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was raised in one of the frontier counties, and we soon had abundant
evidence of their rustic breeding; dozens of them came crowding round,
pushing between our first visitors and staring at us with unabashed
faces.

"Are you the captain?" asked one fellow.

"What's your business out here?" asked another.

"Whar do you live when you're at home?" said a third.

"I reckon you're traders," surmised a fourth; and to crown the whole,
one of them came confidentially to my side and inquired in a low voice,
"What's your partner's name?"

As each newcomer repeated the same questions, the nuisance became
intolerable. Our military visitors were soon disgusted at the concise
nature of our replies, and we could overhear them muttering curses
against us. While we sat smoking, not in the best imaginable humor, Tete
Rouge's tongue was never idle. He never forgot his military character,
and during the whole interview he was incessantly busy among his
fellow-soldiers. At length we placed him on the ground before us, and
told him that he might play the part of spokesman for the whole. Tete
Rouge was delighted, and we soon had the satisfaction of seeing him talk
and gabble at such a rate that the torrent of questions was in a great
measure diverted from us. A little while after, to our amazement, we saw
a large cannon with four horses come lumbering up behind the crowd; and
the driver, who was perched on one of the animals, stretching his neck
so as to look over the rest of the men, called out:

"Whar are you from, and what's your business?"

The captain of one of the companies was among our visitors, drawn by
the same curiosity that had attracted his men. Unless their faces belied
them, not a few in the crowd might with great advantage have changed
places with their commander.

"Well, men," said he, lazily rising from the ground where he had been
lounging, "it's getting late, I reckon we had better be moving."

"I shan't start yet anyhow," said one fellow, who was lying half asleep
with his head resting on his arm.

"Don't be in a hurry, captain," added the lieutenant.

"Well, have it your own way, we'll wait a while longer," replied the
obsequious commander.

At length however our visitors went straggling away as they had come,
and we, to our great relief, were left alone again.

No one can deny the intrepid bravery of these men, their intelligence
and the bold frankness of their character, free from all that is mean
a