In this Leatherstocking novel, Natty Bumppo, alias Hawkeye, works as a scout for a British garrison on Lake Ontario. A sergeant, who considers Natty a suitable husband for his daughter, has sent him out to meet her while she is traveling to visit her father. After a dramatic rescue of the travelers from Indian attack, Mabel, her uncle Cap, Hawkeye, and his friend Chingachgook arrive at the fort, only to be involved in another hostile action with the French and their Indian allies. The French-Indian war is probably the most significant social background for the Leatherstocking novels, and nowhere more so than in The Pathfinder. Since the war between French and British has aligned various Indian nations with their respective sides, the fighting serves as a credible excuse for Canadian tribes such as the Iroquois and Hurons to attack British settlers.

Hawkeye is firmly on the...