ld spot which, an hour before, had been
so still, and grand, and gloomy, was now, as if by magic, transformed
into a bustling village, with bright fires blazing among the rocks and
bushes, and merry voices of men, women, and children ringing in
the air. It seemed almost incredible, and no wonder Dick, in his
bewilderment, had difficulty in believing it was not all a dream.

In days long gone by the fur-trade in that country was carried on in a
very different way from the manner in which it is now conducted. These
wild regions, indeed, are still as lonesome and untenanted (save by
wild beasts and wandering tribes of Indians) as they were then;
but the Indians of the present day have become accustomed to the
"Pale-face" trader, whose little wooden forts or trading-posts are
dotted here and there, at wide intervals, all over the land. But in
the days of which we write it was not so. The fur-traders at that time
went forth in armed bands into the heart of the Indians' country, and
he who went forth did so "with his life in his hand." As in the case
of the soldier who went out to battle, there was great probability
that he might never return.

The band of which Walter Cameron was the chief had, many months
before, started from one of the distant posts of Oregon on a hunting
expedition into the then totally unknown lands of the Snake Indians.
It consisted of about sixty men, thirty women, and as many children
of various ages--about a hundred and twenty souls in all. Many of the
boys were capable of using the gun and setting a beaver-trap. The men
were a most motley set. There were Canadians, half-breeds, Iroquois,
and Scotchmen. Most of the women had Indian blood in their veins, and
a few were pure Indians.

The equipment of this strange band consisted of upwards of two
hundred beaver-traps--which are similar to our rat-traps, with this
difference, that they have two springs and no teeth--seventy guns, a
few articles for trade with the Indians, and a large supply of powder
and ball; the whole--men, women, children, goods, and chattels--being
carried on the backs of nearly four hundred horses. Many of these
horses, at starting, were not laden, being designed for the transport
of furs that were to be taken in the course of the season.

For food this adventurous party depended entirely on their guns, and
during the march hunters were kept constantly out ahead. As a matter
of course, their living was precarious. Sometimes the