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Show plovers hail brgnn to mako their nest 111 thn marches at homo; if my brother Charley had como homo fur tlm Ulster holidays, hi id if im would know where the migln thrush always built hnr net in tho big ulin tree; but iny reverie wero broken by a movement among tho Indian and a muttered "non-gom," meaning now. Match-eo-ninit) arose arid with him nil i I breathlessly nilatet--ti Mr. Mel vop as nearly as I could remember them the words of the old woman.; "There "s something in it," h aid, "and we must bo prewired for them. Lot lis look for oar guns. Tho loons mean business.". His wifr, who had heard all, looked frightened, and he turned to her saying: "Which is it, Maggie? Wi' us, or at the hoosey" "With yon, John, till tho death," alio guage, and as 1 always had a sneaking regard for the old woman, I often made use of her assistance in acqniring it. In fact we became fast friends, I cementing the friendship by gifts of a little flour, sugar or tea. I received loss chaffing in the winter, for the other clerks had long since taken their departure for their respective outposts, out-posts, and I was left sole occupant of the clerks' quarters, or "clerks' house," as it was called. It was coming on to the end of March Mclvor, who, though a perfect martinet in the matter of duty, was kindness itself it-self in the privacy of his own house. There were two other clerks beside myself, my-self, who stayed there only during the summer, but who in the fall took charge of small trading establishments, ont-posts ont-posts as they are called, returning to Fort Trial after the winter's hunt was over. Like most young Englishmen I had formed my ideas of Indians on a Feni-more Feni-more Cooper basis, but the noble red man full far short of my ideal. I found him to be a selfish, ungrateful, treacher- the rest of tho Indians, with their gun in their harnl.. Mr. Mclvor, who wa watching them, mailo a movement toward tho randln in the gunpowder. Tho movement attracted tho attention of tho Indian, anil they now for tho first time comprehended the initiation. A minute later there whs not an Indian in tho Htore. They had gono out a kilently and suddenly a they bad como in, leaving u in solo powion, but with tho candle burning dangerously near the powder. Mr. Mclvor now carefully care-fully approached tho keg, and with a steady hand raised tho candlo from it dangeroii r andlesticli'. Not ono moment too soon, for scarcely had lio lifiwl it , clear off the l:cg when tho few grain of powder which had adhered to it came, in cont.ict with tho flame and wero ignited; but wo were raved. The sudden rev uMon of feeling took tbo strength completely out of my legs, and I sat down lielpl'uidy on a Ixix, Tin til i tho voice i 'f Mr. M' lvor orrl"riiig n to j shut tho door and lock it recalled mo ! to my m'uhi Mr. Mclvor rlispcd her ' 1 lmslnd aronnd llio lurk and kiiwd j him pasHiotmt' ly. Ifn wa not timnove.l , for the iiimiient; but suddenly be burst I out laughing, and mid in liia brriadnt : KcS.tch: j "Did ye see the look o' tho auld did I I when ho caught sight ' tho candle I' the Iiouther, Maggie'" lJut Maggio did tint I hear him; aim htxl faintml, and the man i answered Mdly, , lit; gave her a look of admiration and affection, and hastily rose to collect and load our arms. But we wero too late; while we were talking in tbo office tho store had gilently filled with Indians, thoir faces sinister and threatening as they stood ranged up against the high counter. So intent had we been on the discussion that we had not hpard tho soft tread of their nioccas-ined nioccas-ined feet, and there we stood, fairly caught, face to face with death. It is hard to retiiemlxT what pushed through my mind at that moment. I think tliat my filings were more thoso of indignation than of fear. It vexed me to think of death at the hands of those brutes, an inglorious death, of which but a passing notice might itfipear in souin newspaper, or, what was moro likely, no notice at all, for tho Hudson's Bay company com-pany have never cared to publisir abroad such little mishaps as these. How dif- lerent, I thought, would it have been if ! I were in the aruiy. Then if I hal to dio 1 my name would lie mentioned with prido by my family as well tus with regret, and , possibly my portrait mightappearin Tho I Illustrated London News. So dear to humanity is the praise it receives when j no longer alive to hear it, when the plea(- j ure of tho praise la but in the anticipa- 1 tion alone. I watched Mr. Mclvor with a certain j amount of curiohity, not unmixed with hope, to see what ho would do. Ho did i not hesitate a moment, but drawim hU wife to his trido and putting his arm whi an event occurred which made mo glad that I had pulled the old woman out of the river and treated her with some consideration, if not kindness. The two fowls which I had brought safely to their destination had fairly survived the rigor of the winter. In fact Mrs. Mclvor announced one day at dinner that she had found one egg which the hen hail laid. But shortly afterward there was consternation in that household. Tho two fowls had been found dead, and an Indian dog was quietly making a meal off one of them. Tho hole whereby ho had effected an entrance was stopped up before he could