On one of them was a gold trinket, tied by a loop of hide, rattled in the wind.

It was her ring.
The seeker lay buried there with the talisman above him.
She was awake now, oblivious of the swift sinking of her vital energy.
She must have the ring, for it was the pledge of a great glory....
A breathless little girl flung herself into the cabin.

It was Sophy Hanks, one of the many nieces who squattered like ducks about the settlement.
"Mammy!" she cried shrilly.

"Mammy Linkorn!" She stammered with the excitement of the bearer of ill news.

"Abe's lost your ring in the crick.