Read Ebook: Away in the Wilderness by Ballantyne R M Robert Michael

Font size: 10 px 15 px 20 px 25 px 30 px 35 px

Background color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Text color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Apply/Save settings

Ebook has 443 lines and 30246 words, and 9 pages

"How long have de Company lived?" inquired Arrowhead, turning suddenly to Jasper.

The stout hunter felt a little put out. "Ahem! I don't exactly know; but it must have been a long time, no doubt."

"Oh, I can tell you that," cried Heywood.

"You?" said Jasper in surprise.

"Ay; the Company was started nearly two hundred years ago by Prince Rupert, who was the first Governor, and that's the reason the country came to be called Rupert's Land. You know its common name is `the Hudson's Bay Territory,' because it surrounds Hudson's Bay."

"Why, where did you learn that?" said Jasper, "I thought I knowed a-most everything about the Company; but I must confess I never knew that about Prince Rupert before."

"I learned it from books," said the artist.

"Books!" exclaimed Jasper, "I never learned nothin' from books--more's the pity. I git along well enough in the trappin' and shootin' way without 'em; but I'm sorry I never learned to read. Ah! I've a great opinion of books--so I have."

The worthy hunter shook his head solemnly as he said this in a low voice, more to himself than to his companions, and he continued to mutter and shake his head for some minutes, while he knocked the ashes out of his pipe. Having refilled and relighted it, he drew his blanket over his shoulder, laid his head upon a tuft of grass, and continued to smoke until he fell asleep, and allowed the pipe to fall from his lips.

The Indian followed his example, with this difference, that he laid aside his pipe, and drew the blanket over his head and under his feet, and wrapped it round him in such a way that he resembled a man sewed up in a sack.

Heywood was thus compelled to shut his sketch-book; so he also wrapped himself in his blanket, and was soon sound asleep.

The camp-fire gradually sank low. Once or twice the end of a log fell, sending up a bright flame and a shower of sparks, which, for a few seconds, lighted up the scene again and revealed the three slumbering figures. But at last the fire died out altogether, and left the encampment in such thick darkness that the sharpest eye would have failed to detect the presence of man in that distant part of the lone wilderness.

MOSQUITOES--CAMP-FIRE TALK.

"Come, Jasper," said he, looking up into his companion's grave countenance, "although we have been many weeks on this journey now, you have not yet told me what has brought you here, or what the end of your trip is going to be."

"I've come here a-hunting," said Jasper, with the look and tone of a man who did not wish to be questioned.

"Nay, now, I know that is not the reason," said Heywood, smiling; "you could have hunted much nearer home, if you had been so minded, and to as good purpose. Come, Jasper, you know I'm your friend, and that I wish you well. Let me hear what has brought you so far into the wilderness-- mayhap I can give you some good advice if you do."

"Well, lad, I don't mind if I do. Though, for the matter of good advice, I don't feel much in need of any just at this time."

Jasper shook the ashes out of his pipe, and refilled it as he spoke; then he shook his head once or twice and smiled, as if his thoughts amused him. Having lighted the pipe, he stretched himself out in a more comfortable way before the blaze, and said--

"Well, lad, I'll tell ye what it is--it's the old story; the love of woman has brought me here."

"And a very good old story it is," returned Heywood, with a look of interest. "A poor miserable set of creatures we should be without that same love of woman. Come, Jasper, I'm glad to hear you're such a sensible fellow. I know something about that subject myself. There's a pretty blue-eyed girl, with golden hair, down away in Canada that--" Heywood stopped short in his speech and sighed.

"Come, it ain't a hopeless case, is it?" said Jasper, with a look of sympathy.

"I rather fear it is; but I hope not. Ah, what should we do without hope in this world?"

"That's true," observed Jasper, with much gravity, "we could not get on at all without hope."

"But come, Jasper," said the artist, "let's hear about your affair, and I'll tell you about mine some other time."

"Well, there is not much to tell, but I'll give ye all that's of it. You must know, then, that about two years ago I was in the service of the Hudson's Bay Company, at one o' their outposts in the McKenzie's River district. We had little to eat there and little to do, and I felt so lonesome, never seein' a human bein' except the four or five men at the fort an' a few Indians, that I made up my mind to quit. I had no reason to complain o' the Company, d'ye see. They always treated me handsomely, and it was no fault o' theirs that the livin' in that district was poor and the post lonesome.

"Well, on my way down to Lake Winnipeg, I fell in with a brigade o' boats goin' to the Saskatchewan district, and we camped together that night. One o' the guides of the Saskatchewan brigade had his daughter with him. The guide was a French-Canadian, and his wife had been a Scotch half-caste, so what the daughter was is more than I can tell; but I know what she looked like. She just looked like an angel. It wasn't so much that she was pretty, but she was so sweet, and so quiet lookin', and so innocent! Well, to cut the matter short, I fell in love at once. D'ye know what it is, Heywood, to fall in love at first sight?"

"Oh! don't I?" replied the artist with sudden energy.

"An' d'ye know," continued Jasper, "what it is to be fallen-in-love-with, at first sight?"

