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diff --git a/43905.txt b/43905.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 4f44a7d..0000000 --- a/43905.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,9167 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's South from Hudson Bay, by E. C. [Ethel Claire] Brill - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: South from Hudson Bay - An Adventure and Mystery Story for Boys - -Author: E. C. [Ethel Claire] Brill - -Release Date: October 8, 2013 [EBook #43905] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SOUTH FROM HUDSON BAY *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Rod Crawford, Dave Morgan -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - "WHEN LAROQUE'S BOAT REACHED THE LANDING, THE SHORE WAS LINED - WITH PEOPLE." - "South from Hudson Bay." (See Page 82) - - - - - SOUTH FROM - HUDSON BAY - - - AN ADVENTURE AND MYSTERY - STORY FOR BOYS - - BY - E. C. BRILL - - _ILLUSTRATED_ - - CUPPLES & LEON COMPANY - PUBLISHERS NEW YORK - - ADVENTURE AND MYSTERY - STORIES FOR BOYS - - - _By_ E. C. BRILL - - - Large 12 mo. Cloth. Illustrated. - - - THE SECRET CACHE - SOUTH FROM HUDSON BAY - THE ISLAND OF YELLOW SANDS - - - Copyright, 1932, by - Cupples & Leon Company - PRINTED IN U. S. A. - - - Copyright, 1932, by - Cupples & Leon Company - PRINTED IN U. S. A. - - - - - CONTENTS - - - I The New Land 9 - II Fort York 14 - III The Selkirk Colony and the Rival Fur Traders 24 - IV The Start from Fort York 32 - V The Black Murray 39 - VI Toiling Up Stream 45 - VII Norway House 53 - VIII The Missing Pemmican 61 - IX Hunger and Cold 67 - X The Red River at Last 74 - XI Fort Douglas 81 - XII By Cart Train to Pembina 89 - XIII The Red-Headed Scotch Boy 97 - XIV Pembina 108 - XV The Ojibwa Hunter 118 - XVI Letters from Fort Douglas 124 - XVII Christmas at Pembina 134 - XVIII Mirage of the Prairie 140 - XIX Blizzard 147 - XX A Night Attack 154 - XXI The Burned Cabin 161 - XXII The Painted Buffalo Skull 167 - XXIII Unwelcome Visitors 176 - XXIV A Sore Hand 186 - XXV The Travelers without Snowshoes 193 - XXVI Elise's Story 200 - XXVII Why the Periers Came to Pembina 207 - XXVIII The Land to the South 214 - XXIX The Coming of the Sioux 225 - XXX With the Buffalo Hunters 231 - XXXI The Charging Buffalo 239 - XXXII To the Sheyenne River 245 - XXXIII A Lonely Camp 253 - XXXIV Danger 261 - XXXV In the Chief's Tipi 270 - XXXVI The White Trader 280 - XXXVII Flight 289 - XXXVIII The Fight at the Bois des Sioux 299 - XXXIX Safe 309 - XL Conclusion 316 - - - - - I - THE NEW LAND - - -Before Walter Rossel was wholly awake, even before he opened his eyes, he -realized that the ship was unusually quiet. There was only a slight -rolling motion from side to side, a dead roll. Was she caught in the ice -again, or had she reached Fort York at last? Could it be that the long -voyage was really over? Walter hurried into the few clothes he had taken -off, and ran up on deck, hoping to see land close by. - -He was disappointed. He could see nothing but gray water, a line of white -where waves were breaking on a long bar, and the dim, shadowy forms of -the other ships, hulls, masts, and spars veiled in dense fog. There was -no ice in sight, yet all three vessels were riding at anchor. - -Eagerly the boy turned to a sailor who was scrubbing the deck. Walter's -native tongue was French, but he had picked up a little English during -the voyage, enough to ask why the ships were at anchor, and to understand -part of the man's reply. They had crossed the bar in the night, the -sailor said, and were lying in the shallow water of York Flats. Over -there to the south, hidden in the fog, was the shore. - -The news that they had arrived off Fort York spread rapidly among the -passengers on the _Lord Wellington_. Men, women, and children crowded on -deck, gazed into the fog, questioned one another and the sailors in -French, German, and broken English, and talked and laughed excitedly. A -little boy of seven and his older sister, a bright-faced girl of thirteen -with hazel eyes and heavy braids of brown hair, joined Walter and poured -out eager questions. - -"They say we are at the end of our voyage," cried the girl, "but where is -the land?" - -Walter pointed to the south. "We'll see it when the fog lifts. Does your -father know we are almost at Fort York?" - -"Yes, he is coming on deck. There he is now." - -A middle aged man, thin and somewhat stooped, was coming towards them, -his pale face smiling and eager. "Well, my boy," he greeted Walter, "this -is good news indeed. We shall soon be settled on our own farm. Think of -that, children, our own farm, a far larger one than we could ever dream -of having in Switzerland." - -"Yes, Monsieur Perier," replied Walter, "the voyage is almost over, -and----" - -"Look, Walter," Elise interrupted. "The fog is thinner. See how red it is -in the east. And look at that dark line, like a shadow. Can that be the -shore?" - -The fog was certainly thinning. A wider stretch of water had become -visible, and the outlines of the other ships were clearer. Though steam -power was coming into use for river navigation on both sides of the -Atlantic, there were no ocean-going steamships in 1821. The _Lord -Wellington_, the _Prince of Wales_, and the _Eddystone_ were sailing -vessels, sturdily built craft with extra heavy oak sheathing and -iron-plated bows, suitable for cruising ice-strewn, northern waters. That -all three had been in contact with the ice, their scraped and battered -hulls betrayed. From each mizzen peak fluttered the British red ensign, -and the mainmast head bore a flag with a red cross and the letters H. B. -C., the flag of the Hudson Bay Company. - -The immigrants aboard the _Lord Wellington_ wasted scarcely a glance on -the other ships. It was the land they were interested in. As the rising -sun drank up the fog, and the shore line grew clearer, the eager faces of -Elise and Walter sobered with disappointment. A most unattractive shore -was revealed. It was low, swampy, sparsely clad with stunted trees, a -desolate land without sign of human dwelling. Fort York could not be -seen. It was fifteen or twenty miles in the interior, on the Hayes River. - -Unpromising as the land appeared, it was land nevertheless, and everyone -longed to set foot upon it. To the one hundred and sixty Swiss -immigrants, the voyage had seemed endless. On May 30 they had sailed from -Dordrecht in Holland. Now it was the last of August. For nearly three -months they had been on shipboard. Delayed by stormy weather and crowding -ice, they had spent a whole month navigating Hudson Straits and Bay. -Luckily for them they did not realize what a long and toilsome way they -had yet to travel before they reached their destination, the Selkirk -Colony on the Red River of the North. - -Though many of the new colonists looked thin, worn, and even ill from the -hardships of the long voyage, they appeared to be neat, self-respecting -folk, intelligent and fairly well to do. Some wore the peasant dress of -their native cantons, but the majority were townspeople,--shopkeepers and -skilled workmen. Mr. Perier was a chemist and apothecary. - -Walter Rossel had not one blood relation in the whole company, but he -considered himself one of the Perier family. For the past two years, as -an apprentice in Mr. Perier's shop, he had lived with them. When his -master had decided to emigrate, he had offered to either release Walter -from his apprenticeship or take the boy with him. Walter had decided -quickly, and his father and stepmother had given their consent. - -The Periers and Walter had breakfasted, packed their personal belongings, -and were on deck again, when a small, open sailboat came in sight from -the direction of the shore. It headed for the _Eddystone_ and disappeared -on the other side of that ship. Presently it reappeared, visited the -_Prince of Wales_, and finally came on to the _Lord Wellington_. - -As the little boat drew close, Elise, Walter, and Max looked curiously -down on the crew of sun-tanned, bearded men, strangely dressed in hooded -coats of bright blue or of white blanketing, bound about the waists with -colorful silk or woolen sashes. The man in command came aboard, climbing -the ladder up the side. He was broad shouldered and strongly built, with -reddish hair, bristly beard, and skin burned red-brown. With his blue -coat and bright red sash, he wore buckskin trousers fringed at the seams, -and the queerest footgear Walter had ever seen, slipper-like, heel-less -shoes of soft leather embroidered in colors. They were Indian moccasins -ornamented with dyed porcupine quills. - -After glancing about him and inclining his head slightly in a general -greeting, the newcomer shook hands with the Master of the ship and with -Captain Mai, the man in charge of the Swiss immigrants, who had hurried -forward to greet him. He went below with them, but remained only a few -minutes. - -As soon as the red-haired man was overside again, the Swiss crowded -around their conductor to ask when they were to go ashore. Captain Mai -pointed to the other ships. Their sails were up and they were getting -under way. - -"A pilot has just gone aboard the _Eddystone_," he said. "We are to -follow her." - -Even before Captain Mai had finished speaking, the _Lord Wellington_ was -waking to activity. The anchors came up, the sails were set, and caught -the breeze. In a few moments the immigrant vessel was following the -supply ships towards the mouth of the Hayes River. - - - - - II - FORT YORK - - -The first view of Fort York was as disappointing as the first glimpse of -shore. To Elise and Walter a fort meant massive stone walls and towers, -rising from some high and commanding position. A stretch of log fencing -in a bog was not their idea of fortification. It had the interest of -novelty, however, for it was very different from anything they had ever -seen before. The logs were set upright and close together, and above this -stockade rose the flat, leaded roofs of the buildings. Near the fort -stood a cluster of strange dwellings, quite unlike the Eskimo summer huts -of stones, sod, and skins, with which the Swiss had become familiar since -reaching Arctic waters. These queer skin tents were roughly cone-shaped, -and the ends of the framework of poles projected at the peak. They were -Cree Indian summer lodges. Up the wide board walk from the dock to the -fort gates, men were carrying sacks and boxes. The unloading of the -supply ships had begun. - -The Perier family were among the last of the immigrants to go ashore. -Very much like a homeless wanderer, motherless Elise Perier felt as she -stood on the river bank beside her father, with Max clinging to her hand, -and their scanty belongings piled around them. It was good to be on land -again of course, but this was such a strange land. In spite of cramped -quarters, poor food, seasickness, and the other hardships of the voyage, -the _Lord Wellington_ seemed almost homelike compared to this wild, -barren country. Elise tried bravely to smile at her father and Walter, -but she felt as if she must cry instead. - -Captain Mai was calling them. "Go right up to the fort, Perier. I want to -get you all together." - -Walter picked up as much of the luggage as he could carry. Mr. Perier was -looking doubtfully at a heavy wooden chest, when a boyish voice at his -shoulder said in French, "Let me help, M'sieu. If you will put that on my -back, I will carry it for you." - -Walter dropped his own load, and he and Mr. Perier lifted the chest and -placed it so it rested on the portage strap, as the young Canadian -directed. Then the latter led the way up the walk. He was a slender, -supple lad, not as tall as Walter, but he carried the heavy load with -apparent ease. The Swiss boy admired the young fellow's strength as much -as he liked his face, with its bright brown eyes and clean-cut features. - -The log stockade proved to be more imposing and fort-like than it had -appeared from the river. It was about twenty feet high, with bastions at -the corners pierced with openings for cannon. The massive entrance gates -stood open, and in front of them was a tall flagstaff, bearing the -Company flag with the letters H. B. C. and the curious motto, "_Pro pelle -cutem_,"--"Skin for skin." Entering the gates and passing within the -double row of stockades, their guide led the Perier family among -workshops and cabins to an inner court, which was surrounded with -substantial log structures where the officers lived and where the -merchandise and furs were stored. In this court the Swiss were gathered. - -Mr. Perier tried to thank the friendly lad, but he shook his head. "It is -nothing, nothing, M'sieu," he replied, a quick smile displaying his even, -white teeth. "I must not linger. There is much to do." And he was off at -a run. - -When all of the Swiss were assembled, one of their leaders suggested that -it was fitting they should give thanks to God that the dangerous ocean -voyage was over and they were safe on land once more. They stood with -bowed heads while he led the prayer. The lump in Elise's throat -disappeared and she felt better. - -In the meantime, Captain Mai had been arranging with the Chief -Factor,--as the Hudson Bay Company officer in charge of the fort was -called,--for quarters for the immigrants. There was not room for all in -the buildings, so many of the men and boys would have to sleep in tents. -A place in one of the houses was found for the Periers, but Walter was -assigned to a tent with Mr. Scheidecker and his sons, German Swiss from -Berne. - -That first night on land was a miserable one for Walter. Fort York stood -in a veritable bog or muskeg, firm and hard enough the greater part of -the year, when it was frozen, but wet and soft in the short summer -season. The ground was damp of course, and Walter's one blanket did not -keep out the chill. To make matters worse, he and his companions were -pestered by the bloodthirsty mosquitoes that bred in inconceivable hordes -in the swampy lowlands. But the discomfort of the night was quickly -forgotten the next day. - -A busy and interesting place the Swiss boy found York Factory, as the -Hudson Bay men called the fort. It was not a factory in our common -meaning of the word,--not a _manufactory_,--for nothing was manufactured -there except boats for river traffic, dog sleds, wooden kegs, and such -articles of use and trade as an ordinary carpenter, blacksmith, or -tinsmith could make with simple tools. _Factory_ in the fur trade meant a -trading post in charge of an officer called a _factor_, a commercial -agent who bought and sold. - -For more than a century York Factory had been the principal port of entry -for the Hudson Bay Company. There the Company's ships from England -brought the supplies and trade goods destined for all the widely -separated posts in the interior. To York Factory, in bark canoes and -wooden boats, down rivers and lakes, from all parts of the Company's -great domain, came the bales of costly furs to be sorted and repacked and -shipped. A considerable staff was employed at the place, a Chief Factor, -a Chief Trader, a surgeon, several clerks and apprentice clerks, a -steward, a shipwright, a carpenter, a mason, a cooper, a blacksmith, a -tailor, laborers, cooks, and servants. The boatmen or _voyageurs_ who -went to and fro into the interior were hired independently for each trip. - -Until he sailed for America, Walter had never even heard of the Hudson -Bay Company or the fur trade. Everything in the fort was novel and -interesting to him. A good-natured apprentice clerk, who spoke French -readily, showed him the Indian store, a large room well filled with all -sorts of goods used in the Indian trade, from bales of heavy blankets, -blue and red woolens, calicos of every color, long-barreled trading guns, -kegs of powder, and big iron and copper kettles, to drawers of useful -little things, gun flints, fire steels, files, awls, needles, fish hooks, -twine, beads of all imaginable tints, and ochre, vermilion, and other dry -colors, used by the Indians to adorn both their handiwork and themselves. - -"I never saw so many different things in one shop," Walter commented. - -The clerk laughed. "The worst of it is that we have to keep the closest -account of it all. We must know what is in every package sent out and -what post it goes to. Being a fur trader isn't all adventure I can tell -you. There is a lot of office drudgery, with all the bookkeeping, -invoicing, and checking of lists. We can't afford to make mistakes," he -added soberly. "The very lives of the men in some far-away post may -depend on their getting the right supplies. Why, last year----" He broke -off suddenly, and switched to English. "I spoke to the Chief Trader about -your proposal. He says it can't be done. It's not the policy of the -Company to send voyageurs out to trade, especially on such long trips." - -Walter had turned to see to whom the clerk was speaking. He had heard no -footsteps, but there, close behind him, was a tall man in blue coat, -deerskin leggings, and moccasins. In his surprise, the boy drew back a -little and stood staring. Of all the men he had seen since coming ashore, -this one was the strangest and most striking. He was tall, powerfully -built, and very dark of skin, with high cheek bones and high-bridged -nose. His long, coarse black hair, slick and shining with grease, was -worn in what seemed to the Swiss boy a curious fashion for a man, parted -in the middle and plaited in two braids bound with deerskin thongs and -hanging one over each shoulder. - -"You not give me goods?" The man's voice was peculiarly deep, not -unmusical but of a hard, metallic quality. His small, dark eyes looked -straight into the clerk's large blue ones. - -The young man shook his head. "No, your plan is too wild, too much risk -in it. That sort of thing is against the Company's policy." - -The voyageur's brown face stiffened. His hard eyes seemed to catch fire -as they rested first on the clerk and then, for a moment, on Walter. -Without a word he turned and with long, soft-footed stride, left the room -as noiselessly as he had entered it. - -"Pleasant manners," commented the clerk. "He needn't have included you in -his wrath." - -"What did he want?" asked Walter. He had understood but little of the -brief conversation. - -"A lot of goods on credit. He claims to have great influence with the -Sioux, and he wants an outfit to go and trade with them. Of course we -can't let him have it." - -"You don't trust him?" - -"We don't know anything about him, except that he is a good voyageur. -It's against the Company's policy to send voyageurs out to trade. And his -scheme is a crazy one. The Sioux country is a thousand miles away. He -said he would bring all the furs back here and take whatever commission -we chose to give, but probably we should never hear of him or the goods -again." - -"Is he an Indian?" - -"Half-breed I imagine. Finely built fellow, isn't he? Has the strength of -a moose, they say. He is an expert voyageur." - -"I don't like him," Walter commented. - -"Neither do I, and I suppose he has a grudge against me now, though the -refusal wasn't my doing of course. Well, I must stop talking and get to -work checking this new stuff that has come in." - -Thus dismissed, Walter wandered out into the court, through the open -gates and down to the shore. Everywhere was bustle and activity. There -was much to be done, and done quickly. With the least possible delay the -ships must be unloaded and loaded again with the furs waiting packed and -ready for the voyage to England. The little fleet must get away promptly -while Hudson Straits were still open. All the goods and supplies received -had to be checked, examined, and sorted. The things to be sent to trading -posts in the interior were repacked for transport in open boats up the -rivers, and every package was invoiced and plainly marked. Boats must be -made ready and equipped and provisioned, not only to carry the supplies -and trade goods, but the one hundred and sixty new settlers as well. The -twelve hours a day that the employees of the Company were required to -work in summer, if necessary, were not enough. Most of the men were -simply doing all they possibly could each day until the rush should be -over. - -Down by the river Walter found the young fellow who had carried Mr. -Perier's chest. He was putting a new seat in one of the large, heavily -built boats ranged along the bank. Looking up from his work, he greeted -the Swiss boy with a cheery "_Bo jou_," which the latter guessed to be -the Canadian way of saying "_Bon jour_" or "Good day." Walter, who was -handy with tools, offered his help. - -As they worked they talked. His new acquaintance's French was fluent, but -Walter found it puzzling. To a Swiss, the Canadian dialect seemed a -strange sort of French, differing considerably in pronunciation and in -many of its words from his own native tongue. Yet Walter and Louis -Brabant managed to understand each other fairly well. - -"I suppose this is your home, here at the fort," said Walter. - -"My home? _Non_, I live at the Red River." - -"Why, that is where we are going!" - -"You go to the Selkirk Colony at Fort Douglas. It is not there that I -live, but at Pembina, farther up the river." - -"Is Pembina a town?" - -"Not what you would call a town. It is a settlement and there are trading -posts there, a Hudson Bay post and a Northwest Company post. Now the two -companies have united, one of the forts will be abandoned I suppose. You -may be glad the fighting between them is over. There will be better times -in the Selkirk Colony now. They have had a hard time and much trouble, -those poor settlers!" - -"What do you mean by fighting,--and trouble?" asked the surprised Walter. -"What is the Northwest Company? Isn't the Hudson Bay the only trading -company? Doesn't it own all the country where the Indians and the fur -bearing animals are?" - -"Oh no," returned Louis with a smile and a shake of his head. "Farther -south there is fur country that belongs to the United States. The Hudson -Bay Company has no power there. It is true that the Company claims all -the northern fur country, but the Northwest Company said they had a right -to trade and trap there too, and that was how the trouble began. Have you -never heard of the Northwest Company, and how for years they have fought -the Hudson Bay men for the furs, and how they drove the settlers from the -Selkirk Colony and captured Fort Douglas and killed the Governor?" - -Walter shook his head in bewilderment, and Louis went on to tell, briefly -and vividly, something of the conflict between the two great trading -companies, and the disasters that conflict had brought upon the settlers. -The Swiss boy listened in amazement, understanding enough of the story to -grasp its significance. - -"But why didn't Captain Mai tell us all that?" he cried. "Why did he let -us think that everything was all right?" - -"Perhaps he thought you would not come if you knew. But those old -troubles are all over. Last spring the two companies became one." - -Louis' story troubled Walter. He retold it to Mr. Perier and Mr. -Scheidecker, and they carried it to other leading men of the prospective -settlers. Several of them sought out Captain Mai and demanded to know why -they had not been informed of all those wild doings in the colony. -Unsatisfied by their conductor's explanations, they asked for an -interview with the Chief Factor, and put their questions to him. He -confirmed the statement that the fur-traders' rivalry and warfare were at -an end. About five months before the arrival of the Swiss, the two great -trading companies had united under the Hudson Bay name. The colony on the -Red River would now have a chance to develop in peace. - -In spite of this assurance, the Hudson Bay officer's replies to some of -their queries left the Swiss in no happy mood. Mr. Perier was stunned to -learn that they still had some seven hundred miles to travel, all the way -through untamed wilderness. But he had no thought of turning back. He had -signed an agreement with Captain Mai, and had paid for his family's -passage,--a moderate sum, but he could ill afford to lose it. To pay -their fare back again would leave him penniless. Fertile land, one -hundred acres of prairie,--that would not have to be cleared,--had been -promised him rent free for a year. After that he was to pay a rent of -from twenty to fifty bushels of wheat from his crop, or he might buy the -land outright for five hundred bushels. The offer was enticing, and he -and Walter had made many plans for the future. - - - - - III - THE SELKIRK COLONY AND THE RIVAL FUR TRADERS - - -What was the Selkirk Colony, and how did it happen that this party of -Swiss had come so far to join it? - -When Thomas Douglas, Earl of Selkirk, one of the famous Douglas family of -the Scottish border, planned the settlement on the Red River of the -North, his purpose was to find homes and livelihood for the -poverty-stricken Scotch Highlanders. Hundreds of those unfortunate people -had been turned out of their homes through changes in the system of -management of the great landed estates in Scotland, and there was little -opportunity in the old country for them to make a living. Though a -Lowlander himself, Lord Selkirk had often visited the Highland glens. He -knew the people, and had learned their native Gaelic language. He -sympathized with them in their misfortunes. Seeking for some way to help -them, he realized that their only chance for prosperity and success lay -in emigration to a country where land was cheap and plentiful. He had -heard of the rich soil of the Red River valley, and decided that was the -place to plant his colony. - -The lower Red River valley was included in the vast domain of the Hudson -Bay Company. The charter from King Charles II of England issued in 1670 -had given to Prince Rupert and the "Company of Adventurers of England, -trading into Hudson Bay"--"the whole trade of all those seas, streights, -and bays, rivers, lakes, creeks, and sounds,--that lie within the -entrance of the streights commonly called Hudson's Streights, together -with all the lands, countries, and territories upon the coasts and -confines of the seas, streights, bays, lakes, rivers, creeks, and sounds -aforesaid, which are not now actually possessed by any of our subjects, -or by the subjects of any other Christian prince or State." Not only did -the royal charter grant the "Adventurers" the trade of that vast -region,--which, in the widest interpretation of the terms, included a -quarter or a third of the whole of North America,--but it conferred upon -the Company the right to hold the land "in free and common socage" which -means absolute proprietorship. Whether King Charles really had the right -to give away this vast territory to anyone may be questioned, but the -Hudson Bay Company claimed proprietorship under the charter. - -The Red River empties into Lake Winnipeg, and the northern end of the -lake drains into the Nelson River which flows to Hudson Bay. Accordingly -the valley of the Red was included in the territory claimed by the -Company. However, before the time of this story, the purchase from France -by the United States of a vast extent of country west of the Mississippi -River,--the Louisiana Purchase--and the boundary treaties with the -British government, gave the greater part of the Red River to the United -States. Only the stretch from what is now the northern limit of Minnesota -and North Dakota to Lake Winnipeg remained in English possession. It was -to this lower part of the valley that Lord Selkirk wished to take his -colonists. He knew well enough that the Hudson Bay Company would not be -inclined to part with any of its domain for such a purpose, but he had -set his heart upon planting his colony in that particular spot. - -Accordingly he laid his plans to get possession of the required land. -Quietly, by buying shares himself and persuading his friends to buy also, -he obtained control over a majority of the stock of the great trading -company. Then he offered to purchase a wide strip of land on the Red and -Assiniboine rivers. As he controlled the majority of votes in the -Company, he got what he wanted, about one hundred and sixteen square -miles, of which he became absolute proprietor. - -The first settlers he sent over were of course Scotch Highlanders, with a -few Irish. They arrived at Fort York in the autumn of 1811, too late to -go to the Red River that year. The next summer they reached their new -home on the Red, and were followed within three years by other parties, -numbering in all a little more than two hundred, most of them Scotch. - -The troubles of the settlers were many and discouraging. Had the Earl of -Selkirk been a more practical man he would scarcely have undertaken to -plant a farming colony in the midst of a wilderness, hundreds of miles -from any other settlement, and without communication with the civilized -world except by canoe and rowboat over long and difficult river trails. -Not all of the colonists' troubles were due to natural conditions -however. - -The Hudson Bay Company had a strong trading rival in the Northwest Fur -Company. The latter was a Canadian organization with headquarters at -Montreal, while the Hudson Bay Company was strictly English, its chief -offices in London. The Northwest men had established trading posts along -the Great Lakes and far to the west and north beyond Lake Superior. They -had penetrated farther and farther into the country claimed by the Hudson -Bay Company. The Hudson Bay men themselves had done almost nothing to -develop trade in the interior, until the Canadian traders began to go -among the Indians and secure furs that might otherwise have been brought -to the posts on the Bay. Awakening to the realization that the Northwest -Company was actually taking away the trade, the Hudson Bay men also -sought the interior. In this way began a race and a fight for the furs -that grew hotter and fiercer with each year. Everywhere on the principal -lakes and streams of the west and northwest, rival posts were -established, sometimes within a few hundred rods of each other. - -The rivalry between the fur traders was approaching its height when Lord -Selkirk founded his colony. From the first, the Northwest Company opposed -the scheme. The fur trader never likes to see the country from which the -pelts come opened up to settlement. He knows that as the land is settled -the wild animals disappear. Moreover Lord Selkirk was now the controlling -power in the Hudson Bay Company, and the Northwesters suspected him of -some deep laid plan to interfere with and ruin their trade. Several years -before, they had established a post called Fort Gibraltar at the junction -of the Red and the Assiniboine, and their route to the rich fur districts -of the west lay up the latter river. They believed that the settlement -was merely a scheme to cut off their trade. So they looked with -unfriendly eyes upon the colony, and even persuaded a considerable number -of the colonists to leave and settle on lands farther east in Canada. -Most of the Northwest traders were of Scotch blood, many of them of -Highland descent, and doubtless they honestly thought that their -countrymen would find better homes elsewhere. The chance that the Red -River settlement would ever succeed seemed, to practical-minded men, very -slender indeed. - -The ill feeling between the two great trading companies and between the -Northwest Company and the Selkirk settlement grew stronger and bitterer -as time went on. Mistakes and high handed acts on both sides, in a land -where there was no law, led at last to open conflict. In 1815 the -colonists were driven from their homes and obliged to flee to the shelter -of a Hudson Bay post at the northern end of Lake Winnipeg. The Hudson Bay -men made reprisals by capturing the Northwesters' posts and interrupting -their trade. The settlers were rallied and taken back to their homes, -only to face a worse disaster the next year. An open fight between the -men of Governor Semple of the colony and a party of half-breeds in the -employ of the Northwest Company resulted in the killing of the Governor -and his twenty followers, and the capture of their stronghold, Fort -Douglas. - -Lord Selkirk was in America at the time seeking from the Canadian -government some means of protection for his colonists. Failing to get -satisfaction from a government whose sympathies were with the Northwest -rather than with the Hudson Bay company, he had hired, to guard his -colony, one hundred men from two regiments of mercenary soldiers that had -been disbanded after the War of 1812. While he was traversing Lake -Superior on his way west with these men, he met canoes bringing word of -the disastrous fight of Seven Oaks, the death of Governor Semple, and the -capture of Fort Douglas. Skirting the shores of the lake, Lord Selkirk -went to Fort William, the headquarters of the Northwest Company on -Thunder Bay. There he demanded the release of the prisoners who had been -brought from the Red River. The controversy that followed finally led to -his taking possession of the fort. The fact that he had been appointed a -magistrate for the Indian country and sought the arrest of the -Northwesters who had taken part in or instigated the troubles at Fort -Douglas, gave his action some color of legal right. From Fort William he -went on to his disordered and devastated colony, and gathered together -all the settlers who were willing to remain. - -In spite of all the settlement had been through, Lord Selkirk had no -intention of giving up his plans. So many of the colonists had been -driven or enticed away and would not return, that he sought to find -others to take their places. It was then that he hit upon the idea of -bringing over the steady, hard-working Swiss, who would, he believed, -make the very best of settlers. - -Captain Mai or May,--the English spelling of his name,--a Swiss who had -served as a mercenary soldier in the British army, and other agents were -sent to Switzerland to secure settlers. Throughout the cantons of -Neuchatel, Vaud, Geneva, and Berne, they traveled, explaining the -advantages of emigration to the Red River country. The pamphlets they -distributed, printed in French and German, gave a highly colored and -alluring description of that country with its many miles of fertile soil -to be had for the asking. Like all emigration agents, Captain Mai and his -assistants told all the good things about both country and colony and -left out the bad. About the civil war between the fur companies and the -troubles it had led to, they said nothing. - -Early in May 1821, about one hundred and sixty emigrants were gathered -together at a small village on the Rhine near Basel. In great barges they -were taken down the Rhine, a delightful trip on that famous river with -its beautiful and striking scenery, to Dordrecht in Holland. There they -embarked on the _Lord Wellington_ for the trip to Hudson Bay. The voyage -took far longer than they had realized it would take, the food provided -was inferior to what they were used to, the drinking water became bad, -and storms and ice caused delay. At Hudson Straits the _Lord Wellington_ -overtook the two Hudson Bay Company supply ships, and the three were held -for three weeks in the ice with which the Straits were filled. The heavy -swell coming in from the open ocean and rushing between the icebergs, -caused rapid tides and currents in which sailing ships were almost -helpless. Luckily the _Lord Wellington_ escaped serious injury, but one -of the supply ships was nearly wrecked and badly damaged by collision -with a berg. Not far away were two other vessels also caught in the ice, -the _Fury_ and the _Hecla_ carrying Captain Parry and his Arctic -exploring expedition. The _Hecla_ had one of her anchors broken and -several hawsers carried away. - -The Swiss emigrants were a hopeful, cheerful folk. They had been together -so long they had become like a large family party, and they made the best -of their hardships. When it was safe to do so, the young and active -climbed down from the ship to the solid ice field, ran races, and even -held a dance on a particularly smooth stretch. At last the ships -succeeded in entering the bay. Skirting the barren shores, the three -vessels destined for the Hudson Bay post reached anchorage off York -Factory in safety. - - - - - IV - THE START FROM FORT YORK - - -Finding transport for so large a party of settlers taxed the resources of -the Hudson Bay Company. Several new boats had to be built, and every one -of the immigrants who could handle wood-working tools was called upon to -help. - -The boats were to be despatched in two divisions or brigades. Walter had -taken for granted that he would travel with the Periers, but he found -himself assigned to the first division, the Periers to the second. He -asked to be transferred to their boat, but Captain Mai declared the -change could not be made. Only young people were to go in the first -brigade which was expected to make the best possible speed. Walter was -young and strong and without family. The boy protested that he was one of -the Perier family, he had come with them, and was to live with them in -the settlement, but his protest was of no avail. Elise and Max were as -much distressed as he was at the arrangement, and he had to comfort them -with the assurance that they would all be together soon at the Red River. - -It was well after noon on the day appointed for departure, when the start -was made. The boat carrying the guide, who was really the commanding -officer of the brigade, was propelled by oars out into the stream, and -the square sail raised. With shouts, cheers, and farewells, the long, -open craft, well laden with settlers, supplies, and goods, was away up -the river. - -When Walter took his place he was pleased to find himself in the same -boat with Louis Brabant. In spite of his disappointment at not traveling -with the Periers, the Swiss boy was in high spirits to be away at last, -headed for the wonderful Red River country where his fortune, he felt -sure, awaited him. He waved his hat and shouted himself hoarse in -farewells to those on shore. - -It was a picturesque crowd massed on the dock and fringing the river -bank. Mingled with the Swiss were brown-skinned, long-haired post -employees and voyageurs with bright colored sashes, beaded garters tied -below the knees of their deerskin or homespun trousers, caps of fur or -cloth, or gaudy handkerchiefs bound about their heads. A little to one -side stood a group of Indians from the wigwams, in buckskin, bright -calicos, blankets, feathers, and beadwork. One old Cree was proudly clad -in a discarded army coat of scarlet with gold lace and a tall black hat -adorned with feathers. The dress of the Swiss, though in general more -sober, was brightened by the gay colors of shawls, aprons, and kerchiefs, -of short jackets or long-tailed coats with metal buttons, and of -home-knit stockings. As various as the costumes were the shouts and -farewells and words of advice exchanged between boats and shore in a -babel of tongues, English, Scots English, Swiss French, Canadian French, -German, Gaelic, and Cree. - -The sail was raised and caught the breeze. Sitting at his ease, Walter -turned his attention to what lay ahead. The surrounding country was not -very pleasing in appearance. Scantily wooded with a scrub of willow, -poplar, tamarack, and swamp spruce, it was low and flat, especially on -the west, where the York Factory stood between the Hayes and the Nelson -rivers. The Nelson, Louis said, was the larger stream, but the Hayes was -supposed to afford a better route into the interior. Certainly the latter -river was not attractive, with its raw, ragged looking, clay banks, -embedded with stones, its muddy islands, and frequent bars and shallows -that interfered with navigation. - -The immigrants were not suffered to sit in idleness all that afternoon. -There were two or more experienced rivermen in each boat, but the new -colonists were required to help. When the wind went down before sunset, -Walter expected to be called upon to wield an oar. But the current of the -Hayes was too strong and rapid to be stemmed with oars. The boat was -brought close to the bank, and the sail lowered. Standing in the stern, -the steersman surveyed his crew. Walter, in the other end of the boat, -had not noticed the steersman before. Now, he recognized the tall man -with the braided hair, who had come up behind him so noiselessly in the -Indian trading room at the fort. - -In his deep, metallic voice the steersman began to speak, pointing first -at one man, then at another. When his bright, hard little eyes alighted -on Walter, and his long, brown forefinger pointed him out, the boy was -moved by the same strong, instinctive dislike, almost akin to fear, he -had felt when he first looked into the half-breed's face. The fellow's -French was so strange that Walter could not grasp the meaning. With a -questioning glance, he turned to Louis Brabant. - -"You are to go ashore," Louis explained. "Murray has chosen you in his -crew. The tracking begins now." - -Walter had no idea what tracking might be, but he rose to obey. With -several others, including Louis, he jumped from the boat to the muddy bit -of beach. The steersman handed each a leather strap, and Louis showed -Walter how to attach his to the tow-line and pass the strap over his -"inshore" shoulder. Like horses on a tow-path, the men were to haul the -boat, with the rest of the party in it, up stream. - -The steep, clay banks were slippery from recent rains. Fallen trees, that -had been undermined and had slid part way down the incline, projected at -all angles. The willing, but inexperienced tracking crew slipped, -stumbled, scrambled, and struggled along, tugging at the tow-line. With -maddening ease the tall steersman, in the lead, strode through and over -the obstacles, turning his head every minute or two to shout back orders -and abuse. He seemed to have the utmost contempt for his greenhorn crew, -but he tried to urge and threaten them to a pace of which they were quite -incapable. Every time a man slipped or stumbled, jerking the tow-line, -Murray poured out a torrent of violent and profane abuse, in such bad -French and English, so intermixed with Gaelic and Indian words, that, -luckily, the Swiss could not understand a quarter of it. - -Walter understood the tone, if not the words. He grew angrier and -angrier, as he strained and tugged at the rope and struggled to keep his -footing on the slippery bank. But he had the sense to realize that he -must not start a mutiny on the first day of the journey. He held his -tongue and labored on. The boy was thin, not having filled out to his -height, but he was strong. He was mountain bred, with muscular legs, good -heart and lungs. Nevertheless when at last Murray gave the order to halt, -only pride kept Walter from dropping to the ground to rest. - -The second shift was led by a fair-haired, blue-eyed man from the Orkney -Islands, off the coast of Scotland, where the Hudson Bay Company -recruited many of its employees. Before his crew were through with their -turn at the tow-line, they came in sight, on rounding a bend, of the -first two boats with bows drawn up on a stretch of muddy beach. Farther -back on higher ground tents were going up and fires being kindled. Murray -ordered out the oars, and boat number three was run in beside the others. - -After the tent, bedding, and provisions for the night were unloaded, the -tall steersman, without troubling to help with the camp making, took -himself off. It was young Louis Brabant who took charge. He selected the -spot for the one tent and helped to pitch it. Then he sent a man and a -boy to collect fuel, and Walter and another into the woods to strip -balsam fir branches for beds. Louis himself started the cooking fire, -between two green logs spaced so that the big iron kettle rested upon -them. From a chunk of dried caribou meat,--so hard and dry it looked a -good deal like sole leather,--he shaved off some shreds. After he had -ground the bits of meat between two stones, he put the partly pulverized -stuff to boil in a kettle of water. This soup, thickened with flour, was -the principal dish of the meal. Several handfuls of dark blue saskatoon -or service berries, gathered near by, served as dessert. By the time -supper was ready, the young Canadian's swift, deft way of working, his -skill and certainty, his good nature and helpfulness, had won the good -will of everyone. - -Walter asked Louis how long it would be before the second brigade left -Fort York. - -"That I cannot tell. As soon as all is ready. You regret to be separated -from your family?" - -"They aren't really my family. I am apprenticed to Monsieur Perier." - -"The young Englishmen who come over to be clerks for the Company," Louis -remarked, "sign a paper to serve for five years. Is it so with you?" - -"Something like that, and in return Monsieur Perier agrees to give me a -home and teach me the business. When he decided to come to America, he -really released me from the agreement though. He offered to treat me like -his own son if I came with him." - -"If you are twenty-one you can get land of your own in the Colony." - -"I'm not sixteen yet." - -"Is it so?" cried Louis. "Then we are the same age, you and me. Fifteen -years last Christmas day I was born. So my mother told Pere Provencher -when I was baptized." - -"My birthday is in February," Walter replied. "I thought you must be -older than that. How long have you been a voyageur for the Company?" - -"For the Hudson Bay Company only this summer. This is the first time I -have come to Fort York. Last year, after my father died, I went to the -Kaministikwia with the Northwest men. But always since I was big enough I -have known how to carry a pack and paddle a canoe. The birch canoe,--ah, -that is the right kind of boat! These heavy affairs of wood," Louis -shrugged contemptuously. "They are so slow, so heavy to track and to -portage. You have the birch canoe in your country? No? Then you cannot -understand. When you have voyaged in a birch canoe, you will want no more -of these heavy things." - -"Why does the Company use them?" - -Louis shrugged again as if the ways of the Hudson Bay Company were past -understanding. "The wooden boats will carry greater loads," he admitted, -"and they are stronger, yes. Sometimes you get a hole in a canoe and you -must stop to mend it. Yet I think you do not lose so much time that way -as in dragging these heavy boats over portages." - -The wavering white bands of the aurora borealis were mounting the -northern sky before the camp was ready for the night. The one tent -carried by boat number three was given up to the women and children. -Walter rolled himself in a blanket and lay down with the other men on a -bed of fir branches close to the fire. The air was sharp and cold, and he -would have been glad of another blanket. But he had been well used to -cold weather in his native country, and had become still more hardened to -it during the long voyage in northern waters. - - - - - V - THE BLACK MURRAY - - -Louis' voice, almost in Walter's ear, was crying, "_Leve, leve_,--rise, -rise!" - -Surely the night could not be over yet. Walter threw off his blanket, -scrambled up, shook himself, and pulled out his cherished silver watch. -It was ten minutes to five. - -In a few moments the whole camp was stirring. Following the usual -voyageur custom, the boats got off at once, without delaying for -breakfast. After a spell of tracking, the Swiss boy was more than ready -for the pemmican and tea taken on a small island almost in midstream. The -Swiss lad had never tasted tea until he sailed on an English ship, but -after the drinking water had turned bad, he had been driven to try the -strange beverage and had grown accustomed to it. Tea was the universal -drink of the northern fur country, where coffee was practically unknown. -He was amazed at the quantity of scalding hot, black stuff the voyageurs -could drink. - -Pemmican, the chief article of food used in the wilderness, he had eaten -for the first time at Fort York. The mixture of shredded dried meat and -grease did not look very inviting, but its odor, when heated, was not -unappetizing. He tasted his portion gingerly, and decided it was not bad. -The little dark specks of which he had been suspicious proved to be dried -berries of some kind. Walter had a healthy appetite, and the portion -served him looked small. He was surprised to find, before he had eaten -all of it, that he had had enough. Pemmican was very hearty food indeed. - -That was a day of back-breaking, heart-breaking labor towing the heavy -boats up the Hayes. The clay banks grew steeper and steeper. Sometimes -there was a muddy beach at the base wide enough for the trackers to walk -on. Often there was no beach whatever, and they were forced to scramble -along slippery slopes, through and over landslips, fallen trees, -driftwood, and brush. Where tiny streams trickled down to join the river, -the ground was soft, miry, almost impassable. The forest crowning the -bank had become thicker, the trees larger and more flourishing. Poplars -and willows everywhere were flecked with autumn yellow. The tamarack -needles,--which fall in the autumn like the foliage of broad leaved -trees,--were turning bronze, and contrasted with the dark green of the -spruce. There was more variety and beauty in the surroundings than on the -preceding day, but Walter, stumbling along the difficult shore and -tugging at the tow-line, paid little attention to the scenery. With -aching back and shoulders and straining heart and lungs, he labored on. -Each time his shift was over and he was allowed to sit in the boat while -others did the tracking, he was too weary to care for anything but rest. - -The boats were strung out a long way, some crews making better speed than -others. Some of the leaders were more considerate of their inexperienced -followers, though most of the voyageurs could scarcely understand why the -Swiss could not trot with the tow-line and keep up the pace all day, as -the Canadians and half-breeds were accustomed to. The steersman of boat -number three drove his men mercilessly. When at the tow-rope himself, he -kept up a steady flow of profane abuse in his bad French, almost equally -bad English, occasional Indian and Gaelic. Even when seated in the boat, -he grumbled at the slowness and lack of skill of those on shore, and -shouted orders and oaths at them. - -At noon, when a short stop was made for a meal of cold pemmican and hot -tea, Walter said to Louis, "If our steersman doesn't take care he will -have a mutiny on his hands. You had better tell him so. We have kept our -tempers so far, but we can't stand his abuse forever." - -Louis shrugged. "I tell him? No, no. I tell _le Murrai Noir_ nothing, -_moi_. It would but make more trouble. With a crew of voyageurs he would -not dare act so. They will endure much, but not everything. Someone would -kill him. As a voyageur the Black Murray is good. He is strong, he is -swift, he knows how to shoot a rapid, he is a fine steersman. But as a -man--bah! Being in charge of a boat has turned his head." - -"He may get his head cracked if he does not change his manners." - -"We would not grieve, you and me, eh, my friend? But this is certain," -the Canadian boy added seriously. "_Le Murrai Noir_ can hurt no one with -his tongue. Heed him not, though he bawl his voice away. It is so that I -do." - -Of all the men in the boat, the one who found the tracking hardest was a -young weaver named Matthieu. He was a lank, high-shouldered fellow, who -looked strong, but had been weakened by seasickness on the way over, and -had not regained his strength. Matthieu did his best, he made no -complaint, but he was utterly exhausted at the end of his shift each -time. The weaver was next to Murray in line, and much of the steersman's -ill temper was vented on the poor fellow. - -Late in the afternoon, Murray's crew were tracking on a wet clay slope -heavily wooded along the rim and without beach at the base. In an -especially steep place Matthieu slipped. His feet went from under him. -The tow-rope jerked, and Walter barely saved himself from going down too. -Murray, his moccasins holding firm on the slippery clay, seized the rope -with both hands and roared abuse at the weaver. Exhausted and panting, -the poor fellow tried to regain his footing. Walter dug his heels into -the bank, and leaned down to reach Matthieu a hand, just as the enraged -steersman gave the fallen man a vicious and savage kick. - -The boy's anger flamed beyond control. He forgot that he was attached by -the left shoulder to the towline. Fists doubled, he started for Murray. -The rope pulled him up short. As he struggled to free himself and reach -the steersman, one of his companions intervened. He was a big, strong, -intelligent Swiss, a tanner by trade, who had assumed the leadership of -the immigrants in boat number three. His size, his authoritative manner, -his firm voice, had their effect on Murray. The half-breed paused, his -foot raised for another kick. - -"There must be no fighting here," said the tanner, "and no brutality. -Rossel, help Matthieu up. He must go back to the boat." - -Murray began to protest that he would allow no man to interfere with his -orders. The Swiss was quiet, but determined. The steersman had no right -to work a man to death, or to strike with hand or foot any member of the -party. The settlers were not his slaves. - -Murray growled and muttered. His hard little eyes glowed angrily. When -Louis shouted to the Orkneyman to bring the boat to shore to receive the -worn-out Matthieu, the steersman opened his mouth to countermand the -order, but thought better of it and merely uttered an oath instead. He -could recognize the voice of authority,--when numbers were against him. - -After Matthieu had been put aboard, the work was resumed. Murray, very -ugly, plodded sullenly ahead. He seized every opportunity to abuse -Walter, but the boy, now that one victory had been scored over the Black -Murray, did not heed his words. - -The sky had clouded over, and rain began to fall, a chilly, sullen -drizzle. Yet the trackers toiled on. The oars were used only when -crossing from one side of the river to the other to find a possible -tow-path. - -As darkness gathered, camp was made in the rain. The pemmican ration was -eaten cold, but by using under layers of birch bark shredded very fine, -and chopping into the dry heart of the stub of a lightning-killed tree, -Louis succeeded in starting a small blaze and keeping it going long -enough to boil water for tea. - -After supper the tanner asked Walter to go with him to talk to the -voyageur in charge of the entire brigade. Laroque, the guide, a -middle-aged, steady-eyed French Canadian, listened to the complaint in -silence, then shook his head gravely. - -"_Le Murrai Noir_ is not the best of men to be in control of a -boat,--that I know," he admitted, "but it was hard to find men enough. He -can do the work, and do it well,--and there is this to say for him. You -settlers know nothing of voyaging. You are so slow and clumsy it is -trying to the patience. I find it so myself. _Le Murrai Noir_ has little -patience. It is you who must be patient with him." - -"But he has no right to strike and abuse men who are doing their best, -men who are not even employees of the Company," protested the tanner. - -Laroque nodded in agreement. "That is true." - -"Can't you put someone else in as steersman of our boat?" - -"No, there is no man of experience to be spared. Let the young man who is -sick remain in the boat with the women and children, until he is strong -again. I will speak to _le Murrai_ in the morning, and I think things -will go better. These first few days, they are the hardest for all." - -Wet, chilled, aching with weariness, and a bit discouraged, Walter -trudged back to his own camping place. Louis and the Orkneyman had laid -the mast and oars across the boat and had covered them with the sail and -a tarpaulin. Under this shelter the men spent the night, packed in so -closely there was scarcely room to turn over. - - - - - VI - TOILING UP STREAM - - -Things did go better next day, as the guide had foretold. What he had -said to Murray in that early morning talk, no one learned, but the -steersman attempted no more kicks and blows. He took his revenge upon -those who had complained of him by riding in the boat all day, devoting -his whole time and attention to steering. Not once did he touch the -tow-line, Louis taking his place. All the men, except the two voyageurs, -were lame and muscle sore from the unaccustomed work, but they were -gradually learning the trick of it. In comparison with trained rivermen, -they made slow time, but they got along better than on the day before. To -Walter it was a great relief to be freed from Murray's brutality. He was -on his mettle to show the steersman that just as good progress could be -made without him. - -On the fourth day of the journey a fork in the stream was reached, where -the Shamattawa and the Steel rivers came together to form the Hayes. -There Murray and Louis took down the mast and threw it overboard. There -would be no more sailing for a long way, Louis explained. - -Up the winding course of the Steel the boats were hauled laboriously. The -banks were higher than those of the Hayes, but less steep, affording a -better tow-path. In appearance the country was far more attractive than -the low, flat desolation around Fort York, and the woods were at their -best in full autumn color. Utterly wild and lonely was this savage land, -but by no means devoid of beauty. It seemed to the Swiss immigrants, -however, that they were but going farther and farther from all -civilization. Towns and farms, the homelike dwellings of men, seemed -almost as remote as though on some other planet. - -Walter was surprised to see so little game in the wilderness, until he -realized that the constant talking, laughing, and shouting back and forth -must frighten every bird and beast. Wild creatures could not be expected -to show themselves to such noisy travelers. Only the "whiskey-johneesh," -as Louis called the bold and thievish Canada jays, dared to cry out at -the passing boats and come about the camps to watch for scraps. - -Just as the Swiss were growing used to the labor of the tow-rope, they -were given a new task, portaging. Below the first really bad rapid, the -boat was beached, everyone was ordered ashore, and the cargo unloaded. -The traders' custom was to put all goods and supplies in packages of from -ninety to one hundred pounds' weight. One such package was considered a -light load. An experienced voyageur usually carried two. That the new -settlers might help with the work, part of the food, clothing, and other -things had, for this trip, been made into lighter parcels. - -The Orkneyman was the first to receive a load. He adjusted his portage -strap, the broad band across his forehead, the ends passing back over his -shoulders to support his pack. Picking up a hundred pound sack of -pemmican, Murray put it in position on the small of the Orkneyman's back, -then placed another bulky package on top of the sack. The load extended -along the man's spine to the crown of his head, and weighed nearly two -hundred pounds, but the Orkneyman, his body bent forward, trotted away -with it. It was the steersman's work to place the packages, and the ease -with which Murray had swung the hundred pound sack into position revealed -one reason why he had been chosen. - -Walter's pack of forty or fifty pounds did not seem heavy. He felt -confident that he could carry it easily enough, and imitated the -Orkneyman by starting off at a trot. The portage trail was an unusually -good one, neither very rough nor very steep, yet the boy soon found that -he could not keep up the pace. He slowed down to a walk. His burden grew -heavier. The muscles of his neck began to ache. He tried to ease them a -little, and his pack twisted, pulling his head back with a wrench. He -stumbled, went down, strove to straighten his load and get up again. One -of his companions, plodding along, overtook him, stopped to laugh, tried -to help him, and succeeded only in dislocating his own pack. Louis had to -come to the rescue of both. Walter's confidence in his own strength had -diminished, and he had discovered several new muscles in his back and -neck. Moreover he had learned that balancing a pack is an art not to be -acquired in a moment. - -Another forking of the streams had been reached, where the Fox and the -Hill rivers joined to form the Steel. The Hill River proved shallower and -more rapid than the Steel. Ledges, rocks, and boulders obstructed the -current, and portages became so frequent that Walter got plenty of -practice in carrying a pack. Sometimes the empty boats could be poled or -tracked through the rapids or warped up the channel by throwing the line -around a tree and pulling. In other places the men, standing in the -water, lifted the heavy craft over the stones. Around the worst stretches -they dragged it over the portage trails. - -At Rock Portage, where a ridge extends across the river and the water -rushes down in rapids and cascades between small islands, each boat and -its cargo had to be carried clear over one of the islands. Then, to the -great relief of the crews, they were able to row a short distance to Rock -House, a storehouse for goods and supplies for the Selkirk Colony. There -more pemmican, dried meat, flour, tea, and a little sugar were taken -aboard. To make room for the provisions, some of the personal belongings -of the settlers had to be unloaded, but the man in charge of Rock House -promised to send the things to Fort Douglas at the first opportunity. - -Traveling up stream had now become an almost continual fight with rapid -waters through rough and rocky country. Walter's muscles were hardening -and he was learning how to use his strength to the best advantage, but -each night when camp was made, he was ready to roll in his blanket and -sleep anywhere, on evergreen branches, on the hard planks of the boat, or -on the bare ground. - -How was Mr. Perier standing the tow-path and the portage, the boy -wondered. The apothecary was far from robust. He had been so hopeful, -too, looking forward so eagerly to the rich land of the Red River. He -seemed to think of that land in the Bible terms, as "flowing with milk -and honey." They would be too late to do any real farming this year, he -had said, but they could plow their land and have it ready for seeding in -the spring. Of course they would be provided with a house, fuel, and food -for the winter. The contract he and Captain Mai,--in Lord Selkirk's -name,--had signed, promised him such things on credit. He had brought -with him some chemist's supplies; dried and powdered roots and other -ingredients used in medicines. He and Walter would set up a shop and earn -enough to buy whatever they needed during the cold weather. Walter had -shared his master's hopefulness, but now, after questioning Louis about -affairs in the Colony, he was beginning to doubt whether it would be so -easy to make a fortune there as Mr. Perier believed. - -September was advancing. Most of the time the weather held good, but the -nights were chilly and the mornings raw, often with fog on the river. One -night, after the boat had been dragged through several short rapids, or -"spouts," and carried over two portages,--the whole day's progress less -than two miles,--snow fell heavily. When Walter, stiff with cold, crawled -out from under the tarpaulin in the morning, the ground was white. - -"This looks more like Christmas than September," he grumbled between -chattering teeth. "I'm glad of one thing, Louis, we're headed south, not -north." - -"Oh, the winter is not quite so long at the Red River as in this -country," Louis returned with a cheerful grin, "but it is long -enough,--yes, quite long enough,--and cold enough too, on the prairie." - -So the journey went slowly on, rowing, poling, tracking, warping, and -carrying the heavy boats up stream, and there was little enough rowing -compared with the poling and portaging. - -Five or six miles had become a fair day's progress. In the worst -stretches only a mile or two could be made by working from dawn to dark. -The Swiss would have been glad to rest on Sundays, and had expected to -observe the day as they were accustomed to, but the guide and the -voyageurs would not consent. It was too late in the season, the journey -was too long, the food supply too scanty, to permit the losing of one -whole day each week. The immigrants had to be content with a brief prayer -service morning and evening. The Swiss were Protestants, while all of the -voyageurs, except two or three Orkneymen, belonged to the Roman Catholic -church, so they worshiped separately. It surprised Walter at first to see -the wild-looking rivermen kneeling with bowed heads repeating their -"Aves" before lying down to rest. He never saw _le Murrai Noir_ in that -posture, however. He wondered if the steersman was a heathen. - -There were accidents in the brigade now and then. Once when the -Orkneyman's shift were tracking, the rope broke and boat number three -began to swing broadside to the current. At Murray's fierce yell of -command, the men in the boat jumped into the water nearly to their waists -and held it headed straight, while Louis, keeping his footing with -difficulty in the swift current, carried the remains of the line to -shore. - -The next day the boat ahead met with misfortune, while it was being poled -through rapids. To avoid a great rock, the bowman turned too far out into -the strong current. The rushing water swung the clumsy craft about and -bore it down the rapids. It struck full on its side on a rock that rose -well out of water, and was held there by the strength of the current. -There were but two men in the boat, and it was separated from shore by a -channel of rushing white water. The crew of number three turned their own -craft in to shore, and ran to help. Walter, carrying the tow-line, -reached the spot first and attempted to throw the rope to the imperiled -boat. The end fell short. Then Louis tried his hand, but succeeded no -better. He was preparing for another attempt, when the line was snatched -from his hands, and Murray sent the coiled end hurtling out across the -water and into the boat. - -Growling and cursing, the half-breed took control of the rescue. Under -his leadership, the men on shore succeeded in pulling the boat away from -the rock, and warping it, half full of water, up the rapids. Walter's -fondness for the Black Murray had certainly not increased as the days -went by, but he had to admit that the brutal steersman knew how to act in -an emergency. - -The toilsome ascent of Hill River was over at last when camp was made -late one afternoon on an island which Louis called Sail Island. The -reason for the name became apparent when Murray, after carefully -examining the trees, selected a straight, sound spruce and ordered Louis -and the Orkneyman to cut it down. The spruce was to be trimmed for a -mast. If a mast was needed, thought Walter, the worst of the journey must -be over. The night was cold and snow threatened, but there was plenty of -fuel, and the camp on Sail Island was a cheerful one. - - - - - VII - NORWAY HOUSE - - -The first thing Walter did when he woke the next morning was to notice -the direction of the wind. Though light it was favorable. That made a day -of easy, restful sailing. The weary men sat and lay about in as lazy -positions as the well-filled boat would permit, while the women busied -themselves with knitting and mending. The journey was a hard one on -clothes, even of the stoutest materials, but by mending and darning -whenever they had a chance, and by washing soiled things out at night and -hanging them around the fire to dry, the Swiss managed to keep themselves -fairly neat and clean. They had not been in the wilds long enough to grow -careless. - -The following day's journey commenced with a portage. The brigade was -going up the Jack River, which was short but full of rapids. All the -rivers in this country were made up of rapids, it seemed to Walter. Then -came another period of ease on Knee Lake, so called from an angle like a -bent knee. About twenty miles were made that day, one of the best of the -trip. - -The hard work was not over by any means. On Trout River were some of the -worst portages of all. A waterfall, plunging down fifteen or sixteen -feet, obstructed the passage. The boats were unloaded and dragged and -carried up a rugged trail, to be launched again over steep rocks. - -On Holey Lake,--named from a deep spot believed by the Indians to be -bottomless,--was Oxford House, a Hudson Bay Company post. The boats made -a short stop there, then went on to pitch camp on one of the islands. The -waters abounded in fish. With trolling lines Walter and his companions -caught lake trout enough for both supper and breakfast. The fish, broiled -over the coals, were a luxury after days of pemmican and hard dried meat. - -A narrow river, more portages, a little pond, a deep stream flowing -through flat, marshy land, followed Holey Lake. In strong contrast was -the passage called Hell Gates, a narrow cut with sheer cliffs so close on -either hand that there was not always room to use the oars. - -A whole day was spent in passing the White Falls, where everything had to -be carried a long mile. Three of the crews made the crossing at the same -time, crowding each other on the portage. The Swiss caught the voyageurs' -spirit of good-natured rivalry and entered heartily into the contest to -see which crew would get boat and cargo over in the shortest time. With a -ninety pound sack of pemmican, Walter trotted over the slippery trail and -won a grin from Louis. - -"You will make a good voyageur when you have gone two or three voyages," -said the young Canadian. - -By the time Walter had helped to drag the heavy boat across three rock -ridges, which caused three separate waterfalls, he felt that one voyage -would be quite enough. Yet he was not too tired to dance a jig when he -learned that his boat had won. - -Small lakes, connected by narrow, grassy streams, gave relief from -portaging, tracking, and poling. Muskrat houses, conical heaps of mud and -debris, rose above the grass in the swamps, and ducks flew up as the -boats approached. The sight of those ducks made Walter's mouth water. His -regular portion of pemmican or dried meat left him hungry enough to eat -at least twice as much. He had not had a really satisfying meal since -leaving Holey Lake. Yet he could do a harder day's work and be far less -tired than at the beginning of the trip. His muscles had hardened, and he -carried not one pound of extra weight. During the cold nights he would -have been glad of a layer of fat to keep him warm. - -The boat was sailing along a sluggish, marshy stream, when Louis, who was -in the bow picking the channel, raised a shout. "The Painted Stone," he -cried, pointing ahead. - -"I don't see any stone, painted or not," Walter returned, gazing in the -same direction. - -Louis laughed. "There used to be such a stone,--so they say. The Indians -worshiped it." - -"But why make such a fuss about a stone that isn't there?" - -Again Louis laughed. "Do you see that flat rock? Perhaps it was painted -once, I do not know, but it marks the Height of Land. All the way we have -come up and up, but from there we go down stream,--until we come to Sea -River, which is a part of the Nelson and takes us to Lake Winnipeg. Isn't -that something to make a fuss about?" - -"It's the best news I have heard in many a day," Walter agreed. - -A short portage at the Height of Land brought the boats to the Echemamis -River, where they were headed down stream into a rush-grown lake, -connected by a creek with the Sea River. This stream is a part of the -Nelson, which rises in Lake Winnipeg, so the brigade had to go against -the current to Lower Play Green Lake and Little Jack River. - -From a log cabin on the shore of Little Jack, a bearded, buckskin-clad -man came down to the water's edge. Louis called to ask if he had any -fish. The man shook his head. The first boat had taken all he could -spare. The fisherman, Louis explained, supplied trout and sturgeon to -Norway House. - -Many a time during the trip Walter had heard of Norway House, an -important Hudson Bay Company post. "Isn't that on Lake Winnipeg?" he -cried. "Are we so near the lake?" - -"We shall be there to-morrow." - -Before sunrise next morning, the voyageurs bathed and scrubbed in Little -Jack's cold, muddy-looking water. They appeared at starting time in -clean, bright calico shirts, and new moccasins elaborately embroidered. -Louis and the Orkneyman wore gaudy sashes. A broad leather belt girt the -steersman's middle and held his beaded deerskin pouch. Around his oily -black hair he had bound a scarlet silk handkerchief. The Orkneyman had -trimmed his yellow beard. No hair seemed to grow on Murray's face. -Possibly it had been plucked out, Indian fashion. - -Little Jack River is merely a channel winding about among the islands -that separate Lower and Upper Play Green lakes, extensions of Lake -Winnipeg. Louis told Walter that the "play green" was on one of the -islands, where two bands of Indians had been accustomed to meet and hold -feasts and games of strength and skill. - -Not a hundred yards behind the guide's boat, number three came in sight -of Norway Point, the tip of the narrow peninsula separating Upper Play -Green Lake from Lake Winnipeg proper. Shouts and cheers greeted the log -wall of Norway House and the flag of the Hudson Bay Company. The Swiss -were in high spirits. Once more they were nearing a land where men dwelt. -Their journey would soon be over, they believed. Not yet could they grasp -the vastness of this new world. - -As the boats drew near the post, dogs began to bark and men came running -down to the shore. Voices shouted greetings in English and French, not -merely to the voyageurs, but to the immigrants as well. Though the fur -traders, trappers, and voyageurs were reluctant to see their wilderness -opened up to settlement, yet the arrival of the white strangers, even -though they were settlers, was too important a break in the monotony of -life at the trading post for their welcome to be other than cordial. -Moreover the white men and half-breeds at Norway House, and even the -Indians camped outside the walls, were curious to see these new -immigrants. So the Swiss were welcomed warmly by bronzed white men and -dusky-faced mixed bloods, while the full blood Indians looked on with -silent but intent curiosity. - -The first boats to arrive made a stay of several hours at the post, and -Walter, conducted by Louis, had a good chance to see the place. Like York -Factory, Norway House consisted of a group of log buildings within a -stockade, but it stood on dry ground, not in a swamp, and its -surroundings were far more attractive than those of the Hudson Bay fort. - -As the two boys were coming out of the big gate, after their tour of -inspection, Walter, who was ahead, caught sight of a tall figure -disappearing around one corner of the stockade. He glanced towards the -shore. The boats were deserted. The voyageurs had sought friends within -the stockade or in the tents and cabins outside the walls. The Swiss were -visiting the fort or wandering about the point. - -"Do we take on more supplies here?" Walter asked his companion. - -"If we can get them," Louis returned. "They can spare little here, they -say. Are you so starved that you think of food all the time?" he -questioned smilingly. - -"No, I'm not quite so hungry as that. I just saw Murray carrying a sack, -and I wondered what he had." Louis looked towards the boats. "Where is -he? I don't see him." - -"He didn't go to the boat. He was coming the other way. He went around -the corner of the wall." - -"With an empty sack?" - -"No, a full one." - -Louis stared at the corner bastion. "He was going around there, carrying -a full sack? You are sure it was Murray?" - -"I saw his back, but I'm sure. He has that red handkerchief around his -head, you know." - -"Well, it was not anything for us he was taking in that direction," Louis -commented, "and we brought nothing to be left at Norway House. It is some -affair of his own. He----" - -"Ho, Louis Brabant! What is the news from the north?" - -Louis had swung about at the first word. Two buckskin-clad men, one old, -the other young, were coming through the gate. Louis turned back to -reply, and Walter followed him to listen to the exchange of news between -the newly arrived voyageur and these two employees of the post. The Swiss -boy was growing used to the Canadian French tongue, and during the -conversation he learned several things that surprised him. - -Walter had taken for granted that the journey would be nearly over when -Lake Winnipeg was reached. Now he was amazed to learn that he had still -more than three hundred miles to go to Fort Douglas, the stronghold of -the Red River colony. - -"But how far have we come?" he cried. - -"About four hundred and thirty miles the way you traveled," the -leather-faced old man answered promptly. - -"The rest of the voyage will not be so hard though," Louis said -reassuringly. "There are few portages. If the wind is fair, we can sail -most of the way. Of course if there are storms on the lake----" - -"There are always storms this time of year," put in the old voyageur -discouragingly. - -The prospect of bad weather on Lake Winnipeg did not disturb Walter so -much, however, as a piece of news which the old man led up to with the -question, "How is it that settlers are still coming to the Colony on the -Red River now that Lord Selkirk is dead?" - -"Lord Selkirk dead?" cried Walter and Louis together. - -"But yes, that is what people say. I was at Fort Douglas in June, and -everyone there was talking about it, and wondering what would happen to -the settlement." - -"They did not tell us that at Fort York," cried Walter. "When did he die? -Since we left Europe in May?" - -"No, no, the news could not come to the Red River so quickly. It was last -year some time he died." - -"You haven't heard of this before, Louis?" Walter turned to his -companion. - -"No, I heard nothing of it when I came down the Red River in the spring. -I left Pembina as soon as the ice was out, and at Fort Douglas I took -service with the Company, but I did not stay there long. They sent me on -here to Norway House. I heard no such story. Perhaps it is not true, but -only a false rumor started by someone who wishes to make trouble in the -colony." - -"That must be it," agreed Walter. "If Lord Selkirk died last year they -would surely have heard it at Fort York. Captain Mai would have known it -anyway before we left Switzerland. No, it can't be true." - -But the old voyageur shook his head. "Everyone at Fort Douglas believed -it," he said. - - - - - VIII - THE MISSING PEMMICAN - - -About the middle of the afternoon, Laroque the guide began to round up -crews and passengers. His shout of "Embark, embark" was taken up by one -man after another, and the idle sled dogs, that wandered at will about -the post and the Indian village, added their voices to the chorus. - -Walter and Louis ran down to the shore at the first call. Most of the -Swiss obeyed the summons promptly. Their fear of being left behind was -too great to permit taking risks. Several of the voyageurs, however, were -slow in appearing. When they did come, they gave evidence of having been -too generously treated to liquor by their friends at the post. After -everyone else was ready to start, Laroque had to go in search of Murray. -Carrying a bundle wrapped in a piece of old canvas, Black Murray came -back with the guide, his sullen face set and heavy, his small eyes -shining with a peculiar glitter. He showed no other sign of drunkenness, -but walked steadily to the boat, placed his bundle in the stern, and -stepped in. - -Laroque sprang to his own place, oars were dipped, sails raised, and the -boats were off, amid shouts of farewell and the howling of dogs. Leaving -the handling of the sail to the Orkneyman, Murray remained stolidly -silent in the stern. His steering was careless, even erratic, but no one -ventured to try to take the tiller. Luckily the wind was light, the lake -smooth, and the boats had not far to go. Camp was pitched on a beach of -the long point, where the travelers had an unobstructed view down the -lake to the meeting place of sky and water. - -"It seems as if we had come to another ocean," Walter confided to Louis. -"Why do they call this Norway Point, and the trading post Norway House? -What has Norway to do with Lake Winnipeg?" - -"I have heard," Louis replied, "that some men from a country called -Norway were brought over by the Company and stationed here. Then too I -have heard that the point was named from the pine trees that grow here, -because they look like the pines in that country of Norway. Which story -is true I know not. The post has been here a long time, and always, I -think, it has been called Norway House. When the Selkirk colonists were -driven from the Red River by the Northwesters, they came this way and -camped on the Little Jack River." - -That night's camp was one of the most comfortable of the whole journey. -The evening was fine, there was plenty of wood, and an abundance of fish -for supper. The Swiss sat about their fires later than usual, talking of -the journey, speculating on what was to come, and planning for the -future. Nearly three weeks they had been on the way from Fort York. Now -they looked out over the star-lit waters stretching far away to the -south, and cheered their hearts with the hope and belief that the worst -was over. At least they would not have to track up stream and portage -around rapids for some days to come. - -"How long will it take us to reach the Red River?" The question was asked -over and over again, with varying replies from the voyageurs. Walter -asked it of Louis, and the young Canadian shook his head doubtfully. If -the weather was good, the winds favorable, they might go the whole length -of Lake Winnipeg in a week, but if the weather should be bad, no one -could tell how long they might be delayed. - -The autumn weather showed its fickleness that very night. The wind -shifted, the sky clouded over, and the morning dawned raw and -threatening. The breeze was almost directly east, however, a favorable -direction for the travelers, whose route lay along the north and west -shores. So the boats got away early, and, with sails raised, held to the -southwest, well out from land. They made good progress before the brisk -wind, but as it grew stronger the lake roughened. Along the north shore -high cliffs towered, with narrow stretches of beach here and there at the -base. Safe landing places were few, but the waves were growing -dangerously high, and the open boats were too heavily laden to ride such -rough water buoyantly. - -Laroque changed his course, tacking in towards a bit of beach. Murray's -boat was not far behind, and the half-breed handled it with skill and -judgment. At just the right instant, he ordered the sail down, the oars -out. The boat was run up on the sand without shipping a drop of water. - -The rest of the brigade were some distance behind. They were forced to -put in close under the cliffs, but by using the oars managed to reach the -beach. - -"We'll have to open that last bag of pemmican," said Walter to Louis who -was kindling a fire. - -"Yes, but we must make it last through the voyage." - -Walter brought the rawhide sack, and Louis cut the leather cord with -which it was sewed. An exclamation of surprise and anger escaped him. -"What devil's trick is this? Look, Walter!" - -Walter looked, in amazement. "Why, it's not pemmican. How on earth----" - -"It is a fraud, a cheat." Walter had never seen Louis so angry. "Some -fiend has filled this sack with clay and leaves and sold it to the -Company for good pemmican." - -"See here, Louis." Walter lowered his voice. "This isn't the bag I -carried over the portage at the White Falls." He turned the sack over and -examined the other side. "There is no Company mark. Our pemmican has been -stolen and this trash left in its place." - -"No one from the other boats would steal our supplies." Louis was -puzzled. "It must have been done at Norway House. Yet I think the Indians -would hardly dare to steal from a Company boat under the very walls of -the post. And they did not take the tea. The Indians like tea so well -they can never get enough." - -"Murray had a sack on his shoulder when I saw him dodge around the corner -of the wall, and the sack had the Company mark." Walter's voice had sunk -to a whisper. "But why in the world should he steal the provisions from -his own boat?" - -Louis was thoughtful. "There might be a reason, yes," he said. "_Le -Murrai_ might sell that pemmican for something he wanted. He has a bundle -that he did not have before." - -"But how could he?" Walter objected. "They would know at Norway House -that there was something wrong if the steersman of one of the boats -offered to sell them a sack of pemmican." - -"That is true, but he might have traded it to the Indians, or some Indian -friend of his might have sold it for him. I would like to know what is in -that bundle. He slept with his head on it last night." - -"Shall we tell Laroque about this?" - -"That this sack is not good, yes, but not about _le Murrai_, no, not yet. -We can prove nothing. It may not have been the pemmican he had." - -"I'm sure it was," Walter insisted stubbornly. - -Louis shrugged. "I am no coward, Walter, but I will not accuse _le -Murrai_ of stealing and then voyage in the same boat with him. We have -yet far to go." - -Louis was right and Walter knew it. Together they went to Laroque and -told him of the fraud, but said nothing about their suspicions of Murray. - -The guide was much disturbed. He examined the sack of clay, and -questioned Murray and the Orkneyman. Both disclaimed any responsibility. -The Orkneyman agreed with the boys that the sacks brought from Fort York -had all borne the Company mark. Murray said he had not noticed. He had -had nothing to do with provisioning the boats. If the Company had been -cheated, that was no affair of his. - -From his own supplies, Laroque lent boat number three a little pemmican -for supper. The Swiss were indignant at the fraud. Some of them even -wanted to return to Norway House and seek for the culprit. - -Before the scanty meal was over, rain began to fall. The beach was not a -good camping ground. If the wind shifted to the south, the waves would -wash over the narrow margin of sand and break against the perpendicular -cliffs. To find a better place was impossible, for the lake was far too -stormy to venture out upon. The boats were pulled well up, the tents -pitched with one wall almost against the cliff, and the sails, masts, and -oars converted into additional shelters. Luckily the campers were -protected from the strong wind, which had become more northerly. But the -water came down the cliffs in cascades, digging pools and channels in the -sand and shingle. - -Fortunately the worst of the storm did not last long. The rain became -fine and light like mist driven by the wind, and before sundown ceased -entirely. As the wind shifted farther towards the north, the water -receded from the base of the cliff, leaving a wider stretch of sand. The -lake was still too rough for the boats to go out, but as long as the wind -remained in the north, the beach was a safe camping place. - -A little dry driftwood had been collected and put under shelter before -the rain began. So everyone was able to warm and dry himself before -creeping between his blankets. Laroque assigned the voyageurs to watches, -and cautioned each man to walk the beach while on guard and keep an eye -on wind and waves. - - - - - IX - HUNGER AND COLD - - -The guide aroused the camp before daylight. Wind and waves had fallen, -and the boats got away quickly. All day they went ahead under sail or -oars along the north shore. Camp was made on a narrow ridge of sand -separating a large bay from the main body of water. A contrary wind kept -the boats at Limestone Bay,--as it was called from the fragments of -limestone strewn along its shores,--until late the following day. - -Among the reeds and wild rice ducks were feeding. The voyageurs succeeded -in shooting a number of the birds, made a stew of some, and buried the -rest, unplucked, in ashes and hot sand. A fire was kept going above them -for several hours until they were well cooked. When they were taken out -and the skins stripped off, Walter found his portion very good eating -indeed. - -Two days later the mouth of the Saskatchewan River was reached. Walter -was beginning to understand why the length of time required to traverse -Lake Winnipeg could not be foretold. The lake is about two hundred and -sixty miles long in a direct course, but the open boats were obliged to -keep well in towards shore, making the journey upwards of three hundred. -When the weather was favorable, sails were raised and good speed made, -but the autumn gales had set in, and contrary winds were frequent. -Skirting the shore in head winds and high waves was both slow and -dangerous. Sometimes the boats had to be beached through surf, the men -jumping into the water and dragging them above the danger line. By the -time camp was pitched, both voyageurs and settlers were not only tired -and hungry, but usually wet and chilled to the bone. - -October came with unseasonable cold, even for that northern country. With -darkness the temperature sank far below the freezing point. One night -Matthieu the unfortunate went to sleep without drying his wet shoes and -stockings, and frosted both feet so that they were sore for the rest of -the journey. - -Whenever it was possible to go on, whether at daybreak, noon, or -midnight, the boats were away. Meals were irregular and food scanty. Much -of the time the lake was too rough for fishing, but sometimes ducks were -shot. To Murray's boat the loss of the sack of pemmican was serious. The -supplies were reduced to tea and a little barley meal. - -The boats did not always make the same camping ground, though they tried -to keep together. How far behind the second brigade might be, no one -could guess. Walter worried about the Periers. Surely this must be a hard -experience for Elise and little Max, and for Mr. Perier also. - -For two days the guide's boat and Murray's were windbound on an exposed -beach where everything had to be carried well above the water line. - -Fishing was impossible in this open, wind-swept spot, but Louis shot a -white pelican. The clumsy looking bird with its great pouched beak was a -curiosity to Walter. If he had not been so very hungry he could not have -eaten its fishy-tasting flesh. - -Suddenly the weather changed for the better. In less than eight hours -after the boats got away from their enforced camping ground, the lake -looked as if it had never been disturbed. There was not a breath of wind -to catch the sail, not a wave, or even a ripple. Plying the oars, the -crews held a course far out across the mouth of a bay. On and on they -rowed, watching the sunset and the afterglow reflected in still water and -the stars coming out one by one. - -The southern half of Lake Winnipeg is very broken in outline, with many -points and islands. One night, reaching the sheltered head of a deep, -sandy bay with a high background of rocks and forest, the travelers found -the sands covered thick with the dead bodies of insects. - -"Grasshoppers!" exclaimed Louis. "They have come again!" - -Walter was gazing up and down the beach in amazement. "I never knew there -could be so many grasshoppers in the world," he said. "Where did they all -come from?" - -"From the prairie to the south. They're not ordinary grasshoppers like -the big green ones. These are smaller and a different color, and their -horns,"--Louis meant their antennae,--"are short. I never saw this kind -till three years ago, and then they came all of a sudden. They ate up -everything. Ugh, how they smell! We can't camp here." - -The place was indeed impossible as a camping ground. The boats put off -again to seek a spot where the waves had washed the shores clean of the -remains of the dead insects. Louis was right when he said that they were -not ordinary grasshoppers. They were the dread locust,--the Rocky -Mountain locust. At the camp fire that night, the Canadian boy told -Walter and his companions how the locusts had come to the Red River -valley. - -"I was at Fort Douglas with my father," he began. "We had just come down -from Pembina with some carts. Everything looked well on the settlers' -farms. The grain was in the ear and ripening. Then came the grasshoppers. -These short-horned grasshoppers fly much higher than the ordinary kind. -Their wings are stronger. They came in great clouds that darkened the air -as if real clouds were passing across the sun. Late in the afternoon they -began to alight, such hordes of them you can't imagine. Men, women, and -children ran out into the fields, crushing grasshoppers at every step, -the flying creatures dashing against them like hailstones. The poor -settlers could do nothing against such an army. They saved a few half -ripe ears of barley, the women hiding them under their aprons, but that -was all. By the next morning everything was gone." - -"Do you mean that the grasshoppers ate the crops?" asked Walter, scarcely -able to believe what he had heard. - -"They ate everything green," Louis replied impressively, "not only the -grain and the gardens, but every green blade of grass on the prairie." - -"And they have come again this year," said Matthieu the weaver slowly, -"and perhaps they have again taken everything." His voice sounded -discouraged. - -"I fear it," was Louis' grave response. - -"What did the settlers do for food?" asked Walter. "Did Lord Selkirk -supply it?" - -Louis shook his head. "That was a hard winter. Most of the colonists went -to Pembina, where they could hunt the buffalo. They got some food from -the Company and some pemmican from the Indians. But they had almost no -seed for the next year. In the spring they sowed the little barley they -had saved, and it came up and promised well. Then the young grasshoppers -hatched out from the eggs left in the ground the year before, and ate it -all. So again the settlers were without meal for the winter. The Governor -sent M'sieu Laidlaw and other men into the Sioux country, up the Red -River and down the St. Peter to the great Mississippi where there is a -settlement called Prairie du Chien. It was a hard journey in winter on -snowshoes, but they came back in June with more than three hundred -bushels of seed wheat, oats, and peas. The seeding was too late for a -good crop last year, but this year they hoped for a big one." - -"And the grasshoppers have come again," Matthieu repeated dully. - -Around points and among islands the boats threaded their way, hugging the -shore most of the time, risking traverses across the mouths of bays when -the weather permitted. - -No food was left in Murray's boat, nothing but a little tea. Fishing had -to be resorted to, often with poor luck. Few animals were seen, though -the howling of wolves had come to be a familiar sound at night. Flocks of -ducks and geese passed high overhead, but to shoot them the hunters had -to seek the marshy places in bays or at stream mouths. Bad weather caused -so much delay that to take advantage of calm water or favorable wind -everyone was compelled, more than once, to go breakfastless or -supperless. Walter was reduced to skin, muscle and bone. He felt a -constant gnawing hunger, was seldom warm except when exercising, and -found his hard-won muscular strength diminishing. An hour's pulling at -the oar almost exhausted him. He wondered at Murray, on whose strength -and endurance starvation seemed to have no effect. Even Louis admitted -weakness and had lost some of his cheery high spirits. - -At last the low shore at the south end of the lake, a long point of -shingle and sand, came in view. When the water was high and the wind from -the north, much of the long sand bar was covered, but luckily the lake -was calm when the guide's boat reached the point. Murray's craft followed -Laroque's closely. - -Sharing one gun between them, Louis and Walter went, with some of the -others, hunting for their supper. They rowed along the sand spit to the -marsh which was alive with birds,--ducks, geese, tall herons, and many -other smaller kinds. In a little pond several graceful, long-necked swans -were feeding. Walter did not think of firing at swans, but Louis had no -scruples. He brought one down with his first shot. - -At sunset the hunters returned to camp with four fat geese, one of which -Walter had killed, two swans, and eighteen or twenty ducks. A party from -one of the other boats brought in almost as many. For the first time in -many days Walter had a chance to really satisfy his appetite. Wrapped in -his blanket, he slept soundly on his bed of sand, untroubled by hunger -dreams. - - - - - X - THE RED RIVER AT LAST - - -The mouth of the Red River divides into several channels that wind -through the marsh. The guide chose one of the main waterways, of good -depth and gentle current, and the oarsmen, eager to reach the settlement, -pulled with a will. They had some forty miles, by water, yet to go. - -"Why do they call it _Red River_?" Walter asked Louis. "Not from the -color of the water?" - -"It is from the Indian name, Miscousipi," was the reply. "I have heard -that when the Saulteux and the Sioux fought a great battle on the banks, -the water ran red with blood. Both nations claim the valley as a hunting -ground." - -"Then it can hardly be a good place for settlers if the Indians fight -over it," Walter said doubtfully. - -"There are only Saulteux and Crees on the lower river now. The Sioux no -longer dare venture here. The upper river is the dangerous country." - -Where the marsh gave way to firmer ground, in an open space on the low -bank of a creek coming in from the west, stood a group of Indian lodges. -As the boat passed, the Swiss boy looked with interest at the low, round -topped structures of hides and rush mats. - -"Those are Saulteur wigwams," Louis explained. - -"No one seems to be at home to-day." - -"No, but they intend to come back or they would have taken down the -lodges. There was a fight in this place many years ago. A band of Crees -came down that stream, and the old people and children camped here, while -the young men went to Fort York with their furs. That was before the -Hudson Bay Company had posts in this part of the country. While the -braves were all away, the Sioux came and killed the old people and took -the children captive. So the stream is called Riviere aux Morts--the -river of the dead." - -"What a fiendish thing to do," Walter exclaimed, "and cowardly." - -Louis shrugged expressively. "It is the Indian way of fighting. The Sioux -are not cowards, but fiends, yes. And so are the Crees and the Saulteux -in war. I say it though my grandmother was an Ojibwa." - -"Have you Indian blood, Louis?" Walter asked in surprise. "I supposed you -were pure French." - -"I am _bois brule_, as we mixed bloods are called from our dark skins, -and I am not ashamed of it. My father, he was pure French, and my mother -is half French, but her mother was Ojibwa, Saulteur. Perhaps I do not -look so Indian as _le Murrai Noir_." Louis lowered his voice. "They say -he is at least half Sioux." - -"Sioux! Well, he certainly doesn't act like a white man." - -"He has the worst of both the white man and the Indian I think." - -As the boats went on up stream, the banks became higher and covered with -trees, not willows and aspens only, but elms and oaks and maples. The -frosty weather had practically stripped the trees of what leaves the -locusts had left, yet no wide view was possible, for the river ran -through a narrow trench with steep sides. - -At the foot of a stretch of rapids camp was made, and a number of small -fish caught for supper. Early in the morning the ascent was begun. The -fall was slight, but the current was strong, and the channel sown with -boulders and interrupted by ledges. After the boats had been tracked -through, the voyageurs delayed for the scrubbing and hair trimming that -preceded their approach to the dwellings of men. Again they put on their -best and brightest shirts, sashes, and moccasins, which they had -carefully stowed away after leaving Norway House. - -After he was washed and dressed, Louis, with an air of secrecy, drew -Walter aside. "I have seen the inside of Murray's big package," he -whispered. - -"You have? How did that happen?" - -"He left the package in the boat. I opened it." - -"What did you find?" - -"Little things,--awls, flints, fish hooks, net twine, beads, all wrapped -in red or blue handkerchiefs. I had no time to unwrap them, but I could -feel some of them. I wonder what he wants of all those things." - -Walter remembered the conversation in the Indian room at Fort York. -"Can't he sell them to the Indians for furs?" he asked. - -"The Company will not permit a voyageur to trade. Sometimes, it is true, -they may send a man out to buy skins. Perhaps they might send Murray, but -I do not think so, and he would need more goods, a whole canoe or cart or -sled load." - -"But the Company refused to let him have them," Walter explained. "At -Fort York he asked for a lot of goods, on credit, so he could go trade -with the Sioux." - -"The Sioux?" - -"Yes, I heard the clerk tell him that the Chief Trader wouldn't give him -the goods. The clerk said it was a crazy scheme. Murray must have stolen -our pemmican and exchanged it, or got someone else to do it for him, at -Norway House. He must have wanted those things badly to be willing to go -hungry for them." - -"He can endure hunger like an Indian," Louis returned, "and one of the -voyageurs in Laroque's boat has been sharing his food with him. I saw him -do it. He is afraid of Murray for some reason. It may be you are right -about his selling the pemmican. The Indians want all those little things. -They are eager to get them. He might begin----" - -"Embark, embark!" - -The two boys hurried towards the boat. As they went, Walter whispered, -"Are you going to tell about that package?" - -"I think so. Not to Laroque, but to the Chief Trader at Fort Douglas." - -When Murray stepped into the boat, he stooped to examine his bundle. -Would he discover that it had been opened? It was an anxious moment for -Louis and Walter, but the steersman took his place without even looking -in their direction. Walter would not have thought of opening Murray's -package. But the Canadian boy's upbringing had been different. - -The banks bordering the rapids were gravelly, the growth thinner and -smaller. Then came lower, muddy shores, and Walter got his first glimpse -of the prairie. On the west side, only a few trees and bushes edged the -river. The country beyond stretched away flat and open, but it was not -the fertile, green land the Swiss boy had heard about. The plain was -yellow-gray, desolate and dead looking. In one place a wide stretch was -burned black. Could this be the rich and beautiful land Captain Mai had -described? - -Walter's disappointment was too deep for expression. All he said was, "I -thought the prairie would be like our meadows at home. It doesn't look as -if anything could grow here." - -"Oh, things grow very fast, once the ground is broken," Louis assured -him. "Wheat, barley and oats, peas and potatoes, everything that is -planted. And the prairie grass is fine pasture. The buffalo eat nothing -else. It is as I feared though. The grasshoppers have taken everything. -But the grass will grow again. It is coming now. Look at that low place. -It is all green. Wait until spring and then you will see. The prairie is -beautiful then, the fresh, new grass, and flowers everywhere." - -"And the grasshoppers come and eat it all up," Walter added dejectedly. - -"They may never come again. No one at Fort Douglas or Pembina had ever -seen the short horned grasshoppers till three years ago. And they didn't -come last year. Perhaps we shall never see them again." - -Walter knew that Louis was trying to cheer him, and he felt a little -ashamed of his discouragement. He put aside his disappointment and -forebodings, and tried to share in his friend's good spirits. In a few -hours the long journey would be over, and that was something to be -thankful for. He hoped it was nearly over for Elise and Max and their -father. The second brigade could not be very far behind. - -The current was not strong and there were no rocks, so making their way -up stream was not hard work for the boat crews. The first person from the -settlement who came in sight was a sturdy, red-haired boy of about -Walter's own age, fishing from a dugout canoe. He raised a shout at the -appearance of the brigade, and snatching off his blue Scotch bonnet or -Tam-o'-Shanter, he waved it around his head. Then he paddled to shore in -haste to spread the news. - -Log houses came in view on the west side of the river at the place Louis -called the Frog Pond. Lord Selkirk himself, when he had visited the -settlement four years before, had named that part of his colony Kildonan -Parish, after the settlers' old home in Scotland. The little cabins were -scattered along the bank facing the stream, the narrow farms stretching -back two miles across the prairie. From the river there was but little -sign of cultivation and scarcely anything green to be seen. - -From nearly every house folk came out to watch the brigade go by. Roughly -clad, far from prosperous looking they were, in every combination of -homespun, Hudson Bay cloth, and buckskin. Some of the men wore kilts -instead of trousers, and nearly all waved flat Scotch bonnets. Walter's -heart warmed to these folk. Like himself they were white and from across -the ocean, though their land and language were not his own. One bent old -woman in dark blue homespun dress, plaid shawl, and white cap reminded -him of his own grandmother. - -All the Swiss were waving hats and kerchiefs, and shouting "_Bon jour_" -and "_Guten Tag_," the women smiling while the tears ran down their -cheeks. The long journey with all its suffering and hardships was -over,--so they believed. At last they had reached the "promised land." As -yet it did not look very promising to be sure, but they would soon make -homes for themselves. The thin face of Matthieu, the weaver, who had been -so disheartened when he heard about the grasshoppers, was shining with -happiness. - - - - - XI - FORT DOUGLAS - - -"Where do we land, Louis?" asked Walter. - -"At Fort Douglas, where Governor Sauterelle lives." - -"I thought the Governor's name was Mc-something." - -"It is McDonnell, but people call him Governor Grasshopper because, they -say, he is as great a destroyer as those pests." - -"What do they mean?" - -"They do not like their Governor, these colonists. You will soon hear all -about him." - -A few cabins, set down hit or miss, less well kept than those on the west -bank, and interspersed with several Indian lodges, came in view on the -east shore. Black haired, dark skinned men and women, and droves of -children and sharp nosed dogs were running down to the river. - -"_Bois brules_," Louis explained, using the name he had given himself. It -means "burnt wood" and is descriptive of the dark color of the -half-breed. - -The boat made a turn to the east, following a big bend in the river. -"This is Point Douglas, and there is the fort," said Louis, pointing to -the roofs of buildings, the British flag and that of the Hudson Bay -Company flying over them. Point Douglas had been burned over many years -before, and was a barren looking place. The fort, like York Factory and -Norway House, was a mere group of buildings enclosed within a stockade. - -When Laroque's boat reached the landing, the shore was lined with people; -Hudson Bay employees, white settlers, and _bois brules_. As each craft -drew up to the landing place, the boatmen sprang out to be embraced and -patted on the back by their friends. The new settlers' warmest reception -came from a group of bearded, bold eyed, rough looking, white men. When -one of these men spoke to Walter in German, and another in unmistakably -Swiss French, the boy's face betrayed his astonishment. - -The first man, a red-faced fellow with untrimmed, sandy beard, laughed -and switched from German to French. "Oh, I am a Swiss like you," he -explained, "though I have not seen Switzerland for many a year. I am a -soldier by trade, and I served the British king. We DeMeurons are the -pick of many countries." - -Walter did not like the man's looks. He had seen swaggering, mercenary -soldiers of fortune before, and he was not sorry when his bold-mannered -countryman turned from him to make the acquaintance of his companions. - -The voyageurs were hastily unloading. They had reached the end of the -journey and were in a hurry to be paid off. Murray did not even wait for -the unloading. Carrying his big bundle, he strode quickly towards the -fort. Louis looked after him, swung a bale of goods to his back, and -trotted up the slope. - -Seeing no reason why he should stand idle when there was work to do, -Walter shouldered a package and followed. As he reached the gate, three -men came through, and he stepped aside to let them pass. The leading -figure, a red-faced man of middle age and important air, cast a sharp -glance at the boy. Walter's clothes betrayed him. - -"Ye're na voyageur." The man spoke peremptorily in Scotch sounding -English. "Put down that packet and follow me. I've a few words to say to -a' of ye." - -Walter had learned enough English to understand, and the tone warned him -that obedience was expected. He left his load lying on the ground, and -followed down the slope towards the river. From the red-faced man's -dictatorial manner, the boy guessed him to be Alexander McDonnell, the -"Grasshopper Governor." He was obeyed promptly, but the sullen, even -angry, looks on the faces of the half-breeds and Scotch settlers who made -way for him, showed that he was not popular. Only the ex-soldiers seemed -boldly at their ease in his presence. - -The new colonists were quickly gathered together so that the Governor -might address them. To make his meaning plain, he used both English and -French. His manner was abrupt, yet what he said was reasonable enough, -discouraging though it was to the newcomers. After a few words of welcome -to the Selkirk Colony and an expression of hope that the Swiss would be -industrious and would prosper accordingly, he told them frankly that they -had come at an unfortunate time. The settlement was ill prepared for -them. The grasshoppers had utterly destroyed the crops. The food supply -for the coming winter was inadequate. There was not enough to feed the -colonists already established. Most of the settlers, old and new, must -spend the winter farther up the Red River at Fort Daer, the Colony post -at the mouth of the Pembina. Game animals, especially the buffalo upon -which the people must depend for food until new crops could be grown, -were much more abundant and easily reached near Fort Daer. Pemmican could -be obtained there from the _bois brules_ and the Indians. Some of the -settlers had already gone. Every one of the newcomers able to endure the -journey must leave on the morrow. They might pitch their tents near Fort -Douglas for the night. Fuel for their fires would be supplied and food -for the evening meal and for the journey to the Pembina. More than this -the Governor could not promise. At the Pembina they would find timber for -cabin building, game for the hunting. Some other necessaries might be -bought at Fort Daer. In the spring they could return, and land for -farming would be assigned to them. The Swiss had arrived at a bad time -when the Colony could do little for them. They would have to do the best -they could for themselves. - -It was a sober and depressed group of immigrants who listened to Governor -McDonnell's speech. In spite of what they had heard and seen of the -ravages of the locusts, they had clung to the hope that their worst -troubles would be over when they reached Fort Douglas. They had expected -to be housed and fed for a little while at least, until they could make -homes for themselves on their own land. Now that dream was over. They -must go on,--all of them who could go on. And when they reached a -stopping place at last, it would be only a temporary one, with the -doubtful prospect of depending on hunting for a living, and perhaps -starving before spring. No wonder discouragement and foreboding rested -heavily upon their hearts. Even Walter Rossel, young and strong and -hopeful, was dismayed at the Governor's words. - -The Swiss were a steadfast and courageous people. They soon roused -themselves to make the best of a bad situation. Food and fuel for the -night at least had been promised them. They left the future to -Providence, and set about pitching camp. Heretofore the voyageurs had -done part of that work. Now, having reached the end of their journey, -having unloaded the boats and been paid off, they joined their own -friends at Fort Douglas or crossed the river to the _bois brule_ -settlement on the east bank. Only Louis Brabant lingered to lend -encouragement and help to those whom the long journey had made his -friends. - -After their first curiosity, the old settlers showed little interest in -the new. To the Scotch and Irish, the Swiss were foreigners in speech and -ways. The colonists knew from experience the hardships of the voyage -across the ocean and of the wilderness trip from Fort York. They could -understand the discouraging situation in which the newcomers found -themselves, but they could do little or nothing for them. They were not -hard hearted, but, pinched for food themselves, they could not be -overjoyed at the coming of all these additional hungry mouths to be fed. -Had the Swiss been actually starving, the old settlers would have shared -with them the last pint of meal and ounce of pemmican, yet they could -scarcely help resenting the arrival of the strangers. Why did the heirs -of Lord Selkirk keep on sending settlers without providing for them even -the barest necessities? No wonder the old colonists grumbled and growled. -If their attitude