THE RAPIDS
"Give me the pack," said Raven Wing, after some little distance. Hawk
Eye placed it on the younger boy's shoulder and took the gun which he
had been carrying. Examining it to satisfy himself that it was loaded,
he dropped the barrel into the curve of his left arm. From the brow of
the gentle sloping hill they could see the river bordered by trees
through a narrow valley.
Great rocks of granite and limestone cropped out everywhere upon the
treeless prairie and were turned a pinkish hue in the glow of the
setting sun. As the sun sank lower in the west the boulders took on many
fanciful shapes.
"Not so long ago buffaloes roamed this prairie," remarked Hawk Eye. "Now
they graze further toward the land of the setting sun."
"We will have plenty of fresh meat for our evening meal," said Raven
Wing.
"Yes, we have more than enough with the prairie hens you shot and the
bear meat," chuckled Hawk Eye.
"You also killed a rabbit," added Raven Wing.
On arriving at the beach where their canoes lay, Hawk Eye unrolled the
bear hide and spread it very carefully from one bow to another.
"At sunrise," he said, "I will scrape it clean with my knife. I think it
will dry in the sun as we paddle and make a good pelt."
Raven Wing collected an armful of dry wood and started a fire. Before
long both hungry boys were enjoying a hearty meal of prairie hen and
rabbit meat. After a drink at the spring nearby, they spread their
blankets beneath a tree and went to sleep.
At sunup Hawk Eye set to work on the bear pelt while Raven Wing
re-kindled the fire and prepared their morning meal. When this was
finished, he covered the smouldering embers with fresh earth and
followed Hawk Eye to the beach. Pushing their canoes into the water,
they bent to the paddles.
[Illustration: {Brave by the campfire.}]
At this point the river was narrow. Again fallen trees blocked the
channel. At times the boys found it necessary to push them out of the
way. Progress was slow, and the sun was well up in the sky by the time
they passed the mouth of a small river called The Last Stream With
Trees.
"Fearless Bear told me the Minnesota coils like a snake. He spoke the
truth," remarked Hawk Eye. "I have already counted eight turns in less
distance than the eye can reach."
"The turns do not bother me," answered Raven Wing. "But I have heard
that there are rapids further on. They may cause us trouble."
"We will make a portage," said Hawk Eye. "We cannot trust our pelts to
the angry waters."
"Then we must unload the canoes and shoulder the packs," said Raven
Wing. "That will not be easy."
"It will be hard work," agreed Hawk Eye.
Instead of going ashore for their midday meal, the boys ate pemmican
while paddling. At sundown they ran the canoes ashore and prepared to
make camp for the night. After a hearty meal of bear meat which had been
well-cooked the day before, they rolled themselves in their blankets and
lay down for the night. For some little time they lay awake listening to
the night noises. But they were weary with paddling, and in spite of the
persistent calls of the whippoorwills, they at length fell into a sound
sleep.
Hawk Eye was the first to awaken. Seeing Raven Wing still asleep, he
quietly strode down to the river for a bath. As Raven Wing still slept
on, Hawk Eye unpacked some pemmican and ate his morning meal. Presently
Raven Wing awoke and seeing that Hawk Eye was about ready to launch the
canoes, he hurried down to the river to bathe. He would have launched
his own craft had not the elder boy wisely counseled him to first make a
hearty meal. Before long they were both out on the river.
On coming to the rapids, Hawk Eye grounded his craft on a narrow strip
of sand and unloaded. As soon as Raven Wing had placed his packs upon
the sand, Hawk Eye said;
"You and I will shoulder my canoe and carry it beyond the rapids."
Waist-high in the tumbling waters they bore it to quiet water and laid
it on the shore. When Raven Wing's canoe had been safely transported,
they returned for the packs. One by one these were carried through the
rapids without mishap. The canoes were then pushed into the water and
reloaded. Once more the boys took their seats and paddled down stream.
[Illustration: {Fishing in the river.}]