f small branches, which he strews at
the bottom of the hollow, till all the snow is covered. This done, he
fells two or three of the nearest trees, cuts them up into lengths of
about five feet long, and piles them at the root of the tree. A light
is soon applied to the pile, and up glances the ruddy flame, crackling
among the branches overhead, and sending thousands of bright sparks into
the air. No one who has not seen it can have the least idea of the
change that takes place in the appearance of the woods at night when a
large fire is suddenly lighted. Before, all was cold, silent, chilling,
gloomy, and desolate, and the pale snow looked unearthly in the dark.
Now, a bright ruddy glow falls upon the thick stems of the trees, and
penetrates through the branches overhead, tipping those nearest the fire
with a ruby tinge, the mere sight of which warms one. The white snow
changes to a beautiful pink, whilst the stems of the trees, bright and
clearly visible near at hand, become more and more indistinct in the
distance, till they are lost in the black background. The darkness,
however, need not be seen from the encampment; for, when the Indian lies
down, he will be surrounded by the snow walls, which sparkle in the
firelight as if set with diamonds. These do not melt, as might be
expected. The frost is much too intense for that, and nothing melts
except the snow quite close to the fire. Stemaw has now concluded his
arrangements: a small piece of dried deer's meat warms before the blaze;
and, meanwhile, he spreads his green blanket on the ground, and fills a
stone calumet (or pipe with a wooden stem) with tobacco, mixed with a
kind of weed prepared by himself. The white smoke from this soon
mingles with the thicker volumes from the fire, which curl up through
the branches into the sky, now shrouding him in their wreaths, and then,
as the bright flame obtains the mastery, leaving his dark face and
coal-black eyes shining in the warm light. No one enjoys a pipe more
than an Indian; and Stemaw's tranquil visage, wreathed in tobacco smoke,
as he reclines at full length under the spreading branches of the pine,
and allows the white vapour to pass slowly out of his mouth _and nose_,
certainly gives one an excellent idea of savage enjoyment.

Leaving him here, then, to solace himself with a pipe preparatory to
resting his wearied limbs for the night, we will change the hour, and
conduct the reader to a different scene.