more arrivals—honesty—indians come upon the scene—the tribes reconciled—disease and death change the aspect of things—philosophic discourse.
a day or two after the successful deer-hunt above related, several bands of esquimaux arrived at fort chimo, and encamped beside their comrades. this unusual influx of visitors soon exhausted the venison that had been procured; but hunting parties were constantly on the alert, and as game of all kinds was plentiful, they lived in the midst of abundance. to all of these stanley made small presents of beads and tobacco, and recommended them strongly to go and hunt for furs. but they seemed to like their quarters, and refused to move. the new arrivals, along with those who had first come, formed a band of about three hundred, and were found, almost without exception, to be a quiet, inoffensive, and honest people.
as a proof of this latter quality, we may mention a circumstance that occurred a few days after the arrival of the last band. being desirous of taking some additional soundings, stanley launched his boat by the help of the esquimaux, for his own men were all absent hunting and fishing. the boat referred to had been sent to the fort in the ship, and was a most useful and acceptable gift from the governor of the fur company to the gentleman in charge of ungava. stanley hoisted his sails, and prepared to run down the river; but ere he had advanced a hundred yards, he was startled by a burst of loud cries from the shore, and, looking back, he observed the whole band of natives pouring like a torrent into the fort! his heart leaped within him as he thought of his unprotected wife and child. turning the boat towards the shore, he ran it on the beach, and, leaving it with all the sails standing, he rushed into the square of the fort, forcing his way through the crush of natives, whose vociferous talking rendered what they said, for a time, unintelligible. at length moses forced his way through the crowd, followed by one of the natives, who led a large dog by a line fastened round its neck.
“what’s the matter, moses? what’s wrong?” cried stanley.
“oh, not’ing at all,” replied moses, casting a look of pity at his countrymen. “dem are great gooses. die man here wid de dog, him say dat de child’n was play in de square of dis fort, an’ one o’ dem trow stone and broke a window. it was de son ob dis man what do it, an’ him say he most awful sorry—an’ all de people sorry, so dey bring de dog to pay for de broken window.”
“i’m glad it’s nothing worse,” cried stanley, much relieved. “tell them i’m happy to find they are sorry, and i hope they will keep the children out of the square in future; but i don’t want the dog. it was an accident, and not worth making such a noise about.”
the esquimaux, however, would not agree to look upon this accident as a light matter. they said truly, that glass was not to be got so easily as the ice-blocks with which they formed windows to their own winter houses, so they insisted on the dog being accepted; and at length stanley gave in, but took care that the native who gave it should not be a loser in consequence of his honesty. moreover, stanley begged of them to send up several of their best dogs, saying that he would purchase them, as he was in want of a team for hauling the winter firewood.
next day, while stanley was engaged in the trading store with a party of esquimaux, he was surprised by hearing a volley of musketry fired at the back of the fort. snatching up a loaded gun as he ran hastily out, he found that the shots had been fired by a band of indians as a salute to the fort on their arrival.
this was the first time that indians had made their appearance since the arrival of the fur-traders; and their advent at the present time was most fortunate, as it afforded stanley an opportunity of commencing his negotiations as peacemaker in the presence of a considerable band of both parties. the indians, fifteen in number, were all clothed, with the exception of their chief, in deerskin hunting shirts, ornamented moccasins of the same material, and cloth leggings. they wore no head-dress, but their long, straight, black hair was decorated with feathers and small metallic ornaments, among which were several silver thimbles. their powder-horns and shot-pouches were gaily ornamented with bead and quill work; and they were all armed with long guns, on which they leaned as they stood silently, in a picturesque group, on the flat, rocky platform above the spring, which has been more than once alluded to.
this platform overlooked the fort, and was a favourite promenade of the traders. at present it formed a sort of neutral ground, on which the indians took their stand. the red men were overawed by the very superior number of the esquimaux, and felt that they were safe only so long as they stood on the flat rock, which was the only path leading to the ravine, through which, if need be, they could easily escape into the mountains.
