A Prairie-Schooner Princess

ace of a scholar, upon the hands, smooth, white, tapering, with well-kept nails and soft palms, the body worn and thin almost t

individual with his soft hands and emaciated body-doi

delicately-clad and delicately nurtured woman, whose sobs

of Joshua Peniman the woman came rushing around the

s not dead! Surely God could not be so cruel as to take

uddenly from the rear end of the wagon from whi

first saw it it seemed the most beaut

urls of sunny gold. Beneath the shining halo of curls a face looked out, pitifully small and frightened, with gr

? what are you crying so for, Mother?" Then, as the terrified violet eyes caught sight of the

transfixed, but Hannah Peniman moved swi

r soft, motherly voice. "But thee must be very brave for th

then fled to her mother and cl

a time. The boys turned away, and Joe found

a Peniman bent to

ill, my child?"

us out West. They told him to get a wagon and spend the whole summer traveling across the plains. We were on our way to Colorado for his health. We have

bering that the dying man had answered

ut Lee-my poor Lee-was on the driver's seat. I don't know when he was hit. I don't know that he knew himself

ked you?" asked Joshua Peniman, while a col

pull it out, but I couldn't, and it bled fearfully, so I stopped. He was conscious then, and said, 'Drive-hurry-wagon ahead!' I got up on the seat and whipped up the horses and drove and drove as fast as I could make them go. The heat was

long wail, threw her arms above her hea

tenderly and bore her in h

heir command, but before the grey dawn of morning they

d fear, the shock to an already weakened and ove

er eyes and looked up into the face

asked faintly. "Whe

Peniman. And these are our children. We

re Qua

s a leader in the S

ng to Lee-I could not live without him. Our name is Carroll. My husband was Lee Carroll-a writer-and I am Marian Carroll. The little girl's name is Nina. Will you take her-will you take her with you to the nearest Mission? I know it is a

lant to her lips. After an interval, when they feared all was over, she again opened her eyes. M

pon the bed, then se

of the child. Then when there had been silence for some time Han

ulptured marble in the dim grey light of morning, the child with her arms tight clasped ab

e girl still in her arms, and rocked and crooned to her, talking to her in gentle, soothing tones, telling her of the great happiness

own upon the two pitiful mounds of earth in the loneliness of the desert land, and bringing out upon the two wooden crosses at their head the inscr

rinted the cause of the death. Th

the blanket that was its only coffin and shroud, and without asking himself the reason wh

over them the simple, earnest prayer of the Friends, then turned sadly to

child broke from them and with a wild cry ran

d sobbing, and even the boys

ent to the child

me that awaits them. They are together now, and will always be happy and well. They are not far away. They will watch over thee. Their spirits will always be near thee. Tho

the wagon that had belonged to her parents, which was hitched on b

my little girls?" she asked gently;

the Peniman children with her beautiful, t

was valiantly striving to appear manly and keep back his tears. He blushed up to the roots of his fair ha

following behind, the collie dog leaping and barking beside the wagons, the faces of all were turn

ead buried in her arms, and sobbed as if her heart would break. Gentle-hearted Ruth cried with her, Lige beat a hasty retreat to the

eyes had in them all the sympathy that his lips could not speak, and when the little girl at last looked up it was straig