

INDIANS AS GUIDES 
Some of Their Peculiarities, and Some Facts to Bear in Mind 
in Dealing with Them 
BY JOHN BOYD 
= HE North American In- 
“| dian has always been a 
conundrum. He is a 
stoic of the most pro- 
nounced type—a man 
unmoved by joy or 
grief—who takes all 
things as they come, 
and as a matter of 
course. He is not com- 
municative to stran- 
gers, but loquacious 
enough among his fellows. 
As these peculiari- 
ties affect many 
sportsmen who must 
perforce employ In- 
dians as guides or 
carriers, I purpose 
relating some experi- 
ences that deal with 
these peculiar people. 
In the first place, to 
be successful with 
Indians, one must 
possess a large stock 
of patience. It is also 
essential to have the 
knack of gaining 
their confidence, for 
if you lack either of 
these two necessary 
qualifications there is 
little use trying to get 
anything out of them ; 
for these sons of the 
forest can be silent 
as death when it suits 
them and seldom ut- 
ter more than a word 
or two in reply to the 
most comprehensive 
question, 


ONE OF THE OLD TYPE OF OJIBWA 
A good Indian is a worker, not a talker; 
while a shiftless, lazy one is generally pos- 
sessed of a larger proportion of speech. 
When on a trip, the hunter or fisherman 
generally has to have a guide, and in many 
parts of the country an Indian is often the 
only one who possesses the necessary 
knowledge. He cannot be picked out by 
his employer as one would under ordinary 
conditions select his help, but is usually 
recommended by some one who knows him. 
He comes to us, therefore, as a stranger, 
and each have to find out the peculiarities 
of the other. 
As we meet we 
salute him with an ex- 
tended hand and a 
Ow: UO. > ELIS 
hand greets ours with- 
out a word in return 
and—we do the shak- 
ing. If during this 
preliminary exchange 
of first courtesies his 
face is lighted up 
ina pleasant way, we 
may know that he 
has come in contact 
with his white broth- 
er a good deal, but if 
it retains its sphinx- 
like stolidity we can 
feel assured that he is 
one of the old type. 
The next move is 
ours. We inquire 
about the hunting— 
is it good this year 
around here? 
‘““O-yes,” is the 
answer, uttered in a 
one-syllable grunt. 
“Can you take 
