Connie Morgan in the Fur Country Part 22

Pierre puffed his pipe in silence for an interminable time, then he nodded slowly: "Yes," he answered, "I be'n dere."

"What is the name of that lake?"

"Long tam ago _nem_ 'Hill Lak'. Now, Injun call um 'Lak'-of-de-Fox-Dat-Yell'."

"You have seen him, too--the fox that yells?" asked the boy, eagerly.

"Yes. I kill um two tam--an' he com' back."

"Came back!" cried the boy. "What do you mean?"

"He com' back--an' yell w'en de sun com' up. An' w'en de sun go down he yell on de side of de hill."

"But surely he couldn't yell after you'd killed him. You must have killed the wrong fox."

"No. Wan tam I trap um, an' wan tam I shoot um--an' he com' back an'

yell."

"Where did you trap him? At the hole that goes under the rocks?"

"No. Wan tam I trap um on de sh.o.r.e of de lak'. An' wan tam I watch um com' out de hole an' shoot um."

"But the one you trapped--how do you know that it was the same one?

There's lots of foxes over there."

"Yes, I trap odder wans, too. Kin tell de fox dat yell. He wear de collar."

"Wears a collar!" cried the boy. "What do you mean? Are you crazy?"

"No. He _tamahnawus_ fox. He wear de collar."

"What kind of a collar?"

"Ermine skin collar--always he got it on."

"Look here," exclaimed Connie, shortly. "Are you lying to me? Do you expect me to sit here and believe any such rot as that? Did you save the collars? I want to look at 'em."

"De collar, an de skin, dey on de _cache_ at de end of dat lak'."

"What do you leave the black fox skins out there for, they're worth a lot?"

The Indian shrugged. "I ain' want for mak' de _tamahnawus_ mad. I put de skin an' de collar under de blankets on de _cache_."

"Are they there now?"

The Indian shrugged. "I ain' know dat. Mebbe-so _tamahnawus_ fox com'

an' git he's skin an' he's leetle w'ite collar an' wear um agin."

"But you've been to the _cache_ lately. There was grub on it that hadn't been there more than a month at the most."

"Yes. I got bad luck w'en I kill dem fox, so I build de _cache_ an' mak'

de _tamahnawus_ de present. All de tam I tak' mor' grub, an' now I ain'

got de bad luck."

For a long time Connie was silent as he went over in his mind step by step the happenings at the lake where 'Merican Joe had set the fox traps. Then he thought over what Pierre Bonnet Rouge had told him, but instead of clearing things up, the Indian's words had only served to deepen the mystery of the fox that yelled like a man. Suddenly the boy remembered the action of Pierre when McTavish had asked him if he knew anything about James Dean, the missing prospector. He glanced at the Indian who was puffing his pipe in silence, and decided to risk another direct question although he knew that in all probability Pierre Bonnet Rouge would relapse into a stubborn muteness; for in matters touching upon his superst.i.tions, the Indian is a man of profound silence. "I won't be any worse off than I am, now," thought the boy, "if he don't say another word--so here goes." He addressed the Indian gravely.

"Pierre," he began, watching the man narrowly to note the effect of his words, "you know I am a friend of yours, and a friend of the Indians. I gave them meat, and I saved them from being robbed by the _hooch_-runners." The Indian nodded, and Connie felt encouraged to proceed. "Now, I believe there is something else beside a _tamahnawus_ down there at Hill Lake. And I'm going back there and find out what it is."

Pierre Bonnet Rouge shook his head emphatically. "No. I ain' goin'

'long. I w'at you call, learn lesson for fool wit' _tamahnawus_."

"That's all right. I won't ask you to go. I am not afraid of the _tamahnawus_. If 'Merican Joe won't go with me, I'll go alone. I want you to tell me, though, what became of James Dean? Is he mixed up in this?"

The Indian smoked without answering for so long a time that the boy feared that he would never speak, but after a while he removed the pipe from his mouth and regarded the boy sombrely. "You _skook.u.m tillic.u.m_,"

he began, gravely. "I ain' lak I see you mak' de _tamahnawus_ mad. De _tamahnawus_, she mor' _skook.u.m_ as you. She git you. I tell you all I know 'bout dat _tamahnawus_. Den, if you goin' back to de lak--" he paused and shrugged meaningly, and turning to the squaw, who had finished was.h.i.+ng the supper dishes, he motioned with his hand, and the woman threw a brilliant red shawl over her head and pa.s.sed out the door.

