Billy Topsail, M.D.: A Tale of Adventure With Doctor Luke of the Labrador

by Norman Duncan

  CHAPTER IV

  _In Which the Komatik is Foundered, the Dogs Draw Their Own Conclusions from the Misfortune and Prepare to Take Advantage, Cracker Attempts a Theft and Gets a Clip on the Snout, and Billy Topsail and Teddy Brisk Confront a Situation of Peril with Composure, Not Knowing the Ultimate Disaster that Impends_

  Billy Topsail was now sixteen years old--near seventeen, to be exact;and he was a lusty, well-grown lad, who might easily have been mistakenfor a man, not only because of his inches, but because of an assured,competent glance of the eye. Born at Ruddy Cove of Newfoundland, and theson of a fisherman, he was a capable chap in his native environment. Andwhat natural aptitude he possessed for looking after himself inemergencies had been developed and made more courageous and acute by theadventurous life he had lived--as anybody may know, indeed, who cares toperuse the records of those incidents as elsewhere set down. Asassistant to the clerk of the trader _Black Bat_, he had served well;and it is probable that he would some day have been a clerk himself, andeventually a trader, had not the adventure upon which he was embarkingwith Teddy Brisk interrupted his career by opening a new vista for hisambition.

  * * * * *

  Billy Topsail and Teddy Brisk set out in blithe spirits for DoctorLuke's hospital at Our Harbour. A dawn of obscure and disquietingsignificance; a hint of milder weather in the growing day; a drear, graysky thickening to drab and black, past noon; a puff of southerly windand a slosh of rain; a brisk gale, lightly touched with frost, runningwesterly, with snow, in a close, encompassing cloud of great wet flakes;lost landmarks; dusk falling, and a black night imminent, with highwind--and Billy Topsail's team of ten went scrambling over an unexpectedridge and foundered the komatik.

  It was a halt--no grave damage done; it was nothing to worry a man--notthen.

  Young Billy Topsail laughed; and little Teddy Brisk chuckled from thetumbled depths of his dogskin robes; and the dogs, on their haunchesnow, a panting, restless half-circle--the Labrador dogs run inindividual traces--viewed the spill with shamefaced amusement. Yet BillyTopsail was confused and lost. Snow and dusk were impenetrable; thebarricades and cliffs of Ginger Head, to which he was bound, laysomewhere in the snow beyond--a mere general direction. It is nothing,however, to be lost. Daylight and clearing weather infallibly disclosethe lay of the land.

  A general direction is good enough; a man proceeds confidently on themeager advantage.

  It was interesting for the dogs--this rowdy pack from Tight Cove. Theywere presently curious. It was a break in the routine of the road. Thething concerned them nearly. What the mischief was the matter? Somethingwas up! Here was no mere pause for rest. The man was making noarrangements to move along. And what now? Amusement gave place to analert observation of the course of the unusual incident.

  The dogs came a little closer. It was not an attitude of menace. Theyfollowed Billy Topsail's least movement with jerks of concern and startsof surprise; and they reflected--inquiring amazed. Day's work done?Camp for the night? Food? What next, anyhow? It was snowing. Thickweather, this! Thick's bags--this palpable dusk! No man could see hisway in a gale like this. A man had his limitations and customs. This manwould camp. There would be food in reward of the day's work. Was therenever to be any food? There must be food! Now--at last! Oh, sure--why,sure--sure--sure there'd be something to eat when the man went intocamp!

  Mm-m? No? Was the new man going to starve 'em all to death!

  Big Cracker, of this profane, rowdy crew, sidled to the sled. This wasin small advances--a sly encroachment at a time. His object was plain tothe pack. It was theft. They watched him in a trance of expectantinterest. What would happen to Cracker? Wait and see! Follow Cracker?Oh, wait and see, first, what happened to Cracker. And Cracker sniffedat the tumbled robes. The pack lifted its noses and sniffed, too, andopened its eyes wide, and exchanged opinions, and kept watch, in swift,scared glances, on Billy Topsail; and came squirming nearer, as thoughwith some intention altogether remote from the one precisely in mind.

  From this intrusion--appearing to be merely an impudentinvestigation--Cracker was driven off with a quick, light clip of thebutt of the walrus whip on the snout. "Keep the brutes down! Keep undown--ecod!--an' no trouble would come of it." And down went Cracker. Heleaped away and bristled, and snarled, and crawled, whimpering then, tohis distance; whereupon the pack took warning. Confound the man!--he wastoo quick with the whip. Cracker had intended no mischief, had he?

  After that the big Cracker curled up and sulked himself to sleep.

  "I 'low we're close t' Ginger Head," said Billy Topsail.

  "Ah, no, b'y."

  "I seed the nose o' the Scotchman's Breakfast a while back."

  "We're t' the south o' that by three mile."

  "We isn't."

