Beadle's Boy's Library of Sport, Story, and Adventure, No. 37 — page 11: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Old T Knuckle and the boys followed her, and seizing the reins, the girl shouted to the faithful dogs the word they knew so well, and which at once sent them off at a swift gallop. Away went the sleigh amidst a shower of buzzing arrows, leaving the Indians following in the rear. The vehicle gliding over the snow ata wonderful rate of speed, the pursuing sav- ages were soon so far behind that their arrows fell short. ** Well, now,” said Knuckle, “ this is what I call a neat little craft. Whales and flying-fish! but the lass has sartinly managed well, in get- tin’ us out of the breakers!” . ‘“Ay, she is a good and noble girl,” said Nye. ‘* A brave one, too!” said Hasler. ‘* She sartinly is,” seid Knuckle. ‘* See how cool she is, standing there by the dead man, minding him no more than if he was a statuary of Capt’in Cook!” Looking behind them, they now perceived that the Indians had halted. “They had given up the pursuit and were holding a consultation. Soon they were hidden from the view of the occupants of the sleigh by rocks, around which the vehicle had passed. Ingluk drove on some distance further, when she suddenly stopped the dogs. The whites could hear the murmuring of voices, and they knew that a party of the Es- quimaux were approaching from their village. The girl sprung from the sleigh, motioning her companions to follow. She guided them to a mass of rocks and pointed to a hollow or small cavern, as an inti- mation for them: to enter, They did so, when Ingluk pusbed down a piece of ice, overhanging the opening, thus partly closing the entrance. The girl then left them, and, returning to the sleigh, drove on. ** Well, lads,” said Knuckle, ‘‘ here we are, and I s’pose it’s for the best, though these are eee cold quarters, and we have nothing to eat. “Tngluk will probably return and bring us a dinner,” said Hasler. ‘* Ay, ay, we must wait for the lass, at any rate,” said Knuckle. ‘It won’t do to ventur’ from our kennel until arter she comes, lest we git trapped again by the Skeemos,” As it was now past the middle of October, the days in this northerly clime were much shorter than they had been two months pre- vious. _ Night soon closed about the party, and the interior of the little cavern was very dark, Suddenly the three heard a light step on the snow. The block of ice was pushed aside, and the form of Ingluk was descried. The girl brought the sailors some deer’s meat and also some fur-skins, the latter of which would serve to make them warm and comfortable, ‘“How long do you expect us to stay here, lass?’ queried Knuckle, forgetting that the girl could not understand him. She stepped aside and the head of a man was thrust through the entrance. “ Yonkist, if I don’t mistake,” said Knuckle. ‘Yes, me come with Ingluk.” ‘You are then at liberty?” said Nye. “Yes; Ingluk take off ropes from feet and hands. Me come to be with you.” As he spoke, he entered the cave. Sr ‘And glad enough we are to see you,” said Hasler. ‘‘Me glad you escape, too. all. But must keep berry close. no believe what Ingluk tell dem. you; dey suspect you escape. for you; must be close,” ‘“Why do they not believe the girl?’ said Hasler. “One git on high rock to watch for sleigh. Him t’ink be see you in sleigh when it comin’.” “Tarry bodkins!” cried Knuckle, “that is sartinly bad.” ; ‘‘ Dey hunt for you all night. In morning dey bury dead. man—put in cairn. Den all have to © to see. Perhaps we can den get to cave in e Lookout Rock.” Ingluk placed the ice-block over the entrance of ths hollow and departed. . ‘he sailors then partook of their meal, after which they rolled themselves in the fur-skins, hey endeavored to keep awake, but as they had of late slept very little, they soon fell into a deep slumber, Hasier was the first to open his eyes. He had been awakened by a yelping noise, and he now saw a pair of sharp, bright eyes glaring at him through the crevice between the ice-blocks and the top of the cave entrance. ; Ingluk tell me Esquimavux Dey bunt for Dey look now He comprehended at once that one of the Es- quimaux dogs had detected the hiding-place of the party. He aroused his companions, who were already half-awake. As he did so, steps were heard. There was the gleam of a torch, the ice-block was pushed aside, and the sailors beheld a dozen Esquimaux, with Okotook among them. ‘“‘Ay, that infarnal dog has betrayed us!” cried Knuckle, The Esquimaux threw themselves upon the vaurty and fastened their wrists with thongs, he prisoners were conducted to the village and placed in their tent, with men stationed around it to guard them, “They'll send us back to the cursed Dog- ribs!” cried Knuckle, ** Nao,” (No,) said Yonkitt: ‘dem too much ‘fraid of Injuns, who been kil two men. Dem not send back,” ‘What will they do with us, then?” inquired Hasler. ‘*Don’t know. T’ink leave behind. Dey ‘fraid of Injuns attack them; dey move to some odder place, ’way off.” ‘‘And will leave us to the mercy of their enemies?” ‘* Tink so,” Day dawned at last. A great commotion was heard in the village. The sailors were led out of the tent. They saw men and women running to and fro, wail- ing and crying about the body of the murdered E-quimaux. The latter had been placed in a sitting position, with the face toward the sea, Not tar from him stood Ayatak, the angekok (magic man) or chief of the tribe, apparently directing the movements of the mourners, for he would now and then extend his arms and speak to them in a loud voice, Finally the men began to move round the corpse, each holding the other by the skirt of his bear or seal-skin robe, and patting the ground with his.feet, at thesame time uttering a dismal guttural chant, while the women col- lected by themselves kept time by giving a sort of up and down teetering motion to their bodies. ‘* Bless my eyes!” cried Kuuckle. “ It is sar- tinly a mournful spectacle, specially the danc- in’. ** Yes,” said Yonkitt. ‘‘ Call weepin’ meetin’, Grieve much—berry heavy.” ‘““Ay, ay, Yonkitt, with all due respect to your customs, it is a heavy consarn, seein’ as your wimmen ain’t particular