ave found many rare plants this night;
it hath been a lucky one, perchance because the young princess was also
abroad in the forest."

All the children of the tribe were afraid of the old woman. They told
each other tales of how she could turn those she disliked into dogs,
bats or turtles. And now even Nautauquas remembered how he had run from
her when he was a little fellow. Her expression was so ugly and so
malign that Pocahontas, though she did not fear her exactly, had no
desire to stay longer, and so started forward.

"And what doth Pocahontas in the woods at night?" asked Wansutis.
"Knoweth The Powhatan that she hath left his lodge?"

Pocahontas, though she often willingly allowed those about her to forget
her rank, could yet be very conscious of it when she desired. Now it did
not please her to be questioned in this manner by the old squaw and she
did not answer.

"Oh hey," cried Wansutis, "thou wilt not answer me. Thou art proud of
thy rank and thy youth. Yet one day thou wilt be an old squaw like me,
without teeth, with weak legs, and life a burden to thee. Then thou wilt
not be so proud."

Pocahontas stopped and turned around again.

"Nay, I will not grow old. I will not let the day come when life shall
be a burden. Thou canst not read the future, Wansutis. I shall always be
as fleet as now."

"Thinketh thou to ward off old age by some of my potions made from these
roots I carry here, a bundle too heavy for an ancient crone like me to
bear on her back? Thou shalt have none of them."

At these words Pocahontas's manner changed. Stooping, she picked up the
bundle and pressed it into the net that lay on the ground and swung it
on to her strong shoulders.

"Come, Wansutis," she cried. "Seek not to anger me with words and I will
bear thy bundle to thy wigwam. It is in truth too heavy for thy old
bones."

The old woman grunted ungraciously as she rose to her feet, then the
three, one following the other, moved forward. They were obliged to go
slowly, as Wansutis could only hobble along, and Nautauquas was sorry to
see that dawn was approaching. He feared now that Pocahontas would not
be able to steal unobserved back to her place beside Cleopatra and that
she would be scolded. They went with Wansutis to her wigwam and
Pocahontas let fall her bundle. Nautauquas took out his knife and cut
off a hind quarter of the deer and laid it on the squaw's hearth.

"She hath no son to hunt for her," he said in expla