Missionary Work Among the Ojebway IndiansWilson, Edward Francis
History
Missionary Work Among the Ojebway Indians
Wilson, Edward Francis
Indians of North America -- Missions; Ojibwa Indians
_August_ 19_th_.--By 8.15 a.m. we were fairly out on the
bay. I steered and the boys rowed till the wind being favourable, we
hoisted our sails and made a good start, winding our way for some miles
among islands, and then coming out on the open lake. The wind fell, and
the last part of the way we had to row, which made us late in getting
to Pic Island,--and a hard matter indeed it was to get in. In the dim
twilight we could see nothing but high, forbidding rocks, with the dark
rippling waves lapping their sides. Being on the side of the island
exposed to the lake, we could not think of attempting to land until we
should find a secure harbour for our boat, for a sudden storm rising in
the night would knock her to pieces on such a coast. At length, groping
about among the rocks, we espied a crevice into which it appeared
_The Missionary_ would just fit. But, oh! what a place for the
night! High, slippery rocks, piled about us by some giant hand, no wood
for a fire, no grass, no place for a camp--nothing but sharp ledges and
points of rocks. The boys clambered about with their shoeless feet like
cats, and we heard them shouting,--"This is where I am going to sleep!
This is where I shall sleep!" The Bishop groaned and said, "I shall
remain on the boat."
I, for my part, followed the boys, and presently found a sort of small
cavern under a ledge of rock, into which I had my camp-bed carried, and
having lighted a candle, sent Esquimau to bring the Bishop. It was
really most comfortable, and, moreover, in the corner of the cavern we
found a dry log, probably washed there by the waves in a storm; and
with this log we lighted a fire and made some tea, and so--after all--
we had quite a cosy time of it.
_August_ 20_th_.--We all slept sweetly till about 5 a.m.,
when I think we awoke simultaneously; at any rate we were all on the
stir soon after that hour. And now we were hungry, and there was no
bread, no fire, and no wood, and fourteen miles to get to the mainland,
and a head-wind. What was to be done? By the kindly light of day we
discovered that our position was not so distressing as we had at first
imagined. A little way over the rocks was a shore with drift-wood lying
on it, our cook was despatched with the frying-pan and his bag of
flour, and after all we did famously.
Before starting off we joined in repeating the morning psalms. We had
a hard pull against a steady head-wind, and could only make two miles
an hour, so that it was a little after three when we reached Pic River;
and having run the boat on to a sandy shore, carried up our things and
prepared our camp.
After eight more day's sailing, we reached the Shingwauk again, where
a warm welcome awaited us.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
BAPTIZED--BURIED.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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