first, she kept very
still; but when she saw that she was discovered she dropped to the
ground and dashed wildly away. We caught occasional glimpses of her from
day to day, and came to look for her when we travelled back and forth
between our tree and the mouth of the slough.

And then, one day, she did not run away. She waited our coming, and made
soft peace-sounds. We could not get very near, however. When we seemed
to approach too close, she darted suddenly away and from a safe distance
uttered the soft sounds again. This continued for some days. It took a
long while to get acquainted with her, but finally it was accomplished
and she joined us sometimes in our play.

I liked her from the first. She was of most pleasing appearance. She was
very mild. Her eyes were the mildest I had ever seen. In this she was
quite unlike the rest of the girls and women of the Folk, who were born
viragos. She never made harsh, angry cries, and it seemed to be her
nature to flee away from trouble rather than to remain and fight.

The mildness I have mentioned seemed to emanate from her whole being.
Her bodily as well as facial appearance was the cause of this. Her eyes
were larger than most of her kind, and they were not so deep-set, while
the lashes were longer and more regular. Nor was her nose so thick and
squat. It had quite a bridge, and the nostrils opened downward. Her
incisors were not large, nor was her upper lip long and down-hanging,
nor her lower lip protruding. She was not very hairy, except on the
outsides of arms and legs and across the shoulders; and while she was
thin-hipped, her calves were not twisted and gnarly.

I have often wondered, looking back upon her from the twentieth century
through the medium of my dreams, and it has always occurred to me that
possibly she may have been related to the Fire People. Her father, or
mother, might well have come from that higher stock. While such things
were not common, still they did occur, and I have seen the proof of them
with my own eyes, even to the extent of members of the horde turning
renegade and going to live with the Tree People.

All of which is neither here nor there. The Swift One was radically
different from any of the females of the horde, and I had a liking for
her from the first. Her mildness and gentleness attracted me. She was
never rough, and she never fought. She always ran away, and right here
may be noted the significance of the naming of her. She wa