approached and tempted by the Satanic Jim. She was found one day to
have a few heron's feathers in her possession with which she adorned her
curls, and at another time was discovered to have rubbed her face and
arms with yellow and red ochre, confessedly the free gift of Jim Hooker.
It was to Clarence alone that she admitted the significance and purport
of these offerings. "Jim gived 'em to me," she said, "and Jim's a kind
of Injin hisself that won't hurt me; and when bad Injins come, they'll
think I'm his Injin baby and run away. And Jim said if I'd just told the
Injins when they came to kill papa and mamma, that I b'longed to him,
they'd hev runned away."
"But," said the practical Clarence, "you could not; you know you were
with Mrs. Peyton all the time."
"Kla'uns," said Susy, shaking her head and fixing her round blue eyes
with calm mendacity on the boy, "don't you tell me. I WAS THERE!"
Clarence started back, and nearly fell over the wagon in hopeless dismay
at this dreadful revelation of Susy's powers of exaggeration. "But," he
gasped, "you know, Susy, you and me left before--"
"Kla'uns," said Susy calmly, making a little pleat in the skirt of her
dress with her small thumb and fingers, "don't you talk to me. I was
there. I'se a SERIVER! The men at the fort said so! The SERIVERS is
allus, allus there, and allus allus knows everythin'."
Clarence was too dumfounded to reply. He had a vague recollection
of having noticed before that Susy was very much fascinated by the
reputation given to her at Fort Ridge as a "survivor," and was trying
in an infantile way to live up to it. This the wicked Jim had evidently
encouraged. For a day or two Clarence felt a little afraid of her, and
more lonely than ever.
It was in this state, and while he was doggedly conscious that his
association with Jim did not prepossess Mrs. Peyton or her brother in
his favor, and that the former even believed him responsible for Susy's
unhallowed acquaintance with Jim, that he drifted into one of those
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