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diff --git a/41117-8.txt b/41117-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 6e46111..0000000 --- a/41117-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6779 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Dorothy at Skyrie, by Evelyn Raymond - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: Dorothy at Skyrie - -Author: Evelyn Raymond - -Release Date: October 20, 2012 [EBook #41117] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DOROTHY AT SKYRIE *** - - - - -Produced by D Alexander, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - DOROTHY - - AT SKYRIE - - BY EVELYN RAYMOND - - ILLUSTRATED - - New York - THE PLATT & PECK CO. - - - - -[Illustration: "HOW MUCH AM I BID FOR THE BEAUTIFUL CALICO PONY?"] - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER PAGE - - I. EARLY VISITORS 9 - - II. AN UNFORTUNATE AFFAIR 22 - - III. ON THE ROAD TO SOUTH MEADOW 41 - - IV. THE LEARNED BLACKSMITH 56 - - V. AN ACCIDENT AND AN APPARITION 69 - - VI. MORE PECULIAR VISITORS 85 - - VII. AT THE OFFICE OF A JUSTICE 96 - - VIII. A WALK AND ITS ENDING 112 - - IX. A LIVE STOCK SALE 127 - - X. AT MILKING-TIME 143 - - XI. HELPERS 158 - - XII. SETH WINTERS AND HIS FRIENDS 177 - - XIII. A BENEFICENT BEE 195 - - XIV. AN ASTONISHING QUESTION 210 - - XV. CONCERNING SEVERAL MATTERS 227 - - XVI. THE FATE OF DAISY-JEWEL 245 - - XVII. ON THE ROAD TO THE CIRCUS 259 - - XVIII. THAT SOUTH MEADOW 275 - - XIX. DOROTHY HAS ANOTHER SECRET 293 - - XX. ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL 308 - - - - -DOROTHY AT SKYRIE - - - - -CHAPTER I - -EARLY VISITORS - - -"Hello! How-de-do?" - -This salutation was so sudden and unexpected that Dorothy Chester -jumped, and rising from the grass, where she had been searching for wild -strawberries, beheld a row of pink sunbonnets behind the great stone -wall. - -Within the sunbonnets were three equally rosy faces, of varying sizes, -each smiling broadly and each full of a friendly curiosity. It was from -the biggest face that the voice had come, and Dorothy responded with a -courteous "Good-morning!" then waited for further advances. These came -promptly. - -"I'm Alfaretta Babcock; this one's Baretta Babcock; and this other one, -she's Claretta Babcock. The baby that's to home and can't walk -yet--only just creep--she's Diaretta Babcock." - -Dorothy laughed. The alphabetical names attached to these several -"Babcocks" sounded very funny and she couldn't help her amusement, even -if it were rude. However, no rudeness was suspected, and Alfaretta -laughed in return, then walked a few steps to the bar-way, with her -sisters following. These she hoisted upon the rails, and putting her -hands upon the topmost one vaulted over it with an ease that astonished -the city-bred Dorothy. - -"Why! how well you did that! Like a regular gymnast!" she exclaimed, -admiringly, and observing that this was a girl of about her own age -though much larger and stronger in build, as the broad back now turned -toward her showed. - -Alfaretta did not reply, except to bid the children on the other side of -the bars to "hop over," and when they were too timid to "hop" without -aid she seized their hands and pulled them across, letting them drop on -the long grass in a haphazard way that made Dorothy gasp and exclaim: - -"Oh! you'll hurt them!" - -Alfaretta faced about and keenly scrutinized Dorothy's face, demanding: - -"You makin' fun, or not?" - -"Fun? I don't see anything funny in such tumbles as those, and I surely -wasn't making fun of the way you sprang over that fence. I wish I was as -nimble." - -"Pooh! That's nothing. I'm the best climber anywheres on the mounting. I -can beat any boy 'round, even if I do wear petticoats. I'll learn you if -you want me to," offered the visitor, generously. - -"Thank you," said Dorothy, rather doubtfully. She did not yet know how -necessary climbing might be, in her new country life, but her -aspirations did not tend that way. Then thinking that this trio of -Babcocks might have come upon an errand to Mrs. Chester, she inquired: -"Did you want to see my mother?" - -Alfaretta sat down on a convenient bowlder and her sisters did the same, -while she remarked: - -"You may as well set, yourself, for we come to see you more'n anybody -else. Besides, you haven't got any mother. I know all about you." - -"Indeed! How can that be, since I came to Skyrie only last night? And I -came out to find some wild strawberries for my father's breakfast--we -haven't had it yet." - -If this was intended for a polite hint that it was too early in the day -for visiting it fell pointless, for Alfaretta answered, without the -slightest hesitation: - -"We haven't, neither. We've come to spend the day. Ma she said she -thought you might be lonesome and 'twasn't no more'n neighborly to start -in to once. More'n that, she's glad to get us out the way, 'cause she's -going down mounting to the 'other village' to 'Liza Jane's -store--Claretta, stop suckin' your thumb! Dorothy Chester don't do that, -and ma said she'd put some more that picra on it if you don't quit--to -buy us some gingham for dresses. She heard 'Liza Jane had got in a lot -real cheap and she's going to get a web 'fore it's all picked over." - -Tired of standing, Dorothy had also dropped down upon the bowlder and -now was regarding her uninvited guests with much of the same curiosity -they were bestowing upon her, and Alfaretta obligingly shoved her -smallest sister off the rock to make more room for their hostess. - -"Don't do that! What makes you so rough with them? Besides, I must go. -Mother will need me and I don't see any berries," said Dorothy, -springing up. "Excuse me, please." - -As she stooped to pick up the tin pail she had left on the grass, -Alfaretta snatched it from her grasp and was off down the slope, calling -back: - -"Come on, then! I know where they're thicker 'n molasses in the winter -time!" - -With their unvarying imitation of their elder sister the two little -girls likewise scampered away, and fearing she would lose mother -Martha's new "bucket" Dorothy followed also. Across a little hollow in -the field and up another rise Alfaretta led the way and there fulfilled -her promise, for the northern hillside was red with the fruit. With -little outcries of delight all of them went down upon their knees and -began to gather it; the younger ones greedily stuffing their mouths till -their faces were as red as the berries, but Alfaretta scrupulously -dropping all but a few extra-sized ones into the rapidly filling pail. -But she kept close to Dorothy and laughingly forced these finer ones -between her protesting lips, demanding once: - -"Ever go berryin' before, Dorothy C.?" - -"Not--this kind of 'berrying,'" answered the other, with a keen -recollection of the "berrying" she had done for the truck-farmer, -Miranda Stott. "But how happened you to call me that 'Dorothy C.' as -only my own people do? Who told you about me?" - -"Why--everybody, I guess. Anyhow, I know all about you. See if I don't. -You was a 'foundling' on the Chesterses' doorstep and they brought you -up. You was kidnapped, and that there Barlow boy that Mis' Calvert's -brought to Deerhurst helped you to get away. Mis' Calvert, she saw you -in a lane, or somethin', and fetched you back to that Baltimore city -where the both of you lived. Then she brought you here, too, 'cause Mr. -Chester he's got something the matter with his legs and has had to come -to the mounting and live on Skyrie farm. If he makes a livin' off it -it'll be more'n anybody else ever done, ma says. The old man that owned -it 'fore he gave it to Mis' Chester, he was crazy as a loon. Believed -there was a gold mine, or somethin' like that, under the south -medder--'D you ever hear such a thing! Ma says all the gold'll ever be -dug out o' Skyrie is them rocks he put into his stone walls. The whole -farm was just clear rocks, ma says, and that's why the walls are four -five feet thick, some of 'em more. There wasn't no other place to put -'em and besides he wanted it that way. The whole of Skyrie farm is -bounded--Ever study jogaphy? Know how to bound the states? Course. I -s'pose you've been to school more'n I have: but I can bound Skyrie for -you all right. On the north by a stone wall, 'joining Judge Satterlee's -place: on the south by a stone wall right against Cat Hollow--that's -where I live, other side the mounting but real nigh, cut 'cross lots. On -the east--I guess that's Mis' Calvert's woods; an' west--Oh! -fiddlesticks--I don't know whose land that is, but it's kept off by more -stone wall an' the thickest of the lot. Where the stone wall had to be -left open for bar-ways, to drive through, he went to work and nailed up -the bars. That's why I had to hop over, 'stead of letting 'em down. -Say, our pail is filling real fast. Pity you hadn't a bigger one. After -we've et breakfast we can come and get a lot for Mis' Chester to -preserve. Ma she's done hers a'ready. Let's rest a minute." - -Dorothy agreed. She was finding this new acquaintance most attractive, -despite the forwardness of her manner, for there was the jolliest of -smiles constantly breaking out on the round, freckled face, and the blue -eyes expressed a deal of admiration for this city girl, so unlike -herself in manner and appearance. Her tongue had proved fully as nimble -as her fingers, and now while she rested she began afresh: - -"Ma says I could talk the legs off an iron pot, if I tried, and I guess -you're thinkin' so too. Never mind. Can't help it. Ain't it queer to be -adopted? There was a power of money, real, good money, offered for you, -wasn't there! My heart! Think of one girl bein' worth so much to -anybody! It was all in the papers, but ma says likely we never would -have noticed it, only Mis' Satterlee she showed it to ma, account of -Mis' Chester moving up here an' going nigh crazy over losin' you. Ma she -washes for the Satterlees, and they give us their old papers. Pa he -loves to read. Ma says he'd rather set an' read all day than do a stroke -to earn an honest livin'. Pa says if your folks had so many children as -he has and some of 'em got away he wouldn't offer no reward for 'em, he -wouldn't. But ma said: 'Now, pa, you hush! You'd cry your eyes out if -Diaretta fell into the rain-barrel, or anything!' We ain't all ma's -children. Four of 'em's named Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. They're -hired out to work, 'cause they're older 'n what I am, and three is dead. -Say, that's awful fine stuff your dress is made of. Do you wear that -kind all the time? and shoes, too?" - -"Yes, this is an everyday frock that dear Mrs. Calvert had made for me -and gave me. She is my father's friend and is sorry for him, and does -things for me, I reckon, just to help him. Of course, I wear shoes--when -I have them!" laughed Dorothy, carefully refraining from looking at -Alfaretta's own bare feet. - -"What you laughing at?" demanded that observant young person, already -joining in the mirth without knowing its cause. - -"I was thinking how I was once allowed to buy a pair of shoes for myself -and picked them out so small they nearly crippled me. And I have been -barefooted, too, sometimes, when I was trying to escape from the -truck-farm;" and once started upon the subject, Dorothy did not hesitate -to complete the narrative of her adventures and, indeed, of all her -short, simple life, as already related by me in another book called, -"Dorothy Chester."--how she had been picked up on the doorstep by Mrs. -Chester and brought up as that lady's own child--how she had been -kidnapped and taken to the truck farm--how honest Jim Barlow had proved -her best friend--and how at last the rich Mrs. Calvert had restored her -to her foster parents at this picturesque if rather dilapidated home in -the Highlands of the Hudson. - -Alfaretta was likewise confidential, and with each passing moment and -each fresh remembrance the liking between the two little maids -strengthened. Finally, with a trifle of gloom, the country girl -disclosed the fact: - -"Pa he's the scolder to our house, but ma she's the licker. She says she -ain't going to spoil her children by sparing rods when our 'upper lot' -is full of 'em. The rods, I mean. She doesn't, neither. That's true as -preachin'." - -"Why, Alfaretta! Are you ever whipped? A big girl like you?" - -"Huh! I may be bigger 'n you but I ain't much older. When's your -birthday?" - -"The second of April." - -"My heart! If that don't beat the Dutch! Mine's the first. So we must be -next door to twins. But lickin's! You just come to Cat Hollow any -Saturday night, 'bout sundown, and you'll be in the nick of time to get -a whack yourself. Ma says she's real impartial, 'cause she takes us in -turn. One week she begins with me and the next time with Claretta. -Diaretta ain't old enough yet to fall into line, and the boys were let -off soon as they went to work and fetched in money. Ma says all of us -need a lickin' once a week, anyhow, and she don't have time to bother -with it only Saturday nights, after we all get washed. When do you get -licked, yourself, Dorothy C.?" - -"When? Never! Never in my whole life has anybody struck me. I--I -wouldn't bear it--I couldn't!" cried Dorothy, indignantly. "But I -mustn't stop here any longer. We've more than enough berries for -breakfast and I'm so hungry. Besides, we're out of sight of the house -and my father John will worry. He said last night, when he had me in his -arms again after so long and so much happening, that he meant to keep me -right beside him for the rest of his life. Of course, he didn't mean -that exactly, and he was asleep when I came out. I waked up so early, -with all the birds singing round, and oh! I think this wonderful old -mountain is almost too beautiful to be true! Seems as if I'd come to -fairyland, sure enough! I'm going now." - -Dorothy said this with a faint hope that her visitors might depart -without taxing Mrs. Chester to provide them a meal. She knew that no -food was ever wasted in mother Martha's frugal household and but -sufficient for three ever prepared, unless there was due warning of more -to partake. Twice three would halve the rations and--at that moment, -with appetite sharpened by early rising and the cool mountain air--the -young hostess felt as if she could not endure the halving process. - -However, her hope proved useless, for with a shout and bound, Baretta -started for the cottage and Claretta kept her a close second, both -crying loudly: - -"I'm hungry, too! I'm hungry, too!" - -Alfaretta was off with a rush, carrying the pail of berries and bursting -in upon the astonished Mrs. Chester, with the announcement: - -"We've come to spend the day! We're Mis' Babcock's children. See all the -berries I've picked you? Is breakfast ready? 'Cause we are if it ain't!" - -"Where--is--Dorothy C.?" questioned the housemistress, recognizing the -extended pail as her own, wondering how it had come into this girl's -hands, and failing to see any sign of her daughter, no matter how -closely she peered outward. - -"Why, sakes alive! Where is she?" echoed Alfaretta, with great surprise, -also searching the landscape. "A minute ago she was tagging me, close, -and now she isn't! My heart! What if she's gone and got herself -kidnapped again!" - - - - -CHAPTER II - -AN UNFORTUNATE AFFAIR - - -But nothing so dire had happened. Crossing the grassy stretch before the -cottage Dorothy had caught sight of Jim Barlow's familiar figure, coming -along the tree-bordered lane which led to Deerhurst, and had hurried to -meet him. The shrubbery hid her from view of Mrs. Chester and the -Babcock girls, and for a moment mother Martha's heart sank with the same -dread she had known while her beloved child had been absent from her. -"Kidnapped!" If Alfaretta had tried she couldn't have hit upon a more -terrifying word to her hearer. - -"O Jim! Did ever anybody see such a beautiful, beau-ti-ful spot as this? -Let me hold Peter's chain--the darling dog! No, he won't get away from -me! I shan't let him. You can lead Ponce--but why did you bring them? -Did Mrs. Calvert know? How do you like Deerhurst? Are you going to be -happy there? Shall you have a chance to study some? Must you work in the -garden all the time? Oh! I want to know everything all at once and you -are so slow to talk! But, Jim dear, just stop a minute and look--look! -Isn't our new home lots prettier than the little brick house where we -used to live--77 Brown Street, Baltimore! Do stop and look--please do!" - -Obedient Jim did pause, for this small maid could always compel him to -her will, though he felt he was half-disobedient to his real mistress, -Mrs. Cecil, in doing so. She had sent him with a basket of fruit from -her own fine garden for the family at Skyrie and had bidden him take the -Great Danes along to give them their morning exercise. They were wild -with delight over the outing, and their vigorous gambols not only -threatened to upset the basket hung on his arm but made him caution: - -"Look out, Dorothy Chester! That there dog'll get away, an' then what'll -happen?" - -"Why--he'll get away, silly! You just said so yourself! But I won't let -him--Quiet, Peter, bad dog! Down, sir, down! No, I'm not one bit afraid -of you now, even if once you did nearly kill me and scared me out of my -senses! O Jim! I'm so happy--so happy! Almost too happy to live. If my -precious father were only well! That's the one thing isn't just -perfect." - -In her joy Dorothy gave her tall friend a rapturous pat on the shoulder, -and though a swift flush rose to his sunburned cheek he shook off her -caress as he would the touch of a troublesome insect. In his eyes this -little maid whom he had rescued from her imprisonment on Mrs. Stott's -truck-farm was the most wonderful of human beings, with her dainty, -graceful ways and her lovely, mobile face. All the same--she was a girl, -and for girls, as such, James Barlow had a boyish contempt. - -But she did not resent his action, indeed scarcely noticed it as, -whirling about to suit her movements to those of Peter, she still -pointed to her new home: - -"They say the man who built that house was queer, but seems to me he was -very wise. All of stone, so, it looks almost like a big rock and part -of the mountain itself. Such cute little, tiny-paned windows! Such a -funny stairway going up to the second floor on the outside! There's a -little one inside--so narrow and twisted, Jim, that even I can hardly -walk straight up it but have to go sidewise. Then the back of the house -is even with the ground. I mean that the biggest, best room of all, -which is father John's, opens right on the garden. Two stories and a -cellar in front, only a wee low story behind! Like a piece of the -hillside it's on. Then the vines! Did you ever see such beauties? Oh! I -love it, I love it, already, and I've only been here one night. What -will it be when I've lived a long time there!" - -"Huh! You'll get sick enough of it--'fore long too. S'pose you hain't -heard it's _haunted_--but I have, an' 'tis!" - -"Jim Barlow! How ridiculous and--how delightful! What sort of a 'haunt' -is it? Masculine, feminine, or neuter?" demanded Dorothy C., clapping -her hands. - -"Look out! Don't you let go that dog! You hold him tight, I tell you!" -returned the lad, as her sudden action loosened the chain attached to -Peter's collar. But she caught it again, deftly, and faced her friend, -vexed that she saw in his face no answering enthusiasm to her own over -the "loveliness" of Skyrie cottage. - -"I haven't let go--yet, Master 'Fraid-cat! And you _shall_ say my home -is pretty!" she protested, imperatively. "Say it quick, too, 'cause I -haven't had my breakfast and I have company waiting to eat it with me. -Say it, Jim, say it!" - -The boy laughed. He was very happy himself, that sunshiny morning, and -felt more at ease than he had done for many days, because, at last, he -was once more clad in blouse and overalls and knew that he had a busy -day of congenial work before him. True, these working garments were new -and of the best quality, provided by his new employer, but like in cut -and comfort to those he had always worn. His feet alone bothered him, -for a barefooted person could not be permitted about Deerhurst and his -shoes were stiff and troublesome. Now there's nothing more trying to -one's temper than feet which "hurt," and it was physical discomfort -mostly that made the lad's tongue sharp and his mood unsympathetic; and -thus goaded to an enthusiasm he did not feel he retorted: - -"Well, it's purty enough, then, but that ruff must leak like a sieve." - -"It's all mossy green on one side----" - -"Where the shingles is rotten." - -"And the dear little window-panes are like an old-fashioned picture!" - -"A right smart of 'em is cracked or burst entirely." - -"O Jim! How very unromantic you are! But you cannot say but that the -vines are beautiful!" - -"I've heard they're fust-class for givin' folks the rheumatiz." - -Dorothy's enthusiasm ebbed. Rheumatism was the one malady that sometimes -affected mother Martha's health. But she was not to be dashed by -forebodings, and pointing to the garden declared: - -"You cannot say a thing against our garden, anyway. Think of all that -room for roses and posies and everything nice!" - -"Garden? I call it a reg'lar weed-patch." - -Dorothy heaved a sigh which seemed to come from her very shoes. - -"You're--you're perfectly horrid, Jim Barlow. But I heard you say, once, -while we were working on that truck-farm, that the thing you most longed -for--after your education--was to own land. Look yonder, all that -ground, inside those big stone walls, is ours, _ours_! Mr. Barlow. -Behold and envy! Even on that untilled land flowers grow. See them?" - -"Pshaw! Them's mullein. Ain't no surer sign o' poor soil than a passel -o' mullein stalks. Stuns and mullein--Your pa's got a job ahead of him! -Now I'm goin' on. I was told to give this basket to Mis' Chester and -this note I've got in my jumper pocket to Mr. I'd ruther you'd take 'em, -only I was _told_; and we've stood here foolin' so long, I've got to -hurry like lightnin'. Take care that dog!" - -With that Jim set his aching feet once more in the path of duty and -Dorothy C. marched along beside him, her head held high in disdain but -with a twinkle in her eye and mischief in her heart. Jim didn't like -girls! Well, there was Alfaretta Babcock waiting for him, and he should -be made to go through a formal introduction in punishment for his want -of sympathy! She managed that he should precede her through the narrow -doorway, into the very presence of the unknown, and chuckled in delight -over his sudden, awkward pause, his flustered manner, and his attempt to -back out of the little kitchen. - -Mrs. Chester had gone up the stairs, to help her husband around the -corner of the house and down the slope to the kitchen where breakfast -was waiting and the three Misses Babcock with it. They sat in a row on -the old lounge, their pink sunbonnets folded upon their blue-print laps, -alert with the novelty of their situation and for "what next." - -"Miss Alfaretta Babcock--Mr. James Barlow, of Baltimore. The Misses -Baretta and Claretta Babcock--Mr. Barlow," announced Dorothy with -perfect gravity, yet anticipating a funny, awkward scene. But she was -unprepared for what really did happen, as Alfaretta promptly left the -lounge, swept a most remarkable courtesy before the bashful lad, and -seizing both his hands--dog-chain and all--in her own plump ones, -exclaimed: - -"Oh! Ain't I glad I come! You're the 'hero' that Mis' Judge Satterlee -calls you! I meant to get to know you, soon's ever I could, but this -beats the Dutch! I saw you in Mis' Calvert's carriage, last night all -dressed up, and I was scared of you, but I ain't now. You might be just -Matthew, or Mark, or Luke, though you're too tall for John. He's my -littlest brother. Pshaw! To think any plain kind of a boy, same's them, -could be a 'hero.' Ain't that queer? Did you come to breakfast, too? You -fetched yours in a basket, didn't you? I would, too, but ma she hadn't -nothing nice cooked up, and she was sort of scared offerin' city folks -country victuals. My! Here comes Mis' Chester and her man. Won't they be -tickled to see you!" - -For a moment, after Alfaretta seized him, Jim looked full as flustered -as Dorothy had desired: then all his awkwardness vanished before the -hearty good will of the girl and he found himself shaking her hands with -a warmth of cordiality equaling her own. She was as honest and -simple-natured as himself, and instead of being amused by their meeting -Dorothy soon felt something much nearer envy of Alfaretta's power to -win liking and confidence. - -Then she saw through the window father John limping down the path on his -crutches, and hurried out to meet him; also to ask of the housemistress: - -"Isn't there something I can do to help? How can we feed so many people? -for, mother dear, Jim's come, too!" - -"Oh! that's all right, deary. I cooked a lot of stuff, yesterday; made a -feast for your homecoming. We'll have to use for breakfast what was -meant for dinner. I was dismayed by those children coming, but I'm more -than glad to have that boy here. We all owe him much, Dolly darling;" -and mother Martha caught her restored child in a grateful embrace. - -Poor Jim was far more ill at ease in the presence of Mr. and Mrs. -Chester than he had been with Alfaretta: fidgeting under their thanks -and praises, which they had vainly tried to express during their brief -interview of the night before, and honestly astonished that anybody -should make such ado over so trifling a matter. - -"'Twan't nothin'. Not a mite. Anybody'd ha' felt sorry for a girl was -coaxed away from her folks, that-a-way. Pshaw! Don't! No. I've had my -breakfast a'ready. I couldn't. Mis' Calvert, the old lady, she sent me -to fetch this basket o' garden sass to Mis' Chester: an' this letter was -for you, sir. I was to give it to you an' nobody elst. I'm obleeged to -ye, ma'am, but I couldn't. I couldn't, nohow. I'm--I'm chock-full!" - -With this rather inelegant refusal, Jim turned his back on the -neatly-spread table and fled through the doorway, dragging Ponce with -him, overturning the too curious Claretta upon the floor, and making a -vain effort to loosen Peter's chain from the arm of the chair where -Dorothy had hastily fastened it. - -The result was disaster. Both dogs jerked themselves free and gayly -dashed forward toward the road leading down the mountain to the villages -at its foot, instead of that leafy lane which would have brought them -home to their own kennel. Their long chains dangled behind them, or -whirled from side to side, catching in wayside obstructions, but in no -wise hindering their mad rush. - -Scarcely less mad was poor Jim's speed following in pursuit, and the day -that had begun so joyously for him was destined to end in gloom. Only -the week previous there had been an alarm of "mad dog" in the twin -villages, "Upper" and "Lower" Riverside, and local authority was keen to -corral any unmuzzled canines; and when these formidable Great Danes of -Mrs. Calvert tore wildly through the street, people hastily retreated -indoors, while the two constables with pistols, joined by a few brave -citizens, gave Peter and Ponce a race for their lives. - -To them it was all fun. Never, in their city restricted career, had they -dreamed of such wide stretches over which to exercise their mighty -limbs; and, heretofore, during their summer stays at Deerhurst they had -been closely kept within bounds. They were so big that many people were -frightened by that mere fact of size and it had been useless for their -doting mistress to assure her neighbors that: - -"They are as gentle as kittens unless they are interfered with. They -always recognize the difference between honest persons and tramps." - -The argument was not convincing. Even a "tramp" might be honest and, in -any case, would certainly object to being bitten; therefore the -beautiful creatures had lived their days out at the end of a chain and -now, for the first, tasted the sweets of liberty. - -The affair ended by the dogs escaping and finally making their way home -almost unobserved, very weary, and reposing with an air of great -innocence before their kennel door, where Ephraim the colored coachman -discovered them and ejaculated in great surprise: - -"Fo' de lan' o' love! How come dese yeah dogs done gone got dey chains -broke? 