The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-06-18


said He took e0 his hat and pushed At:
iong hinck hair hack Escm his forehead
ANA loOked me square In the eyes. The
tears were rc5sin& down his cheeks and his
voice srembled when he spoke
sYes~ he said II via tel you the story
But FIRST I want you TO promise me you
VIII not tell II for tweafy years or
more"
I gave him q solemn promise that would
keep the secret for the required time.
Well" he said that guard is made OF
human hair taken frcD the head OF . little
CIR; that was lost and persisted On the
ptAsnA I have never told the story before
for was afraid her mother would get
to hear the way her child persisted. and
II would surely break her heart II hap
peneG In the summer az IssA At that time
I was In the employ OF the government.
and AZ my duty often took me up and
down the Platte river. became acquainted
with quite number Of emigranss. Tor you
know the big tran from Omaha 10 Caafor-
MIA follows the Platte RIVER for . long
distance. Well, on one Of my trips up
the riyei camr<d tsse Gay and night with
. big OUTFIT and Est acquainted with a
man and bis wife. They had one child
little girl. Is pr~ssy and bright q child
Is ever seen. Sh0 was about years old
They said theY were from Indiana. and
were bound for California.
Wen. left them and went On up the
river about to where old Fort Laramie .
and then started back when about one
hundred miles west Of the forks OF the
river. on the neFth side Of the North
Platte. struck their camp. and everyone
was excited, tor they tod me the little
girl vas lost or drowned In the river. She
was gone for two days and no trace Of her
could be found. IL was about noon when
reached. their camp. so / started IN to
hunt for her. They told me no trace OF
her could BE- found In the hill. and every
one thought she had fallen into the river.
went down the river several miles and
then crossed over and came back on the
opposite side. then went hack several
miles IN the hills. bur could get no track
II was after dark when i got back. and
the wagon boss had given orders that they
would move on the next day. ] shall never
forget the way that poor woman cried
can hear her yet when she begged for
them TO stay one more day and look for
her child; but IL was no use So she beg
ged for rae to come back and look for the
body and TO bury her where they camped.
1T almost drove her mad when, she
found she must give up all hope OF seeing
her child again. and not knowing what its
fate was made her sorrow stili harder to
bear. Well. went on down to the forks
OF the Platte, for there was . small mill
tAry supply camp there. and left an order
to have some supplies sent further up the
river. then started ha. to look for the
lest child. I Was determined to find her
body II possible II took me two days and
a half to get hack TO camp. and started
up 8 small creek that came down through
q break "a the bluffs close to the river. /
followed rp the creek for about eight
miles. and then I saw her tracks ia the
sand. Well I am not much Of a praying
man, but did pray to God that might
f3nd her before il was too late. l cursed
myself for Lot looking al day IN the hills
In place OF along the river. for it Is a we'll
established fact that.a lost child viii fol-
low up creek or climb q hill. Wen,
hurried on W the creek for about two
miles further. and there. BY a bunch Of
willows, saw her lying on the ground.
I RAJ to Ter and picked her up but she
appeared to be dead. / placed my hand
on her heart and thought I could feel
faint molten I bathed her face with wa
ter ana poured little between her HIPS.
Tasre WAS = faint motion Of the body and
she opened her eyes and looked AZ me for
a minute and then closed her eyes again
and ay like one dead. I hathed her face
banda ard feet with wA:er. and she ap-
p<ared to revive once more. Her eyes
opened and she looked At me and appeared
70 know who was. Her lips moved. but
che could NOT speak / had some dried
buffalo meat and some bareback biscr.:
1. Was all the food I had. I took some OF
the biecuit ard broke Il up and wet II
with water snd tried TO get her 10 swallow
II. but II was no use, she was too far gene.
! didn't know what TO Co. would giaily
have given my own life to have saved
her, but that l could not do. takei
to Ter and tried to get her to speak. but
she just locked at me and smiled and then
her head dropped hack on my breast and
when locked at her again she was dead
II could no; bear to lay her down on IRE
ground. 20 I walked up and down along
the creek all night. ! could never forget
TIE tight OF that poor little girl when i
think CT her little bare feet. for she had
lost her sheet. end her feet were swollen
twice their EA.uras size. TO- that couitry
IL fun Of cactus. 30 you know what she
suffered. dfr't want 10 bring her body
back &c emp. for I was afraid the story
would &c, out and some traveller would
carry the story across the mountains and
her mother would get 10 hear 1t and II
would drive her mad. So l took a small
Ratchet I carried and made Kind of
shovel out Of q piece Of dry cedar and
dug 4 grave and wrapped my coat around
her and buried her by the aide OF bunch
OK wild Efacs. Before I buried her I cut
of lock OF her hair and made this guard
10 keep II from getting broke often go
hack 10 her grave. and at night. when
lay on the ground and my head resting on
the grave. imagine can hear her talk
and laugh just Ike she did when I irst
saw her. Other times. when IL II dark and
stormy. I can hear her cry and cafi fer
her mother. Just Ike she did when she
was los, ard wandering around on the
prairie. Everything she suffered seemed 10
pass through my mind. and sometimes
think viii soor meet her across the Big
Divide.
Tonight. when I was looking up al the
sky I saw her face away UP among the
ssarA"
He as talking tn q hoarse whisper, and
the tears were running down his cheeks
He paused for a moment. and then said:
"If anything happens 70 me on this trip
wan, yeu &c see that this guard Ia buried
with me-"
The next day We came across company
Of soldiers and camped with them That
evening. Just as we had made CAMP a
hand OF Indians attacked rs and lively
axas was Ehs result. Tom and myself
SsA