his
departure from them. The Sioux, however, had noticed it, and their
suspicions were aroused, especially when they saw him rejoin the party,
and observed that he walked rather closer to them than before. But they
were proud warriors and refused by word, look, or movement, to indicate
their suspicions. They carried bows in their hands, arrows in their
quivers, tomahawks and scalping-knives in their belts, but they scorned
to make any visible demonstration of being on guard in the midst of
Paleface friends, though they gave intense and undivided attention to
the movements of Okematan.

This concentration of attention on the wrong man was, of course, rather
favourable to the designs of Kateegoose, so that, when the party passed
the summer-house, he was enabled to spring upon his enemy, unobserved
for the first moment, with knife upraised. But the stab from which the
Sioux chief could not have escaped was rendered harmless by the prompt
action of Okematan, who threw up his left arm, turned the blow aside,
and received a slight wound in doing so.

There was no time to repeat the blow. With a yell of mingled defiance
and disappointment the would-be assassin leaped the garden fence,
bounded into the thicket, and disappeared. A flight of Sioux arrows
entered the bush almost the moment after. The young chief and his
friends also leaped the fence, and followed in pursuit.

The Sioux were swift and agile undoubtedly, but so was Kateegoose, and
he had the advantage of knowing the ground, while the trail--by which,
in ordinary circumstances, the Red-man can track his enemy through the
forest--was not available there in consequence of its being so mingled
up with the crossing and re-crossing of the innumerable tracks of
settlers. The result was that Kateegoose made his escape.

The Colonists were very indignant at the perpetration of this cowardly
act, for it compromised their character for hospitality; and, if they
could have laid hands on the savage at the time, it is not impossible
that Lynch-law might have been applied to him. The Governor also was
greatly annoyed, and in the afternoon of the following day made the
visitors a number of presents, besides providing for them a feast; but
all his good intentions were spoiled by Kateegoose, who had the audacity
to come forward and deliberately shoot his foe while the Sioux were at
meat. The ball passed quite through the Sioux chief's body, and wounded
the man who was