HABAKKUK GABY IS HUGGED BY A GRIZZLY--A RATTLESNAKE FOLLOWS SUIT--THE
ROCKY MOUNTAINS--THE FRAZER RIVER--WE FORM THREE EXPLORING PARTIES--I
CONSTRUCT A RAFT, AND WHAT FOLLOWED--ALL SAFE AT LAST.
We were seated round the fire discussing a hearty supper, of which
bears' flesh formed a substantial part, and Habakkuk Gaby, a Yankee,
half trapper and half gold-digger, one of our new friends, who was
seated a little way back on account of the heat, had got on the point of
his knife a huge slice, which he was eating with evident enjoyment,
though in no very refined fashion. Suddenly, from behind a neighbouring
tree, a huge monster, his size increased threefold in the gloom, darted
out towards us.
"_Un ourse_! a grizzly--a bear! a bear!" shouted out our party, one
after the other; but before any of us could rise to our feet the
creature, seizing poor Mr Gaby round the waist, began to waddle off
with him at great speed.
He had got, indeed, nearly fifty yards before we well knew what had
happened: neither, indeed, did Habakkuk himself, very clearly. He kept
shouting out--
"Let me go, you brute!--let me go, I say, or I'll--"
The bear put a stop to any further remark, and he could only shriek out
"Oh! oh! oh! Shoo--shoo--shoot!" Had anybody acted on his request he
would inevitably have been hit, as the bear kept him between himself and
our rifles. Trevor actually lifted his gun with the intention of
firing, but I drew back his arm.
"Our best chance of saving the poor fellow is to rush in and stab the
bear," I said.
Fortunately, bruin's immediate object was to get hold of the luscious
steak Gaby had been eating. Putting him down, therefore, and keeping
him pinned to the ground with his hind feet, the bear seized the steak
and began greedily to devour it. Poor Habakkuk thought this would be a
good opportunity to make his escape. No sooner, however, did he begin
to move than bruin stopped eating, and gave him a look which clearly
meant "You'd better not try that again." Gaby remained perfectly quiet
for a minute, and Stalker, Garoupe, and the Indians began moving round
to either side that they might have a better chance of hitting the bear
without killing the man. Trevor and I stood ready to fire if we had an
opportunity. Again, Habakkuk thought that he could do the bear, and,
springing up, made a leap forward; but bruin, who had just finished his
steak, was too quick for him, and seizing him round the waist, gave him
a most fearful hug. Poor Gaby's features exhibited his very natural
terror and the agony he was enduring. Uttering horrible shrieks, he
shouted out--
"Fire! fire, friends! fire! Don't mind who you hit so that you kill
this infernal brute."
I felt that something must be done to prevent such another hug, or poor
Gaby would scarcely have a chance of escape with life; so, running up, I
got within a few yards of the bear's head, when, stopping, I took a
steady aim and fired. As the monster rolled over on his back, poor Gaby
fell forward in the opposite direction. While the rest of the party
quickly despatched the bear I lifted up Habakkuk, whom I expected to
find dead. However, to my great satisfaction, he slowly opened his
eyes, and when he discovered that it was not the bear but I who was
standing over him, and that bruin was killed, he drew a deep breath, as
if to get back the wind which had been squeezed out of his body, and sat
upright.
"Well, I guess that's more than I ever went through afore, or ever wish
to go through again," he exclaimed. "It was mighty unpleasant--that it
was!"
Besides this, he said very little on the subject. As to remarking that
I had shot the bear and saved his life, that never entered his head. On
examining the bear we found that he was wretchedly thin--all skin and
bone. This was curious, as the bears we killed in the afternoon were
tolerably fat. Stalker was of opinion that he had either come from a
distance, and had no connection with them, or that he was an outcast
bear--conquered by the gentlemen, perhaps, whom we were eating.
The night passed off without any further adventure. During the first
part of it we cut up the bears' flesh into thin strips to dry in the
sun, that we might save our pemmican and more portable food as much as
possible; and then we went to sleep with our feet to the fire, for the
nights were still cold--one of the party keeping watch at a time. The
next day we moved forward, but the ground was hard and rough, and our
way lay across forests and over fallen trees, up rocky hills and across
swampy valleys, whilst the heat of the sun during the day was very
oppressive. So we encamped, rather earlier than usual, in a somewhat
rocky place. After we had arranged our camp, and as Trevor and I were
starting with our guns to kill a deer for supper, and while the rest of
the men were variously occupied, as I passed Mr Gaby, who was fast
asleep, what was my horror to see a large rattlesnake creeping slowly
from his side to his bosom! I was on the point of shouting out to
awaken him, but Stalker, who had come up, begged me to remain quiet, and
that perhaps the snake would merely crawl over the man's body and move
away. The serpent, however, had no intention of doing any such thing,
but quietly coiled itself under the Yankee's left shoulder. Had he
moved in his sleep the creature would, in a moment, have stung him in
the neck, and no human power could have saved his life. We looked on
with horror, not knowing what course to pursue. Immediately, however,
that Garoupe saw the state of the case he hurried off to the nearest
thicket, and returning with a long thin stick, told Stalker and
Swiftfoot to go in front and draw the attention of the snake to
themselves. As soon as the creature saw the men in front it raised its
head, darted out its forked tongue and shook its rattles, showing that
it was highly irritated.
