"Supposeyoudid——whatthen？"askedJim,severely。
　　"Why——nothing——seehere,mayn'tIadmireaprettygirlifIwant？"
　　"No,youmaynot。Joe,willnothingevercureyou？IshouldthinkthethoughtofMissWells———"
　　"Lookhere,Jim;shedon'tcare——atleast,it'sverylittleshecares。AndI'm——I'mnotworthyofher。"
　　"Turnaroundhereandfaceme,"saidtheyoungministersharply。
　　Joeturnedandlookedinhisbrother'seyes。
　　"Haveyoutrifledwithher,asyouhavewithsomanyothers？Tellme。Iknowyoudon'tlie。"
　　"No。"
　　"Thenwhatdoyoumean？"
　　"Nothingmuch,Jim,exceptI'mreallynotworthyofher。I'mnogood,youknow,andsheoughttogetafellowlike——likeyou。"
　　"Absurd！Yououghttobeashamedofyourself。"
　　"Nevermindme。Seehere;don'tyouadmireher？"
　　"Why——why,yes,"stammeredJim,flushingadark,guiltyredatthedirectquestion。"Whocouldhelpadmiringher？"
　　"That'swhatIthought。AndIknowsheadmiresyouforqualitieswhichIlack。
　　Nell'slikeatendervinejustbeginningtocreeparoundandclingtosomethingstrong。Shecaresforme;butherloveislikethevine。Itmayhurtheralittletotearthatloveaway,butitwon'tkillher;andintheenditwillbebestforher。Youneedagoodwife。WhatcouldIdowithawoman？Goinandwinher,Jim。"
　　"Joe,you'resacrificingyourselfagainforme,"criedJim,whitetothelips。
　　"It'swrongtoyourselfandwrongtoher。Itellyou———"
　　"Enough！"Joe'svoicecutincoldandsharp。"Usuallyyouinfluenceme;butsometimesyoucan't;Isaythis:Nellwilldriftintoyourarmsassurelyastheleaffalls。Itwillnothurther——willbebestforher。Remember,sheisyoursforthewinning。"
　　"Youdonotsaywhetherthatwillhurtyou,"whisperedJim。
　　"Come——we'llfindColonelZane,"saidJoe,openingthedoor。
　　Theywentoutinthehallwaywhichopenedintotheyardaswellasthelargerroomthroughwhichthecolonelhadfirstconductedthem。AsJim,whowasinadvance,passedintothisapartmentatrimfigureenteredfromtheyard。ItwasNell,andsherandirectlyagainsthim。Herfacewasflushed,hereyeswerebeamingwithgladness,andsheseemedtheincarnationofgirlishjoy。
　　"Oh,Joe,"wasallshewhispered。Butthehappinessandwelcomeinthatwhispercouldneverhavebeenbetterexpressedinlongerspeech。Thenslightly,eversoslightly,shetiltedhersweetfaceuptohis。
　　Itallhappenedwiththequicknessofthought。InasingleinstantJimsawtheradiantface,theoutstretchedhands,andheardthegladwhisper。HeknewthatshehadaagainmistakenhimforJoe;butforhislifehecouldnotdrawbackhishead。Hehadkissedher,andevenashislipsthrilledwithhertremulouscaressheflushedwiththeshameofhisdeceit。
　　"You'remistakenagain——I'mJim,"hewhispered。
　　Foramomenttheystoodstaringintoeachother'seyes,slowlyawakeningtowhathadreallyhappened,slowlyconsciousofasweet,alluringpower。ThenColonelZane'scheeryvoicerangintheirears。
　　"Ah,here'sNellieandyourbrother！Now,lads,tellmewhichiswhich？'
　　"That'sJim,andI'mJoe,"answeredthelatter。Heappearednottonoticehisbrother,andhisgreetingtoNellwasnaturalandhearty。Forthemomentshedrewtheattentionoftheothersfromthem。
　　Joefoundhimselflisteningtothecongratulationsofanumberofpeople。
　　AmongthemanynamesherememberedwerethoseofMrs。Zane,SilasZane,andMajorMcColloch。Thenhefoundhimselfgazingatthemostbeautifulgirlhehadeverseeninhislife。
　　"Myonlysister,Mrs。AlfredClarke——onceBettyZane,andtheheroineofFortHenry,"saidColonelZaneproudly,withhisarmaroundtheslender,dark—eyedgirl。
　　"IwouldbravetheIndiansandthewildernessagainforthispleasure,"
