The bones were finally set， and Akoon lay by the fire forthem to knit. Also， he lay by the fire so that the smokewould keep the mosquitoes away.
Then it was that Porportuk， with his six young men，arrived. Akoon groaned in his helplessness and madeappeal to the Mackenzies. But Porportuk made demand，and the Mackenzies were perplexed. Porportuk was forseizing upon El-Soo， but this they would not permit.
Judgment must be given， and， as it was an affair of manand woman， the council of the old men was called—thisthat warm judgment might not be given by the youngmen， who were warm of heart.
The old men sat in a circle about the smudge-fire. Theirfaces were lean and wrinkled， and they gasped and pantedfor air. The smoke was not good for them. Occasionallythey struck with withered hands at the mosquitoes thatbraved the smoke. After such exertion they coughedhollowly and painfully. Some spat blood， and one of themsat a bit apart with head bowed forward， and bled slowlyand continuously at the mouth； the coughing sicknesshad gripped them. They were as dead men； their time wasshort. It was a judgment of the dead.
“And I paid for her a heavy price，” Porportuk concludedhis complaint. “Such a price you have never seen. Sell allthat is yours—sell your spears and arrows and rifles， sellyour skins and furs， sell your tents and boats and dogs，sell everything， and you will not have maybe a thousanddollars. Yet did I pay for the woman， El-Soo， twenty-sixtimes the price of all your spears and arrows and rifles，your skins and furs， your tents and boats and dogs. It wasa heavy price.”
The old men nodded gravely， though their weazenedeye-slits widened with wonder that any woman should beworth such a price. The one that bled at the mouth wipedhis lips. “Is it true talk？” he asked each of Porportuk’s sixyoung men. And each answered that it was true.
“Is it true talk？” he asked El-Soo， and she answered， “Itis true.”
“But Porportuk has not told that he is an old man，”
Akoon said， “and that he has daughters older than El-Soo.”
“It is true， Porportuk is an old man，” said El-Soo.
“It is for Porportuk to measure the strength his age，”
said he who bled at the mouth. “We be old men. Behold！
Age is never so old as youth would measure it.”
And the circle of old men champed their gums， andnodded approvingly， and coughed.
“I told him that I would never be his wife，” said El-Soo.
“Yet you took from him twenty-six times all that wepossess？” asked a one-eyed old man.
El-Soo was silent.
“It is true？” And his one eye burned and bored into herlike a fiery gimlet.
“It is true，” she said.
“But I will run away again，” she broke out passionately， amoment later. “Always will I run away.”
“That is for Porportuk to consider，” said another of theold men. “It is for us to consider the judgment.”
“What price did you pay for her？” was demanded ofAkoon.
“No price did I pay for her，” he answered. “She wasabove price. I did not measure her in gold-dust， nor indogs， and tents， and furs.”
The old men debated among themselves and mumbledin undertones. “These old men are ice，” Akoon said inEnglish. “I will not listen to their judgment， Porportuk. Ifyou take El-Soo， I will surely kill you.”
The old men ceased and regarded him suspiciously. “Wedo not know the speech you make，” one said.
“He but said that he would kill me，” Porportukvolunteered. “So it were well to take from him his rifle，and to have some of your young men sit by him， that hemay not do me hurt. He is a young man， and what arebroken bones to youth！”
