Fur trade settlements in North America were a fertile environment for cultural education. The fur trade became a network of closely linked social spheres in which individuals had to acquire competence in order to function and survive. The Hudson Bay Company's decision to plant permanent posts on the shores of the Hudson Bay put settlers and their Indian trading partners into a new and dynamic set of relationships. Learning curves rose sharply as each side adjusted to the other. For the Indians, the trading posts represented a new social order, new economic values and commodities, and strange religious influences. For the European traders, the posts meant adjustment to a new geographic environment, diplomatic demands, and a changed governmental organization. Longterm developments included increased economic awareness on the part of the Indians and a changed socioeconomic hierarchical structure for the Indians and the European settlers. Ultimately, European settlers and Indians intermarried, forming a new society which was a specialized intersection and mutual adaptation of white and native social spheres. (LP)