found a district it Montana, thickly
inhabited by half-breeds. Here he established himself in
a sort of a fashion, sometimes tilling the soil, frequently
hunting, but all the while talking about Red River. He
soon began to forget Marie, and to cast languishing eyes
upon some of the half-breed girls living upon the airy
uplands. [Footnote: It is stated upon certain authority,
how good I don't know, that the brave M. Riel rejoices
in the possession of three wives. One is said to be a
French Metis, the other a Scotch half-breed, and the
third a beautiful Cree squaw with large dusky eyes.] He
was regarded as a great hero by these maidens, for long
before his coming the daring, brilliancy, and great
achievements of Monsieur Riel had been told with enthusiasm
at the fireside of every half-breed in Montana. We shall
leave M. Riel in Montana, sometimes working, sometimes
hunting, always wooing, and take a very brief glance at
the causes which led up to the present outbreak.

Under the new legislation for the territories, only those
half-breeds within the bounds of the new province were
guaranteed secure possession of their land. Under the
principle that all territory not granted in specific form
to individuals by the Ministers of the Crown, is the
property of the Crown, each half-breed who occupied a
lot of land under the Hudson Bay Company's rule, was
regarded as a squatter under the new regime. To make such
holding valid, therefore, the Government issued patents
to _bona fide_ squatters, who then found themselves on
the same footing as the white immigrants. But beyond
Manitoba, and chiefly in Prince Albert, there were large
numbers of half-breeds settled over the prairie. So long
as no immigrant came prying about for choice land the
half-breeds had naught to complain about, but the rapid
influx of population soon altered the whole face of the
matter. Several squatters who had toiled for many a long
year upon holdings, were obliged to make way for strangers
who had "friends at court"--for even in the North West
wilderness there is, in this sense, a court--and who took
a fancy to the particular piece of land upon which "these
lazy half-breeds" were squatting. Newspapers, whose
business it is to keep the skirts of government clean in
the matter, deny this altogether. But, unfortunately,
there is no use in denying it. It is but too true, and
it is with a feeling of very great regret that I myself,
a Conservative, and a wa