CARIBOO HUNTING. 151 



flew over the camp. It froze pretty sharp, too; the trees 

 cracked loudly in the forest." 



" I hear 'urn, sure enough/' replied the Indian. " Guess 

 winter set in pretty hard up to nor rerd. I got notion 

 some of us have luck to-day, capten. I dreamin' very 

 hard last night. When I dream so always sure sign we 

 have luck next day. I think it will be you ; me and the 

 other gentleman must go back and try to get the 

 wounded caliboo calf." 



" Very well, then : Noel hunts with me again to-day," 

 said I, looking at the younger Indian, Avho nodded assent 

 and drew on his moccasins. " Come on, Noel ; put a 

 biscuit in your pocket, and let us be off for the barrens." 



It was a lovely morning when we left the camp ; not 

 a breath of wind, and the sun shone through the trees, 

 lighting with extraordinary brilliancy the sparkling snow 

 which had been sprinkled during the night with rime 

 frost. All nature seemed to rejoice at the warming 

 influence of the sun's rays. The squirrel raced up the 

 stems with more than usual activity, and the little chick- 

 adee birds darted about amongst the spruce boughs in 

 merry troops, dislodging showers of snow, and con- 

 tinuously uttering the cheerful cry which has given them 

 their local sobriquet. The tapping of the woodpecker 

 resounded through the calm forest, and the harsh warning 

 note of the blue jay gave notice of our approach to his 

 comrades and the forest denizens in general. Here and 

 there a ruffed grouse started with boisterous flight from 

 our path, as we disturbed his meditations on some sunlit 

 stump ; and, soon after entering the barren, a red fox 

 jumped from the warm side of a clump of bushes where 

 he had been basking, and made off at racing speed — a 



