THE CARIBOU
When Blake was awakened by Harding, the cold was almost unendurable,
and it cost him a determined effort to rise from the hollow he had
scraped out of the snow and lined with spruce twigs close beside the
fire. He had not been warm there, and it was significant that the snow
was dry, but sleep had brought him relief from discomfort and he had
found getting up the greatest hardship of the trying journey. In
answer to his drowsy questions, Harding said he had once or twice heard
a wolf howl in the distance, but that was all, and then lay down,
leaving Blake on guard. He sat with his back to a snowbank which
afforded some shelter and imagined from his sensations that the
temperature must be about fifty degrees below zero. The frost bit
through him, stiffening his muscles until he felt that if vigorous
movement were demanded of him he would be incapable of it, and dulling
his brain. He could not reason clearly, though he had things to
consider, and he looked about with heavy eyes, trying to forget his
physical discomfort, while his mind wandered through a maze of confused
thought.
There was a half-moon in the sky, which was pitilessly clear, for
cloudiness might have made it warmer; when the firelight sank he could
see the slender spruce trunks cutting against the silvery radiance and
the hard glitter of the snow. Everything was tinted with blue and
white, and the deathly cold colouring depressed him. Then he began to
consider their position, which was serious. They were worn out and
half-fed; their furs were ragged, and shortage of money and the
difficulty of transport had forced them to cut down their camp
equipment. Indeed, looking back on the long march, he was surprised
that they had escaped crippling frostbite, although both Benson and
Harding were somewhat lame from the strain which the use of snowshoes
puts upon the muscles of the leg. There was, moreover, a risk of this
becoming dangerous.
He imagined that it must be two hundred miles to the Hudson's Bay post
and recognized that the chances were against their reaching it; but
just then a howl rang, harsh and ominous, through the frosty air, and
with a nervous start he reached for his rifle. The wolves had scented
them, and, turning his back to the light, he spent some minutes gazing
fixedly at the glistening white patches among the straggling trees, but
could make out none of the stealthy, flitting shapes he had half
expected to see. It was encouraging that the wolves had not overcome
their timidity of the fire. Keen hunger might have driven them to an
attack, and Blake had no illusions about the result of that. However,
since the fierce brutes were not starving, they must have found
something to eat, and what a wolf could eat would feed men who were by
no means fastidious. Seeing nothing that alarmed him, Blake resumed
his musing.
Their search for the gum had proved useless and he pitied Harding, who
had staked his future upon its success. The man had not complained
much, but Blake knew what he must feel and thought with compassion of
the lonely woman who had bravely sent his comrade out and was now
waiting for him in the mean discomfort of a cheap tenement. It was not
difficult to imagine her anxiety and suspense.
Next he began to ponder his own affairs, which were not encouraging,
though he did not think he really regretted the self-sacrificing course
he had taken. His father had died involved in debt, and Blake
suspected that it had cost Challoner something to redeem the share of
his mother's property which brought him in a small income. That it had
been carefully tied up was not, he thought, enough to guard it from the
Blake extravagance and ingenuity in raising money. Afterwards the
Colonel had brought him up and sent him into the army, doing so with a
generous affection which was very different from cold charity, and
demanded some return. Then Bertram had never been jealous of the
favour shown his cousin, but had given him warm friendship, and Blake,
who was much the stronger, had now and then stood between the lad and
harm. He had done so again in Bertram's greatest need, and now he must
not grumble at the consequences.
Of late they had seemed heavier than formerly, for in tempting him
Clarke had made a telling suggestion--suppose he married? This
appeared improbable; for one thing, no girl he was likely to be
attracted by would look with favour on a man with his reputation, but
he had thought a good deal about Millicent Graham during the weary
march. He imagined that she had inherited enough of her father's
reckless character to make her willing to take a risk. She would not
have a man betray his friend for an advantage that he might gain; she
had a courage that would help her, for love's sake, to tread a
difficult path. Still, there was no reason to believe that she had any
love for him, or indeed that she thought of him except as a stranger to
whom she had, perhaps, some reason to be grateful. Resolutely breaking
off this train of thought, he threw fresh wood upon the fire and sat
shivering and making plans for the march to the factory, until Benson
relieved him. When the grey dawn broke above the trees he got up stiff
with cold and after eating his share of a very frugal breakfast
carefully examined his rifle. Though he kept it clean of superfluous
grease, there was some risk of the striker and magazine-slide freezing,
and a missfire might prove disastrous. Then he glanced up between the
branches and noticed the low, dingy sky, while he thought it was not
quite so cold.
