David Cory

“ As Hawk Eye reloaded his gun, Raven Wing caught sight of an Indian stealing down towards the canoes. Lifting the gun to his shoulder, Raven Wing fired and the Chippeway fell face downward on the sand.
"Good!" grunted Hawk Eye. "The odds are now with us. However, Slow Dog's craftiness more than equals ours. If he sees he cannot get us, he will try to make off with our canoes."
"But if he ventures on the beach, he knows he will be shot," remarked Raven Wing.
"He will wait for darkness," said Hawk Eye.
"Darkness protects the rabbit as well as the fox," cried Raven Wing. ”

“ As Slow Dog attempted to rise, Hawk Eye raised his foot and struck him so heavily upon the stomach that he fell with a groan and lay writhing upon the ground. In the meantime, the Chippeway had come up and springing like an infuriated tiger toward Raven Wing, drove a knife at the boy's throat. ”

“ Slow Dog was not the only one to notice the geese, however. Two boys, one about fifteen years of age, the other, close to thirteen, had also heard the honking. [Pg 14]
"Get your bow and arrows," cried Hawk Eye, the elder, darting into his tepee. The younger boy, Raven Wing, ran to his lodge for his weapons. In a few minutes both were hurrying to the river.
"There's Slow Dog hiding in the bushes," whispered Raven Wing. "He wishes to be the first to bring one to earth." ”

“ As he passed Smoky Wolf's tepee, the aged chief, who was smoking beside it, looked up.
"I think Raven Wing and Hawk Eye are coming up the river," cried Black Eagle as he ran on.
Old Smoky Wolf slowly rose to his feet. "I, too, must welcome the young braves," he murmured. In a short time all the men, [Pg 125] women and children were standing upon the bank to await the boys' arrival.
As the canoes grated upon the sandy beach, Old Smoky Wolf raised his right arm and shouted, "They come in Chippeway canoes with scalps at their belts. My village has two more warriors to send upon the warpath." ”

“ Raven Wing, retrieving his arrows from the birds he had slain. "What do you intend to do with your first kill?" he asked.
"Give it to Old Smoky Wolf," answered Hawk Eye. "The goose first slain in the Spring is always made the occasion for a feast."
"I will give mine to my stepfather, Black Eagle," said Raven Wing. "He will be our chief when Old Smoky Wolf takes the trail of departed warriors."
"Because you have outwitted him, Slow Dog will now bear another grudge against you," went on Hawk Eye. ”

“ As the sun reached the middle of the sky, Hawk Eye stopped. Dropping his end of the leather thong, he said;
"We have not yet found the trail. Let us spread apart. I will follow a line running between the land of Snows and the Rising Sun. You go forward slantingly toward the Ever Summer Land. But neither of us may go far without again setting face toward the Rising Sun. By so doing, one of us may come upon the trail as we journey toward the upward bend of the river."
"We must keep within the sound of each other's voice," cautioned Raven Wing. ”

“ As time goes on it becomes overgrown with grass and bushes and looks as if it were a natural bank, just like this one," said Raven Wing.
"After a freshet, beaver must make repairs," remarked Hawk Eye. [Pg 73]
"Fearless Bear told me he once made holes in a dam and during the night watched the beavers patch up the damaged places," laughed Raven Wing.
"I wouldn't care to be a beaver," said Hawk Eye. "It must be tiresome to live under the ice roof of a pond. I've noticed how the beavers sport and play when the ice breaks up."
Raven Wing turned on his heel and pointed to a beaver lodge. ”

“ Deep breathing in the open air, giving full lung power; self-denial, giving strength of limb and en [Pg 9] durance in the race; fellowship with all of nature's winsome and wild moods; a discerning will power; a steadfast reliance upon the guiding hand of the Great Spirit, empower the Indian boy to stand on all the high hills of history and challenge any militant force that may confront him. ”

“ The Musquash, sometimes called the muskrat, although it ought to be called the muskbeaver, because it is really a beaver and no rat at all, never builds dams nor digs canals. It has a flat tail like the beaver and not at all resembling the tapering tail of water rat. It builds houses, much like the beaver's, only smaller.
"We will not forget this spot," chuckled Raven Wing. "We will get many pelts on our next visit."
"No one shall learn of its location," added Hawk Eye. "We will get the pelts for ourselves."
"The dam is in fine condition," said Raven Wing, who had climbed up upon it. ”

