“‘So ’tis,’ said I. ‘If there was ever black bears up hereabouts, I would say it was one o’ them.’
“‘Put a ball in yer gun,’ says Gaspard; for ye see, as we had been blazin’ at small birds the day before, there was nothing but shot in it. So I put in a ball, and took aim at the beast, intendin’ to give it a long shot. But I was mercifully prevented from firin’. Jist as I squinted along the barrel, the beast rose straight up, and held up both its fore paws. ‘Stop!’ roars Gaspard, in an awful fright; and sure enough I lowered my gun, and the beast hailed us in the voice of a man, and began to walk to the shore. He seemed quite worn out when he landed, and I could understand enough of his jargon to make out that he had been blown out to sea on the floe, and that his name was Annatock.
“While we were talkin’ to the Esquimau, Gaspard cries out, ‘I say, Prince, look here! There’s a sort o’ medal on this chap’s neck with somethin’ written on it. You’re a larned fellow, Prince; see if ye can make it out.’ So I looked at it, and rubbed my eyes once or twice, I can tell you, for, sure enough, there was EDITH as plain as the nose on my face.”
“Oh,” exclaimed Edith, smiling through her tears, “that was the medal I hung round his neck long, long ago! I hoped that it might be seen some day by people who knew me.”
“I thought so, miss,” returned Prince—“I thought as much, for I knew that the Esquimau could never have invented and writ that out of his own head, ye see. But Gaspard and me had most awful trouble to get him to explain how he came by it, and where he came from. Howsoever, we made out at last that he came from an island in this direction; so we just made up our minds to take the boat and come straight away for the island, which we did, takin’ Annatock to pilot us.”
“Then does my father not know where you are, or anything about your having heard of me?” inquired Edith, in surprise.
“Why, no, Miss Edith,” replied Prince. “You see, it would have lost us two or three days to have gone back to Fort Chimo; and, after all, we thought it might turn out a false scent, and only raise your poor mother’s hopes for nothin’. Besides, we were sent away for a week or two, so we knew they wouldn’t wonder at our absence; so we thought, upon the whole, it would be best to come at once, specially since it was sich a short distance.”
“A short distance!” repeated Edith, starting up. “I thought we must be miles and miles, oh, ever so far away! Is the distance really short?”
“Ay, that it is, little one,” said Prince, patting the child on the head. “It is not more than three days’ rowing from this island, and a stiff breeze on the quarter would carry us there in less than two.”
“And Frank, where is Frank?” said Edith,—with a look of eager inquiry.