escape, and Mr. Mclvor, using his revolver, had the satisfaction of shooting the brute and pitching bis body down on the frozen river. Now it happened that this dog belonged belong-ed to Match-ee-ninie, an old Indian claiming to be chief of the band, and who had the reputation of being a conjuror con-juror and a cannibal, in consequence of which tho Indians all feared him and ! obeyed him. He came into the store that evening and spoke to Mr. Mclvor thus: "You pay me for my dog." "How much?" asked Mr. Mclvor. "Twenty weeg." The Hudson Bay company use at inland posts a standard for value, the name differing in different localities. A weeg equals about fifty cents. "All right," said Mclvor, "I will pay you for your dog if you pay me for my fowls." "How much;" ous savage, whose power for evil was luckily curtailed by his cowardice. I do not say that there are no good points in an Indian's character; we find good points in the character of a dog or a horse, but we do not set the horse or dog on a pedestal and proclaim him all that is perfect; rather we keep clear of his heels and teeth respectively until we know something of the brute's idiosyncrasies. idiosyn-crasies. One has to do the same with Indians. Be thoroughly on your guard until you have proved that they can be trusted, and don't trust them then. Mr. Mcffvor had the most supremo contempt for them a contempt which he never tried to hide. He used to say: "They are cowards, arrant cowards, and are afraid o' you, e'en like a dog." It was not long after my arrival that I bad a sort of adventure which gave great sport to the other clerks, and even Mr. Mclvor himself would occasionally make joking allusions to it. There was a river running about 100 yards from the store; it was deep aud fairly swift. One day as I was working in the store I heard a scream which appeared ap-peared to come from the river. Iran out and down to the bank, from where I saw au old woman straggling in the water; she had been fishing and her canoe had upset. There were about a dozen Indians looking on, but they only laughed and made not the slightest movement toward helping her. Indians, as a rule, are cruel to the old. They look upon them as incumbrances from which they are not sorry if an accident relieves them. I saw that this poor old thing was in distress and likely to be drowned, so I jumped into the river and swam out to her assistance, not before, however, relieving my mind by abusing soundly the men who would cheerfully have let her sink before their eyes. It was no difficult task to bring tho poor old thing ashore, and when I had done so the poor creature followed me as I walked toward the house, crying m earnest tor.es: "Meenvitch! nieegwitch!" meaning "Thank" you, thank yon." But I found this very annoying for the Indians all , laughed at me in siy wet clothes and at ; N NORTHERN WILDS. I was one of ten, five boys and five Is. My father, a clergyman of the fclish church, was grateful to Provide Provi-de for having filled his quiver with I. but I think that in reality ho was re grateful they were not eleven, jc problem of his life', the worry of at-FPHng at-FPHng to solve which helped to bring F to his grave, was how to provide a 'S for us all. As he died before a l-'lsone of us was provided for, he fcht have saved himself much anxiety. I was not the eldest of the family, but f second son. The oldest had been ft to one of the universities, and had l owed the very glorious but impecuni-Is impecuni-Is profession of his father, without a fving" and without definite hope of raining one. I was intended for the I'ian civil service; possibly the viceroy-f viceroy-f i. hut the examiners at Burlington lTise Med to recognize my fitness for lli great possibilities, therefore I de-Frained de-Frained to emigrate, and a friend of F mother's hearing of my determina-fn determina-fn secured for me, by personal interest, frthinthe Hudson's Bay company. F'w duly engaged and signed a docu-rnt docu-rnt as long as a deed of transfer, by jnich I bound mysolf to serve the com-Pny, com-Pny, even to the extent of defending Fir property with my life. 1 1 sailed to Montreal and presenting my f-dentials there was soon informed that l.T services would be required at a post t the far north in charge of one John f Ivor. There was also intrusted to my fre a pair of fowls, Plymouth Eocks, r'nthe request that I would deliver pm safely into the hands of Mr. Mclvor. I Mention this fact seeing that these ! I ls played an important part in the rents which I am about to relate. I On my arrival at my destination, after raping about forty nights nnder canvas, I as glad of the comfort which reigned II fort Trial, due chiefly to the domestic l-ergy of Mrs. Mclvor, a bright, picas- i N little woman, who seemed out of aromid her waist ho said: "Y'otl have come, I lieileve, to kill me?" "Yes," answered Match-e-ii;a:e, "to kill you as you killed my dog." ! "All right," answered Mr. Mclvor coolly; "but surely we may as well tako a smoke before you kill." Whether the Indians wero swayed by the force of a superior will, or whether they were them.selves glad to put oS a tragedy which they had pledged themselves them-selves to perform, I c;,nnot say; but they cheerfully complied with tho reque-t, and each producing hi pipe leisurely filled it and commenced to