'Peahs lak somebody gwine a spite my Miss Betty fo' keepin' 'em, -anyhow. Mebbe"--here Ephraim's black face turned a shade -paler--"mebbe--somepin's gwine to happen! Dere sholy is! Mebbe--mebbe -some dem burgaleers I'se heerd of gwine--gwine----" - -Visions of disasters too dire to be put into words cut short the old -man's speech, and hastily fetching pieces of rope he proceeded to -refasten the dogs to the kennel staples, and was much surprised that -they submitted so quietly. Then, being as wise as he was faithful, he -resolved to say nothing, at present, to the lady of Deerhurst about this -incident, reflecting that: - -"My Miss Betty she ain' sca'ed o' nobody, burgaleers er nothin'. Ef ol' -Eph done tol' her erbout dis yeah succumstance she's boun' to set up de -whole endurin' night a-lookin' out fo' trouble, wid dat dere -pistol-volver in her han's, all ready fo' to shoot de fust creachah puts -foot on groun'. Lak's not shoot de wrong one too. She's done got a -pow'ful quick tempah, my Miss Betty has, same's all my Somerset family -had, bein' fust quality folks lak dey was. No, suh! Dere's times fo' to -talk an' dere's times fo' to keep yo' mouf shut. Dis yeah's one dem -times, shuah ernuf." - -So, fully satisfied which of these "times" the present chanced to be, -the old coachman departed stableward to attend upon his beloved bays and -to make ready for his mistress's morning drive. - -Meanwhile, on the street of Lower Riverside, Jim Barlow had come to -fresh grief. In his frantic chase of the runaway dogs he had almost -caught up with Ponce, who suddenly darted into an open doorway of the -post-office just as a gentleman emerged from it, carrying a pile of -letters and papers just arrived in the early mail. A collision of the -three was inevitable, and Ponce was the only one who came out from it -intact. - -With outstretched arms, believing that he had already captured one of -the Great Danes, poor Jim threw himself headlong upon the gentleman, who -staggered under the unexpected blow and fell backward upon the floor, -with the lad atop. In the ensuing struggle to rise they forgot the dog, -the animal rushing out of doors again as swiftly as he had rushed -within. - -Instantly there was great commotion. The postmaster hurried to the -rescue, as did the crowd of other persons awaiting the distribution of -the mail; but the assaulted gentleman proved as agile as he was furious -and, as he gained his own feet, Jim found himself being shaken till he -lost his balance again and went down at the stranger's side. - -"You unmannerly lubber! How dare you? I say, how dare you knock me down -like that? Set your dog on me, would you? Do you know who I am?" - -The lad was slow to anger, but once roused could be as furious as the -other. His natural impulse was greater than his knowledge of the world, -and his answer was to send a telling blow into the gentleman's face. -This was "assault" in truth, and oddly enough seemed to restore the -victim to perfect coolness. With a bow he accepted the return of the -eyeglasses which had been knocked from his nose during the mêlée and -turned to the perturbed postmaster, saying: - -"Mr. Spence, where is the nearest justice of the peace?" - -"Why--why, Mr. Montaigne, sir, I think he----" - -"Simmons is out of town. He and Squire Randall have both gone to -Newburgh on that big case, you know," interposed a bystander. - -"Sure enough. Well then, Mr. Montaigne, the nearest justice available -this morning is Seth Winters, the blacksmith, up-mountain. Right near -your own place, sir, you know." - -"Thanks. Do you know this boy?" - -"Never saw him before," answered Mr. Spence. Then, as Jim started to -make his way outward through the crowd, he laid a firmly detaining hand -upon his shoulder and forced him to remain or again resort to violence. -"But I'll find out, sir, if you wish." - -"Do so, please. Or I presume a constable can do that for me. As for you, -young ruffian--we shall meet again." - -With that the gentleman flicked off some of the dust which had lodged -upon his fine clothing, again carefully readjusted his glasses, and -stepped out to the smart little trap awaiting his convenience. -Everything about the equipage and his own appearance betokened wealth, -as well as did the almost servile attentions of his fellow townsmen; -though one old man to whom he was a stranger inquired: - -"That the fellow who's built that fine house on the Heights, beyond -Deerhurst?" - -Mr. Spence wheeled about and demanded in surprise: - -"What? _you_ here, Winters? And don't you know your own mountain -neighbors? Did you see the whole affair?" - -"I do not know that gentleman, though, of course, I do know his -employees, who have brought his horses to me to be shod. Nor do I call -anybody a 'neighbor' till I've found him such. The accident of living -side by side can't make neighbors. My paper, please? We're going to have -a glorious day." - -It was noticeable that while the roughly clad old man was speaking, the -excited voices of the others in the office had quieted entirely, and -that as he received his weekly paper--his "one extravagance"--they also -remembered and attended to the business which had brought them there. - -As Mr. Winters left the place he laid his hand upon Jim's shoulder and -said: - -"Come with me, my lad. Our roads lie together." - -The boy glanced into the rugged yet benignant face turned toward him and -saw something in it which calmed his own anger; and without a word he -turned and followed. - -"Goodness! If the young simpleton hasn't gone off with the Squire of his -own accord!" remarked one they had left behind. - -But untutored Jim Barlow knew nothing of law or "justices." All he knew -was that he had looked into the eyes of a friend and trusted him. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -ON THE ROAD TO SOUTH MEADOW - - -For a moment the group in the kitchen at Skyrie were dismayed by Jim -Barlow's sudden departure and the escape of the dogs. Then Dorothy, who -knew him best, declared: - -"He'll catch them. Course. Jim always can do what he wants to do; -and--shall we never, never, have our breakfast? Why, Alfaretta, you -thoughtful girl! Why didn't I know enough to do that myself? Not leave -it to you, the 'company'!" - -Mrs. Chester turned back from the doorway, where she had been trying to -follow the dogs' movements, and saw that their guest had quietly -possessed herself of a colander from the closet and had hulled the -berries into it; and that she was now holding it over the little sink -and gently rinsing the fruit with cold water. - -The housemistress smiled her prompt approval, though she somewhat -marveled at this stranger's assured manner, which made her as much at -home in another's house as in her own. - -"Why, Alfaretta, how kind! Thank you very much. How fragrant those wild -berries are! You must have a good mother to have been taught such -helpful ways." - -"Yes, ma'am. She's smarter'n lightnin', ma is. She's a terrible worker, -too, and pa he says she tires him out she's so driv' all the time. Do -you sugar your strawberries in the dish? or let folks do it theirselves, -like Mis' Judge Satterlee does? She's one the 'ristocratics lives -up-mounting here and a real nice woman, even if she is rich. Pa he says -no rich folks can be nice. He says everybody'd ought to have just the -same lot of money and no difference. But ma says 't if pa had all the -money there was he'd get rid of it quicker'n you could say Jack -Robinson. She says if 'twas all divided just the same 'twouldn't be no -time at all 'fore it would all get round again to the same hands had it -first. She says the smart ones 'd get it and the lazy ones 'd lose -it--Claretta Babcock! Wipe your nose. Ma put a nice clean rag in your -pocket, and come to breakfast. It's ready, ain't it, Mis' Chester?" - -The greatly amused Mr. Chester had taken a chair by the window and drawn -Dorothy to his side; whence, without offering her own services, she had -watched the proceedings of mother Martha and Alfaretta. The one had -carefully unpacked the basket which Jim had brought, and found it -contained not only some fine fruit but a jar of honey, a pan of "hot -bread"--without which no southern breakfast is considered complete--and -half a boiled ham. For a moment, as the mistress of Skyrie surveyed -these more substantial offerings she was inclined to resent them. A bit -of fruit--that was one thing; but, poor though she might be, she had not -yet arrived at the point of being grateful for "cold victuals"! - -Yet she was almost as promptly ashamed of the feeling and remembered a -saying of her wiser husband's: "It takes more grace to accept a favor -than to bestow one." Besides, with these three hungry visiting children, -the addition to her pantry stores would be very timely. - -"Such a breakfast as this is! I never laughed so much at any meal in my -life!" cried Dorothy, at last finding a chance to edge in a word of her -own between Alfaretta's incessant chatterings. "But, Alfaretta, do they -always call you by your whole, full name?" - -"No, they don't. Most the time I'm just Alfy, or Sis. Baretta she's -mostly just Retty; and Clary's Clary. Saves time, that way; though ma -says no use having high-soundin' names without using 'em, so she never -clips us herself. Pa he does. He says life's too short and he ain't got -time to roll his tongue 'round so much. But ma she tells him 't a man 't -never does anything else might as well talk big words as little ones. Pa -he's a Nanarchist. Ever see one? They're awful queer-lookin'; least pa -is, an' I s'pose the rest is just like him. His hair's real red and he -never combs it. He'd disdain to! And he's got the longest, thickest -whiskers of anybody in Riverside, Upper or Lower, or Newburgh either. -He's terrible proud of his whiskers, but ma don't like 'em. She says -they catch dirt and take away all his ambition. She says if he'd cut 'em -off and look more like other men she'd be real proud of him, he's such -a good talker. Ma says I'm just like him, that way," naïvely concluded -this entertaining young person, who saw no reason why her own family -affairs should not become public property. Then without waiting for her -hostess to set her the example she coolly pushed back from the table, -announcing with satisfaction: "I'm done: and I've et real hearty too. -Where's your dishpan at, Mis' Chester? I'll wash up for you, then we can -all go outdoors and look 'round. I s'pose you've been down to the gold -mine, ain't you?" - -"Gold mine? Is there one on these premises? Why, that's the very thing -we need!" laughed father John, working his chair backward from leg to -leg and taking the crutches Dorothy brought him. Even yet she could not -keep the look of pity from her brown eyes whenever she saw the once -active postman depend upon these awkward, "wooden feet," as he jestingly -called them. - -But he had become quite familiar with them now, and managed to get about -the old farm with real alacrity, and had already laid many ingenious -plans for working it. He had a hopeful, sunny nature, and never looked -upon the dark side of things if he could help it. As he often told his -wife, she "could do enough of that for both of them:" and though he had -now fallen upon dark days he looked for every ray of sunshine that might -brighten them. - -Not the least of these was the safe return of his adopted daughter, and -with her at hand he felt that even his lameness was a mere trifle and -not at all a bar to his success. Succeed he would--he must! There was no -other thing left possible. What if his feet had failed him? Was he not -still a man, with a clear head and infinite patience? Besides, as he -quoted to Martha: "God never shuts one door but He opens another." - -Now as he rose to go outdoors with Dorothy he remembered the letter Jim -Barlow had brought him. Letter? It appeared rather like some legal -document, with its big envelope and the direction written upon it: -"_Important._ Not to be opened until after my death, unless I personally -direct otherwise. (Signed), Elisabeth Cecil Somerset-Calvert." The -envelope was addressed to himself, by his own full name, and "in case -of his death," to his wife, also by her full title. The date of a few -days previous had been placed in an upper corner, and the whole matter -was, evidently, one of deliberate consideration. - -Calling Mrs. Chester aside he showed it to her and they both realized -that they had received some sort of trust, to be sacredly guarded: but -why should such have been intrusted to them--mere humble acquaintances -of the great lady who had bestowed it? and where could it be most safely -kept? - -After a moment's pondering mother Martha's face lost its perplexity and, -taking the paper from her husband's hand, she whispered: - -"I know! I've just thought of a place nobody would ever suspect. I'll -hide it and tell you--show and when----" - -Then all at once they perceived the too bright eyes of Alfaretta Babcock -fixed upon them with a curiosity that nothing escaped. In their interest -concerning the letter they had forgotten her, busy at her task in the -rear of the room, and the others had already gone out of doors; yet even -in the one brief glimpse she caught of that long, yellow envelope, she -knew its every detail. Of course, she was too far away to distinguish -the words written upon it, but she could have described to a nicety -where each line was placed and its length. Nor did she hesitate to -disclose her knowledge, as she exclaimed: - -"My! That was a big letter that 'hero' boy brought, wasn't it? Have you -read it yet? Ain't you going to? Pshaw! I'd like to know what it's all -about. I would so, real well. Ma she likes to hear letters read, too, -and once we got one from my aunt who lives out west. My aunt is my pa's -sister, an' she wanted him to move out there an' make a man of himself; -but ma she said he couldn't do that no matter what part of the country -he lived in, so he might's well stay where he was, where she was raised -and folks 'round knew _she_ was the right sort if _he_ wasn't. So we -stayed: but ma she carried that letter round a-showin' it to folks till -it got all wore to rags, and Diary got it in her mouth an' nigh choked -to death, tryin' to swaller it. So that was the end o' that!" concluded -Miss Babcock, giving her dishcloth a wring and an airy flirt, which -would have annoyed the careful housemistress had she been there to see. - -However, at the very beginning of Alfaretta's present harangue, she had -perceived that it would be a lengthy one and had slipped away without -explaining to her husband where she would put the letter. Mr. Chester -also drew himself up on his crutches and swung across the floor and out -of doors. Alfaretta's gossip, which had at first amused him, now bored -him, and he was ashamed for her that she had so little respect for her -parents as to relate their differences to strangers. Unconsciously, he -put into his usual friendly manner a new sternness: but this had no -further effect upon the talkative girl than to make her probe her memory -for something more interesting. Following him through the doorway she -laid her hand on his shoulder and begged: - -"Say, Mr. Chester, let me fetch that big wheel-chair o' yours an' let me -roll you down through the south medder to the mine. To where it's -covered, I mean. I can do it first-rate. I'm as strong as strong! See my -arms? That comes from helpin' ma with the wash. Once I done it all -alone and Mis' Judge Satterlee she said 'twas 'most as good as ma 'd -have done. Do let me, Mr. Chester! I'd admire to!" - -The ex-postman looked around and whistled. There was no use in trying to -oppose or frown upon this amazing little maid, whose round face was the -embodiment of good-nature, and whose desire to help anybody and -everybody was so sincere. Besides, there was in her expression an -absence of that "pity" which hurt his pride, even when seen upon his -darling Dorothy's own face. She seemed to accept his crutches and -rolling chair as quite in the natural order of things, like her own -sturdy bare feet and her big red arms. - -"Well, my lass, certainly you are kindness itself. I thought I had -hobbled over nearly the whole of this little farm, but I chanced upon no -'mine' of any sort, though if there's one existing I'd mightily like to -find it. But I don't think you could roll me very far on this rough -ground. Wheel-chairs are better fitted to smooth floors and pavements -than rocky fields." - -Alfaretta paid no attention to his objection, except to spin the chair -out from its corner of the kitchen, or living-room, and to place it -ready for his use. She was as full of delight and curiosity concerning -this helpful article as over every other new thing she saw, and promptly -expressed herself thus: - -"I'm as proud as Punch to be let handle such an elegant chair. My heart! -Ain't them leather cushions soft as chicken feathers! And the wheels go -round easy as fallin' off a log. I'd admire to be lame myself if I could -be rid around in such a sort o' carriage as this. Must have cost a pile -of money. How much was it, Mr. Chester?" - -"I don't know. It was a gift from my old comrades at the post-office: -but don't, child, don't 'admire' to possess anything so terrible as this -helplessness of mine! With your young healthful body you are rich beyond -measure." - -For the first time she saw an expression of gloom and almost despair -cloud the cheerful face of her new acquaintance, and though she thought -him very silly to consider health as good as wealth she did not say so; -but with real gentleness helped him to swing his crippled body into the -chair and set off at a swift pace across the field. - -All the others had preceded them; even Mrs. Chester having joined the -group, determined not to lose sight of her Dorothy again, even for a few -moments: and also resolved that, for once, she would forego her usual -industry and make a happy holiday. - -For a time all went well. The ground near the house was not so very -rough and the slope southward was a gentle one. The chair rolled easily -enough and, for a wonder, Alfaretta's tongue was still. Not since he had -arrived at Skyrie had father John had so comfortable a chance to look -over the land; and whatever gloom he had for a moment shown soon gave -way before the beauty of the day and the delight of feasting his eyes -upon Dorothy's trim little figure, skipping along before him. - -Presently she came running back to join him and with her own hand beside -Alfy's, on the handle of his chair, to start that talkative body on a -fresh topic. - -"Tell us about the ghost Jim Barlow said 'haunts' dear Skyrie, Alfy, -please. You've heard of it, too, course." - -"Heard? I should say I had! Why, everybody knows _that_, an' I can't -scarce believe you don't yourself. Pshaw! Then maybe you wouldn't have -moved up-mounting if you had ha' known. When she heard you was comin' ma -she said how 't you must be real brave folks. She wouldn't live here if -you'd give her the hull farm. _I--I seen--it once--myself!_" concluded -Alfaretta, dropping her voice to an awestruck whisper and thrusting her -head forward to peer into father John's face and see if he believed her. - -He laughed and Dorothy clapped her hands, demanding: - -"What was he like? Was it a 'he' or a lady 'haunt'? How perfectly -romantic and delightful! Tell, tell, quick!" - -Alfaretta's face assumed a look of great solemnity and a shiver of real -fear ran over her. These new people might laugh at the Skyrie ghost, but -to her it was no laughing matter. Indeed, she had such a dread of the -subject that it had been the one her loquacious tongue had abjured, -leaving it to the newcomer, Jim Barlow, to introduce it. But now--Well! -If they wanted to hear about the dreadful thing it might be wise to -gratify them. - -"He's a--'he.' Everybody says that who's seen 'him,'" began the -narrator, still in an unnaturally subdued tone. - -"Good enough!" ejaculated Mr. Chester, gayly, entering into the spirit -of fun he saw shining on Dorothy's face, and glad indeed that his -impressionable child did not take this statement seriously. "Good -enough! He'll be company for me, for I greatly miss men companions." - -"I guess you won't like _him_ for no companion, Mr. Chester. Why, the -very place he stays the most is in--_that very--room you--come out of to -your breakfast_--where you stay, too!" cried Alfaretta, impressively. -"But other times he lives in the gold mine." - -Father John looked back at Dorothy and merrily quoted a verse--slightly -altered to fit the occasion: - - "I never saw a Skyrie Ghost, - I never hope to see one; - But I can tell you, anyhow - I'd rather see than be one." - -Dorothy as merrily and promptly joined in this remodeled ditty of the -"Purple Cow," but they were destined never to complete it; because, -absorbed in her own relation and astonished at their light treatment of -it, Alfaretta ceased to observe the smoothness or roughness of their -path and inadvertently propelled the wheel-chair into a wide, open -ditch, whose edge was veiled by a luxurious growth of weeds. - -An instant later the wheels were uppermost, the two girls had been -projected upon them, and poor father John buried beneath the whole. