76 The Catskill Fairies.

“«We know your people well,’ they said. ‘They hunt and
slay us in great numbers. We may be quietly browsing with-
out thought of danger, when the Indians rush down on us like
the wind, and hurl arrows at us before we know well what we
are about.’

“Where shall I find them?’ the girl asked, eagerly.

“«Farther to the west.’

“ The buffaloes thrust their muzzles in the cooling waters,
and the witch-child also held her brown hands in the stream.

“¢Mulkegraub, I begin to love you, she whispered. ‘ Here
you are no longer terrible and mischievous, but give life and
refreshment to all creatures. Then she saw Mulkgraub’s fair
face laughing up at her from the clear depths, and the next
moment her Elf slippers were tossed on the bank. These she
put on and ran so swiftly that she seemed a sunbeam chased
along the grass by the god of day.

“An emigrant train passed, the white wagons loaded with
household furniture; the mothers and infants riding while the
fathers and sons walked before, on the watch for enemies. The

route was long and full of danger.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“The witch-child presently heard cries of distress, and
mounted on her wings to see what had happened. The

emigrants had paused to search for one of their number, a