The Home of the Wolverene and Beaver. 2og 



springing backwards clear of the blow, shot his 

 assailant dead on the spot. 



Affairs would have gone badly with the two 

 whites had the Indians not raised the war-whoop ; 

 but luckily Mr. Stuart was at no great distance, 

 and, hearing the yell, hurried back with half a dozen 

 men, to find Reed lying in a pool of his own blood, 

 while an Indian was bending over in the act of 

 despatching him with a tomahawk. A rifle ball 

 from a Kentucky trapper laid the savage low, and 

 the men then charged the Indians, who fled in all 

 directions. Carrying Reed with them, the party 

 then hurried to the upper end of the portage, and 

 embarked in their canoes amidst the yells and war- 

 whoops of the exasperated natives. 



Paddling with all their strength, the white men 

 continued their journey along the southern bank of 

 the river, whilst the Indians returned to the scene 

 of action, and removed their two friends, one of 

 whom was still living, to the village. Here they 

 roused themselves to a proper pitch of frenzy by 

 killing two horses, whose blood they drank, and by 

 dancing around the corpse of the slain man, and 

 then, having painted themselves for battle, mounted 

 their horses, and started off with the intention of 

 getting ahead of the canoes, which they hoped 

 to surprise, and then to take a terrible revergc en the 

 o 



