Bushy a romance founded on fact
help me, child! for the first time in my life, Bushy, I’m no good as a
doctor. The whole kit of bottles in my medicine-chest can’t cure one of
the aching hearts you leave behind.”
Bushy smiled through her tears and turned to Tom.
“Dear old Tom,” she murmured, and as her arms clung about his neck,
she patted his poor scalped head and gave way for the first time that
morning to uncontrolled weeping.
Sob after sob shook her whole frame, and a second later she was pressed
close to her father’s heart.
Mr. Sukolt was the last to bid the little Rocky Mountain girl good-by.
He held her clasped in his arms so long, and was so silent that the
miners gradually drifted away to one side in little whispering groups,
leaving only Tom near by--faithful old Tom, who, as he gazed on Mr.
Sukolt’s white face, recalled the scene, twelve years before, when the
Padre had held his little girl just so, trying to decide whether it was
wise to do as her baby head had planned, and let her go “wiv her papa’s
tachel.”
Now he was sending her back to the “States” for the same reason that he
had taken her away--because she was the one thing in the world left to
him and he loved her better than life.
The buckboard that waited would convey the two travellers to the stage
line, and once in the stage they would soon reach Denver; from Denver
they would take the cars straight across the plains.
Mr. Sukolt kissed his daughter’s lips and then, without a word, handed
her over to Mr. Hamilton who lifted her up beside him.
“Good-by!” she called as the driver whipped up his horse--her face was
turned wistfully toward the Padre.
“Good-by!” came from the throat of every man in camp. Not a miner moved
till the odd vehicle with its precious burden passed out of sight.
It was thus that the pet of the Rocky Mountain gold-diggers left them.
She was seated on a wooden box that was marked in big charcoal letters:
BUSHY SUKOLT,
New York City.
THE END.
Bushy Poster
UNIQUE
ARTISTIC
ATTRACTIVE
FULL OF LIFE
_PRINTED IN FIVE COLORS_
Will be sent, post-paid, on
receipt of price, 25 cents
THE MORSE COMPANY
PUBLISHERS.
96 FIFTH AVENUE
NEW YORK
Transcriber’s Notes
The only footnote has been renumbered and moved to the end of its
paragraph.
This file uses _underscores_ to indicate italic text.
Illustrations have been moved to the nearest paragraph break.
Itemized changes from the original text:
On page 18, changed “half-hour” to “half hour”,
near “he quit wriggling about”
On page 25, changed “or” to “of”,
near “like one ball of fire”
On page 33, changed “horse thief” to “horse-thief”,
near “to be cut down”
On page 45, changed “deer-meat” to “deer meat”,
near “that kept the pot of”
On page 64, changed “buck-board” to “buckboard”,
near “had just arrived in his”
On page 69, changed “breakneck” to “break-neck”,
near “speed up and down the”
On page 70, changed “sun-burnt” to “sunburnt”,
near “face clouded with a frown.”
On page 73, changed “red-skin” to “redskin”,
near “I’d just like to see a”
On page 80, changed “wont” to “won't”,
near “count if you like it.”
On page 95, inserted comma after “a little”,
near “just to calm me down”
On page 98, changed “everyday” to “every-day”,
near “was settling down to”
On page 99, added “to”,
near “and pulling Bushy to one side;”
On page 130, changed “fore-feet” to “fore feet”,
near “in one hand and the”
On page 130, changed “hind-feet” to “hind feet”,
near “in one hand and the”
On page 151, changed “Noon-time” to “Noontime”,
near “and as there were no signs”
On page 152, changed “awhile” to “a while”,
near “fight the Indians off for a while”
On page 154, changed “warwhoops” to “war-whoops”,
near “that chilled the blood”
On page 158, changed “warwhoop” to “war-whoop”,
near “suddenly sounded in front.”
On page 183, added quote mark at end of sentence,
near “even if they should wake and see him.”
On page 191, changed “hand-spring” to “handspring”,
near “in the road in her great delight”
On page 193, changed “ecstacy” to “ecstasy”,
near “half shutting her eyes in the ecstasy of her delight.”
On page 214, changed “wood-work” to “woodwork”,
near “about the mouth of the excavation”
On page 214, changed “wood-work” to “woodwork”,
near “at the opening of the tunnel”
On page 236, changed “rattle-snakes” to “rattlesnakes”,
near “the prairie-dogs and”
On page 251, changed “grocery-store” to “grocery store”,
near “was a long way off”
On page 257, changed “wagon-tongue” to “wagon tongue”,
near “leaning back against the”
On page 276, changed “,” to “”,
near “Bushy still held the end of the rope”
On page 277, changed “cabin-door” to “cabin door”,
near “the next day.”
On page 284, removed comma after “understand”,
near “I can't understand Bushy,”
On page 286, changed “dress-skirt” to “dress skirt”,
near “which she held up to receive”
On page 292, changed “mountain-peaks” to “mountain peaks”,
near “rose high and sharp”
On page 298, changed “gold diggers” to “gold-diggers”,
near “driven out by a set of”
On page 301, changed “” to “"”,
near “Hark, I hear a foot-fall!"”
On page 301, changed “” to “"”,
near “bang! bang!" sounded from”
On page 302, changed “buffalo-robe” to “buffalo robe”,
near “and covered her head and ears.”
On page 308, changed “Any thing” to “Anything”,
near “asked: "Anything happened, Padre?"”