The Coolidge examiner., 1938-10-13
&c - THE RIVER of SKULLS
s1TTf1sSar by George Marsh
#

tent before their fires on the frosty
evenings, with the dogs lying
around them, they made plans for
the search for a water way to the
Koksoak when the large lakes froze
and the snow packed hard for sled
ding.
Our finding this River Of Skulls
is just question Of meat and fish,
Noel, if the Indians leave us alone"
said Alan.
The Montagnais shook his head,
doubtfully.
We're going to have lot Of penn
mican, -four and beans in that emer-
gency cache at the head OF the riv-
er. Pemmican keeps all summer
and we'll make plenty, for there are
deer wintering in this valley"
"Shishl Listen!"
The two men sat with straining
ears. Presently, far above them in
the frosty air they heard the faint,
clarinet-like, marching chorus OF
flock of whistling swan. High up
under the stars, that shone blue be-
hind the pearly banners of the au-
rora that writhed across the heav-
ems. they passed like ghosts on their
long pilgrimage to the southern
waters.
Guess that's about the last Of
those boys, this year." said Alan.
Straight from Baffin Land, I'll bet!
Well, Noel, my lad, the long snows'n
soon be with us, and then-the big
jump off"
Day by day the platform fish
cache, mounted on high, peeled
spruce saplings, ringed with invert-
ed cod-hooks to battle climbing VOL
verines, received the nights catch
Of the two gill-nets. Great lake
trout, the Montagnais kokomesh,
1.-The fish that swallows everything,
some running to twenty pounds In
weight, white-fsh, Jack-fish or
northern pike, red and gray suck
ers, and ling, came to the nets. II
would require an enormous supply
Of fish to feed the hungry Ungavas
through the winter nonths. and
there were four humans besides.
Deep in the spruce and tamarack
swamps that circled some of the
chain Of Sinking Lakes and gave
them their name, Alan and Noel
were much relieved to find scat
tered bands of caribou that had lin
gered behind the migration to win
ter in the valley and feed on the
moss, called "old mans beard"
that draped the dry spruce.
Before the October freeze up
closed the river and the large lake
on which they were camped, thu
boys made hurried visit to the Me,
Cords with a canoe load of trout and
meat and the pie-bald skins of young
caribou to be turned into hooded
parkas and moccasins. There news
of Heather's discovery awaited
them. Warming McCord and Heath
er to be eternally vigilant, they re-
turned North.
The Freezing Moon" had come.
Each morning the boys had to break
out their net buoys, for the film ice
was reaching out far from the shore
although the large lake on which
they were camped was not as yet
closed. Snowshoes, strung with car
ibou thongs, which, unlike moose
and cow hide, shrink when wet rath-
er than stretch, were ready, as well
as long toboggan sled. Noel, ex-
pert hide worker, had made hooded
parkas and smoke tanned mocca-
sins for snowshoeing, working with
the strongest thread known, the split
sinews from the back of a bull
caribou.
So soon as the snow was deep
enough for shedding, the puppies,
growing like colts, were given their
first lessons in tandem harness, for
their short experience of the pre-
vious spring with the single fan
hitch of the Eskimos was of little
value.
(TO BE CONTINUED