Book excerpt: This tale take place on the frontier of the state of New York and features the middle-aged Leatherstocking (Natty Bumppo), Judge Marmaduke Temple of Templeton, and Elizabeth Temple of Cooperstown. It begins with an argument between the Judge and Leatherstocking over who killed a buck. Many of the changes made to New York's Lake Otsego are described, and questions on the environment, conservation, and use prevail. The plot develops as Leatherstocking and Chingachgook begin to compete with the Temples for the loyalties of a mysterious young visitor, "Oliver Edwards," the young hunter who eventually marries Elizabeth. Chingachgook dies, and Natty vanishes into the sunset