light on their feet. But to be perlite, grief is grief, even ina sea-elepbant, and I feel sorry for ’em all.” At last, at a signal from the angekok, the mourners stopped, Several of the Esquimaux raised the body, and with all the others follow- ing in bes rrinen the prisoners being led along after the rest by their guard, they moved off to a spot where there was a small hollow in the ground. In this hollow the body was placed in a sitting posture, after which the hunting-spear, lance and knife, which had been used by the de- ceased when alive, were laid by his side. Then a res: of stones, which had previously been brought were piled up in a conical form about the hollow; until the body was completely in- closed, This ended the funeral, and all the people returned to the village, where instant preparations were made for departure. While these were going on, the sailors were taken back to the rocky hollow, from which they had been brought to the village. They were made to enter the cavern, after which, their ankles were fastened with thongs, so that they were bound hand and foot. ‘Dem going to leave us here. Say dey no want to kill. But dem leave us for Injun to find—dem Injun no go after Esquimaux,” said Yonkitt. ‘* Etarnal bullfish!” cried Knuckle. ‘I didn’t think your people were so mean, Yonkitt.” ‘‘Nao. All not want us shut in cave. Say leave us free. But Okotook and Ayatak t/ink best leave dis way,” The Esquimaux departed, leaving the part seated, cold and hungry, in the hollow. Sud- denly footsteps creaked on the snow. Peering cautiously out, the whites beheld a large party of the fierce Dog-ribs moving along a short distance off in the direction where the village had been. Fearing that they would be discovered, the sailors drew back and listened. At length foot- steps were again heard, this time approaching. “* Here they come!” said Hasler, and the four expected every moment to see the savages enter. The steps drew nearer; a form appeared! ar Knuckle and His Boy Chums, a 11 It was not an enemy, it was the Esquimaux girl, Ingluk, who entered, and with her knife severed the lashings about the wrists and ankles of the party. “Bless you, lass!” cried Knuckle. ‘You sartinly are our good angel, but I wish you had brought a chunk of meat with you!” CHAPTER XI. UNDER THE ICE! YONKIT?Y sponse to the girl, and told the whites what she said. She stated that, watching her opportunity, after her people left the village, she had con- trived to elude the vigilance of her father, and glide off to the place where the sailors were confined, She had found no opportunity to bring them food, but she was determined to free them from the cavern. Soon she detected approaching Indians, and had to couceal herself for some time ere she could continue on her way. At last she found a Chance to reach the hollow. The Indians, she said, were scouring the country in search of the whites. The latter were not now safe any- where on the coast. As to her people, she stated that many of them objected to the bad treatment the sailors had lately received from Okotook, Ayatak and their partisans. The two Esquimaux who had put the canoe in the sleigh, at the time the whites were to be taken off to the Indians, had permitted Ingluk to conceal herself in the boat, and knew she was there when they placed it in the conveyance, As the whalemen had supposed was the case, the Dog-ribs, who had been to hold a parley with the Esquimaux, had threatened, unless the whites were brought to them, togetber with a present of a boat and some furs, to attack and slay all the people of the village. The sailors, they said, had shot one of their tribe, who had afterward died, and they were determined to avenge his death, Ingluk added, in conclusion, that she would not go back to her people until she was sure the whites were safe. ‘Where will you go now?—to the Lookout Rock with us?” inquired Charley Nye. When Yonkitt translated this to her, she looked at Nye, and tears rose in her eyes. ‘No, she would not go there, but she would try to save him, or die in the attempt. “I see; she will play the spy for us,” said Hasler, “She will tell us when the Indians are about. What can make her so devoted to us?” Knuckle winked, and nudged the youth in the ribs. ‘Tarry Cupids!” he whispered, ‘'Can’t you guess? It’s as plain to me as barnacles on a cow whale, That lass has fallen in love with Nye!” ‘*T had a suspicion of it once, but somehow I forgot it afterward,” answered Hasler. mpEareudly unconscious of the wistful looks Ingluk was still directing toward him, Nye took from his pocket a small diary, having a red mo- rocco cover, and which, through all his trials, had thus far escaped injury, as he had kept it in a tight rubber case, In this book the boy had jotted down notes of his adventures ever since leaving home. Now, as with his pencil he proceeded to sketch recent events, the eyes of Ingluk lighted up with ad- miration and something of wonder, It was evident that the bright red cover of the book had pleased and excited the fancy of this simple child of the North. “We are now in a perilous situation,” wrote Nye. ‘Indians are searching for us. No sign of our ship yet. We have hardly provisions enough in our cave in the Lookout Rock to last us two days. The Indians will probably attack us there. If so, all our guns, except one, which is in the cave, havin been taken from us by the Esquimaux, we will no be able to long defend ourselves with it and the few lances in the place, and will probably fall victims to the savages.’ Just then Ingluk said something to Yonkitt, and pointed to the book. ‘What does she say?” inquired Nye, as he looked up. _ “She want to know what you make marks in the book for?’ answered the Esquimaux, The boy requested Yonkitt to tell the girl that he wrote in the book about everything that my ree: which the native accordingly did, en, through the interpreter, _Ingluk asked the American youth if he would not ‘ put everything down” in his head, and give her that pretty book. Charley Jaughed; then he frankly extended to her the diary. ‘* Yes,” he said, ‘you can have it. If I ever get back to my ship I can remember these ' gs) boo GOMIIGE (E(0)