The Lions of the Lord - A Tale of the Old West by Harry Leon Wilson
page 231 of 447 (51%)
page 231 of 447 (51%)
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Unmolested for the time, the imbecile would go briskly a few steps and
then pause with an important air of the deepest concern, as if he were engaged on an errand of grave moment. He was thinly clad and shivering in the chill of the late October afternoon. Again, still later in the day, he overtook and passed the gaunt, gray woman who forever sought her husband. She was smiling as he passed her. Then his mind was made up. As he entered Brigham's office in Salt Lake City some days later, there passed out by the same door a woman whom he seemed dimly to remember. The left half of her face was disfigured by a huge flaming scar, and he saw that she had but one hand. "Who was that woman?" he asked Brigham, after they had chatted a little of other matters. "That's poor Christina Lund. You ought to remember her. She was in your hand-cart party. She's having a pretty hard time of it. You see, she froze off one hand, so now she can't work much, and then she froze her face, so she ain't much for looks any longer--in fact, I wouldn't say Christina was much to start with, judging from the half of her face that's still good--and so, of course, she hasn't been able to marry. The Church helps her a little now and then, but what troubles her most is that she'll lose her glory if she ain't married. You see, she ain't a worker and she ain't handsome, so who's going to have her sealed to him?" "I remember her now. She pushed the cart with her father in it from the Platte crossing, at Fort Laramie, clear over to Echo CaƱon, when all the |
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