"You might, and you might not. The Indians do not live to be old under the conditions of life that the white man provides for them. But it is more than probable that some of them are still alive."
"What does Selby pay Ben Bussey for that woodcarving he buys?" Burton asked abruptly.
"I don't know," said the doctor, with a look of helpless surprise.
"You think my questions irrelevant," smiled Burton. "I was wondering if Selby cheated Ben as he used to cheat the Indians."
"Oh, I guess not. If he didn't take Ben's work, I don't know who would, in High Ridge. There isn't much demand for that sort of thing. I have always felt that Selby made a market for Ben out of old friendship."
"That's an amiable trait which I should hate to discover in Mr. Selby. It would be so lonesome. I wonder if it is friendship."
"Well, say merely old acquaintance, then. Selby as a boy was out and about with Bussey, and they naturally would have come to have a feeling of comradeship. Then Ben grew up, and Selby took him about as Ben's father had taken him before. Especially after Bussey disappeared. Ben was a sort of a waif, and Selby took him along in his trips into the back country. I have no doubt he made him work for his keep, all right."
"Then Ben would be likely to know whether Selby learned weaving from the Indians, wouldn't he?" exclaimed Burton. "That's the way to find out! Can I talk to Ben Bussey?"
"Certainly. He sees people whenever he likes. That back part of the house, over the kitchen, is given over to them, and they are as independent there as if they lived in their own house. But why are you so curious about Selby's Indian experiences? If one is to believe gossip, he had more experiences than he would care to have remembered against him nowadays. But you are not inquiring into his morals?"
"No, merely his skill." He hesitated a moment, and then explained. "I don't want to raise any false hopes, but I have an idea that the person who tied Mr. Hadley in his bed and who braided the lilac branches together over the Sprigg baby had learned weaving from the same squaw who wove this basket I bought today. It's a peculiar knot,--not at all a common one in such weaving, so far as I am acquainted with it."