“What is that?”
“I’ll never set another trap for a wild animal as long as I live. I know now how they must suffer.”
After a brief consultation, Tom and old Joe lifted the suffering boy and carried him back to the sled. A “snow-camp” had already been devised and Jack was made as comfortable as possible in this.
By the firelight old Joe examined his injury. The flesh was badly crushed and bruised, but so far as the old trapper could see there were no bones broken.
“Sacre! I weesh dat eet was summer!” breathed the old man. “In summer grow many herbs are good for heal. Zee Indians teach me many. But in winter dere ees notheeng lak dat. Moost use what we can.”
With bandages made out of a flour sack, which, luckily, was almost empty, old Joe dressed Jack’s injury after carefully bathing it. The boy declared that he felt better almost at once after Joe had completed his woodland surgery.
“It’s too bad that I should be giving all this trouble, especially right now,” muttered Jack as he lay back.
“Say, if you say anything like that again, I’ll forget you are sick and punch your head,” said Tom, with a look of affection, however, that belied his words.
After supper old Joe announced that he had decided on a plan that he thought would fit the exigencies of the situation. About ten miles from where they then were a friend of his, Pierre La Roche, like himself a trapper, had a hut. They must make their way there as quickly as possible and leave Jack in La Roche’s care till he was fit to travel, which might not be for some time. This done, they would go back to the camp of the Yukon Rover, tell what had happened, and seek the advice of Mr. Dacre and Mr. Chillingworth.
Tom felt that this was the best plan that could be evolved. After all, they had done all they could to recover the skins, and if he was blamed for not maintaining a better watch on the fox kennels, why he must face the music. Jack, too, thought the plan a good one, so that they were all satisfied, and, despite Jack’s injury, he slept as well that night as his two companions.