towards the new was not actually unfriendly, it was far -from cordial or encouraging. Only the ex-soldiers mingled freely with the -Swiss, and even invited certain families to their cabins. - -Walter did not like the appearance and manner of these men, but they -aroused his curiosity. "Who are the DeMeurons?" he asked Louis. "How did -they come here, and why do they call themselves by that name?" - -"They came with Lord Selkirk when he recaptured Fort Douglas from the -Northwesters. They were soldiers brought over from Europe to fight for -the King in the last war with the Americans. After the war they were -discharged and Lord Selkirk engaged about a hundred of them to protect -his colony. Because most of them had belonged to a regiment commanded by -a man named DeMeuron, the settlers call them all DeMeurons. Lord Selkirk -gave them land along the _Riviere la Seine_, which comes into the Red -about a mile above here, but they do little farming, those DeMeurons. -They would rather hunt. I blame them not for that. The other colonists -have no love for them." - -"I don't like their looks myself," Walter replied, "but they seem kinder -to strangers than anyone else here is." - -"The DeMeurons are all bachelors," Louis explained with a grin. "They -seek wives to keep their houses and to help them farm their lands, and -perhaps they think Swiss girls will work harder than _bois brules_. So -they are kind to the fathers and brothers that they may not be refused -when they propose marriage to daughters and sisters. Soon there will be -weddings I think." - -"I should hate to see a sister of mine marry a DeMeuron," was Walter's -emphatic comment. He changed the subject. "Have you found out," he asked, -"if it is true that Lord Selkirk is dead?" - -"Yes, it is true. He died, they say, a year ago last spring." - -"Then who owns the Colony now, the Hudson Bay Company?" - -"I don't quite understand about that," was the doubtful reply. "I asked -one of the Company clerks at the fort and he said that the land and -everything belong to Lord Selkirk's heirs. But M'sieu Garry, the -Vice-Governor of the Company, as they call him, was here during the -summer, and with him was M'sieu McGillivray, a big man among the -Northwesters, and now, since the two companies are one, of the Hudson Bay -also. They were much interested in the settlement, the clerk said, and -made plans about what should be done." - -"Lord Selkirk was one of the owners of the Company, wasn't he?" Walter -questioned. "Then his heirs must own part of it. Perhaps the Company is -going to run the Colony for them. Does Governor McDonnell belong to the -Company?" - -"That I don't know. It was Lord Selkirk who made McDonnell governor. -Truly it is _he_ who runs the Colony now, with a high hand." - -Mention of Governor McDonnell brought Walter's own personal problem -uppermost in his thoughts. "Do you suppose they will really send us on up -the river to-morrow?" he asked. - -"Yes, truly. It is the only place for you to go. Here you would starve -before spring. Perhaps a few may stay, those the DeMeurons have taken -into their cabins. You, Walter, will go of course, and I am glad. Pembina -is my home, and we go together." - -"But I can't go until the Periers come," the Swiss boy protested. "I -intend to stay with them wherever they are, and I ought to wait for -them." - -Louis shook his head. "I think the Governor will not let you. What good -would it do? As soon as the second brigade arrives, they will be sent on -to Pembina. You can wait for them there as well as here. Come with me -to-morrow. My mother will make you welcome, and we will find a place for -your friends. Perhaps we can have a cabin all ready for them. They would -be glad of that." - - - - - XII - BY CART TRAIN TO PEMBINA - - -Louis slept with friends on the other side of the river, Walter remaining -with his country people. The weather was sharp and cold, but Governor -McDonnell's promise of fuel and food was fulfilled. After a hearty meal, -the newcomers, in spite of their disappointment, passed a more -comfortable night than many they had endured during the long journey. -They were somewhat disturbed, however, by the sounds of revelry borne on -the wind from Fort Douglas. That the voyageurs and their friends would -celebrate hilariously, the Swiss had expected, but not that such wild -revels would take place within the fort walls, where lived the Governor -and his household. - -"The Colony is short of food, so they say," Matthieu the weaver -complained bitterly, "but the folk in the fort must have plenty to eat -and drink and make merry with." - -Walter clung to the hope that the departure for Pembina might be delayed -until after the arrival of the second boat brigade. But early in the -morning word came from Fort Douglas that the Swiss must make ready to -leave at once. The boy resolved to ask the Governor to let him remain. He -went up to the fort, and felt encouraged when he was admitted at the gate -without question, but his request to see the Governor met with flat -refusal. The Governor was busy and could not be disturbed. He had given -his orders and those orders must be obeyed. Walter was well and strong -and able to travel. He had no friends in the settlement to take him in. -Well, then, he must go on to Pembina. - -Finding it useless to plead his cause to the Governor's underlings and -impossible to get to McDonnell himself, the angry, discouraged lad left -the fort. He found Louis Brabant at the Swiss camp, and poured out his -story wrathfully. "I have a notion to stay here anyway," he concluded -stubbornly. "I can find someone who will give me lodging for a few days." - -"Yes," Louis admitted. "At St. Boniface, across the river, I can ask my -friends to take you in, but if the Governor learns you have disobeyed his -command he will be most angry." - -"What can he do to me? I have a right to be here." - -"Perhaps, but when the Governor is angry, he does not think of the rights -of others. You would have to go anyway, tied in a cart as a prisoner, or -he would shut you up in the fort, or send you out of the Colony." - -"Where could he send me except to Pembina?" Walter questioned, still -unconvinced. - -"To Norway House,--to be taken to Fort York in the spring and sent back -to Europe in a ship," was the startling reply. "Oh, yes, as Governor of -the Colony, he could do all that." - -"But surely he wouldn't do it, for such a little thing?" - -"Governor 'Sauterelle' does not think it a little thing when he is -disobeyed. He is not gentle to one who opposes his will. No, no, Walter, -you must not think of it. At Pembina you will be far enough away to do as -you please, but not here. Come, you shall stay at my home, and we will -find a place for your friends and make all ready for them. It won't be -long until they join you." - -Reluctantly Walter yielded to the Canadian boy's advice. He did not want -to yield, but, if what Louis said of the Governor was true, the risk of -disobedience was too great. He himself had seen enough already of -Alexander McDonnell to realize that he was not the kind of man to be -lenient with anyone who disobeyed his orders. So the Swiss boy set about -getting his own scanty belongings ready for the journey. He had taken for -granted that the party would travel by boat, but he had returned to the -camp on the river bank to find his companions' baggage being loaded into -carts. - -Clumsy looking things were those carts,--a box body and two great wheels -at least five feet tall, with strong spokes, thick hubs, and wooden rims -three inches wide and without metal tires. Between the shafts, which were -straight, heavy beams, a small, shaggy, sinewy pony, harnessed with -rawhide straps, stood with lowered head and tail and an air of dejection -or sleepy indifference. - -"What queer vehicles," Walter exclaimed. "Are we to travel overland?" - -"Yes, the journey is much shorter that way. By water, following the bends -of the river, is almost twice as far. You never saw carts like these -before? No, I think that is true. The _bois brules_ of the Red River -invented this sort of cart. It is made all of wood, not a bit of metal -anywhere. Every man makes his own cart. All the tools he needs are an -axe, a saw, and an auger or an Indian drill. I have a cart at home I made -myself, and it is a good one. In this country you must make things for -yourself or you have nothing." - -Examining one of the queer contrivances, Walter found that Louis had -spoken the simple truth. No metal had been used in its construction. -Wooden pegs and rawhide lashings took the place of nails and spikes. Even -the harness was guiltless of a buckle. The carts were far from beautiful, -but they were strong and serviceable. The Swiss boy, who knew something -of woodworking, admired the ingenuity and skill that had gone into their -making. Enough vehicles had been supplied to transport the few belongings -of the Swiss and to allow the women and children to ride. Now other -carts,--with the families and baggage of the Scotch settlers who were -leaving for Pembina,--began to arrive at the rendezvous, the discordant -squeaking and screeching of their wooden axles announcing their approach -some time before they came in sight. - -It took so long to gather the cart train together and make everything -ready for departure, that Walter kept hoping for the appearance of the -boat brigade. But not a craft, except a canoe or two, came into view -around the bend of the river, and no songs or shouts of voyageurs were -heard in the distance. The boy, still determined to plead his cause, kept -a lookout for Governor McDonnell, but he did not appear. He left the -carrying out of his commands to his assistants. - -The start was made at last. At the sharp "_Marche donc!_" of the drivers, -the sleepy looking ponies woke into life and were off at a brisk trot. -The carts pitched and wobbled, each with a gait of its own, over the -rough, hard ground, the ungreased axles groaning and screeching in every -key. The discord set Walter's teeth on edge, as he walked with Louis -beside the vehicle the latter was driving. - -At the head of the column the guide in charge, Jean Baptiste Lajimoniere, -rode horseback, followed closely by the cart carrying his wife and -younger children. The whole family had come from Pembina a short time -before to have the newest baby christened by Father Provencher, the -priest. Behind the Lajimonieres, the train stretched out across the -plain, the two wheeled carts piled with baggage and household belongings -or occupied by the women and children sitting flat on the bottom, their -heels higher than their hips. The drivers sat on the shafts or walked -alongside. The Swiss men and boys went afoot, but some of the Scotch and -Canadians rode wiry ponies and drove a few cattle. The riders used -deerskin pads for saddles and long stirrups or none at all. Spare cart -horses ran loose beside their harnessed companions. - -Not all of the Swiss were in the party. Several families, taken into the -cabins of the DeMeurons, had been allowed to remain. Matthieu and his -wife also stayed behind. The baby was ill and Matthieu himself scarce -able to travel. The Colony had started a new industry, the manufacture of -cloth from buffalo hair, and the weaver was to be given employment. When -Walter learned that Matthieu was to remain, the boy entrusted to him a -letter for Mr. Perier, explaining how he had been forced to go on to -Pembina. - -Leaving Point Douglas, the cart train turned southeast, traveling a -little back from the west bank of the river, along a worn track across -open prairie. Beyond the narrow valley, scattered cabins could be seen -among the trees on the east side. - -"That is St. Boniface settlement," Louis told his companion. "Pere -Provencher is building a church there." - -About a mile south of Point Douglas, the carts approached the junction of -the Assiniboine River with the Red, the place Louis called _Les -Fourches_, the Forks. On the north bank of the Assiniboine stood a small -Hudson Bay post, and not far from it were piles of logs for a new -building or stockade. - -"The Company is going to make a new fort," Louis explained. "M'sieu Garry -and M'sieu McGillivray chose this spot. There was an old Northwest post, -Fort Gibraltar, here, but five years ago M'sieu Colin Robertson, a Hudson -Bay man, seized it, and Governor Semple had it pulled down. The logs and -timber were taken down river to Fort Douglas. Fort Gibraltar had been -here a long time, and so has this trading house. Les Fourches is an old -trading place. Men say there was a fort here a hundred years ago, when -all Canada and the fur country were French, but nothing is left of those -old buildings now." - -The cart train halted near the trading post, as some of the men had -business there, and Louis asked Walter to go with him to see the Chief -Trader. "At Fort Douglas I told a clerk how our pemmican disappeared and -about _le Murrai's_ package of trade goods. _Le Murrai_ had received his -pay and had left the fort. The clerk knew not where he had gone. He told -me to report the affair to M'sieu the Chief Trader here. Come with me, -and we will tell what we know." - -The men of the little post were busy outfitting boats to go up the -Assiniboine with goods and supplies for stations farther west, but the -two boys had a few minutes' conversation with the Chief Trader. Louis -told the story and Walter corroborated it. The trader looked grave and -shook his head perplexedly. The charge against Murray,--stealing supplies -and exchanging them for goods with which to trade on his own -account,--was a serious one. Could it be proved? The trader did not doubt -the story of the contents of the bundle, but Murray might have come by -the things honestly and for a legitimate purpose. - -"He is due here to-day to go with the Assiniboine brigade," the trader -explained, "but I have seen nothing of him. You have no proof that he -took the pemmican and substituted the bag of clay. If he denies it, the -only thing I can do is to report the matter to Norway House at the first -opportunity. They ought to know whether anyone exchanged pemmican for -goods while your brigade was there. Of course Murray didn't make the -bargain himself. Someone else did it for him. It won't be necessary to -mention your names at present, to Murray I mean. You would find the Black -Murray a bad enemy." - -"Yes," Louis agreed. "He does not love either of us now. I thank you, -M'sieu." - -"The thanks are due to you, from the Company, for reporting this matter. -Don't you want to sign for the Assiniboine voyage? We can use you both." - -Walter shook his head. He had had quite enough voyaging for the present. -Louis answered simply, "No, M'sieu. I go to my mother at Pembina." - - - - - XIII - THE RED-HEADED SCOTCH BOY - - -Instead of continuing on the west bank of the Red River and crossing the -Assiniboine, the cart train turned to the east, followed a well-traveled -track down to the Red, and forded that river below the Forks. The country -just south of the Assiniboine was marshy and thickly wooded with willows -and small poplars. By following the east bank of the Red the almost -impassable low ground was avoided. - -The carts were now on the St. Boniface side, where the stream that Louis -called _Riviere la Seine_, and the Scotch settlers, German Creek, entered -the river. Some of the DeMeuron cabins were near at hand, and the Swiss -who were to remain there were on the lookout for a chance to say good-bye -to their friends. Walter saw again the red-faced ex-soldier who had -boasted that he and his comrades were the pick of many countries. He -carried a gun on his shoulder and looked as if he had been drinking. The -boy liked him even less than before. - -The carts crossed the creek, which was narrow and shallow where it joined -the river. Ten or twelve miles farther on, they forded the Red again, -above the mouth of the _Riviere la Sale_, a small, muddy stream coming in -from the west. - -Their way now lay across the open prairie west of the Red River; treeless -plains such as the Swiss immigrants had never seen before. Trees grew -along the river bank only. The few elevations in sight seemed scarcely -high enough to be called hills. This was the fertile, rich soiled land of -which the new settlers had been told. Its grass ravaged by locusts, dried -by the sun, withered by frost, in some places consumed by sweeping fires; -the prairie showed little outward sign of its fertility. The immigrants -gazed across the yellow-gray expanse and the unsightly black stretches, -and shook their heads wonderingly and doubtfully. Many a heart was heavy -with homesickness for native mountains and valleys. - -Walter Rossel was not a little heartsick, as he walked beside the loaded -cart or took a turn at riding on the shafts and driving the shaggy pony. -He was trudging along, absorbed in his own thoughts, when he was startled -by the sudden dash of a horse so close that he instinctively jumped the -other way. Looking up, he saw a freckled, red-haired lad in a -Tam-o'-Shanter, grinning cheerfully down from the back of the wiry, black -pony he had pulled up so short it was standing on its hind legs. -Instantly Walter recognized the horseman. This red-headed boy was the -first of the settlers he had seen when the brigade approached the Scotch -settlement of Kildonan. He was the fisherman who had waved his blue -bonnet to the boats. - -The Scotch lad was greeting Louis as an old friend, and the Canadian -responded smilingly. "_Bo'jou_, Neil MacKay," he cried. "So your family -goes again to Pembina." - -"What else can we do?" was the question. "We must eat, and there is sure -to be more food at Pembina this winter than at Kildonan. We will hunt -together again, Louis." - -"Yes, you and I and my other friend here, Walter Rossel." - -Walter and Neil responded to this introduction by exchanging nods and -grins. The red-haired lad dismounted, and, leading his pony, fell into -step by Walter's side. The conversation of the three was carried on -principally in French. The Scotch boy had learned that language during -his first winter at the Red River. That winter, and several of the -succeeding ones, he had spent at Pembina. Among the French and _bois -brules_ he had had plenty of practice in the Canadian tongue. Indeed he -spoke it far better than English, for his native speech was the Gaelic of -northern Scotland. Already familiar with Louis' Canadian French, Walter -had little difficulty in understanding Neil, except when he introduced a -Gaelic word or phrase. - -The Scotch boy answered the newcomer's questions readily and told him -much about the Colony. Neil had come from Scotland with his father and -mother, brothers and sisters, before he was nine years old. He was just -fifteen now. When the MacKays and their companions had reached the Red -River, they had found the settlement deserted, the houses burned. The -settlers were gathered together again and spent the winter at Pembina, -returning to Fort Douglas in the spring. Then came Cuthbert Grant and his -wild _bois brule_ followers. Governor Semple was killed and Fort Douglas -captured for the Northwest Company. The colonists, including the MacKays, -were compelled to go to Norway House. They had returned when Lord Selkirk -and his DeMeurons arrived and had gone on with their farming. - -There were some two hundred settlers at Kildonan now, Neil said, and -about a hundred DeMeurons along German Creek. How many Canadians and -_bois brules_ really belonged at St. Boniface it was hard to tell, they -came and went so constantly. "They do little farming on the east side of -the river," the boy remarked. "Hunting and fishing are more to their -taste. I don't blame them. They can get enough to eat more easily that -way. Raising crops here is discouraging work. You will learn that soon -enough." - -"Isn't the soil good?" asked Walter. "We were told it was rich." - -"Oh, the soil is all right, after you get the ground broken. Breaking is -hard work though, when you have nothing but a hoe and a spade. There is -scarcely a plow in the Colony. There hasn't been an ox till just lately. -The Indian ponies aren't trained for farm work. Things grow fast once -they are planted, but what is the good of raising them when the -grasshoppers take them all? I would go to Canada, as so many have done, -or to the United States, but my father is stubborn. He won't leave -Kildonan. He has worked hard and he doesn't want to give up his land. Yet -if the grasshoppers keep coming every year, they will drive even him -away." Neil shook his red head, his face very sober. - -The settlers, he went on to say, had no sheep and few pigs. Until a few -weeks before, they had had no cattle. Alexis Bailly, a _bois brule_ -trader had come, during the summer, clear from the Mississippi River with -a herd of about forty. - -"He got a good price for the beasts," Neil commented, "but he deserved -it, after bringing them hundreds of miles through the Sioux country. Why -the Indians didn't get every one of them I can't understand." - -"It was a great feat truly," Louis agreed. "But most of those cattle will -be killed for food this winter." - -"I'm afraid so. It will be hard times in the Colony, and everyone is deep -in debt to the store now." - -"The prices are high there I hear," Louis remarked. - -"High? Yes, and that's not the worst of it. The Colony store isn't run -honestly. So many of the settlers can't read or write, it is easy to -cheat them. My father can write and he keeps account of everything he -buys, but they won't let him have anything more until he settles the bill -they have against him. Half of that bill is for things he never had, and -he swears he won't pay for what he didn't buy." - -"I should think not," cried Walter indignantly. "Why doesn't he appeal to -the Governor?" - -Neil laughed shortly. "He tried, but it did him no good. If the Governor -doesn't do the cheating himself, he winks at it. Governor 'Grasshopper' -is one of the Colony's worst troubles. He thinks he is a little king, -with his high-handed ways, and the court he keeps at Fort Douglas, and -the revels he holds there." - -"We heard something of that last night." - -"Aye, it's no uncommon thing. McDonnell is not the man to be at the head -of the Colony. We're all hoping he won't last much longer. Many -complaints have been made to the Company, to Nicholas Garry and Simon -McGillivray when they were here in the summer, and even by letter across -the sea." - -The prairie track the carts followed ran well back from the wooded river -banks. As the sun was setting behind a far distant rise of land across -the plain, the guide turned from the trail. The squeaking carts followed -his lead, bumping, pitching, and wobbling over the untracked ground. -Supposing that Lajimoniere was seeking the shelter of the woods, Walter -was surprised when the guide reined in his mount at a distance of at -least a half mile from the nearest trees. His cart stopped also and the -flag it bore was lowered, as a signal to the rest of the train. Camp was -to be made on the prairie in the full sweep of the sharp northwest wind. - -"This is a poor place it seems to me," the Swiss boy commented. "Farther -over, among the trees, there would be shelter, and plenty of wood." - -"Lajimoniere prefers the open. It is safer." - -"What is there to fear?" - -"Nothing probably, but we can't be sure." Neil MacKay spoke quietly but -seriously. "Out here on the prairie, we can see anyone approaching." - -"You mean Indians? I thought the Saulteux and Crees were friendly." - -"They are. Lajimoniere is thinking about Sioux. Whether the Sioux are -friendly or not is an open question just now. Didn't you hear what -happened at Fort Douglas a few weeks ago?" - -"The visit of the Sioux?" questioned Louis. "I was told of it last night -at St. Boniface. It was a most unfortunate affair." - -"What was it?" Walter asked. "I didn't know the Sioux ever came to Fort -Douglas. Louis told me their country was farther south." - -"So it is," replied the Scotch lad. "A Sioux seldom ventures this far -down the Red River nowadays, but a party of them did come clear to the -fort a while ago. They said they had heard how fine the Company's goods -were and what generous presents the traders gave. So they came to pay a -visit to the Hudson Bay white men. They were friendly, almost too -friendly. They expected drink and gifts. The Governor was away, and one -of the Company clerks was in charge. He didn't know just what to do with -such dangerous guests. He told them there wasn't any rum in the fort, and -gave them tea instead. Then he fed them and distributed a few trinkets -and little things. If they would go back to their own country, he said, -the Company would send traders to them with goods and more presents." - -"The Company will get into trouble with the American traders if goods are -sent to the Sioux country beyond the border," Louis commented. - -"Yes, but he had to promise something to get rid of the fellows. If they -stayed around, he was afraid of trouble with the Saulteux. The Sioux -seemed satisfied when they left the fort. But several Saulteux were -hiding in ambush in the fort garden. They fired on the Sioux, killed two, -and wounded another, then escaped by swimming the river and dodging -through the willows. Of course the Sioux were furious. They said the -white men had given the Saulteux powder and shot to kill friendly -visitors. One of them boasted to a _bois brule_ from St. Boniface,--who -is part Sioux himself and speaks their language,--that they were going -back to the fort to scalp the clerk. The half-breed went right to the -fort with the story. Things looked serious. If the party of Sioux had -been larger they might have attacked the fort or massacred all of us, but -they knew they were far outnumbered. Somehow they learned that the men in -the fort had been warned of their plot. They decamped suddenly, and -nothing more has been seen of them. Probably they have gone back to their -own country, but no one knows. They may be hiding somewhere waiting for a -chance to attack any Saulteur or _bois brule_ or white man who comes -along." - -Louis nodded soberly. "When an Indian seeks revenge he is not always -careful what man he strikes. Lajimoniere does well to camp in the open." - -Neil's story had sent a chill up Walter's spine. Hardship he had become -used to during the journey from Fort York, hardship and danger from the -forces of Nature; water and wind, cold and storm. But this was the first -time in his life that real peril from enemy human beings had ever -confronted him. He had known of course that there might be danger from -Indians in this wild land to which he had come, but he had never actually -sensed that danger before. He glanced towards the woods, and saw, in -imagination, half naked, copper colored savages concealed in the shadows -and watching with fierce eyes the approaching carts. - -Although camp was pitched out of musket range from that belt of trees, -the woods nevertheless must be penetrated. The beasts must be taken to -the river. Water and fuel must be brought back. After listening to Neil's -story, Walter was surprised at the apparent light-hearted carelessness of -the men and boys who started riverward with the horses and cattle. Neil -had a cow and three ponies to water, and he offered one of the latter to -Walter. - -"Ride the roan," he advised, "if you're not used to our ponies. He is -older and better broken." - -Neil took for granted that Walter wanted to go with Louis and himself, -and the Swiss boy, who was far from being a coward, did not think of -declining. He had not been on a horse for several years, but before his -apprenticeship to Mr. Perier, he had been used to riding. The roan was -unusually well broken and sedate for a prairie pony. Though obliged to -ride bareback and with only a halter instead of bridle and bit, Walter -had no trouble with the animal. The horse knew it was being taken to -water and needed no guidance to keep with the other beasts. - -The boy could not help a feeling of uneasiness as he approached the -woods, and he noticed that Louis, though he seemed to ride carelessly, -kept one hand on his gun. The irregular cavalcade of mounted men and boys -and loose animals passed in among the trees,--sturdy oaks, broad topped -elms, great basswoods, which Louis called _bois blanc_,--white wood,--and -Walter _lindens_. All were nearly leafless now, except the oaks, which -retained part of their dry, brown foliage, but the trunks stood close -enough together to furnish cover for any lurking enemy. Without alarm, -however, the animals threaded their way through the belt of larger growth -to the river bank. The steep slopes and narrow bottom were covered with -smaller trees and bushes, aspen poplar, wild plum and cherry, highbush -cranberry, saskatoon or service berry, prickly raspberry canes, and, -especially along the river margin, thick willows. - -Following a track where wild animals had broken a way through the bushes -and undergrowth, dogs, cattle, horses, and men made their way down the -first slope, along a shelf or terrace, and on down a yet steeper incline -to the river bottom. The sure-footed, thirsty beasts made the descent in -quick time, and crashed eagerly through the willows to the water. The Red -River ran sluggishly here. It was smooth and deep, with muddy shores. In -the dried mud along the margin were the old tracks of the animals that -had broken the trail down the slope. - -When the boys had dismounted to water their horses, Louis pointed out the -prints, which resembled those of naked feet. "Somewhere near here," he -said, "the bears must cross. They have regular fords. Once in the fall I -watched a band of bears cross the Pembina. I was up in a tree and I -counted nineteen, old and young, but I was too far away for a good shot." - -The bear tracks led up stream. Leaving the horses to bathe and splash, -Louis and Walter, who preferred to drink at a less muddy spot, pushed -their way among the willows. A hundred yards up stream, they came to a -bend and shallows, caused by a limestone cliff. - -"This is the bears' fording place," said Louis, "and a good one too. Not -only bears but men have been here," he added quickly, "and not long ago. -Look." - -On the bit of beach at the base of the cliff lay a little heap of charred -wood and ashes. Near by, clearly imprinted in the damp sand, were foot -tracks and marks that must have been made by the bow of a boat. - -"Indians?" questioned Walter, the chill creeping up his spine again. - -"Or white men," Louis returned. "These are moccasin prints, but the color -of the feet inside those moccasins I know no way to tell. There were two -men, that is plain, and one is tall, I think, for his feet are long. They -were voyaging, those two, and stopped here to boil their tea. They have -not been gone many hours. That fire was burning since last night's -frost." The Canadian boy's tone was careless. His curiosity had in it no -suggestion of fear. - -Walter was more concerned. "Those Sioux," he ventured. "Do you -suppose----" - -"No, no," came the prompt reply. "The Sioux had horses. They didn't come -by river. Sioux seldom travel by water. These men were white, or _bois -brules_, or Saulteux, or other Ojibwas. They had a birch canoe. No clumsy -wooden boat or dugout made that mark." Louis examined the footprints -again. "That one man is a big fellow truly. See how long his track is." -The boy placed his own left foot in the most distinct of the prints. "He -must be as tall as _le Murrai Noir_." - - - - - XIV - PEMBINA - - -Without alarm or hint of lurking enemy, men and beasts made their way -slowly up the steep river bank and through the woods to the prairie. The -carts, shafts out, had been arranged in a circle, and within this -defensive barricade camp had been pitched. Families fortunate enough to -have tents had set them up. Others had devised shelters by stretching a -buffalo skin, a blanket, or a square of canvas over the box and one wheel -of a cart. The ponies, hobbled around the fore legs or staked out with -long rawhide ropes, were left to feed on the short, dry prairie grass, -and to take care of themselves, but the few precious oxen and cows were -carefully watched and guarded against straying. - -With the fuel brought from the woods fires were kindled within the -circle. Kettles were swung on tripods of sticks or on stakes driven into -the hard ground and slanted over the blaze. Pemmican and tea had been -supplied to the Swiss. The older settlers had, in addition, a little -barley meal for porridge and a few potatoes which they roasted in the -ashes. Louis and Walter eked out their scanty supper with a handful of -hazelnuts that had escaped the notice of the squirrels in the woods. The -autumn was too far advanced for berries of any kind. - -After the meal, Walter made the acquaintance of the MacKay family, Neil's -burly, red-bearded father, his mother, his two sisters, and next younger -brother. The eldest brother, who was married, had gone to Pembina nearly -a month earlier. Mrs. MacKay, a tall, thin woman with a rather stern -face, spoke little French, but with true Highland hospitality she made -Walter and Louis welcome to the family fire. Wrapped in a blanket and -knitting a stocking, she sat on a three-legged stool close to the blaze. -At her right was her older daughter patching, by firelight, the sleeve of -a blue cloth capote. On the other side, the father was mending a piece of -harness, cutting the ends of the rawhide straps into fine strips and -braiding them as if he were splicing a rope. Neil too was busy cleaning -and oiling his gun, and his younger brother, a sandy-haired lad of ten, -was whittling a wooden arrow. The two little children had been put to bed -in a snug nest of blankets and robes underneath the cart. The sight of -this family gathering around the fire gave Walter a feeling of -homesickness and loneliness that brought a lump to his throat. The -feeling deepened as he and his companion strolled from cart to cart and -fire to fire. Everyone in the camp but Louis and himself had his own -family circle, and Louis was on the way to home and mother. - -It was the Lajimonieres who gave the two boys the warmest welcome and -made the Swiss lad forget his homesickness. They were old friends of the -Brabant family, and Louis called Madame Lajimoniere "_marraine_." She had -acted as his godmother when Pere Provencher baptized him. Indeed she was -godmother to so many of the Canadian children at St. Boniface and Pembina -that the younger members of the two settlements seldom called her by any -other name. There was no Indian blood in Marie Lajimoniere, and she had -lived in the valley of the Red River longer than any other white woman. -Several years before the first band of Selkirk settlers had reached the -forks of the Assiniboine and the Red, she had come with her husband to -the Red River country from Three Rivers on the St. Lawrence. When, in -1818, the Roman Catholic missionaries, Father Provencher and Father -Dumoulin, had arrived in the Selkirk Colony, Madame Lajimoniere had -received them with warmth and enthusiasm. She was a devout member of -their church, and she gladly stood sponsor for the Canadian and _bois -brule_ children brought to the priests for baptism. Louis had a warm -affection for his _marraine_, and Walter took an immediate liking to her -and her family. - -One of the Lajimoniere children was a girl of about Elise Perier's age, a -slender, black-haired, red-cheeked girl named Reine. When Reine, somewhat -shyly, questioned the Swiss boy about his long journey from Fort York, he -told her of Elise and Max and Mr. Perier, and how anxious he was about -their welfare. - -"Oh, we will all help to make them comfortable and happy when they come -to Pembina," Reine eagerly assured him. "It will be delightful to have a -new girl, just my age, who speaks French. The Scotch girls are so hard to -talk to, when you don't know their language or they yours. I shall like -your sister I know, and I hope she will like me." - -At Louis' urging, Jean Baptiste Lajimoniere told Walter of the greatest -adventure of his adventurous life. In the winter of 1815 and '16 he had -gone alone from Red River to Montreal. He carried letters to Lord -Selkirk,--who had come over from England,--telling how the Northwesters -had driven away his colonists. All alone, the plucky voyageur faced the -perils and hardships of the long wilderness journey. He came through -safely, to give the letters into Lord Selkirk's own hands and relate to -his own ears the story of the settlers' troubles. Lajimoniere told his -tale well, and the boy forgot his own perplexities as he listened. Not -until the story was finished did Walter realize how late the hour was, -long past time to seek his blanket. Madame Lajimoniere and the children -had already disappeared under their buffalo skin shelter, Louis had -stolen quietly away, and the whole camp was wrapped in silence. - -Walter thanked the guide, said good night, and hurried back to his own -camping place. The horses and cattle had been brought within the circle -and picketed or tied to cart wheels. The settlers were taking no chance -of Indian horse thieves making away with their beasts. Everyone in the -camp, except the guards stationed outside the barricade, was sleeping, -and the fires were burning low. The night was dark, without moon or -stars. How lonely and insignificant was this little circle of carts, with -the prairie stretching around it and the vast arch of the sky overhead! -The flickering light of the fires, only partly revealing picketed beasts, -clumsy carts, and rude shelters, seemed merely to intensify the darkness, -the vastness, the loneliness beyond. - -Not a wild animal, except a few gophers, had been seen all day; the cart -train was too noisy. But now the wind that swept the prairie brought a -chorus of voices, the high-pitched barking of the small prairie wolves, -and the long-drawn howling of the big, gray timber ones. The dogs -answered, until their masters, waking, belabored them into silence. The -camps along the rivers and the shores of Lake Winnipeg had seemed remote -enough from civilization, but not one had impressed the mountain-bred lad -with such an overwhelming sense of loneliness as did this circle of carts -on the prairie. - -He found Louis already asleep, and crawled in beside him. There he lay, -listening to the wolves and, when their howlings ceased for a time, to -the faint and far-away cries of a flock of migrating birds passing high -overhead. Then he drifted away into sleep. - -The approach of dawn was beginning to gray the blackness in the east when -every dog in the camp suddenly began to growl. The horses grew restive, -neighing and moving about. Startled wide awake, Walter, thrilling at the -thought of a Sioux attack, asked his comrade what the matter was. Louis -did not know. He had thrown aside his blanket and was crawling out from -under the cart. As Walter followed, he heard the guide calling to the -watchers beyond the barricade. The guards replied that all was quiet on -the prairie. They could see nothing wrong, discern no moving form. - -For a few minutes everyone in the camp was awake, anxious, excited, but -nothing happened, no war whoop came out of the darkness. The dogs ceased -growling, the ponies neighing, and soon all was silence again. What had -caused the alarm, whether prowling wild beast or skulking man, or the -mere restlessness of some sleepless dog or nervous horse, no one could -tell. - -The camp was astir before the sun was up, and the first task was to water -the horses and cattle. Louis remained behind to get breakfast while -Walter rode the pony to the river. - -The late start from Fort Douglas made getting to Pembina that day -impossible. After plodding along the prairie track and crossing several -small streams, the cart train passed a cold and stormy night in the open -beyond the wooded bank of a muddy creek that Louis called Riviere aux -Marais. Pembina was reached next day in a driving storm of rain, sleet -and snow. - -The Pembina River took its name from _anepeminan_, the Ojibwa term for -the shrub we call highbush cranberry. The junction of the Pembina with -the Red was an old trading place. The Northwest men had established -themselves there before the close of the eighteenth century, and in the -early years of the nineteenth all three rival companies, the Northwest, -the Hudson Bay, and the New Northwest or X. Y. Company, as it was called -by the old Northwesters, maintained posts a short distance from one -another. Those old posts were gone,--burned or torn down,--long before -the time of this story. The two forts then standing had been built at a -later date. Fort Daer, the Selkirk Colony post, dated from the autumn of -1812, when the first of the colonists, under the leadership of Miles -McDonnell, had come to the Pembina to winter. It stood on the south bank -of that river near where it empties into the Red. Just opposite, across -the Pembina, was a former Northwest fort, which had become, since the -uniting of the companies, a Hudson Bay trading post. - -Some of the Scotch settlers and all of the Swiss except Walter were to be -lodged at Fort Daer until they could build cabins of their own. Louis had -asked Walter to be his guest. The cart he was driving, which was not his -own, was loaded with the household goods of some of the settlers, and had -to be taken to Fort Daer. After leaving the fort, the two boys, carrying -their scanty belongings in packs, made their way to Louis' home. The -little village of log cabins was not actually on the Pembina, but near -the bank of the Red a mile or more from the junction point. The arrival -at Fort Daer of a cart train from down river was an important event, but -the abominable weather curbed curiosity, and the boys saw few people as -they made their way against the storm to the Brabant cabin. - -Louis' mother, hoping that he might have come with the party from Fort -Douglas, was on the lookout for him. Before he could reach the door, it -flew open. Followed by the younger children and three shaggy-haired sled -dogs, Mrs. Brabant ran out into the sleet and snow. Very heartily Louis -hugged and kissed her. When he presented his companion, she welcomed -Walter warmly. The children greeted him shyly. The dogs, inclined at -first to resent his presence, concluded, after a curt command and a kick -or two from the moccasined toe of Louis' younger brother, to accept the -newcomer as one of the family. - -To the Swiss lad, weary, soaked, and chilled through, the rude but snug -cabin with a fire blazing in the rough stone fireplace, promised a -comfort that seemed almost heavenly. He had not spent a night or even -eaten a meal inside a building for many weeks. The warmth was so -grateful, the smell from the steaming kettle that hung above the blaze so -appetizing, that for a few minutes he could do nothing but stand before -the fire, speechless, half dazed by the sudden transition from the wet -and the bitter cold. - -He was roused by Mrs. Brabant who offered him dry moccasins and one of -the shirts she had been making for Louis during his absence. Walter had a -dry shirt in his pack, but he accepted the moccasins gratefully. His -shoes were not only soaked, but so worn from the long journey that they -scarcely held together. The cabin, one of the best in the settlement, -boasted two rooms, and Louis' mother and sisters retired to the other one -while the boys changed their clothes. As soon as they were warm and -partly dry, supper was served. - -The household sat on stools and floor in front of the fire, each with his -cup and wooden platter. From the bubbling pot standing on the hearth -Madame Brabant ladled out generous portions. The rich and savory stew was -made up of buffalo meat, wild goose, potatoes, carrots, onions, and other -ingredients that Walter did not recognize but enjoyed nevertheless. It -was the best meal he had tasted in months, and he ate until he could hold -no more. - -The hunters had returned only a few days before from the great fall -buffalo chase, and there was abundance of meat in the settlement. It was -during the autumn hunt two years before that Louis' father had been -accidentally killed, and the Brabant family had not accompanied the -hunters since that time, but Mrs. Brabant's brother had brought her a -supply of fresh and dried meat and pemmican. The goose thirteen-year-old -Raoul had shot, and the potatoes and other vegetables were from the -Brabant garden. The grasshopper hordes had missed Pembina. Mrs. Brabant -expressed sympathy for the poor Selkirk colonists who had lost all their -crops. She listened with lively interest to the boys' account of the trip -from Fort York, and asked the Swiss lad many questions about his own -people. - -Walter was so grateful for shelter, warmth, food, and the kindly welcome -he was receiving that he could not have been critical of the Brabant -family whatever they had been. As it happened, he liked them all -heartily. He was to discover, within the next few days, that this -household was considerably superior to most of those in Pembina. The -interior of the cabin was neat and clean, differing markedly in this -respect from many of the _bois brule_ dwellings. Her straight black hair, -smoothly arranged in braids hanging over her shoulders, her dark skin, -and high cheek-bones betrayed the Ojibwa in Louis' mother, but in every -other way, especially in her ready smile, lively speech, and alert -movements, she seemed wholly French. She wore deerskin leggings with -moccasins, but her dark blue calico dress, belted with a strip of bright -beadwork, was fresh and clean. Her little daughters were dressed in the -same fashion, except that Marie, the elder, who was about ten years old, -wore skirt and tunic of soft, fringed doeskin, instead of calico. The -dark eyes of both little girls sparkled when Louis, unknotting a small -bundle wrapped in a red handkerchief, handed each one a length of -bright-colored ribbon, one red, the other orange, to tie in their long -black braids. For his mother he brought a silk handkerchief, a gilt -locket, and a packet of good tea, the kind, he had been told, the Chief -Factor at Fort York drank. Raoul was made happy with a shiny new knife. - -Louis and Walter were tired enough to take to their blankets early. Mrs. -Brabant and the girls slept in a great box bed, made of hand-hewn boards -painted bright blue, that stood in the corner of the room where the -fireplace was. In the smaller room, which was nothing but a lean-to shed -with a dirt floor, was a curious couch for the boys. It was made of -strips of rawhide stretched tightly on a frame of poles, and was covered -with buffalo robe and blankets. This cot Louis shared with Walter, who -found the rawhide straps not nearly so hard as bare ground. Raoul rolled -himself in a robe and lay down in front of the fire. - - - - - XV - THE OJIBWA HUNTER - - -Walter was anxious to get a place ready for the Periers, but he found -that every one of the fifty or sixty log cabins in Pembina was full to -overflowing. Indeed he marveled at the number of men, women, and children -of all sizes that could be packed into a one-room cabin. The houses were -built of logs chinked with clay and moss, and roofed with bark or grass -thatch, and few had more than one room. - -A straggling, unkempt place was the settlement, the cabins set down hit -or miss, with cart tracks wandering around among them. The tracks and -dooryards were deep in mud, which was stiff with frost when the boys -started out that morning. As the sun softened the ground, Walter found -walking in the sticky stuff something like wading through thick glue, it -clung to his moccasins so. Gardens were rare. The surroundings of most of -the cabins were very untidy, cluttered with broken-down carts, disorderly -piles of firewood, odds, ends, and rubbish of all sorts. Shaggy, unkempt -ponies, hobbled or staked out, and wolfish looking sled dogs, running -loose, were everywhere. - -The people were most of them _bois brules_ whose hair, skin, and features -showed all degrees of mixed blood from almost pure white to nearly pure -Indian. They seemed good-natured and very hospitable. The merrymaking in -celebration of the return of the hunt was not yet at an end. Everywhere -Louis and his companion were urged to share in a feast of buffalo meat, -to join in a gambling game or in dancing to the scraping of a fiddle. So -pressing were the invitations that declining was difficult. - -The neatest, best kept buildings in the village were the mission chapel -and presbytery. Father Dumoulin was setting a good example to his flock -by cleaning up his garden patch. Looking up from his work, he greeted -Louis by name. The priest was a striking looking man, tall and strong of -frame, his height emphasized by his long, straight, black cassock. His -face was strong too. Walter, though not of Father Dumoulin's church, felt -instantly that here was a man to command the respect of white men, -half-breeds, and savages. When the priest learned that the boy was one of -the newly arrived immigrants, he asked a number of questions. - -Near Fort Daer, in the edge of the woods bordering the river, a cluster -of better kept cabins housed some of the more thrifty of the Scotch. In -one of the largest and best of the houses, the two lads found the MacKay -family settled for the winter. Neil was eager to arrange for an immediate -buffalo hunt, but Louis replied that he could not go for a while. There -were things he must do for his mother, and Walter did not want to be away -when his friends arrived. - -From the MacKay cabin the boys went on to Fort Daer. Like all the forts -in that part of the world, Daer and Pembina House, the old Northwest -post, consisted of log stockades enclosing a few buildings. They stood on -opposite sides of the Pembina and the land about each had been cleared of -most of its trees and bushes. The Pembina was a good-sized stream, deep, -sluggish, and like the Red, colored with the mud it carried. At Fort Daer -Walter talked with some of his countrymen, who were feeling somewhat -encouraged. They had been well fed, and were grateful for warmth and -shelter. Real winter, the bitterly cold winter of this northern country, -might come at any moment now to stay. - -If Walter was to hunt to help supply himself and the Periers with food, -he needed a gun. With Louis he went to the Company store at Pembina House -to buy one. He could not pay for it in money, but hoped that he might get -it on credit, paying later in buffalo skins and other furs. The Hudson -Bay Company frowned on fur hunting as well as on Indian trading by the -colonists, but the settlers would be obliged to hunt that winter if they -wished to eat. Louis thought that if Walter agreed to turn over to the -Company the pelts of the food animals he killed, and not to engage in -barter with the Indians, he might arrange for a gun and ammunition. - -The two were explaining Walter's needs, when an Indian burst suddenly -into the room. His buckskin clothing was covered with mud. Blood matted -his black hair and stained one dark cheek which was disfigured by a great -scar. His eyes glittered, and his manner was wild and excited. The boys -thought for a moment that he was going to attack the trader. The Indian, -however, had no weapons,--no gun, hatchet, or knife. He began to talk -rapidly, angrily. Walter could not understand a word of Ojibwa, but he -could see that the Indian's speech startled both Louis and the trader. -The latter replied briefly in the same tongue, then darted out of the -door, the Ojibwa after him. Before Walter could voice a question, Louis -was gone too. The Swiss boy turned to follow, hesitated, and decided to -stay where he was. - -In a few moments Louis was back again. "What is it? Are the Sioux -coming?" Walter asked anxiously. - -"No, unless this affair is the work of spies." - -"What affair? Could you understand what he said?" - -"Most of it. He was so wild it was hard to follow him. He has been -attacked. He was down at the river loading his canoe. Two men came along. -While one was talking to him, the other stole up behind him, knocked him -over the head, and 'put him to sleep.' When he came to his senses, the -goods he had just bought and his gun and knife were gone. There was a -hole cut in his canoe. Of course he may be lying. He may have hidden the -things and made up the story." - -"Why would he do that?" - -"To get a double supply of goods and ammunition. The trader believes him -though. He is sending men in search of those two fellows." - -When the trader returned he added further details to the story. The -Ojibwa, he said, was an honest, trustworthy hunter, who had been bringing -his furs to the Company for several years. He had come alone from Red -Lake to get his winter's supplies and ammunition. Having finished his -bargaining, he was loading his boat at the riverside when another canoe, -with two men, appeared, coming up stream. One of the men shouted a -greeting in Ojibwa, they turned their boat in to shore, jumped out, and -engaged him in talk. Entirely unsuspicious of treachery, Scar Face was -answering one man's questions, when the other struck him from behind and -knocked him senseless. - -"Does he know the fellows?" questioned Louis. - -"He never saw them before." - -"Could they be Sioux passing themselves off as Ojibwa?" - -"No, one was a white man, he says, and the other,--the man who attacked -him,--was in white man's clothes, but looked like an Indian. He wore his -hair in braids, had no beard, and spoke like a Cree. He was a very tall -man, strong and broad shouldered." - -"Do you think he is telling the truth?" - -"I'm sure he is. Scar Face is a reliable fellow, always pays his debts, -and has never tried to deceive us in any way. You saw the blood on his -face. He has a bad cut on the side of his head. One of our men is -dressing it for him. No, he isn't lying. His description of the men is -good, and he was not in the fort when they were here." - -"They have been here? You know who they are?" - -"I think so; beyond doubt. Two fellows answering to the description were -here this morning and bought some tobacco. They said they had just come -from St. Boniface with a letter for Father Dumoulin. The white man is a -DeMeuron, a red-faced fellow with a sandy beard. I don't know his name. -The other one is a _bois brule_ voyageur called Murray." - -"Not Black Murray?" cried Walter. - -"That's the name he goes by. You know him?" - -"_Vraiment_, we know him," put in Louis emphatically. "So he did not go -up the Assiniboine with the western brigade, but came this way. He must -have started before we did, to get here by water so soon. We found his -tracks and those of his companion, where they had landed to boil their -kettle. They were ahead of us then. He wasted little time at Fort -Douglas, _le Murrai Noir_." - -"Whatever possessed him to attack that Ojibwa?" queried the puzzled -trader. - -"I think I can guess," replied Louis slowly, "though I know not for sure. -He wanted the Ojibwa's supplies. He plans, I think, to become a trader. -To trade he must have some goods to commence with. This is not the first -time he has obtained them dishonestly." Louis told the story of the -missing sack of pemmican and Murray's bundle of trade articles. - -The Hudson Bay man listened intently and nodded thoughtfully. "That must -be what the rascal is up to. Well, I have sent men out on horseback, up -and down the Red River. The thieves haven't come by here on the Pembina. -They're not likely to show themselves in the neighborhood of the forts. -Perhaps they will be caught, though I doubt it. They have a good start -and there is plenty of cover to hide in until the going is safe. It is -useless to try to overtake them by canoe." - - - - - XVI - LETTERS FROM FORT DOUGLAS - - -The white man and the half-breed were not caught. Had the thieves trusted -merely to speed in paddling, the men sent out from the post must have -overtaken them. Even down stream, canoemen, obliged to follow every bend -and twist of the river, could not make as good time as mounted men riding -along the bank. Probably the two had crossed to the other shore and had -concealed themselves and their canoe until the search was over. There was -little chance that Pembina settlement would see or hear anything more of -them for a long time. - -The Ojibwa being a skilful hunter whose goodwill was worth retaining, he -was supplied with another outfit. He went away contented with his -treatment at the post, but seething with desire for vengeance on the men -who had robbed him. - -When questioned, Father Dumoulin said that the white man, Kolbach, had -brought him a letter from his superior, Father Provencher, at St. -Boniface. "The Father said in his letter," Dumoulin explained, "that -Kolbach had just come to tell him that he was going to Pembina. He asked -if the Father had any message to send me. So Pere Provencher wrote -hastily, while Kolbach waited. Kolbach is a DeMeuron, a German Swiss. He -is a wild, unruly fellow who comes but seldom to confession. I felt -surprised that he had taken the trouble to do Pere Provencher and myself -a kindness." - -Louis and Walter had failed to find an unoccupied cabin that could be -made ready for the Periers. When