Blanche had been occupying herself in making a large, delicious caribou stew. This dish was so good that I must tell how she made it. The most important thing is to have an abundance of caribou meat. She had cut this into small pieces and had got Mickey to crush some shin bones with his axe. To these she added potatoes, onions and carrots and had allowed the whole mass to simmer gently for hours while awaiting my return. Of course, she had felt a little nervous when it got to be so late and she was glad to see us back. I changed my clothes, which were still wet, sat down by the fire and ate until I could eat no more, while Mattie consumed two-thirds of the contents of the pot. He was up at dawn and before we had finished breakfast had carried the great head to camp.

����������� As our provisions were about exhausted, there was nothing to do but to break camp and to take the long walk back to the lake where we had left our canoes and a little food. It was still snowing hard -large, wet flakes of autumnal snow. The trees and bushes through which we had to make our way were heavily laden and, as we brushed them, they discharged great volumes of snow-water on our heads. In ten minutes we were wet to the skin, and the way seemed interminable. Blanche, carrying her little rifle, kept up with us, did not halt, and made no complaint. Just before dark we came out on the shore of the gloomy storm-torn lake and when Blanche saw the sodden shores deep in snow beside which she must pass the night, her heart misgave her. I told her , however, that all her troubles were over and that she would have one of the pleasantest nights she had ever spent in her life. We had four axes and four expert woodsmen. In a few minutes, Mattie, contrary to his principles, had built a roaring fire four feet high whose red tongues rose higher. He used to say "White man build big fire, sit far away. He cold. Injun build little fire, sit close to it. He warm." Two of the other men quickly set up and secured our tents on level ground. Then we all turned in, cutting and breaking fir and balsam boughs which grew everywhere. These we would shake and hold to the fire a moment until they were perfectly dry and pass them to Mickey who, turning the stems downward, soon made a soft, dry, elastic bed a foot deep. We put on dry clothes and shoes and stockings, taken from our waterproof bags; then warm, dry, and hungry, sat in the door of our tent and enjoyed an abundant supper of caribou steak, fried potatoes, and coffee. Such an experience is one of the bright spots of any trip. It is always a fresh surprise to discover with how little effort man can turn the gloomy, inhospitable forest into a safe and comfortable home.