“ THE WARY ANIMALS HAD DIVED OUT OF SIGHT AT HEARING THE BOYS APPROACH.
"Fearless Bear once told me," remarked Raven Wing, "that hunters rarely see [Pg 70] beavers building a dam. He says that they build at night and that it is no easy matter for a hunter to watch them."
"The musquash is easier to hunt," said Hawk Eye. "But he is less than half the size of the beaver; besides, his pelt is not so valuable."
"I've seen a beaver caught that weighed almost eighty pounds," said Raven Wing. ”

“ The canoes now became the chief object of interest to all concerned. Slow Dog realized that if the boys should succeed in [Pg 106] reaching the canoes they could escape. This, of course, they could not hope to do as long as daylight lasted nor even when night should arrive, unless it were a very dark one, since he and his comrade were armed with bow and arrows. On the other hand, he knew, now that the boys had possession of the guns, that it would be almost certain death to venture on the beach so long as there was sufficient light to enable Hawk Eye to aim with his gun. ”

“ From then on Slow Dog was busy with practical things, for the father-in-law's family must be provided with game for a year, or until a little papoose should swing from a lodge pole. Notwithstanding that his lodge was no longer lonely, the heart of Slow Dog still yearned for the beautiful Bending Willow. ”

“ Mississippi, the Minnesota spread out around a great flat island.
"We will not beach our canoes here," said Hawk Eye. "Fearless Bear advised me to see the trader on that little island yonder. He is known to deal justly with the red men. The Sioux call him Walking Wind."
Running their own canoes gently up on the sandy beach, they pulled the empty Chippeway canoes a little further up on shore and looked about them. ”

“ You are strong and tall for your years. You are a fine hunter; you know the river; your canoe is well made."
As she finished speaking, Black Eagle strode up.
"The hunters are well on their way," he said. "The last canoe is now out of sight."
"Raven Wing wishes to take his pelts to the trading post," announced Bending Willow.
Black Eagle turned to his stepson. "You wish to go?" he asked.
"Yes," replied the boy. "Hawk Eye will go with me. He has many fine skins, also." ”

“ Hawk Eye would present it to our chief," explained the boy. As he and Raven Wing were about to turn away, Old Smoky Wolf appeared in the doorway of the lodge. He gravely thanked Hawk Eye on learning of the gift.
"You both shall come to the feast," he added kindly. The boys thanked him and as [Pg 19] they turned away, a smile spread over Old Smoky Wolf's wrinkled face.
"My tribe are not women. A brave is no stranger in my village. These boys will become great hunters. At the sound of their moccasins the beaver will lie down to be killed," grunted the old chief. ”

“ He learns to ride before he can walk; he is taught the use of the bow and arrow, which means hitting the mark, keenness of vision, a steady aim, precision, so that when the crisis comes he is ready—an ample reason for the brave, effective and self-reliant conduct of the Indian soldier on the fields of France in the World War. ”

“ Hawk Eye said. "My father was proud of it. He kept our lodge well supplied with meat before an Objibway's bullet ended his life."
"Let us make camp," Raven Wing suggested after a time. "I see a sandy beach. Up to now the shore has been bordered with great flat rocks."
"It is too early," Hawk Eye said. "The weather is fine. It is better to keep to our paddles until sundown. Take care that your canoe does not grate upon a hidden rock. There are many in the water." ”

“ Breaking into a run, the boys headed for Big Stone Lake, from whose southern boundary issued the "sky-tinted waters" of the Minnesota River.
As they hurried through the timber belt that bordered the river's edge, Raven Wing remarked, "they may come down in the marsh."
Ice still lay thick upon the lake, but on the shallower waters it had begun to melt under the increasing warmth of the sun. [Pg 15]
"Can they see us?" asked Hawk Eye as Raven Wing, who was in the lead, stopped at the further end of the grove.
"No. We have yet time to run across this open space," answered the younger boy. ”