Habakkuk's danger was now greatly increased, for should the noise close
to his ear awaken him, a movement of his arm might make the snake bite
him. While all of us were in a state of dread for poor Gaby, Garoupe
got behind the creature with his long stick, and, suddenly placing it
under the coiled reptile, by a dexterous movement sent it flying a dozen
paces off. A shout of satisfaction burst from our lips at Gaby's
safety. The sound awoke him, and little dreaming of the fearful danger
he had escaped, he looked up, and merely said--"Well, now! What's it
all about? Do I look so very funny?"
He was serious enough, however, when Garoupe, who had gone after the
snake and killed it with his stick, returned and exhibited it to him.
On searching about we found a number of the reptiles in holes in the
rocks and under big stones. We armed ourselves with sticks and quickly
despatched them. This we had no difficulty in doing, as they can only
spring their own length, and a smart blow on the tail at once disables
them. The first killed was three feet three inches long, and nine years
old, which we knew by the number of rattles in his tail. At supper, off
game which Trevor and I had shot, Gaby told us that he once formed one
of a party in Vermont which went out rattlesnake hunting, and that they
found a vast number of rattlesnakes in holes with their tails sticking
out; that they pulled them out by their tails, and flung them far on one
side, where they quickly were despatched. It is quite as well not to
repeat how many hundreds he declared were killed in the course of the
hunt, for Mr Gaby was not wanting in that quality so conspicuous in
others of his countrymen, of speaking without much regard to exactness--
which I candidly believe to be an infirmity, rather than a desire to
exaggerate, which is common enough amongst the uneducated classes all
over the world.
The Rocky Mountains consist of a lofty range extending from the north of
the continent to its southern end, at a distance from the Pacific of
from fifty to three hundred miles. The summits of the range are covered
with perpetual snow, and, till lately, the generally received notion was
that they formed an almost impassable barrier between the Pacific and
the interior. To the east the country is mostly level and easily
travelled over, especially the fertile belt along which we had come;
while to the west, that is, between the range and the Pacific, it is
mountainous in the extreme, as is also the case in British Columbia,
across which we were now to force our way. There are, however, numerous
passes through which roads can be cut out without much difficulty. The
surveyors, indeed, reported one of the passes to require only the trees
to be cut down to allow waggons, if not a coach and four, to be driven
through it. It is called the Vermilion Pass.
We did not take it, because the distance through a mountainous and lake
region is much greater than the pass we selected further to the north.
When, however, the settlers in British Columbia cut a road across parts
of the country, and place steamers on certain lakes and rivers, there
will be no difficulties to prevent ordinary travellers from passing from
Lake Superior, by the way of the Red River, through the Fertile Belt and
over the Rocky Mountains, to New Westminster, the capital of the
province.
We had been journeying on through forests, and should scarcely have
noticed the ascent we were making, had it not been for the increased
rapidity of the streams in our course flowing to the east, when reaching
a small lake we found that the water which flowed from it ran to the
westward, and that we were on what is called the watershed, or highest
part of the pass. Still, as we looked westward, we had range beyond
range of rocky mountains, the peaks of many covered with snow. This
region was a part of British Columbia, but it must be remembered that
between these mountains were valleys, and rivers, and lakes, and
streams, and that it was by the side of these streams and lakes we
expected to make our way across the country. I had thought, when I
first planned the expedition, that all we had to do was to climb up the
Rocky Mountains, and then to descend into well-watered plains. We found
in reality that our chief difficulties had only now begun. We had
certainly mountains to descend, but then we had also others to ascend;
we had rivers to cross and recross, either by wading or on rafts, which
we had to construct; trees to cut down, and brushwood to clear away;
recumbent trees to climb over, and rotten trees to force our way
through. Still people had done the same thing before, and Stalker and
Swiftfoot asserted that we could do it, and were ready to stake their
credit on the success of the undertaking.
