me," he said at last. "My daughter is very
young--she is scarce of an age to marry."

"She shall have a month to choose," said Young, rising from his seat.
"At the end of that time she shall give her answer."

He was passing through the door, when he turned, with flushed face and
flashing eyes. "It were better for you, John Ferrier," he thundered,
"that you and she were now lying blanched skeletons upon the Sierra
Blanco, than that you should put your weak wills against the orders of
the Holy Four!"

With a threatening gesture of his hand, he turned from the door, and
Ferrier heard his heavy step scrunching along the shingly path.

He was still sitting with his elbows upon his knees, considering how he
should broach the matter to his daughter when a soft hand was laid upon
his, and looking up, he saw her standing beside him. One glance at her
pale, frightened face showed him that she had heard what had passed.

"I could not help it," she said, in answer to his look. "His voice rang
through the house. Oh, father, father, what shall we do?"

"Don't you scare yourself," he answered, drawing her to him, and passing
his broad, rough hand caressingly over her chestnut hair. "We'll fix it
up somehow or another. You don't find your fancy kind o' lessening for
this chap, do you?"

A sob and a squeeze of his hand was her only answer.

"No; of course not. I shouldn't care to hear you say you did. He's a
likely lad, and he's a Christian, which is more than these folk here, in
spite o' all their praying and preaching. There's a party starting for
Nevada to-morrow, and I'll manage to send him a message letting him know
the hole we are in. If I know anything o' that young man, he'll be back
here with a speed that would whip electro-telegraphs."

Lucy laughed through her tears at her father's description.

"When he comes, he will advise us for the best. But it is for you that
I am frightened, dear. One hears--one hears such dreadful stories about
those who oppose the Prophet: something terrible always happens to
them."

"But we haven't opposed him yet," her father answered. "It will be time
to look out for squalls when we do. We have a clear month before us; at
the end of that, I guess we had best shin out of Utah."

"Leave Utah!"

"That's about the size of it."

"But the farm?"

"We will raise as much as we can in money, and let the rest go. To tell
the truth, Lucy, it isn't the first time I have thought of doing it.