raises her head an' says, '_Them_ weren't Bob's. I
knows Bob's clothes, an' them weren't _his_! When I tells 'bout
findin' _two_ axes she says Bob were havin' only one axe, an' then
she's believin' Bob wasn't got by th' wolves, an' is livin'
somewheres.

"Douglas goes for Richard, an' when Richard comes he says th'
clothes's Bob's an' th' gun _ain't_, an' Bob were havin' only one axe.

"Richard's not doubtin' th' remains was Bob's though, an' o' course
the's no doubtin' _that_. Th' clothes's gettin' so stained up I'm
thinkin' th' mother'd not be knowin' un. But Richard sure would be
knowin' th' gun, an' that's what _I'm_ wonderin' at."

"'Tis rare strange," assented Dick. "An' _I'm_ wonderin' why Micmac
John were leavin' th' fur in th' 'tilt after stealin' un. That's what
_I'm_ wonderin' at."

The whole evening was thus spent in discussing the pros and cons of
the affair. They both decided that while the gun and axe question were
beyond explanation, there was no doubt that Bob had been destroyed by
wolves and the remains that they found were his.

The plan that Bill had suggested for hunting the trails without taking
Sunday rest, thus enabling them to attend to a part of Bob's Big Hill
trail, was resorted to, and the winter's work was the hardest, they
all agreed, that they had ever put in.

January and February were excessively cold months and during that
period, when the fur bearing animals keep very close to their lairs,
the catch was indifferent. But with the more moderate weather that
began with March and continued until May the harvest was a rich one,
for it was one of those seasons, after a year of unusual scarcity, as
the previous two years had been, when the fur bearing animals come in
some inexplicable way in great numbers, and food game also is
plentiful.

At length the hunting season closed, when the mild weather with daily
thaws arrived. The fur that was now caught was deteriorating to such
an extent that it was not wise to continue catching it. The traps on
the various trails were sprung and hung upon trees or placed upon
rocks, where they could be readily found again, and Dick and Ed joined
Bill at the river tilt, where the boat had been cached to await the
breaking up of the river, and here enjoyed a respite from their
labours.

Ptarmigans in flocks of hundreds fed upon the tender tops of the
willows that lined the river banks, and these supplied them with an
abundance of fresh meat, varied oc