The Montgomery tribune. (Montgomery City, Mo.) 1892-1910, 1902-01-17
JUMP OFF JOE.
ny o.. q. HIGGINS.

was hushed-as he thought forever!
Even though be waits intcnsively. as
did Elijah-yct he cannot hear.
1t is not the voice of the Great Spir-
it Of the happy hunting ground he is
listening to. No! 1t is not the face
of the Great Spirit he would look
upon. No! 1t is the outline Of a wan,
paleface figure, just washed upon the
shore from a strange junkct, now
dashed to pieces upon the whited
sand.
No other figures are in sight. Each
is a mystery unsolvcd.
The opalesccnt face, with dark.
heavy eyebrows and lashcs, nose Of
aquiline daintines.. and mouth. heavy
but archly curved. all gave a promi-
ncnt effect Of iirmncs. and sweetness.
The long, waving locks finished y girl
ish effect, heightened by ornaments
and jewels Of oriental devices and the
flowing curves Of a picturesque dress.
ing robe.
Joe gazes wondcringly on the face.
Never in his fathers harcm has he
seen such beauty. Always a lover Of
woman. what does it signify! Wa, he
not to be Icetyakt. a conjuror. n great
medicine man! lie even now !. clad
in a bear robe. chaplct and red bark
collar. just returned from n feast in
the mountain solitude. The comforts
OF the harem were not for him. nor
the smiles of woman.
Joe refiec,ively continues the solil.
oquy in his mind. and feels something
warm coursing through hi, heart-a
something that the Spirit he has so
long convcrsod with cannot explain.
That she is dead, he i. sure. But un-
consciously he il rejoicing that he is
the posscssor.
The new morn dawns impcrcepti-
bly,, leaving pale the night and stars
pale as the palofacc's face. II had
nc terror for Joe.
suddenly a long. brown object pro-
truding from a fold of the robe at
tractcd the natives attention. II was
a leathern scroll. and. unrolling IT,.
Joe's several years Of discretion was
not required to make him understand
that ii contained writing. What did
it mean?' To Joc's superstitious
mind il meant everything. She must
tell him. The Great Spirit will aid
him to bring her TO life.
With one bound he put forth the
charms of woven pace, and waving
hands, uttering strange cultural
sounds-petitions TO the god. And
with avail.
The Evil Spirit was appcased.
Slowly the palcface opened her eyes.
Paleface was given space in We-a-
wis-ka's harem. Wc-a-wiska was Joe's
fthcr-old in agc-not too old to
give advice in the council. not too old
to display with just pride his warrior
Requirements, not too old To forget
the kindly glance of a squaw.
Two days had passed. In the In
dian's kitchen room paleface had
gained only scorn and derision for her
complete ignorance regarding Gull
nary affairs. Her extreme beauty re-
PEELED through jealousy, and only Joe,
unseen, loved her.
He had watched her, the night be-
fore. caressingly soothe the pains OF
a sick baby; wonderingly heard her
lull the child to a minor strain Of
words sounding strangely like "Nita
loyes!'"Nita loves She dresses the
wounds Of the returned hunters SC
skillfully, seeming undauntcd at the
sight Of blood.
Also, in a week, time, Nita hs,
learned to break open mussel shell;
deftly from the fire, needing not tn,
scorn of the squaws As they point Il
her burnt fingers.
Waystee, We-a-wis-ka's c%onsort
often points derisively at them. Sh,
fears the effect Of her beauty on Joe
Joe finds himself unconsciou.ly medi
tating on the conjurer's-gifts, Wa.
back he remembers hearing Of a spiri
~Chief of Above" who made every