　　repliedJoegallantly,ashebowedlowoverthelittlehandshecordiallyextended。
　　"Bess,isdinnerready？"inquiredColonelZaneofhiscomelywife。Shenoddedherhead,andthecolonelledthewayintotheadjoiningroom。"Iknowyouboysmustbehungryasbears。"
　　DuringthemealColonelZanequestionedhisguestsabouttheirjourney,andastothetreatmenttheyhadreceivedatthehandsoftheIndians。Hesmiledattheyoungminister'searnestnessinregardtotheconversionoftheredmen,andhelaughedoutrightwhenJoesaid"heguessedhecametothefrontierbecauseitwastooslowathome。"
　　"Iamsureyourdesireforexcitementwillsoonbesatisfied,ifindeeditbenotsoalready,"remarkedthecolonel。"Butastotherealizationofyourbrother'shopesIamnotsosanguine。UndoubtedlytheMoravianmissionarieshaveaccomplishedwonderswiththeIndians。NotlongagoIvisitedtheVillageofPeace——theIndiannameforthemission——andwasstruckbythefriendlinessandindustrywhichprevailedthere。Trulyitwasavillageofpeace。Yetitisalmosttoearlytobecertainofpermanentsuccessofthiswork。TheIndian'snatureisonehardtounderstand。Heisnaturallyrovingandrestless,which,however,maybeowingtohishabitofmovingfromplacetoplaceinsearchofgoodhuntinggrounds。Ibelieve——thoughImustconfessIhaven'tseenanypioneerswhosharemybelief——thatthesavagehasabeautifulsidetohischaracter。Iknowofmanynobledeedsdonebythem,andIbelieve,iftheyarehonestlydealtwith,theywillreturngoodforgood。Therearebadones,ofcourse;buttheFrenchtraders,andmenliketheGirtys,havecausedmostofthislongwar。JonathanandWetzeltellmetheShawneesandChippewashavetakenthewarpathagain。ThenthefactthattheGirtysarewiththeDelawaresisreasonforalarm。Wehavebeencomparativelyquiethereoflate。Didyouboyslearntowhattribeyourcaptorsbelong？DidWetzelsay？"
　　"Hedidnot;hespokelittle,butIwillsayhewasexceedinglyactive,"
　　answeredJoe,withasmile。
　　"TohaveseenWetzelfightIndiansissomethingyouarenotlikelytoforget,"
　　saidColonelZanegrimly。"Now,tellme,howdidthoseIndiansweartheirscalp—lock？"
　　"Theirheadswereshavedclosely,withtheexceptionofalittleplaceontop。
　　Theremaininghairwastwistedintoatuft,tiedtightly,andintothishadbeenthrustacoupleofpaintedpins。WhenWetzelscalpedtheIndiansthepinsfellout。Ipickedoneup,andfoundittobebone。"
　　"Youwillmakeawoodsman,that'scertain,"repliedColonelZane。"TheIndianswereShawneeonthewarpath。Well,wewillnotborrowtrouble,forwhenitcomesintheshapeofredskinsitusuallycomesquickly。Mr。Wellsseemedanxioustoresumethejourneydowntheriver;butIshalltrytopersuadehimtoremainwithusawhile。Indeed,IamsorryIcannotkeepyouallhereatFortHenry,andmoreespeciallythegirls。Ontheborderweneedyoungpeople,and,whileIdonotwanttofrightenthewomen,IfeartherewillbemorethanIndiansfightingforthem。"
　　"Ihopenot;butwehavecomepreparedforanything,"saidKate,withaquietsmile。"Ourhomewaswithuncle,andwhenheannouncedhisintentionofgoingwestwedecidedourdutywastogowithhim。"
　　"Youwereright,andIhopeyouwillfindahappyhome,"rejoinedColonelZane。"IflifeamongtheIndian,provestobetoohad,weshallwelcomeyouhere。Betty,showthegirlsyourpetsandIndiantrinkets。IamgoingtotaketheboystoSilas'cabintoseeMr。Wells,andthenshowthemoverthefort。"
　　AstheywentoutJoesawtheIndianguidestandinginexactlythesamepositionaswhentheyenteredthebuilding。
　　"Can'tthatIndianmove？"heaskedcuriously。
