He seemed mightily relieved that this was so.
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE STOLEN CHILD.
Before Buffalo Bill could comment on the queer story of Quicksilver John, or on any of the other things which the worthy marshal of the town of Skyline had imparted to him, there was a sound of scraping feet beyond the door, in the direction of the piazza, and a man and woman came into the office.
The marshal jumped to his feet when he saw them, and the scout also rose, knowing that here were the father and mother of the child that had been supposedly stolen by Indians.
The man was a sturdy-looking fellow of the miner type, about thirty years old. The woman was younger and girlish, and was a beauty. Her skin was fair, her eyes a bright blue, her hair a gold-brown; so that, altogether, she had, in spite of the poorness and simplicity of her clothing, something in her appearance that suggested one of Titan’s pictures of angels.
So fair and girlish, though a wife and mother, she was, that Buffalo Bill could not, as he came to his feet, repress a look of admiration.
“These are the people I told you about,” said Woods, introducing them. “This is Morgan and Missus Morgan; and it’s their kid that has disappeared.”
The blue eyes of the woman filled with tears as she looked up at the tall and handsome scout who stood before her; his kind and kingly looks warmed her heart, and gave her a feeling of confidence even before he spoke to her.
As soon as the introductions had been put through by the marshal, Buffalo Bill began to ask Morgan and his wife questions, finding them intelligent and eager to impart all the information they possessed.
“He”—she referred to the child—“was playing out of the knoll when it happened. He played there nearly every day when the weather was good, and it’s been mostly good lately. I didn’t hear him cry out, or anything, but I did hear the hoofs of a horse out there somewheres, though at the minute I didn’t think anything about that in particular. But somehow I got uneasy by and by, and went to the door and called him. And when he didn’t come I ran out there—and he was gone!