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -THE LEARNED BLACKSMITH - - -As the old man called Winters left the post-office he struck out for the -mountain road, a smooth macadamized thoroughfare kept in perfect order -for the benefit of the wealthy summer residents of the Heights, whither -it led: but he soon left it for a leafy ravine that ran alongside and -was rich with the sights and sounds of June. - -Whether he did this from habit, being an ardent lover of nature, or -because he knew that all anger must be soothed by the songs of birds and -the perfume of flowers, can only be guessed. Certain it is that if he -sought to obtain the latter result for his disturbed companion, who had -as silently followed him into the shady by-way as he had from the -crowded office, he fully succeeded. - -The ravine, like the road, climbed steadily upward, and the noisy little -stream that tumbled through it made a soothing accompaniment to the -bird songs: and in his own delight of listening the old man almost -forgot his fellow traveler. Almost, but not quite; for just at a point -where the gully branched eastward and he paused to admire, a sigh fell -on Seth Winters's ear, and set him face backward, smiling cheerily and -remarking: - -"This is one of my resting-spots. Let's stop a minute. The moss--or -lichen--on this bowlder must be an inch thick. Dry as a feather cushion, -too, because the sun strikes this particular place as soon as it rises -above old Beacon, across the river. Sit, please." - -He seated himself as he spoke, and Jim dropped down beside him. - -"Beautiful, isn't it, lad? And made for just us two to appreciate, it -may be: for I doubt if any others ever visit this hidden nook. Think of -the immeasurable wealth of a Providence who could create such a wonder -for just two insignificant human beings. Ah! but it takes my breath -away!" and as if in the presence of Deity itself, the blacksmith -reverently bared his head. - -Unconsciously, Jim doffed his own new straw hat; though his companion -smiled, realizing that the action was due to example merely, or even to -a heated forehead. But he commended, saying: - -"That's right. A man can think better with his head uncovered. If it -wouldn't rouse too much idle talk I'd never wear a hat, the year round." - -To this the troubled lad made no reply. Indeed, he scarcely noticed what -was said, he was so anxious over the affair of the morning; and, with -another prodigious sigh, he suddenly burst forth; - -"What in the world 'll I do!" - -"Do right, of course. That's easy." - -"Huh! But when a feller don't know which is right--Pshaw!" - -"You might as well tell me the whole story. I'm bound to hear it in the -end, you know, because I'm the justice of the peace whom that angry -gentleman was in pursuit of. If his common sense doesn't get the better -of his anger, you'll likely be served a summons to appear before me and -answer for your 'assault.' But--he hasn't applied to me yet; and until -he does I've a right to hear all you have to say. Better begin at the -beginning of things." - -Jim looked up perplexed. He had only very vague ideas of justice as -administered by law and, at present, he cared little about that. If he -could make this fine old fellow see right into his heart, for a minute, -he was sure he would be given good advice. He even opened his lips to -speak, but closed them again with a sense of the uselessness of the -attempt. So that it was with the surprise of one who first listens to a -"mind reader" that he heard Seth Winters say: - -"I know all about you. If you can't talk for yourself, my lad, I'll talk -for you. You are an orphan. As far as you know there isn't a human being -living who has any claim to your services by reason of blood -relationship. You worked like a bond slave for an exacting old woman -truck-farmer until pity got the better of your abnormal sense of 'duty,' -when you ran away and helped a kidnapped girl to reach her friends. In -recognition of your brave action my neighbor, Mrs. Betty Calvert, has -taken you in hand to give you a chance to make a man of yourself. She is -going to test your character further and, if you prove worthy, will give -you the education you covet more than anything else in life. She -brought you here last night and this morning trusted you with two -important matters: the delivery to a certain gentleman, whom as yet I do -not know, of a confidential letter: and the care of her Great Danes, -creatures which she looks upon as almost wiser than human beings and -considers her stanchest friends. The latter safely reached Mr. Chester's -hands; but--the Danes? What shall we do about the Danes, Jim Barlow?" - -"Thun--der--a--tion! You must be one them air wizards I heerd Mis' Stott -tell about, 't used to be in that Germany country where she was raised. -Why--pshaw! I feel as if you'd turned me clean inside out! How--how come -it?" - -"In the most natural way. The men who print newspapers search closely -for a bit of 'news,' and so your simple story got into the columns of my -weekly. Besides, Mrs. Betty Calvert and I are lifelong friends. Our -fathers' estates in old Maryland lay side by side. She's a gossip, Betty -is, and who so delightful to gossip with as an old man who's known your -whole life from A to izzard? So when she can't seat herself in my -little smithy and hinder my work by chattering there, she must needs -put all her thoughts and actions on a bit of writing paper and send it -through the post. Now, my lad, I've talked to you more than common. Do -you know why?" - -"No, I don't, and it sounds like some them yarns Dorothy C. used to make -up whilst we was pickin' berries in the sun, just to make it come easier -like. She can tell more stories, right out her plain head 'n a feller 'd -believe! She's awful clever, Dorothy is--and spell! My sakes! If I could -spell like her I'd be sot up. But I don't see how just bein' befriended -by Mis' Calvert made you talk to me so much." - -The blacksmith laughed, and answered: - -"Indeed, lad, it wasn't that. That big-hearted woman has so many -protégés that one more or less scarcely interests me. Only for something -in themselves. Well, it was something in yourself. Down there in the -office, while I stood behind a partition and nobody saw me--I would hide -anywhere to keep out of a quarrel!--I saw you, the very instant after -Mr. Montaigne had shaken you and you'd struck back, lift your foot and -step aside because a poor little caterpillar was crawling across the -floor and you were in danger of crushing it. It was a very little thing -in itself, but a big thing to have been done by a boy in the terrific -passion you were. It was one of God's creatures, and you spared it. I -believe you're worth knowing. But I'd like to have that belief confirmed -by hearing what you are going to do next. Let us go on." - -They both rose and each carrying his hat in his hand, the better to -facilitate "thinking," went silently onward again. It was a long climb, -something more than two miles, but the ravine ended at length in a -meadow on the sloping hillside, which Seth Winters crossed by a tiny -footpath. Then they were upon the smooth white road again. Before them -rose the fine mansions of those residents designated by Alfaretta as the -"aristocratics," and scattered here and there among these larger estates -were the humbler homes of the farmer folk who had dwelt "up-mounting" -long before it had become the fashionable "Heights." - -Not far ahead lay Deerhurst, the very first of the expensive dwellings -to be erected amid such a wilderness of rocks and trees: its massive -stone walls half-hidden by the ivy clambering over them, its judiciously -trimmed "vistas" through which one might look northward to the Catskills -and downward to the valley bordering the great Hudson. - -Just within the clematis-draped entrance-pillars stood the picturesque -lodge where the childless couple lived who had charge of the estate and -with whom Jim was to stay. He had been assigned a pleasant upper -chamber, comfortably fitted up with what seemed to its humble occupant -almost palatial splendor. Best of all, there hung upon the wall of this -chamber a little book-rack filled with well-selected literature. And, -though the boy did not know this, the books had been chosen to meet just -his especial case by Seth Winters himself, at the behest of his old -friend, Mrs. Calvert, immediately upon her decision to bring Jim to -Deerhurst. - -Even now, one volume lay on the window ledge, where the happy lad had -risen to study it as soon as daylight came. He fancied that he could -see it, even at this distance, and another of his prodigious sighs -issued from his lips. - -"Well, lad. We have come to the parting of the ways, at least for the -present. My smithy lies yonder, beyond that turn of the road and behind -the biggest oak tree in the country. Behind the shop is another mighty -fellow, known all over this countryside as the 'Great Balm of Gilead.' -It's as old, maybe, as 'the everlasting hills,' and seems to hold the -strength of one. I've built an iron fence around it, to protect its bark -from the knives of silly people who would carve their names upon it, -and--it's well worth seeing. Good-by." - -"Hold on! Say. You seem so friendly like, mebbe--mebbe you could give me -a job." - -"No, I couldn't," came the answer with unexpected sharpness, yet a tinge -of regret. - -"Why not? I'm strong--strong as blazes, for all I'm kind of lean 'count -of growin' so fast. And I'm steady. If you could see Mirandy Stott, -she'd have to 'low that, no matter how mad she was about my leavin'. -Give me a job, won't ye?" - -"No. I thought you were going to do right. Good-morning;" and, as if he -wholly gave up his apparent interest in the lad, Seth Winters, known -widely and well as the "Learned Blacksmith," strode rapidly homeward to -his daily toil, feeling that he had indeed wasted his morning; and he -was a man to whom every hour was precious. - -Jim's perplexity was such that he would far rather run away and turn his -back on all these new helpful friends than return to Deerhurst and -confess his unfaithfulness to his duty. He fancied he could hear Mrs. -Cecil saying: - -"Well, I tried you and found you wanting. I shall never trust you again. -You can go where you please, for you've had your chance and wasted it." - -Of course, even in fancy, he couldn't frame sentences just like these, -but the spirit of them was plain enough to his mind. The dogs--One -thought of these, at that moment, altered everything. It had been -commented upon by all the retainers of the house of Calvert that such -discriminating animals had made instant friends with the uncouth farm -boy. This had flattered his pride and his fondness for all dumb -creatures had made them dear to him beyond his own belief. Poor Ponce! -Poor Peter! If they suffered because of his negligence--Well, he must -make what atonement he could! - -His doubts sank to rest though his reluctance to follow the dictates of -his conscience did not; and it was by actual force he dragged his -unwilling feet through the great stone gateway and along the driveway to -that shady veranda where he saw the mistress of Deerhurst sitting, ready -waiting for her morning drive and the arrival of Ephraim. As Jim -approached she looked at him curiously. Why should he come by that road -when he was due from another? and why was he not long ago transplanting -those celery seedlings which she had directed him should be his first -day's labor? - -As he reached the wide steps he snatched off his hat again; not, as she -fancied, from an instinctive respect to her but to cool his hot face, -and without prelude jerked out the whole of his story: - -"Mis' Calvert, ma'am, I've lost your dogs. I've been in a fight. I'm -going to be arrested an' took afore a judge-blacksmith. Likely I'll be -jailed. 'Tain't no sort o' use sayin' I'm sorry--that don't even touch -to what I feel inside me. You give me a chance an'--an'--I wasn't worth -it. I'll go, now, and--and soon's I can get a job an' earn somethin' -I'll send you back your clothes. Good-by." - -"Stop! Wait! _You lost my dogs!_" cried Mrs. Cecil, springing up and in -a tone which brooked no disobedience: a tone such as a high-born dame -might sometimes use to an inferior but was rarely heard from this real -gentlewoman; a tone that, despite the humility and self-contempt he felt -at that moment, stung the unhappy youth like a whip-lash. "Explain. At -once. If they're lost they must be found. That you've been foolish -enough to fight and get arrested--that's your own affair--nothing to me; -but my dogs, my priceless, splendid, irreplaceable Great Danes! Boy, you -might as well have struck me on my very heart. Where? When? Oh! if I had -never, never seen you!" - -Poor Jim said nothing. He stood waiting with bowed head while she -lavished her indignation upon him, and realizing, for the first, how -great a part of a lonely old life even dumb animals may become. When, -for want of breath, or further power to contemn, she sank back in her -stoop chair, he turned to go, a dejected, disappointed creature that -would have moved Mrs. Cecil's heart to pity, had she opened her eyes to -look. But she had closed them in a sort of hopeless despair, and he had -already retraced his footsteps some distance toward the outer road when -there sounded upon the air that which sent her to her feet again--this -time in wild delight--and arrested him where he stood. - -At once, following those joyful barks, that both hearers would have -recognized anywhere, came the leaping, springing dogs; dangling their -broken chains and the freshly gnawed and broken ropes--with which old -Ephraim had unwisely reckoned to restrain them from the sweets of a once -tasted liberty. - -But even amid her sudden rejoicing where had been profound sorrow, the -doting mistress of the troublesome Great Danes felt a sharp tinge of -jealousy. - -"They're safe, the precious creatures! But--they went to that farm boy -first!" - - - - -CHAPTER V - -AN ACCIDENT AND AN APPARITION - - -The screams of Dorothy and Alfaretta brought Mrs. Chester hurrying back -to them and as she saw what had happened her alarm increased, for it -seemed impossible that a helpless person, like her husband, should go -through such an accident and come out safe. - -For a moment her strength left her and she turned giddy with fear, -believing that she had brought her invalid here only to be killed. The -next instant she was helping the girls to free themselves from the -tangle of wheels, briars, and limbs; and then all three took hold of the -heavy chair to lift it from the prostrate man. - -"John! John! Are you alive? Speak--do speak if you love me!" cried poor -mother Martha, frantic with anxiety. - -But for a time, even after they had lifted him to the bank above, Mr. -Chester lay still with closed eyes and no sign of life about him. There -was a bruise upon his forehead where he had struck against a rock in -falling; and, seeing him so motionless, poor Dorothy buried her face in -her hands and sobbed aloud: - -"Oh! I've killed him! I've killed my precious father!" - -"There is a bridge across the ditch just yonder!--Why didn't you see it! -How could you--" began Mrs. Chester; yet got no further in her -up-braidings, for father John opened his eyes and looked confusedly -about him. - -Either the sound of voices or the liberal dash of cold water, which -thoughtful Alfaretta had rushed away to bring and throw upon him, had -restored him to consciousness, and his beclouded senses rapidly became -normal. It had been a great shock but, more fortunately than his -frightened wife at first dared to believe, there were no broken bones, -and it was with intense thankfulness that she now picked up his crutches -and handed them to him at his demand. - -"Well, I reckon wooden feet are safest, after all! I've never--I'll -never go without them. Good thing I brought them--No, thank you! -Walking's good!" he cried, with all his usual spirit though in a weak -voice. - -They had managed to get the chair into position and found it as -uninjured as its owner. A few scratches here and there marred the polish -of the frame and one cushion had sustained an ugly rent. It had been a -very expensive purchase for the donors and an ill-advised one. A -lighter, cheaper chair would have been far more serviceable; and, as -father John tried to steady himself upon his crutches, he regarded it -with his familiar, whimsical smile that comforted them all more readily -than words: - -"The boys might as well have given me an automobile! Wouldn't have been -much more clumsy--nor dangerous!" he declared, trying to swing himself -forward from the spot where he stood, striving to steady himself upon -his safer "wooden feet." - -"O John! how can you joke? You might be--be dead!" wailed mother Martha, -weeping and unnerved for the first time, now that all danger was past. - -"And that's the best 'joke' of all. I might be but I'm not. So let's all -heave--heave away! for that pleasant shore of a wide lounge and -a--towel! With the best intentions--I've been ducked pretty wet!" - -"That was my fault! I'm awful sorry but--but--that time John Babcock he -fell off the barn roof ma she flung a whole pail of water right out the -rain-barrel onto him and that brung him to quicker'n scat. So I -remembered and I'm real sorry now," explained Alfaretta, more abashed -than ordinarily: and in her own heart feeling that the guilt of -carelessness which caused the accident had been more hers than -Dorothy's. "And nobody needn't scold Dolly C. 'Cause she didn't know -about the bridge over an' I did, and----" - -"No, no! My fault, my very own!" interposed Dorothy hastily. - -"Let nobody blame nobody! All's well that ends well! Alfaretta mustn't -regret her serviceable memory nor my drenching, for she's a wise little -maid and I owe my 'coming to,' to her 'remembering.' As for you, Dolly -darling, let me see another tear in your eye and I will 'scold' in -earnest. Now, Martha, wife, I'll give it up. I'm rather shaky on my pins -yet and the chair it must be, if I'm to put myself in connection with -that lounge. I shan't need the towel after all. I've just let myself -'dreen,' as my girl used to do with the dishes, sometimes!" - -He talked so cheerily and so naturally that he almost deceived them into -believing that he was not a whit the worse for his tumble, and as they -helped him to be seated and began to push him up the slope toward the -cottage, he whistled as merrily as he had used to do upon his postal -route. - -"And you ain't goin' to the gold mine after all?" asked Alfy, much -disappointed. It was a spot she had hitherto shunned on account of its -ghostly reputation, but was eager to visit now in company with these -owners of it, who scoffed at the "haunt." She wanted to show them she -was right and see what they would say then. - -"Gold mine? Trash! If there had been such a thing on this farm, a man as -clever as my uncle Simon Waterman would have used some of the 'gold' to -keep things in better shape. I don't want to hear any more of that -nonsense, nor to have you, Dorothy, go searching for the place. Our -first trip to hunt for gold has been a lesson to us all," said mother -Martha, with such sharpness that Alfaretta stared and the others, who -knew her better, realized that this was a time to keep silence. - -More than once that day was the good housewife tempted to send the three -visiting Babcocks home, but was too courteous to do so. She longed to -have her daughter to herself, and to discuss with her not only the -happenings of the past but plans for the future. Besides this desire, -she also saw, at last, how badly shaken by his fall her husband was and -that he needed perfect quiet--a thing impossible to procure with -Alfaretta Babcock in the cottage. - -However, the day wore away at length. The girl showed herself as useful -in the dinner-getting and clearing away as she had done at breakfast -time; also, she and her sisters brought to it as keen an appetite, so -that, after all, the clearing away was not so great a matter as might -be. - -Dorothy kept the smaller girls out of doors, helping them to make a -playhouse with bits of stones, to stock it with broken crockery and -holly-hock dolls, and to entrance them with her store of fairy tales to -such a degree that Baretta decided: - -"I'm comin' again, Dorothy Chester. I'm comin' ever' single day they -is." - -"Oh, no! You mustn't do that!" gasped the surprised young hostess. "I -will have to work a great deal to help my mother and I shan't have time -for visiting." - -"Me come, too, Do'thy Chetter," lisped Claretta. "Me like playhouth -futh-rate. Me come to-mowwow day, maybe." - -Dorothy said no more, but found a way to end their plans by getting a -book for herself, and becoming so absorbed in it that they ceased to -find her interesting and wandered off by themselves to rummage in the -old barn; and, finally, to grow so tired of the whole place that they -began to howl with homesickness. - -Dorothy let them howl. She had recently been promoted to the reading of -Dickens, and enthralled by the adventures of Barnaby Rudge she had -wandered far in spirit from that mountain farm and the disgruntled -Babcocks. Curled up on the grass beneath a low-branched tree she forgot -everything, and for a long time knew nothing of what went on about her. - -Meantime, to keep Alfaretta's tongue beyond reach of her husband's ears, -Mrs. Chester had gone down into the cellar of the cottage which, her -visitor informed her, had once been the "dairy." Until now, since her -coming to Skyrie, the housemistress had occupied herself only in getting -the upper rooms cleaned and furnished with such of her belongings as she -had brought with her, and in attendance upon father John. She had not -attempted any real farm work, though she had listened to his plans with -patient unbelief in his power to accomplish any of them. - -"If Dorothy should be found," had been his own conclusion of all his -schemes, during the time of their uncertainty concerning her; and -afterward, when news of her safety and early coming had reached them, he -merely changed this form to: "Now that Dorothy is found." - -Everything had its beginning and end in "Dorothy." For her the garden -was to be made, especially the flower beds in it; the farm rescued from -its neglected condition and made a well-paying one, that Dorothy might -be educated; and because of Dorothy's love of nature the whole property -must be rendered delightfully picturesque. - -Now Dorothy had really come; and, unfortunately, as Mrs. Chester -expressed it: - -"I can see to the bottom of our pocket-book, John dear, and it's not -very deep down. Plans and talk are nice but it takes money to carry them -out. As for your doing any real work yourself, you can't till you get -well. 