Take off to the Great White North! Read George Marsh’s SLED TRAILS AND WHITE WATERS.
SLED TRAILS AND WHITE WATERS by George Marsh – Book Review
American writer George Tracy Marsh is remembered most today for his adventure stories of the Northcountry wilderness around Hudson Bay. And the wild animals who haunted its forests. And the Ungava huskies who pulled those iconic sleds. His most popular full-length novel was FLASH THE LEAD DOG.
Born in Lansingburgh, New York State, on August 9, 1875, George from early boyhood also showed a love of the water. Especially swimming, boating and canoeing.
In fact, age nine saw him mentioned in a local Newspaper: “While playing on the dock at the foot of Van Schaick street yesterday afternoon, a boy, Stephen Fagg, fell into the water. Had it not been for the presence of Freddie Draper and George Marsh, Fagg would have drowned.” – Troy Daily Times, May 8, 1885.
While at Yale University, “Swamp” Marsh was captain of the freshman eight on the renowned Yale rowing team.
After graduating Harvard law school, George went on to a full life in the law, military and public service. And settled in Providence, Rhode Island, with his wife Eva and their beloved Yorkshire Airedales.
But he never lost his veneration of waterway and canoe. Over many years, George Marsh found time to canoe the wild rivers and vast lakes of Northern Canada. Usually with a river-wise partner.
And in wintertime, celebrate his love of dogs by mushing teams of huskies over the frozen sled trails.
And he wrote about his adventures on snowy sled trails and over white waters. Man, did he write.
He started with magazine short stories. His first book collection of those yarns was printed in 1921. And recently released by Amazon in a facsimile paperback edition titled TOILERS OF THE TRAILS: Stories From the Great White North.
His second collection of short stories, SLED TRAILS AND WHITE WATERS, from Penn Publishing Company, was released in 1929.
The book collected ten more short stories set in Northern Canada. They had appeared in the magazines The Country Gentleman, The Red Book and The Popular Magazine.
Some of Frank Schoonover’s pen and ink illustrations from those magazines were reprinted in the book. And Schoonover painted the cover paste-down image.
SLED TRAILS AND WHITE WATERS continued George’s enthralling descriptions of the wilderness sled trails and wild waterways he had travelled.
While telling the stories of the people who lived there. At a time when many pulp fiction writers did a poor job of representing the Native peoples, George told the stories of the Northern Cree and Ojibway he had met with an understanding, even heroic, voice.
Some stories, such as “April Moon,” told of the tragedies of the cruel winters. And in the case of this story, of a woman stronger than her men. April Moon was also known as the Starving Moon by the Ojibway nation.
“The Vengeance of Black Fox” is the haunting story of a black fox and the many men and women who covet its beautiful fur.
George Marsh also wrote some of the best Dog Stories of his time.
In “Bent-Leg” we read the story of Jim Laird and the injured puppy he finds in the snow:
As the team approached, the whimpering of the diminutive shape beside the river trail rose to staccato cries of distress. Stopping his curious huskies, Laird went to the black-and-white dog in the snow.
“A three-months-old pup!” muttered the dog-driver. “Deserted — hurt too,” he added, bending over the ball of fur that attempted to sit up on its fore legs only to fall back with a cry of pain…
“The knee joint’s hurt — twisted! Must have fallen under the sled!” With a cry the dog caught the hand of the man in his sharp milk-teeth, in protest. But the teeth did not close. Instead the small red tongue licked the hand that had caused the pain. “Game! Affectionate, too! You’ve been run over and they’ve left you to freeze to-night.”
Laird saw that the crippled puppy would never be a sled dog. Of no use. And the life of an unwanted dog in the North was short and final.
Except that Jim Laird felt love for this hurt puppy. He would keep it. And raise it. Even though he knew every other human hand would be lifted against it. Their story is a true classic.
And then there’s “McCleod’s Partner”…
“A howl, dying to a wail of despair, from the shore of the island which he was passing, brought the paddle of McCleod to a stop.”
A few Northern tribes left their sled dogs on river islands for the summer. The best dogs, they believed, would survive until they were needed in late autumn. I’ve written about the Tikah People doing this.
In “McCleod’s Partner,” prospector John McCleod rescues a starving half-grown husky pup he quickly names Pard.
This is one of Marsh’s yarns about love, loyalty and passing seasons in the beautiful and often cruel Northcountry.
The man who later says “I t’ink dat dog my pup. I lose one las’ spreeng,” refuses to fight the big-shouldered Scotsman for Pard. But furtively follows John down the river in his canoe, loaded rifle at his feet.
And the Northern seasons pass. A winter of “rabbit plague” would make for scarce game, wild wolves and famine. The Starving Moon, “When rotten ice barred the waterways and soggy snow trails” threatened to hold them prisoners in the forest. It was common for starved men of the North to kill and eat their dogs. But not with John McCleod and his Pard…
The other stories in SLED TRAILS are “The Judgment of Achille Breault,” “The Outlaw,” “The Witness for the Defence,” “The Game Warden,” “Once at Drowning River” and “Puppets.”
Oh yes, I highly recommend SLED TRAILS AND WHITE WATERS.
==>> To read more about the life and literary works of American author George Marsh, go to Wolf Whelps & Lead Dogs: Tribute to George Marsh, Wilderness Writer
“Live Free, Mon Ami!” – Brian Alan Burhoe
Did you like this Wilderness Fiction Post?
MEET SHOSSA, A SAVAGE SHE-HUSKY. READ WOLFBLOOD — MY MOST POPULAR ANIMAL STORY: “HAPPY ENDING!”
“I JUST READ WOLFBLOOD AGAIN FOR GOOD MEASURE. ONE FOR ANY WOLF LOVER. ENJOYED IT BUT WISH IT WAS A FULL LENGTH NOVEL.” – Gina Chronowicz @ginachron
“GREAT SHORT STORY! DOES REMIND ME OF CALL OF THE WILD, WHITE FANG…” – Evelyn @evelyn_m_k
An “enjoyable and warm-hearted” narrative in the Jack London and George Marsh Tradition of a lone Grey Wolf and his quest for a place in the far-flung forests of the feral North. And then he found Shossa. FREE TO READ ==> WOLFBLOOD: A Wild Wolf, A Half-Wild Husky & A Wily Old Trapper
NOTE ON ARTWORK: Illustrations are by Frank Schoonover. Cover painting and “Two men in canoe” line drawing are from SLED TRAILS AND WHITE WATERS. “A Man and His Dog” is an oil on canvas painting from the same time period; it reminds me of Jim Laird and Bent-Leg.
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Take off to the Great White North! SLED TRAILS AND WHITE WATERS by George Marsh – Book Review – Wolf Dogs.
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