Interview #31

Name: George House

Sex: Male

Age: 65

Place and date of birth: St. Alban's, December 20, 1933

Education: Trade School

Religion: Roman Catholic

Occupation: Various

Number of children: 0

Phone: 538-3016

Place of interview: St. Alban's

Date of interview: February 25, 1999

Interviewers: Colin Pittman and Curtis Hoskins

In 1969, my friend Joe House and I went moose hunting down Long Pond, what they called "the angle." We hunted moose for a couple of days and stayed into a cabin that belonged to some friends. We didn't get anything in those couple of days. The next morning we woke up and were frozen in. Joe wanted to leave everything there on the side of the boat but I said "No, we'll take it up and put it in the garage that's built onto the cabin."

I took my fifteen gallons of gas and my twenty horse power outboard motor and stuck it up in the garage. I checked the stove, and there was no fire to be seen. Six inches of snow had fallen and we wobbled off into it to go moose hunting. It was easy to trace them in the snow. All we saw was a few caribou and got on the tracks of them. Joe happened to looked back to see nothing only black smoke. The cabin was on fire! He said "Let's run!". I said "No good to run. Can't do anything about it now." We forgot everything then, not a moose or caribou in our minds. We went back to the cabin and it was burnt down. Everything was gone. Everything in there. Joe lost his gun but, luckily, I had my two guns - my shotgun and my 30/30. What food we had was only enough for a light lunch. Joe started to cry and almost got me going too. Joe said "So what should we do?". I said "Not much use staying here. I'll go around and you tie a long rope around me." He tied a bit of rope around me because I was the smaller one between us. He was almost 200 pounds. If I had fallen in, he would have hauled me out.

We went on, with our little lunch, a couple of garbage bags, my two guns, an axe and some matches. We got around so far, then it came rain. It was a long walk but we couldn't take any other way. There was a river down around Rocky Hole and this way would take days and days. Another way was to walk right in by Round Pond River but then come out through. We couldn't make it with nothing t'all to eat. No one was coming to look for us because they taught us was all right. Somebody did see the smoke from the cabin, but thought we were burning something.

Halfway it came rain. Both of us were hungry. We had nothing to eat since breakfast. It came dark and we cut up a garbage bag for a shelter to put over our heads. Joe cut trees 'til he got tired and then I cut some. We didn't have much strength because we were hungry. With the rain pouring down, we made it to where the Stricklands cabin would be. They burned that down a few years before because people were killing moose and caribou. If we could have stayed there, that would have been great for us.

We made it as far as that cabin the next morning. We couldn't get across any where. We were going to come across to Sandy Point but that was no good. We were hoping some men had left a canoe, which they did. We turned the canoe over. We really hungry by this time. I said "Let's go see if we get a rabbit at somebody's snare." We got a rabbit, cleaned him, and roasted him over the fire. We had a little bit of butter to rub over him and ate that, but that was no good. We tried to get some beaver root but we couldn't because of the time of the year. We did get something. We don't know if it was beaver root or not. We took the outside part off it because the inside part of that is the food. We wouldn't live off that for long. There weren't very many birds around there either.

We stayed there for two days. We left from there on the third day. We were beyond hungry and contrary. Joe was worst because he was a smoker and he had no smokes. We had teabags so we got a cup of tea. We made shelter under the canoe so we stayed in there for a night or two. It was still blowing hard and I got on board the canoe a bit too much and Joe got mad at me. I said "Take it easy, by, there's no need getting like that." I hold me own for one thing. When we got as far as Sandy Point, I wouldn't let Joe go any further because I was afraid we would rip a hole in the canoe. It was still blowing and it was after dark. If we ripped a hole in the canoe, we'd be in the lake. We tried to hold our own and go ashore. We hauled up the canoe and went to sleep by the fire.

When I woke up the next morning, my feet were down in the water. We had one teabag left. We had the teabag and we felt good after having a drink of tea. We got up and started again but Joe was keeping too much to the north. I said "No. We can't go that way. If we go that way, we will be going down almost where we came from down on Sandy Point." I told Joe to follow me and I jumped across Lou Pond Brook. I was perfect but it suddenly hit me again.

My legs gave out. I said "You go on ahead." He said "I'm not goin' leave you." I said "You gotta leave me." He said "I'm not. I'm not leaving my buddy." I said "One guy gets out that's enough. You save me. Anyway, you got a wife and kids home. I haven't. You try to get out for the sake of them." I told him that if someone comes looking for me, tell them to fire one shot first and then I fire another one back at him. He took off.

He wasn't gone very long before I heard a shot. I supposed he had gone and shot off the gun accidentally fell and shot himself. Although I knew he had a little bit more strength than me. I hoped he didn't hurt himself. I took off and came across some fresh berries and I had 'er made. I picked mish berries and partridge berries. Oh god, they were good. I would get down to get a drink but I couldn't get back up, you see. My leg wouldn't push me back up. I'd get back up with my old shotgun. I ran out of berries and got weak again.

I finally came to Salmon River Dam and thought I'm not going down there, its steep. I might fall; break an arm or leg or something or skin my face. So I got down on my butt. I slid down over it. I had six or seven spills across the dam or something around that. I got across. The first thing I looked to see if anything happened to my buddy or not. He walked twisty footed and I looked in the soft sand and his footprint was gone twisty. Oh! He made it! I felt good then. I got to that little spring on one side of the Salmon River Dam. I got a good cold drink.

Then I heard a jeep coming or something. This was Ray Bradley and some young guy, somebody said he was a Strickland. Ray knew all about it. He said "Help him take off his packsack." I said "No need of that. It's only my legs." I took the line and bust it off. I got aboard the jeep. Ray said "He would be all right if we let down the gates." I said "Yes I'm okay. Just my legs are weak. Every bit of energy is gone. I didn't eat for three and a half day, only roasted rabbit." The radio was cracked "Did you get him Ray? Is he okay?". I never had enough energy to reach over. I told Ray, when he came back, what was happening and he answered it.

All the brooks were washed out in there. I told Ray to go down by South Cut Off, which is where Joe's car was. Perhaps my buddy went down there. If he did, he's finished. We went there, looked down and couldn't see him. I was relieved. We went on back and went out South Cut Off and his car were gone. He got back to his car all right. The first thing he did was rolled up some old butts. He lost the first one because he was too excited. He got in his car and went to Brendan Organ's. He said "Brendan I wants something to eat. Some bologna or something." Brendan stuttered, you see. He said stuttering "I'll give you something but you not gonna get no baloney." Brendan was excited because Joe was there you see. He gave him some biscuits and pop and maybe some milk; I'm not quite sure. Joe said "I'll pay for it tomorrow." Brendan stuttered "No you don't, not gonna take no money." They called the cops, and when they came he got aboard their car.

When I got out by the airport (the one by South Cut Off), I met Joe. Ray said to the cops "We got him. He's in good shape for a man out that long." I had to get in with the cops. Ray followed. When I got on this side of the airport, I met my father, Anthony Collier and my brother. They had a bottle of milk and some biscuits. We got as far as Brendan Organ's again and the cop wanted a statement. "Wait 'til tomorrow to get the statement," Ray said. No way! The statement had to come then. I said "It was a bad thing for them to burn down that cabin. If that cabin were there, everything would have been all right. We might have got some dried up bread, some salt or pork."

When I got home, I couldn't get to sleep. I had a bowl of soup, that is it. I had a drink and felt like getting on the booze. My sister told me to go to bed, so I did. I never woke until the next day. That morning I had bacon and eggs. I and Joe got a case of beer. We forgot our hunger then.