'Twould only hinder your doing so if you tried. We'll have to hire -a man to work the ground for us and clear it of weeds. If we can get him -to do it 'on shares,' so much the better; if he won't do that--Oh! hum! -To think of folks having more dollars than they can spend and we just -enough to starve on!" - -This talk had been on that very day before, while they sat impatiently -awaiting her arrival, and it had made John Chester wince. While his life -had been in danger, even during all their time of doubt concerning their -adopted child, Martha had been gentleness and hopefulness indeed. She -had seemed to assume his nature and he hers: but now that their more -serious fears were removed, each had returned to his own again; she -become once more a fretter over trifles and he a jester at them. - -"Don't say that, dear wife. I don't believe we will starve; or that -we'll have to beg the superfluous dollars of other people," he had -answered, hiding his regret for his own lost health and comfortable -salary. - -But the much-tried lady was on the highroad toward trouble-borrowing and -bound to reach her end. - -"I might as well say it as think it, John. I never was one to keep -things to myself that concern us both, as you did all that time you knew -you was going lame and never told me. Besides the man, we must have a -horse, or two of them. Maybe mules would come cheaper, if they have 'em -around here. We'll have to get a cow, of course. Milk and butter save a -lot of butcher stuff. Then we must get a pig. The pig will eat up the -sour milk left after the butter's made----" - -"My dear, don't let him eat up the buttermilk, too! Save that for -Dorothy and me, please. Remember how the little darling used to coax for -a nickel to run to the 'corner' and buy a quart of it, when we'd been -digging extra hard in our pretty yard. And don't forget, in your -financial reckonings, to leave us a few cents to buy roses with. I've -been thinking how well some climbing 'Clothilde Souperts' would look, -trained against that barn wall, with, maybe, a row of crimson 'Jacks,' -or 'Rohans' in front. Dorothy would like that, I guess. I must send for -a new lot of florists' catalogues, since you didn't bring my old ones." - -"I hadn't room; and I hope you won't. We've not one cent to waste on -plants, let alone dollars. Besides, once you and Dorothy get your heads -together over one those books you want all that's in it, from cover to -cover. There's things I want, too, but I put temptation behind me. The -whole farm's run to weeds and posies, anyhow. No need to buy more." - -Father John had thought it wise to change the subject. Martha was the -best of wives, but there were some things in which she failed to -sympathize. He therefore remarked, what he honestly believed: - -"I think it's wonderful, little woman, how you can remember so much -about farming, when you haven't lived on one since you were a child." - -"Children remember better than grown folks. I don't forget how I used to -have to churn in a dash-churn, till my arms ached fit to drop off. And I -learned to milk till I could finish one cow in a few minutes; but it -nearly broke my fingers in two, at first. I wonder if I can milk now! -I'll have to try, anyway, soon as we get the cow. I guess you'd better -write an advertisement for the _Local News_, and I'll go to Mrs. -Calvert's place and ask her coachman to post it when he goes down the -mountains to meet the folks. Just to think we shall have our blessed -child this very night before we sleep!" ended the housemistress, with a -return of her good spirits. - -Father John laughed with almost boyish gayety. Dorothy was coming! -Everything would be right. So he hobbled across to his own old desk -which Martha had placed in the cheeriest corner of the room assigned to -him, looking back over his shoulder to inquire: - -"Shall it be for a cow, a horse, or that milk-saving pig? Or all three -at one fell swoop? Must I say second-hand or first-class? I never lived -on a farm, you know, and enjoyed your advantages of knowledge: and, by -the way, what will we do with the creatures when we get them? I haven't -been into that barn yet, but it looks shaky." - -"John Chester! Folks don't keep pigs in their barns! They keep them in -pens. Even an ex-postman ought to know enough for that. And make the -thing short. The printers charge so much a word, remember." - -"All right. 'Brevity is the soul of wit.' I'll condense." - -Whistling over his task, Mr. Chester soon evolved the following "Want -Ad.": - -"Immediate. Pig. Cow. Horse. Skyrie." - -This effusion, over which he chuckled considerably, he neatly folded and -addressed to the publisher of the local newspaper and left on his desk -for his wife to read, then hobbled back to his bed to sleep away the -time till Dorothy came, if he could thus calm his happy excitement. But -it never entered his mind that his careful wife would not read and -reconstruct the advertisement before she dispatched it to its -destination. - -However, this she did not do. She simply sealed and delivered it to old -Ephraim, just as he was on the point of starting for his mistress at the -Landing: and the result of its prompt appearance in the weekly sheet, -issued the next morning, was not just what either of the Chesters would -have desired. - -After all, Alfaretta was good company down in that old cellar-dairy, -poking into things, explaining the probable usage of much that Martha -did not understand. For instance: - -"That there great big wooden thing in the corner's a dog-churn. Ma says -'twas one more o' old Si Waterman's crazy kinks. He had the biggest kind -of a dog an' used to make him do his churnin'. Used to try, anyhow. See? -This great barrel-like thing is the churn. That's the treadmill -'Hendrick Hudson'--that was the dog's name--had to walk on. Step, step, -step! an' never get through! Ma says 'twas no wonder the creatur' 'd -run away an' hide in the woods soon's churnin' days come round. He knew -when Tuesday an' Friday was just as well as folks. Then old Si he'd -spend the whole mornin' chasing 'Hudson'--he was named after the river -or something--from Pontius to Pilate; an' when he'd catch him, Si'd be a -good deal more tuckered out an' if he'd done his churnin' himself." - -Martha laughed, and rolling the big, barrel-churn upon its side was more -than delighted to see it fall apart, useless. - -"How could he ever get cream enough to fill such a thing? Or enough -water to keep it clean? And look, Alfy! what a perfect rat-hole of dirt -and rubbish is under it. That old dog-churn must come down first thing. -I've a notion to take that rusty ax yonder and knock it to pieces -myself," she remarked and turned her back for a moment, to examine the -other portions of her future dairy. - -Now good-natured Alfaretta was nothing if not helpful, and quite human -enough to enjoy smashing something. Before Mrs. Chester could turn -around, the girl had caught up the ax and with one vigorous blow from -her strong arm sent the dog-churn, already tumbling to pieces with age, -with a deafening rattle down upon the stone floor. - -The sound startled John Chester from his restful nap, silenced the -outcries of the little Babcocks, and sent Dorothy to her feet, in -frightened bewilderment. For there before her, in the flesh, stood the -hero of the very book she dropped as she sprang up--Barnaby Rudge -himself! - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -MORE PECULIAR VISITORS - - -"Barnaby Rudge! Fiddlesticks! That ain't his name nor nothing like it. -He's Peter Piper. He's out the poorhouse or something. He ain't like -other folks. He's crazy, or silly-witted, or somethin'. How-de-do, -Peter?" said Alfaretta, as Dorothy, closely followed by the little -Babcocks and the "apparition" himself, dashed down into the dust-clouded -dairy where Mrs. Chester stood still, gazing in bewilderment at the -demolished dog-churn. - -Anybody might have easily been startled by the appearance of the -unfortunate creature who had, also, come into the cellar; especially a -girl whose head was already filled with the image of another storied -"natural," as Dorothy's was. He was tall and gaunt, with an unnaturally -white face and a mass of hair almost as white in color, though not from -age. His narrow, receding forehead was topped by a hat bestowed upon -him by some parading political band of the autumn previous, and was gay -with red cock feathers and a glittering buckle polished to the last -degree. His clothing was also, in part, that of a parader: a -brilliant-hued coat worn over his ordinary faded suit of denim. In one -hand he carried the same burnt-out torch bestowed upon him with his hat, -and by the other he led a cow that might once have been a calf. He did -not speak, though he evidently heard and understood Alfaretta's -greeting, for he turned his protruding eyes from Dorothy to her and -answered by a foolish smile. - -"Why, Peter Piper, what you bringin' old Brindle up here for? Who told -you to?" - -Again Peter grinned and answered nothing, but he turned his gaze from -Alfaretta to Mr. Chester, who had come to the window above, and stared -until the gentleman fidgeted and broke the spell by saying: - -"Good-afternoon, lad. 'Peter Piper,' are you? Well, I'm glad to see -you;" then added in a voice only Dorothy, who had run in to stand beside -him, could overhear. "Wonder if he's any relation to the man who -pricked his fingers picking pickled peppers!" - -"Looks as if he might be, doesn't he? Only, Dad, I feel so sorry for -him." - -"Oh! I'm sorry for him, too. I am sincerely. But--I'm a trifle sorry for -myself, as well. I wonder--is this the beginning of things! What a power -the press certainly is, if one little advertisement--Why, Martha, -Martha! Come up here, please! Come right away." - -Mrs. Chester promptly obeyed, surprised by the mingled mirth and -vexation expressed by her husband's face. And came not only Martha but -the trio of Babcocks, behind her. At which father John frowned and -observed: - -"I was speaking to Mrs. Chester." - -"Yes, I heard you," answered Alfaretta, coolly: at which all the -Chesters laughed, and she joined heartily in, not dreaming that what her -host afterwards called her "perfect ease of manner" was the cause of the -fun. - -"Well, John, what is it? You seemed to want me." - -"My dear, I always do. Never more than now when I wish you to tell -me--Did you rewrite that advertisement sent to the local newspaper -yesterday?" - -"Rewrite it? No, indeed. Why should I? You understand such things better -than I. So I just sealed it, with money inside to pay--By the way, there -should be considerable change due us. I don't believe one advertisement -in a country paper would cost a whole dollar: do you?" - -Mr. Chester laughed now in earnest. - -"No, I do not. Not that I sent, anyway. Martha, why didn't you look? Why -didn't you? My dear, you wanted it brief and I made it so. But if such -brevity brings such an answer, so soon, why--it will fairly rain cows -before we're many hours older. Cows! _And_ horses! _And_ pigs! But worst -of all, I've made the new Skyrie folks ridiculous in the eyes of their -future townsmen." - -"Tell it, John. Tell it exactly as you wrote it." - -So he did; and though the lady was dismayed she couldn't help smiling -under her frown, and it was a momentary relief to hear Alfaretta calmly -explaining: - -"That there cow don't belong to nobody. All her folks are dead. I mean -all the folks she belonged to. She's a regular pest, ma says, an' -'twould be a real kindness to kill her. But nobody won't. She's too old -for beef, or the butcher would; and she makes out to get her livin' -without botherin' nobody _much_. She goes onto folkses' lawns an' -nibbles till she's driv' off--summer times an' in winter, why 'most -anybody 't has a barnyard and fodder give her a little. Pa he says she's -a relict of a glorious past and is due her keep from a--a kermune--ity -she's kep' in hot water as many years as she has. Ma she says she can -recollect that old Brindle ever since she was a little girl, an' that -cow has got more folks into lawsuits than any other creatur', beast or -human, in Riverside villages--Upper or Lower. - -"Last one took her in an' done for her was Seth Winters, that lives -up-mounting here, an' goes by the name o' 'Learned Blacksmith.' He's -another crank; but ma she says he's a practical Nanarchist, 'cause he -lives up to his idees. He's rich, or he was; but he's give his money -away an' just lives in his old shop an' the woods, same as poor folks. -He treats Peter Piper same as he does old Brindle. Keeps 'em both to his -place, if they want to stay; an' don't hinder 'em none when they clear -out. Pa an' him both say how 'freedom' is the 'herintage' of every -livin' thing, an' they both take it. Ma she says there's consid'able -difference in their ways, though; 'cause Seth he works, constant, an' pa -he never does a stroke. Say, Peter, did Seth Winters send you an' -Brindle up here?" - -Peter did not answer. As if the question had roused some unsettled -matter in his clouded mind, he frowned, studied the earth at his feet, -and slowly walked away. A pitiable object in the sunset of that fair -summer day, with his bedraggled scarlet feathers, and his scarlet -leather uniform that must have been uncomfortably burdensome in the -heat. - -But Brindle tarried behind and foraged for her supper by nibbling the -grass from the overgrown dooryard. - -Suddenly, remembered Alfaretta: - -"Ma she said I was to come home in time to get the cows in from pasture -and milk 'em. She 'lowed she wouldn't get back up-mounting till real -dark: 'cause she was goin' to stop all along the road, and get all the -news she could an' tell what she knows, back. Ma she's a powerful hand -to know what's doin', 'round. So, Baretta Babcock! Claretta Babcock! Put -your toes together; even now, an' make your manners pretty, like I -showed you teacher learned _me_, and say good-by." - -With that the amusing girl drew herself up to her tallest, squared her -own bare feet upon a seam of the carpet, and bent her body forward with -the stiffest of bows. Then she took a hand of each little sister, and -said--with more courtesy than some better trained children might have -shown: - -"I've had a real nice visit, Mis' Chester, an' I enjoyed my victuals. -I'll come again an' you must let Dorothy C. come to my house. I'm sorry -I tipped Mr. Chester into the ditch an' that I couldn't done more toward -cleanin' up that cellar that I did. Good-night. I hope you'll all have -nice dreams. Too bad Peter Piper went off mad, but he'll get over it. -Good-night. Come, children, come." - -So the three Babcocks departed, and the silence which succeeded her -deluge of words was soothing to her hosts beyond expression. They sat -long on the west veranda of the little cottage, resting and delighting -in the beauty of nature and in the presence of each other. Then Dorothy -slipped away and after a little absence returned with a tray of bread -and butter, a big pitcher of milk, and the jar of honey Mrs. Calvert had -sent. - -"Bread and honey! Fare fit for a prince!" cried father John, as the food -appeared. "And princes, indeed, we are to be able to sit and feast upon -it with all this glorious prospect spread out before us." - -He seemed to have entirely recovered from the shock of his fall and on -his fine face was a look of deep content. He had suffered much and he -must still so suffer--both pain of body and of mind. Poverty was his, -and worse--it was the lot of his dear ones, also. To live at all, he -must run in debt; and to his uprightness debt seemed little less than a -crime. - -However, the present was theirs. They had no immediate needs; there was -food for the morrow, and more; and leaning back in the old rocker Martha -brought for him, he let his fancy picture what Skyrie should be--"Some -time, 'when my ship comes in'! Meanwhile--Sing to us, Dolly darling! I -hear a whip-poor-will away off somewhere in the distance, and it's too -mournful a sound for my mood. Sing the gayest, merriest songs you know; -and, Martha dear, please do let Dorothy bring another rocker for -yourself. Don't sit on that hard bench, but just indulge yourself in -comfort for once." - -When they were quite settled again Dorothy sang; and in listening to her -clear young voice both her parents felt their spirits soothed till they -almost forgot all care. Indeed, it seemed a scene upon which nothing -sordid nor evil would dare enter; yet, just as the singer uttered the -last note of her father's beloved "Annie Laurie," there sounded upon the -stone pathway below a heavy footstep and, immediately thereafter, an -impatient pounding upon the kitchen door. - -Since their arrival at Skyrie none of their few visitors had called so -late in the day as this, and it was with a real foreboding that Mrs. -Chester rose and went to answer the summons. At a nod from her father, -Dorothy followed the housemistress and saw, standing on the threshold, -a rather rough-looking man, whose impatience suddenly gave place to -hesitation at sight of the pair before him. - -"Good-evening," said Martha, politely, though still surprised. Then, as -he did not at once reply and she remembered the absurd advertisement in -the _Local_, she asked: "Did you come to see about work, or selling us a -horse, or anything?" - -"H'm'm. A--Ahem. No, ma'am. 'Twasn't no horse errand brought me, this -time, though I might admit I _be_ ruther in the horse-trade myself, -being's I keep livery in Lower village. 'Twas a dog--a couple of -dogs--sent me away up-mounting, this time o' day, a-foot, too, 'cause -all my critters have been out so long they wasn't fit to ride nor drive, -neither. Been two summer-boarder picnics, to-day, an' that took 'em. -'Shoemakers go barefoot,' is the old sayin', and might as well be 't -liverymen use shanks-mares. I----" - -By this time the housemistress had perceived that though the man was -rough in appearance he was not unkindly in manner and that he was -reluctant to disclose his errand. Also, if he had walked up the -mountain he must be tired, indeed; so she fetched a chair and offered -it, but only to have the courtesy declined: - -"Thank ye, ma'am, but I--I guess you won't care to have me sit when I've -told my job. 'Tain't to say a pleasant one but--Well, I'm the constable -of Lower Riverside, and I've come to serve this summonses on that there -little girl o' yourn. You must see to it that she's on hand at Seth -Winterses' blacksmith shop an' justice's office, to-morrow morning at -ten o'clock sharp. Here, ma'am, is the writ of subpoeny 't calls for -her to be a witness in a case of assault an' battery. Leastwise, to -bein' known to the critters what assaulted and battered." - -Before Mrs. Chester could really comprehend what he was saying or doing, -the man had thrust a paper into her hand, and had vanished. He had never -performed an official act of which he was more ashamed; nor can words -properly express her amazement. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -AT THE OFFICE OF A JUSTICE - - -Fortunately the distance to the blacksmith's was not great, for Mr. -Chester could not be dissuaded from accompanying his wife and daughter -thither, in answer to that astounding "summons." That the document was -legal and not to be ignored, he knew well enough, though mother Martha -protested vigorously against paying any attention to it. - -"It's some absurd mistake, John. How in the world could our Dolly be a -witness in any such affair? No, indeed. Not a step will any of us take -toward that shop-office! A pretty justice of the peace a blacksmith must -be, anyway! I never was so insulted in my life. Instead of going there, -I'm going down cellar to clean it up and made ready for our -butter-making." - -"First--catch your cow, wife dear! A better one than that old Brindle -who has deserted us already. And as for your going, why, of course, -_you_ needn't. Dorothy C. is the important person in this case, and I'm -as much her guardian as you." - -"John, you mustn't! You couldn't walk so far on your crutches----" - -"Oh! I must learn to walk long distances, and 'up-mounting' must be -comparatively near. I remember that Alfaretta said it was 'next door to -Cat Hollow,' and Cat Hollow's just beyond Skyrie. Dorothy'd better run -over to Mrs. Smith's, where you get your milk, and ask directions. No -use to waste any strength hobbling over the wrong route----" - -"Maybe the grocer's wagon will be up before ten o'clock and he might -carry you," suggested Mrs. Chester. - -"He ought not to go out of his way, that clerk; besides, it would be as -difficult for me to climb into his high cart as to trot along on my own -wooden feet. Shall Dolly inquire?" - -So Dorothy was dispatched upon the errand, duly warned not to inform the -Smith household of its cause, though there was small danger of that. -The girl had never been so angry in her life. "Arrested," was the way -she put the matter to herself, yet why--why! She had never done anything -wicked in her life! and this man, "Archibald Montaigne," what did she -know about such a person or any dogs which might have run into him? Nor -was she prepared for the evident curiosity with which Mrs. Smith -regarded her; a curiosity greater than that her kidnapping adventures -had provoked, and which angered her still more. - -"The way to Seth's shop? Sure. I know it well's I know the road to my -own barnyard. You go out your gate and turn toward the river and walk -till you come to the corner of two roads. Take the upper road, right -into the woods, and there you'll be. Don't you be afraid, Sis. Nobody -can do anything to just a witness, so. The boy'll be the one'll catch -it, and heavy. That Mr. Montaigne looks like a regular pepper-pod, and -is, too. Why, he sent his man down here, t'other day, to warn me to keep -my hens shut up and off his property. _My hens!_ That was never shut up -in their lives, nor found fault with before. But----" - -"Good-morning. Thank you," interrupted Dorothy, rather rudely, but too -impatient to be back at home to think about that. Arrived there she -found that, like a good many other people, once given her own way mother -Martha did not care to take it. Instead of ignoring the summons to -court, she arrayed herself in her best street costume and duly appeared -at Seth Winters's home with her crippled husband and indignant child. - -There is no need to describe the "trial" which followed. It was almost -farcical in its needlessness, and poor Dorothy's part in it of the -slightest import. She had to tell that she did know the dogs, Peter and -Ponce, and that once she had been run against and knocked down by one of -them. Also, that on the morning of the "assault" these dogs had called -at Skyrie and that she had lost hold of one of them, and that they had -run away with one James Barlow in pursuit. Then she was dismissed; but -at a nod from Mrs. Calvert, crossed the room to where that lady sat and -nestled down beside her, surprised to find her in such a place and, -apparently, so much amused by the scene. - -The outcome of the affair was simple. Mr. Montaigne's anger had had time -to cool and he was a snob. It was one thing to prosecute a helpless lad -but quite another to find that the "ferocious" dogs belonged to his -aristocratic neighbor, whose acquaintance he had not heretofore been -permitted to make, although he had endeavored so to do. Mrs. Cecil was, -practically, the very center and queen of that exclusive circle which -had "discovered" the "Heights" and was the most bitterly opposed to -"outsiders" possessing property thereon. - -"This man Montaigne, Cousin Seth, may have much more money than brains, -but we don't want him up here on our hill," she had once said to her old -friend, and giving him that title of "Cousin" from real affection rather -than because he had any right to it. - -He had laughed at her in his genial, hearty way, which could give no -offence, and had returned: - -"My good Betty, you need humanizing. We can't all be old Maryland -Calverts, and I like new people. Don't fancy that a man who has made -millions--_made it_, understand--is brainless, and not well worth -knowing. You know I can _spend_ money----" - -"None better, man!" - -"But the gift of _making_ it was denied me. I intend that you and I -shall know this Mr. Montaigne and--like him. I shall make it my business -to accomplish that fact even though, at present, he thinks a country -blacksmith beneath his notice. That time will come. I have infinite -patience, I can wait, but I shall hugely enjoy the event when it -arrives." - -This conversation had taken place the summer before, when the newcomer -had begun the building of his really palatial residence, and Seth -Winters had waited a whole year, little dreaming that the acquaintance -he had determined upon should begin in his own office, with him as -arbiter in a case between a rich man and a penniless boy. - -"The complaint is withdrawn," declared the complainant, as soon as he -had discovered the real state of affairs, and that now was his chance to -become acquainted with Mrs. Cecil. "I--I was offended at the time, -but--it's too trivial to notice. I beg to apologize, Madam Calvert, for -the annoyance I've given you. Of course, the lad----" - -"Don't mention it; an amusement rather than an annoyance," replied the -lady, graciously. "So little of moment happens up here on our mountain -that an episode of this kind is quite--quite refreshing. My Great Danes -will not trouble you again. My 'Cousin' Winters, here--allow me to make -you acquainted in a social as well as business way--my 'Cousin' Winters -is almost as much attached to the beautiful animals as I am, and he has -this very morning presented me with a pair of wonderful chains, -warranted not to break. Fortunately, he had them already waiting my -arrival, as a gift, and never gift more opportune." - -"My 'Cousin' Winters!" - -Archibald Montaigne felt as if the boards beneath his feet were giving -way. That this old gentlewoman whose blood was of the bluest--and he -adored "blue blood"--should claim relationship with an obscure farrier -was a most amazing thing. Well, then, the next best step for himself to -take in this affair was to foster the acquaintance with the smith; and -thereby, it might be, gain entrance for his family and himself into -"Society." - -For his family first. That credit was due him. Personally, he loved -better a quiet corner in his own great mansion, where he might study the -fluctuations of the "market" and scheme to increase the wealth he had -already compassed. And with the shrewdness which had enabled him to take -advantage of mere money-making "chances," he now seized upon the social -one presented. - -"My dear Madam Calvert, my wife and daughter are without in my carriage. -They have been a little--little lonely up here, for it's quiet, as you -say. Do allow me to present them, call them in, or--if you will be so -kind, so very kind, our precious Helena is an invalid, you know, you -might step out to them with me. If I might appeal to your kindness for -my daughter, who's heard so much about you and will be so delighted." - -What could Mrs. Cecil do? Nobody had ever appealed to her "kindness" -without receiving it, and though she positively hated to know these -"new, upstart people," she was too well bred to show it. But as Mr. -Montaigne bowed the way outward she flashed a look toward the smiling -smith, which said as plainly as words: - -"You've caught me in this trap! The consequences are yours!" - -The glance he telegraphed back meant, as well: - -"Good enough! I'm always glad to see a prejudice get its downfall. The -time I waited for came, you see." - -Almost unconsciously, Mrs. Cecil still retained in her own soft hand the -clinging one of Dorothy C., which she had taken when she called the girl -to her side; so that she now led her out of the office to the carriage -before its door and to what Dorothy thought was the loveliest person she -had ever seen. - -This was Helena Montaigne, a blonde of the purest type, whose great blue -eyes were full of a fine intelligence, but whose perfect features were -marred by an expression of habitual discontent. This little lady made -Dorothy think of the heads of angels painted upon Christmas cards and, -also, for an instant made her stare rather rudely. The next she had -recovered herself and acknowledged Mr. Montaigne's introduction with a -natural grace and ease which delighted Mrs. Cecil beyond words. She was -always gratified when "Johnnie's" adopted daughter proved herself worthy -of the interest she had taken in her; and she now mentally compared the -beauty of the two girls, with no disparagement to Dorothy C. - -Indeed, the dark eyes, the tumbled curly head,--where the brown hair was -just recovering from the rough shearing Miranda Stott had given it, -while her young prisoner was ill with the measles,--and the trim, erect -little figure, had already become in the eyes of this childless old lady -a very dear and charming picture. - -Helena's manner was that of a grown young lady, which, indeed, she quite -fancied herself to be. Was she not fourteen and, on state occasions, -promoted to the dignity of having her abundant hair "done up" by her -mother's own hairdresser? And as for skirts, they had been lengthened to -the tops of her boots: and by another year she would have her dinner -frocks made _en train_. Her own manner was rather disdainful, as if the -people she met were not her equals; yet this contempt was for their -"general stupidity." She had not her father's love of money nor her -mother's timidity concerning her own behavior; for the fear that she -should not conduct herself according to the "best usages of polite -society" was the bane of gentle Mrs. Montaigne's existence. By nature -extremely simple and sweet, she tormented herself by her efforts to be -haughty and "aristocratic"--not quite understanding the true meaning of -the latter term. - -Money had come to her too late in life for her to become accustomed to -the use of, and indifferent to, it; and, though she revered her husband -on account of his ability to make it, their wealth was a burden for her, -at times almost too heavy to bear. - -On the other hand, Helena and Herbert, her brother, two years older, -could not remember when they had not more money at their command than -they knew how to use. The boy was not as clever as his sister, but he -was more generally liked, though his insolence, sometimes, was most -offensive. He rode up, at this moment, upon a spirited black horse, and -called out, noisily: - -"Well, dad! How'd the trial go? Hope you walloped that lumpkin good; -and the old woman owns the dogs----" - -"Herbert! _Herbert!_" warned Mr. Montaigne, in distress. Whereupon his -son came round from the corner of the shop, which had hidden him from -sight of all the party save his father, and found himself in the -presence of the very "old woman" herself. He had none of his parents' -ambition to know her or any other of the "exclusives" of the Heights, -being quite sufficient unto himself; but he had been trained in the best -schools and knew how to conduct himself properly. Besides, he was more -frank by nature than the others of his family and, having found himself -"in a box," escaped from it by the shortest way possible. - -"Hello! I've done it now, haven't I? I beg your pardon, Mrs. Calvert, -and dad's and everybody's;" saying which, the lad pulled his hat from -his head, and checked his horse to a standstill beside the carriage -where his mother and sister sat. - -He was a handsome boy, of the same fair type as Helena, but much more -rugged in strength; and his blue eyes danced with merriment instead of -frowning with the disdain of hers. He adored her yet quarreled with her -continually, because she had so little interest in "sensible, outdoor -things"; and his gaze now turned upon Dorothy with instant perception -that here was a girl worth knowing and no nonsense about her. - -His gay debonair manner and his ready apology for his own blunder -pleased Mrs. Calvert. She liked honesty and did not mind, in the least, -having been termed an "old woman." This boy was worth all the rest of -the Montaignes put together, she decided, and thereupon showed her good -will by admiring his thoroughbred mount. - -"That's a fine beast you have there, lad. Needs a little exercise to get -him into shape, but I reckon a few trips up and down this mountain will -fetch him right." - -She had herself walked to her old friend's shop and now stepped forward -to examine at closer range the good points of the horse, stroking his -velvet nostrils with an affectionate touch, and patting his shoulder -approvingly. - -Herbert stared and exclaimed: - -"Why, that's strange! Cephy hates women. Won't let mother nor sister -come near him, or wouldn't if they tried--which only Helena has -done--once! You must like horses, ma'am, and understand 'em a lot." - -"I ought to. I was brought up with them. They've been my best company -many and many a time. I was put into a saddle when I was but a year and -a half old. Held there, of course; but took to the business so well that -by the time I was five I could take a fence with my father, any time he -wanted to ride over the plantation. I'm glad to see you like them, too. -But I must be going. I'm sorry, Mr. Chester, that I didn't drive over; -then I could have taken you home, but. I didn't expect to have the -pleasure of meeting you here. I----" - -As she paused this straightforward old lady looked at Mrs. Montaigne -with a questioning glance; but receiving no comprehending glance in -return addressed herself to her late opponent in law. - -"Won't you let Mr. Chester take your place in your carriage, Mr. -Montaigne, and you walk alongside me? It's such a low, easy vehicle and -it's a good bit of a way back to Skyrie. I'm going there myself, and -there couldn't be a better time than this for all of us to call upon our -new neighbors. I'm sure we're all delighted to have them among us." - -There was nothing for it but compliance. Though his face reddened and he -would far rather have walked, or hobbled, twice the distance than become -an enforced recipient of the Montaigne courtesy, John Chester felt that -this old gentlewoman had been and was too true a friend for him to -offend by not falling in with her proposal. - -On his own part, Archibald Montaigne winced at the picture of this -crippled ex-postman riding in state beside his wife and daughter, yet -dared not refuse, lest by so doing he would close the door to that -future intimacy which he coveted. He felt that this intimacy with Mrs. -Cecil, personally, might be anything but agreeable; yet in her old white -hands lay the key to the social situation which was his latest ambition. - -There ensued but the briefest hesitation, during which there issued from -Seth Winters's lips an amused, reproachful exclamation: - -"O Betty, Betty! Never too old for mischief!" - -But none heard the words save "Betty," who smiled as she did so. The -others were helping Mr. Chester into the carriage and settling him -comfortably there, with an ostentatious kindness on the part of Mr. -Montaigne which the ex-postman inwardly resented. Then the coachman -started his team forward, and the justice returned to his smithy, -cheerily calling out: - -"Well, lad, we've come out of that business with flying colors! It was -the presence of Mrs. Calvert which did the most for us, though the man -has more sense than appeared, yesterday, else he wouldn't--Why, Jim? -James? Jimmy?" - -There was no response. None but the office cat answered this summons. -The defendant in this remarkable suit had vanished. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -A WALK AND ITS ENDING - - -It was with great surprise that the dwellers in the houses along the way -saw the contestants in a case of law returning from the trial in the -most harmonious manner. - -First came the Montaigne equipage, with Mrs. Montaigne and Helena upon -the back seat, the latter sitting stiffly erect and haughty, the former -chatting most pleasantly with the cripple facing her. Behind the -carriage walked Mrs. Calvert and Mrs. Chester, both in the gayest of -spirits and talking volubly of household matters; as mother Martha -afterward described it: - -"Might have been plain Mrs. Bruce, or Jane Jones herself, Mrs. Cecil -might, she was that simple and plain spoke. She's going to have her -currant jell' made right away, even whilst the currants are half green. -Says she's read it was better so, and though she's afraid her old -cook'll 'act up' about it she's bound to try. She said that when a body -gets too old to learn--even about cookin'--it's time to give up living. -Land! She's not one that will give it up till she has to! I never saw -anybody as full of plans as that old lady is. You'd think she was just -starting out in life instead of being so nigh the end of it, and I guess -she thought I was s'prised to hear her tell. Because she caught me -looking at her once, right sharp, and she laughed and said: 'I'm one of -the people who can't settle down, I'm so many years young!' Why, she -might have been Dolly, even, she was so full of fun over the way that -lawsuit ended. I know 'twas that that pleased her so, though she never -mentioned it from the time we left the shop till we got back to Skyrie. -Well, green currants _may_ make the jell' solider, but I shall wait till -just before the Fourth, as I always have, to make mine: and I'm thankful -for the few old currant bushes that still grow along that east wall. -Almost any other kind of shrub'd have died long ago, neglected as things -have been, but you can't kill a currant bush. More'n that, when I get my -jell' done I'm going to send Mrs. Calvert a tumbler and compare notes. -I reckon mine'll come out head, for I never was one to take up with -everything one reads in the papers, nor cook books, either." - -Which shows that, despite her previous objections to it, that morning's -excursion to the haunts of justice proved a very enjoyable one to the -rather lonely little woman from the city, who found the enforced quiet -of the country one of her greatest privations. - -Following their elders came also Dorothy C. and Herbert, who had slipped -from his saddle to walk beside his new acquaintance, and she was already -chatting with him as if they had always known each other. To both the -world of "outdoors" meant everything. To him because of the gunning, -fishing, riding, and rowing; to her because of its never-ending marvels, -of scenery, of growing things, and of the songs of birds. - -"I tell you what--Steady, Bucephalus!" cried Herbert to the restless -animal he led and whose prancing made Dorothy jump aside, now and then, -lest she should be trampled upon. "I tell you what! The very next time I -go out fishing in the _Merry Chanter_, my catboat, I'll coax sister to -go, too, and you must come with us. If she will! But Helena's such a -'fraid-cat and Miss Milliken--she's my sister's governess--is about as -bad. There's some excuse for Helena because she is real delicate. Nerves -or chest or something, I don't know just what nor does anybody else, I -fancy. But the Milliken! Wait till you see her, then talk about nerves. -Say, Miss Dorothy----" - -"I'm just plain Dorothy, yet." - -"Good enough. I like that. I knew you were the right stuff the minute I -looked at you. I--you're not a goody-good girl nor a 'fraid-cat, now are -you?" demanded Herbert, anxiously. - -"No, indeed! I'm not a bit good. I wish I were! And I'm not often afraid -of--_things_. But I am of folks--some folks," she answered with a little -shudder. - -"Yes, I know about that. Just like a story out of a book, your being -stolen was. But never mind. That's gone by. Do you like to fish?" - -"I never fished," said Dorothy, with some decision. - -"You'll learn. The old Hudson's the jolliest going for all sorts of -fish. There's an old fellow at the Landing generally goes out with me -and the rest the boys. He's a champion oarsman, old as he is, and as -for--Say! Ever taste a planked shad?" - -"No, never." - -"You shall! Old Joe Wampers shall fix us one the first time we go out on -the river. He can cook as well as he can fish, and some of us fellows -had a camp set up on the old Point, last year. I haven't been over there -yet, this summer, but it's all mine anyhow. When it came fall and the -others had to go back to school they--well, they were short on cash and -long on camp, so I bought them out. You like flowers? Ever gather any -water lilies?" - -"Like them? I just love them, _love them_! Of course, I never gathered -water lilies, for I've always lived in the city. But I've often--I mean, -sometimes--bought them out of pails, down by Lexington Market. Five or -ten cents a bunch, according to the size. I always tried to save up and -get a big bunch for mother Martha on her birthday. I used to envy the -boys that had them for sale and wish I could go and pick them for -myself. But--but I've seen pictures of them as they really grow," -concluded Dorothy C., anxious that Herbert should not consider her too -ignorant. - -However, it was not the fact that she had never gathered lilies which -had caught his attention; it was that one little sentence: "to save up." -He really could scarcely imagine a state of things in which anybody -would have to "save" the insignificant amount of five or ten cents, in -order to buy a parent a bunch of flowers. Instantly, he was filled with -keen compassion for this down-trodden little maid who was denied the use -of abundant pocket money, and with as great an indignation against the -parents who would so mistreat a child--such a pretty child as Dorothy C. -Of course, it was because the niggardly creatures were only parents by -adoption; and--at that moment there entered the brain of this young -gentleman a scheme by which many matters should be righted. The -suddenness and beauty of the idea almost took his breath away, but he -kept his thought to himself and returned to the practical suggestion of -planked shad. - -"Well, sir,--I mean, Dorothy,--a planked shad is about the most -delicious morsel a fellow ever put in his mouth. First, catch your shad. -Old Joe does that in a twinkling. Then while it's still flopping, he -scales and cleans it, splits it open, nails it on a board, seasons it -well with salt and pepper, and stands it up before a rousing fire we've -built on the ground. U'm'm--Yum! In about half or three-quarters of an -hour it's done. Then with the potatoes we've roasted in the ashes and -plenty of bread and butter and a pot of coffee--Well, words fail. You'll -have to taste that feast to know what it means. All the better, too, if -you've been rowing for practice all morning. Old Joe Wampers coaches -college crews even yet, and once he went over with Columbia to Henley. -That's the time he tells about whenever he gets a chance. 'The time of -his life' he calls it, and that's not slang, either. Say. What's to -hinder our doing it right now? This very afternoon--morning, for that -matter, though it's getting rather late to go before lunch, I suppose. -I'll tell you! Just you mention to your folks that you're going on the -river, this afternoon, and I'll coax mother to make Helena and the -Milliken go, too. Then I'll ride right away down to the Landing and get -old Joe warmed up to the subject. He's getting a little stiff in the -joints of his good nature, but a good dose of flattery'll limber him up -considerable. Besides, when he hears it's for that real heroine of a -kidnapping story everybody was talking about, he'll be willing enough. -I'll tell him you never tasted planked shad nor saw one cooked, and -he'll just spread himself. 'Poor as a June shad,' he said yesterday, -when I begged for one, though that's all nonsense. They're good yet. -Will you?" - -He paused for breath, his words having fairly tumbled over each other in -their rapidity, and was utterly amazed to hear Dorothy reply: - -"No, thank you, I will not. Nothing would tempt me." - -"Why, Dorothy Chester! What do you mean?" he asked, incredulous that -anybody, least of all an inexperienced girl, should resist the tempting -prospect that he had spread before her. - -"I wouldn't _touch_ to taste one of those horrible 'flopping' fish! I -couldn't. I wouldn't--not for anything. I should feel like a murderer. -So there!" - -"Whew! George and the cherry tree! You wouldn't? 'Not for anything?' Not -even for a chance to sail along over a lovely piece of water, dabbling -your hand in it, and pulling out great, sweet-smelling flowers? 'Course, -_you_ needn't see the shad 'flop.' I only said that to show how fresh we -get them. Why, I coaxed even dad over to camp once and I've always -wanted Helena to go. Pshaw! I _am_ disappointed." - -"I don't see why nor how you can be much. You didn't know me till an -hour ago--or less, even. And I'm disappointed too. You didn't look like -a boy who would"--Dorothy paused and gave her new acquaintance a -critical glance--"who would _kill_ things!" - -"Nor you like a silly, sentimental girl. 'Kill things!' Don't you ever -eat fish? Or beef? or dear little gentle chickens?" demanded this -teasing lad, as he quieted his horse and prepared to mount, though at -the same time managing to keep that animal so directly in Dorothy's path -that she had to stand still for a moment till he should move aside. - -She frowned, then laughed, acknowledging: - -"Of course I do. I mean I have; but--seems to me now as if I never would -again." - -"Well, I'm sorry; and--Good-morning, Miss Chester!" - -Away he went, lifting his hat in the direction of the people ahead, -looking an extremely handsome young fellow in his riding clothes, and -sitting the fiery Bucephalus with such ease that lad and steed seemed -but part and parcel of each other. Yet his whole manner was now one of -disapproval, and the acquaintance which had begun so pleasantly seemed -destined to prove quite the contrary. - -"He's a horrid, cruel boy! Kills birds and things just for fun! He isn't -half as nice as Jim Barlow, for all he's so much better looking and -richer. Poor Jim! He felt so ashamed to have made everybody so much -trouble. I wish--I wish he'd come with us instead of that Herbert:" -thought the little maid so unceremoniously deserted by her new friend. - -"She's just a plain, silly, 'fraid-cat of a girl, after all!" were the -reflections of the young horseman, as he galloped away, and with these -he dismissed her from his mind. - -Now it happened that Mrs. Calvert liked young folks much better than she -did old ones, and the conversation which she had rendered so delightful -to Mrs. Chester, during that homeward walk, was far less interesting to -herself than the fragments of talk which reached her from the girl and -boy behind her. So when the hoofs of Bucephalus clattered away in an -opposite direction, she turned to Dorothy and mischievously inquired: - -"What's the matter, little girl? Isn't he the sort of boy you like? You -don't look pleased." - -Dorothy's frown vanished as she ran forward to take the hand held toward -her and she answered readily enough, as she put herself "in step" with -her elders: - -"I would like him--lots, if he didn't--if he wasn't such a _killer_. I -like his knowing so much about birds and animals--he says he can whistle -a squirrel out of a tree, any time, and that's more than even Jim can -do. At least I never heard him say he could. And Jim Barlow will not -kill anything. He simply will not. Even old Mrs. Stott had to kill her -own poultry for the market though she'd strap him well for refusing. All -the reason he'd tell her was that he could not make anything live, so he -didn't think he'd any right to make it die. Mrs. Calvert, have--have you -forgiven poor Jim for letting the dogs get away? and me too? Because I -know he feels terrible. I do, and it makes me sort of ashamed to have -you so kind to me when it was part my carelessness----" - -"There, there, child! Have done with that affair. It was more amusing -than annoying, for a time, and after I found my Danes were safe; but I -hate old stories repeated, and that story is finished--for the present. -There'll be more to come, naturally. One can't make a single new -acquaintance without many unexpected things following. For instance: -John Chester riding so familiarly in Archibald Montaigne's carriage and -talking--Well, talking almost as his little daughter has been doing with -her new friend. I overheard Mrs. Montaigne mention something about -having once been a patient at a hospital in our city and that was the -'open sesame' to 'Johnnie's' confidence. Oh! it's a dear old world, -isn't it? Where enemies can change into friends, all in one morning: and -where people whom we didn't know at breakfast time have become our -intimates by the dinner hour. This is a glorious day! See. We are almost -at the turn of the road that leads to Skyrie. Slowly as we have come it -hasn't taken us long. I'm glad I walked. It has done me good and--given -my neighbors yonder a chance to know one another." - -"I'm glad, too. I haven't enjoyed myself so much since we moved here, -only, of course, when Dolly got home," responded Mrs. Chester. "Yet what -an angry, disgusted woman I was when I went over this road before, -lawsuit-wards, so to speak." - -They were almost at the corner when Dorothy cast a last glance backward -and exclaimed: - -"I don't see Jim anywhere. Why do you suppose he didn't come? Where do -you suppose he is?" - -"Well, little girl, my supposing is that he felt himself not one with -any of our party. 