Robert found himself talking much, his gift of speech
responding readily to the call. He answered their jests with a jest,
their quips with a quip, and when they were serious so was he. He felt
that while there may have been an undercurrent of hostility when he
entered the palace it had all disappeared now, and he was a favorite, or
at least they took a friendly interest in him, because he was a new type
and they did not think him brusque and rude, as the French believed all
Bostonnais to be.
And through this picturesque throng stalked the two Indians, Tayoga and
Tandakora. The Ojibway wore a feather headdress, and a scarlet blanket
of richest texture was draped around his body, its hem meeting his
finely tanned deerskin leggings, while his feet were encased in beaded
moccasins. Nevertheless he looked, in those surroundings, which belonged
so thoroughly to an exotic civilization, more gigantic and savage than
ever. Robert was well aware that Bigot had brought him there for a
political purpose, to placate and win the western tribes, and to impress
him with the power and dignity of France.
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