



Produced by Al Haines.




[Illustration: Cover art]




[Illustration: "_He found himself in a large room flooded with light_."
Page 192.]




                     [Illustration: Pre-title page]

                          *MY STRANGE RESCUE*

                           AND OTHER STORIES

                   *of Sport and Adventure in Canada*


                                   BY

                           J. MACDONALD OXLEY

      _Author of "In the Wilds of the West Coast," "Diamond Rock,"
                        "Up Among the Ice-Floes"
                                &c. &c._



                         THOMAS NELSON AND SONS
                   _London, Edinburgh, and New York_

                                  1903




                           *PREFATORY NOTE.*


The Author begs to express his acknowledgments to the publishers of _Our
Youth_, _Youth's Companion_, _Harper's Young People_, _Golden Days_, and
other periodicals, in whose pages many of these stories and sketches
were first published.

J. M. O.




                              *CONTENTS.*


MY VERY STRANGE RESCUE

A BLESSING IN STERN DISGUISE

IN PERIL AT BLACK RUN

TOUCH AND GO

THE CAVE IN THE CLIFF

TOBOGGANING

A MIC-MAC CINDERELLA

BLUE-NOSE FISHER FOLK

LOST ON THE LIMITS

A STRANGE HELPER

FORTY MILES OF MAELSTROM

THE CANADIAN CHILDREN OF THE COLD

FACE TO FACE WITH AN "INDIAN DEVIL"

IN THE NICK OF TIME

SNOW-SHOEING

THE SWIMMING MATCH AT THE ARM

HAROLD'S LASTING IMPRESSION

HOW WILBERFORCE BRENNAN VISITED WHITE BEAR CASTLE

OUTSIDE THE BOOM

FOUND AFTER MANY DAYS

MRS. GRUNDY'S GOBBLERS

ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE SNOW-RIDGE

THROUGH THE TRACKLESS FOREST

WRECKS AND WRECKERS OF ANTICOSTI

A LUMBER CAMP

LACROSSE

A PILLOW-SLIP FULL OF APPLES

LOST ON LAKE ST. LOUIS

ICE-SKATING IN CANADA

THE WILD DOGS OF ATHABASCA

BIRDS AND BEASTS ON SABLE ISLAND

THE BORE OF MINAS BASIN

THE GAME OF RINK HOCKEY

ON THE EDGE OF THE RAPIDS

THEO'S TOBOGGANING TRIUMPH




[Illustration: Chapter I headpiece]




                       *MY VERY STRANGE RESCUE.*


A shout of laughter rang through the kitchen and went echoing up the
great chimney when, much more in fun than in earnest, I hinted that if
they could not manage to kill the bear themselves I would have to do it
for them.

Now it was no new thing for me to be laughed at.  My big brothers were
only too fond of that amusement, and I had got pretty well used to it;
but this time I detected a particularly derisive tone in their hilarity,
which touched me to the quick, and springing to my feet, with eyes
flashing and cheeks burning, I burst out hotly,--

"I don't care how much you laugh.  As sure as I'm standing here, I'll
put a bullet in that bear before this time to-morrow night!"

At this they only laughed the louder, and filled the room with sarcastic
shouts of,--

"Hurrah for the Bantam!"--"I'll bet on the bear"--"What will you take
for his skin, Bantam?" until father silenced them with one of his
reproving looks, and drew me to him, saying soothingly,--

"Don't mind the boys, Walter; and don't let your temper betray you into
making rash vows that you cannot keep."

I sat down in the sulks, and soon after skipped off to bed; but it was a
long time before I got to sleep, for my brain was in a whirl, and my
blood coursing through my veins like fire.

I was the youngest in a