The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1894-09-11


been garnered, and there is none left
in the fields. Have patience with me
but one short week, and thou shalt
have maize ears in abundance.
The spirit thereupon, with the
help Of his gnomes, quickly plowed
and planted an acre Of ground thick
with the precious corn. The under
ground fires were made to heat the
soil, while he poured rain in album
dance from above Quickly the
green shoots poked their heads above
the ground and throve and grew
apace
But with all his thoughtfulness
and anxiety to please not smile OF
answering look could he win from
the fair princess. Patiently he an
ticipated her every wish, hoping foi
the time when his devotion would
be rewarded. But in this he reck.
oned without his host. He was,
after all, but a novice in his
study of the human heart and had
taken it for granted that the maids
affections were disengaged. Poor
spirit He knew not that the princess
had no heart to give him, since for
more than a year she had loved Idan-
ha, a young chief of the tribe of the
Shoshones, whom she was to have
welded at the period of the nextnew
moon. But 50 closely had she kept
the secret guarded in her bosom that
the gnome even now had no suspicion
of the truth. While he worked by
night and day to hasten the growth
of the maize, which he fondly hoped
would restore the maid to her wonted
cheerfulness, her thoughts were busy
with plan Of escape.
In weeks time, as the spirit had
promised, the maize was ripe. Each
day the princess went to the field,
plucked a few ears and once more
gave them forms of life. But to one
of the ears she secretly gave the form
Of a magpie. Fly, talking bird, "
said she, ''till thou contest to the
tribe of the Shoshones and tell the
young chief Idanha that his belo d
is foully held prisoner by the Spirit
Hal Walla, but is planning to escape.
Bid him wait for me in the valley of
pines the third sleep from now with
horses and men. Begonel, Away"
The bird obediently arose in the air,
and her eyes followed it longingly
till it faded in the distance.
The young chief meanwhile bad
taken the 'sappearanc9 Of his dear
princess greatly to heart He be-
came melancholy and sad. Even the
chase lost its attractions. In the
depth of his misery he derived a
gloomy comfort from the profound
solitude of the forest, where he spent
his time mourning her as dead. One
day as he sat brooding thus the still
ness about him was broken by the
sharp, shrilf utterance of his name.
AS he started to his feet the cry was
repeated, and he saw with amaze
ment that it came from a maybe,
who was sitting ON one of the lower
limbs of a gigantic fir tree. With
the illogical intuition of love vague
hope thrilled through his soul, and
holding out his hand he invited the
bird to perch on his finger. The
magpie accepted the invitation, de-
livered the message which the prin-
cess had sent, and then fiuttered
away, leaving the astonished Idanha
in transports of happiness. With a
cheerfulness to which he had long
been stranger he returned to his
wigwam, got together the braves,
ponies and provisions he needed and
set out straightway for the valley Of
pines.
On the third day the princess pre-
pared to execute her plan. The sun
was painting the hilltops in golden
glory and the earth was fresh with
the moist odors of the awakening day
as she came from her wigwam in all
the radiance'of her beauty. Well she
knew whom she would find lingering
about, and when she advanced to
meet him with a smile of promise
upon her lips-the first she had ever
bestowed upon the unhappy gnome-
his rapture knew no bounds.
Fair one," cried he, "hast thou
come at last to reward me for my
long faithfulness2 To say the word
that will make me the happiest of my
kind?"
The willy princess blushed and cast
down her eyes.
Immortal spirit" she answered,
chow can mere daughter of earth
theel 1t is true thy gentle
has taken my heart cap
tive, but what proof have that thou
wilt always be patient and kind if I
make thee my master and consent to
be thy spouseW
''Set me any task thou wilt" cried
the gnome joyfully, that may show
how patient and obedient slave
will be to thee, and swear by my
being will cerform it."
''Be it so" said the shrewd, prin.
cess. IF we are to be wed, have a
fancy for a. GRAND festival (Io Won |