L\ THE FAR WEST. 259 



" Well, I stopped in camp that night, but not in any tepee, as 

 I had plenty of blankets of my own, so I slept under a tree. 

 Next day I traded some powder and balls for a large chunk of 

 elk, and slinging 1 this on my saddle, I marched out of camp 

 without saying a word to anybody. I travelled about five 

 miles that day, and seeing beaver signs plenty, I concluded to 

 try my luck there. I made a nice wickiup in a thicket of 

 cottonwoods, and after that was built I placed my traps in the 

 creek until I got within two miles, may be, of the Injun 

 camp, for I saw the Injuns weren't working it, because, 

 perhaps, they were after scalps not beavers. 



"'Were you not afraid of being so near them when alone?' 

 said I. 



" No/' was the answer, " because I knew they wouldn't 

 hurt me so long as I had made a friend of the chief, and that 

 he was a friend I guessed from the way in which he took some 

 matches from me. He didn't know what they were, except 

 that they would light when struck ; and as this seemed to be 

 great medicine to him, I knew he would put them in his 

 medicine bag and worship them ever after, and I, of 

 course, would always be respected by him for giving him the 

 medicine. 



" Well, I stayed in camp there two days, but I wasn't idle, for 

 I killed four deer, in order to have plenty of meat for a week 

 or two. On the third day I visited my traps, and when I 

 got to those near the Injun village I heard a tremendous 

 yelling, and, on looking about, saw a dozen of the redskins 

 running out of a piece of woods, not seventy yards away from 

 me, and about fifty more legging it after them and shooting 

 arrows at them in a lively style. 



" I knew at once that it was a surprise by the Blackfeet, and 

 as I did not care to be jumped by them, I dodged into the 

 sage brush and threw myself flat on the ground. Very soon 

 after, I saw three Injuns running across my front, and on 

 sitting up a little found that the first was this Jem, and that 

 the other two were big Blackfeet, who were screaming like 

 the steam-whistle of a cotton-mill. Now, Jem having been 

 good to me, I didn't care to see him double-banked, and as 1 