the chief of the indians, unlike his fellows, was dressed in a costume of the most grotesque and brilliant character, and, certainly, one which, however much it might raise the admiration of his savage companions, did not add to his dignity in the eyes of the traders. he wore a long, bright scarlet coat, richly embroidered with gold lace, with large cuffs, and gilt buttons; a pair of blue cloth trousers, and a vest of the same material; a broad worsted sash, and a hat in the form of the ordinary beaver or silk hat of europe. the material, however, was very coarse; but this was made up for by the silver, and gilt cords, and tassels with which it was profusely decorated. he evidently felt his own importance, and stood with a calm, dignified gaze, waiting to be addressed.
hailing ma-istequan, who leaned on the axe with which he had been cutting firewood when the volley of the indians arrested him, stanley bade him invite them to enter the fort.
“we cannot come down,” replied the chief, after ma-istequan had given the invitation. “the eskimos are in numbers like the stars; we are few. if the pale-faces are our friends, let them come up here and take us by the hand and bring us down.”
“very reasonable,” said stanley to frank, who stood beside him; “we must take care that the esquimaux do not take advantage of their numbers to avenge their ancient wrongs.”
then, turning to the natives, who had now crowded in large numbers into the fort, stanley addressed them in a serious tone; told them that the time had now come when he hoped to reconcile the innuit and the allat (esquimau name for indians) together; and that he expected they would show their gratitude for his many kindnesses to them by treating the indians, who were his friends, with hospitality. the esquimaux promised obedience, after which stanley ascended to the promenade, and taking the indian chief by the hand, led him towards the fort, followed by the whole band in single file.
it is not necessary to detail the speeches that followed on both sides on this occasion, and the eloquence that was expended that evening in the cause of peace. suffice it to say that the indians and esquimaux shook hands and exchanged gifts in the presence of the assembled garrison of fort chimo. but although the traders had reason to congratulate themselves on having so far succeeded in the establishment of peace, they could not conceal from themselves the fact that while, on the one hand, the esquimaux appeared to be perfectly sincere and cordial in their professions, on the other hand the indians evinced a good deal of taciturnity at first, and even after their reserve was overcome, seemed to act as men do who are constrained to the performance of a distasteful action.
in general character, the indians of labrador do not contrast well with the esquimaux—at least this may with truth be said of those who afterwards became attached to the district of ungava. the indian is reserved and taciturn, while the esquimau is candid, frank, and communicative. of course there are exceptions on both sides.
on the evening of the same day, stanley had much difficulty in overcoming the reserve of the indians, so as to procure information regarding the interior; and it was not until their hearts were opened by the influence of tobacco, that they condescended to give the required information. this was to the effect that there were not many fur-bearing animals in the immediate vicinity of ungava, but that there were a good many in the wooded country lying to the southward and eastward. here, however, the indians do not care to hunt, preferring rather to keep to the heights of land, and near the coast, where the deer are numerous. in fact, stanley afterwards found that the facility with which the indians procured deer in this part of the country was a serious drawback to the fur trade, as they contented themselves with trapping just enough of otters, foxes, etcetera, to enable them to procure a supply of ammunition with which to hunt the deer.
the indians had brought a few beaver and other furs to trade, and, after receiving a good meal and a few presents, they took up their quarters on a plot of ground close to the fort. here they lived a short time in perfect friendship with the esquimaux, visiting them, and hunting in company; but more than once they exhibited their natural disposition by stealing the goods of their neighbours. on one occasion, two esquimau children were missed from the camp, and in the course of the day they returned to their parents clothed in indian costume! this was a very polite piece of attention on the part of the indians, but the effect of it was much marred, the same day, by the abstraction of a knife from an esquimau tent. stanley insisted on the article being restored, and severely reprimanded the offender. but, although the general harmony of the camp was sometimes broken by such events, the friendship between the two parties seemed to be gradually increasing, and stanley saw with satisfaction that the allat and the innuit bade fair to become fast friends for the future.
