THE STORY OF AN ALASKAN TRIP
When the Bobolinks reached the house, they found the veranda occupied by
the Blue Birds, who sat in a semi-circle about three ladies in rocking
chairs--Mrs. Talmage, Aunt Selina, and Mrs. Catlin. The latter had a
roll of paper in her lap, and evidently had been explaining something to
the audience.
"Oh, boys, you're just in time!" cried Ruth.
"Mrs. Catlin's got her story all written for our magazine, and she was
just going to read it," explained Dot.
"May we hear it?" asked Ned, for the Bobolinks.
"Why, certainly. Sit right down on the steps," said Mrs. Catlin.
As soon as the boys were comfortable, she continued:
"I was about seventeen when I read the exciting tales of gold in
California and the wealth to be obtained in Seattle--a town that was
boomed in a night. I knew my father would never consent to my leaving
home, so I said nothing, but pawned my watch and ring, drew my savings
from the bank, and raised enough money to pay my way West. I worked part
of my way, and stole rides on freight cars part of the way, until I
found myself in Seattle. I was not particular where I went as long as it
was in the West. Well, in Seattle I found that the fever of gold mining
in Alaska was reaching a boiling point, and every steamer bound for
Sitka was already overloaded, but I managed in some way to steal aboard
and hide until the captain could not turn me off. I had to do some
awfully dirty work, however, and had very little to eat.
"We arrived at Sitka, and there I spent some more of my money for a
passage to Juneau City. There I landed with forty dollars left in my
pockets. Ten of this was paid out for a hard bed and some scanty food,
and I soon feared that I would be left without a cent unless I started
somewhere for the gold mines. I heard all kinds of stories about the
gold found up on the Yukon River, so I found a shed where outfits were
sold, and paid twenty dollars for an outfit that was said to be all I
would need. I still had a few dollars left when I started on the road,
with my outfit strapped to my back, visions of finding millions of
dollars' worth of gold always before my eyes.
"I walked along a trail that seemed to be well traveled, and felt glad
to get away from the drink-sodden town. I had tramped for hours, when
the outfit began to rub painfully on my back. I was hungry, too, for the
food given me at the eating-houses was unfit to eat. In buying my
outfit, I added a strip of bacon and a loaf of black bread, so I decided
to rest for a bit and have my dinner.
"The country, as far as I could see, was very beautiful, so I sat down
beside the trail and dropped my pack. I took out the tiny frying pan and
cut some bacon into it. I gathered some sticks, and then tried to light
one of the matches that was in the waterproof box, but it merely
sputtered and went out. I used so many matches in this way that I became
nervous lest the supply give out. Finally I ate my bread and bacon as it
was, and was about to strap the outfit together again when I spied a
caravan leaving the town several miles beyond the point where I sat. I
was so interested in watching the long line, as it lengthened out along
the trail, that I forgot how soon night comes down in this country. I
had no plans for the night, and expected to go much farther before I
struck camp. When the caravan had come halfway the distance from town
toward me, I picked up my pack and started on.
"I found the pack dreadfully heavy this time, and had to rest several
times. I was thus resting on a large rock when the caravan passed me.
"The sledges were piled high with camp equipment. At the end of the line
was a cumbersome-looking affair that was covered with canvas and drawn
by four horses. A grizzled man drove these horses, and seemed intent
upon his job.
"So interested was I in watching them go by that I was startled when one
of the men in the sledge called to me:
"'Hello, Kid! What are you doing--picking flowers?'
"A number of the men laughed, but the younger one who sat with the man
in the sledge shouted: 'Want to join us as far as your road lies? This
is no place for a boy to travel alone. Beasts on two and four legs are
too powerful about here.'
"I felt an irresistible desire to join them, but they never stopped.
However, taking it for granted that they wanted me or they wouldn't have
spoken, I ran after the caravan and tried to keep up with them. The pack
grew heavier every moment, and at last I decided to give it up. Just
then one of the leading horses of the four stumbled down upon his knees.
"This caused a halt while the driver got down and examined the horse. I
had the opportunity that I needed, so I took a deep breath and shouted,
at the same time running as fast as my weary legs would carry me.
"'How are you comin'?' asked the driver.
"'Coming!' I cried, so tired I could have wept. 'Why, I've been coming
ever since the man asked me.'
"'Some run, eh?' asked the old man, smiling.
"'Didn't they mean it?' I asked, in a tremble lest I be left again.