“ As the boys strolled along they noted the number of stumps which were all that remained of the trees which the beavers had cut down and divided into short lengths, such as could be carried by mouth when building the dam.
"Sharp teeth to cut these trees," remarked Raven Wing. "Some of these stumps are two feet thick."
"Did Fearless Bear tell you how the beaver works?" asked Hawk Eye.
"He supports himself by his tail when he rears on his hind legs to cut down a tree," [Pg 72] answered Raven Wing. "With his teeth he cuts the wood as neatly as a hunter cuts it with his hatchet. ”

“ Raven Wing and Hawk Eye pushed on across the prairie toward the Minnesota River. They had left the trail and were veering toward the north.
"It would not be wise to make the great ford called by the white men Sioux," Hawk Eye had said. "We must come at a fair distance from there down the river to a point where the banks are high and the timber heavy." ”

“ He will take the pelts to the trading post at Mendota."
"Yes, you are right," answered Raven Wing. "Why should he tow our heavy laden canoes upstream? And how would he account for their possession should he meet with any of our own people? We are two birds with broken wings. Paddles and current will carry the canoes faster than we can hope to run for any length of time."
"But we must get back our canoes," answered Hawk Eye.
Raven Wing made no answer. He slowly loosened the leather thong about his neck and opened a small doeskin bag that hung by a leather thong about his neck. ”

“ The odds are two to one in our favor." Hardly had he finished speaking when an arrow struck the ledge of rocks behind which they were crouching.
"Slow Dog is no mean marksman," said Raven Wing. "We must not be careless."
As Hawk Eye reloaded his gun, he noticed, in spite of the gathering gloom, blood stains upon the stock. For several moments he regarded them in silence. Then turned to Raven Wing.
"I think I have a plan that will work well," he said. "Come here, Ohitika," he cried, [Pg 109] squatting down on the floor of the cave. The faithful dog came fawning to his feet. ”

“ As the boys drew near, they noticed groups of Indians with their squaws and Canadian boatmen with pipes in their mouths, gathered in front of a great wing, which on entering they found to be the company store. ”

“ I am strong. I can handle my father's gun with the best of the hunters. I am a boy no longer. Comes another snow and I shall be a warrior."
[Pg 28]
CHAPTER III LOADING THE CANOES
"You are my only son," sighed Light Between Clouds, gazing lovingly upon the stalwart form of Hawk Eye. "You are the main support of your sister and me. I am loath to give my consent. It is a long journey to the trading post at Mendota."
"Black Eagle, my stepfather, is willing that I should go," broke in Raven Wing.
"And what does Bending Willow say?" inquired Light Between Clouds. ”

“ Do you think my stock of pelts will bring me one?" [Pg 32]
"If you are clever at trading," answered Hawk Eye with a chuckle. "And if not," he added kindly, "you shall have some of mine to fill in."
When the last pack had been carefully loaded, Hawk Eye looked critically at his work. "You have displayed much skill," observed Black Eagle, who came up at that moment.
"I took pains to watch the hunters load their craft at sunup," said Hawk Eye.
"Safe carriage depends on good loading as well as skill with the paddles," said Black Eagle. ”

“ While debating as to what might be the best thing to do, he looked towards the cave and to his surprise saw Hawk Eye signing to him from behind a ledge of rock that screened him completely from the view of the enemy. [Pg 103]
Answering the sign to assure his friend that he had seen him, Raven Wing made a series of signs which were finally understood by Hawk Eye to mean that he was to come out and expose himself to the view of the Indians. ”

“ They may cause us trouble."
"We will make a portage," said Hawk Eye. "We cannot trust our pelts to the angry waters."
"Then we must unload the canoes and shoulder the packs," said Raven Wing. "That will not be easy."
"It will be hard work," agreed Hawk Eye.
Instead of going ashore for their midday meal, the boys ate pemmican while paddling. At sundown they ran the canoes ashore and prepared to make camp for the night. After a hearty meal of bear meat which had been well-cooked the day before, they rolled themselves in their blankets and lay down for the night. ”

“ At once Hawk Eye stabbed it with his knife. Roaring with pain, it pulled it down. After a few minutes it [Pg 52] worked its way to one side where the rim was less pronounced and getting a firm hold on a shelf of rock with its hind feet, again stretched over a front paw. Before Hawk Eye could use his knife its other paw came above the rim and its head appeared. Growling and showing its teeth, it dug the claws of its hind feet into the slanting rocky side and raised itself.
Hawk Eye had only his knife. No loose rocks lay upon the flat surface. ”