tenderly.

"Then you stopped sobbing but you had tight hold of my neck. Suddenly I
gathered you up and ran with all my might to Touchas' hut. The curtain
was up and the fire was burning, and I had grown stiff with cold and
just stumbled on the floor, laying you down. Touchas was so amazed.

"'Whose child is that?' she said. 'Why, your eyes are like moons. Have
you seen some evil thing?'"

"And you thought me an evil thing, Pani!" said the child reproachfully.

"One never can tell. There are strange things," and the woman shook her
head. "And Touchas was so queer she would not touch you at first. I
unrolled the torn piece of blanket and there you were, a pretty little
child with rings of shining black hair, and fair like French babies, but
not white like the English. And there was no sign of Indian about you.
But you slept and slept. Then we undressed you. There was a name pinned
to your clothes, and a locket and chain about your neck and a tiny ring
on one finger. And on your thigh were two letters, 'J. A.,' which meant
Jeanne Angelot, Father Rameau said. And oh, Mam'selle, _petite fille_,
you slept in my arms all night and in the morning you were as hungry as
some wild thing. At first you cried a little for _maman_ and then you
laughed with the children. For Touchas' boys were not grown-up men then,
and White Fawn had not met her brave who took her up to St. Ignace."

"I might have dropped from the clouds," said the child mirthfully. "The
Great Manitou could have sent me to you."

"But you talked French. Up in the above they will speak in Latin as the
good fathers do. That is why they use it in their prayers."

Jeanne nodded with a curl of disbelief in her red-rose mouth.

"So then Touchas and I took you to Father Rameau and I told him the
story. He has the clothes and the paper and the locket, which has two
faces in it--we all thought they were your parents. The letters on it
are all mixed up and no one can seem to make them out. And the ring. He
thought some one would come to inquire. A party went out scouting, but
they could find no trace of any encampment or any skirmish where there
was likely to be some one killed, and they never found any trace. The
English Commandant was here then and Madame was interested in you.
Madame Bellestre would have you baptized in the old church to make sure,
and because you were French she bade me bring you there and care for
you. But she had to die and M. Bellestre had large i