　　"Hecancoveronehundredmilesinaday,whenhewantsto,"repliedColonelZane。"Heisrestingnow。AnIndianwilloftenstandorsitinonepositionformanyhours。"
　　"He'safine—lookingchap,"remarkedJoe,andthentohimself:"butIdon'tlikehim。IguessI'mprejudiced。"
　　"You'lllearntolikeTome,aswecallhim。"
　　"ColonelZane,Iwantalightformypipe。Ihaven'thadasmokesincethedaywewerecaptured。Thatblamedredskintookmytobacco。It'sluckyIhadsomeinmyotherpack。I'dliketomeethimagain;alsoSilvertipandthatbruteGirty。"
　　"Mylad,don'tmakesuchwishes,"saidColonelZane,earnestly。"Youwereindeedfortunatetoescape,andIcanwellunderstandyourfeelings。ThereisnothingIshouldlikebetterthantoseeGirtyoverthesightsofmyrifle;
　　butIneverhuntafterdanger,andtolookforGirtyistocourtdeath。"
　　"ButWetzel———"
　　"Ah,mylad,IknowWetzelgoesaloneinthewoods;butthen,heisdifferentfromothermen。BeforeyouleaveIwilltellyouallabouthim。"。
　　ColonelZanewentaroundthecomerofthecabinandreturnedwithalivecoalonachipofwood,whichJoeplacedinthebowlofhispipe,andbecauseofthestrongbreezesteppedclosetothecabinwall。Beingakeenobserver,henoticedmanysmall,roundholesinthelogs。Theyweresoneartogetherthatthetimbershadanodd,speckledappearance,andtherewashardlyaplacewherehecouldhaveputhisthumbwithoutcoveringahole。Atfirsthethoughttheyweremadebyawormorbirdpeculiartothatregion;butfinallylieconcludedthattheywerebullet—holes。Hethrusthisknifebladeintoone,andoutrolledaleadenball。
　　"I'dliketohavebeenherewhentheseweremade,"hesaid。
　　"Well,atthetimeIwishedIwasbackonthePotomac,"repliedColonelZane。
　　Theyfoundtheoldmissionaryonthedoorstepoftheadjacentcabin。HeappeareddiscouragedwhenColonelZaneinterrogatedhim,andsaidthathewasimpatientbecauseofthedelay。
　　"Mr。Wells,isitnotpossiblethatyouunderratethedangerofyourenterprise？"
　　"IfearnaughtbuttheLord,"answeredtheoldman。
　　"Doyounotfearforthosewithyou？"wentonthecolonelearnestly。"Iamheartandsoulwithyouinyourwork,butwanttoimpressuponyonthatthetimeisnotpropitious。Itisalongjourneytothevillage,andthewayisbesetwithdangersofwhichyouhavenoidea。Willyounotremainherewithmeforafewweeks,or,atleast,untilmyscoutsreport？"
　　"Ithankyou;butgoIwill。"
　　"Thenletmeentreatyoutoremainhereafewdays,sothatImaysendmybrotherJonathanandWetzelwithyou。IfanycanguideyousafelytotheVillageofPeaceitwillbethey。"
　　AtthismomentJoesawtwomenapproachingfromthefort,andrecognizedoneofthemasWetzel。HedoubtednotthattheotherwasLordDunmore'sfamousguideandhunter,JonathanZane。Infeaturesheresembledthecolonel,andwasastallasWetzel,althoughnotsomuscularorwideofchest。
　　JoefeltthesamethrillhehadexperiencedwhilewatchingthefrontiersmenatFortPitt。WetzelandJonathanspokeawordtoColonelZaneandthensteppedaside。Thehuntersstoodlitheanderect,withtheeasy,gracefulpoiseofIndians。
　　"We'lltaketwocanoes,dayafterto—morrow,"saidJonathan,decisively,toColonelZane。"HaveyouarifleforWetzel？TheDelawaresgothis。"
　　ColonelZaneponderedoverthequestion;rifleswerenotscarceatthefort,butaweaponthatWetzelwouldusewashardtofind。
　　"Thehuntermayhavemyrifle,"saidtheoldmissionary。"IhavenouseforaweaponwithwhichtodestroyGod'screatures。Mybrotherwasafrontiersman;
　　heleftthisrifletome。Irememberhearinghimsayoncethatifamanknewexactlytheweightofleadandpowderneeded,itwouldshootabsolutelytrue。"
