ROMANCE AND ADVENTURE 29 



a pair of black stockings, and low, beaded moccasins. I 

 admired her appearance, but regretted her shyness, for she was 

 almost as bashful as I was. She bowed and blushed — so did 

 I — and while her parents talked to me she sat demurely silent 

 on the sofa. Occasionally, I caught from her with pleasant 

 embarrassment a shy but fleeting glance. 



Presently, dinner was announced by a half-breed maid, 

 and we four took our places at the table, Athabasca opposite 

 me. At first the talk was lively, though only three shared in it. 

 Then, as the third seemed rather more interested in his silent 

 partner, he would from time to time lose the thread of the dis- 

 course. By degrees the conversation died down into silence. A 

 few minutes later Mrs. Spear suddenly remarked: 



"Father . . . don't you think it would be a good 

 thing if you took son-in-law into partnership?" 



Father leaned back, scratched his head for a while, and 

 then replied : 



"Yes, Mother, I do, and I'll do it." 



The silent though beautiful Athabasca, without even 

 raising her eyes from her plate, blushed violently, and needless 

 to say, I blushed, too, but, of course, only out of sympathy. 



"The horses are too busy, just now, to haul the logs, but of 

 course the young people could have our spare room until I 

 could build them a log shack." 



"Father, that's a capital idea. So there's no occasion for 

 any delay whatever. Then, when their house is finished, we 

 could spare them a bed, a table, a couple of chairs, and give 

 them a new cooking stove." 



Athabasca blushed deeper than ever, and studied her plate 

 all the harder, and I began to show interest and prick up my 

 ears, for I wondered who on earth son-in-law could be? I 

 knew perfectly well there was no young white man in all that 

 region, and that even if he lived in the nearest frontier town, it 

 would take him, either by canoe or on snowshoes, at least two 



