which they started. The remainder of theevening was devoted to skinning and cutting up the carcasses--anoperation requiring considerable time, skill, and labour.
While the people at the fort were thus employed, Maximus (who adopted atonce the name given to him by Stanley) returned from his fruitlessjourney to the Indian camp, and assisted the men at their work. He madeno allusion whatever to his visit to the deserted Indian camp; but, fromthe settled expression of deep sadness that clouded his countenance, itwas inferred that what he had seen there had not tended to raise hishopes.
The supply of deer obtained at this time was very seasonable, for thefrost had now begun to set in so steadily that the meat could be hung upto freeze, and thus be kept fresh for winter's consumption. Some of it,however, was dried and stored away in bales; while a small quantity waspounded after being dried, made into pemmican, and reserved for futurejourneys.
As for the Esquimaux, they gave themselves up, during the first night,to feasting and rejoicing. During the short time that they had been atthe fort, they had converted the promontory on which they were encampedinto a scene of the utmost confusion and filth. A regard for truthconstrains us to say, that although these poor creatures turned out tobe honest, and simple, and kind-hearted, they did not by any means turnout to be cleanly; quite the reverse.
They had erected four summer tents on the beach, which were composed ofskins sewed together, and supported on poles in such a way as to affordample room for the accommodation of their families. The entrance toeach tent was through a passage, which was also made of skins, hung overa line fastened to a pole at the distance of twelve or fifteen feet fromthe tent. Each side of this entrance was lined with piles ofprovisions--seals, fish, ducks, and venison, in various stages of decay,which rendered the passage into the interior a trying operation. True,it was intended that the frost should prevent this decay; but,unfortunately, the frost did not always do its duty. The manner inwhich they cut up their deer and prepared them for future use wascurious. After cutting the animals into two, without skinning them,they pinned up the front half with the heart and liver in the cavity.The other half they treated in a similar way, minus the heart and liver,and then put them out to freeze until required. When frozen, they werefrequently used in their tents as seats, until the gradual diminution ofthe larder demanded that they should be appropriated to their properuse.
The tribe of Esquimaux who resided near Fort Chimo at this time werepossessed of an enormous stone kettle, in which they boiled an entiredeer at one time; and while the good people luxuriated on the flesh ofthe animal in their tents, the dogs assembled round the boiler to awaitthe cooling of the soup--thus verifying the assertion formerly made byMassan on that head.
The dogs resembled those of the Newfoundland breed in some respects, butwere scarcely so large or good-looking, and had erect instead of pendentears. There were about a dozen of them; and it was wonderful to observethe patience with which they sat in a circle round the kettle, gazingearnestly at the soup, licking their chaps the while, in anticipation ofthe feast.
The successful hunt was regarded as worthy of being specially celebratedby the distribution of a glass of grog to the men, and also to theEsquimaux; for at the time we write of, the Hudson's Bay Company had notyet instituted the wise and humane regulation which has since become astanding order throughout all parts of the country, except where thereis opposition--namely, that ardent spirits shall not be given to thenatives. However, Stanley's natural disposition led him to be verycircumspect in giving spirits to the men and natives, and the supply nowissued was very small.
In the men it produced a desire for the violin, and created a tendencyto sing and tell stories. In the Esquimaux it produced at firstdislike, and afterwards wild excitement, which, in the case of Chacooto,ended in a desire to fight. But his comrades, assisted by his wives,overpowered him, tied him in a sack made of sealskin, and left him toroar and kick till he fell asleep!
The honesty of these natives was exhibited very strikingly in all theirdealings with the fur-traders. Although iron tools of every descriptionwere scattered about the fort, while the men were engaged in erectingthe several buildings, not one was missed; and even the useless nailsand scraps of metal that were thrown away, when they were found bychance by the Esquimaux, were always brought to the house, and thequestion asked, "Were they of any use?" before being appropriated. Theywere great beggars, however; which was not surprising, considering thevalue of the articles possessed by the traders, and their own limitedmeans of purchasing them. Their chief wealth at this time lay in bootsand deerskins, which the women were constantly employed in preparing;but Stanley urged them to go into the interior and hunt, as, althoughdeerskins and boots were useful, furs were infinitely more valuable.But the Esquimaux had much too lively a dread of the Indians to ventureaway from the coast, and seemed inclined to hang about the place incomparative idleness much longer than was desirable.