Louis suggested that they set to work at -once to build one, his mother interposed. It would be better to wait, she -insisted, until the Periers arrived. They could stay in her house for a -few days. The cabin would be a little crowded to be sure, but there would -be room enough to make three extra ones comfortable. "Then M'sieu Perier -can decide where he wishes his house and can help to build it," she -concluded. - -Walter rather doubted if the apothecary would prove of much help in cabin -building, but he yielded to Mrs. Brabant's decision. He knew she would do -everything in her power for the comfort of the homeless immigrants. - -While he waited for the coming of his friends, Walter helped Louis -prepare the Brabant home for winter. They put fresh mud chinking in the -holes between the logs, mended the bark roof, cut firewood and hauled it -in Louis' cart. The cart itself had to have one new wheel rim. The rim, -which was about three inches thick, was made in sections, and put -together without nails. Louis wanted a new dog sled, and Walter would -need snowshoes. For the sled, thin oak boards were bent at one end by -steaming them over the big kettle, and lashed together. Louis called the -affair a _tabagane_, the French version of an Indian word. Nowadays we -spell it _toboggan_. - -The snowshoe frames were of birch wood bent to the required racket form, -the toes turned up a little to prevent tripping. The netting of sinew, -Louis explained, must be put in with the greatest care. Where the weight -of the foot would rest he used a fine mesh of _babiche_ or twisted sinew. -The ankle and toe loops he was careful to make just the right size to -slip on and off easily, yet not too loose to hold the foot in the proper -position. Walter had been trained to use his hands, and he was deft and -sure with them. He made one of the shoes himself, and did a workmanlike -job. Learning to walk with the awkward things might be more difficult -than making them, he thought. - -Louis examined his dog harness and shook his head. "The beasts need a new -harness truly," he said, "but that will have to wait until we can kill a -buffalo, and get fresh _shaganappy_." - -Though the buffalo hunt had been postponed, Walter found plenty of -opportunity to use his new gun. Migrating flocks of water fowl passed -every night, and many of them stopped to rest and feed by day along the -rivers and in the marshes. It was the boys' duty to keep up the food -supply by shooting as many ducks and geese as possible. The weather was -now cold enough so the birds could be kept several days. Those that the -Brabant and MacKay families could not use were disposed of at Fort Daer. -Neil MacKay and Raoul Brabant, who was almost as good a shot as his elder -brother, were included in the hunting party. - -Every day Walter watched for the Periers. Whenever he heard the creaking -of a cart, he hoped that another brigade was arriving from Fort Douglas. -He never went a mile from the settlement without wondering if his friends -would be there when he came back. As the days passed, he grew more and -more anxious. Had disaster overtaken the boats of the second division? - -One day, just at dusk, as the four hunters were returning along the bank -of the Pembina, there came to their ears, faintly at first, from the -prairie to the north, the screeching of ungreased axles. As the noise -grew louder, the boys realized that such a squawking and screaming could -never come from two or three carts only. A whole brigade must be -approaching. Leaving the woods along the river, the lads started across -the prairie to meet the cart train. They could hear it much farther than -they could see it in the gathering darkness. - -Louis was the first to make out a line of black objects against the sky. -He and Walter were some distance ahead of their companions when they met -the guide of the brigade riding in advance. Louis shouted a question and -the reply in Canadian French came promptly: - -"We come from Fort Douglas. We bring some of the new colonists." - -At the guide's words, Walter dropped his gun and his birds and ran -towards the carts. He was too impatient to wait for them to come to him. -The first vehicle belonged to the guide and his family, but walking -beside the second was someone Walter knew, Johan Scheidecker. He and the -Scheidecker boys had shared the same tent at York Factory. As he greeted -Johan, Walter looked eagerly around for some sign of his friends. - -"Where is Monsieur Perier?" he demanded. - -"He is not with us." - -"Not with you? Why, what has happened?" - -"Nothing,--to the Periers," was Johan's reassuring reply. "They remain at -Fort Douglas. A man named Kolbach has taken them into his house. I have a -letter for you that will explain it all." He handed Walter a folded -packet of coarse paper. - -The boy was dumbfounded. The possibility that the Periers might not come -on to Pembina had never occurred to him. It was too dark to read his -letter, so he fell into step beside Johan and questioned him. - -"Are they all right? How did they stand the trip? Are they well?" - -"About as well as any of us." - -Even in the darkness Walter could see that Johan was very thin. His voice -was husky, and he plodded along with drooping shoulders and bent head. -"We were all nearly starved, and some of us were sick, when we reached -Fort Douglas," he explained. "Elise and Max were as well as any, but -Perier himself had a bad cough. One of the soldiers who live above the -fort, a Swiss, took them into his house. My sister Marianne stays behind -too. She was married to one of those soldiers the morning we left. Tell -me, can we get food at Fort Daer?" he asked abruptly. - -"Oh, yes. Wait a moment." Walter had remembered his gun and birds. He ran -to where they lay, and, returning, thrust the two fat geese into Johan's -hands. "Take them," he cried. "They are good eating and we have more." - -Walter did not accompany the cart train to Fort Daer. He and the Brabant -boys made speed to the cabin, where, by the light of a candle of buffalo -tallow, he read his letters. There were two, one from Mr. Perier, the -other from Elise. Mr. Perier's was brief. The trip had been a very hard -one, but he and the children had come through safely. Matthieu had given -him Walter's note, and he appreciated the boy's thought for their -comfort. It seemed best, however, for them to remain at Fort Douglas. He -was suffering with a bad cold and was scarcely able to travel farther. -One of the DeMeurons had shown them great kindness. He had offered to -share his cabin with them and had assured them that by hunting and -fishing he could provide food for all. - -"I am disappointed," Mr. Perier wrote, "that I cannot open a shop. All my -chemical and medical supplies were lost when our boat was wrecked. I -saved only a few packages of herb seeds that I was carrying in my -pockets. I intend in the spring to plant an herb garden. Through Matthieu -I hope to obtain a place in the buffalo wool factory for the winter. Do -not think that you must come back here to be with us. It would not be -wise. If you have found food and shelter, remain where you are till -spring. Then you can return and we will begin cultivating our land. You -need not be concerned for us, for we have fallen among friends. Our -nearest neighbor will be Marianne Scheidecker who is to be married -to-morrow to one of the ex-soldiers. Several of them have found wives -among our Swiss girls. I would not want a daughter of mine to marry in -such haste. I am glad Elise is still a little girl." - -Elise's letter, dated November 4th, the day of arrival at Fort Douglas, -told more of the journey. The second division had traveled slowly, and -with many delays. On September the twentieth another boat from Fort York, -carrying the Rev. John West, the English clergyman of the Selkirk Colony, -had overtaken the Swiss. The first of October the weather had turned very -cold, and some nights the travelers had nearly frozen, especially when -everything was so wet or frost covered that the fires would not burn. In -a storm on Lake Winnipeg, the boat the Periers were in was wrecked. - -"No one was drowned," wrote Elise, "but we were all soaked, and we lost -most of our food and blankets and other things. The men had to cut down -trees and split them into boards to mend our boat, and that took a long -time. It rained and snowed, and the nights were terribly cold. M. West -gave Max and me one of his blankets. We had plenty of wood for fires, but -very little food left, only some barley that we boiled. The weather was -so stormy the men could not catch fish, but they shot a few birds. We ate -a big owl and a raven that M. West shot. It was a week before we could go -on. Then Samuel Scheidecker was taken sick and died, and we stopped at an -island to bury him. I feel so sorry for the Scheideckers. By the time we -came to the mouth of the Red River we were starving, but there were -Indians there, and the chief, Peguis, gave us dried fish." - -Elise went on to say that her father had a bad cough and needed a warm -place to stay. So Sergeant Kolbach had kindly taken them in. "This house -is only one room with a loft above that has a floor of loose boards and a -ladder instead of a stairway. But there is a fireplace, and it is warm -and dry. M. Kolbach sleeps in the loft and lets us have the room. It is -rather dirty, but I have cleaned it up a little and will do more -to-morrow. We shall be comfortable here and kind Mr. West wants Max and -me to go to his school and learn English. We miss you very much, Walter, -but Father says you must not come back here till spring. We are going to -be all right now. It is so good to be warm and dry and have enough to -eat, and in the spring we can be together again." - -Walter read this letter aloud to Louis and his mother. "The poor child!" -Mrs. Brabant exclaimed again and again. At the close Louis said -earnestly, "That is a brave little girl, your little sister." - -Walter was disappointed that his friends were not coming to Pembina, but -relieved to know that they were safe and comfortable. He was quite ready -to go back to Fort Douglas and share any hardships they might have to -undergo, but Mr. Perier had forbidden him to do so. Apprentices in those -days seldom thought of disobeying their masters. Moreover Walter felt -that his return to Fort Douglas would probably do more harm than good. -There was no employment for him, no way to earn a living, and very likely -the Governor would not let him stay. Louis was strongly against his going -back. - -Walter was not wholly at ease about his friends. "I wonder," he pondered, -"if that DeMeuron really will provide for them. What will happen if he -doesn't keep his promise?" - -"If there is not food for them they will be sent on here to Pembina -later." - -"Could they make the trip when the snow is deep and the weather very -cold?" - -"Oh, yes. By dog sled the journey is easier and, if the trail is good, -quicker than by cart. Dogs can travel where ponies can not. Write to your -friends and tell them if all is not well to send word to you here, and -you and I will go get them. Ask someone at Fort Daer to send your letter -the first time anyone goes to Fort Douglas. Every week or so someone -comes and goes between the two forts. What is the name of that DeMeuron -they live with?" - -Walter glanced at Mr. Perier's letter. "Kolbach, Sergeant Kolbach. -Louis," he exclaimed, "that was the name of the man with Murray!" - -"Kolbach, yes, that was surely his name." - -"I wonder if he can be the same man who spoke to me when we landed at -Fort Douglas. He had a red face and a sandy beard. I don't like it, -Louis, their living with that fellow!" - -"No," the Canadian boy agreed thoughtfully. "We must go to Pere Dumoulin -and ask him about that Kolbach. He may be a wild fellow, and yet be good -to your friends. Oh, yes, that is quite possible." - -The two boys went to see the priest the next morning. They found him at -the mission in the little room that served him as bedroom, living-room -and study. - -"Pere Dumoulin," Louis asked, "was the man who brought you that letter -from Fort Douglas Sergeant Kolbach?" - -"Sergeant Kolbach? Oh no," came the prompt reply. "It was Fritz Kolbach, -the sergeant's brother." - -Walter felt relieved. "What kind of a man is Sergeant Kolbach?" he -inquired. - -"Why do you ask?" The priest looked at the boy keenly. - -Walter explained, and Father Dumoulin listened with interest. - -"Sergeant Kolbach," he said thoughtfully, "is a very different person -from his younger brother. The sergeant is a man of influence among the -DeMeurons. I do not know him well, but I should think him a somewhat -domineering man, used to authority and fond of exercising it, but he is -quieter, more self-controlled, more steady going than most of the -DeMeurons. He has usually exercised his influence over his fellows in the -interest of law and order. I know no reason why you should fear that he -will not treat your friends well, since he has chosen to take them into -his house." - -"His brother lives with him?" asked Louis. - -"I do not think so. Every DeMeuron has his own land, and the Kolbachs are -too unlike to live together peaceably." - -Reassured by Father Dumoulin's information, Walter did not think of -disobeying Mr. Perier's instructions. At Fort Daer the lad obtained a few -sheets of paper, and, borrowing quill pen and ink from a good-natured -apprentice clerk, he wrote a letter to Mr. Perier and another to Elise, -addressing them in Sergeant Kolbach's care. The clerk promised to send -them at the first opportunity. - - - - - XVII - CHRISTMAS AT PEMBINA - - -There was no reason now why Walter should hesitate to be away from the -settlement, yet the proposed buffalo hunt was postponed again. The -animals were far from Pembina that autumn. For miles to the south and -west, the prairie had been swept by fires started by careless Indians or -half-breeds who had allowed their camp fires to spread. In that blackened -desolation there was no feed for buffalo. The boys had expected to go -beyond the burned country in search of the herds, but, before they were -ready to start, a heavy fall of snow made horseback travel impossible. -Storm winds swept the prairie, and Louis shook his head at the prospect. - -"This will drive the beasts yet farther away," he said. "They will go -where the snow is not so deep and where there are trees for shelter. We -could travel with dog sleds of course, but we might search for long to -find buffalo, and to hunt them on foot is much more difficult than on -horseback. But perhaps this snow will not last." - -With the coming of deep snow Walter was given his first lessons in -snowshoeing and dog driving. Learning to walk with the clumsy rackets was -not easy, he found. He got more than one tumble before he mastered the -art. Driving a dog sled looked simple enough, when Louis hitched up his -dogs and took his little sisters for a ride. The three animals differed -considerably in size, appearance and breed, but worked well together. -Hitched tandem, they were off with a dash, the little bells on their -harness jingling merrily. They followed a trail already broken by other -sleds, and Louis ran alongside shouting and flourishing his whip. After a -turn on the prairie, they were back again. - -"Come, you shall have a ride now," Louis said to Walter, as the little -girls,--cheeks red and black eyes sparkling,--unrolled themselves from -the fur robes. - -Curious to try this new mode of travel, Walter seated himself on the -robes. "_Marche donc_," cried Louis, and the team was away, the toboggan -slipping smoothly over the well-packed trail. Running alongside or -standing behind Walter on the sled, Louis urged his dogs to their best -speed. When, after a first spurt, they slowed to a steadier pace, he -suggested that Walter try driving. - -"Stay where you are. You don't need to get up. There must be weight to -hold the _tabagane_ down." Handing Walter the whip, Louis stepped off the -sled. - -Louis seemed to manage the team easily, and Walter had no doubt of his -own ability to drive. He shouted to the dogs in imitation of his friend, -and, waving the long whip high in air, flicked the leader's back with the -lash. - -The dogs must have noticed the difference in the voice. They must have -sensed the awkwardness and inexperience of the new driver. Without -warning, the leader,--a woolly haired, bushy tailed beast with fox-like -head and sharp pointed ears,--swerved from the trail into untracked snow. -In vain Walter tried to get him back on the track. The dogs were out for -a frolic and they had it. They bounded and floundered through the soft -spots and raced across hard packed stretches. The prairie, Walter -discovered, was by no means so smooth as it looked. The wind had swept -the snow into waves and billows. The toboggan mounted the windward side -of a snow wave, balanced on the crest, and bumped down abruptly. Shouts -and commands were of no avail. Walter could but cling to the swaying, -jouncing, skidding sled, and let the dogs go where they would. - -Suddenly the beasts concluded they had had about enough of the sport. It -was time for the grand climax. With a quick turn, they swung about -towards home. The toboggan turned too, clear over, and Walter went -sprawling. When he picked himself up, the provoking animals were sitting -quietly in the snow, more or less tangled up in their traces, tongues -hanging out, laughing at him. Louis, shouting hilariously, came running -up on his snowshoes to right the toboggan. - -For a moment Walter was angry. "You knew what would happen," he cried -accusingly. "What did you do to make them act that way?" - -"No, no," laughed Louis. "I did nothing. Askime knew you had never driven -before, and so he played you a trick. He is a wise dog, Askime, but he -deserves a beating." - -The leader of the team was a hardy, swift, intelligent beast, almost pure -Eskimo, as his name indicated. The other dogs were of more mixed breed. -Both had sharp muzzles and thick, straight hair, brown with white spots -on one, dark wolf-gray on the other. Louis was proud of the husky, whom -he had raised from puppyhood. Nevertheless he picked up his whip and -started towards Askime. - -Walter, his flash of anger past, intervened. "No, don't thrash him. He -was just having a little fun. He has taken the conceit out of me, but -I'll get even with him yet. I'll learn to drive those dogs and make them -behave." - -Louis was still grinning. "Truly you will learn," he hastened to say, -"and--well--perhaps," his grin broadened, "I might have told you more -before you tried this first time. Next time it will go better." - -It did go better next time, and before the winter was over, Walter could -handle the dogs satisfactorily, though they never obeyed him as well as -their real master. - -The snow remained, and the buffalo did not return to the neighborhood of -Pembina. Winter had set in in earnest, but Walter was used to cold -winters and the Brabant cabin was snug and comfortable. Even the bitter -winds that swept the prairie could not find an entrance between the well -chinked logs. - -The Swiss lad cherished the hope of spending Christmas with the Periers. -He planned to go to the Selkirk settlement with a dog train that expected -to leave Fort Daer December twenty-first or twenty-second, but he was -disappointed. A hard snowstorm, a genuine blizzard, with a high wind out -of the north, prevented the sleds from getting away, and he was forced to -remain in Pembina. - -On Christmas morning he went with the Brabant family to Father Dumoulin's -mission. There was no Protestant church in Pembina, he liked and -respected Father Dumoulin, and he did not want to hurt Mrs. Brabant and -Louis by refusing to go with them. The boy was surprised to see how -crowded the mission chapel was with the Canadians and _bois brules_, men, -women, and children. Very reverently and devoutly the rough, half savage -hunters and voyageurs joined in the service and listened to the priest's -words. - -The rest of the day the simple, light-hearted people of Pembina -celebrated in a very different fashion, feasting, dancing, gaming, and -drinking. Gambling and fondness for liquor were the besetting sins of the -half-breeds as well as of the Indians, though Father Dumoulin was trying -hard to teach them to restrain these passions. - -Walter had come to know the rough, wild, but generous and hospitable -_bois brules_ well. He could not decline all their invitations to join in -the merrymaking. Moreover he was young, and homesick, and he wanted to -share in the festivities. He went with Louis and Neil MacKay to several -of the cabins during the afternoon and early evening, where the three ate -as much as they could manage of the food pressed upon them. The gaming -was carried on principally by the older men, the younger ones preferring -to dance. With a little diplomacy, drinking could be avoided without -giving offence. Louis and Neil, as well as Walter, had been brought up to -be temperate. They did not hesitate to take part in the dancing. - -Never had Walter seen such lively, agile jigging as some of the lithe, -muscular, swarthy skinned half-breeds were capable of. Men and women were -arrayed in their best, and the dark, smoke-blackened cabins were alive -with the gay colors of striped shirts and calico dresses, fringed sashes, -gaudy shawls, silk and cotton kerchiefs, ribbons, and Indian beadwork. - -After dancing until they were weary, the three boys slipped away early, -before the fun grew too fast and furious. Walter found it good to be out -in the clean, cold air again, away from the heat and smoke and heavy -odors of the tightly closed cabins. - -The night was a beautiful one, clear and windless. To the north and -northeast, from horizon to zenith, wavering, flashing bands and masses of -light flooded the sky. Parting with Neil, Louis and Walter trudged -through the snow towards the Brabant cabin. Both were absorbed in -watching the aurora borealis, the ever changing rays and columns and -spreading masses of white, green, and pale pink light, fading out in one -spot only to flash up in another, in constant motion and never alike for -two moments in succession. But when he turned from the beauty of the -night to enter the cabin, there swept over Walter, in a great wave, the -homesickness he had been holding at arms' length all day. He thought of -the Christmas of a year ago in Switzerland, and he was heartsick for the -mountains and valleys and forests of his native land,--so different from -these flat, monotonous prairies,--heartsick for his own people and their -speech and ways. What kind of a Christmas had this been for Elise and -Max, he wondered. Were they homesick too? - - - - - XVIII - MIRAGE OF THE PRAIRIE - - -Early in the New Year, Louis, Neil and Walter set out for the Pembina -Mountains or the Hare Hills, as that ridge of rough land was sometimes -called. New Year's day, ushered in with the firing of muskets, was -another occasion for merrymaking and hilarity in the settlement. Indeed -the feasting, dancing, and gaiety had scarcely ceased day or night since -Christmas. Many a _bois brule_ family had shared their winter supplies so -generously with their guests that they had almost nothing left and would -have to resort to hunting and fishing through the ice. Though they might -starve before spring, the light-hearted, improvident half-breeds did not -grudge what had been consumed in the festivities. They would do the same -thing over again at the first opportunity. - -The rapid decrease of supplies in the village gave Louis and Neil excuse -for a hunting trip, and Walter was ready and eager to go along. At the -Pembina Mountains they would be sure to find both game and fur animals, -Louis asserted. He had been there the winter before and had found good -hunting. On that trip he and his companion had come across an old and -empty but snug log cabin that had been built by some hunting or trading -party. He proposed to return to the old camp and stay several weeks. - -Walter was the more ready to go because, on the last day of the old year, -he had received word from the Periers that they were getting along all -right. The letter, from Elise, was brought by a half-breed who had come -from St. Boniface to be married on New Year's day to a Pembina girl. Her -father's cough was much better, Elise wrote. He was working at the -buffalo wool factory with Matthieu. Max had been disappointed to find -that Mr. West's school was a good two miles from Sergeant Kolbach's home, -too far for the little fellow to go and come in cold weather. "But we are -both of us learning some English without going to school," Elise added. - -The cabin was warm, and they had enough to eat, principally pemmican, and -fish caught in nets set under the ice in the rivers. "You know I did not -like pemmican," wrote Elise, "but now I am used to it. For Christmas we -had a feast, a piece of fresh venison, and a pudding made with some wheat -flour M. Kolbach had saved and with a sauce of melted sugar, the sugar -the Indians make from the sap of the maple tree. Have you eaten any of -that sugar, Walter? It is the best thing I have tasted since we came to -this new land. You wrote to me that I must tell you if everything here -did not go well. Of course it is not like home in Switzerland. We are not -as comfortable or as happy as we were there, and sometimes Max and I are -very lonely and homesick. Father does not complain of the hardships and -is always planning what we are going to do when spring comes. We keep -warm, we are well, and we have enough to eat, though we long for bread -with butter, and milk, and cheese. I get the meals and wash and mend our -clothes and keep the house clean. M. Kolbach says it is more comfortable -than before we came. I can't really like M. Kolbach, though I know I -ought to, it is so good of him to have us here. He is rather harsh to Max -sometimes, but not to me, and yet I feel a little afraid of him. Isn't it -strange that we can't like people by just trying to, no matter how hard -we try? But I am very grateful to M. Kolbach for taking care of us." - -This part of the letter troubled Walter a little, but, reading it over a -second time, he concluded that Elise was merely homesick. Kolbach was -very likely a rough sort of man, but he must have a kind heart or he -would not do so much for strangers. There was no mention of the younger -brother. Probably Elise knew nothing of him. Father Dumoulin thought -Fritz Kolbach might not be on very good terms with the Sergeant. Perhaps -after the robbery of the Indian, Fritz had not returned to St. Boniface. -Undoubtedly the trader at Pembina had sent an account of that affair to -Fort Douglas. Kolbach and Murray might not dare to show their faces -there. - -The day of their start for the Pembina Mountains, Louis and Walter were -up before dawn. The morning was still and very cold. After packing their -few supplies and belongings on the toboggan, the boys passed a long -rawhide rope, or _shaganappy_, back and forth over the load and through -the loops of the leather lashing that ran along the edges of the sled. -Before the work was done their fingers were aching. They were glad to go -back into the cabin for a breakfast of hot pemmican and tea. - -As he went out again, Walter paused on the threshold to stare in -amazement. The sun was not yet above the horizon, but the whole world had -changed. He seemed to be standing in the center of a vast bowl. On every -hand the country appeared to curve upward. And the distance was no longer -distant! Groves of bare branched trees, streams, heights of land that he -knew to be miles away had moved in around the settlement until they -seemed only a few rods distant. To the west the line of hills,--Pembina -Mountains,--that he had never glimpsed, even on the clearest day, as more -than a faint blue line on the horizon, loomed up a mighty, flat-topped -ridge. Once before, in December, Walter had seen the landscape -transformed, but it was nothing to compare with this. Louis, familiar -from childhood with the mirage of the prairie, declared he had never -known such an extraordinary one. - -Awed and wondering, the two lads stood gazing about them. Turning to the -east, they watched a spreading ray of crimson light mount the sky from -the soft, low lying, rose and gold bordered clouds at the horizon. The -sun was coming up. As the horizon clouds reddened and the rim of the -glowing disk appeared, an exclamation from his companion caused Walter to -wheel about. - -Louis was pointing at two men and a dog team gliding through the -air,--upside down! Every detail was startlingly clear, capotes with hoods -pulled up, sashes, buckskin leggings, snowshoes. The driver with the long -whip looked very tall. He belabored his dogs cruelly. It seemed to Walter -that he ought to hear the man's shouts and curses, the howls and whines -of the abused beasts. He could see their tracks in the snow, and a fringe -of trees beyond them,--everything inverted as if he himself were standing -on his head to watch men and dogs moving across the prairie. As he -watched, the figures grew to gigantic stature, the outlines became -indistinct. They vanished altogether. The sun was above the clouds now. -The distance grew hazy. Only part of the chain of hills was visible. -Louis turned to Walter, excitement in his voice. - -"I think those men go to the mountain too," he said. "Do you know how far -away they are?" - -Walter shook his head. He felt quite incapable of estimating distance in -this fantastic world, where things he knew to be miles away were almost -hitting him in the face. - -"At least fifteen miles," declared Louis impressively. - -"Impossible. We couldn't see them so plainly." - -"And yet we have seen them. The mirage is always unbelievable." - -"What is it anyway, Louis? What causes it?" - -The Canadian lad shrugged his shoulders. "The Indians say the spirits of -the air play tricks to bewilder men and make them wander off the trail to -seek things that are not there. Once I asked Father Dumoulin and he said -the spirits had nothing to do with it. He called it a false effect of -light, but that does not explain it, do you think?" - -Again Walter shook his head. - -"This I have noticed," Louis went on. "I have never seen the mirage in -winter except at dawn or sunset. In summer I have seen it in the middle -of the day when it was very hot and still. But why it comes, winter or -summer, I do not know." - -Neil's arrival stirred the others to action. The dogs were harnessed and -good-byes said to Louis' mother and sisters and rather sulky younger -brother. Raoul wanted to go too, but one of the boys was needed at home. - -Fresh and full of spirits, the dogs set off at such a pace that the boys -had all they could do to keep up. When they left the trail and took to -the untracked snow, speed slackened considerably. Louis now went ahead of -the team, though track breaking was hardly necessary. Underneath an inch -or more of dry, loose stuff, almost like sand, the snow was well packed -and held up the dogs and sled. The line of hills had vanished, but the -mirage did not entirely disappear and the landscape resume its natural -appearance until the sun had been up nearly two hours. - -The day was cold, much colder than the lads realized at first, for, when -the start was made and for some time thereafter, there was not a breath -of wind. All three wore fur caps and mittens, woolen capotes, and thick -knit stockings under their moccasins. Walter had possessed none of these -things when he came to Pembina, but Mrs. Brabant had made him a capote -from a Hudson Bay blanket and a cap and mittens from a rather well worn -bearskin. She had knit warm, new stockings for both boys from yarn bought -at the trading post. A prickling feeling in his nose was Walter's first -warning that his flesh was freezing. Stooping for a handful of snow, he -rubbed the prickly spot to restore circulation, and pulled the hood of -his capote farther around his face. - -Their course at first lay to the north of the Pembina River, over flat -prairie without an elevation high enough to be called a hill. On that -January morning, the whole plain was a stretch of dazzling white. In the -distance it appeared level, but it was actually made up of rolling snow -waves. It was, Walter thought, like a great lake or sea, the waves of -which had suddenly frozen while in motion and turned to snow instead of -ice. - - - - - XIX - BLIZZARD - - -As the sun rose higher the wind began to blow. The loose surface snow was -set in motion, crawling and creeping up the frozen waves. The wind gained -in strength, and everywhere the plain seemed to be moving. The glitter -was less trying to the eyes now, for the sun had grown hazy. Louis -glanced up at the sky, shouted to his dogs, sent his long whip flying -through the air and flicked the leader with the lash. - -"A storm comes," he called to his companions. "We must make haste and -reach the river where it bends to the north." - -With the increase of speed, Walter, less experienced in this sort of -travel than his comrades, found keeping up difficult. Neither with nor -without snowshoes was he the equal of the swift, tireless Louis. Neil too -was his superior on snowshoes, though on bare ground Walter could outrun -the Scotch boy. In spite of all his efforts he fell behind. Seeing his -difficulty, Louis suggested that he ride for a while, standing on the -rear of the sled. Glad though he was of a few minutes' rest, Walter did -not ride long. The northwest wind soon chilled him through, and he was -forced to run to warm himself. - -The dogs' pace was slackening. The course was due west, and the wind, -striking them at an angle, slowed their progress. The surface snow, -caught up by the gale, drove against and swirled about beasts and boys. - -Walter plodded after the others, head lowered, capote hood pulled down -over his cap to his eyes. Suddenly he realized that the fine, driving, -blinding stuff that struck against him with such force and stung wherever -it touched his bare skin, was not merely the fallen snow whipped forward -by the wind. Snow was falling,--or being lashed down upon him,--from -above. The sunshine was gone. The distance, the sky were wholly blotted -out. He and his comrades were in the grip of a hard northwest storm, a -genuine prairie blizzard. - -Louis was having his hands full trying to keep a straight course. All -landmarks blotted out, the wind was the only guide, and the dogs were -continually edging away from the bitter blast. The French boy, of a -naturally kind disposition and brought up by a good mother and a father -who had no Indian blood, was far more humane than most dog drivers. He -never abused his beasts, and he punished them only when discipline was -necessary. Now, however, he was compelled to use the whip vigorously to -keep them from swinging far to the south. Shouts and commands, drowned -out by the roaring of the wind, were of little avail. - -Dogs and boys struggled on in the driving wind, the bitter cold, and the -blinding snow; and the struggle saved them from freezing. The snow was -coming so thick and fast they could see only a few feet in any direction. -Following behind the toboggan, Walter could not make out Askime or the -second dog. The third beast, next to the sled, was but a dim shape. Louis -and Neil took turns going ahead of Askime. While one was breaking trail, -the other wielded the whip and tried to keep the dogs in the track. - -Plodding on through a white, swirling world, fighting against wind and -snow, his whole mind intent on keeping the shadowy, moving forms in -sight, his feet feeling like clogs of wood, his ankles and calves aching -with the unaccustomed exercise of snowshoeing, Walter lost all count of -time. When the sled stopped, he kept on blindly and nearly fell over it. - -Louis seized him by the arm and shouted, "We can go no farther. We can't -keep a straight course. We must camp here." - -Walter tried to look about him. He could see nothing but wind-driven -snow, not a tree or hill or other sign of shelter. "We'll freeze to -death," he protested huskily. - -"No, no, we will be safe and warm. Kick off your snowshoes and help Neil -dig." - -Walter obeyed, slipping his feet from the thongs. Following the Scotch -lad's example, he seized one of the shoes and, using it as a shovel, -began to scoop up snow. Louis unharnessed the dogs and unlaced the hide -cover, almost freezing his fingers in the process. Hastily dumping the -supplies in a heap, he turned the sled on its side, and joined the -diggers. In the lee of the toboggan, which kept the drifting snow from -filling the hole as fast as they dug it out, the three boys worked for -their lives. Down through the dry, loose surface, through the firm packed -layer below, to the hard frozen ground, they dug. Scooping out the snow, -they tried to make a wall, though the wind swept it away almost as -rapidly as they piled it up. - -Working steadily at their best speed, they succeeded at last in -excavating a hole large enough to hold all three. The heap of supplies -had been converted into a mound, the toboggan into a drift. Burrowing -into the mound, the boys pulled out robes and blankets, hastily spread -them at the bottom of the hole, and threw in their supplies. A long pole, -that Louis had added to the load just before starting, was laid across -the hole, one end resting on the toboggan. Clinging to the hide cover to -keep it from blowing away, they drew it over the pole and weighted down -the corners with a keg of powder, a sack of bullets, and the steel traps. -After the edges of this tent roof had been banked with snow to hold it -more securely, the three lads crawled under it. - -When he had recovered his breath, Walter asked, "What has become of the -dogs?" He had not noticed them since Louis took off their harness. - -"Do you think they are lost then?" said their master with a grin. "No, -they have buried themselves in the snow to keep warm. They have earned a -meal though, and they shall have it." Seizing three of the frozen fish he -had brought for the dogs, Louis crawled out into the storm to find and -feed them. - -He was back in a few minutes, huddling among the robes and blankets. The -hole was none too large. When they sat up straight, their heads nearly -touched the hide cover, and all three could not lie down at one time. But -in the snug burrow, with the snow-banked sled to windward, they did not -feel the wind at all. - -Knowing that they might have to camp where there was no fuel to be found, -Louis had included a few small sticks among their supplies. Shaving one -of the sticks into splinters, he struck his flint and steel and kindled a -tiny fire on the bare ground in the center of the shelter. In the cover -above he cut a little hole for the smoke to escape. Small though the -blaze was, it sent out heat enough to thaw the boys' stiff fingers and -feet, and its light was cheering in the dark burrow. Louis melted snow, -made tea, and thawed out a chunk of frozen pemmican. - -By the time the meal was over, Walter found himself surprisingly warm and -comfortable. He had not supposed he could be so comfortable in such a -crude shelter. He was drowsy and wanted to take a nap, but one fear -troubled him and made him reluctant to yield to his sleepiness. - -"If the snow covers us over, won't we smother in this hole?" he asked. - -Louis shook his head. "There is no danger, I think. Often men overtaken -by storm camp in the snow like this, and I never heard of anyone being -smothered. There is not much snow on our tent now. It banks up against -the toboggan and blows off our roof. But even if we are buried in a -drift, we can still breathe I think, and we won't freeze while we have -food and a little wood to make hot tea." - -"And the dogs?" - -"They will sleep warm, covered by the snow." - -Reassured, Walter settled himself as comfortably as he could manage in -the cramped quarters, and went to sleep. When he woke, he found the -others both sleeping, Neil curled up in his thick plaid, and Louis in a -sitting position with his head down on his knees. The fire had gone out, -and in spite of the blanket in which he was wrapped and the buffalo robe -spread over Neil and himself, Walter felt chilled through. It was too -dark in the hole for him to see the figures on his watch. Trying to rub -some warmth into his cramped legs, he roused Louis. - -"How long have I been asleep? Is it night?" - -"I think not yet," replied Louis, answering the second question. "It -grows colder. I will make a fire and we will have some hot tea." - -To clear a space for the fire, Louis unceremoniously rolled Neil over and -woke him. The Scotch lad growled and grumbled at being disturbed, but the -prospect of hot tea restored his good humor. Looking at his watch in the -light of the tiny blaze, Walter discovered that it was not yet five -o'clock. The storm still raged over them. - -"Do we get something to eat with this?" Neil asked, as Louis poured the -steaming tea into his tin cup. - -"Not now. We have only a little wood. We must not keep the fire burning. -Warm your fingers and your feet well before it burns out." - -Louis was the leader of the expedition, and Neil did not question his -decree. The three drew their blankets and robes closer about them, and -made the most of the hot drink and the tiny fire. They were not sleepy -now, so they talked, huddled together for warmth. - -After a time conversation lagged. They grew silent, then drowsy. Walter -dropped off, and woke to find Louis kindling another little blaze. It was -after nine, and the three made a scanty meal of thawed pemmican before -going to sleep again. - -During the night Walter woke several times to rub his chilly body and -limbs and snuggle closer to his companions. A buffalo robe and a blanket -lay between him and the ground, his capote hood was drawn over his fur -cap, he was wrapped in a blanket, and with his companions, covered with -another robe, yet in his dreams he was conscious of the cold. He did not -think of complaining. He had slept cold many a night since leaving Fort -York. In the midst of this howling blizzard, he was thankful to be as -comfortable as he was and in no immediate danger of freezing. - - - - - XX - A NIGHT ATTACK - - -It must have been instinct that roused Louis and set him to shaving -kindlings from the last stick of wood, for there was no change in the -darkness of the hole to indicate that morning had come. The smoke no -longer found a way out through the hide cover. Though the wood was dry -and the blaze small, Walter was half choked and his eyes were smarting by -the time the tea and pemmican were ready. - -"We are covered with snow," said Louis as, in changing his position, he -struck his head against the sagging roof. "But I think the storm is -over." - -He was right. When the three crawled out from under the hide and burrowed -their way through the drift that covered all but the wind-swept peak of -their shelter, they found that the flakes had ceased to fall. The wind -still blew, though not so hard, and swept the dry, fallen snow up the -wave-like drifts, but the sky was clear and flushed with the red of -sunrise. It was a world of sky and snow, for the swirling clouds of fine, -icy particles blotted out the distance. - -The boys did not stand gazing about them for long. The morning was too -bitterly cold for inaction, and they wanted to be on their way. -Floundering through the drifts, they found the dogs buried in the snow, -and pulled them, whining piteously, out of their warm nests. Each animal -bolted his frozen fish, then burrowed for another nap. - -Dismantling the almost buried shelter, digging out the toboggan and -loading it took some time. To fasten the cover over the load, Neil had to -take off his fur mittens to handle the stiffened lacings, and frosted -four fingers. He was, as he said, "ready to howl" with the pain when the -blood began to circulate in them. In the meantime Louis and Walter had -dug out the whining dogs. Once in the harness, they ceased their -protests. At the crack of the whip and their master's shout of "_Marche, -marche_," they were off willingly enough. - -"I hope you know where we are and where we're going, Louis," said Neil as -he fell into line. "I don't." - -"I think that must be the river over there where those trees are," Louis -replied. "We cross it and go on to the west and cross it again. It makes -a great bend to the north." - -The dogs were headed for the line of woods, dimly visible through the -blowing snow. The trees proved to be on the bank of the Pembina, which -was crossed without difficulty. The ice was thick and solid beneath its -snow blanket. Beyond the river was open prairie again, a succession of -snow waves, up and down, across and through which, boys and dogs made -their way westward. Both Louis and Neil went ahead to break the track. -Askime, the intelligent leader of the team, seemed to sense his -responsibility and kept close behind the snowshoes. - -Walter brought up the rear. His ankles were lame, the muscles of his -calves strained and sore from the snowshoeing of yesterday. He found the -going quite hard enough, even in the trail made by two pairs of rackets, -three dogs, and a loaded sled. The sky was clear blue overhead, the -blowing snow particles glittered in the sunlight, but the sun seemed to -give out no warmth. The north wind was piercingly cold. The strenuous -exercise kept body and limbs warm, but in spite of his capote hood Walter -had to rub and slap his face frequently. His hands grew numb in his fur -mittens. - -Only one stop was made, about mid afternoon, when they reached an _ile -des bois_, or wood island. The thick clump of leafless small trees and -bushes, though broken and trampled by buffalo, furnished plenty of fuel -and some protection from the wind. The boys kindled a fire, not a tiny -flame but a big blaze that threw out real heat. Close around it they -crouched to drink hot tea and eat a little pemmican. - -Heartened by food and drink, they smothered their fire with snow that -there might be no danger of its destroying the little grove, and resumed -their march. Higher land came into view through the blowing drift, and -Louis scanned it eagerly. He admitted that he did not know just where he -was. - -"We should have crossed the river again before this," he said. "Without -knowing it we have edged away from the cold wind and gone too far south. -I fear we cannot find the old cabin to-night." - -"We must find fuel and shelter," was Neil's emphatic reply. - -It was after sunset when the cold and tired travelers reached an abrupt -rise of wooded ground. Skirting the base of this tree-clad cliff, they -came to a steep-sided gully, where a small stream, now frozen over and -snow covered, broke through. The narrow cut was lined with boulders, but -trees and bushes bordered the stream and grew wherever they could find -foothold on the abrupt sides among the stones. The gully was drifted with -snow, but it would provide protection from the bitter wind. - -Leaving his comrades with the sled, Louis explored until he found a -suitable spot, where the almost perpendicular north slope cut off the -wind. A huge boulder, partly embedded in the bank, would serve as the -east wall of the shelter. He shouted to his companions, who joined him -with sled and dogs. - -"We will dig out the snow behind this big stone," he explained, "and pile -it up to make a wall on the other two sides. When we have put the -toboggan and the hide cover over the top, we shall have a good warm -lodge." - -The three set to work at once, Walter almost forgetting his lameness and -weariness in his eagerness to complete the queer hut. When it was all -done but the roof, Neil left the others to unload the sled, while he took -the ax and climbed the bank to cut firewood. - -Before the shelter was finished, darkness had come, and the howling of -wolves echoed from the hills above. On the narrow strip of frozen, sandy -ground that had been uncovered, a robe was spread. The fire was kindled -against the big boulder, which reflected the heat. To the cold and tired -boys, the hut seemed very snug. Wrapped in blankets, they huddled before -the blaze, warm and comfortable, even though the heat did not carry far -enough to make much impression on the two snow walls. - -By the time Walter had eaten his portion of melted pemmican and drunk two -cups of hot tea, he was so sleepy he could not keep his eyes open. Neil -too was nodding, and Louis was not much wider awake. They replenished the -fire, and stretched out side by side, feet to the blaze, and heads -wrapped in their capote hoods. - -An excited barking and howling waked Walter suddenly. How could three -dogs make such an unearthly racket? With a sharp exclamation, Louis freed -himself from his blanket. In a flash Walter realized that the dogs were -not guilty of all that noise. - -Louis was gone, Neil was following. Walter sprang up, felt for his gun, -and could not find it. The fire was still smouldering. Remembering that -wild animals were supposed to be afraid of fire, he seized a stick that -was alight at one end. As he crawled from the shelter, he knew from the -sounds that the wolves were attacking the dogs. - -The loud report of a gun drowned out for an instant the snarls and -growls. The dark forms of the beasts could be seen against the white -snow, but the light was too dim down in the gully to show friends from -foes. Louis had fired into the air. - -Before the echoes of the shot had died away, Walter flung his blazing -firebrand, with sure aim. It landed among the dark shapes. There was a -sharp snarl, a quick backward leap of a long, thin body. Neil risked a -shot. The snarling creature made a convulsive plunge forward, and fell in -a heap. Black figures, three or four of them, were moving swiftly up the -gully. - -Louis fired again, then called commandingly, "Askime, back!" - -The brave husky had started in pursuit of the wolves. At his master's -command, he paused, hesitated, turned. Louis ran forward to seize the -dog. - -Askime had been hurt, but not seriously. One of the wolves had got him by -the throat, but the Eskimo's heavy hair had protected him and the skin -was only slightly torn. The other dogs were uninjured. The actual attack -had but just begun, when Walter flung his firebrand. The blazing stick -had struck Askime's attacker on the head, and had made him loose his -hold. It had frightened the rest of the beasts. Then Neil's quick and -lucky shot had killed the one wolf almost instantly. The dead animal -proved,--as the voices of the pack had already betrayed,--that the -attackers were not the small, cowardly prairie beasts, but big, gray -timber wolves. - -"It was you, Walter, who saved Askime's life," Louis exclaimed -gratefully. "I didn't dare take aim. I couldn't tell which was wolf and -which dog. I fired over their heads, hoping to frighten the wicked -brutes. But you saved Askime. Come, brave fellow," he said to the dog. -"You shall sleep in the lodge with me the rest of the night." - -"Will the wolves come back, do you think?" asked Walter. - -"If they do, the dogs will warn us. But I think they will not trouble us -again. They have lost their leader, and they are well frightened." - -The boys were so thoroughly aroused that it was some time before they -could go to sleep again. But they heard no more of the wolves, and -finally dropped off, first Neil, then Louis, and finally Walter. Between -his two companions, Walter slept more warmly than on the night before, -though he woke several times when the fire had to be replenished. - - - - - XXI - THE BURNED CABIN - - -Before sunrise Louis was stirring and woke the others. When Walter tried -to move, he found his ankles and calves so stiff and sore that he -wondered if he could possibly go on with the march. Of course he must go -on. Louis and Neil seemed as spry as ever. He would not hold them back. -Pride helped him to set his teeth and bear the pain of getting to his -feet and moving about. His first few minutes of snowshoeing were agony. -As he went on, some of the stiffness wore off, but sharp darts of pain -stabbed foot, ankle, or leg at every step. Doggedly he trudged behind the -toboggan, thankful that trail breaking through the deep snow prevented -speed. - -Keeping to open, level ground at the foot of the hills, Louis watched for -familiar landmarks. The day was clear and cold. Going north and -northwest, the party traveled against the piercing wind. The boys walked -with heads lowered. The dogs, every now and then, veered to one side or -stopped and turned about in their traces. Most drivers would have beaten -and abused the poor beasts for such behavior, but Louis was not without -sympathy for them. He himself had to turn his back to the wind -occasionally. With a fellow feeling for the dogs, he encouraged rather -than drove them. Askime did his best, and the others were usually ready -to follow him. - -What he had seen so far of the Pembina Mountains was a disappointment to -Walter. He could not understand why anyone should dignify mere low ridges -and irregular, rolling hills with the name of mountains. Nevertheless, -after weeks of open prairie, the rolling, partly wooded land looked good -to him. He felt more at home in broken country. - -The wind-driven surface snow obscured the distance, so that landmarks -were difficult to recognize. In a momentary lull, a line of woods, -winding out across the plain, was revealed. Louis paused in his trail -breaking, and turned to call to his comrades. - -"There is the river again," he cried. "We came too far to the south, as I -thought." - -"Is the cabin on the river bank?" asked Walter, hoping that the long -tramp was almost over. - -"No, it is in the hills about a mile beyond," was the rather discouraging -reply. - -Walter's heart sank. He had been wondering at every step how long he -could go on. Could he keep going to that line of trees and then on for -another mile or more? He must of course, no matter how much it hurt. - -Louis, sure of the way now, led to and across the river, then turned to -the northwest into the broken, hilly country. There they were less -exposed to the sweep of the wind, but in other ways the going was harder. -It seemed to Walter that they must have gone at least three miles beyond -the river, when he heard Louis, who had rounded a clump of leafless -trees, give a cry of dismay. Following their leader, Walter and Neil -entered a snug, tree-protected hollow, backed by a steep, sandy slope. -And all three stood staring at a roofless, blackened ruin. - -Louis was the first to recover himself. "This is bad, yes, but the walls -still stand, and the chimney has not fallen." - -"We can rig up some sort of a roof," Neil responded. "It will be better -than camping in the open." - -Walter said nothing. He had expected to find a cabin all ready for -occupancy, where they could make themselves comfortable at once. Cold and -suffering sharply with the pain in his feet and legs, his bitter -disappointment quite overwhelmed his courage. - -"Someone has camped here since the blizzard. There are raquette and sled -and dog tracks, but it is strange,"--Louis, turning towards Walter, -forgot what he intended to say, seized a handful of snow, made a lunge at -his friend, and clapped the snow on his face. "Your cheek is frozen. It -is all white. Rub it,--not so hard, you will take the skin off. Let me do -it. Neil, cut some wood, dry branches. We will make a fire the first -thing we do, even if we have no roof over our heads." - -Neil took the ax from the sled, and started to obey Louis' order, while -the latter skilfully rubbed and slapped Walter's stiff, white cheek, -until it began to tingle. - -The log walls of the old cabin were intact. The door, of heavy, ax-hewn -planks, was only charred. It stood ajar, and Louis pulled it wide open -and went in, Walter following. There was no snow within, but the hard -earth floor was strewn with the fallen remains of the roof. Had there -been a plank floor to catch fire, the inside of the house would certainly -have been burned out, and the walls would probably have gone too. As it -was, the logs were merely blackened, the top ones charred a little. Two -bed frames, a stool made of unbarked sticks, and the stone and clay -fireplace and chimney were unharmed. - -"We will make a fire, warm ourselves and unload the _tabagane_. Then we -must build a new roof." - -Louis was not satisfied with the appearance of Walter's frozen cheek. As -soon as the fire was kindled, he melted some snow, removed the warm water -from the blaze and added more snow until it was like ice water. He bade -Walter bathe his cheek with the cold water and keep on bathing it until -the frost was drawn out. Noticing the stiffness of his friend's movements -and the signs of suffering in his face, Louis guessed his other trouble. - -"You have a pain in the legs?" he inquired. "It is the _mal de raquette_. -Everyone not used to snowshoeing has it if he travels long. It is very -painful. Take off your moccasins. Warm your feet and legs and rub them. -That will help." - -Walter was glad to obey. He expected to do his share in unloading the -sled and roofing the cabin, but when Louis saw how inflamed and swollen -the Swiss boy's ankles and insteps were, he refused