Hunting in the Selkirks 169 



discomfort we really minded was an occasional night 

 in wet blankets. 



In the evening the Indian and the white hunter 

 played interminable games of seven-up with a greasy 

 pack of cards. In the course of his varied life the 

 hunter had been a professional gambler; and he 

 could have easily won all the Indian s money, the 

 more speedily inasmuch as the untutored red man 

 was always attempting to cheat, and was thus giv 

 ing his far more skilful opponent a certain right to 

 try some similar deviltry in return. However, it 

 was distinctly understood that there should be no 

 gambling, for I did not wish Ammal to lose all his 

 wages while in my employ ; and the white man stood 

 loyally by his agreement. Animal s people, just be 

 fore I engaged him, had been visited by their breth 

 ren, the Upper Kootenais, and in a series of gam 

 bling matches had lost about all their belongings. 



Ammal himself was one of the Lower Kootenais ; 

 I had hired him for the trip, as the Indians west of 

 the Rockies, unlike their kinsmen of the plains, often 

 prove hard and willing workers. His knowledge of 

 English was almost nil; and our very scanty con 

 versation was carried on in the Chinook jargon, 

 universally .employed between the mountains and the 

 Pacific. Apparently he had three names: for he 

 assured us that his &quot;Boston&quot; (i.e. American) name 

 was Ammal; his &quot;Siwash&quot; (i.e. Indian) name was 

 Appak ; arid that the priest called him Abel for the 



8 VOL. II. 



