xiii ON THE HOMEWARD TRAIL 271 



reaching Valdez was to pay an early visit to the leading 

 attorney in the town to discover if it was possible to get any 

 redress at law for the outrageous treatment I had received, 

 and the ruination of the end of my shooting trip. The 

 learned man said he would consider the matter, and I 

 furnished him with all particulars, and also a copy of the trial 

 and proceedings in my own case, promising to return a little 

 later for his opinion. It appeared that at the same time my 

 friend the Marshal had paid a visit to his commanding 

 officer, who was at Valdez, and was the Head Marshal for 

 that district of Alaska. No doubt the latter had received a 

 very highly coloured account of the case from his subordinate, 

 but he was rather foolish to act as he subsequently did. It 

 so happened that he had occasion to go into the office of my 

 attorney shortly after my call, and told him that he had 

 heard all about me, and that he knew I was shooting in 

 Alaska with forged permits, and that the documents I carried 

 were not genuine ones. The amusing part of it was that 

 the attorney was at that very moment holding my permits, 

 signed by the Minister at Washington, in his hand, and he 

 remarked that he thought the Marshal was going a little too 

 far, as he also knew something about the case in point. 



On my return to his office he said that the state of the 

 case was as follows. It appears that the Head Marshal of 

 a district, such as this man was, had to put up a bond of 

 security before being appointed. This bond was a fairly 

 large sum, and so far as I could understand it was put up as 

 a guarantee of good behaviour on the part of the Marshal 

 whilst in the execution of his duty. The Head Marshal of a 

 district appoints the Deputy- Marshals under him, such as 

 our friend of Cook's Inlet. These Deputies do not put up a 

 bond, and generally have little or nothing beyond the salary 



