finding all these of no avail, he tried to make the
Indian understand him by repeating English words very loudly and
distinctly again and again. The Indian sat with his eye fixed steadily
upon him, and in spite of the rigid immobility of his features, it was
clear at a glance that he perfectly understood his military companion's
character and thoroughly despised him. The exhibition was more amusing
than politic, and Tete Rouge was directed to finish what he had to say
as soon as possible. Thus rebuked, he crept under the cart and sat down
there; Henry Chatillon stopped to look at him in his retirement, and
remarked in his quiet manner that an Indian would kill ten such men and
laugh all the time.

One by one our visitors rose and stalked away. As the darkness thickened
we were saluted by dismal sounds. The wolves are incredibly numerous
in this part of the country, and the offal around the Arapahoe camp had
drawn such multitudes of them together that several hundred were howling
in concert in our immediate neighborhood. There was an island in
the river, or rather an oasis in the midst of the sands at about the
distance of a gunshot, and here they seemed gathered in the greatest
numbers. A horrible discord of low mournful wailings, mingled with
ferocious howls, arose from it incessantly for several hours after
sunset. We could distinctly see the wolves running about the prairie
within a few rods of our fire, or bounding over the sand-beds of the
river and splashing through the water. There was not the slightest
danger to be feared from them, for they are the greatest cowards on the
prairie.

In respect to the human wolves in our neighborhood, we felt much less
at our ease. We seldom erected our tent except in bad weather, and that
night each man spread his buffalo robe upon the ground with his loaded
rifle laid at his side or clasped in his arms. Our horses were picketed
so close around us that one of them repeatedly stepped over me as I lay.
We were not in the habit of placing a guard, but every man that night
was anxious and watchful; there was little sound sleeping in camp, and
some one of the party was on his feet during the greater part of the
time. For myself, I lay alternately waking and dozing until midnight.
Tete Rouge was reposing close to the river bank, and about this time,
when half asleep and half awake, I was conscious that he shifted his
position and crept on all-fours under the cart. Soon after I fell i