to let him help. -Walter must remain quiet. His work would be to sit on a buffalo robe -before the fire and keep the blaze going. - -The roof the others constructed was only a temporary affair. It was -almost flat, slanting a little towards the rear, as the back wall was -slightly lower than the front. Poles and bark were the materials, -weighted with stones to keep them from blowing away. Such a covering -would not stand a strong wind, but the cabin was well sheltered. In a -hard rain the roof would probably leak, and heavy snow might sag it or -break it. But it would serve for a while at least, and it was the best -the boys could do in haste and with the materials at hand. By nightfall -they had a cover over their heads, flimsy though it was. - -As they were eating their evening meal before a warm blaze, Neil said -thoughtfully, "I wonder how this cabin caught fire. The fellows who -camped here can't have been gone long, yet when we came the fire was out -and everything cold." - -"Yes," agreed Louis. "Even the ashes on the hearth were cold." - -"Probably it broke out in the night," Neil suggested. "Sparks from the -chimney started it. But how _could_ they, with the roof covered with -snow?" - -"If there had been snow on it, it would not have burned so easily," Louis -returned. - -"This place is too sheltered for the wind to blow the snow off the roof. -Someone must have cleaned it off. Perhaps the weight was breaking it -down." - -"Well, it burned anyway," Walter put in. "All we know is that there was a -fire, and that some other party was here before we came. Do you remember -those men we saw in the mirage, Louis?" - -"Yes, we thought they were coming to the mountain. Whoever it was who -camped here, we owe him a grudge. He burned our roof and stole our beds. -Antoine and I made those beds last winter." One of the first things Louis -had noticed on entering the house was that the stretched hides, which had -taken the place of springs and mattress, were gone from the rustic cots. -The hides had been cut off with a knife. - -The bed frames being of no use, the boys lay down on the buffalo robe -before the fire. Louis and Neil slept soundly, but the pain in Walter's -feet and legs and frosted cheek made him wakeful and restless. - -His lameness and his sore face kept him at home the next day when the -others went out to seek for game and signs of fur animals. That was a -long day for Walter. Enough wood had been cut to last until evening, and -he kept the fire going. He cleaned out the remains of the burned roof -which cluttered the floor, arranged the scanty supplies and equipment -more neatly, drove some wooden pegs between the logs to hang clothes and -snowshoes on, mended a break in the dog harness, and did everything he -could find to do. The cabin had one window covered with oiled deerskin -that let in a little light, and the open fire helped to illuminate the -dim interior. - -Dusk had come when the hunters returned, bringing two big white hares. -Rabbit stew would be a welcome change from pemmican. They had set traps -and snares, had seen elk tracks, and had found, among rocks at the base -of a tree, a partly snow-blocked hole Louis thought might be a bear's -winter den. - - - - - XXII - THE PAINTED BUFFALO SKULL - - -The life of the three boys in their lonely cabin in the hills settled -down to a regular routine. Louis and Neil were out every day hunting and -visiting their traps, but it was nearly a week before Walter's lameness -wore off so that he could tramp and climb with his comrades. The skin -peeled from his frosted cheek, leaving it so tender that he had to keep -it covered with his capote hood when out in the cold. - -The cabin was in need of furniture. Besides the bed frames, Louis and his -companion of the winter before had made two rough stools, but one had -been burned. Before he was able to hunt, the Swiss boy, who was handy at -wood working, fashioned two more stools. His only tools were an ax, a -small saw, and a knife, but the stools were strong and solid, if not -ornamental. A table the lads did not miss. At meal times they sat before -the fire, their plates on their knees, their cups on the earth floor -beside them, the cooking utensils on the hearth. - -The first day that Walter went any distance from camp, he and Louis, -entering a partly wooded hollow among the hills, came suddenly upon a -herd of six or eight large, handsome deer. It was the first time Walter -had ever seen wapiti or elk. He was surprised and excited, the trigger of -his flintlock trade gun pulled hard, and his shot went wide. Louis, -cooler and more experienced, fired just as the herd took fright at the -report of Walter's gun. A yearling buck fell, and he was jubilant at his -happy shot. The pemmican was almost gone, and the boys had been living on -hares and squirrels. Frozen and hung in a tree out of reach of the dogs, -the elk meat would keep until every eatable scrap had been consumed. - -It proved lucky for the lads that they had such a good supply of fresh -meat. That night a storm commenced that lasted more than three days. It -was worse than the blizzard they had encountered on their way to the -hills. Even in the sheltered spot where the cabin stood the wind howled -and shrieked through the trees, bending them low and beating and crashing -the leafless limbs against one another. It threatened to blow the roof -off, and whirled the snow in among the trees, to drift it high against -the windward side of the house. - -Any attempt to reach the trap lines would have been the wildest folly. -Neil tried once to go to the near-by creek for water, but the storm drove -him back. He decided that snow water was quite good enough for him. When -the supply of fuel ran low, a tree close to the lee side of the house was -felled. Cutting it up was a troublesome and strenuous task even in the -shelter of the cabin. - -While the wood pile was being replenished, the elk carcass was blown from -the tree where it hung. It was brought inside. The corner farthest from -the fire proved quite cold enough to keep the meat fresh. The dogs whined -and scratched at the door, but Louis let in Askime only. He knew it would -be almost impossible to prevent the beasts from getting at the venison, -if all three were admitted. On the sheltered side of the house, buried -deep in the snow, the thick-haired dogs would not freeze. - -Preparing the pelts occupied part of the boys' time. At this task Louis -was expert and Neil not unskilled. The work did not appeal to Walter, -though he was ready to lend a hand when necessary. He had not been -brought up to the fur trade, and he had already concluded that he had no -wish to be a trapper. He was willing enough to hunt, especially when food -was needed, but traps seemed to him mere instruments of torture. He said -nothing to his comrades of this feeling. Their training and way of -looking at life were in many ways different from his. But he was resolved -to find some other way of making a living in this new land. He was -willing to do farming, tinkering, repair work, even to act as a voyageur -for the Company. - -When time began to hang heavy on the boys' hands, Walter suggested that -Neil give him some lessons in English. They had no paper, pens, or -pencils. With a charred stick Neil wrote on the flat hearth stone such -common English words as he knew, explaining the meaning. His father had -taught him to read and write a little English,--as much as he knew -himself,--but Neil's education was very limited, his spelling erratic, -and his pronunciation that of the Highland Scot. Louis watched and -listened with keen interest. He had even less education than the Scotch -boy. Louis could read only enough to make out the markings on bales of -goods and pelts. His writing consisted in copying those marks and signing -his name. - -When Walter had written his letters to the Periers and had read theirs -aloud, Louis had admired and envied his knowledge. Noticing the Canadian -boy's interest in the lessons, Walter offered to teach him to read his -native tongue, French. Among the Swiss lad's few possessions was a small -Bible that had belonged to his mother, the only thing he owned that had -been hers. He had always carried it about with him, and now he used it as -a text-book. Louis entered into the new task with enthusiasm and -surprised Walter by learning rapidly. In fact Louis proved quicker than -Neil, whose restless nature disinclined him to study of any kind. In -physical activity the Highland boy delighted, but working his mind bored -and wearied him. Louis, however, grew so interested that even after the -storm was over, he spent a part of every evening in a reading lesson by -firelight. - -A period of clear, cold weather followed the blizzard. There was little -wind, but more than once the stillness of the night was shattered by a -sharp crack, almost like the report of a musket, when, in the intense -cold, some near-by tree split from freezing. In hunting and visiting the -traps the boys felt the cold far less than at a higher temperature with -wind. Fingers and faces became frost-bitten quickly though, and Walter -had to be careful of his frosted cheek. - -Following the trap lines necessitated long tramps, sometimes of twelve or -fifteen miles, through the hills. Accompanying his comrades, Walter -learned something of the lay of the land. He found that the cabin was -located on what Louis called "the first mountain," a rough and partly -wooded plateau that rises rather abruptly from the prairie of the Red -River valley; which is really not a valley but a plain. This hilly -plateau is about eight miles across its widest part, and reaches its -greatest height a mile south of where the Pembina River cuts a deep -valley through it. On the west of the plateau is the "second mountain," -an irregular ridge. Though the second mountain rises nowhere more than -five hundred feet above the first, it is wild and rugged. Walter was -forced to admit that in some places, especially where the streams that -crossed it had eroded steep-walled ravines, three or four hundred feet -deep, it was almost mountain-like on a small scale. To a mountain-bred -boy this was mere hill country, but he felt more at home in it than he -had felt anywhere since coming to the strange new world. Climbing was a -real joy to him, and he loved to choose the steepest rather than the -easiest routes. - -As game grew scarce in the vicinity of the cabin, the boys pushed their -trap lines farther and farther into the hills, until whoever made the -rounds was forced to be away at least two, and sometimes three, nights. -They built two overnight shelters, one a lean-to against an abrupt cliff, -the other a roof of poles over a snug hollow in the rocks. In one of -these lodges Louis or Neil, sometimes alone, sometimes accompanied by -Walter, would spend the night; with a blazing fire at the entrance to -keep away wolves and wildcats. - -For several weeks a thievish wolverine annoyed the trappers. The clever, -bloodthirsty beast followed the trails, broke into deadfalls, and -skilfully extracted the catch from traps and snares. What it could not -devour it carried away and hid, after mangling the creature until the -pelt was ruined. Louis swore vengeance on the thief, and tried in every -way to trap it. At last, by going out at night to follow the wolverine's -fresh track against the wind, he came upon the greedy beast in the act of -breaking into a deadfall from the rear. A quick and lucky shot, and Louis -triumphantly carried home the robber. Walter had never seen a wolverine, -and Neil knew it from its tracks and skin only. With its long body, -short, strong legs, and big feet armed with sharp, curved claws, it -looked a most formidable creature for its size. - -February was a stormy month, until near the close, when there came -another period of clear, calm cold. In this fine weather Louis laid a new -trap line extending seven miles or more north to _Tete de Boeuf_, Buffalo -Head, one of the highest points in the range. After accompanying his -friend over the new trail, Walter climbed Buffalo Head for the first time -one bright, windless noonday. He found the view from the top impressive, -but the name puzzled him. - -"Why do you call this hill Tete de Boeuf?" he asked his companion. "I -can't see that it is shaped like a bull's head, looked at from below or -from up here." - -"No," Louis replied. "I think the name does not come from the shape of -the hill, but from a curious custom of the Indians. Do you see those red -things over there?" - -He pointed to an irregular line of objects in an exposed, wind-blown spot -at the very rim of an escarpment. - -"Those queer looking stones? They look as if someone had laid them there -in a row, and then daubed them with red paint. Did the Indians put them -there? What for?" - -"You think they are stones? Go and look at them," returned Louis with a -smile. - -Walter walked to the edge of the bluff, looked down at the objects, and -exclaimed in astonishment, "They're skulls; skulls of some big animal." - -"Buffalo," said Louis. "To the Assiniboins and the Sioux this mountain is -sacred. They bring buffalo skulls, daub them with red earth, and place -them as you see, noses pointing to the east. The skulls are offerings to -some heathen god. There is another spot up here where the Indians burn -tobacco as a sacrifice." He stooped to examine one of the skulls. "This -one has not been here long. See how fresh the paint is. It is trader's -vermilion mixed with grease." - -"That skull was put there since the last storm," Walter agreed. "There -are little drifts of snow against the others, but hardly any around that -one." - -Louis had turned his attention to a shallow, snow-filled hollow in the -rock. "Here are tracks. Truly someone has been here since the last -snowfall." - -Although the weather had been unusually calm for several days, every -breath of breeze swept the exposed spot. The prints in the snow were -partly obliterated. If the boys had not found the freshly painted skull, -they would scarcely have guessed that the tracks were those of men. With -some difficulty they traced the footprints to the edge of a steep, bare, -rock slope. There they lost the trail. They were out after game and did -not care to waste time tracing a couple of wandering Indians, so they -gave up the search. - -Nevertheless the recent offering of a buffalo skull on _Tete de Boeuf_ -aroused the lads' curiosity, and set them wondering if there might be -Indians camped somewhere in the neighborhood. In all their wanderings -heretofore the three had seen no recent sign of human beings. - -"We must keep a better watch of our things," Louis decided, as he sat by -the fire that evening preparing the pelt of a red fox. "The Assiniboins -are great thieves. Stealing horses is a feat they are proud of. We have -no horses, but we do not want to lose our dogs." - -"Or our sled and blankets and all our furs," Neil added. "One of us must -stay home after this to look after things." - -"Yes." Louis was silent for a moment considering. "I think," he said at -last, "that you and I, Walter, will try to follow that trail to-morrow. -It may lead to some camp. Neil will stay here to guard the cabin." - -"Why not let Walter stay?" demanded the Scotch boy, who preferred a more -active part. - -"Because he cannot talk to the savages or understand them, if any come -this way. He knows no Assiniboin." - -"I don't know much myself," Neil protested. - -"But you know a little, and you have dealt with Indians. He has not. He -does not even understand their sign language." - -Neil could find no answer to that argument. He was forced to consent to -the arrangement, though he was far from pleased. - - - - - XXIII - UNWELCOME VISITORS - - -The period of bright, calm weather seemed to be over. The next morning -was dark and cloudy, with a raw wind. In accordance with Louis' plan, he -and Walter climbed Buffalo Head again. At the foot of the bare rock -slope, they succeeded in picking up the trail from the painted skull. Two -men, Louis concluded, had come and gone that way. He traced the trail -easily enough for a short distance, but in the woods it became confused -with that of several wolves. Probably the beasts had followed the men at -a safe distance. Where the snow lay deep the men had taken to snowshoes. - -By the time the lads had reached a puzzling spot, where the tracks seemed -to branch into two trails, the threat of the morning had been fulfilled. -Snow was falling. Selecting the more distinct trail, Louis led on, but -the thick-falling flakes were rapidly obliterating the tracks. He grew -more and more doubtful of them, until at last he was sure that he had -lost the trail entirely. After circling about, attempting in vain to pick -it up, he gave up the chase. - -"It is of no use to go on," he said to his companion. "If this snow had -waited a few hours,--but no, it comes at just the wrong time." With a -resigned shrug of his shoulders, he turned back. - -For a time the snow came thick and fast, but before the boys were -half-way home, it had almost ceased. When they reached the cabin, the -wind had changed and the sun was shining. The storm had lasted just long -enough to defeat their purpose. Their hard tramp had been for nothing. -The stay-at-home, however, had news; news he was impatient to tell. - -"I have had a visitor," he burst out the moment Louis opened the door. - -"A visitor!" - -"A visitor?" echoed Walter, entering close behind his comrade. - -"Yes, and I have found out about the new skull on Buffalo Head." - -"That is more than we have done," Louis admitted, shaking the snow from -his capote. "There have been Indians here?" - -"No, a white man." - -Louis and Walter were too amazed even to exclaim. They stared -unbelievingly at Neil. - -"A white man," the Scotch boy repeated. "He came a little while after you -left. I didn't know he was anywhere around till he knocked on the door. I -_was_ surprised, I can tell you, when I heard that knock. An Indian would -have walked right in, so, even before I opened the door, I knew there -must be a white man there. And there was,--a broad-shouldered fellow with -a shaggy beard. He said '_Bo jou_' and I said '_Bo jou_, come in.' Then -we stood and looked at each other. Just as I opened my mouth to ask him -where he came from, he began asking me questions." - -"What kind of questions?" Louis interrupted. - -"Who I was, and what I was doing here, if I was trapping or trading with -the Indians. He could see the pelts all around the room. He was so sharp -about it, I thought he might be a Hudson Bay man out on the track of free -traders. I told him we hadn't seen an Indian since we came and didn't -expect to see one. Then he wanted to know what we were going to do with -our furs. Of course I said we were going to take them to the Company at -Pembina." - -"Did that satisfy him?" - -"It seemed to. He isn't a Company man, it appears." - -"A free trader?" questioned Louis. - -"He didn't say. He is on his way from _Portage la Prairie_ to Pembina." - -"_Portage la Prairie_ is on the Assiniboine. Why did he come this way?" - -"He said it was shorter and he wanted to make speed." - -Louis shook his head doubtfully. "Shorter? No, I think not. He must be -off his course. How many are in his party?" - -"No one but himself. He didn't even have a sled, only a pack and his -snowshoes." - -"But that is strange. You are sure he had no comrades?" - -"I asked him if he had come all the way alone," Neil explained, "and he -said that at first he had traveled with two others. Yesterday or last -night, he left them. He had quarreled with them I think. When he went -away, he warned me to look out for them and not to trust them. I asked if -they were coming this way. He didn't know where they were going, he said, -but they were somewhere around here in the hills." - -"What about the painted skull?" inquired Walter. - -"I told him about our finding it and the tracks. He said the other -fellows put the skull there. One of them is an Assiniboin." - -Walter was puzzled. "If that is true,--if those men really did that, they -must have reached the hills two or three days ago. We found the skull -yesterday." - -"That's so." Neil rubbed his red head thoughtfully. "That rather spoils -his story of making speed straight through from _Portage la Prairie_, -doesn't it?" - -"He lied," concluded Louis emphatically. "Somewhere he lied, either about -himself or about the placing of the skull on the _Tete de Boeuf_. What -was he like, that fellow, and who is he? What is his name? Where does he -belong?" - -"He didn't tell me his name, but he is a DeMeuron from St. Boniface. He -asked so many questions that I didn't think till afterwards that he -hadn't mentioned his name. He asked mine and yours." - -"He knew you were not here alone then?" - -"Oh yes, I told him I expected you two back any moment. He kept looking -at our furs, and I thought he had better know we were three to one." - -"Three to three perhaps," said Louis thoughtfully, "if the others are -still near here. They may not have parted at all." - -"I'm sure they have quarreled. He was telling the truth about that. You -should have seen his face when he spoke of those other fellows, and he -warned me against them, you know." - -"That is true," Louis conceded, "but his stories do not agree and we had -best not trust them too far." - -One of the trap lines had not been visited for two days, so Neil went out -to examine the nearer traps while daylight lasted. Doubt of the white -traveler's story made Louis decide to remain at the cabin. The boys had a -fairly good catch of furs, and Louis knew that wandering trappers and -free traders were not always above robbing weaker parties. If the -stranger returned or his former companions happened along, Louis wanted -to be at home. - -The sun was sinking behind the hills as Walter, accompanied by Askime, -went down to the creek. He found the water hole frozen and was chopping -it out when the dog began to growl uneasily. The boy paid little -attention, thinking Askime had scented some wild animal. Suddenly Askime -threw back his head and howled. His fellows replied from near the cabin. -Then, as all three were silent for a moment, there came other answers -from farther away; up the creek somewhere. In doubt whether the answering -voices were those of dogs or wolves, Walter filled his kettle and -hastened back to the cabin. - -Outside the house, Louis was trying to quiet his beasts. "We shall have -visitors soon," he announced. "You heard?" - -"Yes, but I wasn't sure whether they were dogs or wolves." - -"Dogs," Louis asserted confidently. "Those men have heard ours. They will -come this way." - -Louis and Walter tied their dogs at the rear of the cabin, and lingered -outside, watching for the strangers. It was not long before a howl from -the opposite direction, together with the voice of a man shouting, as he -belabored some unfortunate beast, announced the arrival of the visitors. - -Through an opening in the woods, into the cleared space before the cabin, -came a tall fellow in buckskin leggings and blue capote, the hood pulled -low over his face. He was followed by two lean, shaggy dogs drawing a -toboggan. It flashed into Walter's mind that these were the very men and -sled he had seen upside down against the sky during the mirage. - -"_Bo jou_," called Louis in a friendly tone, as a second man appeared and -the sled came to a halt. - -"_Bo jou_," returned the tall fellow in a deep voice. - -At the sound of that voice Walter started with surprise. The newcomer -pushed back his hood, and the boy found himself gazing into the face of -the half-breed voyageur Murray. The sun was down behind the mountain, but -even in the waning light, there was no mistaking that face; that dark, -aquiline, beardless, hard, cruel face, that he had seen day after day -during the long journey from Fort York to Fort Douglas. - -If Murray recognized the two lads, and he must recognize them Walter -knew, he made no sign. He merely stood impassive, looking at them, until -Louis recovered his wits sufficiently to act the host. Under the -circumstances he could do no less, even though the guest was an unwelcome -one. After all there had been no open breach between Murray and the boys, -and what had happened at Pembina was not their business. It would be -better to show no knowledge of that affair. - -At Louis' invitation, the newcomers entered the cabin and were given the -stools by the fire. They had unhitched their dogs from the sled and tied -them to a tree to keep them from Louis' beasts, but Murray was hardly -seated when the noise of battle sounded from without. Louis ran out and -Murray followed to find that one of his dogs had broken or gnawed off his -rawhide rope and was engaged in a fight with Askime who had broken his -rope also. The beasts were separated, Murray's dog, after being well -beaten by his far from merciful master, was tied more securely, and -Askime was taken into the cabin. - -Walter was already getting the evening meal, which, as a matter of -course, the visitors would share. The second man, it was evident, was not -the one who had been with Murray at Pembina. This fellow was an Indian, a -young man, slender, well built, but insignificant beside the Black -Murray. He understood scarcely a word of French or English, and spoke -only when addressed in his native Assiniboin. It seemed to Walter, as he -covertly watched the two, that the young Indian was completely under -Murray's domination, and stood in fear or awe of him. - -Before the meal was ready, Neil returned. He had heard unfamiliar dog -voices, as he approached the cabin, and had seen the loaded sled before -the door, so he was not surprised to find strangers sitting by the fire. -He it was who first mentioned the visitor that had come earlier in the -day. - -"I suppose," he said, "you two are the ones that fellow was traveling -with." - -Murray grunted an assent. After a moment he asked, "How long ago he -here?" He grunted again at Neil's reply. - -The warm meal, eaten for the most part in silence, seemed to thaw -Murray's sullenness somewhat. Suddenly he began to talk; his usual -mixture of bad English, worse French, Cree, and Dakota. Like the -DeMeuron, he asked questions about the boys' trapping, and inquired if -they had seen any Indians and had done any trading. Questioned in return, -his replies were brief and evasive. He and Kolbach had been to the west. -They had come back to the hills expecting to meet a band of Assiniboins. -"We waited," he said, "but the Assiniboins not come." - -Walter and Louis were not surprised to learn that Murray's former -companion was Fritz Kolbach. They had guessed that already. - -"It was here at the mountain you expected to meet the Assiniboins?" Louis -inquired. - -Murray shot a keen glance at him, and nodded. - -"Then you camped near here for several days?" persisted Louis. - -"To the north, other side _Tete de Boeuf_." - -"You left the fresh buffalo skull on the mountain?" put in Neil. - -Murray silently pointed to his Assiniboin companion, who apparently -understood nothing of the conversation. Then the half-breed asked -abruptly, "Who told you that? Kolbach?" - -"We found the newly painted skull and your tracks," said Neil. "I spoke -to him this morning about them and he said you put the skull there." - -_Le Murrai Noir's_ face had darkened at every mention of the DeMeuron. He -demanded savagely, "What else he tell you?" And, before Neil could -answer, added a string of violent abuse of his former companion. - -"Kolbach told me nothing," the boy hastened to reply, "nothing except -that he had been traveling with you, but had left you and was going on -alone. He seemed to be in a hurry." - -Murray's eyes were fastened on Neil's honest, freckled face. His only -reply was an abrupt grunt, he turned to Louis. "You stay here long? I -sell you bag pemmican, good pemmican, for furs." - -Louis ignored the question. "We thank you for your offer," he said, "but -we have no need of pemmican. We have plenty of food." This was not -strictly true, but he wanted no dealings with Murray. - -Murray cast a look about the cabin, dimly lighted by the fire on the -hearth. "We go now," he said abruptly. - -"You're not going on to-night?" Neil asked in surprise. - -"You are welcome to spread your blankets here by the fire," Louis added, -he would not break the rules of hospitality even though he felt the guest -to be an enemy. - -Murray did not even thank him. "The moon is bright. We go on." - -The Indian had risen and moved towards the door. Murray pulled on his -capote and looked up at the bark and pole roof. An evil smile showed his -strong, yellow-white teeth. "It burn?" he inquired. - -"You set it on fire," accused Louis. - -Murray grinned mockingly. "Not me,--Kolbach." - -"But why did he want to burn the roof off?" cried Walter. - -"Why leave a cabin for other traders?" Murray spoke contemptuously. -Undoubtedly he felt contempt for Walter's innocence. "Only the roof burn -well," he added. His left hand on the door latch, he turned and held out -the right to Walter. - -The Swiss boy, surprised at this courtesy from the man he had believed an -enemy, could not refuse his own hand. Murray's sinewy fingers clasped it -firmly for an instant. A scratch in the palm,--a deep scratch made by a -rough splinter of wood when Walter was renewing the fire before -supper,--tingled sharply with the pressure. - -"_Bo jou!_" said Murray, and opened the door and went out. - -The Assiniboin repeated the words and followed. In a moment both were -arousing and harnessing their dogs. The men's shouts, the whines and -howls of the tired beasts, lashed and beaten to force them to speed, -could be heard long after men and sled had disappeared into the woods and -the night. - - - - - XXIV - A SORE HAND - - -"Now we know it was Murray and Kolbach who camped here the night before -we came," said Louis, after the guests were gone. "Then they tried to -burn this old cabin so no one else could use it. That is a trick of rival -traders to make each other as much trouble as they can." - -"The Northwest Company used to destroy Hudson Bay houses whenever they -got a chance," put in Neil. - -"Yes, and the Hudson Bay men did the same to the Northwesters." - -"That was a queer way to try to burn a house though," Neil remarked, "to -begin at the top. Kolbach must have had to clean off the snow before he -could set the fire." - -"Perhaps it was Kolbach who cleaned away the snow, but I think the plan -to burn the cabin was as much _le Murrai's_ as Kolbach's," Louis -asserted. "I believe they tried to start fire in other places as well as -the roof. At the back there is a place where a fire has burned close to -the wall. The logs are charred and black. They started several fires, I -think, but they did not stay to watch them. As _le Murrai_ said, only the -roof burned well. What do you think, Walter?" - -Walter had scarcely been listening. He was examining his right hand, -which still smarted. Raising his head at the question, he replied -carelessly, "About the fire? They set it, of course. Lucky for us it -didn't burn better." He looked again at his stinging palm. "I wonder if -Murray ever washes his hands. The dirt came off on mine. It makes this -scratch sting." - -"Let me see." Louis seized his friend's hand, turned the palm to the -firelight and bent over it. "That is no dirt," he exclaimed. "It is -sticky, a gum of some sort. You say it was not there before Murray shook -hands with you? And now it hurts?" - -"My hands were clean. I washed them before we began to get supper. That -scratch certainly does hurt; much more than it did at first." - -"Put some water on the fire, Neil, just a little, to heat quickly. We -must do something for this hand." Louis spoke anxiously. "_Le Murrai_ has -tried to poison you, Walter. Perhaps I can suck it out like snake venom." - -Without hesitation he put his lips to the scratch and sucked. He spat in -the fire, and wiped his mouth with the end of his neck handkerchief. "The -gum is too sticky, and we have nothing to draw the poison out, no salt -pork for a poultice." - -"Make the scratch bleed," suggested Neil. "Open it with your knife." - -"This black stuff must be cleaned off first," objected Walter. - -Cold water made no impression on the sticky substance that smeared -Walter's palm. Louis tried to scrape away the gum, then he sucked the -scratch again. But he had to wait for hot water to really dissolve the -gummy stuff and cleanse the hand. When every trace of black had been -washed off, Louis drew the sharp point of his knife along the scratch, -making a clean cut, deep enough to bleed freely. - -In those days little was known about antiseptics. All three boys, -however, were familiar enough with the treatment of snake bites to -understand that poison must be drawn out as speedily as possible, either -by sucking the wound or letting it bleed freely. They knew also that a -clean wound was apt to heal more readily than a dirty one. Even the -Indians recognized that fact, though their ideas of cleanliness were not -much like ours. Louis would have torn a strip from his handkerchief to -bandage the injury, but Walter felt that a colored and not too clean -cloth was not the best dressing. He decided to leave his hand unbandaged, -letting it bleed as much as it would and the blood clot naturally. - -At first Walter could scarcely believe that Murray had deliberately tried -to poison his hand, but Louis had no doubts. "I have heard of such things -among the Indians," he said, "and _le Murrai Noir_ is more Indian than -white. He would not be above revenging himself that way or any other. If -he is really friendly to us, why did he act as if he had never seen us -before? He knew us certainly, though our names were not spoken. As he -went towards the door, he put his fingers in his fire bag. I saw him do -it, but thought nothing of it. He had seen you get that scratch. You know -it is not like Murray to shake anyone by the hand." - -"That surprised me, I admit," conceded Walter. - -"Truly he had a reason. He hated you always after that affair of poor -M'sieu Matthieu." - -"Do you suppose he has learned that we reported the loss of the pemmican -and told about his bundle of trade goods?" Walter asked thoughtfully. - -"That may be. He did not go up the Assiniboin, he was at Pembina too -soon. At Fort Douglas or at the Forks they may have asked him about that -pemmican. Even if they did not say we told them, he might lay it to us. -He never was fond of either of us. The Black Murray is an evil man. He -likes to do evil I think. He takes pleasure in it." - -In spite of the prompt treatment, Walter's hand pained him all night and -kept him restless. He was not the only one of the three that was wakeful. -Louis and Neil, too, were uneasy. They were uncertain of Murray's -intentions. He and his companion had gone away, with sled and dogs, but -how far had they gone? Had they really set out for Pembina, or had they -made camp as soon as they were out of sight and hearing? The Black -Murray's keen eyes had not failed to take note of every pelt in the -cabin. He had even offered to trade pemmican for the furs. Louis had -declined, but did that settle the matter? Would Murray try in some other -way to get possession of the catch? That he was not scrupulous in his -methods was proved by his assault and robbery of the Ojibwa at the Red -River. - -The boys were sure that Murray would not have hesitated to take -everything, if they had been away from the cabin when he arrived. They -did not doubt that he would have been ready to use violence against any -one of them. But he had found Louis and Walter quite prepared for him. -Numbers had been equal and the boys' guns within reach. Before Murray -could discover an opening for strategy, Neil had arrived. With three -alert lads watching him, the free trader had no chance. They were not at -all sure, however, that he might not return and attempt a surprise. So -Neil and Walter slept little, and Louis scarcely at all. Many times -during the night, the Canadian boy slipped out to look and listen. Though -he had turned the dogs loose, he did not dare to trust entirely to them. - -The night passed without an alarm, but the boys were far from sure that -they had seen the last of the Black Murray. Before they dared go about -their ordinary work, they had to be certain that he was not anywhere in -the vicinity. Louis decided to follow his trail, while the others -remained at the cabin, alert and prepared for a second visit. - -Walter's hand worried both himself and his comrades. It was inflamed, -swollen, and very sore. No one knew what to do for it, except to open up -the cut and make it bleed again, a painful operation which Walter bore -without flinching. - -Louis was away early. He returned late in the day with the encouraging -news that Murray had left the hills. His track, distinct and easy to -follow, ran straight across the prairie in the direction of the Red -River. "I followed several miles over the plain," said Louis, "and could -see the trail going on in the distance. Yet I feared he might have turned -farther on somewhere, so I went north a long way, looking for a return -trail. Then I came back, crossed his track, and went on to the south. I -found nothing. Certainly _le Murrai_ has gone, unless he made a very wide -circle to return. I think he would not give himself the trouble to do -that. He had no reason to think we would doubt his story. Yes, I am as -sure he is gone as I can be without following him clear to the Red -River." - -Reassured, the boys took up their daily tasks of visiting the traps and -deadfalls, fishing through the ice, and hunting. One of them, however, -always remained at home, his gun loaded and within reach. - -For several days Walter's hand was very sore and painful. He was more -than a little anxious about it. He feared serious blood poisoning that -might mean the loss of hand, arm, and even life. But the inflammation did -not spread. The prompt sucking of the scratch, the cleansing and free -bleeding, and the healthy condition of Walter's blood saved him. Within a -week the soreness was almost gone and the cut healing properly. - -In the meantime another misfortune had befallen the boys. The dogs were -taken sick. Askime was the first one to show the disease. One morning -Louis found the husky with a badly swollen neck. He took the dog into the -cabin and tended him anxiously, but the swelling increased until Askime -could no longer eat. He was scarcely able to swallow a little water. -Walter proposed piercing the lumps, and performed the operation with an -awl used in sewing skins. The swellings discharged freely, and Askime, -able to swallow, began to improve. - -The other dogs had already shown signs of the same trouble. Gray Wolf had -only a slight attack, but the brown animal was very sick. Lancing the -lumps on his neck did no lasting good, and in spite of the boys' efforts -to save him, the poor beast died. Luckily Askime and Gray Wolf recovered -completely. How the dogs got the disease was a mystery. Murray had had no -opportunity to poison them. Possibly the wolf-like animal that had broken -loose and attacked Askime had given the infection to him, or the husky -and his fellows might have caught it from some wild beast they had killed -and eaten. - - - - - XXV - THE TRAVELERS WITHOUT SNOWSHOES - - -After the wolverine was killed trapping had improved for a time. Then the -catches began to dwindle, growing smaller and smaller. Louis and Neil -agreed that they must either change their hunting grounds or go back to -Pembina. They had promised to return early in March. Now March had come, -with a thaw that suggested an early spring. The ducks and geese would -soon be flying north, spring fishing would begin, and food be plentiful -again in the settlement. And perhaps both boys were a bit homesick. - -"We go back with less food than we came away with," said Louis, "but we -have not been forced to eat wolf yet. Not once have we been near -starving, and we have a good catch of pelts. We will make the rounds of -our traps once more, spend the night in the hut near _Tete de Boeuf_, and -start from there." - -The morning was fine and the sun already high, when the boys left the -overnight shelter in the rolling hills below Buffalo Head. Neil went -ahead to break trail. The two dogs, fresh and eager, pulled willingly. -The sled was well loaded with a good store of skins: rabbit, squirrel, -raccoon, red fox, and mink, a few otter and beaver, two wildcats, three -wolves, a couple of marten, the elk hide, and a fine and valuable silver -fox pelt. - -The weather was springlike, too springlike for good traveling. The soft, -sticky snow clung in sodden masses to the snowshoes, making them heavy -and unwieldy. It formed wet balls on the dogs' feet. Moccasins, warm and -comfortable in colder weather, became soaked. The sun glare, reflected -from the white expanse, was almost unbearable. Before noon, Walter's -eyes, squinted and screwed nearly shut to keep out the excess of light, -were smarting painfully. Neil's were even worse. He was so snow blind -that he dropped behind, following his comrades by hearing instead of by -sight. Louis, less troubled by the glare, had to do all the trail -breaking. - -They had hoped to reach the Red River by night, but the usual four miles -an hour were impossible in the sodden, soft snow. Having made a later -start than they intended, they permitted themselves no stop at noon. At -sundown they made a perilous crossing of a prairie stream on -water-covered, spongy ice, that threatened at every step to go down under -them, and reached a clump of willows. - -"We stop here and have a cup of tea and dry our moccasins," Louis -announced. - -The others, tired, hungry, with chilled feet, aching legs, and smarting, -swollen eyes, were only too glad of a halt. A fire was soon burning and -the kettle steaming over it. The boys, seated on bales of furs, took off -their moccasins and held their feet to the blaze. The tired dogs lay in -the snow near by, tongues hanging out and eager eyes watching the supper -preparations. - -The meal was a scanty one. For the boys there was tea and a very small -chunk of pemmican, saved for the return trip. One little fish each -remained for the dogs. Yet everyone felt better for the food, so much -better that Louis proposed going on. - -"It will be easier by night," he asserted. "The snow will freeze over the -top." - -"I'm for keeping on," Neil agreed, "if I can see to find the way." His -reddened eyelids were swollen almost shut. "How about you, Walter?" - -When Walter had sunk down on the furs before the fire, he had not dreamed -of traveling farther that day. If the question had been put to him then -he would have answered no. But now that his feet were warm and he was -fortified with food and hot tea, going on did not seem so impossible. He -felt strangely anxious to reach Pembina. His thoughts, ever since -morning, had been turning to the Periers. It was more than two months -since he had heard from them. How had things been going with them? Surely -there were letters awaiting him at the settlement. "Let's go on by all -means," he replied to Neil's question, "as far as we can. It won't be so -bad when the snow hardens and there isn't any sun glare." - -Louis nodded. "We will rest till darkness comes. The wind has changed. It -will soon be much colder, I think." - -There was no doubt that the weather was turning colder. Thawing had -ceased with the setting of the sun, and the wind came from the northwest. -By the time the journey was resumed, a crust had formed on the snow. The -going was much easier, but the dogs were tired and footsore. Gray Wolf -showed strong disinclination to pull. Askime, however, did his best, and -dragged his reluctant comrade along. The average half-breed driver would -have lashed and beaten the weary beasts, but Louis used the whip -sparingly. He pulled with them or encouraged them by running ahead. - -In spite of weariness the travelers made good progress. After midnight -they paused in a willow clump for another cup of hot tea, and then went -on again. The night had turned bitterly cold, and there was no sheltered -spot nearer than the banks of the Red River. The river was now only a few -miles away, so they forced themselves and the reluctant dogs forward. -There was no lack of light, for the moon was at the full in a clear sky. -The surface of the snow was frozen so hard that no obscuring drift was -carried before the wind. The waves of the prairie were motionless. The -three boys and two dogs might have been at the north pole so alone were -they. Except for their own voices and the slight noises of sled and -snowshoes, as they sped forward over the crust, there was not a sound of -living creature in a world of star-strewn sky and endless snow. - -A brisk pace was necessary for warmth, and, in spite of their weariness, -they kept it up. Reaching the woods bordering the river, they made their -way among scattering, bare-limbed trees, creaking and clashing in the -wind. In search of a sheltered camping ground, they descended a stretch -of open slope to an almost level terrace about a third of the way down to -the stream. And there they came upon the trail of human beings. - -Stooping to examine the tracks, Louis gave a low whistle of amazement. -"_Ma foi_, but this is strange! Those men had no snowshoes. Why should -anyone travel without them at this time of year?" - -"Do you see any sled marks?" queried Neil. His own eyes were hardly in -condition to distinguish faint traces by moonlight. - -"I find none. Even on the crust a _tabagane_ would leave some marks. -Those men without snowshoes broke through the crust." - -"Perhaps it is nothing but an animal trail," Walter suggested. - -"No, no. Men without snowshoes came this way." Louis followed the tracks -a little distance, then returned to his companions and the dogs, who had -stopped for a rest. "There were three people," he said positively, "two -men; or a man and a boy,--and a woman." - -"How can you tell it was a woman?" demanded Neil sceptically. - -"Where she broke through into soft snow there are the marks of her -skirt." - -"Maybe it was a man wrapped in a blanket. They were probably Indians," -the Scotch boy suggested. - -Louis shook his head. "Why should Indians travel without snowshoes?" - -"Well, it's no affair of ours how they traveled or why. What we want is a -camping place. The wind strikes us here." - -"Yes," Louis agreed, "we will go on and look for a better place." - -Along the terrace the dogs needed no guidance. Nose lowered, Askime -followed the human tracks. Where the terrace dipped down a little, the -husky paused, raised his head, and howled. Louis ran forward and almost -stumbled over something lying in the snow in the shadow of the slope. He -uttered a sharp exclamation. - -"What's the matter?" called Neil. - -"Have you found a good place?" asked Walter. - -"I have found a man," came the surprising reply. - -"A man? Frozen?" - -Neil hurried to join Louis, who was on his knees trying to unroll the -blanket that wrapped the motionless form lying in the snow. Neil stooped -to help. - -"His heart beats. He still breathes," Louis exclaimed. "But he is cold, -cold as ice. Make a fire, you and Walter. I will rub him and try to keep -the life in." - -Neil snatched the ax from the sled. Walter kicked off his snowshoes and -set to work digging and scraping away the snow. As soon as he had kindled -some fine shavings and added larger wood to make a good blaze, he helped -Louis to carry the unconscious man nearer the fire. As they laid him down -where the firelight shone on his face, Walter gave a cry of surprise and -horror. - -"Monsieur Perier! It is Monsieur Perier, Louis!" - -He recalled Louis' certainty that the tracks were those of a man, a boy, -and a woman. "Where are the others?" he cried. "Where are Elise and Max?" - -Without waiting for an answer, he sprang up and began to search. In a -hollow in the snow in the lee of a leafless bush, completely hidden in -deep shadow, he found another huddled heap wrapped in blankets; Elise and -Max clasped in each other's arms. Between them and the place where their -father had lain were the ashes of a dead fire. - - - - - XXVI - ELISE'S STORY - - -Both children were alive. When Walter and Neil tried to separate them, -they aroused Max. The little fellow was stupid with cold and heavy sleep, -but seemed otherwise to be all right. Walter carried Elise nearer, but -not too near, to the fire. Kneeling beside her, he rubbed her ice-cold -feet, legs, and arms to restore circulation. The rubbing brought her back -to consciousness, dazed and wondering, to find her big brother--as she -called Walter--bending over her. As soon as the daze of her first -awakening passed, she asked for her father. Assuring her that Louis was -looking after him, Walter made her stay near the fire and drink some of -the strong, scalding tea. - -Restoring Mr. Perier to consciousness was more difficult. Louis' -unceasing efforts aroused him at last, but his mind seemed confused and -bewildered. He struggled with Louis as if he thought the boy was trying -to do him some injury. He stared blankly at Walter and did not appear to -recognize him. - -Throwing off the blanket Walter had wrapped around her, Elise went to her -father and put her arms about his neck. "Father, Father, it is all -right," she cried. "Walter found us, and we are all safe." - -The wild look left Mr. Perier's eyes and he ceased struggling. When -Walter brought him a cup of strong tea, he drank it obediently. The hot -drink seemed to clear his brain. After more rubbing, he was able to sit -up, nearer the fire. Elise and Max wrapped him in most of the blankets. -Attracted by the heat, the tired dogs snuggled close to the children and -added their animal warmth. - -Louis was anxious to find a less exposed spot in which to spend the -night. "Stay here and keep the fire going," he ordered his comrades. "I -will find a better camping place." - -In a few minutes he was back with word that he had found a much better -camping ground, a dry gully protected from the bitter wind. "You and I, -Neil," he said, "will go over there and prepare a place, while Walter -keeps the fire burning here. Then we will come back and move our camp." - -Elise and Max were now wide awake and ready to talk, but Mr. Perier -seemed inert and drowsy. After Walter had cut more wood and fed the fire, -he crouched at Elise's side and began to question her. - -"How did you come to be here all alone?" he asked. "Why did you leave -Fort Douglas?" - -"We were on the way to Pembina," she replied. "A man with a sled was -taking us. It was warm when we started. Max and I rode on the sled, but -we didn't like riding because the man abused the dogs and we were sorry -for them. Father tried to make him stop being so cruel, but he just -laughed. When Father tried to reason with him, the man grew so angry and -ugly that Father didn't dare say anything more. We stopped once and had -pemmican and tea, then we came on again. It was hard for Father to keep -up, he had no snowshoes. He dropped behind. At sunset we stopped again, -and the man made a fire. Father caught up with us, and we had some more -tea. - -"After that it turned cold. Max and I were very cold riding on the sled. -We wanted to walk a while to warm up, but the man wouldn't let us. He -said we were too slow. We got so cold we were afraid we should freeze, -and Father told our guide we must stop and get warm. Father had promised -him his watch----" - -"His watch?" interrupted Walter. - -"Yes. We have very little money left, and the man didn't want money -anyway. He said he would take us to Pembina for the watch." - -Walter grunted wrathfully, and Elise went on. "When Father said we must -stop and make a fire, we weren't far from the woods. Our guide said we -could go down to the river bank and camp, but that would delay us. It -would take longer to reach Pembina, and he would have to have more pay. -He wanted the chain as well as the watch. Father agreed and we came into -the woods and stopped. Max and I ran around and tried to get warm. Our -eyes hurt and Father was almost blind. The man made Father give him the -watch and chain at once. He put them in the pouch where he carried his -tobacco and flint and steel. Then he whipped the dogs and jumped on the -sled, and they ran away and left us." - -"The miserable brute!" cried Walter. - -"He ran away and left us," Elise repeated, "without any food or -snowshoes. Everything we owned, except the blankets Max and I had been -wrapped in when we were riding, was on the sled. It was a cruel way to -treat us." - -"Cruel? Why even the meanest Indian----" Walter's wrath choked him. - -"He is an Indian. They call him a _bois brule_, but he looks just like an -Indian. No one but a savage could be so cruel." - -"He's worse than a savage. He must be a fiend. Why did Kolbach let you -come with such a fellow?" - -"Monsieur Kolbach didn't know we were coming," Elise explained. "The -Indian said he was a friend of Monsieur Kolbach's brother." - -"Fritz? That's not much of a recommendation." - -"Do you know Monsieur Fritz? Has he been at Pembina? I have never seen -him." - -"I think I have seen him, and I have heard about him. He and his brother -aren't very friendly, are they?" Walter questioned. "I have been told -that they weren't." - -Elise shook her head. "I know nothing about that. Monsieur Kolbach has -never said. He is not a man who talks much anyway. Monsieur Fritz has -been away from Fort Douglas most of the winter. He has been trading with -the Indians." - -A sudden thought struck Walter, an unpleasant thought that made him -shudder. "What was that fellow's name, the one who deserted you?" he -demanded. - -"He has an English name," Elise replied. "I'm not sure I understood it -right. Mauray or something like that." - -"Murray? Elise, he is the very man I wrote you about, the one who was -steersman of our boat when we came from Fort York. It was the Black -Murray himself, the fiend! If ever I----" - -The voice of little Max interrupted. "I'm cold," he complained. - -Walter had forgotten the fire. He sprang up to replenish it. He found Mr. -Perier dozing, roused him, and warned him against dropping off to sleep. -Then he heaped on fuel until the blaze was so hot the others were forced -to move back from it. As for Walter himself, he was so boiling with anger -against the inhuman Murray that he gave no heed to cold. He wielded the -ax savagely, and sent the chips flying far and wide. - -In a surprisingly short time Louis returned to guide the rest of the -party to the camping place. Mr. Perier was unable to walk, so he was -placed on the sled, warmly wrapped. The dogs protested piteously at being -aroused and harnessed. Even Askime refused to pull until Louis took hold -also. Elise and Max bravely asserted that they were able to walk, and -Walter knew it would be better for them to do so if they could. He gave -his snowshoes to Elise,--she had learned during the winter to use -snowshoes,--and helped Max when the little fellow broke through the -crust. - -The gully was only a short distance away. They soon reached the camping -place, to find Neil tending a blazing fire. Between the fire and a steep, -bare, clay slope that reflected the heat, beds were made with bales of -pelts, blankets, and robes. The toboggan, turned on its side, furnished -additional shelter. There the Periers could sleep safely and comfortably. -The boys had no intention of sleeping at all. Their task was to keep the -fire going until daylight, which was not far away. - -There was a little tea left, but no food. At dawn Neil went down to the -river, chopped a hole in the ice, and with a hook baited with a bit of -rawhide, caught two small fish. The little fish made a scanty breakfast -for Elise and Max. Mr. Perier and the boys refused to touch them. Their -meal consisted of tea alone, and they used the last of that. - -Both of Mr. Perier's feet had been badly frozen and were swollen and very -painful. He was placed on the sled again, and Elise and Max took turns -riding with him. To make room for the passengers, part of the furs were -taken off and made into packs, which the boys carried on their backs. -Even then, the load on the sled was a heavy one for two tired, hungry -dogs. One, and sometimes two, of the boys had to help pull. - -By way of the gully they left the river bank and went up to the prairie. -There they found and followed a well defined trail, the usual route -between Pembina and Fort Douglas. More than one dog train had traveled -that way since the last fall of snow. The morning was cold and the crust -firm, but the party had to make the best possible speed before the sun -softened the surface. With one or the other of the children walking, it -was not possible to go very fast. Cold though the wind was, even the -beaten track grew soft under the direct rays of the sun, as the day -advanced. - -With soaked moccasins, and red, swollen eyes, the tired, half-starved -travelers reached Pembina some time after noon. Mr. Perier was the only -one with dry feet. He was not suffering so much from snow blindness -either as the others, for he had been able to keep his eyes covered. But -his feet and right hand and arm were paining him severely. - -The