Jack was about to reply when the loud call of a horn rang through
the air.
“I don’t know, but I do know where I’m going,” he cried as he turned
and sprang for the shore. “Come on or I’ll eat all the flapjacks,”
he called back, as he saw that his brother was still watching the
ice.
“Be with you in a minute,” Bob shouted, his eyes still on the lake.
It was a fascinating sight, the ice slowly heaving with a suppressed
restlessness as though loath to give up its sovereignty of the lake.
But hunger soon overcame his desire to watch the lake and he was but
a few minutes later than his brother in entering the long mess room.
Breakfast was on the long table, along the two sides of which about
forty men were doing their best to make way with the huge piles of
hot cakes and bacon and eggs, to say nothing of doughnuts and
coffee.
“You ver’ near mees der grub, oui,” shouted big Jean Larue, as Bob
took his seat beside Jack.
“Guess there’s plenty left,” he laughed, as he glanced about the
table.
“Oui, dar’s allays pleenty der grub here,” declared another Kanuck,
a huge six footer, named Pierre, from his seat near the foot of the
table.
Pierre’s statement was correct, for Mr. Golden believed in giving
his men good food and plenty of it, and there was never any fault
found with the bill of fare in any of his camps.
“We geet the first raft heetched up tomorrow,” Jean said, as he
helped himself to another pile of cakes.
“Sure we will, eef you not eat so mooch you no can stir,” Pierre
shouted, and a roar of laughter filled the vast room in which Jean
joined. His appetite was a standing joke with the men, and he really
seemed to take pride in it.
“Dat all right,” he said, as the laughter subsided. “After breakfast
I, Jean Larue, put you on your back ver’ queek. You tink I eat too
mooch, hey?”
“You mean you try. What you call eet? You spell able once,” Pierre
grinned, as another roar of laughter greeted his words.
“Better get a wiggle,” Jack advised his brother, as he helped
himself to two more doughnuts. “I wouldn’t miss seeing that match
for a farm.”
“Nor I, but I’ll be there. Don’t you worry,” Bob replied, as he
reached for the plate of fresh cakes which the cook’s helper had
just brought in.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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