16 CHRONICLES OF THE CARIBOO |

Baptiste with feeling. ‘He go poof! No shoot, man die!” Which | describes the flash in the pan of the flintlock that only too often failed te ignite the powder in the barrel.

It was evident that the widow and her daughters were immensely proud of their huge relative, and celighted to enlist his guidance and protection. It becarne evident, toc, that the young Shuswap, Tomaah, was tenderly interested in the younger of the two girls. Thus it was that when Dunlevey observed members of his party—notably Sellers and McLean—sidling up to these two beauteous young women, buying their wares with quite unnecessary arts and graces, clumsily executed yet meant to be extremely ingratiating, it excited his, at first, amused attention. But when he saw that these antics had not escaped the watchful eyes of the two young braves, but was viewed with a dark brooding frown by Tomash and a half amused, half stern disapproval by Baptiste, he decided to be warily on guard lest any trouble between his party and these virtual savages should wreck his enterprise.

It is no part of this story to describe the two days of Indian sports indulged in with such whcle hearted enjoyment and competitive zeal by the tribesmen.

Suffice it to say that the whitemen witnessed for the first time exhibitions of skill, strength, speed, prowess and horsemanship that were truly amazing particularly in running, horse racing, archery, wrestling and knife and javelin throwing, the three latter being purely Indian sports observed for the first time by the miners. Of course Baptiste excelled in most of these and the power, skill and speed he displayed in wrestling astonished Sellers, who considered himself a top hand at it himself. The result being that a strong sportsman fellow feeling sprang up between the two and the two days suffised to make them fast friends.

At the end of the second day Dunievey thought it would be.a nice gesture of good will to invite a few of the chiefs of the gathering to supper at the miner’s camp and he and Manifee - who was their chief cook - and Moffitt laid out plans for a modest feast.

This, of course included the two runners and Baptiste’s relatives the window and two daughters. In fact, of all the Shuswaps the wid- ow and her daughters were the oniy ones who could speak any English or French - probably learned from the late husband and father - and, proud of their accomplishment they sometimes chipped in as interpre- ters when Tomaah and Baptiste were otherwise employed.

None of Dunlevey’s partners were reckless drinking men. McLean was a wild, reckless and adventurous spirit in those, his young days, but he was not a partner. But Sellers had brought along a few bottles and flasks of Hudson’s Bay Rum in case of need in illness caused by exposure and hardship.

This night after all had eaten their fill, Sellers and McLean made their way quietly and casually as possible to the sides of the young beauties where they squated, Indian fashion, a little apart with their mother. Presently, Sellers finding that his advances to the elder giri