　　Hewentintothecabin,andpresentlycameoutwithalongobjectwrappedinlinseycloths。Unwindingthecoverings,hebroughttoviewarifle,theproportionsofwhichcausedJonathan'seyestoglisten,andbroughtanexclamationfromColonelZane。Wetzelbalancedtheguninhishands。Itwasfullysixfeetlong;thebarrelwaslarge,andthedarksteelfinelypolished;
　　thestockwasblackwalnut,ornamentedwithsilvertrimmings。UsingJonathan'spowder—flaskandbullet—pouch,Wetzelproceededtoloadtheweapon。Hepouredoutaquantityofpowderintothepalmofhishand,performingtheactionquicklyanddexterously,butwassoslowwhilemeasuringitthatJoewonderedifhewerecountingthegrains。NextheselectedabulletoutofadozenwhichJonathanheldtowardhim。Heexamineditcarefullyandtrieditinthemuzzleoftherifle。Evidentlyitdidnotpleasehim,forhetookanother。Finallyhescrapedabulletwithhisknife,andplacingitinthecenterofasmalllinseyrag,deftlyforceditdown。Headjustedtheflint,droppedafewgrainsofpowderinthepan,andthenlookedaroundforamarkatwhichtoshoot。
　　JoeobservedthatthehuntersandColonelZanewereasseriousregardingtheworkasifatthatmomentsomeimportantissuedependedupontheaccuracyoftherifle。
　　"There,Lew;there'sagoodshot。It'sprettyfar,evenforyou,whenyoudon'tknowthegun,"saidColonelZane,pointingtowardtheriver。
　　Joesawtheendofalog,aboutthesizeofaman'shead,stickingoutofthewater,perhapsanhundredandfiftyyardsdistant。Hethoughttohititwouldbeafineshot;butwasamazedwhenheheardColonelZanesaytoseveralmenwhohadjoinedthegroupthatWetzelintendedtoshootataturtleonthelog。
　　BystraininghiseyesJoesucceededindistinguishingasmalllump,whichheconcludedwastheturtle。
　　Wetzeltookastepforward;thelong,blackriflewasraisedwithastatelysweep。Theinstantitreachedalevelathreadofflameburstforth,followedbyapeculiarlyclear,ringingreport。
　　"Didhehit？"askedColonelZane,eagerlyasaboy。
　　"Iallowhedid,"answeredJonathan。
　　"I'llgoandsee,"saidJoe。Herandownthebank,alongthebeach,andsteppedonthelog。Hesawaturtleaboutthesizeofanordinarysaucer。
　　Pickingitup,hesawabullet—holeintheshellnearthemiddle。Thebullethadgonethroughtheturtle,anditwasquitedead。Joecarriedittothewaitinggroup。
　　"Iallowedso,"declaredJonathan。
　　Wetzelexaminedtheturtle,andturningtotheoldmissionary,said:
　　"Yourbrotherspokethetruth,an'Ithankyoufertherifle。"
　　ChapterVIII。
　　"SoyouwanttoknowallaboutWetzel？"inquiredColonelZaneofJoe,when,havingleftJimandMr。Wells,theyreturnedtothecabin。
　　"Iamimmenselyinterestedinhim,"repliedJoe。
　　"Well,Idon'tthinkthere'sanythingsingularinthat。IknowWetzelbetter,perhaps,thananymanliving;buthaveseldomtalkedabouthim。Hedoesn'tlikeit。HeisbybirthaVirginian;Ishouldsay,fortyyearsold。Wewereboystogether,andandIamalittlebeyondthatage。Hewaslikeanyofthelads,exceptthatheexcelledusallinstrengthandagility。WhenhewasnearlyeighteenyearsoldabandifIndians——Delawares,Ithink——crossedtheborderonamaraudingexpeditionfarintoVirginia。TheyburnedtheoldWetzelhomesteadandmurderedthefather,mother,twosisters,andababybrother。
　　TheterribleshocknearlykilledLewis,whoforatimewasveryill。Whenherecoveredhewentinsearchofhisbrothers,MartinandJohnWetzel,whowerehunting,andbroughtthembacktotheirdesolatedhome。Overtheashesofthehomeandthegravesofthelovedonesthebrotherssworesleeplessandeternalvengeance。TheelderbrothershavebeendevotedallthesetwentyyearsandmoretothekillingofIndians;butLewishasbeenthegreatfoeoftheredman。Youhavealreadyseenanexampleofhisdeeds,andwillhearofmore。