but an event occurred at this time which put an end to their intercourse, and very much altered the aspect of affairs. for some time past the men at the fort had been subject to rather severe attacks of cold, or a species of influenza. this they unfortunately communicated to the esquimaux, who seemed to be peculiarly susceptible of the disease. being very fat and full-blooded, it had the most dreadful effect on the poor creatures, and at a certain stage almost choked them. at last one night it was reported that ten of their number had died from absolute suffocation. all of these had been strong and robust, and they died after two days’ illness.
one of those who were attacked was edith’s little friend, arnalooa, and just before the ten esquimaux died, edith had gone down to the camp with a present of beads to console her. she found her much better, and, after talking to her for some time, she took her leave, promising to pay her another visit next day. true to her promise, edith sallied forth after breakfast with a little native basket on her arm. about half an hour afterwards, while stanley was sitting in the hall with his wife and frank, they were startled by the sudden appearance of edith, out of breath from the speed with which she had run home, and her face overspread with a deadly paleness.
“what is the matter, my darling?” cried her mother, starting up in alarm.
“oh! the esquimaux are lying dead on the sand,” gasped edith, as she laid her head on her mother’s breast, “and the rest are all gone.”
without waiting to hear more, frank and stanley took down their guns and hastened to the camp. here a scene of the most horrible kind presented itself. the whole camp exhibited evidences of a hasty flight, and eight of the people who had died during the night were lying exposed on the rocks, with their white faces and ghastly eyeballs turned towards the sky. the other two had been buried on the rocks under a heap of stones, which did not conceal them entirely from view.
“no wonder poor edith was alarmed,” said stanley sadly, as he leaned on his fowling-piece and surveyed the scene of desolation and death.
“i have been told,” remarked frank, “that the esquimaux have a superstitious dread of this river. oolibuck mentioned to me this morning that he has had a good deal of conversation with the natives about this disease, and they told him that it invariably attacks them when they enter this river, and carries them off by dozens; so that they never come into it except when they require wood, and always stay as short a time as possible.”
“ah! that’s bad,” said stanley; “i fear that it will go much against the success of the establishment. but we must hope better things; and, truly, with this exception, all has gone well hitherto. said they anything more, frank?”
“yes; they hinted, it seems, their intention of flying away from this fatal spot, and taking up their abode for the winter at the mouth of false river, where they can obtain a livelihood by seal-fishing; but oolibuck thought they did not mean to put the threat in execution, and did not imagine that they were in such alarm that they would go off without burying their dead.”
“we must do that for them, frank,” said stanley, turning to retrace his steps to the fort; “send down as many of the men as you can spare to-day, and get it done at once.”
“by the way,” said frank, as they walked along the beach, “it seems that many years ago the moravian missionaries came to the mouth of this river, and talked of setting up a trading-fort here; but, from some cause unknown, they gave up their design and went away. maximus has been telling me all he knows about the matter; but his reports are vague, and the event must have occurred, if it occurred at all, when he was a child.”
“very possibly, frank. you know the moravians have settlements along the coasts of labrador, to the eastward of this. they may have made an attempt long ago to push as far as this. i have always had a high opinion of the energy and perseverance of these missionaries, but i cannot get over the incongruity of their strange way of mingling trade with religion. it seems to me an unnatural sort of thing for missionaries to be fur-traders. i do not mean by this to object to their system, however; i daresay it works well, but i’ve had no means of judging.”
