u know anything about him?"

"He is looking at us very kindly to-night," said Minnehaha. "I really
believe I saw him laughing, he is so pleased we have come out to see him
this lovely night."

These remarks of the children caused all in the canoe to more closely scan
the great round moon that was shining with silvery whiteness straight in
front of them.

"There are lots of stories about the moon among our people," said Mary,
"but not a great many about the man in the moon. There is, however, a queer
one about how he came down and helped a poor orphan boy."

"O, tell it to us just now," said Minnehaha, "while he is watching and
listening."

"Do, Mary," said Sagastao, "and Minnehaha and I will watch the old fellow
and see how he likes to be talked about."

"Well," said Minnehaha, "Mary will be talking to him to his face, and not
behind his back, as people sometimes do when talking about others."

Thus the children ran on with their prattle. Mary and Kennedy were much
amused.

"Come, Mary, hurry up! Father said the gloaming would end about eleven, and
we must be at the shore by that time."

"Pretty late hours for little children," said Kennedy.

"Never mind that," said Sagastao; "we will make up for it in winter time,
when it gets dark at four o'clock."

With Sagastao on one side of her in the big canoe and Minnehaha on the
other--their favorite positions when listening to her fascinating stories
as she crooned them out in her soft, musical Cree--Mary told them the
story.

"Long ago," she began, "there was a poor orphan boy who had neither father
nor mother, uncle, aunt, nor any living relative that he knew of. He had a
very hard time of it, as the people did not seem to take kindly to him. So
he had to live just where he could. He managed to get along all right
during the pleasant summer time, but when the long cold winters began he
suffered very much. One winter some selfish people let him live with them
because he was willing to work hard for what little they did for him. They
treated him badly in many ways. They made him go out into the woods and cut
firewood, but when he brought it home they would only allow him to stay in
the cold entry-way which they had built to their winter dwelling.

"They made him go and hunt different animals for food, and then when he
brought, them home they cooked and ate the best themselves, and just threw
the fragments and bones to him as they would to a dog. Every member of