as supposed to be breasting the current
on her long voyage to Fort Union and beyond, and many eyes were on the
lookout for a glimpse of her smoke. A sight of the boat itself, except
at close range, was almost hopeless because the bends in the river were
so numerous and close together that the stream seemed like a narrow
lake.

The surface of the water was becoming different from what it had been,
for the great masses of floating debris had thinned and no longer came
down in raft-like formations. This was due to the rapid falling of the
water, which had stranded more and more of the bulkier drift and piled
it up at the head of every island, emerging bar and jutting point. At
the height of the freshets, especially the April rise, often the logs
and trees came down so thick and solid that they resembled floating
islands. This was in large measure due to the simultaneous floating of
the vast accumulations piled up all along the banks, and it aroused
disgust and anxiety in the hearts of the boatmen, who feared for hulls
and paddle wheels.

The harmless brush with the Indians and the stories the affair had
started quickened interest in firearms, and during the rest of the
afternoon there was considerable target practice against the ducks,
geese, and debris, and an occasional long shot at some animal on the
distant bank.

Tom Boyd did his share of this, glad of the opportunity to try out his
new and strange weapons, and to put off meeting Patience Cooper as long
as he could, fearing her attitude concerning his fight with Schoolcraft.
He found that the newly marketed Colt six-shooter was accurate and
powerful at all reasonable ranges, beautifully balanced and well
behaving. It attracted a great deal of attention from fellow travelers,
for it was not as well-known in Missouri as it was in other parts of the
country. The English rifle, not much heavier than the great Hawken
weapons of his companions, despite its two barrels, shot true and
strong, and the two ready shots at his command easily recompensed him
for the additional weight. At this time, in the country into which he
was going, an instantly available second shot had an importance not to
be overlooked. To the Indians, especially, was it disconcerting, and its
moral effect partook of the nature of magic and made a white man's
"medicine" that demanded and received a wholesome respect. He found that
it followed the rough and ready rule of the frontier that up to a
hundre