d them up and
counted them with nervous joy; there were nine--nine ptarmigans, and
the rabbit.

"You see," said Hubbard reverently, "God always gives us food when we
are really in great need, and He'll carry us through that way; in the
wilderness He'll send us manna." On similar occasions in the past
Hubbard had made like remarks to this, and he continued to make them on
similar occasions in the future. Invariably they were made with a
simplicity that robbed them of all cant; they came from the man's real
nature.

While George dressed three of the birds, Hubbard and I built a fire on
the rocks by the shore. Since early morning, when we had a breakfast
of thin soup made with three thin slices of bacon and three spoonfuls
of flour, we had had nothing to eat, and our hunger was such, that
while dinner was cooking, we each took the entrails of a bird, wrapped
them as George told us the Indians did, on the end of a stick, broiled
them over the fire and ate them greedily. And when the ptarmigans were
boiled what a glorious feast we had! In using a bit of bacon for soup
in the morning we had drawn for the first time on our "emergency
ration"--the situation seemed to warrant it; nevertheless, we were as
bent as ever on hoarding this precious little stock of food.

At five o'clock we paddled up the lake to the northeast, to begin our
search for the connection with Michikamau. Hubbard dropped a troll as
we proceeded, and caught two two-pound namaycush, which, when we went
into camp at dusk on a small island, George boiled entire, putting into
the pot just enough flour to give the water a milky appearance. With
this supper we had some of the blueberries stewed, and Hubbard said
they would have been the "real thing if we only had a little sugar for
them."

All day on September 10th we continued our search for the connection
with Michikamau, finally directing our course to the southwest where a
mountain seemed to offer a view of the waters in that direction. It
was dark when we reached its base, and we went into camp preparatory to
climbing to the summit in the morning. We had been somewhat delayed by
wind squalls that made canoeing dangerous, and before we made camp rain
began to fall. We caught no fish on the troll that day, but Hubbard
shot a large spruce-grouse. At our evening meal we ate the last of our
ptarmigans and rabbit.

"George," said Hubbard, after we had eaten our supper, "you have a few
more of mother'