CHAP. xv. CHASE OF CARIBOU BY WOLVES. 243 



long and steady gallop these ravenous creatures followed 

 their prey, but when they came within ten yards of the 

 Indians, the latter suddenly rose, each discharged an arrow 

 at the amazed brutes, and succeeded in transfixing one with 

 a second arrow before it got out of reach. Leaving the 

 wolves, they hastened after the -caribou. ' There,' said Louis, 

 ' quite close to that steep rock, the caribou which Michel 

 had shot was dead : he had hit it in the eye, and it could not 

 go far. Michel stopped to guard his caribou, as the wolves 

 were about ; one of his cousins went after the deer he 

 had hit, the other went back after the wolves which had 

 been wounded. The wolf-cousin had not gone far back 

 when he heard a loud yelling and howling. He knew what 

 the wolves were at ; they had turned upon their wounded 

 companion, and were quarrelling over the meal. The 

 Indian ran on, and came quite close to the wolves, who 

 made so much noise, and were so greedily devouring the 

 first "he had shot, that he approached quite close to them 

 and shot another, killing it at once. The caribou-cousin 

 had to go a long distance before he got his deer.' 



Such was the substance of Louis' narration of Michel's 

 story ; and the excited manner and heightened colour of 

 the Nasquapee arose from his killing his caribou over 

 again, in a happy mental renewal of the wild hunt which 

 he and cousins had so triumphantly brought to a close. 



'Did you always have plenty to eat during last winter 

 in this part of the country, Michel?' I asked. 



The bright eye soon resumed its natural lustreless 

 expression as the young JSTasquapee's thoughts reverted 

 to painful scenes of distress, arising from want of necessary 

 food and even absolute, starvation, to which he had been 



R 2 



