Caroline Sal was a shepherdess who watched her sheep mainly in the High Meadows of Stephen
She suffered from an extreme shyness when matched with strangers
But read vociferously to her attended flock
Who she believed hung on her soft voice and vivid descriptions
She was reading the letters of Madame de Sevigne to her daughter
Her shyness however hid an extraordinary intelligence which she put to use
By accurately mapping both the High Meadows and all the paths that led to the summit of Marguerite
It was during this mapping that she was threatened by the Kings Messenger
Who told her to remove all her clothes
In an effort to buy some time she asked the monster if she might disrobe in her shelter
And it was from this dilapidated building that she killed the man with her fathers crossbow
After much effort she dragged his body into the long grasses where she left it to the vultures
Later when she had recovered her strength she set his swift horse free
An inquiry was soon ordered but nobody suspected the simple shepherdess and it was supposed that the messenger
Had been set on my brigands who had hidden his body somewhere on the mountains
Because of the perceived threat Caroline Sar was ordered to live with her family until the brigands were captured
Her father moved his flock to the more fertile low meadows near the village and gave Caroline his musket for her protection