a
beautiful creek winding through it. Across the valley was a long plain
stretching for miles beyond and finally ending at the foot of another
range of hills, the counterpart of the one upon which he sat.

After noting the different landmarks carefully, he arose and slowly
started down the slope and soon came to the creek he had seen from the
top of the range. Great was his surprise on arriving at the creek to
find what a difference there was in the appearance of it from the range
and where he stood. From the range it appeared to be a quiet, harmless,
laughing stream. Now he saw it to be a muddy, boiling, bubbling torrent,
with high perpendicular banks. For a long time he stood, thinking which
way to go, up or down stream. He had just decided to go down stream,
when, on chancing to look up, he noticed a thin column of smoke slowly
ascending from a little knoll. He approached the place cautiously and
noticed a door placed into the creek bank on the opposite side of the
stream. As he stood looking at the door, wondering who could be living
in a place like that, it suddenly opened and a very old appearing woman
came out and stood looking around her. Soon she spied the young man, and
said to him: "My grandchild, where did you come from and whither are you
bound?" The young man answered: "I came from east of this ridge and am
in search of my oldest brother, who came over in this direction five
days ago and who has not yet returned."

"Your brother stopped here and ate his dinner with me, and then left,
traveling towards the west," said the old witch, for such she was. "Now,
grandson, come across on that little log bridge up the stream there
and have your dinner with me. I have it all cooked now and just stepped
outside to see if there might not be some hungry traveler about, whom I
could invite in to eat dinner with me." The young man went up the stream
a little distance and found a couple of small logs which had been placed
across the stream to serve as a bridge. He crossed over and went down to
the old woman's dugout hut. "Come in grandson, and eat. I know you must
be hungry."

The young man sat down and ate a real hearty meal. On finishing he arose
and said: "Grandmother, I thank you for your meal and kindness to me. I
would stay and visit with you awhile, as I know it must be very lonely
here for you, but I am very anxious to find my brother, so I must be
going. On my return I will stop with my brother and we will pay