Adventure and adventurers > Hudson Bay, or, Everyday life in the wilds of North America

A TALE OF MURDEB.
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removed his encampment to another part of the country,
as game was scarce in the place where he had been
residing. His family consisted of a wife, a son of eight
or nine years of age, and two or three children, besides
several of his relations; in all, ten souls, including him¬
self. In a few days they arrived at their new encamp¬
ing ground, after having suffered a great deal of misery
by the way from starvation. They were all much
exhausted and worn out, but hoped, having heard of
buffaloes in the vicinity, that their sufferings would
soon be relieved.
Here they remained several days without finding any
game, and were reduced to the necessity of devouring
their moccasins and leathern coats, rendered eatable by
being singed over the fire. Soon this wretched resource
was also gone, and they were reduced to the greatest
extremity, when a herd of buffaloes was descried far
away in the prairie on the edge of which they were
encamped. All were instantly on the qui vive. Guns
were loaded, snow-shoes put on, and in ten minutes the
males of the hungry party set off after the herd, leaving
Wisagun’s wife and children with another girl in the
tent. It was not long, however, before the famished
party began to grow tired. Some of the weakest
dropped behind; while Wisagun, with his son Natappe,
gave up the chase, and returned to the encampment.
They soon arrived at it, and Wisagun, peeping in
between the chinks of the tent to see what the women
were doing, saw his wife engaged in cutting up one of
her own children, preparatory to cooking it. In a
transport of passion, the Indian rushed forward and