she was born smart -- and look how her
father's trained her! He was something high
up in the old country."

"So was my mother's father," murmured
Lena, "but that's all the good it does us! My
father's father was smart, too, but he was
wild. He married a Lapp. I guess that's
what's the matter with me; they say Lapp
blood will out."

"A real Lapp, Lena?" I exclaimed. "The
kind that wear skins?"

"I don't know if she wore skins, but she was
a Lapp all right, and his folks felt dreadful
about it. He was sent up north on some Gov-
ernment job he had, and fell in with her. He
would marry her."

"But I thought Lapland women were fat
and ugly, and had squint eyes, like Chinese?"
I objected.

"I don't know, maybe. There must be
something mighty taking about the Lapp
girls, though; mother says the Norwegians up
north are always afraid their boys will run
after them."

In the afternoon, when the heat was less
oppressive, we had a lively game of "Pussy
Wants a Corner," on the flat bluff-top, with

[[276]]

p275 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p276w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p277

v?