Chapter 15 Summary

Hongan Os ("Mad Bear"), ruler of the Plains clans, is a just and kindly man, more merciful to his animals than his warriors, and careful about the sensibilities of the superstitious, grass-eating allies he needs. Knowing if the Laredans learn Hannegan is arming his tribes, his plan will fail, and never doubting his clans are superior, Mad Bear breaks taboos and risks tribal restlessness to deal with a messenger from Texarkana. He is willing to stop raiding his Eastern rival, Hannegan, as long as he provides arms and supplies. A joint war on Laredo is left implicit, but fits Mad Bear's plans of expelling the farmers who have encroached on his ancestral grazing lands. The twelve Eastern guests are divided into two mutually repugnant groups, one of which is led by an untrustworthy manic, who writes mysteriously in a small book and digs...