ACROSS THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS, ETC. 93 



wards us at full gallop. One of these was a Canadian, as his 

 peculiar physiognomy, scarlet sash, and hat ribbons of gaudy 

 colors, clearly proved, and the two who accompanied him, were 

 Indians. These people greeted us with great cordiality, the 

 more so, perhaps, as they had supposed, on seeing the smoke 

 from our fire, that we were a band of Blackfeet, and that, there- 

 fore, there was no alternative for them but to fight. While we 

 were conversing, the whole party, of about thirty, came up, and 

 it needed but a glance at the motley group of tawdrily dressed 

 hybrid boys, and blanketted Indians, to convince us that this 

 was McKay's company travelling on to join him at Fort Hall. 



They inquired anxiously about their leader, and seemed 

 pleased on being informed that he was so near ; the prospect of a 

 few day's rest at the fort, and the regale by which their arrival 

 was sure to be commemorated, acted upon the spirits of the mer- 

 curial young half-breeds, like the potent liquor which they ex- 

 pected soon to quaff in company with the kindred souls who 

 were waiting to receive them. 



They all seemed hungry, and none required a second invita- 

 tion to join us at our half finished meal. The huge masses of 

 savoury fleece meat, hump-ribs, and side-ribs disappeared, and 

 were polished with wonderful dispatch ; the Canadians ate like 

 half famished wolves, and the sombre Indians, although slower 

 and more sedate in their movements, were very little behind 

 their companions in the agreeable process of mastication. 



The next day we rode thirty-four miles, and encamped on a 

 pretty little stream, fringed with willows, running through the 

 midst of a large plain. Within a few miles, we saw a small 

 herd of buffalo, and six of our company left the camp for a hunt. 

 In an hour two of them returned, bringing the meat of one ani- 

 mal. We all commenced work immediately, cutting it in thin 

 slices, and hanging it on the bushes to dry. By sundown, our 

 work was finished, and soon after dark, the remaining hunters 