　　Hisnameisahouseholdwordontheborder。Scoresoftimeshehassaved,actuallysaved,thisfortandsettlement。HisknowledgeofsavagewayssurpassesbyfarBoone's,MajorMcColloch's,Jonathan's,oranyofthehunters'。"
　　"ThenhuntingIndiansishissoleoccupation？"
　　"Helivesforthatpurposealone。Heisveryseldominthesettlement。
　　Sometimeshestayshereafewdays,especiallyifheisneeded;butusuallyheroamstheforests。"
　　"WhatdidJeffLynnmeanwhenhesaidthatsomepeoplethinkWetzeliscrazy？"
　　"Therearemanywhothinkthemanmad;butIdonot。WhenthepassionforIndianhuntingcomesuponhimheisfierce,almostfrenzied,yetperfectlysane。Whilehereheisquiet,seldomspeaksexceptwhenspokento,andistaciturnwithstrangers。Heoftencomestomycabinandsitsbesidethefireforhours。Ithinkhefindspleasureintheconversationandlaughteroffriends。Heisfondofthechildren,andwoulddoanythingformysisterBetty。"
　　"Hislifemustbelonelyandsad,"remarkedJoe。
　　"Thelifeofanybordermanisthat;butWetzel'sisparticularlyso。"
　　"WhatishecalledbytheIndians？"
　　"TheycallhimAtelang,or,inEnglish,Deathwind。"
　　"ByGeorge！That'swhatSilvertipsaidinFrench——'LeVentdelaMort。'"
　　"Yes;youhaveitright。AFrenchfurtradergaveWetzelthatnameyearsago,andithasclungtohim。TheIndianssaytheDeathwindblowsthroughtheforestwheneverWetzelstalksontheirtrail。"
　　"ColonelZane,don'tyouthinkmesuperstitious,"whisperedJoe,leaningtowardthecolonel,"butIheardthatwindblowthroughtheforest。"
　　"What！"ejaculatedColonelZane。HesawthatJoewasinearnest,fortheremembranceofthemoanhadmorethanoncepaledhischeekandcausedbeadsofperspirationtocollectonhisbrow。
　　Joerelatedthecircumstancesofthatnight,andattheendofhisnarrativeColonelZanesatsilentandthoughtful。
　　"Youdon'treallythinkitwasWetzelwhomoaned？"heasked,atlength。
　　"No,Idon't,"repliedJoequickly;"but,ColonelZane,IheardthatmoanasplainlyasIcanhearyourvoice。Iheardittwice。Now,whatwasit？"
　　"Jonathansaidthesamethingtomeonce。HehadbeenouthuntingwithWetzel;
　　theyseparated,andduringthenightJonathanheardthewind。ThenextdayheranacrossadeadIndian。HebelievesWetzelmakesthenoise,andsodothehunters;butIthinkitissimplythemoanofthenightwindthroughthetrees。Ihavehearditattimes,whenmyverybloodseeminglyrancold。"
　　"Itriedtothinkitwasthewindsoughingthroughthepines,butamafraidI
　　didn'tsucceedverywell。Anyhow,IknewWetzelinstantly,justasJeffLynnsaidIwould。HekilledthoseIndiansinaninstant,andhemusthaveanironarm。"
　　"Wetzelexcelsinstrengthandspeedanyman,redorwhite,onthefrontier。
　　HecanrunawayfromJonathan,whoisasswiftasanIndian。He'sstrongerthananyoftheothermen。IrememberonedayoldHughBennet'swagonwheelsstuckinabogdownbythecreek。Hughtried,asseveralothersdid,tomovethewheels;buttheycouldn'tbemadetobudge。AlongcameWetzel,pushedawaythemen,andliftedthewagonunaided。Itwouldtakehourstotellyouabouthim。Inbrief,amongalltheborderscoutsandhuntersWetzelstandsalone。NowondertheIndiansfearhim。Heisasswiftasaneagle,strongasmountain—ash,keenasafox,andabsolutelytirelessandimplacable。"
　　"Howlonghaveyoubeenhere,ColonelZane？"
　　"Morethantwelveyears,andithasbeenonelongfight。"