arrival caused much excitement in the little settlement, but the boys -did not linger to explain how it happened that they returned from their -hunting trip bringing three strangers. They went at once to Louis' home. -His mother received the Periers with almost as warm a welcome as she gave -her own son. The little cabin would be crowded indeed, but that did not -disturb her in the least. There was always room for travelers in -distress, and Elise and Max, cold, weary, hungry, and motherless, -appealed to her motherly heart. - -Mrs. Brabant and her younger children were thin, much thinner than when -Walter had seen them last. Food had been scarce in Pembina for weeks, but -they did not hesitate to share what little they had with the newcomers. -Kinder, more generous people never lived, thought the Swiss boy, as he -remembered all they had done for him and saw how eager they were to share -their last bite with his friends. He could never do enough to repay their -kindness. That they neither expected nor wanted repayment, he knew well. -Their hospitality was a matter of course with them. - - - - - XXVII - WHY THE PERIERS CAME TO PEMBINA - - -Before starting for the hills, Walter had written Elise that he expected -to be back by the first of March. So when Mr. Perier decided to leave -Fort Douglas, he felt very sure that he would find his apprentice at -Pembina. "I was anxious to get away," he said when he told his story. -"The weather was mild and favorable for the journey, and--well, I had -other reasons. At St. Boniface I learned of a man with a dog team who was -coming this way." - -Walter interrupted to ask if the man was really Murray. - -"Yes, that is his name," Mr. Perier replied. "He said he knew you and -your friend Louis Brabant. Murray had not intended to leave for another -day or two. He was waiting to see Sergeant Kolbach's brother, who had -gone to Norway House." - -At first the half-breed had refused to take the Periers to Pembina. While -he was arguing his case, Mr. Perier had taken out his watch and glanced -at it; a nervous habit of his when worried or distressed. Murray pointed -to the watch. He would go for that he said. As nothing else would satisfy -him, Mr. Perier agreed. Murray furnished toboggan and dogs, and they -started early the next morning. - -Before they had been out an hour, the Swiss began to regret his bargain. -Murray's brutality and his insolent, overbearing manner filled the quiet, -gentle-natured apothecary with apprehension. The trip proved far from -pleasant, but, knowing that the wild _bois brules_ were apt to appear -more savage than they really were, he did not think his children and -himself in any real danger. What really happened Elise had already told. -Before the journey was over, Murray demanded his pay. Mr. Perier had been -forced to hand over his watch and chain. As soon as the coveted articles -were in the half-breed's possession, he had whipped up his dogs, jumped -on the sled, and left the Periers to freeze or starve. - -Mr. Perier knew that if they followed the river it would lead them to -Pembina. They tried to keep going but they had no snowshoes and were -continually breaking through the crust. All three were very cold and -tired. When they came to a spot a little sheltered from the wind, they -camped, intending to go on in the morning. With his pocket knife, the -father hacked off a few dead branches. He kindled a fire, and Elise and -Max lay down beside it, wrapped in one of the blankets. They insisted -that their father should use the other. - -"I didn't intend to go to sleep," he confessed. "I was utterly exhausted -and had to rest a little. I lay down, meaning to get up in a few minutes -and cut more wood. What happened was all my fault. I should have kept -awake and moving. - -"Even now I am at a loss to understand," he concluded, "how Murray dared -to desert us. To have taken us on, as he promised, would have delayed him -but little. He must have known that, whether we ever reached here alive -or not, he was responsible for us. He would be charged with the crime of -deserting us and stealing our belongings. Surely the Company cannot -overlook such a crime. He must suffer for it." - -Louis shrugged. "It is not at all certain that he will suffer for it, -though Walter and I will do our best to see that he does. This is not _le -Murrai Noir's_ first crime, and always, so far, he seems to have escaped -punishment. He thinks he will always escape. He stole the Company's -property, he and Fritz Kolbach attacked and robbed one of the Company's -hunters, yet he has not been punished, it seems, for either of those -crimes. He was bold to go to St. Boniface and stay there, after that last -affair." - -"Perhaps he lay low and did not let the Company at Fort Douglas know he -was there," suggested Walter. - -"Or he lied himself free of the charge," Louis added, "with witnesses -bribed to say he spoke the truth. But this last crime is more serious." -The boy rose from the hearth, where he had been sitting cross legged. -There were not stools enough to go around. "I go now," he announced, "to -learn whether _le Murrai_ really came to Pembina, and if he is still -here." - -"I'll go with you," cried Walter springing up, tired though he was. "The -sooner we lay charges against Murray the better. Already he has had time -to take warning from our coming, and be gone." - -A little questioning of the people of Pembina brought the information -that Murray had arrived at the settlement before daybreak, had rested a -few hours, and had gone on, with a fresh team for which he had exchanged -his exhausted dogs. His only answer to the question whither he was bound -had been "Up river." - -At Fort Daer and Pembina House the boys learned that Murray had avoided -the posts. The clerks in charge did not even know that the half-breed had -been in the neighborhood until the lads brought the news. The man at the -Company post listened gravely to the story, but was inclined to blame Mr. -Perier for leaving Fort Douglas. - -"Why didn't the Swiss stay where he was?" he asked impatiently. "He was -better off there than he will be here. What did he want to come to -Pembina now for? He will only have to go back again with the rest of the -colonists in a few weeks. It will soon be time to break ground and sow -crops." - -To this Walter had no good answer, for he himself did not understand just -why Mr. Perier had decided so suddenly to make the change. Not until -night, after Madame Brabant and the girls were in bed in the main room -and Walter lay beside his master on a skin cot in the lean-to, did the -boy learn the real reason for the journey to Pembina. - -"Sergeant Kolbach turned us out," said Mr. Perier. - -"What?" exclaimed Walter. "I thought he had been so kind to you." - -"He was until recently, but he and I had a disagreement. He asked me for -Elise's hand in marriage." - -"Why she is a mere child!" Walter was both surprised and distressed. - -"So I told him. I said she was far too young to marry. He replied that -she was old enough to cook his meals and keep his house, and that was -what he wanted a wife for." - -Walter grunted angrily. - -"It is true," Mr. Perier went on, "that some of our girls not much older -have married since coming to the Colony. You know the Company encouraged -young women to come over because wives were needed in the settlement, -especially by the DeMeurons. But Elise came to be with me, and I have -other plans for her. She shall not marry Kolbach or any other, now or ten -years from now, unless he is the right kind of a man and she wants him." - -"I hope she'll never want a DeMeuron." The thought of his little sister -married to one of that wild crew horrified Walter. - -"I hope not indeed," agreed the father. "I would prefer one of our own -people for her; when she is several years older of course." He paused a -moment then went on. "Elise never liked Kolbach. Even though he was kind -to us and she felt she ought to be grateful, she disliked him and was a -little afraid of him. I could see it. If I had dreamed that he had any -such idea in his head, I would not have stayed in his house a day." - -"Does she know he wants to marry her?" Walter inquired. - -"I think not. I told him I would not consent to his speaking to her. He -declared he would do as he thought best about that, but he has had no -chance. We left his house that very day." - -"Did he really turn you out?" - -"It amounted to that. He was angry at my refusal to consider his suit. He -said he was willing to wait a year, if, at Easter, Elise was formally -betrothed to him. When I would consent to no betrothal, he said that we -could not stay in his house longer unless she was promised to him. I have -been working at the buffalo cloth mill, and have been paying him what I -could for our lodging, and Elise has done all the housework. Yet he spoke -as if we were beggars. I answered that we had no wish to remain in his -house. We went to a neighbor,--Marianne Scheidecker she was before she -married. I told her, as I told Elise, that Kolbach and I had quarreled. -The next day I found Murray and hired him to bring us here." - -"Do you suppose Kolbach could have put him up to deserting you?" Walter -questioned suspiciously. - -"Oh no. I doubt if Kolbach knew we were going. The Sergeant would not do -such a thing, however angry he might be. He is a rough, domineering man, -but not bad at heart. No, no, he wouldn't be capable of anything like -that. In his way he is really fond of Elise. I think he would be as kind -to her as he knows how to be, but he is not good enough for her, and she -is far too young." - -"She certainly is," Walter agreed emphatically. - -It would be years yet before little Elise need think of such things, the -boy decided. Then perhaps he would have something to say about the -matter. The idea had never occurred to him before, but why should he not -marry Elise himself some day? What other girl was there in the new land -or the old to equal her? Of course it would be years from now, but in the -meantime he must keep guard over her and see that no DeMeuron, or -Scotchman, or French _bois brule_ tried to take her away. None of them -should bother Elise if he could help it, and he thought he could. It was -with a new and not unpleasing sense of responsibility that, the boy fell -asleep that night. - - - - - XXVIII - THE LAND TO THE SOUTH - - -Pembina seethed with indignation when the Periers' story was told. The -Swiss, who were all undergoing their share of suffering, sympathized -warmly with their country folk. Though still prejudiced against the new -colonists, the Scotch and Irish settlers had nothing but condemnation for -the rascally half-breed Murray. Many of the _bois brules_ of Pembina had -bitterly opposed the Selkirk settlement, and some had joined with the -Northwesters in driving out the colonists. Since the union of the two -companies, however, most of the enmity had evaporated. Walter had -received only the kindest treatment from the French mixed bloods. Now -there was not one to defend Murray in his heartless desertion of helpless -travelers. So strong was the feeling against the treacherous voyageur -that if he had been in Pembina when the Periers arrived, he would -scarcely have escaped with his life. Though he had been gone several -hours, a party of armed men went out to search for him. Uncertain whether -he had told the truth when he had said he was going up river, they -scoured the country for miles to the east and west as well as to the -south. They did not overtake him. He had too long a start. - -Murray was not well known in Pembina. He had never lived there nor at St. -Boniface. No one in either settlement knew much about him. The spring -after the killing of Governor Semple, the tall voyageur had come down the -Assiniboine from the west with a brigade transporting furs to York -Factory, and had remained in Hudson Bay service. It was said at that time -that he was the son of a free trader of mixed Scotch and Cree blood. The -elder Murray had wandered far,--so it was said,--and had taken a wife -from among the western Sioux. If this story was true, Murray could not be -more than one quarter white and was at least half Sioux. The Indian blood -in the Pembina half-breeds was chiefly Ojibwa and Cree. The Sioux were -the traditional enemies of the Ojibwas and the Crees. To the people of -Pembina Murray's Sioux blood did not endear him. There was not a man to -find excuse for behavior of which few full-blooded Sioux would have been -guilty. - -It was some time before the Perier family recovered from their terrible -experience. The frost bites Elise and Max had suffered were so severe -that the outer skin of their cheeks, noses, hands, and feet peeled off in -patches, leaving sore, tender spots. Their father was in a far worse -condition. His feet and ankles, his right hand and arm, were badly -swollen and inflamed and very painful. It was weeks before he was able to -walk or to use his right hand. Had the boys failed to give him prompt -treatment when they first found him he would have frozen to death. -Realizing what might have happened if they had camped on the prairie that -night, instead of pushing on to the river, Walter felt that he and his -companions had indeed been guided to the rescue. - -The little settlement had passed through hard days while the three boys -were in the hills. Food had been very scanty. The buffalo had been far -away, and following them in the deep snow next to impossible. Other game -had been exceedingly scarce. Even the nets set under the ice of the two -rivers had yielded little. The _bois brules_ and the older settlers had -fared better than the Swiss. Though the rations had been slender, neither -the Brabants nor the MacKays had been entirely without food. The Swiss -had suffered severely. Johan Scheidecker told Walter that at one time his -family had not had a morsel to eat for three days. At Fort Douglas -conditions had been even worse than at Pembina. By February most of the -settlers were on an allowance of a pint of wheat or barley a day, which -they ground in hand mills or mortars. Soup made from the grain and an -occasional fish were all they had for weeks at a time. Though their fare -had been meager enough, the Periers, in Sergeant Kolbach's care, had -fared better than many of their country folk. They had never been quite -without food. - -With the coming of spring matters improved at Pembina. When the ice in -the rivers began to break up, wild fowl arrived in great flocks. Almost -every night they could be heard passing over. By day they alighted to -feed along the rivers and in the marshes. Every man able to walk, every -boy large enough to carry a gun, shoot an arrow, or set a snare, and many -of the women and girls, hunted from daylight till dark for ducks, geese, -swans, pelicans, cranes, pigeons, any and every bird, large or small, -that could be eaten. The buffalo also were drawing nearer the settlement. -Following the herds over the wet, sodden prairie was difficult, even on -horseback, but a skilful hunter brought down a cow or calf now and then. -The lucky men shared generously with their neighbors. - -Louis and Walter had no time for long hunting trips. Both had obtained -temporary employment at the Company post. Indian and half-breed hunters -were bringing in the winter's catch, and the two boys were engaged to -help with the cleaning, sorting, and packing of the pelts. - -The post was a busy and a merry place those spring days. The men worked -rapidly and well, but found plenty of time for joking, laughing, singing, -and challenging one another to feats of strength and agility. After the -cold and hardships of the winter, the spring fur-packing was a season of -jollity for the voyageurs. Walter and Louis enjoyed the bustle and -merriment, while they worked with a will. - -The skins were thoroughly shaken and beaten to free them from dust and -dried mud. Then they were sorted, folded to convenient size, and pressed -into packs by means of a wooden lever press that stood in the post -courtyard. Each bundle,--about ninety pounds weight,--of assorted furs -was wrapped in a strong hide. In every package was a slip of paper with a -list of the contents. To the outside was attached a wooden stave, with -the number and weight of the pack, and the name of the post. The numbers -and lettering were burned into the wood. Because he wrote a good hand, -Walter was able to help the overworked clerk with these invoices and -labels. He did a share of the harder physical work as well. - -The Swiss boy was heartily glad of employment. His wages, in Hudson Bay -Company paper money, were exchanged for food and ammunition, and clothes -for Elise, Max and himself. The Periers needed his help sorely. They had -reached Pembina destitute. When they had left Switzerland, they had been -well supplied with clothing. They had also brought with them the -apothecary's herbs and powders and such household goods as they were -permitted to take aboard ship. In the crowded open boat in which they had -come from Fort York, there had not been room for all their belongings, so -some had been left behind. Nearly everything else had been lost in the -wreck on Lake Winnipeg. The little that remained had been on the toboggan -that Murray had run away with. Every cent of Mr. Perier's money, as well -as the Hudson Bay paper he had received for his work at the buffalo wool -factory, had gone for food and other expenses during the winter. Even his -silver watch and chain he had turned over to Murray. Father and children -had nothing left but the worn clothes they were wearing, two blankets, -and the few packets of medicinal plant seeds the apothecary carried in -his pockets. He must begin all over again, and on credit at that. - -Mrs. Brabant's sympathy for the unfortunate family was genuine and warm. -They crowded her house to overflowing, but she would not hear of their -going elsewhere. Indeed there was no other place for them to go but Fort -Daer, and the fort was too well filled for comfort. It was hardly worth -while to attempt building a new cabin, if they were to return to the -Selkirk settlement in a few weeks. - -Were they going to return to the settlement? That was the question that -troubled Mr. Perier and Walter. It led to many debates, as the two -families sat around the fire after the evening meal. There was that -hundred acres of land to be considered. A vast estate it seemed to the -Swiss apothecary. The promise of that great tract of land had dazzled him -when he first talked with Captain Mai in Geneva. Since his coming to the -new country, however, the hundred acres of unbroken prairie had grown -less alluring. He had learned that not one of the older colonists had -been able to cultivate more than a few acres. He had no farming tools and -he could obtain nothing but hoe and spade at the Colony store. There was -not a plough to be bought for credit or cash. Breaking tough prairie sod -with hoe and spade would be slow and painful toil for Walter and himself. - -Because of the depredations of the locusts, seed grain was very scarce. -The little Mr. Perier might buy would be high in price. From his first -crop he would have to pay for seed as well as rent for the land. If he -did not succeed in raising a crop, if the grasshoppers came again and -destroyed it, he would be far in debt to the Colony, with no immediate -hope of getting out. Already he had learned to his cost that prices were -high at the Colony store, and that bills were sometimes rendered for -things that had not been bought. In the end he might easily lose his land -and have nothing to show for his labor. The prospect was not bright. -Hopeful though he was by nature, he doubted his ability to make a success -of farming under such discouraging conditions. - -Walter was strongly against returning to Fort Douglas. It would be better -to remain where they were, he argued, and trust to making a living, as -the _bois brules_ did, by hunting, fishing, and planting a small garden. -Perhaps the Company would let Mr. Perier have his hundred acres in the -neighborhood of Pembina. Both Louis and Jean Lajimoniere,--who was -consulted,--shook their heads at the latter suggestion. Pembina was -included in Lord Selkirk's grant, but the real Colony was established at -and near Fort Douglas. It was there that the land was allotted. They -thought it unlikely that Mr. Perier could obtain his anywhere else. In -any case there would be the same difficulty about tools, seed, supplies, -and rent. And so the argument went on. - -In the meantime spring had come in earnest. The ice was gone from the -rivers. Birds were nesting in the woods, in the marshes, and on the -prairie, according to their habit. As the rivers subsided from flood -stage, fishing was resumed and yielded good results. The snow had melted -from the prairie, though it still lingered in shaded places in the woods -and along the river banks. The burned stretches showed new green. The sun -was drying up the excess of moisture that had turned the prairie into -ponds and spongy expanses and had converted the rambling paths and cart -tracks of Pembina into sticky mud. - -In May the old colonists and most of the new began to prepare for the -return to Fort Douglas. Still Mr. Perier and Walter were undecided. At -last they came to a decision suddenly and almost by accident. Through -Lajimoniere, Mr. Perier met a man named St. Antoine who had traveled more -widely than most of the Pembina mixed bloods. Two years before, he had -been far to the south and east with Laidlaw, the Colony superintendent of -farming, when the latter had gone to Prairie du Chien on the Mississippi -River for seed grain. St. Antoine had many tales to tell of the country -along the Mississippi and the St. Peter rivers. - -"That is a fine land," he told Mr. Perier, "a land with hills and -forests,--not flat and bare like this, though there is open country there -too, good land for farming. At Prairie du Chien now, there the soil is -rich and the crops grow well and ripen. It is not so cold as here. The -spring comes earlier and the frost later." - -"Are there grasshoppers there?" Mr. Perier inquired. - -"The kind that eat up everything? No, no. Those grasshoppers have never -been seen in that country, the people say. And where the two rivers come -together, where the Americans are building a fort, it is beautiful there, -with high hills and bluffs like mountains, and woods and waterfalls." - -Mr. Perier's brown eyes were wistful. St. Antoine's description sounded -good to a Swiss homesick for his mountains. "How does one go to that -country?" he asked. "Can land be bought or rented?" - -"Oh," replied St. Antoine confidently, "you do not have to buy or rent -it, that land. There is no Hudson Bay Company to say where you shall live -and where you shall not, and to charge you so many bushels of wheat a -year. You find a place that you like and you build a house and plant your -crops and it is yours. That is the way folk do on the east side of the -Riviere Mississippi. On the west side the American government does not -want people to settle. That is Indian country. You may live there if you -are a trader. But there is plenty of land on the east side, fine land -too. Some time I am going back there to stay,--when I get old and want to -settle down." - -St. Antoine's tales took hold of Mr. Perier's imagination. The more he -thought of that country to the south and east, the more he wanted to go -there, and the less he wanted to return to Fort Douglas. He told Walter -and Louis, and they too talked to St. Antoine, who fired their -imaginations as he had fired the older man's. It did not take Walter long -to decide what he wanted to do. The question was how were they to get to -the Mississippi. It would be a long journey, hundreds of miles, by cart -and horseback through the country of the Sioux. But it could be done of -course. It had been done a number of times. The previous summer's threats -of trouble with the Sioux had come to nothing. Yet the trip might be a -dangerous one for a small party. At this point Louis had a suggestion to -offer. - -"The summer buffalo hunt will start in June," he said. "It will go far to -the south, perhaps near to the Lake Traverse. We can travel with the -hunters at first. When we are near Lake Traverse,--or if the hunters go -too far to the west,--we can leave them and make haste to the lake. There -is a trading post there, so St. Antoine says, and another at the Lake Big -Stone. Traders go back and forth along the Riviere St. Pierre to the -Mississippi. There will surely be some party we can travel with." - -"You will go too, Louis?" Walter asked eagerly. - -"But _certainment_. Do you think I would let you and M'sieu Perier and -Ma'amselle Elise and the little Max go alone? No, no, I want to see that -country too. And I think Neil MacKay will go also." - -"His people would never let him." - -"I am not so sure of that. M'sieu MacKay is not well pleased with the -Selkirk Colony. He says if the grasshoppers come again, he will go -somewhere else. I think he would not object to Neil's going to see that -country to the south." - -So, gradually, the plan took shape. It was Mrs. Brabant who made the -strongest objections at first. But when Mr. Perier and Walter finally -decided to go, and Louis insisted on going with them, she suddenly made -up her mind, much to Raoul's delight, that she and the children would go -along. "And if we like that country, Louis," she said, "we will stay. It -may be there will be a better chance for you there. If we do not like it, -we can come back when some party comes this way." - -Neil proved eager to go. After some argument, he got his father's -consent, with the provision that he was to return to the Red River colony -at the first opportunity, before winter if possible. He must learn all he -could about that Mississippi country, his father said. If the crops -should fail again, it might be that the MacKay family would have to leave -the Red River for good. The Northwesters could not drive the stubborn -Scot to give up his land, but against the locusts he could not contend -forever. - - - - - XXIX - THE COMING OF THE SIOUX - - -Early in May the Perier family said good-bye to their countryfolk who -were returning to Fort Douglas. Some of the Swiss tried to dissuade Mr. -Perier from going farther into the interior. Others talked of following -later if things did not turn out well in the Colony. - -A short time after the Swiss left, something happened that threatened to -upset all Mr. Perier's plans. A party of men returning from a buffalo -hunt brought disquieting news. They had met an Ojibwa scout who had told -them that a large body of Sioux were on the march towards the settlement. -Remembering the unfortunate affair at Fort Douglas the summer before, the -people of Pembina feared the worst. Scouts were sent out to watch for the -Sioux, guns were overhauled, and bullets moulded. - -In the midst of the preparations for defence, two boats arrived from down -river, bringing reenforcements. Rumors of the approach of the Sioux had -reached the Governor, and he had sent a detachment of DeMeurons and -voyageurs to meet the Indians and prevent them from going on to Fort -Douglas. The Sioux were to be stopped by diplomatic methods if possible. -Force was to be used only in case of necessity. With the party were -Sergeant Kolbach and the Rev. Mr. West, the man who had befriended the -Periers when their boat was wrecked on Lake Winnipeg. The clergyman -greeted Mr. Perier cordially, but Kolbach favored his former guest with -the stiffest and slightest of nods. Walter looked in vain for the -red-faced DeMeuron with the sandy beard. Inquiry brought the information -that Fritz Kolbach was not among the soldiers. Fritz was not in favor -with the Company just then, having been accused of free trading with the -Assiniboins, one DeMeuron told Walter. - -The relief force arrived on Friday, and Saturday passed without alarm. -Sunday morning Mr. West held service at Fort Daer, and the Periers and -Walter attended. Just at the close of the service scouts came hurrying in -with word that the Sioux were approaching. Armed men began to gather at -the fort, the plan being to make so strong a showing that the Indians -would not dare attack. The women and children were to stay north of the -Pembina, where carts and boats were in readiness to carry them to Fort -Douglas if there should be trouble. - -Walter took Elise and Max across the river to join Mrs. Brabant. Then he -returned to Fort Daer where he found Louis just arrived. The MacKays had -gone to Kildonan with other colonists who had wintered at Pembina. In -June Neil was to return to go south with his friends. - -"They are in sight," shouted a man who was watching from the roof of one -of the buildings. - -The fort gates stood open, for the Company officers intended to maintain -a friendly attitude as long as possible. With others, Louis and Walter -ran out to watch the coming of the Indians. There they were, a band of -mounted men approaching across the prairie from the south. Walter's heart -beat fast, but he was surprised to find that he was excited and eager -rather than frightened. - -"There are no _travois_, only mounted men, no women," St. Antoine -remarked. "That looks bad. Yet they come openly, in the daytime. They -raise no war cry. But we cannot tell. The Dakota are treacherous." He -used the name by which the Indians of the prairies called -themselves--Dakota. It was their enemies, the Ojibwa, who named them -Sioux. - -The Indians came on at an easy pace until they were a few hundred yards -from the fort. There they halted, as if waiting to see how they were to -be received. A small group of white men, among them Mr. West, went out on -foot to meet the strangers. Suddenly, out from the fort gate darted a -slender, bronze figure, a young Indian stripped naked and without -weapons. Straight towards the Sioux he ran full speed. - -"He has gone crazy," gasped Walter. "They will kill him." He knew the -fellow, an Ojibwa hunter who had recently brought his furs to the post. - -"He does it to prove his courage, to show that he is not afraid of the -Sioux," explained Louis. "But what use is it to a man to be called brave, -after he is dead?" - -As the young Indian drew near the enemies of his people, Walter held his -breath, expecting every moment that a shower of musket balls or a cloud -of arrows would put an end to the rash Ojibwa. But nothing happened. -Whether from admiration for his reckless bravery or because they scorned -to kill an enemy so easily, the Sioux let him come on uninjured. When he -was almost up to them he paused, stood still for a moment, then turned -and walked back towards the white men. - -How would the party from Fort Daer be received? Was it to be peace or -war? In silence, every nerve tense, the watchers waited to learn. The -white men drew closer and closer, without pause or hesitation. The -Indians were dismounting. The two parties were mingling. They were coming -towards the fort, together. Only a few of the Sioux remained behind to -watch the horses. Walter drew a long breath. - -The Sioux were conducted straight to the open gates. They were to be -treated as guests. This was Walter's first glimpse of Sioux. He looked on -with keen interest as they were ushered into the fort. They were manly -looking fellows, these Dakotas. Most of them were rather tall, taller -than the majority of the _bois brules_. They were straight and slender, -lithe and wiry rather than muscular in appearance. Their faces were -intelligent for the most part, strong featured, and with a look of pride -and fierceness very different from the stupid expression of the Crees he -had seen at Fort York. All wore fringed leggings and moccasins. The -bodies of some were bare to the waist, while others were clothed in -shirts of deerskin or calico, or wrapped in blankets or buffalo robes. -Their black hair, adorned with feathers, hung in braids over their -shoulders. Every face and bare body was hideous with paint, in streaks, -patches, spots, circles, and zigzags, the favorite colors being red, -yellow, and black. They were all tricked out in their best finery, -beadwork, quill embroidery, necklaces of animals' teeth or birds' claws, -and trinkets bought from the traders. - -The Sioux proved restless and uncomfortable visitors. They pried into -every corner of the fort. They appeared to be suspicious and acted as if -they were looking for trouble. The Company officers fed them and treated -them to tea, tobacco, and some liquor. That was a dangerous thing to do, -Walter thought, to give them liquor, for all were armed with guns, bows, -knives, or tomahawks. But the refusal to give them drink might have been -taken as an insult. The Chief insisted on crossing the river to the -Company fort, and the trader in charge thought it best to let him go. But -he managed things so that only a few of Chief Waneta's followers -accompanied him. As soon as possible they were conducted back to Fort -Daer. - -All the rest of that day the Sioux lingered at Fort Daer. When night came -they showed no intention of leaving. They had brought nothing to trade, -but they expected all sorts of gifts. Most of the _bois brules_ had gone -back to their families, but Mr. Perier and Walter were allowed to remain -at the fort with Mr. West. It was a night of anxiety and alarms. Drink -had made the savage guests touchy and quarrelsome. Several times shots -were fired in threat or sport, but luckily no one was hurt. The arrival -of three Assiniboins, who said they had come to smoke the peace pipe with -their ancient enemies, did not help matters any. - -About eleven o'clock shouts and war whoops from outside the walls roused -everyone. Thinking that the attack had begun, Mr. Perier and Walter -rushed out of the house where they had withdrawn to keep out of the way -of quarrelsome Indians. They found that the Sioux, instead of attacking, -were leaving the fort in haste. There had been a fight between a Dakota -and an Assiniboin. The Dakota had shot the Assiniboin and scalped him, -the fallen man's two companions had fled, and some of the Sioux had -started in pursuit. - -Chief Waneta had been overbearing and truculent enough himself, but he -apparently did not want a general fight. Waneta was no fool. He probably -realized that the white men and _bois brules_ of Pembina were too strong -for him in numbers and too well prepared for trouble. With unexpected -promptness he gathered his followers together, and started for home. -Before midnight the whole band had disappeared in the darkness, riding -south. - - - - - XXX - WITH THE BUFFALO HUNTERS - - -If the visit of the Sioux had resulted in hostilities, Mr. Perier would -have been forced to give up the trip to the Mississippi. As it was, the -fact that the only hostile act committed had been against the -Assiniboins, and that Waneta and his braves had departed at peace with -the white men, went far to convince the Swiss that his little party would -have no trouble with the Indians unless they sought it. Louis did not -wholly agree with that idea, but he was young, eager for travel and -adventure, and willing to take what seemed a rather remote risk. His -mother was more doubtful, but if the others were going, she did not -intend to stay behind. At first Elise had dreaded a new journey into -strange country, but when Mrs. Brabant decided to go, she no longer felt -afraid. She did not want to return to Fort Douglas, and she had grown -very fond of Mrs. Brabant. - -Already the _bois brules_ of Pembina were growing restless. The coming of -spring had stirred the wild blood in them. They were eager to be up and -away. Those who had not taken service with the Company to go as voyageurs -to Fort York, neglected their primitive gardening to prepare for the -great buffalo hunt. They mended harness, repaired old carts by binding -the broken parts with rawhide, patched hide and canvas tents, cleaned -guns, moulded bullets, made stout new moccasins, packed their wooden -chests, and overhauled gear of all kinds. The ground around every cabin -was strewn with odds and ends. - -On the first day of June Neil arrived full of enthusiasm, and the little -party was complete. A spot on the open prairie to the southwest of the -junction of the two rivers had been chosen as a gathering place for the -hunters. Early in the morning of the appointed day, the people began to -leave the settlement. Most of the hunters were taking their entire -families along. The clumsy, squeaking, two-wheeled carts, drawn by wiry -ponies, were crowded with black-haired, dark-skinned women and children -or piled high with household gear and equipment. Louis' one horse and -cart were not enough for the Brabant-Perier party, so he and Walter had -built another vehicle. Neil furnished two ponies, and Louis had traded -his toboggan and Gray Wolf for a fourth. Askime was to go with him. He -would not part with the husky dog. - -At the women's suggestion, the Brabant, Perier, and Lajimoniere families -selected a spot a little distance from the main camp. There they -unhitched their ponies, and stretched their tent covers from cart to -cart. - -"There will be much drinking in the camp to-night," Louis explained to -Mr. Perier, "to celebrate the beginning of the hunt, and much noise and -gaming, and probably fighting. Since we do not wish to take part in all -that, we will camp by ourselves. This is a better place for the women and -children." - -The wisdom of this plan soon became evident. Long before midnight the big -camp had grown uproarious. When an unusually loud outburst of noise was -followed by the sound of shots and frantic yelling, Mr. Perier raised -himself on his elbow to listen. He was sleeping on the ground underneath -one of the carts. - -"I'm afraid we have made a mistake," he said anxiously to Walter lying -next him. "We cannot travel with that wild crew. It will not be safe for -the children." - -Louis, on the other side, overheard the words, and hastened to reassure -the Swiss. "You need not fear, M'sieu Perier. They will be all right -after the liquor is gone. I think they will finish it to-night. They -cannot get more till they return. Our people are seldom quarrelsome -except when they have liquor. Once the hunt makes a start, the leaders -will keep good order. The rules are very strict. They are rough and wild, -my people, but they are not unkind. Ma'amselle Elise and my little -sisters will be quite safe." - -The hilarity continued through most of the night, but before sunrise -quiet had descended on the circle of carts and tents. Flasks and kegs -were empty, and most of the roisterers were sleeping. They remained in -camp all that day. By the time the caravan was in motion the following -morning, all were sober and more than ordinarily quiet. Some had good -reason to be morose, having gambled away their guns, horses, and carts -while under the influence of liquor. Several had received knife or -gunshot wounds in the quarrels that resulted. - -"It is always so that the hunt begins," said the Canadian Lajimoniere, -with a shake of his head. "Liquor and gambling, they are the twin curses -of the _bois brule_. Those two things are the cause of most of his -troubles." - -It was surprising how quickly camp was broken and the long train got -under way at the cries of "_Marche donc!_" The guide rode ahead. His -household cart, following close behind, bore a flag made of a red -handkerchief attached to a pole. The lowering of that flag was the signal -to stop and make camp. - -In single file the long line of creaking, jouncing carts stretched far -across the prairie. Where a man had to drive two or more vehicles, he -tied one horse to the tail of the cart ahead. Loose ponies for buffalo -hunting or to replace those in the shafts, ran alongside. Most of the men -and some of the women rode horseback or went afoot, while the children -were now in, now out of the carts, according to their inclination. The -bright colors of the _bois brules'_ dress, and the red and yellow ochre -with which many of the carts were painted, gave a gay appearance to the -cavalcade, but the screeching and groaning of the ungreased axles was -anything but a merry sound. The discordant rasping and squawking tortured -Elise's ears and set her teeth on edge. - -Because they had camped separately, the Brabant-Perier party was at the -very end of the train. Mr. Perier was mounted on one of the four horses, -while Walter, Neil, and the two Brabant boys took turns riding another. -Most of the time Louis walked beside the front cart or sat on the shafts, -one of the other boys accompanying the second. Mrs. Brabant, her two -daughters, Elise, and Max rode in the carts, getting down now and then to -walk for a while. The rate of travel was slow, less than twelve miles -being made the first day. Thereafter the day's march averaged nearly -twenty. - -It was with some apprehension that Mr. Perier watched Louis and Neil -wheel the two carts into the place assigned them in the circle that -night. Walter, who had lived longer among the _bois brules_, was less -troubled. Louis had assured him that everything would be all right, and -Walter did not doubt his friend's judgment. Everything, but the -mosquitoes, was all right, that night and every night that the Brabants -and Periers camped with the hunt. Rough and noisy the hunters and their -families were, but good natured and kindly enough. They shouted, laughed, -and sang, fiddled and danced, told stories, played cards and other games -by the light of their fires, but there was little quarreling and no -fighting. Within two hours after sunset, all had settled down for the -night, and the camp lay quiet and sleeping. - -The sun rose early those June mornings, but before it appeared above the -horizon, the camp was astir. In an astonishingly short time the train was -in motion again. The route was to the west of the Red River in what is -now North Dakota. There were swampy stretches to cross, still wet enough -to make traveling difficult, then drier ground and better going. On every -side lay flat, open country, broken here and there by small groves or -thin lines of trees along the streams. The prairie was green with new -grass, and dotted everywhere with the pink and white and yellow and blue -of wild flowers growing singly or in masses. Elise and the Brabant and -Lajimoniere girls delighted in picking the sweet, pale pink wild roses -and decorating themselves and the carts. Mrs. Brabant warned them to look -out for snakes and Louis armed each with a stout stick. At the warning -rattle, Marie Brabant and Reine Lajimoniere would search for the snake -and kill it. But little Jeanne and Elise, who had not grown used to -prairie rattlesnakes, ran back to the carts in fright. - -Snakes were not plentiful, however. Far more troublesome were the -mosquitoes that rose in clouds after the sun went down. On still nights -the buzzing, stinging insects were a continual torment. Smudges were -kindled everywhere within the circle of carts, but Elise and Max could -find little choice between the stinging pests and the choking smoke. - -Mr. Perier and Walter marveled at the control the leaders of the hunt -exercised over the wild crew. The hunters had chosen a chief and several -captains, who formed a governing council, and each captain had a number -of men under him to act as guards and police. When the guide lowered his -flag, every cart took the place assigned it in the circle, shafts -outward. The captain and men on duty were responsible for the order and -good behavior, as well as the safety, of the camp. - -The rules adopted by the council were much the same on all the hunts. -Scouts were sent out each day to look for buffalo, but must not frighten -them. No one was allowed to separate from, or lag behind the main party -without permission, or to hunt buffalo independently. The most serious -offences were thievery and fighting with guns or knives. Punishments -ranged from cutting up a man's bridle or saddle, if he had one, to -driving the guilty person from camp. Knowing that the penalty would be -swift and severe, even the boldest seldom ventured to break the laws. - -For several days no buffalo but a few scattered individuals were seen. -When the beasts caught scent or sound of the caravan, they were off at an -awkward gallop. They seemed to move slowly, but really made good speed. -It was Elise's first sight of live buffalo, and she thought them very -ugly creatures, with their great shaggy heads and clumsy movements. - -Late one afternoon the line of carts wound down the bank of the Turtle -River to a ford. Long before the rear of the caravan reached the stream, -exciting news had been carried back from mouth to mouth. - -"There are buffalo ahead," one of the Lajimoniere boys called to Neil, -who was driving the first of the Brabant-Perier carts. "A great band has -been across the ford, and not long ago, they say." - -A great band it must have been. The hunting party had left a plain and -well-trodden trail down the bank, and roiled, muddy water at the -crossing. But no cart-train running wild could have so ravaged the -country. Far on either side of the ford, the willows and bushes were torn -and trampled. From many of the trees the bark was rubbed off or hanging -in shreds. The grass was worn away. The mud along the margin was trodden -hard by thousands of hoofs. The devastation was fresh. - -Would the hunters chase the buffalo that night? Walter hoped so, though -the sun was setting when the last cart crossed the ford. The chief of the -hunt said no, however. Any attempt to pursue buffalo in the darkness -would probably result merely in frightening them away. Moreover the -horses, even those that had been running loose, were weary from a -twenty-mile march. Real buffalo country had been reached. If the hunters -missed this particular band, there would be others. - -So camp was made as usual, but the horses were picketed within the -circle, instead of being hobbled and turned loose to feed. Time would be -saved by having the mounts handy in the morning. There was another reason -for keeping close watch of the ponies that night. Where there were -buffalo there were likely to be Indians. South of the Turtle River was -debatable ground between Sioux and Ojibwa, and the Sioux were notorious -horse thieves. - -It was plain that the buffalo were not many miles away. All that night -their lowing and bellowing could be heard almost continuously. - -"The country must be full of them," Walter whispered to Neil, as they lay -side by side. - -"Aye, it's a big band. There'll be grand sport in the morning," was the -sleepy reply. - - - - - XXXI - THE CHARGING BUFFALO - - -Scouts went out at dawn, and were back again before the camp had finished -breakfasting. Their report made the hunters hasten preparations. Already -the question as to which ones of the Brabant-Perier party should take -part in the hunt had been settled. Only two horses were available. Louis' -new one had gone lame, and one of Neil's was not a good buffalo pony, -being gun shy and easily frightened. Neither Mr. Perier nor Walter had -ever hunted buffalo, while Louis and Neil were skilled in the sport. So -it was right that the latter two should go. Walter was disappointed of -course. He would have liked to take part in the hunt. But he comforted -himself with the thought that there would be other opportunities. - -The caravan was just south of the Turtle River, a tributary of the Red, -and a number of miles west of the latter stream, in slightly rolling, -though open country. A low, irregular ridge shut off the view to the -south and hid the buffalo. After the hunters got away, the women, -children, and few men who had remained behind, started on, with the -carts. They wanted to be in readiness to collect the meat before the hot -sun spoiled it, and they were eager to watch the sport. This time the -carts did not move single file, but jounced over the prairie in any order -their drivers saw fit. - -Walter and Raoul were as anxious as anyone for a view of the hunt. They -hitched up Neil's pony and got away as quickly as possible, leaving Mr. -Perier and Mrs. Brabant to follow slowly with the other cart and lame -horse. Elise, Marie, and Max went with the two boys, while Jeanne -remained with her mother. - -The boys' cart was among the first to top the rise. The sight revealed -almost took Walter's breath away. The prairie beyond the ridge was -covered with buffalo in a dense, dark mass. They were feeding peacefully, -moving slowly along towards the southeast. - -"Where are the hunters?" asked Walter. - -Raoul pointed to the southwest. "Behind those little hills," he said -confidently. "The wind is east. They have gone around to approach from -that way, so the beasts will not get their scent. There they come!" - -Figures of horsemen were appearing over the top of one of the low hills. -On they came, a long, irregular line, riding easily down hill at a lope. -As they reached level ground they broke into a gallop. The buffalo -nearest the hunters were taking alarm. They were crowding forward, the -bulls on the outskirts of the herd pawing the ground and tossing their -great heads. The horsemen broke into a run. They charged recklessly -across the prairie, regardless of gopher holes. Those _bois brules_ could -certainly ride, thought Walter in admiration. He wondered whether Louis -and Neil were among the foremost. At that distance he could not tell. - -Suddenly the buffalo everywhere took fright. At a clumsy, galloping gait -they were away. They crowded, wheeled, milled, stampeded, hoofs flying, -shaggy heads tossing. In a few moments the foremost of the hunters were -among them, shouting, yelling, firing, horses plunging and shying. The -whole mass was in wild commotion, sweeping on towards the low ridge where -the carts waited and the excited spectators looked on. With the -thundering of hoofs, the bellowing of the beasts, the shouts and yells of -the hunters, the continuous popping of guns, the clouds of smoke and dust -lit up by the flashes of firing, the prairie had become pandemonium. - -Never had Walter dreamed of such a sight. His blood was tingling. He -breathed fast and excitedly. Elise stood beside him, her hands clasped -tightly together, frightened yet fascinated. Marie and Raoul danced up -and down, and little Max sat on the edge of the cart and shrieked at the -top of his voice in his excitement. - -The great band was breaking up into smaller droves and groups. In every -direction they wheeled and fled. The hunters, riding recklessly, swaying -in their saddles, loading and firing at full speed, pursued them. - -One group of six or eight frightened beasts was close by, just at the -foot of the low ridge. A horseman dashed towards them. Walter had just -time to recognize that blue-bonneted red head, and then, as Neil fired, -the little band broke and scattered. One big bull was pounding up the -slope, straight towards the cart. - -Walter was standing on one side, Raoul on the other of the nervous, -excited pony, which was pawing, snorting, twisting about in the shafts, -alarmed and uneasy at the sight below. It had not occurred to either boy -that he would have a chance to do any shooting. Both of the guns were in -the cart. - -When the buffalo charged up the slope, Walter sprang back. As he seized -his gun, the panic-stricken pony jumped to one side, sending Raoul -sprawling, wheeled, overturned the cart, and was off. Walter saw Max -hurtle through the air, and land right in the path of the oncoming -buffalo. As the child struck the ground, Elise darted towards him. - -With shaking fingers Walter slipped a charge of powder and ball into the -muzzle of his gun and primed it. His whole body was trembling. He must -not miss. A story Lajimoniere had told of a fight with an infuriated -buffalo flashed through his mind. "I aimed behind the ear," the Canadian -had said. Where was the ear in that shaggy mass of hair? - -The bull, at the crest of the ridge, paused for an instant to paw the -ground, shake its huge, ugly head, and bellow defiance at the little -group in its pathway. Forcing himself to be steady, deliberate, Walter -pulled the trigger. It pulled hard. The flint struck the steel. Sparks -flew in every direction. There was a flash, a roar, a bellow. The buffalo -plunged forward, and went down. - -When Walter recovered from the shock of firing--his primitive, flintlock -musket kicked like a mule--the great, dark, hairy bulk lay almost at his -feet. Had he hit behind the ear? He would take no chances. The muscles of -the big body were twitching. Hurriedly reloading, he fired again, the gun -muzzle almost against the buffalo's head. An instant later there came -another report. Raoul had picked himself up, seized his gun, that had -been thrown out of the cart, and fired at the fallen beast. He missed it -in his excitement, by a wider margin than he missed Walter. - -Walter took no heed of the wild shot. His only thought was of Elise and -Max. He turned to find Elise stooped over her little brother, her arms -around him. When she realized that the danger was over, she sank down in -a heap in the grass. Max wriggled from her arms and sat up. - -"Elise," cried Walter, "what were you trying to do?" - -"Drag Max out of the way," she answered simply. "Didn't you see? That -terrible beast was coming straight towards him!" - -"And straight towards you, too. Didn't you think of that?" - -"She is the bravest girl I ever saw," exclaimed Marie Brabant. Marie, who -had been on the other side of Raoul, had fled to safety, and had not -returned until the danger was over. - -"No, no," Elise protested. "I was terribly frightened when I saw that -huge, ugly beast coming up the hill. But when Max fell out of the cart, I -thought he was going to be killed. I have looked after him ever since -Mother died you know, Walter," she added, as if in excuse for her own -bravery. - -"You are the bravest girl I ever knew," Marie repeated emphatically, -"even if you are afraid of snakes." - -But Elise had turned to her little brother. "You aren't hurt, are you, -Max?" she asked anxiously. - -"Just my shoulder where I fell on it," the lad replied bravely. "I -think----" - -He was interrupted by Neil's shout. Unnoticed by the others, the Scotch -boy had ridden up the hill. He dismounted beside the dead buffalo. - -"It was all my fault," he said contritely. "I ought not to have driven -the beasts this way. I saw you, but I was after a cow and didn't notice -that bull turning towards you. I never thought of his charging up hill. I -didn't know you were in any danger, till I heard the shot and looked up -here. You've made a good kill, Walter. He's a big fellow. And you -certainly kept your head. I'm not sure I wouldn't have lost mine, if I -had been in your place." This was a generous admission from anyone as -proud of his courage and prowess as Neil MacKay was. At that moment, -however, Neil was not in the least proud of himself. His carelessness had -brought peril to his friends. - - - - - XXXII - TO THE SHEYENNE RIVER - - -When Neil went in pursuit of the frightened pony, he found it feeding on -the prairie grass on the other side of the ridge. Hindered by the cart, -it had not run far. He had righted the badly wrecked vehicle, and was -examining the breaks, when the rest of his party, with the other cart and -the lame pony, came up. Mr. Perier was appalled when he heard of his -children's peril, and Mrs. Brabant was warm in her praise of the courage -and coolness of Elise and Walter. - -The hunt had swept away towards the Red River, leaving the trampled -prairie dotted with the dark bodies of the fallen buffalo. Here and there -a wounded beast struggled to its feet and made off painfully. The sight -of the injured and slain was not a pleasant one for the tender-hearted -Elise, and she turned her back upon it. - -"I wish," she confided to Mrs. Brabant, "people didn't have to kill -things for food. I hate buffalo. They are ugly beasts. But I don't like -to see them killed, except the one that would have killed Max. Of course -Walter had to shoot that one." - -The Canadian woman put an arm around her and comforted her. "It is -necessary, my dear, for people to have meat to live, especially in this -wild country where we raise so little from the ground. I have always told -my boys not to be wasteful in their hunting, not to kill for the sake of -killing. If no one killed more than could be eaten or kept for food, -there would always be plenty of animals in the world." - -As the carts descended the slope to the hunting ground, the hunters began -to straggle back from the chase. By the place where the animal lay, the -spot where the bullet had entered, and sometimes by the bullet itself, -they identified the game they had slain. Many of the hunters had marked -their bullets so they would know them. - -Neil had killed two buffalo and Louis four. Their party was well supplied -with meat. The bull Walter had shot was too old and tough for food. At -that season of the year the skin was not fit for a robe. The summer coat -of hair was short, and in many places ragged and rubbed off. But Louis -said that the tough hide was just the thing for new harness. With -Walter's permission the Canadian boy set to work. With sure and skilful -strokes of his sharp knife, he marked out the harness on the body