9 2 ON SNOW-SHOES TO THE BARREN GROUNDS 



hearer for acceptance of his tales. He lies by choice 

 rather than from necessity, and should the necessity occur 

 he makes a virtue of his lying. Nor is he abashed if dis- 

 covered. Really I believe he views every plain statement 

 as a lost opportunity. Every camp-fire, every meeting at 

 the post, invariably becomes an excuse for the discussion 



THE NORTHLAND SHOEMAKER 



of dogs and the recital of astonishing feats of snow-shoe 

 running. The fact that no one of the assemblage ever 

 did or ever could perform the extraordinary feats re- 

 counted does not detract a particle from the quality of 

 the story or its enjoyment by the listeners. It's a case of 

 the man with the last story having the best of it. Still, 

 with all his vainglorious talk, the Indian is an unhesitat- 

 ing admirer of real prowess, and good runners are indeed 



