figures of a dozen
men. They sat silent. Occasionally a cigar glowed brighter for a moment,
then dulled. Across a single square of subdued light the smoke eddied.

The three travellers approached, Sam Bolton in the lead, peering through
the dusk in search of his chief. In a moment he made him out, sitting,
as always, square to the world, his head sunk forward, his eyes gleaming
from beneath the white tufts of his eyebrows. At once the woodsmen
mounted the steps.

No one stirred or spoke. Only the smokers suspended their cigars in
mid-air a few inches from their faces in the most perfect attitude of
attention.

"Galen Albret," announced the old woodsman, "here is the Ojibway,
Jingoss."

The Factor stirred slightly; his bulk, the significance of his features
lost in obscurity.

"Me-en-gen!" he called, sharply.

The tall, straight figure of his Indian familiar glided from the dusk of
the veranda's end.

"To-morrow at smoke time," commanded the Factor, using the Ojibway
tongue, "let this man be whipped before the people, fifty lashes. Then
let him be chained to the Tree for the space of one week, and let it be
written above him in Ojibway and in Cree that thus Galen Albret punishes
those who steal."

Without a word Me-en-gan took the defaulter by the arm and conducted him
away.

Galen Albret had fallen into a profound silence, which no one ventured
to break. Dick and Sam, uncertain as to whether or not they, too, were
dismissed, shifted uneasily.

"How did you find him?" demanded the Factor, abruptly.

"We went with old Haukemah's band down as far as the Mattawishguia.
There we left them and went up stream and over the divide. Dick here
broke his leg and was laid up for near three months. I looked all that
district over while he was getting well. Then we made winter travel down
through the Kabinikagam country and looked her over. We got track of
this Jingoss over near the hills, but he got wind of us and skipped when
we was almost on top of him. We took his trail. He went straight north,
trying to shake us off, and we got up into the barren country. We'd have
lost him in the snow if it hadn't been for that dog there. He could
trail him through new snow. We run out of grub up there, and finally I
gave out. Dick here pushed on alone and found the Injun wandering around
snow-blind. He run onto some caribou about that time, too, and killed
some. Then he came back and got me:--I had a little pemmican and boiled
m