"I'm going to look for a caribou," he said. "I'll be back by dark."
"We'll have snow," said Harding. "If there's much, you'll find it hard
to get home."
"I'd find it harder to do without breakfast and supper, which is what
may happen very soon," Blake rejoined. "One can eat the _tripe de
roche_ which grows upon the stones, but I don't know where to look for
it, and a North-West Police trooper who once tried it told me that it
made him very ill."
"Anyway, you had better take one of us along."
"With the axe?" Blake said, laughing. "It's bad enough to reach a
caribou with a rifle, and Benson's as poor a hand at stalking as I
know, while a day's rest may save you from getting a snowshoe leg. As
we haven't a sledge, it would be awkward to carry you to the factory."
They let him go, but when he reached the open his face hardened. The
sky had a threatening look, the snow was soft, and there were wolves
about, but he was comparatively safe while daylight lasted and food
must be found. During the morning he saw wolf tracks, but no sign of a
deer, and at noon sat down for a few minutes in a sheltered hollow and
managed to light the half-frozen pipe he kept in an inner pocket. He
had brought nothing to eat, since they had decided that it would be
prudent to dispense with a midday meal, and getting stiffly on his feet
by and by, he plodded from bluff to bluff throughout the afternoon.
For the most part, they were thin and the trees very small, while so
far as he could make out the country between them was covered with
slabs of rocks and stones. It was utterly empty, with no sign of life
in it, but he continued his search until the light began to fail, when
he stopped to look about.
No snow had fallen, but the sky was very thick and a stinging wind had
risen, while he would have trouble in reaching camp if his trail got
drifted up. He knew he should have turned back earlier, but there was
what seemed to be an extensive wood in front, and he could not face the
thought of returning empty-handed to his scanty, unearned supper. The
grey trees were not far away; he might reach them and make a mile or
two on the back trail before dark, though he was weary and hunger had
given him a pain in his left side.
Quickening his pace, he neared the bluff, which looked very black and
shadowy against the snow, though the latter was fading to a curious,
lifeless grey. The trees were stunted and scattered, which made it
possible for him to get through, though there were half-covered, fallen
branches which entangled his big shoes. He could see no tracks of any
animal and hardly expected to do so, but in a savage mood he held on
without much caution until he entered a belt of broken ground strewn
with rocky hillocks. Here he could not see where he was going and it
was almost dark in the hollows, but he had found that chance sometimes
favours the hunter as much as careful stalking. Stopping for breath a
moment, half way up a steep ascent, he started, for a shadowy object
unexpectedly appeared upon the summit. It was barely distinguishable
against the background of trees, but he saw the broad-tined horns in an
opening and knew it for a caribou.
There was no time to lose, since the swift creature would take flight
in an instant, and almost as he caught sight of it the rifle went up to
his shoulder. For a moment the foresight wavered across the indistinct
form, and then his numbed hands grew steady, and, trusting that nothing
would check the frost-clogged action, he pressed the trigger. He felt
the jar of the butt, a little smoke blew in his eyes, and he could make
out nothing on the crest of the ridge. It, however, seemed impossible
that he had missed and next moment he heard a heavy floundering in the
snow among the rocks above. He went up the slope at a savage run and
plunged down a precipitous hollow, on the farther side of which a
half-seen object was moving through the gloom of the trees. Stopping a
moment, he threw up the rifle and after the thin red flash the deer
staggered and collapsed.
Running on in desperate haste, he fell upon it with his hunting knife;
and then stopped, feeling strangely limp and breathless, with the long
blade dripping in his hand. Now the caribou lay dead before him, the
strain of the last few minutes made itself felt. Surprised when
exhausted and weak from want of food by an opportunity he had not
looked for, he had forced upon himself sufficient steadiness to shoot.
