"Oh yes, I remember now. Of course, our lead mine is on Lake Kootenay. But then the trader here has orders not to lend our bullet molds to anybody."
"I found a bullet mold," said Storm, "in the bos'n's locker aboard of the Beaver. I don't lend mine, neither."
Again the factor showed some little irritation.
"You seem," he said testily, "to have more brains than Dr. McLoughlin and I had reckoned on. But it's all damned nonsense. Make powder! We can't! The thing's impossible."
"Well," said Storm, enjoying this, "the couple of hundredweights I bring with me ain't much to offer for sale to people as was here before Christ."
"Does it go off?"
"You might care to try, Mr. Douglas. And the bullets. I'm using 'em as ballast under the cargoes of pelts. I'm here trading for guns. The only question, sir, is this—do I trade at Fort Colville or down south?"
Guns! This was a leader of men, chief of a tribe quite strong enough, under his discipline, to take and loot Fort Colville for the guns.
"And why do you want trade guns?"
"I have a range of mountains," answered Storm. "See—here—I'll show you."