e of the Aleut chief peered in. He jabbered
in his native language to the boy, who replied briefly and composedly.
The chief now pushed his way into the hut, and, much to the annoyance of
the white occupants, he was followed by a dozen other natives, who came
crowding in and filling the place with the rank smell of wet fur and
feathers. They seated themselves around the edge of the barabbara, and
one of them presently began to make a fire.

"Dis barabbara--_my_ peoples!" said the chief. "My families come here
all light, all light, all light!"

"Just as I thought," said Rob, aside, to the others. "It is we who are
the visitors, not they. John, you act as interpreter. Ask him how far it
is to Kadiak."

The keen-witted chief caught the sound of the latter word.

"You come Kadiak?" he said. "Come dory? You no got-um schooner?"

"Schooner by-and-by," broke in Rob, hurriedly. "Our peoples come."

The chief sat thoughtful for a time, his cunning eyes looking from one
to the other.

"What you give go Kadiak?" he asked, at length.

"Schooner come by-and-by," retorted Rob, coldly.

The chief chuckled to himself shrewdly.

"Where bad mans go?" he asked, after awhile.

Rob shrugged his shoulder and pointed toward the mountains, as though he
did not know where the refugee might be.

After awhile the old native produced from under his coat three
handsomely made _kamelinkas_, or rain-proof coats, made of membranes. He
pointed to the clothing of the boys and made signs of rain.

"You like-um?" he asked. "Me like-um lifle."

Rob shook his head, but the old man persisted. Finally Rob was seized of
a happy idea.

"S'pose you go Kadiak," he said. "You come back with schooner, maybe so
we give one rifle, two rifle."

This had precisely the opposite effect from that intended. The chief
guessed that, after all, the boys did not know when any boat would come
for them. The cunning eyes of the native grew ugly now.

"_My_ barabbara!" he said. "You go. S'pose you no give lifle! Me take-um
all light, all light, all light!"

"Hold on to your guns, boys!" called Rob, quickly. "Don't let them get
hold of one of them."

Then he resumed with the chief. "Heap shoot!" said he, patting his
rifle. "You no take-um. S'pose you get-um schooner, maybe so we give one
rifle, two rifle; maybe so flour--sugar; maybe so hundred dollar. Our
peoples plenty rich."

The chief seemed sulky and not disposed to argue, but the young boy at
his sid