It had cost him an effort; the short fierce chase had tried him hard,
and now the reaction had set in. For all that, he was conscious of a
savage, exultant excitement. Here was food, and food meant life.
His first impulse was to light a fire and feast, but as he grew calmer
he began to think. He was a long way from camp and feared that if he
rested he could not force himself to resume the march. Besides, there
were the wolves to reckon with, and he could not escape if they
followed him in the dark. Prudence suggested that he should cut off as
much meat as possible, and after placing it out of reach in a tree set
off for camp at his best speed without taking any of the raw flesh to
scent the air; but this was more than he could bring himself to do.
His comrades were very hungry, and some animal might climb to the
frozen meat. It was unthinkable that he should run any risk of losing
the precious food. He decided to take as much as he could carry and
make a depot of the rest, and set to work with the hunting knife in
anxious haste.
It was now quite dark; he could not see what he was cutting, and if he
gashed his hand, which was numbed and almost useless, the wound would
not heal. Then the haft of the knife grew slippery and tough skin and
bone turned the wandering blade. It was an unpleasant business, but he
was not fastidious and he tore the flesh off with his fingers, knowing
that he was in danger while he worked. There were wolves in the
neighbourhood, and their scent for blood was wonderfully keen; it was a
question whether they would reach the spot before he had left it, and
when he stopped to clean the knife in the snow he cast a swift glance
about.
He could see nothing farther off than a fallen trunk about a dozen
yards away; beyond that the trees had faded into a sombre mass. A
biting wind wailed among them, and he could hear the harsh rustle of
the needles, but except for this there was a daunting silence. He
began to feel a horror of the lonely wood and a longing to escape into
the open, though he would be no safer there. But to give way to this
weakness would be dangerous and, pulling himself together, he went to
work more calmly.
It was difficult to reach the branches of the spruce he chose, and when
he had placed the first load of meat in safety he was tempted to
flight. Indeed, for some moments he stood irresolute, struggling to
hold his fears in subjection; and then went back for another supply.
He climbed the tree three times before he was satisfied that he had
stored enough, and afterwards gathered up as much of the flesh as he
could conveniently carry. It would soon freeze, but not before it had
left a scent that any wolf which might happen to be near could follow.
He left the wood with a steady stride, refraining from attempting a
faster pace than he could keep up, but when he had gone a mile he felt
distressed.
His load, which included the rifle, was heavy, and he had been exerting
himself since early morning. The wind was in his face, lashing it
until the cold became intolerable, the dry snow was loose, and he could
not find his outward trail. Still, he was thankful that no more had
fallen and thought he knew the quarter he must make for. Now he was in
the open, he could see some distance, for the snow threw up a dim
light. It stretched away before him, a sweep of glimmering grey, and
the squeaking crunch it made beneath his shoes emphasized the silence.
Skirting a bluff he did not remember, he stopped in alarm until a
taller clump of trees which he thought he knew caught his searching
eyes. If he were right, he must incline farther to the east to strike
the shortest line to camp, and he set off, breathing heavily and
longing to fling away his load. Cold flakes stung his face and a
creeping haze obscured his view in the direction where he expected to
find the next wood. He was within a hundred yards of the nearest trees
when he saw them and as he left the last it was snowing hard. His
heart sank as he launched out into the open, for he had now no guide,
and having neither axe nor blanket he could not make a fire and camp in
a bluff, even if he could find one. It looked as if he must perish
should he fail to reach the camp. The thought of the wolves no longer
troubled him, but when he had gone a mile or two he imagined he heard a
howl behind him and quickened his speed.
After that he had only a hazy recollection of floundering on, passing a
bluff he could not locate and here there and a white rock, while the
snow fell thicker and its surface got worse. Then, when he felt he
could go no farther, a faint glow of light broke out and he turned
towards it with a hoarse cry. An answer reached him; the light grew
brighter, and he was in among the trees. Benson met him, and in
another minute or two he flung himself down, exhausted by the fire.
"I've brought you your supper, boys," he said. "We'll have a feast
to-night."
They ate with keen appetite and afterwards went to sleep, but when they
reached the wood next morning nothing was left of the caribou except
the meat in the tree and a few clean-picked bones.