He had never heard that Indian
captives were tucked into soft deerskin robes and fed broth by comely
Indian maidens, however, and if he were a prisoner it did not promise
to be so very disagreeable a captivity.
On the whole it was very pleasant and restful lying there on the soft
skins of which his bed was composed, for he still felt tired and weak.
He took in every detail of his surroundings. The wigwam was circular
in form and of good size. It was made of reindeer skins stretched over
poles very dingy and black, with an opening at the top to permit the
smoke from the fire in the centre to escape. Flat stones raised
slightly above the ground served as a fireplace, and around it were
thickly laid spruce boughs. Some strips of jerked venison hung from
the poles above, and near his feet he glimpsed his own gun and powder
horn.
Bob could see at once that these Indians were much more primitive than
those he knew at the Bay and, unfamiliar as he was with the Indian
language, he noticed a marked difference in the intonation and
inflection when the woman spoke.
"Now," said Bob to himself, "th' Nascaupees must ha' found me an'
these be Nascaupees. But Mountaineers an' every one says Nascaupees be
savage an' cruel, an' I'm not knowin' what un be.
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