s a little rude, but after taking such a
stand I could not weaken, especially before such a haughty and
disdainful little vixen. It was too great a temptation. What eyes
she had! Contrary to what I expected, this little frontier
settlement bids fair to become interesting."

The afternoon wore slowly away, and until late in the day nothing
further happened to disturb Alfred's meditations, which consisted
chiefly of different mental views and pictures of red lips and black
eyes. Just as he decided to return to the fort for his supper he
heard the barking of a dog that he had seen running along the road
some moments before. The sound came from some distance down the
river bank and nearer the fort. Walking a few paces up the bluff
Alfred caught sight of a large black dog running along the edge of
the water. He would run into the water a few paces and then come out
and dash along the shore. He barked furiously all the while. Alfred
concluded that he must have been excited by a fox or perhaps a wolf;
so he climbed down the steep bank and spoke to the dog. Thereupon
the dog barked louder and more fiercely than ever, ran to the water,
looked out into the river and then up at the man with almost human
intelligence.

Alfred understood. He glanced out over the muddy water, at first
making out nothing but driftwood. Then suddenly he saw a log with an
object clinging to it which he took to be a man, and an Indian at
that. Alfred raised his rifle to his shoulder and was in the act of
pressing the trigger when he thought he heard a faint halloo.
Looking closer, he found he was not covering the smooth polished
head adorned with the small tuft of hair, peculiar to a redskin on
the warpath, but a head from which streamed long black hair.

Alfred lowered his rifle and studied intently the log with its human
burden. Drifting with the current it gradually approached the bank,
and as it came nearer he saw that it bore a white man, who was
holding to the log with one hand and with the other was making
feeble strokes. He concluded the man was either wounded or nearly
drowned, for his movements were becoming slower and weaker every
moment. His white face lay against the log and barely above water.
Alfred shouted encouraging words to him.

At the bend of the river a little rocky point jutted out a few yards
into the water. As the current carried the log toward this point,
Alfred, after divesting himself of some of his clothing, plunged in