74 HILLS AND LAKES. 



as a skewer, and believed every word I said was gos- 

 pel. I hunted out this way the next season, in July, 

 and sure enough the half-breed was gone ; wife, 

 babies, and dogs, all had cut stick, for fear I should 

 eat him without salt. Old Pete Meigs and I bunked 

 in his cabin many a trip after that ; but it rotted down 

 at last, and you see the weeds and bushes have taken 

 possession of his potatoe patch. 



" I've often thought," continued my guide, " that 

 man is naterally a beast of prey, bent by nater on 

 fightin' with his fellow man, -leastwise he is ready to 

 do so, on slight occasion. Now, I all'ers felt like 

 pitchin' into a half-breed, or a regular Ingin, when- 

 ever I met them, more especially the half-breed ; and 

 I do believe I could strangle one, on a less occasion 

 than that of savin' my own life. I was bro't up in a 

 human way, and was made to believe that fightin' and 

 quarrelling and especially killin' human things, was 

 agin nater, and therefore I never harmed any of 'em, 

 but that one sneakin' cuss. But I all'ers felt 'twould 

 be human nater to larrup 'em wherever I met 'em, and 

 'twas only because I'd been taught better, that I didn't 

 do it. Edication is a great check on the nater of 

 man. It's that that makes him better'n a half-breed, 