Pierre Bonnet Rouge refilled his pipe, and hunching his chair closer to Connie, leaned toward him and spoke in a low tone. "She start long tam ago--six, seven year. We camp on de Blackwater. Wan tam in de winter, me, an' Ton-Kan, an' John Pickles, we go on de beeg caribou hunt. We swing up by de beeg lak' an' by-m-by we com' on de cabin. She w'ite man cabin, an' no wan hom', but de fresh track lead sout'. Ton-Kan, he t'ink de man got de _hooch_ to trade an' he want som' _hooch_, an' John Pickles too--so we fol' de track. By-m-by we com' to Hill Lak', an' de man she got de leetle camp by de hill. He ain' got no _hooch_. We got som' fox trap 'long, so we mak' de camp. Plent' fox track roun' de lak', an' we say tomor' we set de trap. Dat night com' de man to de camp. Say, 'nem James Dean.' Say, 'w'at you Injun goin' do?' I say, 'we goin' trap de fox. He ain' lak dat. By-m-by he say, 'you got look out. De _tamahnawus_ fox here. She talk lak de man.' I ain' b'lieve dat. I t'ink he say dat 'cos he wan' to trap de fox. But Ton-Kan an' John Pickles git scare. I say, 'de _tamahnawus_ ain' git you, he mebbe-so ain' git me, neider.' He say, 'me--I got de strong medicine. De _tamahnawus_ she know me. She do lak I say.' I ain' b'lieve dat, an' he say, 'You wait, I show you. I go back to my camp an' mak de medicine an' I tell de _tamahnawus_ to burn de snow out on de lak'.' He go back to he's camp an' Ton-Kan an'

John Pickles is ver' mooch scare. De night she ver' black. Wan tam I t'ink I hear som' wan walk out on de lak', but I ain' sure an' Ton-Kan say dat _tamahnawus_. Den he point out on de lak' an' I kin see leetle fire lak' de eye of de fox in de dark. Den she mak de leetle spark, an'

she move 'long ver slow. I laugh an' I say, 'Dat James Dean out dere, she mak de fire to scare Injun.' Den rat behine me som' wan laugh, an'

stands James Dean, an' he say, 'No, James Dean is here. Dat de _tamahnawus_ out on de lak'. He burn de snow, lak I tell um.' I say, 'Mebbe-so, de piece of rope burn lak dat.' An' he say, 'No, dat ain' no rope. Dat _tamahnawus_ burn de snow. You t'ink you smart Injun--but I show you. If dat is rope she goin' out pret' queek, ain' it? She can't mak' de big fire?' I say, 'No, rope can't mak' no big fire.' 'A'right,'

he say, 'I tell de _tamahnawus_ to mak' de beeg fire dat mak' de lak'

all light.' Den he yell at de _tamahnawus_. He say, 'Mak' de beeg fire!

Mak' de beeg fire!' But she ain' mak' no beeg fire, an' de leetle fire crawl slow out on de snow, an' I laugh on heem. He say, 'De _tamahnawus_ ain' hear dat. I got yell louder.' So he yell louder, 'Mak' de beeg fire! Mak' de beeg fire!' An den." Pierre Bonnet Rouge paused and shuddered. "An' den de beeg fire com'! So queek--so beeg you kin see de trees. An' den she all dark, so black you can't see nuttin'. An' James Dean laugh. An' Ton-Kan, she so scare she howl lak' de dog. An' John Pickles, she try to dig de hole in de snow an' crawl in. An' me--I'm so scare I can't talk.

"Nex' mornin' w'en she git light nuff to see we go 'way from dat lak'

jes' so fas lak we kin, an' we ain' stop till we git to de Blackwater."

Pierre Bonnet Rouge lapsed into silence, and at length Connie asked:

"But the _cache_? And the foxes that wore the collars?"

"Nex' year I hunt caribou agin, but I ain' go by Hill lak', you bet.

Young Injun 'long _nem_ Clawhammer, an' we swing roun' by de beeg lak'

an' com' by de cabin. Lots of tracks, but I ain' see James Dean tracks.