  "We is."

  "Ah, well, anyhow we'll stop the night where we is. The snow blinds aman."

  "That's grievous," Teddy Brisk complained. "I wisht we was over thebarricades an' safe ashore. The bay's all rotten. My mother says----"

  "You isn't timid, is you?"

  "Me? No. My mother says----"

  "Ah, you is a bit timid, Teddy."

  "Who? Me? I is not. But my mother says the wind would just----"

  "Just a wee bit timid!"

  "Ah, well, Billy, I isn't never been out overnight afore. An' my mothersays if the wind blows a gale from the west, south or sou'west----"

  "Never you mind about that, Skipper Teddy. We've something better t'think about than the way the wind blows. The wind's full o' notions.I've no patience t' keep my humour waitin' on what she does. Now youlisten t' me: I got bread, an' I got 'lasses, an' I got tea, an' I got akettle. I got birch all split t' hand, t' save the weight of an axe onthe komatik; an' I got birch rind, an' I got matches. 'Twill be ascoff"--feast--"Skipper Teddy. Mm-m! Ecod! My belly's in a clamour o'greed. The only thing I isn't got is dog meat. Save for that, SkipperTeddy, we're complete."

  Teddy Brisk renewed his complaint.

  "I wisht," said he, "the wind would switch t' sea. Once on a time mygrand----"

  "Never you mind about that."

  "Once on a time my grandfather was cotched by the snow in a gale o' windoff----"

  "Ah, you watch how clever I is at makin' a fire on the ice! Never youmind about the will o' the wind. 'Tis a foolish habit t' fall into."

  Billy Topsail made the fire. The dogs squatted in the offing. Every eyewas on the operation. It was interesting, of course. Nothing escapednotice. Attention was keen and inclusive. It would flare high--a thrillran through the wide-mouthed, staring circle--and expire indisappointment. Interesting, to be sure: yet going into camp on the icewas nothing out of the way. The man would spend the night where hewas--that was all. It portended no extraordinary departure from thecustoms--no opportunity. And the man was alert and capable. No; nothingstimulating in the situation--nothing to be taken advantage of.

  Billy Topsail was laughing. Teddy Brisk chattered all the while. Neitherwas in difficulty. Nor was either afraid of anything. It was not anemergency. There was no release of authority. And when the circumstancesof the affair, at last, had turned out to be usual in every respect,interest lapsed, as a matter of course; and the pack, having presentlyexhausted the distraction of backbiting, turned in to sleep, helped tothis good conduct by a crack of the whip.

  "Not another word out o' you!" Billy Topsail scolded. "You'll be fedfull the morrow."

  Almost at once it fell very dark. The frost increased; the snow turnedto dry powder and the wind jumped to half a gale, veering to thesou'west. Teddy Brisk, with the bread and tea and molasses stowed awaywhere bread and tea and molasses best serve such little lads as he, waspropped against the komatik, wrapped up in his dogskin robes as snug asyou like. The fire was roaring, and the circle of the night was safe andlight and all revealed, in its flickering blaze and radiant, warm redglow.

  Billy Topsail fed the fire hot; and Billy Topsail gave Teddy Briskriddles to rede; and Billy To
psail piped Teddy Brisk a song or two--sucha familiar song of the coast as this:

  'Way down on Pigeon Pond Island, When daddy comes home from swilein' Maggoty fish hung up in the air, Fried in maggoty butter; Cakes an' tea for breakfast, Pork an' duff for dinner, Cakes an' tea for supper-- 'Way down on Pigeon Pond Island, When daddy comes home from swilein'.[1]

  Whatever was bitter and inimical in the wind and dark and driving mistof snow was chased out of mind by the warm fire and companionablebehaviour.

  It was comfortable on the ice: it was a picnic--a bright adventure; andTeddy Brisk was as cozy and dry and content as----

  "I likes it, Billy," said he. "I jus' fair loves it here!"

  "You does, b'y? I'm proud o' you!"

  "'Way out here on the ice. Mm-m! Yes, sirree! I'm havin' a wonderfulhappy time, Billy."

  "I'm glad o' that now!"

  "An' I feels safe----"

  "Aye, b'y!"

  "An' I'm's warm----"

  "Sure, you is!"

  "An' I'm's sleepy----"

  "You go t' sleep, lad."

  "My mother says, if the wind----"

  "Never you mind about that. I'll take care o' you--never fear!"

  "You would, in a tight place, wouldn't you, Billy, b'y?"

  "Well, I 'low I would!"

  "Yes, sirree! You'd take care o' me!"

  "You go t' sleep, lad, an' show yourself an old hand at stoppin' outovernight."

  "Aye, Billy; but my mother says----"

  "Never you mind about that."

  "Ah, well, my mother----"

  And Teddy Brisk fell asleep.

  FOOTNOTE:

  [1] Sealing.