The teepee appeared very
white. A peculiar tingling sensation passed
through his frame, and the pony whinnied
often as he was urged forward at a gallop.
When Antelope beheld the solitary teepee
he knew instantly what it was. It was a grave!
Sometimes a new white lodge was pitched thus
for the dead, who lay in state within upon a
couch of finest skins, and surrounded by his
choicest possessions.
Antelope's excitement increased as he neared
the teepee, which was protected by a barricade
of thick brush. It stood alone and silent in
the midst of the deserted camp. He kicked the
sides of his tired horse to make him go faster.
At last he jumped from the saddle and ran
toward the door. There he paused for a mo-
ment, and at the thought of desecrating a
grave, a cold terror came over him.
"I must see--I must see!" he said aloud,
and desperately he broke through the thorny
fence and drew aside the oval swinging door.
II
In the stately white teepee, seen from afar, both
grave and monument, there lay the fair body
of Taluta! The bier was undisturbed, and the
maiden looked beautiful as if sleeping, dressed
in her robes of ceremony and surrounded by all
her belongings.
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