r is fairly
here, and, if Taggarak goes off on any raids, we ought to be able to
make a full man apiece."

George looked into the face of his brother to see if he was in earnest.

"Do you mean that, Victor?"

"I certainly do. Why not?"

"It is well enough to fight when you have to, but Deerfoot will never
let you do anything of that kind, nor would I agree to it. It would be
trying to kill other people just for the fun of doing so, and _that_ is
contrary to what the Shawanoe has taught us."

"I suppose we shall have to get on as best we can with the other
amusements, but I tremble when I think of the weather that will be here
in a few weeks."

George looked around at the brown shaggy walls of buffalo fur. He
grasped some of the long soft hairs in his palm and stroked the cool
mass.

"We need never run short of fuel, and when the fire is going and the
door shut I don't see why we shall not be as warm as in our own home at
Woodvale. But what shall we _do_? _That's_ the question. It will be
tiresome beyond bearing to lie here stretched hour after hour during
the day."

"Plague take it!" impatiently exclaimed Victor; "who is going to do
anything of the kind? I should like to see Deerfoot let you sleep and
lounge your days away. He will share the lodge with us, and you may be
sure he'll keep things moving. There isn't any weather cold enough nor
snow deep enough to hold him within doors, and he'll hustle you out
with him. So let's hear no more of that. Then you mustn't forget,
George, that we shall make lots of acquaintances among these people. We
have learned to speak a good many words of Blackfoot, and shall learn
more; we shall take a liking to some of these folks, and, if we have
any kind of tact, shall make them like us. Most of them have never
before looked upon a white person, but they will soon get over their
wonder, and we shall all stand on the same level."

"Well, Victor, you have done a good deal to cheer me up. I guess it was
the homesickness, after all, that made me blue. See here, these two
fellows that put up this house for us have been such good friends that
we must be able to call them by name."

"Mul-tal-la has repeated them several times to us."

"Now, will you repeat either of the names to me?"

"I couldn't do it to save my life. They are so long and outlandish that
I can never get my, tongue around them."

"Let's give them shorter names."

"Well, suppose you name the taller one, who h