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Having placed Gartok in such a position that he was quite sheltered from the wind, Cheenbuk took off his upper seal-skin coat, laid it on the snow, and lifted the injured man on to it. He then wrapped it round him and folded the hood under his head for a pillow, bidding the boy bank up the snow beside him in such a way as to increase the shelter.
The little boy, who had acted so foolishly, came up with an anxious look on being hailed, but soon forgot himself in his anxiety to be of use to the injured man. There was a mound of snow within three yards of the spot where the combat had taken place. To the lee side of this Cheenbuk carried Gartok.
"There is nothing that I have to hide from my woman," said the amiable Eskimo, in reply to her question. "Only I am troubled about that jump-about man Gartok." "Has he been here again?" asked the wife, with something of a frown on her fat face. "He is just as you say, a jump-about like the little birds that come to us in the hot times, which don't seem to know what they want."
No," he continued, turning away from the angry young man with cool contempt, "old Uleeta has no son." Gartok was so taken aback with this behaviour of Oolalik, who was recognised as one of the gentlest and most peacefully disposed of the tribe, that he stood gaping for a moment in surprise.
He will throw light into our minds when the time comes. He has already thrown some light, for do we not know right from wrong?" "True, but although I have known right I have always done wrong," returned Gartok moodily. "I am sorry now. If you had not been kind to me, your enemy, Cheenbuk, I should never have been sorry.
"Yes," continued Gartok, who had the gift of what is called "the gab," and was fond of exercising it, "yes; it knocked me flat on my back " "Was it alive, then?" asked Anteek, who mingled that day with the men as an equal, in consequence of his having slain a walrus single-handed. "No, it was not quite, but it was very nearly alive. Well, when I fell the man laughed.
In his excitement and weakness Gartok fell, and the dying bear fell upon him. His action, however, saved Anteek, who rolled out of the way just as his preserver fell. Cheenbuk and Anteek did not hesitate, but, regardless of the few death-struggles that followed, rushed in, and grasping its thick hair dragged the monster off the fallen man.
Having picked his rib clean, and receiving no encouragement from Nootka to remain, Gartok rose and departed. That afternoon there was a large meeting of the heads of families in front of what was known as the big hut. There was no formality about the meeting.
But Gartok, who was still smarting under the disgrace to which he had been subjected at the hands of Oolalik, managed to rekindle and blow up the war-spirit, so that, two days later, a strong party of the more pugnacious among the young men of the tribe set off in their kayaks for the Whale River, taking with them a few of the women in one of their open boats or oomiaks chiefly for the purpose of keeping their garments in repair.
The party had travelled about four miles up the valley, and reached a steep part, which was trying to the mettle of the dogs, when a track was observed a short distance to their right. "Bear," said Gartok in a low voice, pointing towards it. Cheenbuk made no reply, but at once ran the team under the shelter of a neighbouring cliff and pulled up.
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