"'Guess so. Don't believe they gave you another thought. But, now that
you're here, you kin sit with me,' said the man gruffly, as I thought,
while he rubbed the skinned knee with whale-oil.
"I climbed up and sat in the seat beside the driver. He gathered the
reins together and started the horses again before he spoke another
word.
"'Kid, I watched you runnin' after this crew, and I jus' said to mysel',
"Old Hal, keep an eye on that kid and see what stuff he's made of." I
reckon you'll win out, even if this brazen outfit loses. I'm goin' to
take a likin' to ye, kid, d'ye hear that!' grinned the old man, as he
chirked to the horses.
"I sat still and pondered what he said.
"'Thar ain't many men as kin say that Old Hal the Guide took a likin' to
'em, kid,' he continued, watching the trail where his horses stepped.
"I had overheard the men at the town talking about a guide called 'Old
Hal,' and the conjectures as to how much the swell outfit had to pay him
to get him to take charge of their expedition.
"I felt unduly elated at hearing the man address me so comradely, and I
decided to be as friendly as I could.
"'What's the great hulk under this canvas?' I asked, nodding my head
toward the load back of us.
"'Hulk! You're right, sonny, it is a great big hulk. These men from the
East think they know a lot about goin' on a expedition like this--they
git their learnin' from the books. But I could have saved 'em heaps of
money hed they consulted me fust. Now, this pertickler hulk is dead
trash! _They_ call 'em canoes, but the fust little jolt one of 'em gits
in the end of its nose--down she goes!'
"'Canoes, eh?' I said wonderingly.
"'How many did yeh bring in yer outfit?' asked Hal, nudging me in the
ribs.
"'I may have all of those to take care of if you don't watch the
horses,' I growled.
"'Right choo are, kid! Did yeh ever hear the verse, "From the mouths of
babes, etc."? Guess yeh didn't know I ever read Scripter, did yeh?'
laughed the old man.
"'Guess you don't or you wouldn't joke that way about such a good Book,'
I replied.
"'Right choo are agin, kid! My, but you are a lucky find fer Hal to
have. Jus' fancy all the fun we will have durin' the long winter
nights,' said the guide, in a conciliatory tone.
"'Hope so! If I ever get the chance to show you that I am thankful for
this help, I surely will,' I said, full of gratitude that I was not
dragging my feet along the tiresome trail at that very moment.
"'Now, that's the kind of a heart to have--one that kin thank a feller
without feelin' 'shamed to show his colors! I see where you and me are
goin' to make a fine team!' said Hal.
"After some silence, the old man asked: 'Where'er yeh bound fer,
anyway?'
"'Don't know--just going out to find gold,' I said.
"He turned square around and stared at me for a few moments, then
gasped: 'Father an' mother dead?'
"I had to gulp hard before I could answer this question, then I said:
'No. Had my own money in the bank, and so I just came.'
"'How fer?' he asked abruptly.
"'All the way from New York state. I worked my way out and worked part
of my way on the Seattle boat,' I said, with great pride in my
achievement.
"'Why, yeh little fool!' cried the irate guide.
"'What's the matter?'
"'An' I s'pose yeh hev ben payin' fer full board an' keep to yer mother
ever sence yeh wuz borned, eh?' scoffed Hal.
"I was silent. I was looking at the matter from a new point of view.
"'S'pose yer pa an' ma was on'y too glad to git yeh out'en the way, eh?'
he continued.
"Again I had to gulp when I thought of my mother.
"'I see the hull fool thing. Yeh jus' went crazy readin' trashy papers,
an' yeh run away widdout tellin' a soul, 'cause yeh knew they wouldn't
let yeh come otherwise.'
"I marveled at how close he had come to the truth.
"'Well, yer here, kid, an' I s'pose Old Hal's got to see yeh through wit
it, so thet worritin' mother of yourn'll see yeh agin, some day.' And he
swung the whip over the horses' heads with a crack that saved me from
his ire.
"We came to a bad grade then, and Old Hal had to keep a wary eye on the
trail, for the horses were not as sure-footed as the dogs and deer.
"It must have been four o'clock before we halted. The air was growing
colder as we advanced, and I was glad enough to open my pack for a chunk
of bread and a slice of bacon.
"'Hist, kid, stow that away!' whispered Hal, as he began to unhitch the
horses for the night.
"In a short time the two men from the sledge came up.
"'Hello, youngster! You did come, after all, didn't you?' said the older
man.