'Neither hay nor grass' he would likely express it. -That's for his not coming. As for where he is now I suppose, to a degree -that is certainty, that he is--doing his duty! From my brief -acquaintance with the lad I judge that to be his principal idea. His -duty, this morning, would have been the transplanting of the celery -seedlings, which yesterday's events delayed. If we could look through -the trees between us and my vegetable garden I believe we should see him -bending over the rows of little green plants, oblivious to all that's -going on around him, so intent is he on making up for lost time and not -cheating his employer by wasting it. Jim Barlow is all right. I was -angry enough with him yesterday, for a while, but I can do him justice, -to-day." - -Her guess at his whereabouts was correct. The lad had hurried away from -Seth Winters's office and was already well along with his work while -they were thus discussing him. But both his new mistress and Dorothy -promptly forgot him when they came to that turn of the road they had -been approaching and the view beyond lay open to them. - -For an instant everybody stopped, even the coachman checked his horses -in amazement, though he as swiftly resumed his ordinary impassive -expression and drove forward again at the risk of disaster. - -"What in the world! It looks like a--a funeral! Or the county fair! -Whatever does that mean?" cried Mrs. Cecil, who was the first to voice -her astonishment. Yet she wondered if she heard aright when, clasping -her hands in dismay, Mrs. Chester almost shouted to her husband in -front--riding backwards and thus unable to see at what they all so -earnestly gazed: - -"John, John! That dreadful advertisement!" - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -A LIVE STOCK SALE - - -John Chester had prophesied that, in answer to his ill-advised jest of -an advertisement, it would "rain horses." - -Apparently, it had. Not only horses but cows; and, trampled upon by the -first, hooked by the latter, an assorted lot of pigs mingled with the -other quadrupeds, squealing, twisting, doubling-and-turning upon their -leading ropes with the perversity native to swine. - -These unlovely creatures frightened the high-bred team drawing the -carriage, setting them to rearing and plunging till an accident was -imminent. Their driver had made to pass directly through the assembly -before Skyrie gate, leaving it for meaner turnouts to make way for him: -with the result that the unmanageable pigs had set other horses into a -tumult. - -Fortunately, the coachman was both cool and skillful, and with a -dexterity that seemed wonderful he brought the Montaigne equipage around -and began a retreat, over the way he had just come. This saved the -situation, so far as an upset was concerned, and he did not again draw -rein till well away from the scene. Then, all danger being past, Helena -promptly fainted, and saved her equally frightened mother from doing so -by rousing her maternal anxiety. - -John Chester never knew just how he managed to get out of that carriage. -Certainly, with far less difficulty than he had found in entering it, -for he was suddenly upon the ground, his crutches under his arms, and -himself hobbling forward with tremendous swings into the very midst of -things. - -"Come here, come here!" commanded Mrs. Calvert to Dorothy, withdrawing -to the high bank bordering the road and that was topped by one of those -great stone walls which Simon Waterman had built. Amusement, surprise, -and anxiety chased one another across her mobile old features, and with -a sudden movement she turned upon Mrs. Chester, crying excitedly: "Well, -my friend, you can't deny that plenty of things happen in the country, -as well as in the city you bewail. Match me this in Baltimore, if you -please! And explain it--if you can!" - -For it was mother Martha and not her daughter who had obeyed Mrs. -Cecil's imperative: "Come here!" and who could only gasp, through her -astonishment: "It's that advertisement. A 'joke' of John's that he -didn't mean to pass beyond our own doors. We need a horse, a cow, and -pig to----" - -"Add hens! to scratch up your neighbors' flower beds and give -completeness to your lives!" laughed Mrs. Betty, who felt and declared -that: "I haven't had so much fun in a single morning since--I can't tell -when. I wouldn't have missed this!" - -"Seems as if everybody in the whole town must have read and answered -that foolish thing. I--_what shall we do_? How possibly get rid of all -these people!" cried the mistress of Skyrie in real distress. - -As yet neither she nor Mrs. Cecil had observed Helena's faintness, for -the back of the carriage was toward them now and some distance down the -road. But they had observed Mr. Chester's swift departure houseward, and -had seen Dorothy leap like a flash over the intervening wall, toward the -kitchen door and the well which was near it. - -"Makes me think of the 'Light Brigade,' with horses for 'cannon.' That's -shameful for me! though, there _are_ cows to the right of them, pigs -underneath them, and horses--did anybody ever see such a collection?" -asked Mrs. Calvert, clutching Mrs. Chester's arm to keep herself from -slipping downward from the bank into the briars below. Then suddenly -again exclaiming: "Look at that child! She's carrying water in a -pitcher. She's making her way through those men out into the road again. -Something has happened. Somebody is in trouble. Oh! it must be that -frail-looking daughter of the Montaignes! See. Dorothy is running now -straight toward the carriage." - -This was sufficient to banish all amusement from Mrs. Cecil's manner and -she was instantly upon Dorothy's trail, moving with an ease and -swiftness that amazed Mrs. Chester, active though she herself was. -Indeed, the girl had to slacken her speed in order not to spill all the -water from the pitcher, and so the pair reached the side of the -carriage together; the old gentlewoman nodding approval for the presence -of mind which Dorothy had shown. - -However, Helena was rapidly recovering from her brief swoon, and her -mother looked askance at the cracked pitcher in which the water had been -brought and the rusty tin cup in which it was offered; Dorothy having -seized the utensils always left lying beside the well, for the -convenience of passers-by, without waiting to secure more presentable -articles. - -Still, it was Mrs. Calvert whose hand proffered the refreshing draught, -and it was Mrs. Calvert's voice which was saying, in its most -aristocratic yet kindest accents: - -"I did not at once see that your daughter was ill. Your husband left us -at the very first crossroad toward your place and I was absorbed with my -new-old neighbors' affairs. Deerhurst is nearer than the Towers. Why not -drive there first and let Miss Helena rest awhile before going further?" - -Now the invitation was given in all sincerity, though the mistress of -Deerhurst was inwardly smiling at the pictured face of Seth Winters, had -he been there to hear her thus cordially soliciting for guests the -people she had once declared she would never willingly know. Only the -slightest reluctance accompanied her words. She had intended calling -upon the Chesters in their home and upon having a plain business talk -with "Johnnie." However, from all appearances at the cottage beyond, -this was not an opportune time for such an interview and one that could -easily be postponed. At present, the Skyrie family had their hands -sufficiently full of more pressing affairs. - -Helena Montaigne shared her father's social ambition, so it was with a -wan, sweet smile that she accepted from the mistress of Deerhurst the -battered tin cup that she would have rejected had Dorothy held it -upwards. Also, after graciously sipping a few drops of the refreshing -water, she accepted for herself and mother--it was always Helena who -settled such matters--that most gratifying invitation to the mansion. -More than that she rose from her place on the wide back seat of the -carriage and offered it to Mrs. Cecil, rather than that lady should be -forced to ride backwards. But this sacrifice was declined: - -"No, indeed, thank you. I will finish my trip as I begin it, by walking. -It will take you as long to drive around by the entrance as for me to go -across lots, through the woods. I will meet you at the door. Good-by, -Dorothy. I trust you'll all come well out of your present predicament -and I shall be anxious to hear results." - -Mrs. Cecil was not prone to outward expressions of affection and the -little girl was surprised to receive a kiss, as the pitcher was handed -back to her, and this surprise was fully shared by the occupants of the -carriage. But, having bestowed this light caress, the nimble old lady -gathered up her skirts and struck into a footpath running beneath the -trees, where every woodland creature was gay with the gladness of June. -Yet as she passed among them, none seemed more glad than she; nor, -maybe, in the sight of the Creator of them all was she alien to them. - -Let alone, Dorothy sped backward to her home, and to the side of her -parents, who stood together before the kitchen door, vainly endeavoring -to hear what a half-dozen different men were saying at once. Her keen -eyes scanned the odd collection of beasts with an ever increasing -amusement, though she lifted her feet with a little shriek of fear as a -mighty hog, which had long outgrown its "pig" days, broke from its -owner's grasp and waddled up the path. - -"I saw it in the _Local_, and if a man's goin' to start in farmin'----" -began one. - -"Pooh; neighbor! this feller's hoss ain't no kind o' use to a lame man -like you! That hoss? Why, that hoss has run away and smashed things more -times 'an it's years old--and that's sayin' consid'able!" interrupted a -second trader, as the first one edged into the dooryard leading a gaunt -black steed, himself dragging through the gateway a sorrel mare which -had also reached the years of discretion. - -At which number one retorted with fine scorn: - -"Why, if that ain't Bill Barry! Huh! Lemme tell you, neighbor, a man -that trades hosses, or buys one outright, off _Bill_ gets left every -time. That there sorrel? Why, she's twenty-odd if she's a day!" - -Amid the laugh that followed this sally a third man called over the wall -from the road beyond: - -"Hello, mister? Advertised for a cow, didn't you? Well, just step a-here -and take a peek at this fine Alderney o' mine. New milker with a calf -still beside her--purty as a picture, the pair of 'em, and dirt cheap. -Reason I sell, I've got more stawk 'an my land 'll keep. Come this way, -won't you, Mr.--Mr.--'Skyrie,' is it?" - -Poor father John scratched his perplexed head, shifted his weight upon -his crutches, and would fain have answered each and all at once as each -demanded; but the affair was too much for him, who was always so ready -to see the funny side of things. He cast one bewildered glance into -Dorothy's laughing, sympathetic face and, also, began to laugh aloud. - -The trader nearest, he of the gaunt black steed, caught the infection of -merriment and augmented it by a hoarse guffaw. Already, while waiting -for the prospective purchasers, the many who had come to sell had seen -the absurdity of the situation, and each new arrival of pig, cow, or -horse, had caused an outburst of momentary mirth. Yet, hitherto, under -this passing amusement, had lain a half-angry resentment. Each had -climbed the mountain, or traveled across it, for the sole purpose of -"making a good trade," and none was pleased to find his chances -forestalled. - -Now, however, personal feelings gave way before this good-natured -acceptance of an annoying state of things; and, before another moment -passed, the laughter which the master of Skyrie had started was echoed -from man to man till Dorothy clapped her hands to her ears and mother -Martha ran into the house, to escape the uproar. - -The fun conquered, for a time at least, all ill feeling, but it had not -settled more important matters. The buying and selling had yet to come, -and John Chester fairly groaned as he whispered to Dorothy: - -"What shall I do with them! However get out of this mess! I know no more -about the good points of a horse or a cow than a babe unborn, and your -mother who does--or should, for she's a farmer's daughter--has -ignominiously fled!" - -Seeing the pair in apparent consultation, the visiting owners of the -various animals held their momentary peace, till Dorothy answered quite -seriously: - -"Well, whether you do or do not know which is good and which is bad, you -did advertise for them, you know, and you ought to take one of each -kind, I s'pose. That is--have you got the money ready, to pay right -now?" - -"Oh, yes! The money's all right. Martha has that in her cupboard." - -"Well, then, let's try it this way. Ask her to come out again; then -let's begin with the pigs. They act the meanest of all the creatures and -I hate them! _Must_ we have a pig, father John?" - -"So your mother says. To eat up the milk!" - -"Then I do think she ought to select it. I'll go and ask her, myself. -Let everybody bring up his pig, one after another, like standing in line -at the post-office, you know; and let mother look them all over and -choose the one she wants. When we get through the pigs the rest of the -pig-men will go away, and the cow-men show us their cows. Oh! it would -be just jolly to do it that way! Mother buy the pig, you the horse, and -I the cow! I'll go and see if she will." - -Either Dorothy's arguments were convincing or Mrs. Chester had repented -her retreat, thus leaving her more inexperienced husband to the mercy of -possibly unscrupulous traders, for she promptly reappeared in the -dooryard and announced: - -"We will buy just what we advertised for: one cow, one horse, one pig. -We will examine the pigs first, and in order, with lowest price stated -at once. We will not dicker at all, but will buy as cheaply as we can. -Now, begin." - -The little woman had placed herself upon the doorstep, with an air of -practical business which caused her husband to silently clap his hands -and as silently applaud; nodding his head and saying, by his expression: - -"Good enough, madam! Couldn't have done better if you'd been in -continual practice!" - -The only difficulty of the proceeding was that each "pig-man" had grown -weary of waiting and now crowded to the fore, intent upon selling _his_ -pig before another had a chance. Result: seven specimens of swine, in -varying degrees of fatness, were forced into the inclosure; where each -immediately proceeded to entangle himself with his neighbor and to run -in a direction diametrically opposed to his owner's will. - -"Oh! how glad I am our flower beds haven't been made yet!" cried -Dorothy, flying up the outside stairs of the cottage, where she felt -quite safe, although one inquisitive porker did plant its fore-legs on -the lower step, intent to follow. Thence it was jerked back by its -owner, with the remark: - -"Drat a hog, anyhow! They're plaguyest critters to drive of any that -lives. Next time I have a pig to sell I'll do it on my own premises--or -not at all!" - -In mercy to the animals and to their owners Mrs. Chester made a quick -selection and one that others, wiser than herself, knew to be a -fortunate one. Her choice fell upon a half-grown creature, whose body -had received a good scrubbing before being taken to Skyrie, and whose -skin looked pink and clean beneath its white bristles. She was asked a -larger price than was quite just, as all the other dealers knew, but as -all likewise considered "city folks" legitimate prey nobody enlightened -her, and she handed out the money at once; merely requesting its late -owner to take the animal to the corner of the old barn and securely -fasten it there. - -Then there followed what father John remarked was "quite a lull in the -hog market," and Dorothy begged: - -"Let's buy the cow next! There's a lovely one yonder! A soft, fat, -écru-colored one, with the cutest little calf tied to it! Oh! do let's -have the calf any way even if we don't the cow. It's a perfectly -adorable little thing! see how it cocks its head and kicks up its -heels--the sweet!" - -The swine and their owners having departed the dooryard was -comparatively clear; and it was noticeable that nobody crowded forward -when, at a nod from Mr. Chester, the proprietor of the "écru-colored" -cow and "adorable calf" led them up for closer inspection. - -They certainly were attractive specimens of their race, and the Quaker -miller who offered them had a most benignant countenance. He seemed to -possess the respect and confidence of his neighbors and his words had -the ring of truthfulness as he stated: - -"Thee will go much further and fare much worse before thee has a cow -like Hannah offered thee, friend Martha. She is of good pedigree, as I -can show thee if thee will step over to my mill and look at my ledger. -Her yield is ten quarts at a milking, twice a day, and her price is -fifty dollars." - -Martha Chester caught her breath. She had not anticipated paying more -than half that sum for "just a cow"; even the price of the pig had -startled her, remembering the small amount of cash she had in her purse. -But alas! The demon of possession had seized her! The fact that the -porcine "beauty" already tied to her barn was her own roused all her old -farm-born instinct for "stock," and though she hesitated she did not say -"No." Besides, her own half-forgotten grandsire had been a Friend and -this man's speech carried her back to childhood's days and a roomy -farmhouse, with its rich abundance of good things. Was ever a Quaker -really poor? - -Now nobody, in his senses, could have compared honest Oliver Sands to a -tempter; yet his very next words proved temptation to John and Martha -Chester, whose Christian names he had somehow acquired and now used so -naturally. - -"If thee buys Hannah thee will not regret it. Moreover, because I have -heard the surprising tale of the little maid yonder, I will bind the -bargain by giving her the calf, free of charge. I do not like to -separate mother and child, even among brute creatures, unless from -necessity; and, Dorothy Chester, thee may have my calf." - -Of the astonishment of her parents and Dorothy's wild, almost -incredulous delight, there is no need to tell. It can be easily -surmised. Sufficient to state that very shortly afterward the -broad-brimmed hat of Oliver Sands was disappearing down the road, while -Hannah and her offspring had joined the squealing pig beside the barn. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -AT MILKING-TIME - - -As if by mutual consent the owners of the rejected cattle slowly -departed. They had awaited the outcome of the Sands-Chester transaction -rather from curiosity than any doubt as to the result. - -Oliver Sands was an upright Friend. He was, also, locally known as a -"slick trader." What he set out to do he generally did. Moreover, though -he dwelt in a plainly furnished farmhouse, his farm comprised the -richest acres of the table-land crowning the mountain, and his flocks -and herds were the largest in the county. His flour mill did a thriving -business. Some said that its thrift was due, in part, to the amount of -toll extracted from his neighbors' grists; but this, of course, was a -heresy unproved. Nor did many of even these disgruntled folk grumble -openly. They dared not. Oliver "held them in his hand," as the saying -went, having mortgages upon almost all the smaller farms adjacent to his -own--intent upon sometime adding them to his, at that dreaded day when -he should see fit to "foreclose." - -With the miller's departure from the scene the horse-owners had their -chance, and took it promptly; but the prices asked for the several -steeds which were now "put through their paces" were far and away beyond -the balance left in the Chesters' power to pay. Therefore, short work -was made of this part of the memorable sale and the grounds were rapidly -deserted of nearly all. - -Bill Barry lingered to the last, and finding himself still unsuccessful, -relieved his disappointment by a parting fling: - -"Well, neighbor, after all I dunno as you will _need_ a hoss--ary kind -of one, seein's you've got Hannah! That creatur's a repytation for speed -'at puts my sorrel here out of the runnin'. Lively, Hannah is, an' no -mistake. Old Olly's head's leveler than this mountain-side, even if his -mouth is mealier 'n his own flour bags. Well, good-day. If you -shouldn't get suited, lemme know. I'll drive right up." - -The silence that fell upon Skyrie then seemed intense, but most -delightful; and for a few moments all its household felt the need of -rest. They sat without speaking, for a time, till a low from the -barnyard reminded them that their "family" had increased and might need -attention. Who was to give it? - -With a smile, half of vexation, mother Martha suddenly exclaimed: - -"We've begun at the wrong end of things! 'Put the cart before the -horse.' We needed a pig, a cow, a horse, and a man. Well, the man should -have been our first to secure. Then he could have looked after the other -things. Oh! hum! What a day this has been!" - -"Yes. Country life _does_ seem to be rather exciting," agreed Mr. -Chester, idly poking the end of his crutch among the weeds along the -wide stone where his chair had been placed. "A lawsuit, a stock-sale, -and an introduction to 'Society'--all in one morning." - -"But we didn't get the horse!" said Dorothy C., who liked matters to be -completely finished, once they had been undertaken; and whose fancy had -been unduly stirred by the sight of Bucephalus. She had then and there -decided that she, too, would become a finished equestrian as soon as -possible; though she had seen none among the horses just exhibited that -compared with Herbert's mount. - -"The horse can wait," returned Mrs. Chester, in a tone of relief. "Yet, -for your sake, John, it should have been our first purchase." - -"After that necessary 'man,' my dear!" - -But Mrs. Chester was in no mood for joking. The reaction from excitement -had set in, and she let her husband's jest fall to the ground where it -belonged. If only that unfortunate advertisement had done the same! They -would not then have been so annoyed by an overflow of traders nor been -rendered the laughing-stock of the community. Besides it was now past -noon and dinner must be prepared; so she rose to go indoors, suggesting -to Dorothy: - -"It might be well to see if Hannah and the calf need water. You can take -that old pail I use to scrub from and carry them a drink. Take but a -half-pailful at a time. You're too young to lift heavy things, yet." - -"All right: but, mother, that generous old man didn't say what the -calf's name was. And isn't Hannah the oddest for--a cow? Real Quakerish -it sounds to me. What shall you name your dear little pig? May I call my -darling calf Jewel? Just to think! I never, never dreamed I should have -a real live little calf for my very, very own!" - -"May your Jewel prove a diamond of the first water!" cried father John, -always sympathetic. - -But mother Martha was carefully counting the contents of her depleted -pocket-book and her tone was rather sharp as she answered: - -"It's a poor pig that can't live without a name: and--I'm afraid that -old Quaker gentleman was not--was not quite so generous as he seemed. A -calf requires milk. A calf that 'runs with its mother' generally gets -it; and----" She paused so long that her husband added: - -"What becomes of the family that owns the calf? Is that what you were -thinking, my dear? No matter! So long as that lowing mother and child -were not cruelly 'separated' everything is right. May I come and peel -the potatoes for you?" - -For helpless to do great things for his household the crippled man had -insisted upon his right to do small ones; but it always hurt his wife's -pride to see her once stalwart husband doing "woman's work," so he never -attempted it without permission. - -This time she nodded consent, and promptly brought him a basin of them, -while she sat down to shell a measure of pease procured that morning -from a passing huckster. She felt that they could talk as they worked, -and indeed there was much to discuss. Until her return everything had -been absorbed by Dorothy's fortunes; and even still it was thought of -Dorothy which lay closest to both their hearts. - -"But Dolly brought down to a real bread-and-butter basis! We are -compelled to make our living and hers out of this run-down farm. Now, -how to begin? Shall I sit by the roadside and ask every man who passes -by if he wants to hire himself out 'on shares'? Or will you risk -another advertisement, compounded by yourself?" inquired Mr. Chester. -"Help we must have." - -"Yes, we must. If I could only get hold of some of the strong, idle, -colored men loafing the streets of Baltimore! They, or he, would be just -what we need." - -"Maybe not, my dear. In any case we haven't one, nor time to import one. -Probably he would be discontented if we got one. We'll have to depend on -'local talent' and--hear that cow 'Moo!' Sounds as if she were -homesick." - -"Poor thing! probably she is. I am--a little, myself," returned mother -Martha, rising to put her vegetables on to boil. "Also, I consider that -we have accomplished sufficient for one morning. Let's rest on it and -wait what may turn up; fortunately Hannah can live upon grass--the whole -farm is grass, or weeds----" - -"And the calf can live upon Hannah! My dear, country life is making you -a philosopher: and here comes our girl as ready for her dinner as I am. -I'll take a bit of a nap while she sets the table, and the sooner I'm -called to it the better. No trouble with our appetites since we came to -Skyrie," rejoined the ex-postman, crossing to the lounge and settling -himself, not for the "nap" he had mentioned but to best consider that -farming question, almost a hopeless one to him. - -The afternoon passed quietly, varied by frequent visits on the part of -mother Martha and Dorothy to their respective possessions of live stock, -tethered by the barn. All seemed going well. Hannah had ceased to low -and lay upon the grass contentedly chewing her cud, while her festive -offspring gamboled around as far as its rope-length would permit. - -As for the unnamed pig, it had rooted for itself a soft muddy bed, and -from having been well fed, earlier in the day, was contented to lie and -slumber in the sunshine. - -Contemplation of the creatures gave Martha great pleasure, till Dorothy -suddenly propounded the question: - -"Who's going to milk Hannah? That nice Quaker man said 'twice a day,' -and 'ten quarts at a time.'" - -For a moment Mrs. Chester did not answer; then she looked up and, as if -in reply to her own perplexity, beheld Jim Barlow. - -"O my lad! Never anybody more welcome. You can milk, of course?" - -"Yes, ma'am, I should say so. Mis' Calvert she sent me over to see if -you needed anything. She said as how none your folks was used to farmin' -and she's got a right smart o' curiosity over how you came out with your -advertisement. More'n that, here's a letter she had Ephraim fetch -up-mounting, when he druv down for her mail. She said I was to tell you -'t all your letters could be put with her'n if you wanted; so's to save -you or Dorothy walking way to the office." - -"All our letters won't be many and she is very kind. Please thank her -for us and tell her that--that--Jim, would you like to change 'bosses' -and come to work for us at Skyrie?" asked Mrs. Chester with sudden -inspiration. - -"No, ma'am, I wouldn't," answered the lad, with unflattering promptness. -"I mean--you know----" - -"Oh! don't try to smooth that over, pray. It was a mere thought of mine, -knowing how fond you were, or seemed to be, of our girl. But, of -course, you wouldn't. The comforts and conveniences of our little home -can't compare with Deerhurst. Only----" said the lady, somewhat -sarcastically, and on the point of adding: "It's better than Miranda -Stott's." But she left her sentence unfinished and it was kinder so. - -Poor Jim saw that he had offended. Even Dorothy's brown eyes had -flashed, perceiving her mother's discomfiture, but though his face -flushed to find himself thus misunderstood he did not alter, nor soften, -his decision. He merely stated the case as he regarded it: - -"If I could make two of myself I'd be glad to. I'd just admire to take -hold this job an' clear the weeds an' rubbidge offen Skyrie. Not 't I -think it'll ever be wuth shucks--for farmin': the land's all run to -mullein an' stun. But I could make it a sight better 'n it is an' it -might grow plenty of them posies Dorothy's so tickled with. If it could -be stocked now--Mis' Stott used to say that keepin' lots o' cattle was -to be looked at both ways; what they leave on the land in manure fetches -it up, an' what they eat offen it fetches it down. She kep' more calves -an' yearlin's than 'peared like she'd ought to, but she raised a power -of stuff for market, 'count of 'em. If I was you folks I'd put my money -into yearlin's fust thing," said this young farmer, rendered talkative -by his novel position as adviser. - -Dorothy was disgusted. This didn't seem like the old, subservient Jim -she was familiar with and she disliked his plainness of speech. She -improved the occasion by calling his attention to Jewel: - -"See my calf? That's my very own! She was a present to me this very day, -Jim Barlow, and I've named her Jewel. Maybe, though, I'll change that to -'Daisy.' I've read stories where cows were called 'Daisies,' and she'll -be a cow sometime, and I shall sell her milk to get money." - -"Pshaw! Looks like good stock, that calf does; 's if 't might make a -nice steer, but 'twon't never be a _cow_ to give milk. 