244 



Incide7its of Audubon s Life. 



ure was passing and repassing as if busily 

 engaged in household arrangements. 



" I reached the spot," says Audubon, "and 

 presenting myself at the door, asked the tall 

 figure, which proved to be that of a woman, 

 if I might take shelter under her roof for 

 the night. Her voice was gruff, and her 

 dress negligently thrown about her. She 

 answered in the affirmative. I walked in, 

 took a wooden stool, and quietly seated 

 myself by the fire. The next object that 

 attracted my notice was a finely formed 

 young Indian, resting his head between his 

 hands, with his elbows on his knees. A 

 long bow rested against the log wall near 

 him, while a quantity of arrows, and two or 

 three raccoon skins, lay at his feet. He 

 moved not, he apparently breathed not. 

 Accustomed to the habits of the Indians, 

 and knowing that they pay little attention 

 to the approach of civilized strangers, I ad- 

 dressed him in French, a language not un- 

 frequently partially known to the people of 

 that neighborhood. He raised his head, 

 pointed to one of his eyes with his finger, 

 and gave me a significant glance with the 

 other; his face was covered with blood. 



"The fact was that an hour before this, 

 as he was in the act of discharging an arrow 

 at a raccoon in the top of a tree, the arrow 

 had split upon the cord, and sprung back 

 with such violence into his right eye as to 

 destroy it for ever. 



"Feeling hungry, I inquired what sort of 

 fare I might expect. Such a thing as a bed 

 was not to be seen, but many large untanned 

 buffalo hides lay piled in a corner. I drew 

 a time-piece from my pocket, and told the 

 woman that it was late, and that I was fa- 

 tigued. She espied my watch, the richness 

 of which seemed to operate on her feelings 

 with electric quickness. She told me there 

 was plenty of venison and jerked buffalo 

 meat, and that on removing the ashes I 

 should find a cake. But my watch had 

 struck her fancy, and her curiosity had to 

 be gratified by an immediate sight of it. I 



took off the gold chain which secured it 

 around my neck and presented it to her. 

 She was all ecstacy, spoke of its beauty, 

 asked me its value, and put the chain round 

 her brawny neck, saying how happy the 

 possession of such a watch would make her. 

 Thoughtless, and as I fancied myself in so 

 retired a spot, secure, I paid little attention 

 to her talk or her movements. I helped 

 my dog to a good supper of venison, and 

 was not long in satisfying the demands of 

 my own appetite. 



"The Indian rose from his seat as if in 

 extreme suffering. He passed and repassed 

 me several times, and once pinched me in 

 the side so violently, that the pain nearly 

 brought forth an exclamation of anger. I 

 looked at him, his eye met mine, but his 

 look was so forbidding that it struck a chill 

 into the nervous part of my system. He 

 again seated himself, drew his butcher knife 

 from its greasy scabbard, examined its edge 

 as I would that of a razor suspected dull, 

 replaced it, and again taking his tomahawk 

 from his back, filled the pipe of it with to- 

 bacco, and sent me expressive glances when- 

 ever our hostess chanced to have her back 

 toward us. 



" Never until that moment had my senses 

 been awakened to the danger which I now 

 suspected to be about me. I returned glance 

 for glance to my companion, and rested well 

 assured that whatever enemies I might have 

 he was not of their number. 



" I asked the woman for my watch, wound 

 it up, and on the pretense of wishing to see 

 how the weather might probably be on the 

 morrow, took up my gun and walked out of 

 the cabin. I slipped a ball into each barrel, 

 scraped the edges of my flints, renewed the 

 primings, and returning to the hut, gave a 

 favorable account of my observations. I 

 took a few bear skins, made a pallet of 

 them, and calling my faithful dog to my 

 side, lay down with my gun close to my 

 body, and in a few moments was to all ap- 

 pearance fast asleep. 



