The stranger drew the plate towards him, and commenced eating
ravenously. He soon finished his meal and handed the dish and cup
back. He had not uttered a word so far. Chaske filled the pipe
and handed it to him. He smoked for a few minutes, took one last
draw from the pipe and handed it back to Chaske, and then he said:
"Now, my friends, I am not a living man, but the wandering spirit
of a once great warrior, who was killed in these woods by the enemy
whom you two brave young men are now seeking to make war upon. For
years I have been roaming these woods in hopes that I might find
some one brave enough to stop and listen to me, but all who have
camped here in the past have run away at my approach or fired guns
or shot arrows at me. For such cowards as these I have always
found a grave. They never returned to their homes. Now I have
found two brave men whom I can tell what I want done, and if you
accomplish what I tell you to do, you will return home with many
horses and some scalps dangling from your belts. Just over this
range of hills north of us, a large village is encamped for the
winter. In that camp is the man who laid in ambush and shot me,
killing me before I could get a chance to defend myself. I want
that man's scalp, because he has been the cause of my wanderings
for a great many years. Had he killed me on the battlefield my
spirit would have at once joined my brothers in the happy hunting
grounds, but being killed by a coward, my spirit is doomed to roam
until I can find some brave man who will kill this coward and bring
me his scalp. This is why I have tried every party who have camped
here to listen to me, but as I have said before, they were all
cowards. Now, I ask you two brave young men, will you do this for
me?"