y; to which the Hurons returned a fierce and haughty
refusal. There was danger that, if vexed or thwarted, the rabble of
excited savages now gathered before the fort might turn from friends
into enemies, and in some burst of wild caprice lift parricidal
tomahawks against their French fathers. Dubuisson saw no choice but to
humor them, put himself at their head, aid them in their vengeance, and
even set them on. Therefore, when they called out for admittance, he
did not venture to refuse it, but threw open the gate.

The savage crew poured in till the fort was full. The chiefs gathered
for council on the parade, and the warriors crowded around, a living
wall of dusky forms, befeathered heads, savage faces, lank snaky locks,
and deep-set eyes that glittered with a devilish light. Their orator
spoke briefly, but to the purpose. He declared that all present were
ready to die for their French father, who had stood their friend against
the bloody and perfidious Outagamies. Then he begged for food, tobacco,
gunpowder, and bullets. Dubuisson replied with equal conciseness,
thanked them for their willingness to die for him, said that he would do
his best to supply their wants, and promised an immediate distribution
of powder and bullets; to which the whole assembly answered with yells
of joy.

Then the council dissolved, and the elder warriors stalked about the
fort, haranguing their followers, exhorting them to fight like men and
obey the orders of their father. The powder and bullets were served out,
after which the whole body, white men and red, yelled the war-whoop
together,--"a horrible cry, that made the earth tremble," writes
Dubuisson.[283] An answering howl, furious and defiant, rose close at
hand from the palisaded camp of the enemy, the firing began on both
sides, and bullets and arrows filled the air.

The French and their allies outnumbered their enemies fourfold, while
the Outagamie and Mascoutin warriors were encumbered with more than
seven hundred women and children. Their frail defences might have been
carried by assault; but the loss to the assailants must needs have been
great against so brave and desperate a foe, and such a mode of attack is
repugnant to the Indian genius. Instead, therefore, of storming the
palisaded camp, the allies beleaguered it with vindictive patience, and
wore out its defenders by a fire that ceased neither day nor night. The
French raised two tall scaffolds, from which they overlook