Our scene opens in Fort Macallister in the Canadian North West. The Fort is a survivor of the old days, when the great Hudson Bay Company held sway over that vast region under the ancient title The Gentleman Adventurers of England, trading into Hudson Bay. The glory of the old days has departed but the Fort is still a company post. Here is the company store, here too is  the small North West Mounted Police post, where we find Sergeant Blair. The big stove, piled high with green birch logs, is red hot, and outside a blizzard rages. Entering the cabin as our story opens, is Blair's trusted assistant, Angus Cameron...