NARRATIVE BY GEORGE ELSON
LAST DAYS TOGETHER
Friday, October 9th. - We got up good and early. Only tea we had,
expecting when we got to our rapid to have something to eat. After
going about 2 miles we came to our old camp where we camped on our
way up where we had a goose that Mr. Hubbard had killed. I also
had killed one. We went ashore to see if we could find some of the
old bones. We gathered all we could find and ate them all.
Mr. Hubbard said, "I often have seen dogs eating bones and thought
it was pretty hard lines for them, but it must be only fun for
them."
Before coming to our rapid, the rapid we had always talked about
where we thought we would get lots of fish, I told Mr. Hubbard and
Wallace my dream I had that night. It did not seem like a dream
but more like some one talking to me. When travelling this summer
when we began to be out of grub, if we dreamt of having a good meal
at some restaurant we often told it to each other next morning.
This morning my dream was: -
A man came to me and told me, "You will get to the rapid to-day and
I cannot spare you more than two or three meals of fish, and do not
waste much time there. Go right on and don't leave the river, but
follow the river on. It is only the way you can save your lives.
Follow the river down."
We got to the rapid about noon, all feeling very, very weak. I
started a fire. By the time I got some wood and had my fire
started they had already enough fish for a pretty fair meal and, of
course, you can imagine how glad we were and did not delay much
time but got our fish for lunch. It was nice to have something to
eat again. We were pretty sure of getting lots more. After lunch
Mr. Hubbard and Wallace fished. It was good signs of caribou round
there. I took the rifle and tracked up the caribou, but I saw
nothing. It was late when I got back. The boys were still
fishing. They had caught about sixty more little trout. We felt
as if we could eat all those fish in one meal, but seeing they were
so scarce we had to try and save some for the next day.
Saturday, October 10th. - We fished all before noon and did not get
any at all. So we had to start off from there, seeing it was no
use in trying to fish any more. We came to some more rapids in the
afternoon. Wallace and I ran some with empty canoe, and then went
back for our dunnage, while Mr. Hubbard would fish.
