The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-03-04
Madge- "A Little
Girl Of the Alps

cross TO her, put ner tdtner was
very kind to her, although he was
not home very much of the time,
because they were very poor, and
her father, Mr. Miller, had to go to
work very far off from them.
One day Madge was taking the
sheep up the mountains. She saw
a man way up in the sky, it seem
ed, but he was only higher than
she was. He kept waving to her,
and finally, she stopped. He was
on a horse, so he came rapidly to
where she was waiting. He asked
Madge ii she had her own mother
and father. Madge answered:
Indeed, | have my own parents"
The man looked sad, and said,
Il am very sorry, because you look
just like my little girl who ran
away from her two fond parents
and little brother, who also dis
appeared"
Madge said she felt sorry for
him, for she was sure she had her
own parents, and she said to him:
'Sir, l must be on my way to
the top of the mountain" and away
she went with the sheep. Every
once in awhile Madge would look
around to see if he were still there.
For quite awhile she could still
see him, but she went around
cliff and could see him no more.
Madge decided not to tell her
mother what had happened. But,
just as Madge turned around, what
did she see? Can you guess?-a
little boy who said to Madge very
timidly, Miss, this is not very
nice way to come upon you, but |
saw you go around the cliff and /
thought you would let me play
with you"
Indeed. Madge forgave him about
the way he came upon her, for she
was very glad to have someone to
play with. Finally, they started
playing. They played tag and
some other games. Just as they
were playing tag, the little boy
was it, so he was running after
Madge, who did not see where she
was going.
Billy. the little boy, yelled to her,
but it was too late. She had put
her foot over the cliff and kept
going downtown Would
the fall never come to an end?
Billy was so frightened that he
went the shortest way possible to
get to the bottom. Just at the
time Madge got to the end of her
fall, Billy got to the end of his, be-
cause Billy had fallen right after
Madge, in his haste to reach her.
He picked her up carefully and
carried her home to her mother.
She was very much alarmed, but
every day Billy would come to see
how Madge was. But her mother
could not tell for three long days
whether Madge was better or not.
Madge's mother was very kind to
her now. She said she would be
kind to her ever after that.
On the third day Madge was so
very much better that Billy danced |
a jig. and the mother was so happy
that she waltzed all around the !
room. In a few days Madge was
well and off tending the sheep
with Billy. They became very
good friends.
1t was five years later, when
Madge was going home one eve
ming, that she saw the same man
that she had seen several years be-
fore on the horse, and he said to
Madge:
IL am your father. Your mother
well, the mother you used to
claim, but whom you can not
claim any longer, told me you were
not her real little girl"
Poor Madge! She Rugged her
mother and kissed her, and, to
have good luck, the father she used
to claim was coming home. She
was so glad she Rugged and kissed
them over and over again, and in
the morning, Madge's real father
said they must be going on, but
Madge would hear nothing of it
until she had hidden farewell to
her beloved Billy. When they got
10 Billy's house he was asleep on
the floor. and her father looked
through the window and saw that
{ was the same little boy who had
such long time ago;
\