occupant. Elwood was to take immediate possession,
and, all the way across the prairie, was felicitating himself upon the
ease and rapidity of his triumph. What was their surprise, then, on
approaching the house, to see smoke issuing from the chimney, as
usual--the door thrown wide open, and Grayson standing quietly in front
of it! The party halted and a council was called, but its deliberations
were by no means tedious: it was forthwith determined, that Grayson
stood _in defiance of the law_, and must be punished--that is,
"lynched"--without delay! The object of this fierce decree, all unarmed
as he was, still stood near the door, while the company slowly
approached the fence. He then advanced and addressed them:--

"I think the ten days are not up yet, gentlemen," said he mildly.

"Yes, they are," answered Elwood quickly; "and we are here to know
whether you intend to obey the authorities, and leave the country?"

"I think, Elwood," said the young man, not directly replying, "this
matter can be settled between you and me, without bloodshed, and even
without trouble. If you will come in with George and John [his sons], I
will introduce you to my wife, and we can talk it over, with a glass of
whiskey."

Another consultation ensued, when, in order to prove their dignified
moderation, they agreed that Elwood and his sons should "go in and see
what he had to say."

Elwood, the elder, entered first: directly before him, holding her sides
and shaking with laughter, stood his rosy daughter, Hannah!

"_My wife_, gentlemen," said Grayson, gravely introducing them. Hannah's
laughter exploded.

"O, father, father, father!" she exclaimed, leaning forward and
extending her hands; "ain't you caught, beautifully!"

The laugh was contagious; and though the elder knit his brows, and was
evidently on the point of bursting with very different emotions, his
sons yielded to its influence, and, joining Hannah and her husband,
laughed loudly, peal after peal!

The father could bear it no longer--he seized Hannah by the arm and
shook her violently, till she restrained herself sufficiently to speak;
as for him, he was speechless with rage.

"It's entirely too late to make a 'fuss,' father," she said at length,
"for here is the marriage-certificate, and Grayson is your son!"

"I have not stolen your horse, Elwood," said the bridegroom, taking the
paper which the father rejected, "though I have run away with your
daughter. And," he