66 NEWFOUNDLAND 



a big fire, and brings him round, but we was only just in 

 time." 



"Tell Mr. Millais o' that time you had after ole Noah," 

 here interposed Jack. To this Saunders immediately raised 

 objections, and it was only after more leading questions, 

 and many pauses, that the old man told his tale. His re- 

 luctance was, of course, because it involved no little credit 

 to himself. But at last we got him fairly under weigh. 



" Noah Dimot is an ole feller 'bout seventy years. He's 

 alius lived down our Bay 's far as a' can remember, and 

 whenever he go into de woods he got lost. Thar's some 

 folk, d'ye know, can't fin' thar way around even if thar was 

 finger-posts all de time, and ole Noah 'e was alius that 

 kind. His folk shouldn't 'a' allowed him round without a 

 string. He was terrible fond o' the gun, and thet v/as 

 how we had the greatest hunt I ever knew. Ole Noah 'e 

 gone out one winter towards a lake, four or five miles from 

 de Bay, to look for rabbits. Some men at a lumber 

 camp, 'bout three mile out, see 'un going out. Next evenin' 

 one of those men's sittin' by de fire smokin', like to we, 

 asks if any of 'em seen Noah goin' home, fer he'd pro- 

 mised to leave a rabbit. No, none of 'em had seen um, 

 so they look in each other's faces, and that night one o' 

 them comes down to the Bay to see if Noah's home. O' 

 course, Noah had got lost as usual, and de whole o' de 

 men in the Bay were out that night lookin' for Noah wi' 

 birch bark torches. 



" It was lucky there was no fresh snow, for if there had 

 been, that would hev bin the end o' Noah Dimot. Early 

 in the morning a' finds Noah's track, and follows it all the 

 next day. There was three other men wi' me, and Noah's 

 son, Sandy. We'd never a bite to eat, and snow was 



