208 LOST IN THE WILDERNESS 



signed to him. It had a window facing north and 

 a hundred yards or so due north of it again was a 

 dense belt of young spruce and Canada balsam. 

 Three or four days after our arrival, my sister 

 told me she thought that William did not sleep 

 in his bed. The bed clothes were turned up and 

 the pillow and bed pressed down, but the bed was 

 cold and she was certain it had not been used. 

 I was rather taken aback by this and wondered if 

 he had already begun his tricks. Our nearest 

 neighbour was half a mile distant. Could he 

 possibly go there? I determined to watch him. 

 That same night I pretended to retire as usual 

 about half -past nine, as we had to rise early. 

 William went to his room and I heard him close 

 the door carefully and lock it. Coming down- 

 stairs quietly I slipped out and took a position 

 from where I could observe the windows of his 

 room. The light was already extinguished and I 

 watched a couple of hours to no purpose. We had 

 arranged to go fishing next day, so at the first 

 streak of dawn I went to wake him up. He an- 

 swered immediately, and I heard him shuffling 

 on the floor and opening the door. One glance 

 sufficed to show that he had not lain on the bed, 

 so I asked him straight what was wrong. He 

 answered that there was nothing wrong, but that 

 he was afraid of the Indians and thought that 

 as he was a stranger they might kill and scalp 

 him. He also said that he had heard a strange 