　　"I'mafraidI'mtoolateforthefun,"saidJoe,withhisquietlaugh。
　　"Notbyabouttwelvemoreyears,"answeredColonelZane,studyingtheexpressiononJoe'sface。"WhenIcameouthereyearsagoIhadthesameadventurousspiritwhichIseeinyou。Ithasbeenconsiderablyquelled,however。Ihaveseenmanyadaringyoungfellowgettheborderfever,andwithithisdeath。Letmeadviseyoutolearnthewaysofthehunters;towatchsomeoneskilledinwoodcraft。PerhapsWetzelhimselfwilltakeyouinhand。I
　　don'tmindsayingthathespokeofyoutomeinatoneIneverheardLewusebefore。"
　　"Hedid？"questionedJoe,eagerly,flushingwithpleasure。"Doyouthinkhe'dtakemeout？DareIaskhim？"
　　"Don'tbeimpatient。PerhapsIcanarrangeit。ComeoverherenowtoMetzar'splace。Iwanttomakeyouacquaintedwithhim。Theseboyshaveallbeencuttingtimber;they'vejustcomeinfordinner。Beeasyandquietwiththem;
　　thenyou'llgeton。"
　　ColonelZaneintroducedJoetofivesturdyboysandlefthimintheircompany。
　　Joesatdownonalogoutsideacabinandleisurelysurveyedtheyoungmen。
　　Theyalllookedaboutthesame:strongwithoutbeingheavy,light—hairedandbronze—faced。IntheirturntheycarefullyjudgedJoe。AnewcomerfromtheEastwasalwaysregardedwithsomedoubt。IftheyexpectedtohearJoetalkmuchtheyweremistaken。Heappearedgood—natured,butnottoofriendly。
　　"Fineweatherwe'rehavin',"saidDickMetzar。
　　"Fine,"agreedJoe,laconically。
　　"Likefrontierlife？"
　　"Sure。"
　　Asilenceensuedafterthisbreakingoftheice。Theboyswereawaitingtheirturnatalittlewoodenbenchuponwhichstoodabucketofwaterandabasin。
　　"HearyegotketchedbysomeShawnees？"remarkedanotheryouth,asherolleduphisshirt—sleeves。TheyalllookedatJoenow。Itwasnotimprobablytheirestimateofhimwouldbegreatlyinfluencedbythewayheansweredthisquestion。
　　"Yes;wascaptiveforthreedays。"
　　"Didyeknockanyredskinsover？"ThisquestionwasartfullyputtodrawJoeout。Aboveallthings,thebordermendetestedboastfulness;triedonJoetherusefailedsignally。
　　"Iwasscaredspeechlessmostofthetime,"answeredJoe,withhispleasantsmile。
　　"Bygosh,Idon'tblameye！"burstoutWillMetzar。"Ihedthatexperienceonct,an'onct'senough。"
　　TheboyslaughedandlookedinamorefriendlymanneratJoe。Thoughhesaidhehadbeenfrightened,hiscoolandcarelessmannerbeliedhiswords。InJoe'slowvoiceandclear,grayeyetherewassomethingpotentandmagnetic,whichsubtlyinfluencethosewithwhomhecameincontact。
　　WhilehisnewfriendswereatdinnerJoestrolledovertowhereColonelZanesatonthedoorstepofhishome。
　　"Howdidyougetonwiththeboys？"inquiredthecolonel。
　　"Allright,Ihope。Say,ColonelZane,I'dliketotalktoyourIndianguide。"
　　ColonelZanespokeafewwordsintheIndianlanguagetotheguide,wholefthispostandcameovertothem。Thecolonelthenhadashortconversationwithhim,attheconclusionofwhichhepointedtowardJoe。
　　"Howdo——shake,"saidTome,extendinghishand。
　　Joesmiled,andreturnedthefriendlyhand—pressure。
　　"Shawnee——ketch'um？"askedtheIndian,inhisfairlyintelligibleEnglish。
　　Joenoddedhishead,whileColonelZanespokeoncemoreinShawnee,explainingthecauseofSilvertip'semnity。
　　"Shawnee——chief——one——bad——Injun,"repliedTome,seriously。
　　"Silvertip——mad——thunder—mad。Ketch'umpaleface——scalp'umsure。"
　　Aftergivingthiswarningthechiefreturnedtohisformerpositionnearthecornerofthecabin。
　　"HecantalkinEnglishfairlywell,muchbetterthantheShawneebravewhotalkedwithmetheotherday,"observedJoe。