'Tain't that kind -of a calf; and after all, raisin' young cattle is a power of work. They -run over fences an' fall into hollers, an' Mis' Stott she used to say, -sometimes, she didn't know but they did eat their own heads off; -meanin' their keep cost more than they was wuth--time they was ready for -killin'. If I was you, Dorothy, I'd fat that calf up, quick's I could, -then sell him to the butcher for veal," further advised this practical -youth. - -"O you horrid boy! You--you--I never saw anybody who could dash cold -water on people's happiness as you can! You--you're as hateful as you -can be!" cried Dorothy, venting all her disappointment in anger against -him. - -Now it happened that that same morning, at Seth Winters's office, the -untutored farm boy had seen and envied the ease of manner with which -handsome Herbert Montaigne had won his way into the favor of Mrs. -Calvert and had instantly made friends with Dorothy. Then and there, -something sharp and bitter had stolen into Jim's big heart and had sent -him speeding out of sight--eager to hide himself and his uncouthness -from these more fortunate folk, whose contrast to himself was so -painful. Dorothy--why, even Dorothy--had, apparently, been captivated by -the dashing Herbert to the utter neglect of her former friend; and, -maybe, that was what had hurt the most. Incipient jealousy had stung -Jim's nobler nature and now made him say with unconscious wistfulness: - -"I'm sorry, girlie. You--you didn't think so--always." - -The girl had turned her back upon him, in her indignation, but at the -altered tone she faced about, while a swift recollection of all that she -owed to him sent the tears to her eyes and her to clasp her arms about -his neck and kiss him soundly, begging: - -"O Jim! forgive me! I didn't mean--I forgot. _You_ never can be horrid -to me. I don't like to have my things made fun of--I never was given a -calf before--I--Kiss me, Jim Barlow, and say you do!" - -To the bashful lad this outburst was more painful than jealousy. His -face grew intensely red and he did not return the kiss. On the contrary -he very promptly removed her clinging arms, with his protesting: - -"Pshaw! What ails you, Dorothy?" - -Then he forced himself to look towards Mrs. Chester and to return to the -real business of the moment. Fortunately, that lady was not even -smiling. She was too accustomed to her child's impulsiveness to heed it, -and she had resolved to act upon the principle that "half a loaf is -better than no bread." In other words, she would improve this chance of -getting some fit quarters for the pig, which had roused and begun to -make its presence evident. She scarcely even heard Jim's attempted -explanation: - -"You see, Mis' Chester, 'twas Mis' Calvert that took me up an' set out -to make a man of me. I disappointed her fust time she trusted me, and -I've got to stay long enough to show I ain't so wuthless as I seemed. -_I've got to._ More'n that, the gardener she's had so long is so old an' -sot in his ways he don't get more'n half out the soil 't he'd ought to. -I'm goin' to show him what Maryland folks can do! That truck o' his'n? -Why, bless your heart, he couldn't sell it to Lexington Market, try his -darnedest: nor Hollins', nor Richmond, nor even Ma'sh Market--where poor -folks buy. Huh! No, I can't leave. But I'll come work for you-all every -minute I can get, without neglectin' Mis' Calvert." - -"O Jim! That's lovely of you, but you mustn't do that. It would be too -great a sacrifice. You planned to study every minute you were not -working or sleeping, and you must. It's your chance. You must, Jim dear. -You know you're to be President--or something big--and you're to make me -very, very proud of you. Some way, somebody will be found,--to farm poor -Skyrie!" returned Dorothy, eagerly, yet unable to resist the last -reproach. - -"Now, Mis' Chester, I can, an' ought, to get that pig into a pen 'fore -dark. Is there any old lumber 'round, 't you can spare?" asked the lad, -rolling up his blouse sleeves, preparatory to labor. - -"There's an old dog-churn in the cellar, that Alfaretta Babcock knocked -to pieces the time----" - -"Speaking of Babcock, ma'am, that is my name: and I've come to hire -out," said a queer unknown voice, so near and so suddenly that mother -Martha screamed; then having whirled about to see whence the voice came, -screamed again. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - -HELPERS - - -The man who had come so noiselessly over the grass, from Cat Hollow, -might well have been the "Nanarchist" his daughter had termed him, were -one to judge from tradition and appearance; and it is small wonder that -Mrs. Chester had cried out so unexpectedly, beholding this specimen of -the "Red Brotherhood." - -Tall beyond the average, "Pa Babcock"--he was rarely spoken of -otherwise--had a great head covered by a shock of fiery hair which -proved Alfaretta truthful in her statement that "he'd disdain to comb -it." The hair was stiff and bristly, and stood out in every direction, -while the beard matched it in growth and quantity. He wore a faded red -flannel shirt, and denim overalls that had once been red, while his -great hairy feet were bare and not too clean. He wore no hat and -scarcely needed one, and while his physique was that of a mighty man -his face was foolishly weak and vain. His voice perfectly suited the -face: and, altogether, he was a most unprepossessing candidate for the -position of "hired man" at Skyrie. - -"You wish to hire out?" asked the mistress of the farm, repeating -incredulously his statement. "But I thought--Alfaretta said----" - -"I do not doubt it. The reputation I have won at the hands of my own -household is part of the general injustice of society--as it exists. -Nothing can convince my labor-loving spouse that I am preparing for her -and her children a future of--Stay, lad: are you, also, a member of this -establishment?" - -"I'm goin' down suller after lumber. Come along an' help. If we hustle -right smart we can get a pen done 'fore dark, let alone gettin' them -cattle into a shed. Strange critters need shuttin' up, a spell, else -they'll make tracks for home--wherever 'tis," answered Jim, leading the -way toward the house and the door he judged must lead to the cellar. His -own voice sounded very strong and masterful by contrast with the high, -thin falsetto of the "Nanarchist," and Mrs. Chester smiled, while -Dorothy cried out: - -"Alfy's father may be a _giant_, but my Jim is a _man_!" - -They were no longer afraid of "Pa Babcock." His outward appearance -wholly belied his nature, and they instinctively recognized that here -was an easy-going, lazy fellow, who might impress his own household with -a sense of his importance but could not overawe outsiders. They sat down -on the barn doorsill to wait and watch events, and presently there -returned Pa Babcock carrying an enormous quantity of the heavy, cobwebby -planking that had formed the framework of the old churn. Behind him was -Jim, rolling the treadmill part of the affair and as profoundly -engrossed by the task in hand as by all he undertook. He had evidently -assumed the direction of matters and his big assistant was amusingly -obedient. - -Mr. Chester, also, came out to the spot and was made comfortable with an -old horse-blanket for cushion of a low chopping-block near. Dorothy -found the blanket in the barn and also triumphantly asserted that there -was a lot of "real nice hay" in one part of it. But Jim scoffed at this -statement, declaring that hay kept as long as Skyrie had been closed -wouldn't be "wuth shucks." - -"James, James! Don't become a pessimist!" warned father John, yet -smiling, too. - -"Say it again, please, sir, an' I'll look it out in that little -dictionary Mis' Calvert she's put in my room. Hurry up, man! Wish to -goodness I had some decent tools! Nothin' but a rusty ax to work -with--an' look yonder at that sky!" - -All looked and mother Martha grew frightened. She was timid during any -thunder shower and this was worse than a shower which threatened--a -tornado seemed imminent. To retreat indoors and help John to get there -was her first impulse, but Pa Babcock held up a protesting hand and she -hesitated, curiously observing his movements. Moistening his fingers he -let the rising wind blow over them, then calmly resumed his task of -nailing a board to a post in the cattle-shed still left standing beside -the barn. - -"It will not come on to rain till midnight. Then look out for a deluge. -You are perfectly and entirely safe here, ma'am, until our undertaking -is accomplished and it is always well to have the eye of the master--I -would say, mistress--upon----" - -"Hand over that scantlin', old step-an'-fetch-it!" ordered Jim, with -scant reverence and--the scantling was handed. Furthermore, Pa was set -to searching the barn for a possible crowbar, pick-ax, or, "Any plaguy -thing a feller can bore a post-hole with." - -Thus rudely interrupted, the "Nanarchist" calmly surveyed his companion -in labor, then squeaked out: - -"There is no occasion for such remarkable activity, young man, but----" - -"Hurry up! 'Twon't be no midnight 'fore that 'gust' strikes us!" ordered -Jim Barlow. - -Anger is a wonderful incentive to action--sometimes. At last Pa Babcock -was angry--as much so as it was in his nature ever to be. The result was -that he fell to work with a vigor and skill that almost distanced Jim's -own; to the great advantage of the Chesters and their live stock. - -By the time darkness had come a pig-pen had been constructed in one end -of the cattle-shed; a milking-stool had been nailed into shape and -Hannah milked--with a remarkable shrinkage in the amount Oliver Sands -had accredited to her: she and "Daisy-Jewel" put under cover for the -night: and the rickety barn-doors nailed here and there as a precaution -against the coming "gust." - -This seemed long delayed; yet Jim was wise enough to button his blouse -tightly across his heated chest and to take his prompt departure the -moment his self-imposed tasks were finished; Mrs. Chester calling after -him: - -"Don't forget to thank Mrs. Calvert for her kindness about the mail and -tell her, please, that this letter held the change due us after the -printing of that advertisement And thank _you_, James Barlow, for all -your helpfulness in everything." - -The lad went onward, with a comfortable sense of having been extremely -useful and with all his slight jealousy allayed; reflecting, also: - -"There ain't one that lot got any more sense about farmin' than a spring -chicken! Not so much, either; 'cause a chicken _will_ stir round an' -scratch a livin' out the ground, sooner 'n starve. Dorothy, she--Well, -she's got some ideas, kind of dull ones, but might answer once she gets -'em sharpened by tryin' an' failin'; but--Pshaw! I wish to goodness she -was a boy an' not a girl! Then there'd be some show. As 'tis--shucks!" - -The day may come, Master James, when you'll be very glad that your wish -could not be gratified! Meanwhile, as you plod along beneath the trees, -sighing and moaning overhead--in seeming terror of the coming storm--the -family at Skyrie have re-entered the cottage: and with the ease of one -who belongs, Pa Babcock has entered with them. - -"Will you stay for supper, Mr. Babcock, or shall we take some other time -for talking about business?" asked Mr. Chester, as their new -acquaintance coolly settled himself in the invalid's own rocker by the -window and began to sway lazily to and fro, while the host himself took -a straight chair near by. - -"O father John! Don't sit there. I'm sure Mr. Babcock will----" began -Dorothy, indignant at the stranger's selfishness. - -But her father stopped her by a shake of his head and a smile of -amusement which neither she nor Martha shared: though the latter did -say, politely enough: - -"I never knew anybody to come at a time they were more needed, for -without your help Jim could never have fixed things so nicely. We owe -you many thanks and some money. How much you will have to say, for we -know little about wages here in the North." - -Pa waited for her to finish, then ejaculated: - -"I should say I did help! Done it all, if you'll recall the -circumstances again. Furnished all the brain power anyway, and skilled -labor outranks muscle at any time. He means well, that boy: but--I -wonder if he realizes his own position in society! A poor, down-trodden -member of the lower class. I must see him again. I must uplift him! -Ennoble him! Rouse his slumbering ambition--Make a man of him! I----" - -"You couldn't! I don't mean to be rude, but you mustn't talk about my -Jim that way. He _isn't_ down-trodden. He _is_ uplifted. He's going to -make a man of himself, for himself, by himself--without you or even dear -Mrs. Cecil interfering. She'll help, of course, for she's rich and has -the chance, but a boy like Jim Barlow--Huh!" cried Dorothy in valiant -defense of her faithful friend, and with a contemptuous glance at this -great man whom she had disliked on the instant. - -"Dorothy! Dorothy C.!" reproved Mrs. Chester in her sternest accents, -yet not far behind her daughter in the matter of dislike. The man seemed -such a sham, but--"Praise the bridge that carries you safe over!" He was -willing to be hired and they needed him. - -Pa Babcock paid no more attention to the girl's outbreak than he did to -the fly perambulating his frowsy forehead and which he was too indolent -to brush aside; and indignant at this, also, Dorothy went about bringing -food from the pantry and depositing dishes upon the table with most -unnecessary decision. She hoped, oh! how she hoped that her parents -would refuse to employ this "Anarchist"; or, if they did so, that they -would prohibit his coming to the family table. - -However, here he was and supper was ready, and he was invited to draw -near; yet to the surprise of all, with the provision stipulated for by -the host: - -"To-night, Mr. Babcock, we consider you our guest: but should you engage -to work for us I would like to arrange that you should board yourself. -Mrs. Chester has no servant." - -"Sir, I admire her for it! Let every member of society serve himself and -the reign of equality begins. My wife is a fine cook and there will be -no difficulty in our arrangements. Oliver Sands is my good friend, and -it is by his suggestion that I am here. He is a man as is a man! There -is no giving of titles by him. A plain man, Oliver, though not--not -quite as fully imbued with the doctrines of universal equality and -brotherhood as I should desire. Sir, are you a--Socialist?" - -Certainly this strange man was what his daughter had described him, "a -good talker," judging from the ready flow of language, and of better -quality than is commonly found in men of his class. Though this may be -accounted for by the fact that he was a greedy reader--of any and every -thing which came his way. But to this suddenly propounded inquiry Mr. -Chester answered, with his own merry smile: - -"No, indeed! Nothing half so 'uplifted' or ambitious. Just a poor, -afflicted fellow out of work and anxious to make a living for his -family. Let us get through our meal and come to business." - -Fortunately, while Pa Babcock was eating he could not well talk, and he -was one, as Alfaretta had said, "could always relish his victuals." He -now relished so many of prudent mother Martha's that her heart sank, -knowing that food costs money and money was unpleasantly scarce in that -cottage; but, at last, he seemed satisfied and pushed back from the -table, saying: - -"Now, let's settle things. I was sent here, first off, by my friend -Oliver Sands, to negotiate a loan for him--for your benefit. He's a -forehanded fellow, Oliver is, and always ready to help those along who -are in trouble or--He's wanted to put a mortgage on my place in Cat -Hollow, so's to give me time and opportunity--meaning cash--to -promulgate the principles of----" - -"Yes," said John impatiently. - -"Of course, you understand. All sensible persons do and I shall -eventually convert you to my ideas----" - -"Possibly, possibly! But return to your errand from the miller, please. -It's growing late and we've had a fatiguing day." - -"I was just coming to it. He was so pleased by you and your family, so -delighted to find your wife, here, such a woman of business, that he -wished me to say that in case you were in need of funds, a little ready -money, you know, he would feel perfectly safe in advancing it: securing -it, of course, by the necessary documents." - -Mr. and Mrs. Chester exchanged glances, which Dorothy did not see. She -had escaped the obnoxious presence of this man by simply going to bed, -meaning to get up again, as soon as he should depart, and bid her -parents good-night. Then said the ex-postman, after this brief -telegraphing of opinions: - -"Mr. Sands has guessed correctly. We are in need of ready money--to get -things into running order; but the property is my wife's and, like your -friend, I have the fullest confidence in her business ability. She will -do as she thinks best." - -Now what a cruel thing is jealousy! It had embittered the honest heart -of Jim Barlow, earlier in the day, and now attacked the tender one of -Martha Chester. It was quite true--they did need money. True, also, that -they had expected to raise it by a mortgage on Skyrie, at present free -and clear. They knew that this money would be forthcoming from the -mistress of Deerhurst, simply upon application, and upon the most -favorable terms. She had already delicately hinted at the matter, and -had her visit to the cottage been made that morning, as she intended, it -would doubtless have been settled. - -But Martha Chester disliked to be beholden to the old gentlewoman who -"made so much of Dorothy" and who, the mother fancied, was superseding -herself in the child's heart. It had become a habit of Dorothy's to -quote Mrs. Cecil as a paragon of all the virtues, and the child's -ambition was to form her own manners and opinions upon her "fairy -godmother's." - -Now offered a chance for independence which Mrs. Chester eagerly seized, -without protest from her husband, though inwardly he disapproved putting -themselves in the power of a stranger when there stood ready to take -his place a tried, true friend. - -"Shall you see Mr. Sands again, to-night?" she asked. - -"No, ma'am. I'm due to deliver an oration in the 'Sons of Freedom' Hall, -Upper Village, eight o'clock sharp, tickets twenty-five cents. Oliver -directed me to say that if you would send your little daughter to -Heartsease, his place, to-morrow morning he would make it his pleasure -to call and arrange everything. He's a sort of lawyer, himself. And, oh -yes! If you should need anything in the way of feed or fodder he is -always ready to supply his customers, at the ruling prices and with -dispatch. - -"Which brings me, ma'am and sir, to the subject of wages between -ourselves; and if it's handy, to the payment for my services in erecting -a pig-pen and repairing a cow-manger. Let me see. Two hours, at a dollar -an hour--Two dollars, I make it. Do you find me right?" - -Well! Pa Babcock might look like a simpleton, but he could use his queer -voice to his own advantage! - -John Chester shrugged his shoulders and Martha replied with considerable -crispness: - -"A dollar an hour! I never heard of such a thing. In Baltimore----" - -"We are not in Baltimore, much as I should admire to visit that city. -Skilled labor, you know----" - -"But the _skill_ was poor Jim Barlow's, and the lumber _mine_. At such a -rate your farm services would be worth a fortune, and far more than I -could pay. I hoped to get somebody to work 'on shares'; or at least, -very cheaply." - -"For the present, ma'am, there wouldn't be any 'shares.' The ground is -absolutely profitless. But I am not exorbitant, nor would I grind the -face of the poor. I am a poor man myself. I glory in it. I think that -two dollars and a half a day would be fair to both sides." - -With this the high, thin voice subsided and John Chester took up the -theme, like his wife quoting their old city as a unit of measurement: - -"In Baltimore, or its suburbs, a day or farm laborer would not earn more -than a dollar and a half, or even so low as a dollar and a quarter." - -"Per day, working on every consecutive day?" asked this would-be -employee, leaning back in the rocker and folding his arms. It seemed he -never could form a sentence without putting into it the largest words at -his command, and listening to him, Martha almost hoped that their -present discussion would prove fruitless. However could they endure his -wordiness! - -"Yes. Of course it would be every day," she answered. - -But his next remark came with an originality worthy none other than -himself: - -"Very well. I have my price and my opinion--you have yours. Let us meet -one another halfway. I will work only every other day--I can do as much -as two ordinary men, anyway--and thus you will be called upon for no -more than you would have had to pay some assistant from privileged -Baltimore." - -"But we could not board you!" protested John Chester. "I cannot have -extra labor imposed upon my wife." - -Pa Babcock rose, stretching all his mighty limbs as if he would convince -these strangers that he could, indeed, accomplish the work of two -ordinary men per day; then, waving the trivial matter of board aside -with an airy lightness which his recent exhibition of appetite scarcely -warranted, announced: - -"We will consider the affair closed. I will work every other day, -Sundays excluded, at two dollars and a half per day and find myself. I -will enter upon my duties to-morrow morning, and I now wish you -good-night. I go to establish the rule of equality in