William Andrews

William Andrews is the main protagonist and provides the novel’s main point-of-view. William had been a student in his third year at Harvard College when he left school to travel west and see more of the country. Andrews wishes to have experiences closer to nature, so he comes to the town of Butcher’s Crossing, Kansas in search of adventure. He meets a buffalo hunter named Miller and agrees to finance a hunting expedition in a hidden valley in Colorado. Andrews travels with Miller, Charley Hoge, and Fred Schneider on this expedition.

Andrews comes from a life of education, wealth, and comfort. Over the course of the expedition, he becomes hardened by the elements. He learns to hunt and kill buffalo, and he remains trapped in the valley with the hunting party for six months after they become snowed in. He witnesses the death of Fred...