This was fortunate, for the
scraps that remained in my wallet would only have sufficed for one meal
to a man of ordinary appetite; and, as it was important to expedite
Salamander on his return journey, these had to be given to him. Poor
fellow! he was much cast down on hearing of my decision in regard to
him.

"But, sar," he said, with a sorrowful countenance, "w'at for I no go
vith you?"

"Because you are still a servant of the Fur Company, and not entitled to
break your engagement. Besides, it is desirable that Big Otter's people
should know why he and Waboose have left them, and where they have gone;
and if you explain matters correctly they will be quite satisfied, for
they all respect the memory of Weeum the Good. Moreover, it is
important that Mr Lumley should know what has prevented my return, both
to relieve his mind, and prevent his sending out to search for me."

"But sar," objected Salamander, "w'at if me meets vid de vite
scoundrils?"

"You must fight them, or run away from them."

"Vell, me kin fight but me kin more joyfulerly run avay. But," he
continued, still objecting, "me got no grub."

"Here is enough for one day," I said, giving him all I possessed, "if
you spin it out. To-morrow you can roast and eat your moccasins, and
the third day you can starve. Surely that's not hard on a strong young
fellow like you; and if you push on fast enough you'll reach the camp of
the redskins early on the third day."

Salamander sighed, but made no further objection, and half an hour later
he left us.

As we now possessed only two horses, it naturally fell to my lot, being
a light weight compared with Big Otter, to take Eve up behind me.

"We must get a horse for Waboose," said the Indian, as we galloped over
the prairie that day. "There is a tribe of Blackfoot Indians not far
from here who have good horses, and understand the value of gold, for
some of them have been to the settlements of the pale-faces. You tell
me that you have gold?"

"Yes, I found a bag of five hundred gold pieces with the diamonds in
Weeum's packet."

Big Otter looked at me inquiringly, but did not speak, yet I guessed his
thoughts; for, though I had shown him Liston's letter and the miniature,
I had not shown him the gold or the jewels, and he must have wondered
where I carried them; for he knew, of course, that they were necessarily
somewhat bulky and were not in my wallet, which I had emptied more than
once in his pre