Hnok'., as if they had como thf.M for nothing el;. Li tho meanwhile Mr. Mclvor had Cjuiet-Iv Cjuiet-Iv flrawn toward Liiu a email kti of "Twenty weeg." The Indian saw that he was canght, ! and walked out with a muttered "Kish," f meaning, "Hold on, we shall see." Next ! evening he again came to tho store, and said: "There are bad people about; I have seen a wendigo. Y'ou pay mo for j my dog." (Wendigo: a spirit, a ghost, giant, something uncanny.) ! "Get the wendigo to pay you," said ' Mr. Mclvor, laughing, and again the man slunk off. Mr. Mclvor knew the . Indian nature well, and he said to me: j "That old fellow is up to some devil- ; ment That's what they always do when they want to do an evil trick themselves: pretend that some one else is going to do it. We had better keep a watch on tha who had b;n heerftilly looking death ' in tho fare for lb last half hour now itcenmonvi fright' ned a child when ! ho taw his wifo In a fainting lit. "Will b'j como around, ly'u think" bo a.iked : in a tone tf in trow anxiety. Tluro v.ii no need to answer him. for Mrs. Mclvor answered tho quitioti hcrs If by hitting i np and bunting into tear, j Forwuri' time afterward lired pre-! pre-! pared for a siege, but tho Indian never . iikwIh ri;;n agr.in tf attempting 1 1 injur r.ii: i;i f.vt th'-y lucmuo mighty civil, and in tho spring, wle-n comtnimiention by v.al'-r had Ik eft rivetabli.ihed, w 1 :td no difnnlty in liu-nring imr frinid j 3Iat h-iM'-riini;, win w.i hMf traus-! traus-! ported t th-? f.tr vest, v.Ikt'? ho toon . pined away and dk-d. ' if tho old woimiii ' who hfid done rn such Kervif o I could I gather but liitlo iufor;niti'm. I nwr ; aw her ar;aiii; ho had cumpl'-tely div 1 anjrared. It was .vhiil.erfcd that M;d h-0t-ninie, having ii.ur.d out that she had . warned us, nuU-ily r.isde away with her, ho that pnxtically Ri: gava L-r life for j mine. Can it Hiti foro lo wornlrri-J at that I prizo li'-r j.-etin.ry, rni iaXy a in Lcr I 1 avo found tl!ir,u:;h loni einri-enc3 einri-enc3 tlit on; lit;.ry exiypt!nr to thn trt-ackc-roiM UrjpiUU'U of tho Nertii Aniericati Itnliatit,? , Hbortly a.'t'-r l'u" event Mr. Mclvor ) rowsiv.d chartro t.t ULirirt .a tbt tr- , dersff iviiti'i m. Nothing would do ; hr.t thr.t 1 h.M unw.'y Lira to hi ' new charg, and ' fvonihIy did ha re- pc rt f W' to headTtrti-r4 that I row I rapidlyin ti' j y.r. ii. and er? taany year ! ; fcil arf-l wa in i 'oryj of a district ot ! my own. C. C Can, LiuiJ.ilo Exprr. j . gunpowder coutaiiiing about twnty-fivo poandr.. Ho deftly removed the Lead; then taking a candle and lighting it with the same match with which he lit Lis pipe ho thruft it down into the jiowd r to within two inches cf the flwne. H quietly hail In done thh that the Indians, In-dians, who wi re at the momint engsged ; in lighting their pipa, did not notice it. : It was a sokrnn Lin J of asraoke. Not j another word was Kpoktn on cither idc. i The only thing thit woke the d'id si-! si-! knee was the occ:isional "paj, poT of J a pipe that would not draw. I wuUibal the candle with a kicd cf feiriation j J and saw an inch burn away. I wa fr- I ful lest a spark shotui drop from it. and thus rob n of our full two inche of life; bnt the candla btiroed ttvlily on. There wa but balf aa inch left. I remember that 1 woodV-red if tha 1 place; he might set fire to it." We watched that night, but nothing unusual occurred. After dinner next day, as I was endeavoring to recuperate a bit from night watching by a short I Enooze, I became aware of a prewnw, ! and opening my eye saw my old woman i standing over me, with her finger on ber lips to enjoin silence. When she saw that I was awake she whispered hurriedly: 'Run! Indian's going to kill trader, kill all white people in the store. Match-ee-ninie Seep trader'a wife. Y'ou good to old woman. Run!" And theold woman, casting an anxiorut look at the door, hobbled away as fast as she could. I did run, but it was to Mr. Mclvor, who was at that moment walking down tojljestgrawjtjh. Jiksaiw the old woman, wnose clothes were also wet and very thin, es she clung to me, with her incessant "Meegwitch, meetf-witch." meetf-witch." The chaff that I snffered from my com-runions com-runions was merciless. I was dubbed Erhe Knight Errant." "The Heroic Preserver," etc., until I grew sick of it; but to have lost my temper wonhl only have made it worse, so I suffered in silence, si-lence, and to aggravate my suffering the Sa woman thought ither dntytopr sent me with every extra large fish that The caught, or if her son-in-law threw her a beaver tad or a moose nose, or any other delicacy Ff dians. they were sure to find their way tea room, and each demonstration of , the kind only added to the fun. After a l!aee m the heart of this "great lone wid." Mr. Mclvor was Scotch, as his name ""(mid imply, a rough and ready man, 'h a heart of steel, but which on occa-rn occa-rn could be as soft as a woman's. After fading the dispatches which I handed "di he said: '"eel, young mon, I dinna see what ;n likes o' you can do m a country like ms. Had na ye better gae back before ' b too late?' "I won't go back, sir. unless you send oe back," I answered. 'Ah, weel; boy, stay where you are. 's no always the coarsest twine that ds the biggest strain." I entered into my duties withont SIuer discoaraging word&om . Mr. I |