　　"SomeoftheIndiansspeakthelanguagealmostfluently,"saidColonelZane。
　　"YoucouldhardlyhavedistinguishedLogan'sspeechfromawhiteman's。
　　Corn—planterusesgoodEnglish,asalsodoesmybrother'swife,aWyandotgirl。"
　　"DidyourbrothermarryanIndian？"andJoeplainlyshowedhissurprise。
　　"Indeedhedid,andamostbeautifulgirlsheis。I'lltellyouIsaac'sstorysometime。HewasacaptiveamongtheWyandotsfortenyears。Thechief'sdaughter,Myeerah,lovedhim,kepthimfrombeingtortured,andfinallysavedhimfromthestake。"
　　"Well,thatfloorsme,"saidJoe;"yetIdon'tseewhyitshould。I'mjustsurprised。Whereisyourbrothernow？"
　　"Heliveswiththetribe。HeandMyeerahareworkinghardforpeace。WearenowonmorefriendlytermswiththegreatWyandots,orHurons,aswecallthem,thaneverbefore。"
　　"Whoisthisbigmancomingfromthethefort？"askedJoe,suddenlyobservingastalwartfrontiersmanapproaching。
　　"MajorSamMcColloch。Youhavemethim。He'sthemanwhojumpedhishorsefromyonderbluff。"
　　"Jonathanandhehavethesamelook,thesameswing,"observedJoe,asheranhiseyeoverthemajor。Hisfadedbuckskincostume,beaded,fringed,andlaced,wassimilartothatofthecolonel'sbrother。Powder—flaskandbullet—pouchweremadefromcow—hornsandslungaroundhisneckondeerhidestrings。Thehuntingcoatwasunlaced,exposing,underthelong,fringedborders,atunicofthesamewell—tanned,butfinerandsofter,material。Ashewalked,theflapsofhiscoatfellback,showingabeltcontainingtwoknives,sheathedinheavybuckskin,andabrighttomahawk。Hecarriedalongrifleinthehollowofhisarm。
　　"Thesehuntershavethesamekindofbuckskinsuits,"continuedJoe;"still,itdoesn'tseemtometheclothesmaketheresemblancetoeachother。Thewaythesemenstand,walkandactiswhatstrikesmeparticularly,asinthecaseofWetzel。"
　　"Iknowwhatyoumean。Theflashingeye,theerectpoiseofexpectation,andthespringystep——those,mylad,comefromalifespentinthewoods。Well,it'sagrandwaytolive。"
　　"Colonel,myhorseislaidup,"saidMajorMcColloch,comingtothesteps。HebowedpleasantlytoJoe。
　　"SoyouaregoingtoShortCreek？Youcanhaveoneofmyhorses;butfirstcomeinsideandwe'lltalkoveryouexpedition。"
　　TheafternoonpasseduneventfullyforJoe。HisbrotherandMr。Wellswereabsorbedinplansfortheirfuturework,andNellandKatewereresting;
　　thereforehewasforcedtofindsuchamusementoroccupationaswaspossibleinornearthestockade。
　　ChapterIX。
　　Joewenttobedthatnightwithapromisetohimselftoriseearlynextmorning,forhehadbeeninvitedtotakepartina"raising,"whichtermmeantthatanewcabinwastobeerected,andsuchtaskwaseveraneventinthelivesofthesettlers。
　　ThefollowingmorningJoeroseearly,dressinghimselfinacompletebuckskinsuit,forwhichhehadexchangedhisgoodgarmentsofcloth。Neverbeforehadhefeltsocomfortable。Hewantedtohop,skipandjump。Thesoft,undressedbuckskinwasaswarmandsmoothassilk—plush;theweightsolight,themoccasinssowell—fittingandspringy,thathehadtoputhimselfunderconsiderablerestrainttokeepfromcaperingaboutlikeafrolicsomecolt。
　　Thepossessionofthisbuckskinoutfit,andtherifleandaccoutermentswhichwentwiththebargain,markedthelaststageinJoe'ssurrendertotheborderfever。Thesilent,shadedglens,themysteryofthewoods,thebreathofthiswild,freelifeclaimedhimfromthismomententirelyandforever。
　　Hemettheothers,however,withasereneface,showingnotraceoftheemotionwhichwelledupstronglyfromhisheart。Nellglancedshylyathim;