Logan, using all his eloquence, travelled from village to village visiting the different tribes and making speeches.  He urged the Indians to shun the dreaded “fire-water.”  He exclaimed against the whites for introducing liquor to the Indians and thus debasing them.  At the same time Logan admitted his own fondness for rum.  This intelligent and noble Indian was murdered in a drunken fight shortly after sending his address to Lord Dunmore.

Thus it was that the poor Indians had no chance to avert their downfall; the steadily increasing tide of land-stealing settlers rolling westward, and the insidious, debasing, soul-destroying liquor were the noble redman’s doom.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Isaac Zane dropped back not altogether unhappily into his old place in the wigwam, in the hunting parties, and in the Indian games.

When the braves were in camp, the greatest part of the day was spent in shooting and running matches, in canoe races, in wrestling, and in the game of ball.  The chiefs and the older braves who had won their laurels and the maidens of the tribe looked on and applauded.

Isaac entered into all these pastimes, partly because he had a natural love for them, and partly because he wished to win the regard of the Indians.  In wrestling, and in those sports which required weight and endurance, he usually suffered defeat.  In a foot race there was not a brave in the entire tribe who could keep even with him.  But it was with the rifle that Isaac won his greatest distinction.  The Indians never learned the finer shooting with the ride.  Some few of them could shoot well, but for the most part they were poor marksmen.

Accordingly, Isaac was always taken on the fall hunt.  Every autumn there were three parties sent out to bring in the supply of meat for the winter.  Because of Isaac’s fine marksmanship he was always taken with the bear hunters.  Bear hunting was exciting and dangerous work.  Before the weather got very cold and winter actually set in the bears crawled into a hole in a tree or a cave in the rocks, where they hibernated.  A favorite place for them was in hollow trees.  When the Indians found a tree with the scratches of a bear on it and a hole large enough to admit the body of a bear, an Indian climbed up the tree and with a long pole tried to punch Bruin out of his den.  Often this was a hazardous undertaking, for the bear would get angry on being disturbed in his winter sleep and would rush out before the Indian could reach a place of safety.  At times there were even two or three bears in one den.  Sometimes the bear would refuse to come out, and on these occasions, which were rare, the hunters would resort to fire.  A piece of dry, rotten wood was fastened to a long pole and was set on fire.  When this was pushed in on the bear he would give a sniff and a growl and come out in a hurry.