tensely busy was he with an
enormous piece of half-raw flesh, which he was tearing and swallowing
like a hungry wolf. There is, however, an end to every thing and when
satiety had succeeded to want, they related to us the circumstance that
had led them where they were.

They had come as journeymen with a small caravan going from St. Louis to
Astoria. On the Green River they had been attacked by a war-party of
the Black-feet, who had killed all except them, thanks to the Irishman's
presence of mind, who pushed his fat companion into a deep fissure of
the earth, and jumped after him. Thus they saved their bacon, and had
soon the consolation of hearing the savages carrying away the goods,
leading the mules towards the north. For three days they had wandered
south, in the hope of meeting with some trappers, and this very morning
they had fallen in with two French trappers, who told them to remain
there and repose till their return, as they were going after game.

While they were narrating their history, the two trappers arrived with a
fat buck. They were old friends, having both of them travelled and
hunted with Gabriel. We resolved not to proceed any further that day,
and they laughed a great deal when we related to them our prowess
against the Crows. An application of bruised leaves of the Gibson weed
upon the legs of the two sufferers immediately soothed their pain, and
the next morning they were able to use Roche's and Gabriel's horses, and
to follow us to Brownhall, an American fur-trading port, which place we
reached in two days.

There we parted from our company, and rapidly continued our march
towards the settlement. Ten days did we travel thus in the heart of a
fine country, where game at every moment crossed our path. We arrived
in the deserted country of the Bonnaxes, and were scarcely two days'
journey from the Eastern Shoshone boundary, when, as ill luck would have
it, we met once more with our old enemies, the Arrapahoes. This time,
however, we were determined not to be put any more on dog's meat
allowance, and to fight, if necessary, in defence of our liberty.

We were surrounded, but not yet taken and space being ours and our
rifles true, we hoped to escape, not one of our enemies having, as we
well knew, any fire-arms. They reduced their circle smaller and
smaller, till they stood at about a hundred and fifty yards from us;
their horses, fat and plump, but of the small wild breed, and incapabl