ESCAPE TO UPPERNAVIK--LETTER FROM HOME--MEETUCK'S GRANDMOTHER--DUMPS AND
POKER AGAIN.
For three long weeks the shipwrecked mariners were buffeted by winds and
waves in open boats, but at last they were guided in safety through all
their dangers and vicissitudes to the colony of Uppernavik. Here they
found several vessels on the point of setting out for Europe, one of
which was bound for England; and in this vessel the crew of the
_Dolphin_ resolved to ship.
Nothing of particular interest occurred at this solitary settlement
except _one_ thing, but that one thing was a great event, and deserves
very special notice. It was nothing less than the receipt of a letter
by Fred from his cousin Isobel! Fred and Isobel, having been brought up
for several years together, felt towards each other like brother and
sister.
Fred received the letter from the pastor of the settlement shortly after
landing, while his father and the captain were on board the English brig
making arrangements for their passage home. He could scarcely believe
his eyes when he beheld the well-known hand, but, having at last come to
realise the fact that he actually held a real letter in his hand, he
darted behind one of the curious, primitive cottages to read it. Here
he was met by a squad of inquisitive natives; so, with a gesture of
impatience, he rushed to another spot; but he was observed and followed
by half a dozen Esquimaux boys, and in despair he sought refuge in the
small church near which he chanced to be. He had not been there a
second, however, when two old women came in, and, approaching him, began
to scan him with critical eyes. This was too much, so Fred thrust the
letter into his bosom, darted out, and was instantly surrounded by a
band of natives, who began to question him in an unknown tongue. Seeing
that there was no other resource, Fred turned him round and fled towards
the mountains at a pace that defied pursuit, and, coming to a halt in
the midst of a rocky gorge that might have served as an illustration of
what chaos was, he sat him down behind a big rock to peruse Isobel's
letter.
Having read it, he re-read it; having re-read it, he read it over again.
Having read it over again, he meditated a little, exclaiming several
times emphatically: "My _darling_ Isobel," and then he read bits of it
here and there; having done which, he read the _other_ bits, and so got
through it again. As the letter was a pretty long one it took him a
considerable time to do all this; then it suddenly occurred to him that
he had been thus selfishly keeping it all to himself instead of sharing
it with his father, so he started up and hastened back to the village,
where he found old Mr Ellice in earnest confabulation with the pastor
of the place. Seizing his parent by the arm, Fred led him into a room
in the pastor's house, and, looking round to make sure that it was
empty, he sought to bolt the door, but the door was a primitive one and
had no bolt, so Fred placed a huge old-fashioned chair against it, and,
sitting down therein, while his father took a seat opposite, he unfolded
the letter, and, yet once again, read it through.