Russell’s “paper talk,” or illustrated letters, gave free rein to his verbal and visual talent. Although putting words on paper came hard to him, he possessed a natural gift as a storyteller, along with the ability to summarize the key elements of a story or description in a well-chosen illustration. Surviving rough drafts of a few Russell letters—as well as preliminary sketches for the illustrations—indicate that he planned some of them in advance. Young Boy (d. 1934), a Cree Indian and Russell’s lifelong friend, was a member of an outcast band that was finally given land of its own when the Rocky Boy Reservation was created north of Great Falls in 1915–16 through the efforts of Russell and others. Russell deplored the callous attitude of his contemporaries toward the Indians, using his reputation wherever possible to urge much-needed reform. For his part, Young Boy remained a stalwart friend of the artist, posing for him or simply visiting him in the studio. It was Young Boy who sold Russell one of his favorite horses, Neenah, in 1901.