I had remained here about a month, hunting with my brother, when Net-no-kwa arrived, having come in search of me. Wa-me-gon-a-biew went by my direction, to a place on Clam River to hunt beaver, and I returned with Net-no-kwa to Menaukonoskeeg, where we made sugar. There were ten fires of us together and after the sugar making was over, we all went to hunt beavers in concert.
In hunts of this kind, the proceeds are sometimes equally divided, but in this instance every man retained what he had killed. In three days I collected as many skins as I could carry. But in these distant and hasty hunts, little meat could be brought in, and the whole band was soon suffering of hunger. Many of the hunters, and I among others, for want of food, became extremely weak, and unable to hunt far from home. One day, when the ice in the ponds was covered midling deep with water, I reached a place about a mile distant from camp, and in a low swamp I discovered fresh moose signs. I followed up the animal, and killed it, and as it was the first, it was made a feast for the whole band, and all devoured in a single day.
Soon afterwards, all the Indians came down in two days’ journey to the mouth of the river, where we were joined by Wa-me-gon-a-biew, who had made a very successful hunt on Clam River. We stopped at the trading house one mile from the lake, and remained here drinking until our peltries were all sold. Then we started, accompanied only by Wa-me-gon-a-biew, to come down to the mouth of the river. The distance was so short that we did not take the dogs on board the canoes. As they ran along the shore, they started an elk, and drove him into the water in the lake, whence we chased him on shore with the canoe, and killed him on the beach.
About this time, we met with an old Ottawwaw chief, called Wa-ge-to-tah-gun, (he that has a bell,) more commonly called Wa-ge-toat. He was a relative of Net-no-kwa, and had with him at that time, three lodges and two wives. One of his sons had also two wives. With him we remained two months and almost every morning, as he was going out, he called me to accompany him to his hunt. Whenever he hunted with me, he gave me all, or the greater part of what he killed. He took much pains to teach me how to take moose and other animals which are difficult to kill. Wa-me-gon-a-biew, with his wife, left us here, and went to Red River.
There is an opinion prevalent among the Indians, that the moose, among the methods of self-preservation with which he seems better acquainted than almost any other animal, has the power of remaining for a long time under water. Two men of the band of Wa-ge-to-tah-gun, whom I knew perfectly well, and considered very good and credible Indians, after a long day’s absence on a hunt, came in, and stated that they had chased a moose into a small pond, that they had seen him go to the middle of it, and disappear, and then choosing positions, from which they could see every part of the circumference of the pond, smoked, and waited until near evening; during all which time, they could see no motion of the water, or other indication of the position of the moose. At length, being discouraged, they had abandoned all hope of taking him, and returned home. Not long afterwards came a solitary hunter loaded with meat. He related that having followed the track of a moose for some distance, he had traced it to the pond before mentioned, but having also discovered the tracks of two men, made at the same time as those of the moose, he concluded they must have killed it. Nevertheless, approaching cautiously to the margin of the pond, he sat down to rest. Presently he saw the moose rise slowly in the center of the pond, which was not very deep, and wade towards the shore where he was sitting. When he came sufficiently near, he shot him in the water. The Indians consider the moose shyer and more difficult to take than any other animal. He is more vigilant, and his senses more acute than those of the buffalo or caribou. He is fleeter than the elk, and more prudent and crafty than the antelope. In the most violent storm when the wind, and the thunder, and the falling timber are making the loudest and most incessant roar, if a man, either with his foot or his hand, breaks the smallest dry limb in the forest, the moose will hear it, and though he does not always run, he ceases eating, and rouses his attention to all sounds. If in the course of an hour, or thereabout, the man neither moves, nor makes the least noise, the animal may begin to feed again, but does not forget what he has heard, and is for many hours more vigilant than before.
Wa-ge-to-tah-gun, the chief with whom we were living, took every opportunity to instruct me as to the habits of the moose and other animals, and showed great pleasure when my exertions in the chase were crowned with success. As we were now about to part from him, he called out all the young hunters to accompany him for one day. Several young women went also. He killed a fat buck moose, which he gave to me.
The country between Lake Winnepeg and Hudson’s Bay is low and swampy, and is the region of the caribou. More to the west, towards the Assinneboin and Saskawjawun, is the prairie country, are found elks and buffalo. The caribou is not found among the elk, nor the latter among the former.
CHAPTER VII
I receive a proposal from a chief to marry his daughter. – Theft and drunkenness. – Manner of pursuing the elk on foot. – Disease and great mortality among the beaver. – Second offer of marriage from an A-go-kwa. – Haunted encampment, called the “place of the two dead men”. – Indian courtship. – Distressing sickness. – Insanity and attempt at suicide. – Gambling. – Several offers of young women in marriage. – My courtship and marriage with Mis-kwa-bun-o-kwa, (the red sky of the morning).
The spring having now come, we returned by the way of our old sugar camp towards Menaukonoskego, but as I disliked to be with the Indians in their seasons of drunkenness, I dissuaded the old woman from accompanying them to the trading-house. I talked to her of the foolishness of wasting all our peltries in purchasing what was not only useless, but hurtful and poisonous to us, and was happy to find that I had influence enough with her to take her immediately to the place I had selected for my hunting camp. She went to see Wa-ge-tote, to take leave of him, but when she returned, I readily perceived by her manner that something unusual had passed. Presently she took me to one side, and began to say to me, “My son, you see that I am now become old; am scarce able to make you moccasins, to dress and preserve all your skins, and do all that is needful abut your lodge. You are now about taking your place as a man and a hunter, and it is right you should have some one who is young and strong to look after your property and take care of your lodge. Wa-ge-tote, who is a good man, and one respected by all the Indians, will give you his daughter. You will thus gain a powerful friend and protector, who will be able to assist us in times of difficulty, and I shall be relieved from much anxiety and care for our family.” Much more she said, in the same strain, but I told her without hesitation that I would not comply with her request. I had as yet thought little of marriage among the Indians, still thinking I should return before I became old, to marry to the whites. At all events, I assured her I could not now marry the woman she proposed to me. She still insisted that I must take her, stating that the whole affair had been settled between Wa-ge-tote and herself, and that the young woman had said she was not disinclined to the match, and she pretended she could do no otherwise than bring her to the lodge. I told her if she did so I should not treat or consider her as my wife. The affair was in this situation the morning but one before we were to separate from Wa-ge-tote and all his band, and, without coming to any better understanding with the old woman, I took my gun early in the morning, and went to hunt elk. In the course of the day I killed a fat buck, and returning late in the evening, I hung up the meat I had brought before the lodge, and carefully reconnoitered the inside before I entered, intending, if the young woman was there, to go to some other lodge and sleep, but I could see nothing of her.
Next morning Wa-ge-tote came to my lodge to see me. He expressed all the interest in me which he had been in the habit of doing, and gave me much friendly advice, and many good wishes. After this Net-no-kwa returned again, urging me to marry the daughter, but I did not consent. These attempts were afterwards, from time to time, renewed, until the young woman found a husband in some other man.