of the -buffalo, and stripped off the pieces. When dry,--with a thong or two in -place of buckles,--the harness would be ready for use. - -One by one the carts returned to camp loaded with meat and hides. Though -of no use for robes, the short haired summer skins were in the very best -condition for tanning. Buffalo leather was used by the _bois brules_ for -tents, cart covers, and other purposes. - -The choicest cuts were soon broiling over the coals. At the same time the -rest of the meat was being prepared for pemmican making. It was cut into -large lumps, then into thin slices, which were hung on lines in the hot -sun or placed on scaffolds over slow fires. For the meat drying and -pemmican making, the hunters prepared to remain in camp three days. It -was a very busy time, yet a rest from traveling. - -The Brabant family and Neil knew just how to go about the work, but the -Periers and Walter, though willing and ready to help, had to be taught. -After the buffalo strips were well dried, they were placed on hides and -pounded with wooden flails or stones until the meat was a thick, flaky -pulp. In the meantime the fat and suet were melting to liquid in huge -kettles. Hide bags were half filled with the flaked meat, the melted fat -poured in, the whole stirred with a long stick until thoroughly mixed, -and the bags sewed up tight while still hot. So prepared, the pemmican -would keep for months, even years, if not subjected to dampness or too -high a temperature. - -The skins selected for tanning were stretched and staked down, and the -flesh scraped off with an iron scraper or a piece of sharp-edged bone. -When the hides had been well cleaned and partially cured by the sun, they -were folded and packed away in the carts to receive a final dressing -later. - -On the second day in camp a small body of Indians passed about a mile -away in pursuit of a herd of buffalo. A half dozen of the hunters, who -were out scouting, encountered some of the band. They reported that the -Indians were Sioux, Yankton Dakota from farther west. They appeared -friendly enough. The hunting party felt no concern about them, except as -possible horse thieves. The men were especially careful that night to see -that every pony was safe within the circle of carts. The camp guards were -even more alert than usual. - -There was feasting and jollity, as well as busy work, in the hunting -camp. The _bois brules_ always had time to fiddle and dance, to play -games and race their ponies over the prairie. Their capacity for fresh -meat was enormous. Walter marveled at the quantity of buffalo tongues, -humps, and ribs consumed. From dawn to dark, it seemed to him, there was -never a moment when cooking and eating were not going on somewhere in the -camp. Even the lean dogs grew fat on what was thrown away and what they -managed to steal. The wild creatures profited, too. The scene of the hunt -beyond the low ridge was frequented, night and day, by birds of prey and -wolves. - -With high expectations of further sport, the hunters resumed their march -to the south. They were not disappointed, for they were in true buffalo -country. The first time Walter joined in the chase, he was so excited and -confused by the wild ride across the prairie and the charge into the band -of stampeding beasts, that he could do nothing but cling to his horse and -try to avoid being thrown or trampled. It was not until the herd had -scattered and the worst of the wild confusion was over, that he managed -to get a shot at one of the animals, and missed it. Mortified by his -failure, he tried a different plan next time. He kept to the outskirts of -the herd, singled out a young bull, pursued it, and brought it down. - -Though some of the hunters, like Louis, killed only what they could use -and saved as much of the meat as possible, the majority of the _bois -brules_ were wasteful and improvident. They ran buffalo for the mere -excitement of the chase, killed for sport, and frequently took nothing -but the tongue, leaving the rest for the wolves and crows. Like white -hunters of a later period, they believed the herds of buffalo -inexhaustible. Yet it did not take many years of unwise slaughter almost -to exterminate the animals that, during the first half of the nineteenth -century, roamed the prairies in hundreds of thousands. - -Sometimes the hunters had accidents. Men thrown from their horses -suffered severe sprains and broken bones. Occasionally too heavy a charge -of powder burst a gun. Raoul's old musket was ruined in this manner. He -carried his left hand bandaged for weeks, and was lucky to lose no more -than the tip of his forefinger. There were many maimed hands among the -hunters. Fortunately none of the injuries was fatal, though one man was -so badly hurt when he was thrown and trampled that he would never hunt -again. The _bois brules_ were skilled in the rough and ready treatment of -wounds, sprains, and broken bones, but not over particular about -cleanliness. Their open air life, however, helped most of the hurts to -heal rapidly. - -Day after day the caravan made its slow and creaking way to the south. -Now and then bands of Sioux, out on the summer hunt, were seen. Sometimes -Indians visited the camp, with no apparent unfriendly intentions. The -savage blood in the Pembina half-breeds was mostly Cree and Ojibwa. But -the hunting party was too large and well armed to fear hostility from -small, wandering bands of Sioux. - -Nevertheless the Pembina men had no intention of penetrating too far into -Sioux country. They did not wish to provoke the tribes to unite against -them. When camp was made one night on the bank of the Sheyenne River, the -chief of the hunt announced that they would go south no farther. July had -come. They had been out nearly four weeks. The carts were well loaded -with fresh and dried meat, fat, pemmican, and hides. On the morrow they -would turn, circling to the west a little, and, hunting as they went, -make their way back to Pembina. They should reach the settlement early in -August. - -This decision meant that if the Brabants and Periers were to go on to the -St. Peter and Mississippi rivers, they must part company with the -hunters. That night Mr. Perier and the boys consulted with Lajimoniere, -St. Antoine, and others who knew something of the country to the south -and east. Lake Traverse, they were told, was only three or four days' -march away. At the lake were traders who would doubtless help them on -their journey. - -Some of the hunters shook their heads at the idea of such a small party -traveling alone sixty or seventy miles across Dakota country. There would -be grave danger in the attempt, they said, and advised against it. But -Mr. Perier, Walter, and Louis had not come so far merely to turn back to -Pembina. They were bound for the Mississippi and intended to reach it -somehow. They might have hesitated to travel alone farther to the -southwest, but everyone said that the route to the southeast was less -dangerous. The Indians who visited Lake Traverse were in the habit of -dealing with traders. - -In truth the hunters had neither seen nor heard sign of trouble anywhere. -The Indians they had encountered had seemed inoffensive enough. The boys -had rather lost their awe of the dread Sioux. They were beginning to -believe that the tales of the fierceness and cruelty of those savages -were greatly exaggerated. As Neil expressed it, "Most of that sort of -talk is just an excuse for Saulteur and half-breed cowardice. They have -made bogies of the Sioux. I can't see that they are different from any -other Indians. I don't believe they dare molest white men." - -The always hopeful Mr. Perier was quite sure there would be no difficulty -in reaching Traverse. "We are not enemy Indians raiding the Sioux -country," he argued. "We are peaceable white settlers going about our own -affairs. Probably we shall meet no Indians at all. If we do, we will -treat them in a polite and friendly manner. They are reasonable human -beings just like ourselves. They have no reason to harm us and I don't -believe they will try to." - -"We will take care to avoid them anyway," added Louis, not quite so sure -of Sioux reasonableness, but eager to go on. - -Louis had hoped to persuade some of the hunters to go to Lake Traverse -with the little party. In fact St. Antoine and another man had half -promised. But both suddenly changed their minds. The boys could find no -one else willing to leave the hunt for the trip to the trading post. -There was nothing to do but go on alone. Before they rolled themselves in -their blankets, they had decided to part with the hunters on the -following day. - - - - - XXXIII - A LONELY CAMP - - -The Sheyenne River, where the night's camp was pitched, should not be -confused with the Cheyenne, which is a tributary of the Missouri. Both -were named after the same tribe of Indians, who once lived along their -banks. To distinguish the two, different spellings of the name have been -adopted. The Sheyenne is a much smaller stream than the Cheyenne, and one -of the principal rivers that go to form the Red. After a general course -to the east, the Sheyenne turns north, and runs almost parallel with the -Red, to fall into it at last. The spot where the hunters were camped was -only about ten miles from the Red, but another stream, the Wild Rice, lay -between. - -St. Antoine advised against going directly east. "If you go east," he -said, "you will reach the Riviere Rouge many miles below the Lac -Traverse. It is more difficult to cross there. I cannot tell you whether -there is a ford or not. But if you keep to the southeast, reaching the -river where it is narrow and shallow, you can cross easily. There it is -not called Riviere Rouge, but Bois des Sioux. A few miles above where the -Bois des Sioux joins the Ottertail, which comes from the east to form the -real Riviere Rouge, there is a good crossing place. When you are across, -turn south and follow the river to the Lac Traverse." - -The caravan was slow in getting away that morning. The good-natured _bois -brules_ lingered to help the Brabant-Perier party across the Sheyenne. At -some time hunters or traders had built a rude log bridge over the deep, -muddy stream. Part of the old bridge had been carried away by flood -waters, but skilled axmen soon repaired it, so that the two carts could -be taken across. - -By the time good-byes were said, last words of advice and warning spoken, -the river crossed, and the steep bank climbed, the sun had passed its -highest point. St. Antoine, Lajimoniere, and several others rode with the -little party through the thick woods that fringed the stream bank. The -woods passed, St. Antoine carefully pointed out the route. The day was -clear, and the travelers could see far across the flat, open country. - -"You see that _ile des bois_?" questioned St. Antoine, pointing to a tiny -dark dot far away on the prairie. "That is the only _ile des bois_ for -many miles around. Make straight for it. You can camp there to-night. -There is a spring, and wood to boil your kettle. To-morrow go on in the -same direction, and you will come to the river the Sioux call _Pse_, the -white men _Folle Avoine_, from the wild rice that grows in its marshes. -If you keep a straight course you will reach that river near a fording -place. From there the Bois des Sioux is less than a day's journey. But do -not try to take your carts across either river until you are sure that -the water is not too deep or the current too strong. The Bois des Sioux -is a small stream and has many shallow places. Go then, and the good God -go with you." - -The hunters turned back, waved a last farewell, and disappeared among the -trees. Louis set his face towards the dark dot far across the prairie. -"_Marche donc!_" he cried, and slapped his pony's flank, he was riding -ahead as guide, while Neil and Walter walked beside the carts. - -The stretch of flat prairie between the Sheyenne and the Wild Rice looked -easy to cross. The party expected to make good time, but the very -flatness of the land proved a hindrance. The poorly drained plain was -marshy. The grass grew tall and coarse, the soil it sprang from was -spongy and frequently soft and wet. Stretches of standing water or very -soft ground, grown thick with marsh grass and cattails, had to be -skirted. In spite of the travelers' care in picking their way, the cart -wheels often sank far into the mud and water, and the faithful ponies had -to pull hard to haul them through. In such places Mrs. Brabant and the -children got out and walked or rode the two saddle ponies. Most of the -time Louis or Neil rode ahead to select the route. - -The difficult going lengthened the ten or twelve miles to that dark spot -of woods. Sunset found the party still a mile or more from the _ile des -bois_. It would be better to go on, they decided, than to camp on the -wet, open ground, with no wood for a fire, and only stagnant marsh water -to drink. - -Louis and Mr. Perier, with Max in front of him on the saddle, were riding -in advance. Then came the carts with Mrs. Brabant and the girls, Neil -beside the first cart, Raoul accompanying the second. Walter plodded -along in the rear. Turning to look back at the sunset sky, where the reds -and golds were already fading away, he noticed several dark forms loping -along the trail through the tall grass. They were prairie wolves. - -Walter had often seen wolves following the cart train, cleverly keeping -just out of musket range, but ready to close in on the remains of any -game that might be killed. He did not fear the cowardly scavengers. Yet -now they gave him a strange feeling he had never had when with the long -caravan. The sight of those wild creatures, shadowy in the twilight, -following so boldly in the wake of the tiny party, brought to him a -sudden sense of loneliness and peril such as he had not known before. He -shivered, though the evening was warm. Then he raised his gun, intending -to frighten the beasts, even if he could not hit them. - -Before he had time to fire, an exclamation from Mrs. Brabant caused him -to lower his gun and turn towards the cart. Both carts had stopped. A -hundred feet ahead Louis and Mr. Perier had reined in. Louis jumped from -his horse and stooped to examine the ground. - -"What is it? Why are we stopping?" Walter asked Raoul. - -"Louis signaled for a halt. I don't know why." - -Moved by curiosity, Walter followed Neil and Raoul to the spot where the -horsemen had reined in. It did not need the Scotch boy's exclamation or -Louis' sober face to make Walter understand the seriousness of what they -had found. They had come upon a trail, a clear, distinct trail. It was -not the wide, trampled track of a buffalo herd, but the clearly defined, -narrow trail of horses single file. - -"Indians?" asked Walter, though he knew well enough that the question was -unnecessary. - -Neil answered with a grunt of assent. Louis, leading his horse, had gone -on a little farther. In a moment he turned and summoned the others. He -had come upon a parallel trail, somewhat wider and more irregular than -the first and marked with lines resembling wheel tracks, but not so wide -as those made by the broad-rimmed cart wheels. - -"_Travois_," he said briefly. "Heavily loaded." - -Walter had heard the word _travois_ before in the sense in which Louis -used it. It was the name the French Canadians had given to a primitive -Indian conveyance, two poles lashed to the sides of a horse or dog, the -front ends resting on the animal's shoulders, the rear ends trailing on -the ground. Cross pieces were tied on, and a hide or blanket stretched -between the poles. Travois were loaded with household goods, or carried -women too old and children too young to walk or ride horseback. The crude -vehicles were used everywhere by the prairie Indians. - -A little farther on was another similar trail, and beyond it a fourth, a -narrow horse track like the first. - -"A whole band," Louis concluded, "women and children and all. When I saw -that first trail I feared it was a war party of mounted men only." - -"They are traveling as if in enemy country," Neil commented, "in four -lines, instead of single file." - -"With the travois and women in the middle, and the braves on the -outside," added Louis. "Yes, they must be uneasy about something." - -"How long ago do you think they passed?" asked Mr. Perier. - -"Not many hours. Since last night. It must have been before noon though. -We could have seen them a long way across the prairie." - -"They are far away by now." - -"Yes. It is good that we did not make an earlier start." - -"And that our trail crosses theirs instead of going the same way," said -Neil. "We'd better go on as fast as we can to that clump of trees. Our -camp will be hidden there." Somehow he did not feel quite so sure now -that Dakotas would not dare to attack white men, especially when the -white men had horses to be stolen. - -Louis climbed on his pony again, and the other boys turned back to bring -up the carts. They made the best speed they could through the tall grass -and over the marshy ground, but darkness had settled down before they -reached the _ile des bois_. - -Finding a camping place among the trees, Louis and Walter unhitched and -unsaddled the horses. Instead of hobbling them and turning them loose to -feed, they tied the four ponies to trees close to the camp fire, where -they could browse on tufts of grass, leaves, and twigs. Louis was taking -no risk of losing them. In the meantime Neil was cutting wood, Raoul had -kindled a fire, Mr. Perier had brought water from a rather brackish pool, -and Mrs. Brabant and the girls were preparing supper. - -To Walter the seclusion and shelter of the grove came as a relief from -the open prairie. The cheerful flames of the camp fire lighting up the -surrounding tree trunks and the cottonwood leaves overhead, the -appetizing smell of pemmican heating in an iron pan, raised his spirits. -He forgot the following wolves and the Indian trail. The rest of the -party also seemed to have forgotten the unpleasant things of the day's -journey. Elise hummed to herself as she helped Mrs. Brabant with the -simple meal. Max ran about to find sticks for the fire. Raoul teased -Marie, as he often did, and she retorted in her usual lively manner. -Little Jeanne, with the dog Askime beside her, had fallen sound asleep on -a blanket bed between the carts. She had to be waked when supper was -ready. - -The meal was as cheerful as if the little group had still been part of -the big hunting party. Yet the loneliness of their situation had its -effect upon them. Unconsciously they lowered their voices. At the -slightest sound from beyond the circle of firelight, the stirring of a -horse, the breaking of a twig, the rustling of a bush, the cry of a night -bird, everyone glanced quickly around. When a screech owl in a near-by -tree wailed, they were all startled, then, shamefaced, laughed at -themselves. - -After supper Mr. Perier drew Louis aside. "Do you think we ought to stand -guard to-night?" he asked in a low voice. - -"I think it most wise," Louis replied promptly. "We do not wish our -horses stolen, if any Indians have seen the smoke of our fire." - -Including Raoul, who was quite old enough to do guard duty and would have -been insulted if anyone had suggested that he was not, there were five -men in the party. To make up an even number, Mrs. Brabant insisted on -taking her turn. It was arranged that Walter and Raoul should keep first -watch, Mr. Perier and Neil second, and Louis and his mother the hours -just before dawn. Both the latter knew, though they said nothing about -it, that before dawn was the time danger was most likely to come, if it -came at all. Mrs. Brabant confessed to Louis that she would not be -sleeping then anyway, and might just as well be standing guard. - -Though they had seen no sign of Indians except the track across the -prairie, and seemed to be in no real danger, everyone but the two younger -children slept lightly and uneasily. The beasts seemed to catch their -masters' uneasiness. Askime, as if personally responsible for the safety -of the camp, padded back and forth and round about through the grove, -growling low in his throat sometimes, but never making a loud sound. The -night was windy, and the mosquitoes were not troublesome, but the ponies -were restless. They crowded as close to the carts as their lariats would -permit. Now and then one or another would jump and snort as if in terror. -Yet the guards could find nothing wrong, no cause of disturbance except -the howling of a wolf on the prairie or the hooting of a hunting owl. - - - - - XXIV - DANGER - - -The camp was stirring early, and the sheltering grove was soon left -behind. On every side the prairie, empty and peaceful, stretched away -into misty distance. The fears and alarms of the night had been -imaginary. - -As on the day before, the route lay over flat, poorly drained, often -marshy country, where the grass grew tall and rank. By going directly -east, the travelers might have reached the Wild Rice River in a few -hours, but far from the place where St. Antoine had advised them to -cross. Even if they succeeded in crossing, they knew they would lose -rather than gain time by going that way. If they went straight east they -would come to the Red River a number of miles below the Ottertail, where -the Red was much larger and more difficult to ford. St. Antoine had -explained all that, showing them how, by going southeast, instead of east -and then south, they would find better fording places as well as save -actual distance. So they continued to the southeast. - -By the position of the sun and the little grove behind him, Louis strove -to keep a straight course, a difficult feat for anyone less experienced -in prairie travel. Louis himself found it far from easy, especially when -he had to make detours around impassable ground. Many times that day he -wished for St. Antoine or some other older and more prairie-wise man. - -As the sun rose higher, the day grew very hot. Even the ponies felt the -effect of the heat, as they plodded steadily on. At noon the party halted -for an hour on the open prairie, to let the horses rest and feed. There -was not a stick of fuel anywhere, so the pemmican was eaten cold, and -washed down with a sip of the warm, brackish water they had brought from -the _ile des bois_. - -In mid afternoon, hot and tired, the little caravan reached the bank of a -stream Louis knew must be the Wild Rice. A narrow, crooked, muddy stream -it proved to be, like a deep ditch between high and scantily wooded -banks. At the top of the bank the carts halted, while Louis and Neil -scrambled down, leading their horses, to look for a ford. After a half -hour's search for a place that appeared safe, the two boys came upon a -trail. The slope was a little less steep in this spot, and, winding down -to the water's edge, was the well-worn track of men and animals. There -was no mistaking it. - -"Here is a ford," Louis announced confidently. "It is here that the -Indians cross." - -"It looks like it," Neil agreed. "We might as well go back for the carts. -This is the easiest place we've seen to bring them down." - -Louis shook his head. "Wait a bit," he commanded. "I must see if the -crossing is safe. The trail is old. There are no signs that anyone has -crossed recently, and the river is yet far from its lowest point. You -stay here, and I will try to trace the ford and make sure it is not too -deep." - -"All right," consented Neil. "I'll keep an eye on you. If you get into -trouble, I'll go to your help." - -The water was so thick and muddy, Louis could scarcely see whether it was -deep or shallow. His pony was sure footed, and picked its way carefully. -So he left the finding of the ford to the animal's instinct and -intelligence. Slowly they made their way across. The water rose to the -horse's sides, but did not carry it off its feet, as the current was -sluggish. There was one deep place, however, where the pony was forced to -swim a few yards. - -Neil, mounted and ready to go to the rescue, watched anxiously. His help -was not needed. The pony found foothold, and was soon scrambling up the -farther bank to dry land. Dismounting, Louis patted the animal and rubbed -its nose. Unlike the _bois brules_, he treated his beasts kindly. He had -brought this horse up from colthood, and it had no fear of him. After -resting a few minutes, boy and pony made their way back again. - -"Can we get the carts across?" asked Neil, as Louis, wet to the waist, -reached shore. - -"Yes, if we pull them over with ropes. We can take my mother and the -children on the horses. There is only the one deep place, and the current -is not strong. Cesar knew the way. He took me out where the trail goes up -from the water. This is an old fording place." - -"St. Antoine said nothing about a trail." - -"No, I think this is not the place where he crossed. We may be miles from -that spot." - -"If we can get across here, that is all we care about," returned Neil. - -The old trail was steep but not impossible for vehicles. With the boys -acting as brakes by hanging on to the rear, the carts made their -screeching, groaning way down. The horses were unhitched, and rawhide -ropes attached to one of the carts. Then Louis and Walter rode over the -ford, wound the ropes around a willow tree for greater security, and -began to pull. The others steadied the cart into the water. Neil, -mounting hastily, rode behind it to prevent disaster. - -Part way across, the wheels stuck in the muddy bottom and would not turn. -Neil jumped off his horse, and Raoul waded out to help him. They pushed -and heaved vigorously, while Louis and Walter pulled, and got the cart -moving again. In the deep place the box body floated, and the boys -succeeded in pulling it to shore before it took in much water. Knowing -that the dry box would leak more or less, they had lined it with hides. -The load came through uninjured. - -The same process was repeated with the second cart, which was not so -lucky and took in more water. Then Mrs. Brabant and the girls, their -skirts gathered up under them on the horses' backs, were brought across, -wetting no more than their feet and ankles. Max, sitting cross legged in -front of his father, did not even get his feet wet. The older boys and -Mr. Perier were well soaked. The day was so warm they did not mind a -wetting. - -The search for the ford and the crossing had taken a long time. The sun -was low when the weary little party started up the old trail to seek a -camping place. It happened that Walter, leading one of the horses along -the steep track, was ahead. As he reached the top, picking his way, he -turned to look back at the pony. After the horse was up, he continued to -stand looking down, watching the carts making their slow way up, the -ponies pulling steadily, the boys pushing. He ought to be down there -helping, he thought. - -The neighing of a horse startled him. He swung around, gave one gasp, and -fairly tumbled down the bank, dragging the surprised pony after him. - -"Indians!" he gasped. - -"Where?" Louis let go his hold on the first cart, and scrambled up to -join Walter. - -"Coming across the prairie. A whole band of them." - -"How far away? Did they see you?" - -"They must have seen me. There are no trees. I stood right in the open." - -Louis dropped flat and wormed his way up the slope. He raised his head -cautiously, lowered it quickly, and slid back. - -"They certainly saw you. They are too close to have missed you. We can't -avoid them. They come straight to the ford. We have no time to get out of -the way. There is not enough cover to hide in. And they must have seen -you and the horse. We must put on a bold front and not act afraid. That -is the only thing we can do." - -The rest of the party, alarmed by the two boys' actions, had stopped in -their tracks. Not many seconds were spent in telling them what was -happening. All realized that Louis was right when he said there was -nothing to do but put on a bold front. In a few moments the tiny caravan -was moving again. Raoul held Askime by the collar to keep him from -running ahead. - -Louis and Walter went first, side by side, leading their horses. When he -came in view of the prairie, Walter's heart beat fast. He struggled to -control his trembling knees, and to appear cool and unconcerned. - -A very short distance away, coming straight towards the two lads, was a -little group of mounted men, with bare, black heads and feathers in their -hair. Some wore loose buckskin shirts. The bronze bodies of others were -bare. Beyond them more mounted men, men, women, and children on foot, -pack animals, and travois covered the prairie in a wide, irregular, -disorderly procession. - -"A whole band out on the hunt," said Louis. "Well, that is less to be -feared than a war party of braves only." - -The advance group let out a yell, a wild, menacing sound it seemed to the -Swiss boy, hammered their horses' sides with their heels, and came on at -a gallop. Louis swung himself into the saddle, and advanced to meet them, -one arm raised in the friendship sign. Walter mounted and followed, -imitating the gesture. - -The leading Indian responded with upraised arm, and the group came on. -Surrounding the lads, they reined in their ponies. Walter's heart was -thumping against his ribs, but the trembling had passed. He sat straight -and steady in the saddle, and kept a calm exterior. - -"_Bo jou_," said Louis pleasantly. - -"How," stolidly returned the leader of the advance party. He was a -well-built, broad-shouldered fellow in the prime of life. A piece of -buffalo robe was his only saddle. He guided his horse with a cord of -twisted hair around the jaw, and rode with free and easy grace. - -As Louis knew only four or five words of Dakota, communication had to be -carried on principally in sign language. Recognizing the word for trader -when the Indian spoke again, Louis replied with a shake of his head, then -pointed to the carts just appearing over the top of the bank. He -interpreted the Indian's next gesture as a question about the size of the -party, and held up ten fingers in answer. Wishing to convey the idea that -the ten were only part of a much larger party, he pointed across the -river, and spread out his fingers, closing and opening them several -times. - -The Indian nodded, stared fixedly at the carts, and inquired, -"_Minnewakan?_" - -That was one of the few words Louis knew. "No _minnewakan_, no liquor," -he replied. His questioner looked disappointed, so Louis hastened to add, -"We can give you a little tobacco. _Tabac_," he repeated with emphasis. - -Evidently the Indian had heard the word _tabac_ in intercourse with the -traders. He repeated it with a nod and held out his hand. - -Louis pointed towards the carts, and said quickly to Walter, "Go get some -tobacco. It will be all right. We're safe enough for the present." - -The Indians made no move to hinder Walter's return to the carts. He was -back in a few moments with the tobacco, which Louis divided among the -group of braves, taking care to give the largest portion to the leader. - -The first of the main body of Indians had come on almost to the river -bank, a little way beyond where the carts were standing, and had halted -there. The boys' new acquaintance pointed to the spot, then brought the -tips of his forefingers together to indicate the pointed shape of a tipi. -Walter guessed the man's meaning to be that the band would camp there for -the night. His heart sank. He had been hoping that the Indians would go -on across the river. - -If Louis was troubled, he did not show it. He pointed the other way,--up -river,--and made the same sign. Then he said "_Bo jou_" again and turned -his horse in that direction. - -The Indian gave a little grunt which might have meant either assent or -protest. Neither he nor his companions showed any wish to hinder the -boys' freedom of movement. They remained motionless for a few moments, -then turned towards the camping place of their own band. - -"What are we going to do?" asked Walter, when he and Louis had put a few -yards between themselves and the Indians. - -"We will have to make camp," Louis replied slowly. "We will not be any -safer if we go on. If they wish to steal our horses or interfere with us -in any way, they will only follow. They can overtake us easily. Those -fellows' horses are fresher than ours. I saw that at once. We will camp -farther up the river, as far as we can without seeming to run away. I -tried to make them believe that we are an advance party. If we camp here -it will look as if we waited for the others to join us. It is a bad -situation, but I do not see what else we can do." - -"If they want to take our horses, though, and everything else we have, we -are helpless. We are too few to fight a whole band. I suppose you are -right about going on now. If they wished to harm us, some of them would -follow. But when they think we are all settled for the night, can't we -steal away in the darkness?" - -"I have thought of that," Louis returned quietly. "That is one reason I -want to camp as far away as we can, without making them suspicious. If -they seem perfectly friendly, it may be best to remain in camp till -morning. We can decide that later. The important thing now is to keep our -heads and act as if we had no fear." - - - - - XXXV - IN THE CHIEF'S TIPI - - -The others of the party realized that Louis knew more than they about -Indians, so his view of what was best to do prevailed. He chose a spot -back from the river bank on the brink of a narrow, steep sided ravine. A -_coulee_ such a rift in the prairie was commonly called. There, in the -open, nearly a half mile up river from the Indian encampment, camp was -pitched. - -The dangers of the situation were carefully concealed from the younger -children. Elise and Marie were old enough to realize the peril, but they -understood as well as their elders that they must not appear afraid. Both -girls were frightened, but they tried pluckily not to give way to their -fears. Mrs. Brabant set them a good example, going about the camp work in -a cheerful, matter-of-fact way. Not even Louis guessed how she was -suffering with anxiety and dread. While her lips smiled bravely, she was -repeating over and over in her mind passionate prayers for her children's -safety. Though he understood less of the danger, and was by nature always -hopeful that things would turn out all right, Mr. Perier too was far from -easy in his mind. He regretted sincerely that he had brought Elise and -Max on this dangerous journey. Still, as always, he hoped for the best. -Of the four older boys, Raoul, the youngest and most reckless, was the -least frightened and the most thrilled by the adventure. The feelings of -the others were of mingled fear, excitement, and manly pride in the -responsibility laid upon them. The red-headed Highland lad, cleaning his -gun carefully, was almost hoping for a fight. Louis and Walter, though -determined to protect their camp at any cost to themselves if that should -be necessary, were racking their brains for ways to avoid conflict of any -kind. They must avoid it or their little party would be wiped out. - -At first the Indians left the white men to themselves. Before the evening -meal was over, however, visitors arrived, announced by a warning growl -from Askime. Into the firelight stalked the sturdy, strong-faced brave -who had led the advance party. He was followed by two younger men. Both -were slender, wiry fellows, and one was distinctly handsome in a -Roman-nosed, high-cheeked, hawk-eyed style. The other was disfigured by a -broken and crooked nose. - -The young men stood impassive, while the elder made a sign of greeting -and said "How" in his deep voice. - -Louis, who had risen, returned the "How" and motioned the visitors to -seats by the fire, the others moving closer together to make room. -Foreseeing that there might be guests, Mrs. Brabant had made more tea and -heated more pemmican than usual. She helped the guests liberally, and -they ate in silence. When each was satisfied, he carefully placed his cup -and plate upside down on the ground. - -"_Minnewakan?_" the elder warrior inquired, as if he had not asked the -question before. - -Louis shook his head and passed out some tobacco. There was silence, -while each Indian gravely smelled of his portion, and stowed it away in -his beaded buckskin fire bag. - -Then the man with the crooked nose pointed to Askime, who lay at Louis' -feet, keeping a watchful eye on the strangers. "_Nitshunka?_" he asked, -looking at Louis. - -The boy had never heard the word before. He did not know whether the -fellow was inquiring if the dog was his, or offering to buy it. In answer -he laid one hand on Askime's head, and touched his own breast with the -other. The young Indian promptly took off the necklace of beasts' and -birds' claws he wore, and held it out. But Louis shook his head -emphatically, saying "_Non, non_." - -The broken-nosed man nodded gravely, and replaced the necklace, but he -continued to gaze at the dog. It was plain that he was anxious to get -Askime by some means or other. - -The elder brave soon brought the call to a close. Rising to his feet, he -pointed first in the direction of the Indian camp, and then to Louis and -Walter in turn. He said something in his own language, drew his -forefinger across his forehead, and pointed again towards the camp. The -drawing of the forefinger across the forehead was the common sign for a -hat-wearer or white man. - -Louis' curiosity was aroused. He drew his finger across his own head, -then pointed to his breast. - -The Indian shook his head. It was some other white man he meant. Again he -made the sign, with his left hand, while he pointed towards the camp with -his right. At the same time he spoke the word for trader. - -Louis nodded to show that he understood. - -The Indian gave a little grunt, and once more pointed to the boys in -turn, then to the camp. He repeated the hat-wearer sign and the word -trader. - -Louis turned to Walter. "There is a white man with that band, a trader. I -am sure that is what this fellow means. And he wishes us to go to the -camp and see the man. Perhaps the white man has sent for us." - -"Shall we go?" asked Walter. "Do you think it is safe?" - -"I do not know if it is safe," was the thoughtful reply, "but _I_ must go -I think. If I do not he will think I am afraid. And I want to discover if -there really is a white trader there, and talk with him. He may be our -one chance of safety. Sometimes the traders have great influence. Yes, I -must go." - -Louis indicated his willingness to accompany the Indians, but the elder -man was still unsatisfied. He kept pointing at Walter. - -"I am going too, Louis," the latter decided. He glanced around the little -circle. "Do you suppose the others will be all right while we are away?" - -"There is risk to all of us, all the time, whatever we do," Louis -returned gravely. "It is not good for our party to be separated. Yet I do -not think they try to separate us. Why should they, when we are so few, -and they are so many? No, I think that white trader has sent for us, and -we had best go." He turned to Neil and Raoul. "Keep close watch," he -warned, "and you, Raoul, make a big pile of dry grass and wood. If -anything happens to alarm you, light it, and we shall see the flames, and -come at once." - -"If we can," Walter added to himself. He did not voice his doubt. He knew -they must take the risk; he saw that quite clearly. - -There was a frightened look in Elise's eyes. She laid her hand on -Walter's arm. "Don't go," she whispered. - -"I must, little sister. I can't let Louis go alone. We will be back -soon." - -Mrs. Brabant's face had turned pale, but she made no protest. As for Mr. -Perier, the news that there was a white man with the Indians had gone far -to reassure him of their friendliness and good intentions. - -The three braves had come unarmed, so courtesy required that Louis and -Walter should not take their guns, reluctant though they were to leave -them behind. The Indians were on foot, and all went back in the same -manner. The long twilight was deepening, as the five took their silent -way towards the firelit group of tipis that had sprung up from the -prairie like some strange mushroom growth. The air was hot, still, and -oppressive. Dark clouds lay low on the western and southern horizon. - -The Indian camp was a noisy place. As the party approached, their ears -were assailed by a variety of sounds; the neighing and squealing of -ponies, the howling and yelping of dogs, the shouting of children, the -voices of the women, the tones of the old squaws cracked and shrill, -calling, laughing, and scolding, the toneless thumping of a drum and the -clacking of rattles accompanying the harsh monotone of some medicine -man's chant, and a hundred other noises. Hobbled horses fed on the -prairie grass around the circle of lodges. A whole pack of snarling, -wolfish dogs rushed out as if to devour the newcomers, but did not dare -to approach very close for fear of a beating. The buffalo skin tipis were -lit up with cooking fires without and within. The mingled odors of wood -smoke, boiling and roasting meat, tobacco and _kinnikinnick_,--osier -dogwood or red willow bark shredded and added to tobacco to form the -Indian smoking mixture,--filled the air. - -The little party were close to the tipis, when a man came out to meet -them. He spoke to the older brave, and an argument followed. Unable to -understand the conversation, the boys stood waiting, and wondering what -was going on. Evidently the two Indians were disagreeing, but the only -words Louis recognized were _minnewakan_ and the term for trader. - -It was the lads' conductor who yielded at last. He gave a grunt of sullen -assent, gestured to the boys to follow the other, turned on his heel, and -stalked off. The stranger led the way among the lodges. - -Walter had never visited an Indian camp, and curiosity was getting the -better of his fears. The squaws and children were quite as curious about -the white men. The women left their various occupations, and ceased their -gossiping and scolding, the children stopped their play and quarreling, -to stare at the strangers. Their inquisitiveness was open and frank, but -did not seem unfriendly. The men, lounging about at their ease, eating, -smoking, polishing their weapons, or doing nothing whatever, disdained to -show interest in the newcomers. Their casual glances were indifferent -rather than hostile. Walter noted that these people were in the habit of -dealing with traders. Many of the loose, shapeless garments the women -wore were of bright colored cotton, instead of deerskin. Some of the men -had shirts or leggings of scarlet cloth. The boy's courage rose. So far -there was nothing to fear. - -The lodges were arranged in two irregular circles, one within the other. -In the center of the inner open space, stood a solitary tipi of unusual -size. From it, apparently, came the sounds of drum, rattles, and chant. -Walter wondered if it was there that he and Louis were being led. Surely -a white man would not---- But the guide had turned to the right, and was -pulling aside the skin curtain that covered the entrance to one of the -lodges in the circle. He motioned to the boys to enter. - -Walter followed Louis in, and looked about him. The fire on the ground in -the center of the tipi was smouldering smokily, and the forms of the men -beyond were but dimly visible. Louis went forward unhesitatingly. At the -right of the fire, he paused, and Walter stepped to his side. - -Someone threw a piece of buffalo fat on the fire. The flames leaped up, -casting a strong light on the bronze bodies of six or seven seated men. -All were nearly naked, except the slender young man in the center. He -wore scarlet leggings and a blue coat with scarlet facings; an old -uniform coat that must once have belonged to some white officer. The -young Indian's chest was bare and adorned with paint. A necklace of elk -teeth, with a silver coin as a pendant, was his principal ornament. There -were eagle feathers in his scarlet head band, and his coarse, black hair, -which hung in two braids over his shoulders, glistened with grease. The -swarthy face of the young chief, as the firelight revealed it, struck -Walter with instant distrust and dislike. The wide mouth was loose -lipped. The dark eyes--large for an Indian--that he fastened on the boys -were bloodshot and fierce. - -Louis stood straight and motionless, steadily returning the young chief's -gaze. Drawing himself up to his full height, Walter tried to imitate his -comrade's bold bearing. After a few minutes of this silent duel of -glances, during which the fire died down again, the chief deigned to -speak. - -His first words were apparently an inquiry as to whether the white men -were traders. Louis shook his head. Then came a request,--it sounded more -like a demand,--for _minnewakan_. - -Again Louis shook his head. Stepping forward, he offered the chief the -gifts he had brought him, a twist of tobacco, a paper of coarse pins, and -a piece of scarlet cloth. Though the boys had expected to be led directly -to the white trader, Louis had thought it best to go provided with a few -courtesy presents for the head man of the band. The chief accepted the -things in silence. - -On the chance that the fellow or someone of his companions might know a -little French, Louis proceeded to explain that he and his party were -peaceful travelers from the Selkirk Colony on their way to the trading -post at Lake Traverse. Whether anyone understood what he said the boy -could not tell. - -When Louis had finished, the chief made a speech, a long speech, -delivered in an impressive, even pompous manner, with frequent pauses for -effect. At each pause, his companions in chorus uttered an approving -"Uho, uho!" That was the way the exclamation sounded to Walter. He could -understand nothing of the chief's oration, of course, but he got the idea -that the young man liked to listen to his own voice. - -Among the voices that cried out "Uho," there was one deep pitched one -that affected the Swiss boy in a peculiar manner. It sent a sudden chill -of fear over him. And there was something familiar about it. He glanced -around the group to see to which man that voice belonged. The fire had -nearly burned out, and the lodge was so dark he could distinguish the -figures but dimly. At the third exclamation of approval, he made up his -mind that the voice that affected him so strangely came from the man on -the chief's right. During the few moments when the firelight had been -bright enough to reveal the Indians, Walter had noticed nothing about -that man except his size. He was a big fellow, broad shouldered and tall, -overtopping the chief by several inches, though the latter was not short. -The big man's features the boy had not seen, for they were in the shadow -of the scarlet blanket the fellow held up, apparently to shield his face -from the heat. - -The speaker brought his oration to a sonorous close. There was a chorus -of loud "uhos." As if for dramatic effect, another chunk of fat was -thrown upon the fire. The flames shot up again, and cast their light upon -the chief and his courtiers. - -Walter gasped. He felt Louis' fingers close upon his arm and grip it -tight in warning. The blanket no longer concealed the face of the big -brave on the chief's right. The amazed boys were staring straight at the -glittering, bright eyes and thin-lipped, cruel mouth of the Black Murray. -It seemed incredible, impossible, but it was so. - -The big warrior, a Sioux Indian in every detail; braided hair and -feathers, big-muscled, bronze body naked except for the breech cloth and -the handsome scarlet blanket about his shoulders, chest and arms adorned -with streaks and circles of red and black paint, was the former Hudson -Bay voyageur, Murray. If it had been possible to mistake that regular -featured, sinister face, with its glittering eyes and scornful smile, the -silver chain around his neck, with Mr. Perier's watch hanging upon his -chest, must have removed all doubts. He was the Black Murray beyond -question. - - - - - XXXVI - THE WHITE TRADER - - -While Louis and Walter stared, amazed and apprehensive, the Black Murray -rose to his feet and turned to the chief. He said a few words in Dakota; -his all too familiar voice sending another chill up Walter's spine, -gathered his blanket about him, gave the boys one scornful glance, and -strode around the fire and out of the tipi. - -Louis drew a long breath to steady himself, and spoke to the chief again. -Still uncertain whether the Indians understood any French, the boy -thanked the young chief for receiving his comrade and himself. They had -enjoyed the visit to the village, he said, but must return to their own -camp now, as the hour was growing late. They hoped to see more of the -chief and his people in the morning. At the close of this speech, Louis -bowed slightly, and began to step backward around the fire. - -Walter imitated his friend, carefully keeping his face turned towards the -chief. That young man waved his hand in a gesture of dismissal. Not one -of the Indians made a move to hinder the two from leaving. - -It was an enormous relief to be out of that tipi, yet both boys knew they -were far from being out of danger. From the illuminated lodge in the -center of the camp, the thumping of the drum and the clacking of rattles -went on tirelessly. Fires had been kindled in a circle around the big -tipi, and about them men and women were gathering. - -"There is to be some kind of a dance," Louis whispered. "Look!" he -exclaimed suddenly. He gripped Walter's arm and drew him back into the -shadow of an unlighted lodge. - -Crossing the open space, in the full light of the blazing fires, was the -tall, stately form of Murray. A great, hairy buffalo robe fell loosely -from his broad shoulders. His head was adorned with the strangest of -headdresses, the shaggy head of a buffalo bull, horns and nose painted -red. That stuffed buffalo head must have been exceedingly heavy, but -under its weight Murray held his own head and neck proudly erect. Looking -neither to right nor left, he strode between the fires, men and women -making way for him. He stooped only to enter the big tipi. - -The two boys, in the protecting shadow of the dark lodge, had stood -apparently unnoticed through this show. After Murray disappeared Louis -led Walter around to the side of the unlighted dwelling farthest from the -fire. - -"We must be away," he whispered. "This is no place for us." - -Silently, cautiously, they made their way among the tipis. The whole band -seemed to have gathered in the central space, yet the boys were not to -escape notice. They were passing through the outer circle of dwellings, -when a man suddenly appeared in front of them. It was the -broad-shouldered warrior who had brought them to the camp. He spoke -urgently, pointing again and again towards the inner circle of lodges, -and making the hat-wearer sign. - -Louis shook his head. "_Non, non_," he replied emphatically. "We have -seen enough of your white trader. A fine white man he is. Go on, Walter," -he ordered, and Walter obeyed. - -If the Dakota did not understand the words, he could not mistake the -boys' actions. He tried to seize Louis by the arm. Louis dodged, jumping -to one side nimbly, eluded the Indian, and ran after Walter, who also -broke into a run. To their surprise, the man did not attempt to follow -them. Perhaps the middle-aged, rather heavily built brave despaired of -catching the light-footed lads. At any rate he let them go. There was no -one else near by to stop them. - -As soon as the boys were sure they were not being followed, they slowed -to a walk. - -"We are well out of that," said Louis, drawing a long breath of relief. - -"Yes. I can't understand why Murray let us go so easily." - -"I fear we have not seen the last of _le Murrai Noir_ yet," was the sober -reply. "If he had abused us, cursed us, threatened us, I should have less -fear. I do not like his silence, the way he allowed us to go without -raising a hand against us." - -"The Indians seem friendly. Perhaps they won't let him touch us." - -"That may be. They may be afraid that any trouble with white men will -bring vengeance upon them. Yet I do not like the looks of that young -chief. And he did not offer us food. That is a bad sign, Walter. If he -had invited us to eat, to smoke the calumet, but he did not." Louis shook -his head doubtfully. - -"I can't imagine," Walter pondered, "why Murray went out and left us, and -then sent that man after us again." - -Louis was equally puzzled. "It is all very strange. _Le Murrai_ sent him -for us. Surely that was what he meant. Then, when we reached the camp, -another man came and took us away from him. And when we were leaving, the -first fellow came again and wished us to go back." - -"Perhaps Murray wanted to see us alone, and the chief interfered," Walter -suggested. - -"So he sent for us again? But we saw _le Murrai_ going to join in the -dance. The dance will take a long time, all night perhaps, and he is the -chief figure in it I think." - -"He certainly looked as if he was. Louis, is there really any white blood -in Murray at all?" - -"That is another strange thing," returned the troubled Louis. "It is -strange that those Indians should speak of him as a hat-wearer, a white -man. Rather he seems one of themselves." - -Discussing and pondering the bewildering events of the past few hours, -the boys made their way across the prairie towards their own camp. The -moon had risen and lighted their way. The camp fire, a flickering point -of light, guided them and assured them that all was well with their -companions. Had there been no spark of fire at all, or had a great column -of flame sprung up, the two would have been running at full speed. Their -puzzlings led to no solution of their strange treatment at the hands of -Murray and the chief. - -"I am certain of but one thing," Louis asserted finally. He spoke -emphatically and in a louder tone than he had been using. "There is -mischief brewing in that camp to-night, and _le Murrai Noir_ is the -center of it." - -"Aye, you are right there." - -The words, in a strange voice, came from behind them. With one impulse -the boys sprang apart, and turned. Louis' hand was on the hilt of his -hunting knife. - -Close to them, leading a horse, was a tall form, a very tall form. Taller -he seemed than Murray himself, though perhaps that was because he was so -gaunt and thin. In the moonlight the boys could see that his buckskin -clothes hung loosely upon his long frame. He wore a cap, and had a bushy -beard. - -"You were too busy with your talk," the strange man went on rebukingly. -"The whole band might have stolen up on you." He spoke easy, fluent -Canadian French, but with a peculiar accent that reminded Walter of -Neil's manner of speech. - -"Who are you?" demanded Louis, his hand still on his knife. - -"I'm the hat-wearer that sent for you." - -"You are the white trader? Then it wasn't _le Murrai_?" - -"It was not. But you're right in thinking he's the center of the mischief -over there. I sent Shahaka to your camp. He was to bring you straight to -my lodge, but someone, Murray or Tatanka Wechacheta, interfered. Then I -told Shahaka to wait for you at the edge of the village, but you wouldn't -go back with him. I wanted to warn you of what was going on. I thought it -wiser not to go to your camp myself. My influence with that young fool of -a chief is not so strong as it was before the big medicine man Murray -came along." - -"He claims to be a medicine man?" asked Louis. - -"Aye, a mighty one, with all sorts of _wakan_. He is teaching a picked -few rascals of them a new medicine dance. They will dance and powwow till -near the dawn, then Murray will feast them and fill them full of rum." - -"But why?" - -"Why? He's a free trader, that Murray, a clever one and not particular -about his methods, his boasts that he got his start by stealing pemmican -from the Hudson Bay Company and then selling it back to them, through a -friend, for trade goods. If he can make those foolish savages look up to -him and fear him as a great _witan wishasha_, he can do anything he likes -with them in the way of trade. He has sold them a lot of medicines -already, charms against evil spirits and injury in battle, charms to give -them power over their enemies and the beasts they hunt." The tall man -changed the subject abruptly. "You have horses and carts and goods with -you?" he demanded. - -"No trade goods, except a few little things for presents. But we have two -carts loaded with our personal things, and four good horses, and an -Eskimo dog." - -"You will have none of them by sunrise," was the grim response, "if you -stay here. Murray is not the man to let all that slip through his -fingers." - -"Then why did he let us leave the camp?" - -"And why not? He can put his hand on you whenever he likes. In a few -hours he will have plenty of drunken savages to do his will." - -Walter shivered. He was thinking, not of himself, but of Elise and Mrs. -Brabant and the children. - -As they drew near the camp, Neil, gun in hand, sprang up from the ground, -where he had been lying, watching their approach. He had been worried -because, instead of two only, he could make out three men and a horse. - -Entering the circle around the fire, Louis introduced the stranger. "This -is the man who sent for us, the trader." - -The tall man pulled off his fur cap and ducked his head to Mrs. Brabant. -"I'm Duncan McNab, at your service, Madame," he said. He caught sight of -Neil's freckled face and blue bonnet. "Ye're a Scot," he said accusingly -in English. - -"I am that, and sa are you," Neil retorted promptly. - -"Aye. Ye'll be fra Kildonan na doot, but there's na time ta be talkin' -aboot that." He turned to Louis and spoke in French again. "You are -camped on the edge of a coulee. Did you pick this spot on purpose?" - -The boy nodded. - -"Then you know what to do. The coulee leads towards the Bois des Sioux. -Leave your fire burning. The savages will think you're still here." - -"Our carts make so much noise," interposed Walter. "If any of their -scouts or camp guards should hear that squeaking----" - -"Leave the carts behind," McNab interrupted. "I doubt if you could take -them up the coulee." - -"We can go faster without them anyway," Louis agreed, "and get more out -of our horses." - -"Travel light, a little pemmican, your weapons and ammunition, nothing -else. It is hard to lose all your things, Madame," the trader said -bluntly to Mrs. Brabant, "but better than to run the risk of your -children falling into the hands of Tatanka Wechacheta and the Black -Murray." - -"Murray?" cried Mr. Perier. - -"You know him?" - -"We all know him. We have good cause to," said Walter. - -"That makes it all the worse, if he has anything against you. No, don't -tell me the story now. We have no time to exchange tales." - -"If we must leave the carts behind," Neil suggested, "why not hide them -in the coulee? Then the Indians may think we have taken them along. Later -we can come back from Lake Traverse and get them." - -"It micht work oot that wa'," returned McNab, falling into Scots' English -again, "but I'm thinkin' they'll find the cairts easy eneuch." - -"We'll tak them _doon_ the coulee a bit," Neil insisted, in the same -tongue. "If Murray finds the tracks he'll maybe think we've gane doon ta -the Wild Rice and back across." - -The trader shook his head. "He'll be findin' your trail all richt, but ye -can maybe delay him for a bit. Weel, do what you're goin' ta do quick, -an' be awa' wi' ye. I maun be gettin' back or they'll miss me." - -"You're na comin' wi' us?" cried Neil. - -"Na, na, I'm not rinnin' awa' yet." He switched to French and took his -leave of the others. "Cross the Bois des Sioux and make speed for Lake -Traverse," he advised. "Tell Renville I'll be back there in a few days. -It was Renville sent me to find out what that rascal Murray was up to. -Good speed and God go with you." - - - - - XXXVII - FLIGHT - - -Louis and Walter decided that Neil's plan was worth trying. They muffled -the axles of the two carts with strips torn from a ragged blanket, and -carefully cased the vehicles over the edge of the coulee. The moon, -shining into the rift, lighted them down the steep slope. Along the bed -of the shallow brook that ran through the coulee to join the Wild Rice -River, they pushed and pulled the carts, and left them well hidden among -willows and cottonwoods where the ravine widened. - -"There," said Neil when the job was done, "if those Indians follow -straight up the coulee after us, they won't find the carts at all. If -they come down here and find them, they may think we have gone back -across the river." - -"Probably," Louis returned, "they will divide into two parties, one to go -up, the other down the coulee. But if they get all our things they may be -content to let us go." - -Hiding the carts had taken less than a half hour. In the meantime Mrs. -Brabant and the children had gone down into the coulee, Jeanne and Max -stumbling along, scarcely awake enough to realize what was happening. -While the horses were being led down, Walter remained behind as rear -guard. As he threw a last armful of fuel on the fire, a burst of hideous -noise came across the prairie from the Indian camp. Howls and yells, to -the thumping of many drums, proved that Murray's medicine dance was in -full swing. A picture flashed through the boy's mind; a picture of that -central space within the circle of tipis as it must look now, with scores -of naked, painted, befeathered savages, stamping, leaping, yelling around -the blazing fires. There was no time to lose. - -Mrs. Brabant was impatient and anxious to be away. She had made no -protest at leaving the carts behind. All her household belongings were in -them, but what were blankets and copper kettles, and the precious wooden -chest of clothing and little things, compared with the safety of her -children? She and little Jeanne had been placed on one of the ponies. -There were only four horses for ten people. Mr. Perier took Max with him -on another, and the remaining two were given to Elise and Marie. Marie -could ride almost as well as her brothers, and Elise had learned since -leaving Pembina. - -It was very dark at the bottom of the coulee among the willows that -fringed the stream. Speed was not possible, and the foot travelers could -easily keep up with the ponies. Yet there was no doubt in anyone's mind -that this was the only route to take. On the open prairie, in the -moonlight, they would be plainly visible from every direction. Here they -were completely hidden. They hoped to be miles away before the Indians -discovered that they had gone. - -Progress seemed heart-breakingly slow, however, as the little party -picked their way up the bed of the brook in the darkness. Louis, on foot, -went ahead as guide. Walter, Neil and Raoul brought up the rear. The -stream was not much over a foot deep at its deepest, with a sticky mud -bottom. Luckily the ponies were sure-footed and almost cat-eyed. One or -another slipped or stumbled now and then, but recovered quickly without -unseating the rider. The night remained oppressively warm. Not a breath -of breeze stirred the willows down below the level of the prairie. Pale -flashes lit up the narrow strip of sky overhead, and distant thunder -rumbled. - -The coulee grew narrower and shallower. The brook dwindled to a rivulet, -the fringing willows were smaller and met above the stream. It was -difficult to push a way through. At last Louis called a halt. - -"Wait a little," he said. "I will go on and find a way." - -Strung out along the narrow streamlet, which scarcely covered the hoofs -of the horses, the rest waited for his return. The mosquitoes were bad, -and the tormented horses twisted, turned, pawed the mud, and slapped -their tails about. Walter made his way among the willows to Elise's side -to be at hand if her mount should become unmanageable. But they exchanged -only a word or two. The oppression of the night and the danger lay too -heavy upon them both. - -After what seemed a long time, Louis returned. "The coulee ends a little -way ahead," he reported. "The stream comes from a wet marsh that we must -go around. I have found a place where we can climb the right bank." - -Without further words, he took hold of the bridle of his mother's horse -and led it through the willows and up a dry gully. The gully was one of -the channels by which the marsh waters, during spring floods and rainy -periods, found their way into the coulee. The prairie at the head of the -gully was dry in July, the marsh being shrunken to dry weather -proportions. - -There was a certain relief in being up on the open plain again. For one -thing there was more light. The western sky was banked with clouds. Over -there lightning flashed and thunder rumbled, but the moon remained -uncovered. Looking back to the northwest across the flat prairie, Walter -could see, against the dark clouds, the glow of the fires in the Indian -camp. A flash of lightning showed the pointed tips of the tipis black -against the white light. - -It seemed a long time since the fugitives had gone down into the coulee. -The boy was disappointed and alarmed to find that they had not come -farther. Had the Indians discovered their absence yet? He scanned the -prairie for moving figures. To his great relief he could see not one. Not -even a buffalo or a wolf appeared to be abroad on that wide, moonlit -expanse. Only an occasional puff of breeze stirred the tall grass. - -The party were gathered together at the head of the gully. Louis was -speaking, and Walter turned to listen. - -"We can go faster now, but one must go ahead to keep the course and----" - -"You must do that, Louis," Neil interrupted. "You are guide. It is your -place. The two girls will have to ride one horse." - -Louis hesitated. "It is not right for me to ride away and leave you three -to follow on foot." - -"It is the only way," put in Walter. "The ponies can't carry us all. The -others can't go on without a guide. You will have to do it, Louis. We -won't be far behind." - -"Neil can guide as well as I can," Louis began. - -"I can't and I won't," retorted the Scotch boy stubbornly. "You have your -mother and sisters to take care of, and you are going on ahead." - -"One of you boys can take my horse," Mr. Perier proposed. "I am the least -experienced and the least useful of all." He started to dismount. - -"No, no," cried Louis. "You will be too slow with your crippled foot. You -will hold the others back. You must ride." - -"There are the children to think of," Walter added earnestly. "You must -go with them. Neil and Raoul and I can go much faster on foot than you -could." - -"Stop talking and get away," exclaimed Raoul impatiently. "Marie, come -off that horse." - -For once in her life Marie obeyed her next older brother. She took his -hand and slipped quickly to the ground. Raoul helped her up in front of -Elise. Louis, without further argument, mounted and took the lead. He -knew as well as anyone that they had already wasted too much time in -argument. - -As Raoul drew back from helping Marie up, his mother bent down from her -horse to throw her left arm about his neck. "God guard you, my son," she -said softly. - -"And you," muttered Raoul huskily. - -At first the lads on foot kept almost at the heels of the ponies. The -prairie grass grew high and rank, and there was no beaten path. The -animals could not go fast, and all three boys were good runners. But -running through tall grass is not like running on an open road or even on -a well-trodden cart track. They soon tired, and had to slow their pace -and fall behind. The ponies were double burdened and far from fresh, but -they were tough, wiry beasts, capable of extraordinary endurance. When -they struck firmer ground beyond the marsh, they made better speed. The -rear guard fell still farther behind. They tried to keep in the track -made by the horses, but it was not always easy to do so, especially when -flying clouds covered the moon and left them in darkness. - -No rain fell, however. The storm that had been threatening for so long -was working around to the north. The rumblings of thunder grew fainter, -the lightning flashes less bright. Before dawn they had ceased -altogether. A fresh, cool breeze sprang up, billowing the grass and -putting new life into the tired boys, as they plodded on, carrying their -heavy muskets. They no longer tried to run, but they kept up a steady -walking pace. - -Dawn showed a line of trees ahead that did not appear to be much over a -half mile away. Those trees, the boys felt sure, must mark the course of -the Bois des Sioux. It was from one of the groves on its bank that the -stream took its name. The foot travelers had lost the horse track some -time before, but Neil and Raoul had managed, with the aid of the stars, -to keep a general course towards the east. The rest of the party were -nowhere in sight. Probably they had crossed the river long ago. - -Though the trees seemed such a short distance away, the sun was rising -above them before the lads reached the river. Wet, marshy ground had -forced a detour. The stream, where they came out upon it, proved larger -and wider than they had expected. - -"If we cross here we will have to swim," said Neil, as he looked down at -the muddy water. "I think we are too far down. See there." He pointed to -the opposite shore up stream. "Either the river makes a sharp bend there, -or another one comes in." - -"It is the Ottertail," suggested Raoul. "That must be where the two come -together to make the Red." - -"It looks like it," Walter agreed. "Anyway this doesn't seem to be a good -place to cross. We know nothing about the current. We had better go on up -and look for a ford." - -The boys did not have to go far along the west bank of the united rivers -to convince themselves that the stream coming in from the east was indeed -the Ottertail. They could see plainly enough that it was larger than the -branch from the south. Single file, with Walter in the lead, they were -making their way along the bank opposite the mouth of the Ottertail, when -from the willows directly in front of them an Indian appeared. - -"_Bo jou_," he said, and added a few words in his own language. - -Walter, startled, had half raised his musket, but Raoul, who was close -behind him, seized his arm. - -"That's a Saulteur, not a Sioux," the younger boy whispered, then -answered the man in his own tongue. - -Neil pushed forward to join in the conversation. He also knew a little of -the Saulteur or Ojibwa language, though he did not speak it so readily as -Raoul, who had played with Indian and half-breed lads since babyhood. -Walter, unable to understand more than an occasional word or two--picked -up at Pembina and among the hunters--stood back and looked on. - -The sudden appearance of this lone Saulteur near the southern limits of -the debatable ground surprised him greatly. What puzzled him most, -however, was the man's familiar face. Surely he had seen that scarred -cheek, where the skin drew tight over the bone, before, but where? On the -way from York Factory, at Fort Douglas, at Pembina, at the Company post -when the hunters were bringing in their winter's catch? Then he -remembered. It was at the post he had seen the Ojibwa; not in the spring, -but in the autumn. This was the hunter who had been beaten and robbed, as -he was loading his canoe to return to his hunting grounds at Red Lake. -What was he doing here? - -The Indian was speaking rapidly, in a low voice. Walter caught two words -he knew, "_Murrai Noir_." Neil swung around, excitement in his eyes. - -"Walter," he exclaimed, "this fellow says Murray is his enemy. He is -after Murray to get revenge. Is he----" - -"Yes." Walter did not wait for Neil to finish the question. "He is the -man Murray and Fritz Kolbach attacked. I know that scar on his cheek. At -the post they said a grizzly bear once clawed him in the face. How did he -learn that Murray was in this part of the country? Ask him." - -Raoul put the question and translated the answer. "He was at Pembina just -after the hunt left. Fritz Kolbach and two other DeMeurons were there at -the same time. Scar Face attacked Kolbach, but the other fellows -separated them. Then Kolbach declared it was Murray who hit Scar Face -over the head, and offered to put him on Murray's trail. He told Scar -Face that Murray was near Lake Traverse trading with the Dakotas and -pretending to be a medicine man. Some men going from Traverse to Pembina -with carts had seen him. So Scar Face is trailing him." - -"Alone?" queried Walter. - -"No, he has some young braves with him who want to get a reputation by -raiding enemy country. They came down the Ottertail River." - -"Where are they?" - -"Near here somewhere. I don't know how he learned that Murray was with -Tatanka Wechacheta's band, but he knew it before I told him." - -"Did you tell him that we are running away from them?" - -"Yes. Wait a minute." - -The Indian was speaking. He pointed up the river and his manner was -earnest and emphatic. When Scar Face paused, Raoul turned to the others -again. - -"He says he has heard that there is a good ford a little way up the -river. That is probably where our people crossed. He thinks that Murray -and the Sioux will follow the horse tracks to the ford. If Scar Face and -his braves lie in wait there, they can get a shot at Murray when he tries -to cross. They will take us to the ford in their canoes." - -Before Raoul had finished this explanation, the Indian was showing signs -of impatience. He turned now and led the way in among the willows. There, -where the river current had taken a crescent-shaped bite out of the mud -bank, two birch canoes were pulled up. Five young braves, arrayed in -feathers and war paint, came out from hiding places among the bushes, -where they had been waiting for their leader, who had been for a look -across the prairie west of the river. - -They were a wild and fearsome looking little band. Had the boys not known -that they were, for the time being at least, on the Saulteur side of the -quarrel, they might have hesitated to trust themselves with the war -party. But they had given Scar Face and his comrades information of -value, and had nothing to fear from them. - - - - - XXXVIII - THE FIGHT AT THE BOIS DES SIOUX - - -The Indians wasted few words and little time. Walter and Raoul were -assigned to one canoe, Neil to the other. Riding as passengers, they took -the opportunity to munch the chunks of pemmican they had brought with -them, but had not paused to eat. - -The Bois des Sioux, above the Ottertail, proved to be an insignificant -stream. It had no valley, but meandered crookedly through a mere trench -in the flat prairie. Willows and other bushes fringed its muddy waters. -Its banks were sometimes open, sometimes wooded with groves or thin lines -of cottonwood, poplar, wild cherry, and other trees. It would be possible -to ford the stream almost anywhere, Walter thought, if one did not stick -fast in the mud. He watched the shores anxiously for signs that horses -had recently been across. - -The Indians had been paddling for not more than a half hour, when Scar -Face, who was in the bow of the canoe that carried Walter and Raoul, gave -a little grunt, and pointed with his paddle blade to the low west bank. -Undoubtedly animals had gone up or down there. The willows were broken, -the mud trampled. The Indians swerved the canoe close in. The broken -bushes were still fresh. - -"_Mistatim_," said Scar Face, his keen eyes on the tracks. - -"That's the Cree word for horse," Raoul explained to Walter, "but we -can't be sure. They may have been buffalo." - -"If they were, there were only a few of them," Walter returned. "A big -band would have done more damage." - -"Yes. I believe myself our own people crossed here." - -The canoe was brought to the bank, and Scar Face stepped lightly out. -Walter and Raoul followed. The Saulteur examined the trampled ground -carefully. He gave a low grunt of satisfaction. He had found the print of -a moccasined foot, where a rider had dismounted. But he was not satisfied -yet. He followed the trail through the willows, examining it intently. -Presently he straightened up and spoke to Raoul who was close behind. - -"They came to the river," he said. - -"You mean," the boy questioned, "that they came from there,"--he nodded -towards the west,--"and went"--he pointed east across the stream. - -Scar Face grunted assent. - -"It must have been our people," Raoul said to Walter. "They are safe -across the river." - -"That is where we had better be, as soon as we can get there," was -Walter's reply. - -But the Saulteur was not quite ready to cross. He went on through the -belt of small trees beyond the willows. Walter and Raoul hesitated an -instant, then followed. They too wanted a view of the open ground. - -Their first glance across the prairie was reassuring. Except for a few -birds on the wing, the only living creature in sight was one lone animal; -a buffalo from its size and humped shape. - -"No Sioux yet," exclaimed Raoul. "I don't believe they are coming after -us at all. Nothing to be seen, except that one old buffalo." - -Scar Face knew the French word _boeuf_, commonly used by the Canadians -for buffalo. "Not buffalo," he said, pointing to the creature moving -through the tall grass. "Man on horse." - -"What?" cried Raoul. - -"Man on horse, buffalo skin over him," the Indian insisted. "See," he -added, pointing to the northwest. "More come." - -Walter had understood the dialogue and gestures well enough to guess that -Scar Face found something wrong with the distant buffalo and that he saw -or thought he saw something else beyond. Following the Indian's pointing -finger, the boy strained his eyes. He believed he could make out -something,--moving objects. - -"More buffalo," said Raoul. - -Scar Face shook his head doubtfully. The three stood gazing across the -prairie. The lone buffalo was drawing nearer. There was something queer -about it, Walter concluded. Its head was too small. Its shape was wrong. - -"He is right," exclaimed Raoul. "That is a man on horseback, stooped -over, a buffalo hide thrown over him." - -Walter recalled Murray's queer costume of the night before. What about -those far-away figures? Were _they_ buffalo? - -The day was bright and clear. There was not a trace of haze in the air, -now that the sun was climbing higher. And the land was so flat one could -see for miles. There was no longer any doubt in Walter's mind that there -was something else coming from the northwest, far away still, far beyond -the lone buffalo or horseman, but drawing nearer. Whether that something -was a band of buffalo or of mounted men he could not tell, though he -strained his eyes to make out. - -Scar Face had made up his mind that this was no place for him to stay -longer. Abruptly he turned back among the trees. Neil and Raoul asked no -questions. With Walter they heeded the silent warning and followed the -Indian back to the river. - -With scarcely a word spoken, the Ojibwas paddled across the stream to the -spot where the party that had taken the ford had left the water. Scar -Face motioned to the boys to get out. He spoke earnestly to Raoul and -Neil, and the latter translated to Walter. - -"He wants us to go on, out of the way. He and his braves are going back -to that little island." Neil pointed to a low, willow-covered islet that -parted the current just above where they had crossed and nearer to the -west bank. "If it is Murray coming they will have a good chance at him -from there." - -Taking for granted that there could be no objection to this manoeuvre, -Neil started along the trail, his comrades after him. The Indians stepped -back into their canoes. Walter felt surprised that the hot-headed Neil -should be so willing to run away from a fight. In a moment, however, he -found that Neil had no intention of running away. Instead of seeking the -open, the Scotch boy turned aside among the bushes. After searching a -little, he found a spot that suited him. - -"This will do," he said, crouching down behind a spreading osier dogwood. - -Joining Neil and looking between the red stems of the bush, Walter had an -almost clear view of the river. He could see the lower end of the tiny -islet and the spot on the opposite shore where the trail came to the -water. - -"You're going to stay and see what happens?" he asked. - -"Of course. We may have to take a hand in the fight. Murray and his -Dakotas must not cross the river, Walter. We must see to that." - -Walter nodded. Even if the Periers and Brabants had passed the Bois des -Sioux before daybreak, they could not have reached Lake Traverse yet. -They had a long way to go with tired horses. It was not impossible for -the Indians, riding hard on fresh ponies, to overtake them. Murray and -his savages must not cross. - -The Ojibwas were concealed among the willows of the low island. The lads -could get no glimpse of them. The canoes were visible in part from where -the boys were, but must be completely hidden from the opposite shore. -Crouched among the bushes, the three waited, silent and almost -motionless. Walter had about made up his mind that the horseman with the -buffalo robe,--if it actually was a horseman,--was not coming to the -ford, when Neil laid a hand on his arm and pointed across the river. - -The willows were stirring,--not with wind. An animal of some kind was -coming through. It was a horse. Walter could see its head, as it pushed -through the growth. Then the rider came into view; a tall man with a -buffalo hide wrapped about him. He was no longer trying to conceal -himself under the robe. He had let it slip down as he straightened up in -the saddle. - -Neil uttered a low exclamation, and Walter started up from his hiding -place. The whole width of the Bois des Sioux at this place was not fifty -yards. The man on the opposite shore was in full sunlight at the edge of -the water. He was tall, like Murray, but he was fully clothed and he wore -a beard. - -Raoul pulled Walter down again. "Don't yell," he warned in a whisper. -"There may be others behind him. Scar Face can see it is not Murray. I -told him how a white man warned us. He'll let him cross. He knows he will -lose his chance if he fires before he sees Murray himself." - -There was reason in what the younger boy said. Walter and Neil kept -silence, but they held their breaths for fear the Ojibwas might make a -mistake. - -McNab's horse took to the stream, picking its way carefully. The water -was shallow, the current sluggish, and the rider was not obliged to -dismount or the horse to swim. Not a leaf moved on the willow-covered -islet. Not a sound, except the peaceful twittering of a bird, came from -it, as Duncan McNab, unconscious of any peril from that direction, rode -past the tip, and on across the stream. Intent upon finding the ford, he -did not even glance back, so caught no glimpse of the birch canoes. - -Before McNab reached shore, Neil had left his post and slipped through -the bushes to meet him. In a few moments he was back again, the trader, -without his buffalo robe and horse, following. He squatted down beside -Walter and looked at the island and the bark canoes. Neil had told him of -Scar Face and his companions. - -"Are the Sioux after _you_?" Walter whispered. - -"That I don't know," was the response in French. "I suspect Murray would -set them on me if he could. When he and some of the young fools started -for your camp this morning, I thought it was time for me to be away. So I -took short leave of Chief Tatanka Wechacheta. I struck your trail at the -head of the coulee." - -"But they are coming, aren't they? We thought that----" - -"Aye, they're coming, on your trail. It was no band of buffalo you saw. I -had a buffalo hide over me and the hind quarters of my horse, but I don't -know whether I fooled them or no." His keen eyes were fastened on the -break in the bushes, watching. - -Walter asked no more questions. Silence was best. But while he waited he -stole more than one glance at the trader, whose strange appearance had -aroused his curiosity the night before. A queer figure indeed was this -tall, lank, big-boned man of almost skeleton thinness; seeming to consist -entirely of bone and gristle. His name was Scotch and so was his tongue, -but Walter suspected that he was far from being wholly white. The coarse, -straight black hair that hung below his fur cap, the dark bronze of his -long face, the high-bridged nose, and prominent cheek bones, betrayed the -Indian. Yet his beard was uneven in color, rusty in places, and the eyes -he turned on the Swiss boy were steel gray, startlingly light in his dark -face. A singular man surely, with a grim, shrewd face, no longer young, -as its many lines and wrinkles betrayed. In spite of the suspense of -waiting, Walter found himself wondering about Duncan McNab and his -history. - -The wait was not a long one. McNab suddenly raised his head, like a hound -listening. Then the ears of the others caught the sounds too,--the -crackling of twigs, the clatter of accouterments, as mounted men came -through the strip of poplars and willows on the low opposite bank of the -stream. Duncan looked to the priming of his musket and dropped a ball -into the muzzle. Walter felt for his own weapon. Even in the midst of his -excitement, the thought of shooting unwarned men from ambush sickened -him. But if Murray and his Sioux were really on the trail, they must not -cross. Fear for Elise and for Louis' mother and sisters steeled the boy's -nerves. - -The willows were moving. A horse's head appeared, then the rider, a -slender, bronze figure, brave in red paint and feathered head-dress. It -was not Murray. He halted at the edge of the water and turned his head to -look back. Another horse was coming, a white one. - -"Himsel," muttered McNab under his breath. - -The rider came in view, tall, stately, his painted body naked to the -waist, his black head bare. There was nothing about him except his size -to distinguish him from any other Indian. The two talked together for a -moment. The slender warrior seemed, from his gestures, to object or -protest. - -The waving and rustling of the willows, the sounds that came across the -water, proved that other men were following. But the track was narrow, -and they were obliged to check their horses until the leaders should take -to the water. - -"How many?" Neil whispered to McNab. - -"Eight or ten," was the equally low reply. - -The discussion ended in Murray's going first. When the white horse -stepped into the water, a cold shudder passed over Walter. He had every -cause to hate and fear the Black Murray. He hoped Scar Face would not -miss. Yet, quite unreasonably, he wished the rascally mixed blood might -have a chance to fight for his life. He looked a fine figure of a man on -his big, white horse. - -He came deliberately enough, letting his horse pick its way, as McNab had -done. From the willows on the islet there was no move, no sound. He was -opposite the tip now. He was past it. He was coming on. Had Scar Face -weakened? Had he lost his courage? - -The silence was broken by a sudden menacing sound, not loud but strangely -blood-chilling; the Ojibwa war whoop. On the near side of the islet a -figure leaped into view. At the same instant, it seemed, Murray swung -about on his horse's back, musket raised. He was a breath too late. Scar -Face had fired. - -The distance was too short, the target too good for the Ojibwa hunter to -miss. Even as his own gun went off, Murray swayed forward. The white -horse leaped and plunged. More shots came from the island. Horse and -rider went down, and the muddy water flowed over them. - -On the farther bank, the slender Dakota's horse was hit. As it fell, the -man leaped clear, and darted back among the willows. There followed an -exchange of shots between shore and islet, without a man visible in -either place. Only the puffs of smoke betrayed the hiding places. - -Gray eyes gleaming, Duncan McNab turned to Neil. "Get you awa'," he -ordered. "Ta Traverse as fast as your legs can carry ye." - -"And you?" the boy asked. - -"I'll o'ertak ye. I'll be seein' the end o' this, ta mak sure there's na -followin'. On your wa', all o' ye." - - - - - XXXIX - SAFE - - -Not one of the three boys thought of disobeying Duncan McNab's stern -command. On hands and knees, for fear some Indian might catch a glimpse -of them and send a shot in their direction, they crawled through the -bushes. Not until they were out of sight as well as out of range, did -they stand upright. - -They tried to follow McNab's instructions and make good speed towards -Lake Traverse, but all three suddenly found themselves very tired. The -night before, after a hard day's journey, they had had not a wink of -sleep. It had been a night of continuous physical exertion and intense -strain. Then came the meeting with Scar Face, and the anxious waiting for -Murray and the Dakotas, capped by the excitement of the brief fight. The -time had seemed long, yet in reality events had followed one another so -swiftly that the sun even now was scarcely more than half-way up the sky. - -"If I didn't know we were going in the right direction, I should think we -were headed north, not south," said Walter, as he plodded wearily along. -"It seems as if the sun must be on the way down, instead of up." - -Neil nodded. "I'm dead sleepy," he admitted, "but we must try to keep on -going till McNab overtakes us." - -"The firing has stopped," put in Raoul. "The fight must be over." - -"Or else the noise doesn't reach us here." - -If the fight was over, who had won? The answer to that question might -mean life or death to the fugitives. Murray had fallen, but if the -Dakotas had destroyed the Ojibwas, they might, even without his -leadership, cross the river and continue the pursuit. The boys felt they -must go on as long as they possibly could. They trudged doggedly on, -casting many a glance behind them. - -At last Neil, turning to look back, gave a cry of joy. A single horseman -was on their trail, coming at good speed. He raised one long arm in the -friendship sign. The three stopped short and dropped down to rest and let -him overtake them. They were almost asleep when he reached them. - -McNab reined in his horse and looked down at the weary figures with a -grim smile. "Weel," he said slowly, in his peculiar Scots' English with -its guttural suggestion of Dakota, "ye disappeart sa quick I thocht the -prairie had swallowed ye." - -"Did the Saulteux win?" Neil roused himself to ask. - -"Aye, an' withoot losin' a man. Scar Face himsel got a shot in the thigh, -but it's only a flesh wound. The ither side didna ken the number o' the -enemy, an' they were mair nor a little upset by Murray's fa'. When they -found they coudna drive the Ojubwas fra the wee isle, they turnt tail -theirsel an' were awa'. If ye can mak it, we'd best be gettin' ta that -bit _ile des bois_ ower yon, where ye can be sleepin' in the shade." - -The clump of small trees was only a short distance away. There, shaded -from the heat of midday, the boys slept, utterly relaxed, until the sun -was far on its downward course. Duncan McNab kept watch. He had had no -more sleep than they the night before, but he was more used to going -without and needed less than growing boys required. - -Neil's first words, when he woke to find the sun low in the west, were, -"How far have we got to go to Lake Traverse?" - -"Ta the post thirty mile or mair," was the reply. - -Neil groaned and stretched. "And we've got to walk it," he muttered. - -"Weel, ye may be glad ye've got twa soond legs left ta walk it wi'," -McNab returned with his grim smile. There were no more complaints. - -McNab, old campaigner that he was, carried cooking utensils, pemmican, -and a packet of tea in his saddle bags. A hot meal put new courage into -the lads. Before the sun was down they were on their way again. The night -was clear and light, and they kept up a steady pace till midnight. Then -they stopped for a brief rest and more tea. - -Luckily for the boys they did not have to walk the whole distance to the -trading post. Dawn had not yet come, when McNab made out a party of -horsemen coming towards them. The foremost rider waved his arms and -shouted. The boys knew that voice. Louis had come back to seek them. - -Unashamed to display his feelings, Louis sprang from his pony to hug his -brother and his friends. "Thank the good God," he cried. "I felt like a -coward and a traitor to leave you behind." - -"It was the only thing to do," Walter and Neil exclaimed together. "Are -the others safe?" - -"All safe, but we did not reach the fort till after sunset. After we -crossed the Bois des Sioux we had to rest our horses a little, and the -children slept. We dared not stop long. The ponies did their best, but -they could not carry double all the time. My mother and M'sieu Perier and -I walked much of the way, and sometimes Marie and Elise walked also." - -"And you started right back to find us?" cried Walter. - -"I rested a while first, but I could not sleep. M'sieu Renville gave me a -fresh horse, and these men offered to come with me. I thought you would -follow our trail. If I kept to it, I would find you; if _le Murrai_ had -not overtaken you." - -The _bois brules_ from the trading post gladly gave up their horses to -the weary boys, and went afoot. So Lake Traverse and the shelter of the -Columbia Fur Company's fort was reached at last. There, in one of the log -buildings within the stockade on the shore of the lake, the rest of the -little party were waiting anxiously. The boys, almost dropping from their -saddles with sleep and weariness, were embraced and shaken by the hand, -and cried over, and questioned, until the trader, Joseph Renville, -intervened. He led them away to bunks where they could sleep undisturbed -for as many hours as they cared to. - -When the boys had had their sleep out, the two sections of the party -exchanged stories. Afterwards Duncan McNab had something to add. He had -returned to the Indian camp two nights before to find the dance in full -swing. Within the medicine lodge, Murray was instructing the chosen -initiates in some sort of mystic rites. From time to time one of them -would come out to chant or howl a few words or syllables and to go -through the steps and posturings of the new dance. The men around the -fires would repeat the lesson over and over, until another of the chosen -ones appeared to teach them something new. - -"As near as I could mak oot," said Duncan, "it was something like the -medicine dance the Mdewakanton Dakota on the Mississippi mak ta their god -Unktahi, that Murray was teachin' yon Wahpetons, but he was puttin' in -some stuff of his ain. Some o' the words o' the sangs soundit like -Gaelic, but made na sense as far as I could ken, an' I hae a bit o' the -Gaelic mysel. I'm thinkin' he picked the words for their mysterious sound -like." - -When the excitement had reached the right pitch, Murray began to serve -out liquor. "I dinna ken where he got sa mickle,"--McNab shook his head. -"He had a cairt loadit wi' goods an' kegs an' what a'. He must be in wi' -ither free traders, some o' the men on the Missouri most like, or mayhap -he stole the stuff fra them. It's the wrang time o' year ta be buyin' -furs. It was the good will o' the sauvages an' power ower 'em he was -after, sa they'd be sure an' bring him their next winter's catch." - -As the liquor flowed more freely, the performance grew frenzied. It was a -wild night in Tatanka Wechacheta's village, and McNab spared his -listeners the details. He feared every moment that the Indians would raid -the neighboring camp, and discover too soon that the white men had gone. -But the Black Murray overdid the celebration. He supplied liquor so -lavishly that his followers were soon entirely overcome by it. Perhaps he -dared not try to withhold what they knew he had. And he failed to curb -his own immoderate thirst, but overindulged until, inert in the medicine -lodge, he slept as heavily as they. "I'm thinkin' it was the rascal's -owerfondness for _minnewakan_ that saved a' your lives," said McNab. "If -he hadna slept sa late, he wad sure hae owertaken the lads on foot an' -maybe the rest o' ye." - -When Murray finally roused himself, in ugly mood, he gathered together -eight or ten reckless young braves who could still sit their horses, and -started for the white men's camp. Up to that time McNab had not felt -himself in any great danger, as long as he kept to his own lodge. He was -a man of influence among the Dakotas, and back of him was the authority -of the Columbia Fur Company and of Joseph Renville. Renville himself was -half Dakota and powerful and respected among his mother's people. But the -young chief, still partially drunk, was in almost as savage a mood as -Murray that morning, and McNab did not know what might happen. - -As soon as Murray had gone, McNab took his leave. On the other side of a -tiny clump of trees, he threw his buffalo robe over his horse and -himself, hoping that, seen from behind, horse and rider might be taken -for a lone bull. He made for the head of the coulee, intending to follow -the fugitives and lend his aid if they were attacked. Finding that Murray -and his men were coming, he urged his horse to its best speed, to get -across the Bois des Sioux before them. - -After he had sent the boys on their way, McNab remained to watch the -outcome of the fight. It was soon over. The fall of Murray had struck -panic into the hearts of his followers. "There was reason for that," -Duncan explained. "Yon Wahpetons are na cowards, but Wechacheta's chief -medicine man was against Murray. The auld fellow claimed Murray was na -medicine man at a' an' had na _wakan_ or _tonwan_, na magic powers. When -Murray was gatherin' men ta plunder the white men, the auld man tauld 'em -they'd gang ta destruction sure. Murray's time was come, he said. Afore -the sun gaed doon, he wad be deed, an' likewise a' that followt him. Sa -it was na wonder the young braves was scairt when Murray was shot doon at -the ford." - -"You're sure he was killed?" questioned Renville. "From what I have heard -of the fellow, he seems to have as many lives as a cat." - -"I made sure afore ever I left the Bois des Sioux," McNab replied -quietly. "An' there's his medicine bag ta prove it." He handed Renville a -curious looking pouch made of rattlesnake skin. "An' a fine lot o' trash -there is in it,--birds' claws, an' dried roots, a copper nugget, a -snake's fang, a man's finger bone, an' a wee packet o' black, sticky -stuff. Do na handle that, it micht be poison." - -"It is poison," asserted Walter, and told the story of his infected hand. - - - - - XL - CONCLUSION - - -As guests of Joseph Renville, French _bois brule_, and Colonel Jeffries, -Scotchman, partners of the Columbia Fur Company, the Brabant-Perier party -remained at Lake Traverse for more than a week. Guided to the spot by -Louis, Renville himself went to find the abandoned carts. The vehicles -were where the boys had left them, but empty and so badly wrecked that -the remains were good for nothing but firewood. Tatanka Wechacheta's band -was gone. From the appearance of the camp ground, the Wahpetons' -departure had been a hurried one. Scar Face and his Ojibwas had vanished -also. No doubt they had returned full speed to their own country, -satisfied with their revenge and a scalp or two. - -Stripped of practically all of their belongings, the Brabants and Periers -were obliged to run in debt to the traders for supplies and equipment for -the rest of the journey. The boys agreed,--if they could pay the debt no -other way,--to work it out the next winter. With that arrangement the -partners seemed satisfied. - -Of the remainder of the long journey overland and down the St. Peter,--as -the Minnesota River was called in those days,--to the Mississippi, there -is no room here to tell. The trip was not without hardship and adventure. -Fort St. Anthony,--later to be renamed Fort Snelling,--at the junction of -the St. Peter with the Mississippi, was reached at last. There a -disappointment awaited the immigrants. St. Antoine, in his talks with -them, had not overstated the beauty and attractiveness of the country, -but his assurance that they might take possession of whatever land they -chose was an error. The country was not yet open to settlement. They -might squat on or near the military reservation, they found, but could -not obtain title to the land or be sure of undisturbed possession. They -were treated with kindness at the fort, but were not encouraged to settle -near by. Instead, they were advised to go on down the Mississippi. - -Neil had a chance to join a party just setting out for the Red River. -After parting with him, the others went on again, traveling by river in -an open boat not unlike the York boats that had taken them from Fort York -to Fort Douglas. At Prairie du Chien, on the east side of the river, they -disembarked. Prairie du Chien was in what was then Michigan Territory, -but later became Wisconsin. The little settlement resembled Pembina in -that many of its people were French Canadians and _bois brules_. There -were, however, some Americans who had come from farther east. There were -good farms and a military post. It was not necessary at Prairie du Chien -to depend entirely on hunting for a living. - -There the weary immigrants decided to try to make homes for themselves. -They made friends at once, who helped them to get a start, and prospects -seemed more encouraging than in the Red River Colony. The Brabants showed -no desire to return, and certainly the Periers and Walter did not want -to. When, late in the autumn, Louis and Walter left the settlement to -work out the family debts to the Columbia Fur Company, they went well -assured that those left behind would be comfortable and well cared for. -Other families of the Swiss had already left the Red River and more -followed, including the Scheideckers, in the next and succeeding years. -Like the Periers, they took the long journey to the Mississippi, and -settled at the junction of that river with the St. Peter or lower down -its course in what was to become Wisconsin and Illinois. - -The Brabants and the Periers had their ups and downs, but on the whole -they prospered. In time Mr. Perier's dream of an apothecary shop in the -new land came true. He even had his herb garden, started from the few -packets of seeds he had carried in his pockets during all his wanderings. -Walter became a successful farmer on his own land and married Elise, as -he had dreamed of doing. Little Max was ambitious to be a physician. He -helped in his father's shop and went to school, until he was old enough -to go east to study medicine. - -Louis and his mother were land owners also, but farming was less to -Louis' taste than following the river. He found employment on a -Mississippi steamboat, became a skilled pilot, and in time owned the boat -he captained. Of all the boys Raoul was the only one to follow the fur -trade. As a clerk and trader with the American Fur Company, he traveled -and traded over much of the northwest. The Brabant girls grew into -bright, attractive women. Marie married a Canadian settler, Jeanne, a -merchant and trader. - -Of Neil the others heard nothing for several years. Then, after the -disastrous Red River flood of 1826 that almost destroyed the Selkirk -Colony, he appeared at Prairie du Chien. His father still refused to -leave Kildonan, but Neil had decided to emigrate to the United States. He -took up land in Wisconsin, and afterwards, when the Indian lands of -Minnesota were opened to settlement, moved to the Minnesota valley. - -The bonds of friendship and understanding which had been knit by the long -journey together and the perils and hardships undergone, remained firm -and strong between the Periers, and Rossels, and Brabants, and MacKays. -Even after all had their separate homes and families, they enjoyed many a -reunion when they recalled the old days and told children and -grandchildren of the long and perilous journey from the Red River to the -Mississippi. - - - THE END - - - MYSTERY AND ADVENTURE BOOKS FOR BOYS - - _12mo. Cloth. Illustrated. Colored jackets._ - _Price 50 cents per volume._ - _Postage 10 cents additional._ - -SOUTH FROM HUDSON BAY, by E. C. Brill - - A thrilling tale of the coming of settlers from France and - Switzerland to the wilderness of the Prairie country of the Red - River district, and the adventures of three boys who find - themselves entangled in the fate of the little colony. - -THE SECRET CACHE, by E. C. Brill - - The father of two boys, a fur hunter, has been seriously injured - by an Indian. Before he dies he succeeds in telling the younger - son about a secret cache of valuable furs. The directions are - incomplete but the boys start off to find the Cache, and with the - help of men from a nearby settlement capture the Indian and bring - him to justice. - -THE ISLAND OF YELLOW SANDS, by E. C. Brill - - An exciting story of Adventure in Colonial Days in the primitive - country around Lake Superior, when the forest and waters were the - hunting ground of Indians, hunters and trappers. - -LOST CITY OF THE AZTECS, by J. A. Lath - - Four chums find a secret code stuck inside the binding of an old - book written many years ago by a famous geologist. The boys - finally solve the code and learn of the existence of the remnant - of a civilized Aztec tribe inside an extinct crater in the - southern part of Arizona. How they find these Aztecs, and their - many stirring adventures makes a story of tremendous present-day - scientific interest that every boy will enjoy. - - - SORAK JUNGLE SERIES - - By HARVEY D. RICHARDS - -_The name Sorak means War Cry in the Malay country. He grows up among the -most primitive of the Malay aborigines, and learns to combat all the -terrors of the jungle with safety. The constant battle with nature's -forces develop Sorak's abilities to such an extent that he is -acknowledged the chief warrior in all his section of the jungle._ - -_12mo. Cloth. Illustrated. Jacket in color. Price 50 cents per volume._ - _Postage 10 cents additional._ - -1. SORAK OF THE MALAY JUNGLE _or How Two Young Americans Face Death and - Win a Friend_ - - Two boys, Dick and Jack Preston are shipwrecked off the Malay - Peninsula and are rescued by Sorak. Their adventures in trying to - get back to civilization make an absorbing story. - -2. SORAK AND THE CLOUDED TIGER _or How the Terrible Ruler of the North Is - Hunted and Destroyed_ - - A huge clouded tiger, almost human, leads a pack of red dholes - into Sorak's country, and it takes all of Sorak's ingenuity, and - the aid of his friends to exterminate the pack. - -3. SORAK AND THE SULTAN'S ANKUS _or How a Perilous Journey Leads to a - Kingdom of Giants_ - - Sorak and his friends are trapped by a herd of elephants, and - finally run away with by the leader to an unknown valley where a - remnant of Cro-Magnan race still exists. Their exciting - adventures will hold the reader enthralled until the last word. - -4. SORAK AND THE TREE-MEN _or the Rescue of the Prisoner Queen_ - - Captured by a band of Malay slavers, Sorak and his friends are - wrecked on an island off the coast of Burma in the Mergui - Archipelago. Their escape from the island with the Prisoner Queen - after a successful revolution brings the fourth book of this - series to an exciting and unusual conclusion. - - - TOP NOTCH DETECTIVE STORIES - - By WILLIAM HALL - - _Each story complete in itself_ - -_A new group of detective stories carefully written, with corking plots; -modern, exciting, full of adventure, good police and detective work._ - -_Large 12mo. Cloth. Illustrated. Jacket in color. Price 50 cents per volume._ - _Postage 10 cents additional._ - -1. SLOW VENGEANCE _or the Mystery of Pete Shine_ - - A young newspaper man, whose brother is on the police force, - becomes strangely involved in the mysterious killing of an - Italian bootblack. Suspicion points to a well-known politician - but he proves that it was impossible for him to have done the - deed. Then the reporter, who for a time turns detective, gets a - clue revolving about a startling, ancient method of combat. He - follows this up, watches a masked duelist and, with the help of a - girl, catches the murderer who justifies his deed on the plea of - Slow Vengeance. You will be interested in reading how the - reporter got out of a tight corner. - -2. GREEN FIRE _or Mystery of the Indian Diamond_ - - A golf caddy who has a leaning toward amateur detective work, - together with his younger cousin, are accidentally mixed up in - the strange loss, or theft, of a valuable diamond, known as Green - Fire. It was once the eye of an East Indian idol. To clear his - young cousin of suspicion, the older boy undertakes to solve the - mystery which deepens when one man disappears and another is - found murdered on the golf course. But, by a series of clever - moves on the part of the young sleuth, the crime is solved and - the diamond found in a most unusual hiding place. A rapidly - moving, exciting tale. You will like it. - -3. HIDDEN DANGER _or The Secret of the Bank Vault_ - - A young detective, who, in his private capacity, has solved - several mysteries, decides to open an office in another city. He - meets a young bank clerk and they become partners just when the - clerk's bank is mysteriously bombed and the cashier is reported - missing. It is not until next day that it is discovered that the - bank vault has been entered in some secret manner and a large sum - stolen. The regular detectives declared "spirits" must have - robbed the bank but the two young detectives prove that a clever - gang did it and also kidnapped the aged cashier. Not a dull page - from first to last. A clever story. - - - NORTHWEST STORIES - - By LeROY W. SNELL - -_A new group of stories laid in the Canadian Northwest by Mr. Snell, a -master writer of the glories and the thrilling adventures of the Canadian -Northwest Mounted Police. Each book is an individual story, well written, -beautifully bound, and contains a story that all boys will enjoy._ - -_Large 12mo. Cloth. Illustrated. Jacket in color. Price 50 cents per volume._ - _Postage 10 cents additional._ - -1. THE LEAD DISK - - Tom Baley, leaving college goes north into Canada, hoping to join - the Northwest Mounted Police. His application is turned down by - his own uncle, an officer on the force, but after many thrilling - adventures and encounters with the Disk Gang he is able to win - the coveted uniform. - -2. SHADOW PATROL - - Luke Myers is sent into the Caribou Mountains to solve the - mystery of The Shadow, about whom many conflicting stories are - told. There are struggles with the outlaws, and finally a great - running battle down the fog-obscured mountain trails ... at the - end of which the outlaws are captured and the mystery of The - Shadow is solved. - -3. THE WOLF CRY - - Donald Pierce is sent to solve the mystery of his father's - disappearance, into the unmapped barrens where King Stively - weaves his web of wickedness, and rules a territory the size of a - small empire with a ruthlessness and cunning that baffles the - best of the Mounted Police. Behind all is the dread Wolf Cry - which causes brave men to shudder.... - -4. THE SPELL OF THE NORTH - - Sergeant David Stanlaw, stationed at Spirit River, is puzzled by - a local killing, the disappearance of the body, the finding of a - code message, and by the mystery of the "Listening Forest," which - casts a shadow of dread over the little town of Wiggin's Creek. - With the help of Jerry Bartlett they capture the leaders of the - gang and solve the mystery of the "Listening Forest." - -5. THE CHALLENGE OF THE YUKON - - Robert Wade whose patrol runs from Skagway on Chattam Strait - north into the Yukon country follows in the wake of a stampede to - a new gold strike. With the aid of his friend, Jim MacPhail, Wade - frustrates the Outlaws, who try to trap the whole town behind the - "Pass of the Closing Door," and then races them to and across the - breaking ice floes of the Yukon. A strong adventure story all - boys will enjoy. - - - THE BOMBA BOOKS - - By ROY ROCKWOOD - - _12mo. Cloth. Illustrated. With Colored jacket._ - _Price 50 cents per volume. Postage 10 cents additional._ - -_Bomba lived far back in the jungles of the Amazon with a half-demented -naturalist who told the lad nothing of his past. The jungle boy was a -lover of birds, and hunted animals with a bow and arrow and his trusty -machete. He had only a primitive education, and his daring adventures -will be followed with breathless interest by thousands._ - - 1. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY - 2. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY AT THE MOVING MOUNTAIN - 3. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY AT THE GIANT CATARACT - 4. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY ON JAGUAR ISLAND - 5. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY IN THE ABANDONED CITY - 6. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY ON TERROR TRAIL - 7. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY IN THE SWAMP OF DEATH - 8. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY AMONG THE SLAVES - 9. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY ON THE UNDERGROUND RIVER - 10. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY AND THE LOST EXPLORERS - 11. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY IN A STRANGE LAND - 12. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY AMONG THE PYGMIES - 13. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY AND THE CANNIBALS - 14. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY AND THE PAINTED HUNTERS - 15. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY AND THE RIVER DEMONS - 16. BOMBA THE JUNGLE BOY AND THE HOSTILE CHIEFTAIN - - - These books may be purchased wherever books are sold - _Send for Our Free Illustrated Catalogue_ - CUPPLES & LEON COMPANY, Publishers New York - - - - - Transcriber's Notes - - ---Copyright notice provided as in the original--this e-text is public - domain in the country of publication. - ---Research suggests that the copyright date in the printed text is not - accurate. - ---Silently corrected palpable typos; left non-standard spellings and - dialect unchanged. - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of South from Hudson Bay, by -E. C. 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