Eben Cotten is a gunsmith who is suspected of selling rifles to an Indian tribe.
The local townsfolk are up in arms and are ready to attack Eben for trading with the enemy.
Hawkeye and Chingachgook arrives in time to save Eben from a lynching. Only Eben's prospective son in law is willing to stand up for him.
Eben tells Hawkeye that all his guns have a special stamp on them. However Hawkeye later finds an Indian with a rifle with Eben's stamp on it.
It does not take much to figure out who is selling the rifles to the Indian tribe. The reason does come up as a surprise.
Another adventure where Hawkeye needs saving just in the nick of time.
It was a bit silly of Eben to confront the locals. They were not drunk but out for blood.