Mr. Travilla repeated to his wife the child’s story of her awaking and what she had seen and heard.

“Oh my poor darling, what a terrible fright for her!” Elsie exclaimed, “but do you not think it must have been all a dream?”

“That was my first thought; but on further consideration I fear it may have been another Ku Klux outrage.  I dare say, the disguise worn by them may answer to her description of ’the horrible thing that shooted the man;’ I judge so from what I have heard of it.”

“But who could have been the victim?” she asked with a shudder.

“I do not know.  But her carriage was probably the stage:  it was about the hour for it to pass.”

Day was already dawning and they did not sleep again.

Mr. Travilla had gone on his regular morning round over the plantation, and Elsie stole softly into the room of her little daughters.

Though past their usual hour for rising they still slept and she meant to let them do so as long as they would.  They made a lovely picture lying there clasped in each other’s arms.  Her heart swelled with tender emotions, love, joy and gratitude to Him who had given these treasures and preserved them thus far from all danger and evil.  She bent over them pressing a gentle kiss upon each round rosy cheek.

Little Elsie’s brown eyes opened wide, and putting her arm about her mother’s neck, “Mamma,” she whispered, with a sweet, glad smile, “was not God very good to give us back our Vi?”

“Yes, dearest, oh, so much better than we deserve!”

Violet started up to a sitting posture.  “Mamma, oh mamma, I did have a dreadful, dreadful dream!—­that I was ’way off from you and papa, out in the night in the woods, and I saw—­”

She ended with a burst of frightened sobs and tears, hiding her face on the bosom of her mother who already held her closely clasped to her beating heart.

“Don’t think of it, darling, you are safe now in your own dear home with papa and mamma and sister and brothers.”  Tender soothing caresses accompanied the loving words.

“Mamma, did I dream it?” asked the child lifting her tearful face, and shuddering as she spoke.

The mother was too truthful to say yes, though she would have been glad her child should think it but a dream.

“Perhaps some of it was, daughter,” she said, “though my pet did walk out in her sleep; but papa is going to manage things so that she can never do it again.  And God will take care of us, my darling.”

The sobs grew fainter and softly sighing, “Yes mamma,” she said, “I asked him to send papa to bring me home, and he did.”

“And papa came in here this morning and kissed both his girls before he went down stairs.  Did you know that?”

“Did he?  Oh I wish I’d waked to give him a good hug!”

“I too;” said Elsie, “Papa loves us very much, doesn’t he, mamma?”

“Dearly, dearly, my child; you and all his little ones.”