he post?"

"Plenty of foolishness."

"But what?"

"You don't expect me to repeat foolish gossip, do you?"

"No, but what do you think about him?"

"I don't think."

"They say that Gaviller's lodged a complaint against him, and you're
going out there to arrest him as soon as it's fit to travel."

"That's a lie. There's no complaint against the man."

"But you are going out there, aren't you?"

"I can't discuss my movements with you."

"That means you are going. Is it true he sent in a whole bale of silver
foxes to the post?"

"Say, what's your interest in this man, anyway?" said Stonor, losing
patience.

"Nothing at all," said the breed carelessly. "These Indians are always
talking about him. It roused my curiosity, that's all."

"Suppose you satisfy my curiosity about yourself," suggested Stonor
meaningly.

The old light of impudent mockery returned to the comely dark face. "Me?
Oh, I'm only a no-account hobo," he said. "I'll have to be getting ready
now."

And so Stonor's curiosity remained unsatisfied. To have questioned the
man further would only have been to lower his dignity. True, he might
have arrested him, and forced him to give an account of himself, but the
processes of justice are difficult and expensive so far north, and the
policemen are instructed not to make arrests except when unavoidable. At
the moment it did not occur to Stonor but that the man's questions about
Imbrie were actuated by an idle curiosity.

When the hour was up, the entire population of Carcajou Point gathered
on the shore to witness Hooliam's departure. Stonor was there, too, of
course, standing grimly apart from the rabble. Of what they thought of
this summary deportation he could not be sure, but he suspected that if
the whisky were all gone, they would not care much one way or the other.
Hooliam was throwing his belongings in a dug-out of a different style
from that used by the Beavers. It was ornamented with a curved prow and
stern, such as Stonor had not before seen.

"Where did you get that boat?" he asked.

"I didn't steal it," answered Hooliam impudently. "Traded my horse for
it and some grub at Fort Cardigan."

Cardigan was a Company post on the Spirit a hundred miles or so above
the Crossing. Stonor saw that Hooliam was well provided with blankets,
grub, ammunition, etc., and that it was not Company goods.

When Hooliam was ready to embark, he addressed the crowd in an Indian
tongue which strongly re