let go again, pricked by something, and a drop of 

 blood oozed from one finger-tip. Under Jess's right 

 ear there was a hard sharp point just showing through 

 the skin : we all felt it, and when the skin was forced 

 back we saw it was the tip of a porcupine quill. There 

 was no pulling it out or moving it, however, nor could 

 we for a long time find where it had entered. At 

 last Ted noticed what looked like a tiny narrow strip 

 of bark adhering to the outside of her lower lip, and 

 this turned out to be the broken end of the quill, 

 snapped off close to the flesh ; not even the end of the 

 quill was visible only the little strip that had peeled 

 off in the breaking. 



Poor old Jess ! We had no very grand appliances 

 for surgery, and had to slit her lip down with an ordi- 

 nary skinning knife. Ted held her between his knees 

 and gripped her head with both hands, while one of us 

 pulled with steel pliers on the broken quill until it 

 came out. The quill had pierced her lower lip, 

 entered the gums beside the front teeth, run all along 

 the jaw and through the flesh behind, coming out just 

 below the ear. It was over seven inches long. She 

 struggled a little under the rough treatment, and there 

 was a protesting whimper when we tugged ; but she 

 did not let out one cry under all the pain. 



We knew then that Jess had done her share in the 

 fight, and guessed that it was she who in her reckless 

 charge had rolled the porcupine over and given Jock 

 his chance. 



The doctoring of Jess had delayed us considerably, 

 and while we were still busy at it the old chief came 



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