WE PROPITIATE THE HUNTING GOD. 67 



of us. A-ta-ka-koup stopped me and lit a small fire, at which 

 he sat down, and lighting his pipe he blew a whilF to the north, 

 south, east, and west, and one upwards. He remained 

 solemnly looking at the fire for nearly an hour, evidently 

 praying, and then declared himself ready, and approached the 

 bushes on one side, placing me on the other; and very soon 

 the deer came out close to me. Having remained so long by 

 such a little fire my fingers were almost frozen and I missed the 

 first ; but broke the hind leg of the second, and A-ta-ka-koup 

 ran it down, bounding through the deep snow like a deer. He 

 seemed to think that my hitting the deer was in answer to his 

 prayers, and was very pleased. 



I have before mentioned what a good companion A-ta-ka- 

 koup was when out hunting, and how he was always ready to 

 make up the fire at night, and in this he was a great contrast 

 to most Indians, who will try and shirk work in camp, leaving 

 you to do everything. 



[t is amusing, when camping in the snow, to observe the 

 little artifices put in practice to make your neighbour get up and 

 renew the fire instead of doing it yourself. T have seen men 

 pretend to have nightmare, screaming and kicking in furious 

 style ; then they have coughing fits or roll against their 

 neighbour. Anything is better than getting up yourself, as it 

 means wading through the snow to fetch more wood, and some- 

 times going far into the timber to get it, and taking a good 

 deal of snow into your bag when you turn in again. 



Sleeping out in a snowstorm is a curious experience, till you 

 are used to it. Snow falls so rapidly in that country that you 

 very soon have from six to eighteen inches of snow on you ; 

 and I shall never forget my feelings when waking up one 



