"Yes, I know. And, to a certain extent, what they say is true, too."

"The trouble is, the redskins won't make a fair deal. They'll sell land one
year and then want it back the next," added another soldier.

"Have you seen any French traders in this vicinity?" asked Henry.

"Not since we gave orders for them to quit their trading. I reckon they
feel mighty sore. Our captain told me that a few were thinking of becoming
British subjects. They realize that the French hold in America is now
broken for good."

The stop at Fort Pitt at an end, the party continued on its way to the
Kinotah, a beautiful stream, the name of which has long since been changed.
The trail was now exceedingly rough, and so narrow in spots that the
pack-horses could scarcely get through. The branches of the trees hung low,
so that often all had to move along on foot. The one consolation was that
the weather remained fine, so that camping-out at night proved a real
pleasure and a rest.

"There are not half the Indians in this neighborhood that there were three
and four years ago," remarked James Morris to Barringford. "The war has
thinned them out more than I expected."

"I look for big times with game," returned the old frontiersman. "It will
be almost like striking a new hunting ground."

Every night a watch was kept for the possible appearance of an enemy,
either two-footed or four-footed. But no man came to disturb them, and if