nine o'clock
Some excitement was shown when in the still water at the head of the murderous left-hand chute , which never was attempted by the _ voyageurs _ , a roll of bedding with a coat tied to it was seen floating in the current . It was supposed that somewhere up the river an accident had occurred , but , as it was impossible to tell when or where , no attempt was made to solve the mystery , and the labor of advancing the brigade northward went on without further delay . As the boys watched the river-men at their hard and heavy work , they came more and more to respect them . Throughout long hours of labor -- and in this northern latitude the sun did not set until after nine o'clock -- there was never a surly word or a complaint heard from any of them . John , who seemed to care for facts and figures , began to ask about the wages which these men received for this hard labor . He was told that they were paid by the trip from Athabasca Landing to McMurray , which covered the bad water to the head of steamboat transport . The steersmen for the round trip received about eighty dollars and their board , and the river-men forty to fifty dollars .