“it is strange,” replied frank; “yet it seems a good plan. the missionaries trade there in order that they may live and preach. ’twould be a good thing for the indian country if the same principles and practice actuated the traders; with this difference, that instead of missionaries becoming fur-traders, the fur-traders would become missionaries. it does seem a species of infatuation,” continued frank, energetically, as he warmed with the subject, “that men, calling themselves christians, should live for years and years among the poor indians of america and never once name to them the great and saving name of christ. of course i do not wonder at those who make little or no profession of christianity; but there are men in the fur-trade who seem to be deeply impressed with the truths of god’s word—who are alive to the fact that there is no name under heaven given among men whereby we can be saved except the name of christ—who know and feel that the indians around them are living without god, and therefore without hope in the world—who feel that christ is all in all, and that the christian religion, however perfect and beautiful as a code of morals, is utterly worthless as to salvation unless there be in the heart the special love of jesus christ;—men who admit and profess to believe all this, yet never speak of christ to the natives—never mention the name that can alone save them from eternal destruction.”
“be not hasty, frank,” replied stanley. “i agree with you, that it is strange indeed we do not see and hear more of this missionary spirit among the traders, and i, for one, take your words as a deserved rebuke to myself; but if there are, as you say, many among us who are deeply impressed with the truths of god’s word, how know you that we never mention our saviour’s name to the indians? although fur-traders do not mount the pulpit, they may, in private, make mention of that name, and do an amount of good that will only be fully known when the trader, the trapper, and the indian shall stand side by side before the judgment-seat of christ. observe, i do not say that this is actually the case; i only suggest that it is possible—may i not add, probable?”
“it may be so,” returned frank, “it may be so, and god forgive me if i have judged the men of the fur-trade unjustly; but i certainly know one who has made somewhat of a profession of christianity in his day, and yet has done next to nothing, and that one is frank morton.”
“i’ll not gainsay that, frank,” said stanley, with a quiet smile; “and i think we are not likely to err much when we apply censure to ourselves. it is curious that you and i should have been thinking of the very same subject. a few days ago, while my wife and i were conversing together about the esquimaux, we agreed to devote a good deal of our leisure time next winter to reading and explaining the bible to our esquimau interpreters, in the hope that they may afterwards be the means of much good among their poor countrymen.”
whether or not the good resolutions made at this time were ever put in practice we cannot say. let us hope that they were.
not long after the sudden flight of the esquimaux, the indians struck their tents and took their departure for the interior, with the intention, as they said, of hunting for furs, but more probably, as ma-istequan suggested, to hunt the deer. during all the time of their residence at the fort, maximus had kept out of their way as much as possible. he seldom met them without a frown of hatred, for he regarded them as the representatives of a race which had robbed him of his bride; and there were times when the giant’s spirit chafed so fearfully at the sight of the red men, that nothing but the remembrance of his promise to stanley, to offer them no injury, prevented him from stirring up his tribe to overwhelm and destroy them. it was, therefore, with a feeling of relief that maximus beheld them march single file over the rocky platform, and disappear in the ravine that led into the mountains.
the traders of ungava were once more left in solitude, and from this time forward, until the winter set in, they devoted all their energies to laying up a stock of provisions sufficient to last till spring.
dick prince and massan were sent after the deer in company. augustus and bryan were dispatched to a small lake to establish a fishery; in which they were very successful, and soon caught a large supply of excellent white-fish, trout, and carp, which they gutted and hung up by their tails to dry and freeze. frank and moses went to another small lake, about ten miles down the river, and built a hut of willows, in which they dwelt while engaged at the fishery. as there was still much to be done in the way of completing the fort, and making furniture, stanley retained la roche, oolibuck, and the two indians to assist him in this, as well as in the performance of the miscellaneous minor duties about the station, such as cutting up firewood, covering the roofs of the stores with tarpaulin, shooting such birds and animals as came near the fort, constructing rude chairs and tables, cooking, etcetera, etcetera; while françois and gaspard were sent up the river to fell trees, for the purposes both of building and firewood. edith and her mother found ample occupation—the latter in the use of her needle and the cares of the household; the former in learning her lessons, visiting her berry-ravine, dressing her doll (for she had a doll, as a matter of course), and in holding long and frequent converse with chimo.
thus they spent their time; too busily occupied to take much note of its rapid flight, and scarce noticing the lengthening nights and shortening days, until needles of ice began with slow and silent progress to shoot across and solidify the waters of the bay.
