Summary

Narration describes how Grainier came to live in Fry, Idaho, apparently having been orphaned, shipped to relatives there with a note identifying his ultimate destination pinned to his chest, kept fed by well-meaning conductors on the various trains he took to get there. He was told a variety of stories by a variety of family members about his origins, stories that included being told that he was from Canada and only spoke French for awhile before having the French whipped “out of him to get room for the English tongue” (26). He had some fun, was playfully naughty times with friends, and did well enough at school to learn how to read and write, but then, because he had no parents to tell him what to do, he became 'a layabout'” (30).

Narration then describes how one day while fishing, Grainier came upon a man who...