"Oh, indeed!" The minister hoped his voice was politely steady.
"Yes, sir. Of course I haven't had a chance to ask many people, yet—only one or two of the cowboys. One of them was named 'John,' but he wasn't my John—I mean, he wasn't the right John," corrected Cordelia with a pink blush.
The minister coughed a little spasmodically behind his hand. As he did not speak Cordelia went on, her eyes a little wistful.
"Would you be willing, please, to take those names down on paper, Mr. Jones?"
"Why, certainly, Miss Cordelia," agreed the man, reaching for his notebook.
"You see you are a minister, and you do meet people, so you might find them. I'd be so glad if you could, or if I could. They're all needed very much—indeed they are. You see, Hermit Joe is so lonesome for his son, and Mrs. Snow so worried about Lizzie, and Mrs. Granger has lost her husband, so she hasn't anybody left but her cousin, now, and Miss Sally is so very poor and needs her brother so much."
"Of course, of course," murmured the minister.
A few moments later his notebook bore this entry, which had been made under Cordelia's careful direction:
| "Wanted:—Information about— | ||||
| John Sanborn | whose | father | is | lonesome, |
| Mrs. Lizzie Higgins | " | mother | " | worried, |
| Lester Goodwin | " | cousin | " | a widow, |
| and | ||||
| James Hunt | " | sister | " | very poor." |