"Early Fur Trade on the Northern Plains presents a lengthy introduction plus a unique combination of five journals, or portions of journals, of North West Company and Hudson's Bay Company traders who left records of their travels to the country of the village-dwelling Mandan and Hidatsas along the Missouri River of North Dakota. . . . In addition to a history of events, Indian-trader relationships, and trader competition, the editors synthesize data on a number of topics, including lists of resident traders in the villages, the time required to travel between the Assiniboine River posts and...