Bob Hunt in Canada

by George W. Orton

"Pierre was not able to fire for a moment as Montagnais was right in his path. At Pierre's yell, the old Indian stepped back and the gun belched forth almost in the bear's face. The ball did not take effect and did nothing except to add fury to the mad rush of the bear. She swept Pierre aside ripping his shoulder with her claws, and caught Montagnais fairly in the chest. The latter went down without a cry. Fortunately, Pierre's shoulder was not very badly hurt and he had not dropped his gun. He slipped another cartridge into the rifle and gave the bear her quietus by hitting her right behind the shoulder and striking her heart. Pierre then looked at his old Indian friend and saw that he had received a very bad wound. Several ribs were evidently broken, while the chest bone seemed to be caved in. Pierre hastened to a nearby brook and got some water in a hastily improvised birch bucket. The water brought Montagnais to his senses, but a broken ankle made it impossible for him to move. He was evidently in great pain.

"In the excitement, Pierre had done nothing for himself and did not do so until he finally commenced to feel giddy and came near fainting. He then tore off his shirt and found that his weakness was due to loss of blood. He bound up his arm and sat down to rest and to think what to do. He tried to carry the old Indian, but soon gave that up, both because he was too weakened to do so and because the great pain caused by moving his old friend made the latter faint. There was nothing to do except to stay with his friend and wait for Jean and Jacques to hunt them up, or else to get to the river and bring them back. He thought that the latter would be the better plan, so he made Montagnais as comfortable as he could, propping him up against the old bear and giving him the rifle as defense. The cubs by this time had gotten over their scare and they came back to their mother and smelled around her with little whines and moans that were almost childlike. He left Montagnais leaning against the old bear with a cub on each side of him. They were quite little and as harmless as kittens.

"Pierre found that he must have lost a lot of blood for he had some difficulty in getting back to the river. At last he reached there, and in due course of time Jean and Jacques came paddling across the river, singing a low Indian love song, happy as any children of the forest should be when in their native haunt on a fine summer's day. They were all attention when they saw Pierre and were ready to start at once even without their suppers. This Pierre did not let them do as he felt that he himself would not be able to get back to his old friend without some nourishment. The two young Indians hurried things along and Pierre felt much better by the time supper was over. They then started off and, though by this time night had fallen, Pierre led them straight to the gully and found old Montagnais quietly sleeping with the three cubs lying around him. They built a fire and examined the injuries of the old man. He was now quite conscious and he told Pierre and the others just how badly he was hurt and what they would have to do to get him out.

"Under his directions, they built a leafy litter and as soon as dawn showed the way, they carried him back to the river. They felt that it would be best to rest there for a few days. Jean and Jacques made a trip back to the gully and returned with the bear's skin, as much bear meat as they could handle, and the three cubs following them like puppies. By the end of their week's stay, the old Indian was able to sit up and he said that he would be able to do his share if they got him into the canoe. Pierre stayed three days more and then set out. It required skillful paddling for him to make some of the rapids but finally they emerged once more upon the bosom of the wide Saguenay. In due time, Pierre got back to Escoumains and made his report about the lumber."

"Now, I know why Pierre was not very anxious to go up the Shipshaw with me two years ago," said Mr. Waterman. "He told me that he had been up the river but he did not want to go again."

"He was no doubt thinking of the balloon," said Bill.

"Do you think it was a balloon?" asked Pud.

"It undoubtedly was," said Mr. Waterman. "The very year that Pierre went up the Shipshaw, they held a long distance balloon race starting away over in the United States. One of the balloons was carried away to the east of the Saguenay and the two pilots did not get back to civilization for over two weeks. They had a very hard time for they had to tramp out. The remains of the big balloon are up there in the wilderness and have probably more than once aroused the astonishment and amazement of wandering Indians."

"Maybe no one has found them," said Pud.

"That's quite probable, for you know that we have been up here for quite some time, and we haven't seen anything of them," said Mr. Waterman.