ed no
little variety of ornament. The materials, though rude, were very
curiously wrought, and so judiciously placed, as to make the whole of
her garb have a very pleasant, though rather romantic appearance.

_Brian._ Poor woman! I should like to have seen her in the hut of her
own building, and the clothes of her own making.

_Hunter._ Her leisure hours from hunting had been employed in twisting
the inner rind or bark of willows into small lines, like net-twine, of
which she had some hundred fathoms by her. With these she intended to
make a fishing-net, as soon as the spring advanced. It is of the inner
bark of the willows, twisted in this manner, that the Dog-ribbed
Indians make their fishing-nets; and they are much preferable to those
made by the Northern Indians.

Five or six inches of an iron hoop, made into a knife, and the shank
of an arrow-head of iron, which served her as an awl, were all the
metals this poor woman had with her when she escaped; and with these
implements she had made herself complete snow-shoes, and several other
useful articles.

_Austin._ Capital! Why, she seems able to do every thing.

_Hunter._ Her method of making a fire was equally singular and
curious, having no other materials for that purpose than two hard
stones. These, by long friction and hard knocking, produced a few
sparks, which at length communicated to some touch-wood. But as this
method was attended with great trouble, and not always successful, she
did not suffer her fire to go out all the winter.

[Illustration: Indian Canoes.]

[Illustration: _c_, drum. _d, d_, rattles. _e_, drum. _f_, mystery
whistle. _g_, deer-skin flute.]

CHAPTER XII.

Never, sure, did young people make a more grotesque appearance, than
did Austin, Brian, and Basil Edwards, in their attempt to get up a
buffalo dance. Each had a mat over his shoulders, and a brown paper
mask over his face; two wooden pegs on a string made a very
respectable pair of horns; bows and arrows were in abundance; a toy
rattle and drum, with the addition of an iron spoon and a wooden
trencher, supplied them with music; and neither Mandan, Pawnee, Crow,
Sioux, Blackfoot, nor Camanchee, could have reasonably complained of
the want of either noise or confusion.

Then, again, they were very successful in bringing buffaloes, without
which the dance, excellent as it was, would have been but an
unsatisfactory a