"I expect you read a whole lot in books that's written by men who never saw the things happen that they describe: they've read of them perhaps a good many times, and sort of take it for granted that what they've read is all right; but, really, they don't know what it means. I guess this hamstringing business is one of those things. As Mason says, it might happen now and then that a wolf's jaws that hit that tendon just right would partly cut it in two, and then the animal might break it in struggling, but that wouldn't happen often." "There's another thing, Hugh," Jack said, "that I want Mason to tell you--about some things he's heard from old John Monroe--some stories about how the Piegans came from their old home in the North down to where they live now. I want to get him to tell us about that." "Why, yes," replied Hugh, "those are right good stories. I've often heard old John Monroe and other old men talk about that. I supposed maybe I'd told you about it, but I don't know as I have." "No; I don't think you ever told me the whole story, though I've heard you and other people up there talk about it as something that was perfectly well known." "Oh, yes," answered Hugh; "it's well known all right. All the old men know about it, but lots of the young men don't know anything at all about it. They don't care much about those old stories. All they want to do is to be riding horses; or maybe some of them, if they should have a dollar or so, go off down to the Birch Creek and buy some whisky with it." "Well, I suppose it's too late to hear the story to-night; but to-morrow night, if you feel like it, I'd like to have you tell us those stories, Mason. You would like to hear them over again, wouldn't you, Hugh?" "Sure," said Hugh; "I'd like to mighty well." "Me, too," said Tulare Joe, as he threw the stump of his cigarette into the fire and rose to go to his blankets. CHAPTER XI TANNING A BUCKSKIN When Joe learned that the camp was not to move the next day he told Jack that here was his opportunity to tan his deer hide, and that after the work of cutting and branding was over he would speak to McIntyre about doing this job of tanning. There were men enough to do herd duty, and the boys thought that in the few hours of daylight that remained after the day's work was done they could get the skin in fair shape. "Of course," said Joe, "we can't make a good job of it; an Indian has all the time there is, and he does his tanning slowly and does it well. We'll have to be satisfied with a rough job, but anyhow we can get the hide fairly soft, and it can be worked on again later."