The Elk advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Elk Co., Pa.) 186?-1868, 1867-10-10

DC comiorteu. In thlS way she passcC
the day and another dreadful nigh
She finds another fire; she stays by i
and keeps it burning through the nigh
for she is afraid of wolves. Another
morning and she is almost hopeless
., will not heaven pity her The lit
tie one grows weaker he cannot lift
up his head. Another terrible night
baby means piteously he falls into
eonvulsions ; the next he dies. All day
he carried the little, lifcless body il
-hor arms, and all night, beneath the un,
plying stars, she holds it on her bos.
ON.
She carried the little dead burden
day after day, until the purple hue Of
decay was setting rapidly over it.
Then she looked about for a spot
whero she might dig the tiny grave,
so deep that the wildcat and wolf would
not scent it out Weak as she was,
this was no easy task, but in her wander
ings she came upon giant tree uptorn
at some former time by a hurricane.
Ln the soft earth where the roots had
lain, she scooped out the baby's resting
place, and, making it soft with moss,
covered the cold little form forever
from her sight. Hour after hour pass
ed how to commence the dreadful
pilgrimage Then she noted everything
about the spot Here was a rock, there
stood an immense hemlock. Yes ,she
would know the place. She could iud it
easily with Robert
Then began the struggle through the
wilderness. Day after day, week after
week she passed on. Her shoes were
worn to fragments and fell from her
feet. Her garments were torn to tat
ters. But the days grew warmer, and
the fever that was burning in her veins
made even the soft showers that fell
upon her welcome. First she ate the
buds of trees and the bark of the birch
Presently she began to fud the young
checkbcrry leaves, and now and then
she came upon patridge's nest, and
greedily sucked the eggs. After
time there were red raspberries and
black thimble berries in the woods
and then sho knew II was Tuly The
trees had now put on afresh their
beautiful garments. But for the de-
licions poetry one finds in the woods,
sauntering out from tho busy world
for an hour, she cared nothing. She
saw nothing but trees, trees, in inter,
minable succession, 1t seemed years,
yes, ages ago, that she swept the
hearth with a birch broom, and sung
the baby to sleep in Roberts cabin.
Her mind grew bewi!derod, still she
went on, On, on. When she came to
large stream she went up towards its
source until she could wade across it.
SOsho said aud she affirmed that she
never crossed a stream wider than a
brook. She paid no attention to sun
and moon as a guide or indication of
the compass, but she must have TAX
en- northwesternly direction. There
was Black river, Mill river, Water
queechy, and White Waits Well, flow
ing into the Connecticut river from the
Vermont side but she constantly as
serted that she saw none Of them
Through July and August there were
berries of various kinds, and by means
Of these she sustained what little life
was left, And now the maple began
to take on its gorgeous crimson, and
the silver birches to wear their pale
gold Of September the birds were leav-
ing the forest occasionally she had
Slimpscs of a black bear, turned out of
the path afraid of human form but no
human being did she meet, and long
before human voices had ceased to call
her name.
Wi'as sno alone on the earth, and
was the earth one vast wilderness
without outlet, without a clearing or
settlement ? Had God taken all life but
that of brutes, and forgotten her, or
ordained her to wander forever ? -
Tramp ing, with her feet bleeding and
c'acking at first, and afterwards cal
loused naked or nearly so knowing
of time or place, she was fast
becoming idiotic when she was hung
ry she sought for food, but the great
idea lingering in her mind was that of
pressing on. Since the luxuriance Of
summer had filed the forest with ferns
aud new growth of brier aud under
brush, there was more trouble in pass
ing through. But she had become quite
accustomed to the rough work and the
irenzy 1T last become a steady, con-
slant habit almost the labor Of life to
her.
One day in October, the inhabitants
of the village of Charleston, N. H.,
were startled into the widest excite.
mcnt by seeing q nearly naked emancia~
ted woman, with her hair streaming
upon her shoulders, walk with bewilder,
ed gaze along the streets. She told
them she was Robert Harris wife
and that she was lost.
Robert Harris wife who had disap-