By-m-by, we com' on de camp of 'bout ten Innuit. Dey mak' de track by de cabin, an' dey got all de stuff out. I ain' see James Dean. _S'pose_ James Dean dead. He los' de medicine, an' de _tamahnawus_ git um.

"So I keep way from Hill Lak'. T'ree, four year go by, an' de fox trappin' is bad. I ain' so mooch fraid of _tamahnawus_ no mor' an' I t'ink 'bout dem plent' fox tracks on Hill Lak' so me an' Clawhammer we go dere. We set 'bout twent' traps de firs' day. Never see so many fox track. We set um by de hill. We git t'rough early an' set up de tent on de sh.o.r.e of de lak'. She almos' sundown an' I look up de hill an' rat beside wan leetle rock-ledge, I see wan fine black fox. I grab de gun, an' tak' de res' on de sled, an' den I hear de yell! It soun' lak' wan man w'at is los'! But it com' from de fox! I shoot queek, an' de fox com' roll down de hill! Clawhammer he run an' git um, an' den we see it--de collar of ermine skin! Den I know dat de _tamahnawus_ fox James Dean say talk lak' de man, an' I ver' mooch scare. I ain' tell Clawhammer 'bout James Dean, an' he t'ink som' wan git los' mak' de yell. He ain' see it com' from de fox. I look on dat leetle fox, an' I see he ver' dead. But no blood. De fur jes' scratch' cross de back of de head--but, she ver' dead--I look good.

"Clawhammer he wan' to skin dat fox, but I don' know w'at to do. If de Injun kill de fox, he mus' got to skin um. Dat bad to waste de fox.

_Sah-ha-lee Tyee_ don' want de Injun to waste de peoples. I got to t'ink 'bout dat an' so I lay de fox behine de tent an' mak' de supper. After supper I t'ink long tam. _Tamahnawus_, she bad spirit. _Sah-ha-lee Tyee_, she good spirit. If I skin de fox, _tamahnawus_ git mad on me. If I ain' skin de fox, _Sah-ha-lee Tyee_ git mad on me. I ain' know w'at to do. I t'ink som' mor'. By-m-by I t'ink dat bes to skin de fox. I ain'

know where _Sah-ha-lee Tyee_ liv'. If I mak' um mad I ain' kin giv' um no present. Better I mak' _tamahnawus_ mad cos he liv' rat here, an' if I mak' um mad I kin give um de present an' mebbe-so he ain' stay mad on me. So, I go behine de tent to git de fox. But, de fox, she gon'! An' de track show she gon' back up de hill, an' I ver' mooch scare--cos she was dead!

"In de morning Clawhammer say he look at de traps to de wes', an' swing on roun' de hill to fin' de track of de man w'at git los' an' yell. I ain' say nuttin', an' he start ver' early. I go look at de traps down de lak', an' w'en de sun com' up, I hear de yell agin! An' I ver' mooch scare, cos I'm fraid de _tamahnawus_ mad on me for kill de fox w'at yell lak de man. So I go back, an' I skin two fox w'at I ketch in de trap.

Clawhammer ain' back, so I go an' build de _cache_. An' I put my blankets an' rifle on it, an' plenty grub, for de present to _tamahnawus_. Clawhammer com' 'long an' he say he ain' fin' no track. He begin to git scare 'bout dat yell, w'en he don' fin' de track. So he show me wan fox what he took from de trap. It is de black fox wit' de ermine collar! Clawhammer ver' mooch scare now. He wan' to run away. But I tell um we got to skin dat fox. If we don' skin um, we goin' to mak'

_Sah-ha-lee Tyee_ ver' mad. _Tamahnawus_ he ver' mad anyhow; so we mak'

him de present, an' we skin de fox, an' put de skin an' de collar on de _cache_ too. Den mebbe-so _tamahnawus_ ain' so mad w'en he git de guns an' de blankets, an' de fox skin back. So we go 'way from dat lak' ver'

fas'.

"Dat day I bre'k my leg. An' nex' day Clawhammer's tepee burn up. So we git bad luck. Den de bad luck go 'way, cos _tamahnawus_ fin' dat _cache_, an' he ain' so mad. But every tam de leetle moon com' I tak'

som' mor' grub to de _cache_. An' so, I keep de luck good."