a line of
chiefs with Pontiac at their head filed along the road
leading to the river gate. All were painted and plumed
and each one was wrapped in a brightly coloured blanket.
When they entered the fort they were astonished to see
the warlike preparations, but stoically concealed their
surprise. Arrived in the council-chamber, the chiefs
noticed the sentinels standing at arms, the commandant
and his officers seated, their faces stern and set,
pistols in their belts and swords by their sides. So
perturbed were the chiefs by all this warlike display
that it was some time before they would take their seats
on the mats prepared for them. At length they recovered
their composure, and Pontiac broke the silence by asking
why so many of the young men were standing in the streets
with their guns. Answer was made through the interpreter
La Butte that it was for exercise and discipline. Pontiac
then addressed Gladwyn, vehemently protesting friendship.
All the time he was speaking Gladwyn bent on him a
scrutinizing gaze, and as the chief was about to present
the wampum belt, a signal was given and the drums crashed
out a charge. Every doubt was removed from Pontiac's
mind--his plot was discovered. His nervous hand lowered
the belt; but he recovered himself immediately and
presented it in the ordinary way. Gladwyn replied to his
speech sternly, but kindly, saying that he would have
the protection and friendship of the British so long as
he merited it. A few presents were then distributed among
the Indians, and the council ended. The chiefs, with
their blankets still tightly wrapped about them, filed
out of the council-room and scattered to their villages,
followed by the disappointed rabble of fully three hundred
Indians, who had assembled in the fort.

On the morrow, Pontiac, accompanied by three chiefs,
again appeared at the fort, bringing with him a pipe of
peace. When this had been smoked by the officers and
chiefs, he presented it to Captain Campbell, as a further
mark of friendship. The next day he was once more at the
gates seeking entrance. But he found them closed: Gladwyn
felt that the time had come to take no chances. This
morning a rabble of Potawatomis, Ottawas, Wyandots, and
Chippewas thronged the common just out of musket range.
On Pontiac's request for a conference with Gladwyn he
was sternly told that he might enter alone. The answer
angered him, and he strode back to his followers. Now,
with yells and war