"Give me the pack," said Raven Wing, after some little distance. Hawk Eye placed it on the younger boy's shoulder and took the gun which he had been carrying. Examining it to satisfy himself that it was loaded, he dropped the barrel into the curve of his left arm. From the brow of the gentle sloping hill they could see the river bordered by trees through a narrow valley.

Great rocks of granite and limestone cropped out everywhere upon the treeless prairie and were turned a pinkish hue in the glow of the setting sun. As the sun sank lower in the west the boulders took on many fanciful shapes.

"Not so long ago buffaloes roamed this prairie," remarked Hawk Eye. "Now they graze further toward the land of the setting sun."

"We will have plenty of fresh meat for our evening meal," said Raven Wing.

"Yes, we have more than enough with the prairie hens you shot and the bear meat," chuckled Hawk Eye.

"You also killed a rabbit," added Raven Wing.

On arriving at the beach where their canoes lay, Hawk Eye unrolled the bear hide and spread it very carefully from one bow to another.

"At sunrise," he said, "I will scrape it clean with my knife. I think it will dry in the sun as we paddle and make a good pelt."

Raven Wing collected an armful of dry wood and started a fire. Before long both hungry boys were enjoying a hearty meal of prairie hen and rabbit meat. After a drink at the spring nearby, they spread their blankets beneath a tree and went to sleep.

At sunup Hawk Eye set to work on the bear pelt while Raven Wing re-kindled the fire and prepared their morning meal. When this was finished, he covered the smouldering embers with fresh earth and followed Hawk Eye to the beach. Pushing their canoes into the water, they bent to the paddles.

At this point the river was narrow. Again fallen trees blocked the channel. At times the boys found it necessary to push them out of the way. Progress was slow, and the sun was well up in the sky by the time they passed the mouth of a small river called The Last Stream With Trees.

"Fearless Bear told me the Minnesota coils like a snake. He spoke the truth," remarked Hawk Eye. "I have already counted eight turns in less distance than the eye can reach."

"The turns do not bother me," answered Raven Wing. "But I have heard that there are rapids further on. They may cause us trouble."

"We will make a portage," said Hawk Eye. "We cannot trust our pelts to the angry waters."

"Then we must unload the canoes and shoulder the packs," said Raven Wing. "That will not be easy."

"It will be hard work," agreed Hawk Eye.

Instead of going ashore for their midday meal, the boys ate pemmican while paddling. At sundown they ran the canoes ashore and prepared to make camp for the night. After a hearty meal of bear meat which had been well-cooked the day before, they rolled themselves in their blankets and lay down for the night. For some little time they lay awake listening to the night noises. But they were weary with paddling, and in spite of the persistent calls of the whippoorwills, they at length fell into a sound sleep.

Hawk Eye was the first to awaken. Seeing Raven Wing still asleep, he quietly strode down to the river for a bath. As Raven Wing still slept on, Hawk Eye unpacked some pemmican and ate his morning meal. Presently Raven Wing awoke and seeing that Hawk Eye was about ready to launch the canoes, he hurried down to the river to bathe. He would have launched his own craft had not the elder boy wisely counseled him to first make a hearty meal. Before long they were both out on the river.

On coming to the rapids, Hawk Eye grounded his craft on a narrow strip of sand and unloaded. As soon as Raven Wing had placed his packs upon the sand, Hawk Eye said;

"You and I will shoulder my canoe and carry it beyond the rapids."

Waist-high in the tumbling waters they bore it to quiet water and laid it on the shore. When Raven Wing's canoe had been safely transported, they returned for the packs. One by one these were carried through the rapids without mishap. The canoes were then pushed into the water and reloaded. Once more the boys took their seats and paddled down stream.