la, puzzled.

"Get a respectable woman to come live with you, and I'll say all
right."

Bela nodded and marched out of the store without wasting any further
words.

In an hour she was back, bringing Mary, Bateese Otter's widow. Mary,
according to the standards of the settlement, was a paragon of
virtue. Gilbert Beattie grinned.

"Here is Mary Otter," said Bela calmly. "She poor. She goin' live with
me. I guess she is respectable. She live in the mission before, and
scrub the floors. Pere Lacombe tell her come live wit' me. Is that all
right?"

Since Bela had secured the sanction of the Church upon her enterprise,
Beattie felt that the responsibility was no longer his. He gladly gave
her her way.

The astonishing news spread up and down the road like lightning. Bela
Charley was going to open a "resteraw." Here was a new and fascinating
subject for gossip.

Nobody knew that Bela was in the settlement. Nobody had seen her come.
Exactly like her, said those who were familiar with her exploits in
the past. What would happen when Bela and Sam met again? others asked.

While everybody had helped this story on its rounds, no man believed
that Bela had really carried off Sam. Funny that this girl should turn
up almost at the moment of the other girl's departure! Nobody,
however, suspected as yet that there was anything more than
coincidence in this.

The main thing was Bela was known to be an A1 cook, and the grub at
the French outfit was rotten. Mahooley himself confessed it.

Within two hours six men, including Big Jack and his pals, arrived for
dinner. Bela was not at all discomposed. She had already laid in
supplies from the company. Dinner would be ready for all who came, she
said, six bits per man. Breakfast and supper, four bits.

To-day they would have to sit on the floor, but by to-morrow proper
arrangements would be completed. No, there would be no accommodations
for sleeping. Everybody must go home at ten o'clock. While they waited
they could cut some good sods to mend the roof, if they wanted.

Some of the guests, thinking of the past, approached her somewhat
diffidently; but if Bela harboured any resentment, she hid it well.
She was the same to all, a wary, calm, efficient hostess.

Naturally the men were delighted to be given an opportunity to start
fresh. Three of them laboured at the roof with a will. Husky, who only
had one good arm, cleaned fish for her. The dinner, when it came on,
was no dis