"That you will, if they'll spare him to you."

"We cannot spare him altogether," replied Mr Campbell, "but he shall
visit you, if you wish it."

"Well, that's a promise; and I won't go so far as I thought I would. He
has a good eye; I'll come for him."

The old man then rose up and walked away, John following him, without
exchanging a word with any of the party.

"My dear Campbell," said his wife, "what do you intend to do about John?
You do not intend that the hunter should take him with him?"

"No, certainly not," replied Mr Campbell; "but I see no reason why he
should not be with him occasionally."

"It will be a very good thing for him to be so," said Martin. "If I may
advise, let the boy come and go. The old man has taken a fancy to him,
and will teach him his wood craft. It's as well to make a friend of
Malachi Bone."

"Why, what good can he do us," enquired Henry.

"A friend in need is a friend indeed, sir; and a friend in the
wilderness is not to be thrown away. Old Malachi is going further out,
and if danger occurs, we shall know it from him, for the sake of the
boy, and have his help too, if we need it."

"There is much good sense in Martin Super's remarks, Mr Campbell,"
observed Captain Sinclair. "You will then have Malachi Bone as an
advanced guard, and the fort to fall back upon, if necessary to
retreat."

"And, perhaps, the most useful education which he can receive to prepare
him for his future life will be from the old hunter."

"The only one which he will take to kindly, at all events," observed
Henry.

"Let him go, sir; let him go," said Martin.

"I will give no positive answer, Martin," replied Mr Campbell. "At all
events, I will permit him to visit the old man; there can be no
objection to that:--but it is bedtime."

CHAPTER ELEVEN.

VISIT TO MALACHI'S WIFE.

We must pass over six weeks, during which the labour was continued
without intermission, and the house was raised of logs, squared and well
fitted; the windows and doors were also put in, and the roof well
covered in with large squares of birch-bark, firmly fixed on the
rafters. The house consisted of one large room, as a dining-room, and
the kitchen, with a floor of well-beaten clay, a smaller room, as a
sitting-room, and three bed-rooms, all of which were floored; one of the
largest of them fitted all round with bed-places against the walls, in
the same way as on board of packets; this room was for the four bo