"Well, no, I'm not so sure about that," replied Heywood sadly.

"I do, then," said Jasper, "for that sweet critter fell in love with me right off--though what she saw in me to love has puzzled me much. Howsoever, she did, and for that I'm thankful. Her name is Marie Laroche. She and I opened our minds to each other that night, and I took the guide, her father, into the woods, and told him I wanted his daughter; and he was agreeable; but he would not hear of my takin' her away then and there. He told me I must go down to Canada and get settled, and when I had a house to put his daughter in, I was to come back into the wilderness here and be married to her, and then take her home--so here I am on my way to claim my bride. But there's one thing that puzzles me sorely."

"What is that?" asked Heywood.

"I've never heard from Marie from that day to this," said Jasper.

"That is strange," replied the other; "but perhaps she cannot write."

"That's true. Now, you speak of it, I do believe she can't write a line; but, then, she might have got some one to write for her."

"Did you leave your address with her?"

"How could I, when I had no address to leave?"

"But did you ever send it to her?"

"No, I never thought of that," said Jasper, opening his eyes very wide. "Come, that's a comfort--that's a good reason for never havin' heard from her. Thankee, lad, for putting me up to it. And, now, as we must be up and away in another hour, I'll finish my nap."

So saying, Jasper put out his pipe and once more drew his blanket over him. Heywood followed his example, and while he lay there gazing up at the stars through the trees, he heard the worthy hunter muttering to himself, "That's it; that accounts for my not hearin' from her."

A sigh followed the words, very soon a snore followed the sigh, and ere many minutes had passed away, the encampment was again buried in darkness and repose.

JOURNEYING IN THE WILDERNESS.

It seemed to Heywood that he had not been asleep more than five minutes, when he was aroused by Jasper laying his heavy hand on his shoulder. On rubbing his eyes and gazing round him, he found that the first streak of dawn was visible in the eastern sky, that the canoe was already in the water, and that his companions were ready to embark.

It is usually found that men are not disposed to talk at that early hour. Heywood merely remarked that it was a fine morning, to which Jasper replied by a nod of his head. Nothing more was said. The artist rolled up his blanket in a piece of oiled-cloth, collected his drawing materials and put them into their bag, got into his place in the centre of the canoe, and immediately went to sleep, while Jasper and the Indian, taking their places in the bow and stern, dipped the paddles into the water and shot away from the shore. They looked mysterious and ghostly in the dim morning light; and the whole scene around them looked mysterious and ghostly too, for the water in the lake seemed black, and the shores and islands looked like dark shadows, and a pale thin mist rolled slowly over the surface of the water and hung overhead. No sound was heard except the light plash of the paddles as the two backwoodsmen urged their little canoe swiftly along.

Then the yellow hue of sunrise came, a good while before the sun himself rose. The last of the bright stars were put out by the flood of light, and multitudes of little birds on shore began to chirp their morning song; and who can say that this was not a hymn of praise to God, when, in the Holy Bible itself, in the 150th Psalm, we find it written, "Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord."

At last the sun burst forth in all his golden glory. Water, earth, and sky glowed as if they had been set on fire. What a blessed influence the sun has upon this world! It resembles the countenance of a loving father beaming in upon his family, driving away clouds, and diffusing warmth and joy.

The birds were now all astir together, insomuch that the air seemed alive with them. There are small white gulls, with red legs and red beaks, in those large inland lakes, just as there are on the ocean. These began to utter their sweet wild cries so powerfully that they almost drowned the noise of all the rest. Yet the united chorus of the whole was not harsh. It was softened and mellowed by distance, and fell on the ears of the two hunters as pleasantly as the finest music does in the ears of men trained to sweet sounds from infancy.

"I had almost got to believe I was in paradise," said Heywood, as he stepped ashore.

"I often think there's a good deal of the garden of Eden still left in this world," replied Jasper, as he carried the kettle up to the level part of the rock and began to kindle a fire, while the Indian, as usual, hewed the wood. "If we could only make use of God's gifts instead of abusin' them, I do believe we might be very happy all our days."

"See there, Jasper, is one of the birds I want so much to get hold of. I want to make a drawing of him. Would you object to spend a shot on such game."

Heywood pointed as he spoke to a grey bird, about the size of a blackbird, which sat on a branch close above his head. This creature is called by the fur-traders a whisky-John, and it is one of the most impudent little birds in the world! Wherever you go throughout the country, there you find whisky-Johns ready to receive and welcome you, as if they were the owners of the soil. They are perfectly fearless; they will come and sit on a branch within a yard of your hand, when you are eating, and look at you in the most inquisitive manner. If they could speak, they could not say more plainly, "What have you got there?--give me some!" If you leave the mouth of your provision sack open they are sure to jump into it. When you are done eating they will scarcely let you six yards away before they make a dash at the crumbs; and if you throw sticks or stones at them, they will hop out of the way, but they will not take to flight!

"It would be a pity to waste powder on them critters," said Jasper, "but I'll catch one for you."

Share on: WhatsApp @Hash Facebook Tweet