emed well known to all. Here the scows came in slowly and clumsily,
but without disorder and without damage, until the entire bank for a
half-mile was turned into a sort of shipyard of its own.

Here and there men were working the little wooden pumps, because for
the first day or two the scows were sure to leak.

The boys made their own camp that night aboard the boat. At each end
was a short deck, and that in the rear offered space for their blanket
beds. Rob undertook to sleep on top of the cargo under the edge of the
great tarpaulin which covered all. They had their little Yukon stove,
which accompanied them, and on the front deck, where a box of earth
had been provided, they set this up and did their own cooking, as they
preferred.

In the morning Father Le Fevre paddled over to them in a canoe from
his own scow.

"_Bon jour_, gentlemen!" said he. "I called to ask you if you would
not like to have breakfast with us. Sister Eloise is known for her
skill in cookery."

The leader of our little party accepted with great cheerfulness, so
that they all climbed into the canoe, and presently were alongside the
mission scow. All over the great fleet of scows everything now was
silent. Each boat had its watchman, but he alone, of all the crew,
had remained aboard.

"My poor children!" said Father Le Fevre, smiling as he looked about
him. "They indeed are like children. Presently they will come. Then we
shall see."

Our young travelers now became acquainted with yet others of the
north-bound party. Sister Eloise, stout and good-natured, proved
herself all that had been promised as a cook.

"Yes, yes, she has gone north before," said the good Father. "But
always she has fear of the water. When we go on the rapids Sister
Eloise knits or tells her beads or reads--very hard indeed she reads
or knits or prays! She is afraid, but does not like me to know it,"
and his eye twinkled as he spoke.

"Sister Vincent de Paul goes north for the first time," he said,
smiling now at the other of the gray-habited nuns who found themselves
in these strange surroundings. "She is called to Fort Resolution, and
may stay there for some years. We do not know.

"And here," he added, pulling up by the ear a swarthy little boy who
seemed more Indian than white, "this we will call Charl'. We are
taking him back to his father, who is the factor at Resolution. His
mother is native woman, as you see, and this boy has been at Montreal
for two y