ndering stranger, and related the story that the
man had told.

"There are white crows, white blackbirds, white squirrels, and white
Indians," said the agent, "strange as it may seem. I know nothing about
the origin of any of them--only that they do exist. Ever since the
French and Indians came to the lakes white Indians have been seen. So
have white crows and blackbirds. The French claim that these white
Indians are of Welsh origin, and are the descendants of a body of
mariners who were driven to our shores in the twelfth century by some
accident of navigation or of weather. If so, the Welsh are the second
discoverers of America, following the Northmen. But I put no faith in
these traditions. I only know that from time to time a white-faced
Indian is seen in the Mississippi Valley. There are many tales and
traditions of them. It is simply a mystery that will never be solved."

"But what am I to think of the white Indian's story?"

"Simply that he had been taught by the French romancers, and that he
believed it himself. Black faces have strangely appeared among white
peoples, and Nature alone, could she speak, could explain her laws in
these cases. The Indians have various traditions of the white Indian's
appearance in the regions about Chicago; they regard him as a
medicine-man, or a prophet, or a kind of good ghost. It is thought to be
good fortune to meet him."

"Why does he come here?" said Jasper.

"To see the white people. He believes that the white people are his
kindred, and that they are coming, 'coming,' and one day that they will
flock here in multitudes. The French have told him this. He is a
mythical character. Somehow he has white blood in his veins. I can not
tell how. The Welsh tradition may be true, but it is hardly probable."

Years passed. The white Indian appeared again. The fort had become a
town. The Indian races were disappearing. He saw the white wagons
crossing the prairies, and the reluctant Pottawattomies making their way
toward the Great River and the lands of the sunset. He went away,
solitary as when he came, and was never seen again.

Who may have been these mysterious persons whose white faces for
generations haunted the lakes and the plains? They appeared at
Kaskaskia, their canoes glided mysteriously along the Mississippi, and
they were often seen at the hunting-camps of the North. They sought the
French and the English as soon as these races began to make settlements,
and they