The Fur Bringers A Story of the Canadian Northwest

ane sat on the doorsil

ng its after

The westering sun shone comfortably on the worl

afforded; yet there was no peace between the t

the bale you made up t

artner answered in a surly tone

seventy-three," s

erence?" demande

ars," said

can't you," snarled Ambrose, "and ma

e way I like t

ad abo

y, clamped his teeth upon h

e to do," he burst out with an amount of passion absurdly disproportionate

aid Peter. "I want you

one hopelessly in the wrong. "You're at me from morning til

t his young partner in astonishment. His face tur

atural; to fly into a temper when it is discovered is childish. What's the matter with you these past ten days, anyway? A ma

deeply at his pipe and gazed across the

it went unexpectedly to the point. Ambrose

ks and neck, and his forehead smoothed itself. Stealing

e said s

tulantly and mutte

ur tongue!" c

m in angry stupefact

is as clean as new milk; your skin is as pink as

squirming a little and blushing u

me?" Peter finally inquired

shook his he

n. "You ornery worthless Slavi, you! You Shushwap! You Si

. There was pain in his bold eyes, and the wish to bare it t

silence. The atmosphe

conclusion, removed hi

's the matte

muttered

ot the Ju

made no

at's when a man catches it-when Molly Cottontail puts on her brown jacket and Skinny Weasel a yellow one. The south wind brings the microbe

pt his eyes down

. The first year I didn't notice it so much, but the second year-when the warm weather come I was like a wild man. I saw

's reminiscences. He seem

y. I've got no use for myself at all. I get so cranky, anybody that speaks to me I want to punch them. God

!" mutter

mess of things because I can't keep my mind on anything. My head goes round like a top. Half t

ndition! I'm telling you what's the matter with you. It's a

id Ambrose. "As it is, I wo

va Lajeunesse for the first time. It was like a blow between the eyes. You do not know what she looked

ow could I have done any better? She's good enough for me. A man worries about his children sometimes; but I guess if they go straight

offer his young partner. Ambrose, flattered and emba

ave been obliged to turn it into a joke. As it was, they

fferent; you want to fight the thing

ose shamefacedly. "She doesn't like me around

" said

nderstood. "God knows it's not because I think myself any better than anybody else, or because I th

n trail. I won't say but what you're right. But what

know," sa

eter; "you take the fur

quickly. "I went out las

tented here,

l good," he said. "It makes it worse after. It did

em," said Peter with a w

al kind of talk was a s

haste to drop

w," he said. "I like to work with logs. First, I

e better get lumber from the 'Company' mill?"

ks rotten in the w

n artistic," said

ginal shack had been added to on one side, then on the other. There was a pleasing diversity of ou

ced the lake. The middle door gave ingress to the store proper; the door on the right was the entrance to Peter

se Doane in bachelor solitude, and a few steps beyond, the l

mong gigantic pines were not unpleasing. Rough as they were, they fulfi

ank and followed a crooked path to the door of the store. On e

arther shore of the lake could be seen merely as

le away in a bold hill-point where the Company's post of Fort Moultrie had stood for two

rous contrast to the imposing white buildings of Fort Moultrie, arranged military-wise on the grassy pro

ant fur monopoly, and had succeeded in establishing himself next door. The results were far-reaching. Formerly the Indian sat humbly on the step wi

raders"; and some of their customers journeyed for t

rom up the shore. Grateful for the interrup

the firm's customers were "pitching off" among the

tion of the dug-out nosing alongshore. Ambrose's keennes

n to see her fol

ed in addition to all the worldly goods of the family, a swarthy French ha

e bank with outstretched hand. The woman and children remained sitting l

eed wife in the social scale, and she knew better than to make a call uninv

Peter when formal gree

ur family

of Baldwin apples and a pair of rolling, gleaming, sloe-black eyes. His head

s to-night," he said. "It is ten miles y

oiling for news. Come on up t

on. Poly Goussard displayed twenty dazzling teeth and made haste to fol