ls who love to sing,
What serves your country and your king,
In wealth, peace, and royal estate;
Attention give whilst I rehearse
A modern fact in jingling verse."

This song, six or seven lengthy stanzas in all, was written by Mr. George
Campbell, an Irish gentleman, and was popular along the frontier. It was
sung to the tune of the Black Joke, and commemorated the successful
efforts of Captain James Smith to prevent Philadelphia traders from
sending weapons of war to the northwest tribes shortly after the treaty of
1765 was concluded.

Dicks was finishing the first stanza as he entered the cabin. He broke off
sharply to rebuke the dog. Soon he came out with a bag. At about a hundred
yards from the cabin, and farther up the valley than any of them, was the
lick-block. Dicks was walking toward this. Several horses broke from the
growth across the valley and ran toward the cabins.

"Almost act like they was skeered," whispered Cousin.

"Coming in to be salted," I corrected as the horses swerved and galloped
toward the block. Dicks was ambling along slowly and reverting to his
song. The dog suddenly darted from the cabin and streaked after Dicks, a
piece of rawhide trailing from his neck. As he ran he made a great outcry.
Dicks was very angry to have his vocal efforts interrupted, and he halted
and swung the bag of salt in an attempt to hit the dog, all the while
commanding him to go back. The horses were now at the block and stepping
about uneasily.

"I never guessed that! Come on! Something will bu'st loose in a minute!"
groaned Cousin.

We started to slide down the bank, when a terrible tragedy took place
before our eyes. As Dicks was emptying the salt on to the lick-block the
horses sprang back and bolted in alarm, and an Indian's topknot, decorated
with wild-turkey feathers, bobbed up from behind the block. Dicks seemed
to be paralyzed. The savage struck him with his ax and the unfortunate man
went down, dead before he lost his footing. In the next second the dog, a
huge brute of mongrel breed, cleared the block and closed his jaws on the
murderer's neck.

This was a signal for Cousin's prophecy to come true. A deafening chorus
of howls burst from the woods opposite the cabins, and a volley of bullets
rained among the settlers. Mrs. Granville and the two children dropped.
The old Englishman, standing nearer the cabins, staggered and turned
aroun