"As the supper was being cooked by an Indian guide, I was welcomed in
the circle sitting about a blazing fire and asked about myself. To each
question I replied truthfully, and wondered at the smiles and surprise
shown at my answers.
"One of the two men who owned the expedition turned to the old guide
after a time and said: 'Hal, what shall we do with the kid? Send him
back home?'
"'If 'twere me, I'd give him his fill. He'll be safe enough wid us, an'
we kin git heaps of work outen him; but he'll never 'mount to nothin' ef
yeh send him home, 'cause he'll allus think of the gold he might have
got,' said Hal astutely.
"'Guess you've hit the nail on the head, Hal,' laughed the younger man,
as he looked at me.
"So I became a member of the Yukon Gold Expedition, under the management
of John Herrick and Julius Dwight, engineers.
"We traveled over hundreds of miles of snow, for we were trying to reach
a certain trail that Old Hal knew, before the thaw set in.
"We did not quite get there, however, before the general thaw struck us.
Then the canoes were needed. I had wondered why we delayed our traveling
to cart those canoes with us, for there were no streams or lakes to
cross, but the moment the thaw set in it seemed that every piece of ice
and snow in the North was turning to water. Instead of trails, we had to
travel by green-blue rivers, or over deep, dark seas.
"Well, after losing one canoe and two of the Indians, Old Hal hit his
trail and led us up toward the mountains.
"All of that short summer was passed in the usual work of prospecting:
digging, panning, washing, or testing for gold. Permanent camp had been
built by the men, and a number of Indian servants took precaution that
every emergency should be provided for in case of a hard, long winter.
Every kind of edible bird or beast was trapped and prepared for food,
while the skins and pelts of animals were cured and made into garments
and covers.
"I was the youngest in camp, so I was known as the 'Kid,' and Old Hal
took the office of guardian toward me from the first and ordered me
about--always for my good, be it known--and kept a watchful eye over my
doings and the men I happened to work with.
"Toward the end of the short summer we struck a rich vein of gold!
"I shall never forget the change in everyone's character the moment the
gold was discovered in the shining sand. Some became savages, others
grew crafty and cunning, and Old Hal had his hands full to keep
discipline in the camp. Dwight and Herrick saw the tendency of their
hired men to mutiny against Hal and themselves, and perhaps jump the
claim when the owners were out of the way, but they were farsighted men,
and Hal was no greenhorn in handling Esquimo and half-breed Indians.
"A large tract of land on both sides of the creek was staked off and a
diagram of the area carefully drawn by Herrick, to be filed in the
office at Forty-Mile Station, where a legal land-office was maintained
by the government.
"As it was most necessary to file this claim before winter came on, a
conference was held between Hal and the two engineers. Hal said he could
easily make the trip to Forty-Mile and back again before winter froze
everything solid, so he was ordered to take a canoe, with two of the
mutinous men, and start immediately. Two dogs were placed in the canoe,
in case they would be needed for sledging, and a store of food and pelts
were packed under the seats. At the last moment, Hal was led to take his
own canoe, which he had made that summer, and ask for my company. I was
delighted to know I could accompany my old friend, so one of the dogs
and a sledge were placed in Hal's canoe, and but one of the men got in,
while I was placed in the other canoe, with the other man.
"We started in good order and made quick time. We had no route, map, or
survey, for there were none in those days, but Hal knew every foot of
the way, unless unusual conditions prevailed. We made camp that night,
and rested, all unmindful of the plot the two mutinous men were hatching
against us to get possession of the claim papers.
"In the morning, after an early breakfast, we started, and had gone but
a short distance before our canoes ran out of the stream into a broad
expanse of water that was unfamiliar to Hal.
"He looked carefully around for some landmark to guide him, and saw,
some miles further on, what he believed to be a blazed spot. So he
directed his man to paddle for that place.
"When Hal was about ten feet in advance of us, and as I sat in the stern
of our canoe, I saw the man paddling our canoe suddenly raise a
rifle--where he got it no one knows--take aim, and shoot. It was all
done so quickly that I could scarcely move. Hal always held his revolver
ready to enforce obedience from his men, and the moment I heard the shot
I saw his arm jerk spasmodically and his revolver fly out and fall in
the bottom of the canoe. At the same time I tore my revolver out of my
belt and covered the man who had shot.
"I was so occupied in this that I had no time to see what Hal was doing,
but I heard him yell: 'Go overboard this second or I'll shoot you dead!'
