ear himself away from the bread. As there must be an end
to all things, however, George eventually stopped eating, and then he
started to go for his bag. But Mrs. Blake said:

"No, Donald'll get he. Sit down, sir, and rest."

A little later Donald and Gilbert appeared. We had made Donald's
acquaintance, it will be remembered, at Rigolet; it was he who had
sailed his boat up the Nascaupee and had given us the most information
about that river. When he had heard George's story, there was no need
to urge him to make haste. Lithe, ambitious, and in the habit of doing
a dozen things at a time, Donald was activity itself. His brother
Gilbert, a young fellow of seventeen, commonly called Bert, was also
eager to start to the rescue of Hubbard and me. They told George it
was fortunate he had arrived when he did, as in a day or so they would
have been away on their trapping paths.

"But didn't you see Allen Goudie's tilt, sir?" asked Donald, when
George had finished telling about his trip down what he supposed to be
the Nascaupee River. "She's on th' Nascaupee right handy to th' bank,
and in fair sight from th' river, sir."

"If there's a tilt on the Nascaupee," said George, "you can kick me."

Donald asked him to tell more about the river we were on, and George
drew a rough map of its leading features. Then it was that George
learned that the river of our distress was really the Susan.

"And we passed right by the mouth of the Nascaupee?" he asked.

He was informed that such was the case.

"Well," said George, "I'll be blamed!" "Blamed" was George's most
violent expletive; I never heard him use profanity.

Donald told George he must not think of going back with the rescuing
party, as his weakness would retard its progress. So George marked on
the map he had made of the Susan's course the general situation of our
last camp. He warned Donald that the deep snow up the valley might
have prevented me from reaching the tent, but that in any event they
would find me near the river.

Hearing that, Donald quickly decided that more men were needed for the
rescuing party; for if either Hubbard or I was found alone the party
would have to separate in order to continue the search for the other
man. The packs, besides, would be too heavy for two men to carry and
make the rapid progress that was necessary. Fortunately Allen Goudie
and a young fellow named Duncan McLean were at the former's winter tilt
on the Nascaupee,