A. M. Chisholm

“ There was a short pause.
"I sh'd say he wasn't breathin'," said Hayes. "He's got his. He's dead."
"Dead!" ejaculated Conover, in tones of awe.
"Well, didn't you never see a dead man before?" sneered Hayes. "He's dead, that's all, same as I'll be some day, and you, and all the rest of us."
"Of course that's so," Conover replied, rather shakily. "Yes, that's so. Still it don't seem possible. Bill Jordan! I wisht we'd kept out of this."
"I wish you had, too," Hayes snarled. "You young fellers ain't got the nerve of fawns. ”

“ When she had recovered her wood, I got the little knife. The men were turning in. They set no guard on their own camp, but one of them—McGregor it was—went to watch ours, which served the purpose just as well. Nootka hobbled my feet, and, having permitted me to roll up in the blanket, tied my hands in front of me and then took a turn of the rope around my body, which made it quite impossible for me to untie anything.
Having made me secure, as he thought, he went to his own blankets beside the klootch, a little distance away on the other side of the fire. ”

“ But in a few minutes we came to their camp, where Nootka's klootch was squatting by the fire, feeding it to a blaze. Louis dumped me down with little ceremony, and turned my face toward the light. But I kept my eyes closed. He ran his thick fingers around my throbbing head, and under them I felt for the first time a very big and long and sore lump.
"Ba gosh," said he, "I guess mebbe I hit dat kid purty hard."
"Not half hard enough," Hayes snarled. "I wish you'd killed him. It was his snoopin' that botched everything."
"Take a look over here at Jordan," said Conover's voice. ”

“ Conover declared.
"You got so much to say!" sneered Hayes.
"I've got as much as you," Conover retorted. "Mac won't, either, will you, Mac?"
"I would not want to cut off his ears," said McGregor; "but if——"
"We wouldn't need to do that," Hayes interrupted. "Nitche done the like once. But if we just sent 'em word and took a hot iron and started the kid to hollerin' where they could hear him, the play would win. Course, if he wanted to howl without bein' hurt it would be all the better for him. ”

“ The way they're organized, they can stand us off. They won't waste their ca'tridge, and we're low on ammynition right now. We got to change our system."
"Maybe,"" Ballou admitted.
"We have," the older man insisted. "We ought to put the kid in play agin' them furs."
I stared at him, wondering what he meant.
"I don't like to do that," Ballou replied.
"Maybe you don't," Hayes came back, "but the rest of us have some say in it. And me and George and Nootka think it's the only thing to do."
"How do you mean—'put him in play'?" asked young Conover. ”

“ She smiled again, and shook her head.
"You mind your dam biz-ness," she said, but she was not at all offended.
"What is your name?"
"Miss'on name Lucille." She eyed me for a moment. "You kloshe tenas man," she announced, meaning that I was a good-looking boy. ”