"I immediately followed suit, and cried: 'Go overboard, and swim ashore,
or I'll shoot you!'
"The man sat and stared at me for a moment, as he never dreamed I had
the spirit to do what I had. I was so nervous, and my heart seemed to
bulge out in my throat so that I could hardly swallow. The man still sat
and looked at his pal, who had jumped overboard and was swimming for
shore. I never knew how it happened, for I had no idea of shooting him,
but in that moment that he turned his look from me to his pal my fingers
twitched with dread, and the revolver rang forth its shot, and the
fellow fell into the water. I was so frightened that I clung to the neck
of the dog and hid my eyes. Meantime, the fellow who was swimming saw
what had occurred, and went under water to escape being shot.
"Soon Hal had his canoe alongside, and said: 'Step in here, Kid.'
"My canoe was fastened to the other one, and the transfer made without
further mishap. I looked about for the swimmer, but could see nothing of
him. He might have drowned or gone ashore.
"We managed to travel pretty well until night, when we again camped on
shore, but Hal seemed worried at the strangeness of the land.
"After a few days' futile seeking for the trail, we felt a sudden chill
in the air. Hal was concerned, and sought in every direction for some
familiar object.
"We made camp one night while the dogs sniffed ravenously about for
food, for our stock had run so low that Hal had to economize to make it
last another day. The next morning I awoke to find snow blowing in every
direction. The change was so unlooked for that I rubbed my eyes to make
sure I was awake.
"'Well, Kid, this settles our trip to Forty-Mile for some time,'
admitted Hal forlornly.
"'What do you mean, Hal?' I asked.
"'If we don't make camp quick, we'll be caught in the cold and frozen.
If I was alone, I'd try to make some Esquimo hut or die, but havin' you
I can't take a chance.' Hal's manner of speech had improved a great
deal during his intercourse with cultured men, and I took note of it as
he spoke--such queer things will impress one when a sudden calamity
presents itself.
"That morning Hal set me to cutting down some small trees. He said he
would take the sledge and the dogs and try to find the trail. I begged
him not to leave me alone, and he promised that this would be the last
effort if he was unsuccessful.
"I felt the terrible fear of being alone in this wilderness all winter,
but I kept busy chopping down trees. All day long I worked and prayed,
and before dark settled down I rejoiced to see Hal coming back. I could
tell in a moment that he had not found any trail, so I said nothing.
"That night Hal saw all the signs of winter breaking upon us, and he
worked fast and furious to make camp so that we might survive the cold
months.
"In his search the day before, he had found a stream whose banks were
well covered with sheltering pines. Here he proposed to build a hut.
While, with the help of the dogs, he hauled the small logs I had cut to
the stream, I was ordered to fish and hunt for all the supplies I could
gather before the waters froze solid.
"I went to work with a forlorn hope of ever living to see another year,
but the fish were plentiful, and the task of preparing them for winter
use kept me from thinking too much.
"Hal set traps for animals, and this game we skinned; the meat we dried
and the pelts we hoped to use in the winter. The fats I dried out and
kept in a skin pouch Hal made. Some of the game could not be eaten, so
we used that for bait.
"Hal built a rude log hut about eight feet wide, with a smoke hole at
the top. The wide chinks were plastered full of clay from the
river-bank. A door was made of split logs and fastened together with
rope and strips of skin. We had brought no nails or screws, and had to
use whatever came to hand. The hinges of the door were made of tough
strips of hide and fastened to the logs with some nails Hal took out of
the sledge.
"A rude fire-bowl was made in the center of the hut and some flint-rock
carefully placed in a chink in the wall. The hut completed, Hal felt
relieved, for the winter seemed to hold off for our benefit.
"We chopped wood, and stacked it on one side of the wall, inside, and
then started to pile up more on the outside near the door. Some of our
food was buried in a pit just outside the hut, but Hal hung all there
was room for to the logs of the roof.
"We were feeling quite contented one night, when Hal remarked: 'Kid,
she's comin' down on us. I kin tell by the queer sounds through those
pines.'
"'Let her come. We are ready,' I laughed.
"'All but the beds. I'll have to go out now and bring in those balsam
branches I have been savin' all these days.'
"That night we slept upon our fresh balsam beds. When I rose I could not
have told whether it was twilight or dawn. The blizzard howled outside,
but Hal had a cheerful fire cracking inside."