We now formed fresh arrangements for crossing the country. Swiftfoot
and Quick-ear were to devote themselves to hunting, to supply us with
food. Stalker and Garoupe were to clear the way with their axes, while
Trevor, Peter, and I conducted the horses. From the summit of a high
mountain we reached, Quick-ear pointed out the hills (he said) of
Cariboo, with the Frazer flowing away towards them. That now far-famed
river has its sources in the region in which we then were. It runs
nearly north-west for a hundred and fifty miles or more, and then,
sweeping round the Cariboo region, flows due south for several hundred
miles, down to Port Hope, and then on west to New Westminster and the
sea, there being, however, some picturesquely beautiful, but practically
ugly rapids, in its course. We made good our necessary westing, but
after cutting our way to the banks of the Frazer we found that the
country was almost impracticable towards Cariboo, and that the river
swept so far round to the north of it that we should have to make a very
long voyage if we went that way. We therefore turned round, with our
faces to the southward, determined to make our way down the Thompson
River to Port Kamloops, a trading post of the Hudson's Bay Company, with
which, and the town of Lytton, then was, we knew, a constant
communication. High snowy peaks appeared more or less near on every
side, broken hills, and rounded hills, and rocks, and precipices, and
dense forests, wherever trees could find soil for their roots. The
crossing streams and small lakes caused us considerable difficulty, but
it was not so great as that we encountered when we had to cut our way,
foot by foot, through the forest. The river our horses could swim
across with ease, though they had some difficulty in getting up the
banks. Our baggage was ferried over on rafts, for forming which we had
plenty of materials at hand. Gaby was no despicable backwoodsman, and
with his sharp axe he gave us efficient help in felling trees, while he
was an adept also in fastening them together. As we advanced, however,
our difficulties increased, and game became scarce. We agreed to
separate for a few days Trevor was to take Swiftfoot and to ascertain if
any navigable stream ran towards Lake Quesnelle, as we believed that if
we could once reach its waters we could easily get to Cariboo. Stalker
and Quick-ear were to continue to hunt, and to keep up a communication
between us, while Gaby and I, accompanied by Peter and Ready, were to
make our way to the head waters of the Thompson. A camp was to be
formed in some eligible position, where pasture for the horses could be
found, and here we were to leave our heavier goods and provisions, to be
brought on in the direction which might prove most promising.
After a hurried breakfast, at daybreak we started on our respective
courses. My party of three and the dog had not got far when we came to
a broad stream, which it was necessary to cross. We quickly made a
small raft, on which two persons could sit with a portion of our goods;
we had a long line secured to it, so that the raft could be dragged
backwards and forwards, while the horses swam across. Gaby and I
crossed first, and I found the water deeper than I expected. Not
without some difficulty did we reach the opposite bank in time to help
up the horses, and to keep them together till their cargoes were again
ready for them. Peter then drew back the raft, and embarked on it with
the remainder of our provisions. He poled on the raft tolerably well
till he got into the middle of the stream, when, by some means, the
lad's foot slipped, and overboard he went, letting go his pole. He was
but a poor swimmer, and his destruction seemed certain, unless I could
manage to get him out. I was throwing off my clothes to plunge in to
his rescue, when I saw that the raft had swung round and that he had
happily caught hold of it. I did not, however, at first observe that
the rope had snapped, or got loose from its fastening, and that the raft
was drifting rapidly down the stream. After a while he got up and
seated himself composedly on it, wondering apparently what next would
happen. It took a good deal to put him out. As soon as I discovered
that the raft was really adrift, I ran along the bank, hoping that the
current would send it in either on one side or the other, but instead of
that it kept steadily in the middle, and as I looked ahead, I saw that
precipitous rocks formed the banks, over which it would not be possible
to scramble. Peter, too, turned round, and now, for the first time it
seemed, comprehended his danger. He held out his hands imploringly
towards me, crying out, "Oh, sir, oh, sir!--pray save me, save me!" The
water was icy-cold, from the rapidly melting snow, and I had some
reasonable dread of cramp. Still I was about to run every risk to save
the poor lad, when I bethought me that Ready, who had crossed with me,
would lend his aid. I told Peter to call him, and beckoned the dog to
go towards the raft. After a little hesitation, and a few sharp barks,
as if he was not quite certain what I wanted him to do, he plunged
boldly in and swam towards the raft.
Peter had meantime hauled in the slack of the rope, and coiled it neatly
down on the raft. Ready swam quickly up to the raft. He seemed clearly
to comprehend the object of his enterprise, and opening his mouth to
receive the end of the rope, which Peter put into it, swam triumphantly
back towards the shore. I gave him an approving pat, as he landed, and
taking the rope, with Gaby's aid, I began to haul the raft towards the
land. At length I got it safely to shore, where we landed the freight,
and securing the raft, ready for our return, we pushed on towards the
south. We encamped at night by the side of the river, which we believed
ran into the Thompson.
As we sat round our camp fire, I became better acquainted with Mr Gaby
and the very high opinion which he entertained of his own talents and
powers. He informed me that he intended to settle in British Columbia,
as he hoped to rise to the highest position if he did.
"I guess your Queen will be a lucky woman if she gets me as her subject
to manage her affairs out here. I'm in no wise prejudiced. I'm a free
and independent citizen of the greatest republic the world ever knew;
but nevertheless I'm ready to give my services to any one who is able
and willing to pay me properly."