“See her dis mornin’?” he asked, in short, quick tones.

“See who?” asked Hans Vanderbum, in turn, completely at a loss to understand him.

“De gal.”

“De gal?  Who you talking about—­Keewaygooshturkumkankangewock?”

“De gal Shawnees got in de village.”

The Dutchman’s blank expression showed that he did not comprehend what the Huron was referring to; so he added, by way of explanation: 

“Shawnees kill women and children—­deir warriors squaws—­don’t fight men—­burn houses toder day—­run off wid gal—­got her now in de village—­she gal of Oonomoo’s friend—­Oonomoo want to get her.”

From these rather disconnected expressions, Hans Vanderbum understood that a war-party of Shawnees had brought in a prisoner who was a friend of the Huron’s.  It was for the purpose of learning something regarding her that he had signaled the fisherman to leave his hook and line and come to him.  The captive having reached the village quite recently, he had failed to be apprised of it, so that Oonomoo learned no more than he already knew regarding her.

“When did dey took her?” asked Hans Vanderbum.

“When sun dere, yisterday,” replied the Indian, pointing off in the western horizon.

“Do you want to know ’bout her?”

“Yeh.”

“Den I goes find out.”

So saying, Hans Vanderbum strode away through the forest in the direction of the Shawnee village.

CHAPTER II.

Other characters.

  “He joys to scour the prairies wide,
    Upon the bison’s trail;
  To pierce his dark and shaggy hide
    With darts that never fail.

  “His is the lion’s strength in war,
    In peace, the lion’s rest;
  And the eagle hath not flown so far
    As his fame throughout the West.”

Upon leaving the Huron, Hans Vanderbum hurried toward the village, as rapidly as the peculiar structure of his body would allow.  As has been remarked, he was well acquainted with Oonomoo, knowing him to be a faithful ally of his race.  He was anxious, therefore, to show his friendship to the savage.  Down, too, somewhere in the huge heart of the plethoric Dutchman, was a kindly feeling for the distress of a human being, and he felt willing and anxious to befriend any hapless captive that had fallen into the hands of the relentless Shawnees.

So absorbed was he in meditating, that he took no heed of his footsteps until he was suddenly confronted by his spouse, Keewaygooshturkumkankangewock, who, flourishing a sort of hoe over his head, demanded, or rather screeched: 

“Where’s your fish?”

Hans Vanderbum winked very rapidly, and putting his hands up over his head, as if to protect it, “I forgots all about dem.  I goes right back and gots dem.”

He wheeled around as he spoke, receiving a resounding whack from the hoe, by way of a reminder, and went lumbering through the woods in search of his basket of fish.  He experienced little difficulty in finding it, and in a few moments was back again to his affectionate partner.