this unenlightened -neighborhood." - -So saying he slipped out of the house, a fearsome-looking but wholly -harmless "crank," who seemed rather to have left his shadow behind him -than to have taken it with him. As he departed the roar of thunder, the -brilliant flash of lightning, filled the room; and, forestalling a -remonstrance she feared might be forthcoming, mother Martha exclaimed: - -"The storm is coming at last. I must go see to all the windows." - -"I'll limp around and help you; and, wife dear, I can't help feeling we -should think twice before we take up with that miller's offer. He's too -sweet to be wholesome and I know that Mrs. Calvert----" - -"The matter is settled, John. You reminded me that Skyrie was my -property. I claim the right to use my own judgment in the case. I will -send Dorothy to see that kind old Quaker early to-morrow." - -She did. But as her husband went about with her that evening, making all -secure against the tempest, the shadow that Pa Babcock had left behind -him--the shadow of almost their first disagreement--followed her light -footsteps and the tap-tap of his crutches from room to room. - -Till at last they came to the little upper chamber which they had both -vied in making attractive for Dorothy's homecoming and saw her sleeping -there; her lovely innocent face flushed in slumber and dearer to them -both than anything else in life. - -"It was for her, else I'd have let John have his way and ask Mrs. Cecil. -But I cannot have her drawn away from me--and she's being drawn, she's -being drawn," thought mother Martha, stopping to straighten a moist -curl and kiss the pretty cheek. - -"Oh! if only for that darling's sake we had trusted Mrs. Cecil. She has -trusted us: but Martha--Well, women are kittle cattle. I don't -understand them, but somehow I'm sorry," was his reflection. - -So they went down again, he limping, she skipping almost like a girl, -but with a division of thought which saddened both. - - - - -CHAPTER XII - -SETH WINTERS AND HIS FRIENDS - - -Seth Winters was known as the best blacksmith in the country. The horses -he shod never went lame, the tires of the wheels he repaired rarely -loosened: consequently his patronage was extensive and of the best. -Better than that, his patrons liked the man as well as his work and they -were more than willing to grant him a favor--almost the first he had -ever asked of them. - -First, he visited Mrs. Cecil and counseled with her concerning the -scheme he had formed: and she having most heartily approved it, he lost -no time in mentioning it to each and all who came to his shop. The -result was that on a sunny morning, not long after Dorothy's homecoming, -there gathered before the little smithy an assemblage of all sorts and -conditions of men and vehicles, which filled the road for a long -distance either way, and even strayed into the surrounding woods for a -more comfortable waiting-place. - -In the wagons were also many women, farm-wives mostly, all gay with the -delight of an unexpected outing and the chance to bestow a kindness. - -"Amazing! How it warms the cockles of one's heart to be good to -somebody!" cried Seth, his benign face aglow with the zest of the thing, -as one after another team drew near and its occupants bade him a smiling -"Good-morning!" "The very busiest time of all the year for farmer -folk--haying, crop-raising, gardening--yet not a soul I asked has failed -to respond, in some shape or other." - -"Of course not! It's as good as a county fair or a Sunday-school picnic, -Cousin Seth! I wouldn't have missed it for anything!" cried a merry old -voice behind him, and he turned to see Mrs. Calvert nodding her handsome -head in this direction and that, with that friendly simplicity of manner -which had made her so generally liked. For, though she could be most -austere and haughty with what she called "common and presumptuous -people," she had an honest liking for all her fellow-creatures who were -honest and simple themselves. - -"Now, Betty! But I might have known you would come--you're always on -hand for any 'doin's.' Though don't you dare to give your own generosity -free rein. This is strictly a case 'of the people, by the people, for -the people.' Blue-blooded aristocracy and full purses aren't 'in it,'" -warned the smith, in an alarm that was more real than feigned, knowing -that his impulsive old friend could spoil the pleasure of many by -exceeding them in giving. - -"Oh! I shall take care. I've only sent one team, a couple of men--one -the gardener, the other a carpenter who was working on the place, -and--Do you know, Seth Winters, you barrier-destroying old -'Socialist!'--that the man positively refused to take pay for his day's -labor, even though he can ill afford to lose his time? 'No, ma'am,' said -this aristocrat of the saw and plane, 'I claim the right to do a decent -turn to a neighbor, same as another.' Rich or poor it doesn't appear to -make a bit of difference--give them a chance at this sort of thing and -they all lose their heads." - -Seth laughed. Such "Socialistic" principles as these were the ones he -advocated, not only by word but by his whole noble life. For him wealth -had but one purpose--the bettering of these other folk to whom wealth -had not been given. Then he asked: - -"What of Jim Barlow? Is he one of the 'men' you furnished for the day?" - -"Will you believe me--he is not? When that young Herbert Montaigne rode -around this morn-thing, before breakfast, to say that his father was -sending two men with a mowing machine and that he, Herbert, was going to -ride on the horse-rake himself, Jim was talking to me. He was full of -enthusiasm and earnest to explain that nothing in our own home garden -should suffer because of his taking this day off. He would work overtime -to make up--as if I would let him! But as soon as Herbert came, just as -enthusiastic himself, down goes my James's countenance to the very -bottom of despair. What I love about that boy is his naturalness!" -exclaimed this lively old lady, irrelevantly. - -"Keep to the subject in hand, please, Cousin Betty. The reason of Jim's -gloom perplexes me. I should have thought he would have been----" - -"Oh! he was; he did; he must have been, he should have been, he would -have been--all the tenses in the grammar you choose. If it hadn't been -for my precious little Dorothy. That small maid----" - -She paused so long and seemed so amused that again he spoke: - -"For her sake alone I should think he would be pleased to find others -ready to befriend her." - -"In a way, of course, he is, though man-like, or boy-like, he'd very -much rather _do_ the befriending than have such a handsome young fellow -as Herbert take it out of hand. That lad was just fetching! He'd dressed -the part to perfection. Had on a loose white flannel blouse knotted with -a blue tie--his color: his denim knickers might have been the finest -riding trousers; and his long boots--I fancy there was more money went -to the cost of them than you'd spend on yourself in a year. And all to -make himself fair in the eyes of a little maid like Dorothy. But blood -will tell. My Dolly----" - -"Remember, she _isn't_ your Dolly, Elizabeth Somerset Cecil Calvert, -however you may now love and covet her. She's a charming small woman, as -many another lad than poor Jim or gay Herbert will find some day. But I -didn't dream that jealousy began so early in life, or that such a -matter-of-fact person as young James Barlow could be jealous." - -"He is. He is intensely so, though probably he doesn't know it himself. -I fancy it is about the first time he has been brought into contact with -other lads of his own age, and he is keen enough to see his own -disadvantage. Herbert's nod to Jim was wholly friendly, I thought, but -Jim resented it as patronizing. Silly fellow! And so he promptly changed -his mind about affairs and decided that not for any consideration could -he leave his garden and his 'duty' till the day's work was done. Then, -if he had any time, my lord of the potato-crop may condescend to appear -at Skyrie. Also by that time, he doubtless thinks, a white-handed -aristocrat like Herbert will have tired of the affair and betaken -himself back to the Towers where he belongs. Oh! I do love young folks! -They are so transparent and honest in showing their feelings that -they're wonderfully interesting. As for my Dolly C.--Seth Winters, I -believe that I will really have to ask those Chesters to let me have her -for 'keeps,' as the children say." - -"No, no, dear friend. Don't. You must not. It were most unwise. Leave -the girl to grow up in the station to which God has assigned her, no -matter by whose human hands the deed was done. At present she is fair, -affectionate, simple, and womanly. To be suddenly transplanted into a -wealthy home would spoil her. For once, put your generous impulses aside -and leave Dorothy Chester alone, to be a comfort to those who have -devoted their lives to her. And now, that sermon's ended! Also, I -believe that all have come who promised, which is a remarkable thing in -itself. You're walking, I suppose? So am I; and we'll start on together, -while I signal the rest to follow." - -So they set forth, a worthy pair of white-haired "children," who could -not grow old because they lived so very near that Heaven whence they had -come to earth: and behind them fell into line all the motley assortment -of carts and wagons, with the clattering mowing machine from the Towers -bringing up the rear. - -Mother Martha was in what purported to be a garden, trying to persuade -Pa Babcock to plant things that would yet have time to mature that -season, and was at her wits' end to find arguments to stem his eloquent -reasons why he should do otherwise. Quoth he: - -"Now, of all the satisfactory vegetables grown, asparagus, or -sparrowgrass, as the unenlightened around here call it--asparagus -contains more nourishment and the properties----" - -"But, Mr. Babcock, please don't dig any longer in that trench. It will -have to be four or five feet deep and so much labor. My husband was -reading all about it in one of his catalogues that he's just sent for, -and it would take at least three years for asparagus to grow strong -enough to begin cutting. Besides the roots are too expensive. And that -terrible trench, so big, filled with stones----" - -"Excuse me, ma'am, there's plenty of stone at Skyrie to fill the -asparagus beds of the nation: or if not quite that----" - -"But I must insist, since you've refused to listen to John about it, -that you stop fooling with this trench and plant some late potatoes. We -bought some seed ones from Mrs. Smith and my little girl is cutting them -into pieces already. We were shown that by leaving one or two 'eyes' the -pieces would grow just as well as whole tubers. Everybody needs potatoes -and they can do without asparagus!" and too exasperated for further -speech poor mother Martha folded her arms and brought her sternest -glances to bear upon her hired man. - -He had kept his word and appeared upon the morning following his -engagement, and for a time he had been left to his own devices: his -inexperienced employers judging that any man who had been brought up in -the country must be wiser in farming matters than they. Besides, the -storm that had threatened on the night of his first visit had proved a -most disastrous one. The roof had "leaked like a sieve," as pessimistic -Jim Barlow had declared it would, "give it storm enough to try it": -rusty-hinged shutters had broken loose, stopped-up drains had -overflowed, the cellar had become a pool of water, and the cherished -furniture brought from the little home in Baltimore had, in several -rooms, been ruined by the moisture. Moreover, father John had taken a -severe cold and been kept in bed in his own more sheltered apartment; -where he consoled himself with the gardening catalogues he had written -for and whence he endeavored to direct their hired man. - -"Did Pa Babcock bring his dinner, Martha?" he had asked on that first -morning, when she was running distractedly about, trying to dry the -damaged furniture and undo the storm's havoc. - -"No, dear. He said--just this once it didn't happen to be convenient. -His wife hadn't any cold meat on hand." - -"Neither have you, I believe! Well, I will not board him. I will not! -The farm may go to rack and ruin first!" cried Mr. Chester, indignantly. -"The idea! Here are Dorothy and I trying to put our appetites into our -pockets, just to save you labor, and this great, squeaking lout of a -man----" - -"John, John! Why, John, I never knew you to be so unjust! If I, with my -quick temper, can have patience, you certainly should." - -"But, mother, he's just been doing nothing at all, all this morning!" -cried Dorothy, seconding her beloved father's opinion. "Just 'sort of -nudgin' 'round,' Jim used to call it when I worked that way to the -truck-farm, and I only a little girl. Why, I know I could have pulled -more weeds myself in this time if I hadn't had to help you indoors, even -if I did take that long walk to Heartsease farm. The ground is soaking -wet, weeds would pull just beautifully, I know, 'cause we used to love -to work after a rain, in our little garden at home! Oh! dear! this is -very pretty, but--I wish we hadn't come!" - -Alas! This regret was in all their hearts, in that early time at Skyrie. -Views were beautiful but they didn't support life, and though they had -secured a modest sum of ready money to tide them over these beginnings -it had been at the cost of "debt," a burden which the Chesters hated to -bear. But, fortunately, they had scant time for repining, and there is -nothing like active occupation to banish useless brooding. - -Hannah herself could well keep one person busy and, of course, her youth -and fleetness ordained that this person should be Dorothy. Bill Barry's -statement that the écru-colored bovine was "lively" and could outrun his -sorrel mare was, at least founded upon fact. Among cattlemen she was -what is known as a "jumper"; and though her behavior upon her first day -of residence at Skyrie was most exemplary her sedateness forsook her on -the next and forever after. - -With the best intentions, after having tried her own hand at milking and -succeeding better than she had expected, Mrs. Cheater kindly turned -Hannah "out to grass"--with most unlooked-for results. - -"All cattle graze, you know, John; and she really nibbled that bit of -ground clean where she was tied yesterday. Dorothy and I--we won't -hinder our 'man' for a trifle like that--Dolly and I will prop up that -sagging gate, so Hannah won't be tempted to stray away, and give her the -run of this first lot. She might almost mow it for us in time." - -"Thus cutting short her winter supply of fodder. Let her have one day -at the 'mowing,' if you choose, then she'd better be put into that old -pasture and left there. I know a good farmer wouldn't let even a -well-trained Quaker cow into his best meadow; even _I_ know that! As for -the pig, since we can't possibly drink all that milk and, as yet, have -no pans in which to store it, he may as well consume it sweet as wait -for it to sour. That will keep him quiet, anyway, and a squealing pig--I -shouldn't like one." - -Martha was delighted to find even thus much farm knowledge on her -husband's part, and exclaimed: - -"However you guessed that much about things, that meadows are meant for -hay and pigs are raised on sour milk, I don't see! Only, of course, it's -as you often say to Dolly: 'Anybody can use his head for anything he -chooses.' I suppose you've chosen to study farming and so I know we -shall succeed. By the way, Mrs. Smith has sent word over by her little -boy that she is going up to Newburgh this afternoon to do what she calls -'trading.' She sells poultry, and eggs, and butter, and such things, -that she raises on her farm, and takes in exchange all sorts of staple -goods. She said she'd be pleased to have me go along and learn how to -'trade,' 'cause if I was going to be a farmer I'd have to know. I shall -have to take some of that money, too, and buy a churn, some milk pans, -and--Well, so many things it doesn't seem as if we really had a single -necessary article to start with! But it's all the same, of course, in -the end. When we get the loan from Friend Oliver Sands it will be all -right. You and Dorothy will be comfortable while I'm gone, I think, for -our man is right on hand in the garden to----" - -"Then, if you love me, keep him there!" pleaded father John, in his -whimsical way. "If he forsakes the garden for the house--Well, _I_ shall -be asleep! As for poor Dolly, if he catches her and tries to convert her -to his ideas, the child has nimble feet and can run. I shall advise her -so to do. But I'm glad you're to have that nice long ride, though I -can't imagine you as ever becoming a good 'trader.'" - -It was during this brief absence that the écru-colored Hannah first -returned to her natural ways, and that Dorothy had to prove herself -"nimble," indeed. Despite the fact that she stood in the midst of the -most luxurious vegetation the dissatisfied cow knew that there was -better in the field beyond. Regardless of the appealing cries of -Daisy-Jewel, this careless mother gave one airy flick to her heels and -leaped the intervening wall; and though her child essayed to follow it -could not, but set up such a bawling that Mr. Chester hobbled out to see -what was amiss. - -"Remarkable!" cried Pa Babcock, improving this opportunity to rest from -his not too arduous weeding. "Remarkable how the qualities of a race -horse will sometimes inhabit the bosom of a creature----" - -"Dorothy! Dorothy! I guess you'll have to put Dickens down and go get -Hannah back out of that lot. She's made a--a little mistake! Your mother -wants her to graze on the home-piece and mother's our farmer, you know. -Do run drive her back, but look out for her hoofs. She'd take a hurdle -better than any horse I ever saw," called Mr. Chester, laughing; yet -regretting to disturb Dorothy, who had worked industriously beside her -mother to get things into good condition after the drenching of the -rain. She had taken tacks from carpets, carried wet cushions and -blankets out into the sunshine to dry and carried them back again when -fit, and she wanted to rest and read. - -"Oh, dear! I don't see anything to laugh at in this! Why couldn't Hannah -stay where she belonged! And just hear that poor little calf! I--I wish -it hadn't been given to me!" fretted the tired girl, yet obediently set -off in pursuit. - -Now the former master of Skyrie had divided it into many fields. He had -called these "building lots," and had confidently expected to sell them -at high prices to the rich people who had begun to settle on the -mountain. These dividing walls were stone, like all the others, but -sufficiently narrow to admit of Hannah's leaping them easily. She did -leap them, running from one to another in a manner confusing to herself -and doubly so to Dorothy, pursuing. Fortunately, the wide walls -bordering the square outline of the farm were impassable even to her: -and gradually, pursued and pursuer made their way back to that -home-field whence the race had started. - -After all it was the voice of nature conquered, not Dorothy's fleetness. -Daisy-Jewel's bleating and bawling accomplished the return of the -runaway; though not till that too active creature had blundered into the -wrong fields so many times that Dorothy was in despair. - -Thereafter, Hannah was always most securely tethered or kept shut up in -her stall within the barn; her mistress finding it easier to cut the -grass and feed her there than to allow her to do it for herself. But -these performances did not endear the creature to anybody: nor was it -comforting to have Pa Babcock--who took no part in any of these -"chasings"--inform them that: - -"Of course, that was the reason my friend Oliver sold her to you so -cheap. At ordinary rating that fine blooded cow would have brought at -least a hundred dollars. Of course, too, there had to be some -consideration to offset the price;" and again when, on the morning of -that gathering at Seth Winters's smithy, Hannah had gnawed her fastening -rope in two and started on a tour of the farm, he began to explain: -"There is a way to prevent such----" But had paused abruptly, his -attention attracted to the road below, and finished his possible advice -by the pointing of his grimy finger and the exclamation: "Tiberius -Cæsar! Look a-there!" - -Mrs. Chester did look and instinctively sought the society of John and -Dorothy, as a protection against the invasion that threatened them. - -"Oh! what can it mean? They are all looking this way as if they were -bound for Skyrie! Wagons, people, such a crowd--tell me, John Chester, -_have you advertised again_? Is it another 'sale'?" - -But he shook his head, as much surprised and alarmed as she: till Seth -Winters, the foremost of this invading army, came up to them, and -courteously doffing his hat, explained, with a gay: - -"Good-morning, neighbors! Don't be frightened! We are nothing but a -well-meaning _bee_!" - - - - -CHAPTER XIII - -A BENEFICENT BEE - - -If to be busy is a synonym for "bee" this one was well named. As the -blacksmith further explained, while Dorothy hastened to fetch a chair -for Mrs. Calvert, who stood beside him, merrily smiling: - -"It's a way country folks have of giving a neighbor a lift. We get up -'bees' to raise a barn, help in somebody's belated haying or harvesting, -and we've arranged one now to get Skyrie into a little better shape. Too -much of a job for one man to undertake alone, and with your permission, -we'll begin. Each man knows his part and your near neighbor, John Smith, -is boss of the whole. His farm is next to this, he knows most about -Skyrie. 'One year's seeding makes seven years' weeding,' you know, and -poor Skyrie has been running to weed-seeds far too long. _May_ we -begin?" - -Mother Martha could not speak, and Dorothy seemed all eyes and mouth, -so widely they stared and gaped in her surprise; but father John found -voice to falter: - -"We are almost overcome. I shall never be able to return this kindness, -and I don't, I can't quite understand----" - -"No need you should, and as for returning kindnesses, all can find some -way to do that if they watch out. I take it you are willing we should go -ahead. Therefore, John Smith! do your duty! and let every man hustle as -he never did before. By sunset and milking-time Skyrie must be the -best-ordered farm on the mountain! Hip, hip, hooray!" - -What a cheer went up! With what honest pride did John Smith, the best -farmer of them all, step to the fore and assign to each man his place! -and with what scant loss of time did the fun begin! - -Fun they made of it, in truth, though long untilled fields were stubborn -in their yielding to plow or harrow, and unmown meadows were such a -tangle as tried the mettle of mowing machine and scythe. - -Into the garden rushed a half-dozen workers, with plow, spade, rake, and -seed bags, coolly forcing the staring Pa Babcock aside, at the risk of -being trampled in his own asparagus ditch. Also he, with equal coolness, -resigned himself to having his task taken out of hand and repaired to -the side of his employers to rest. Was he not, also, one of the family? - -Such a "bee" as that was had never before buzzed on that mountain, even -though this was by no means the first one known there. It was of greater -proportions and more full of energy than could possibly have been -brought to the mere raising of a barn or the gathering of a single crop. -Dorothy's romantic history, added to the ex-postman's own pitiful story, -would have been sufficient to win those warm-hearted country folk to the -rescue, even without the example of Seth Winters to rouse them -everywhere. - -"My Cousin Seth calls himself a blacksmith, but he seems to be a -carpenter as well. See? He is actually climbing the roof, to make sure -every old, worn-out shingle is replaced by a new one. Trust me, if Seth -undertakes anything it will be well done. Your roof will never leak -again, as Dorothy said it did that stormy night," said Mrs. Cecil to -Martha, while that astonished matron sat now beside her guest, watching -and wondering, unable to talk; till at last a sudden fear arose in her -housewifely breast, and she answered by asking: - -"What shall I do with them? How feed them all? I can just remember such -a time when my grandfather had a lot of people come to help, and all the -women in the house had to cook for days beforehand, it seems to me, for -the one dinner." - -"O mother! We can't! Why, there aren't potatoes enough in the pantry for -our own dinner, let alone so many people!" cried Dorothy, regretfully -regarding her small fingers, roughened now by that cutting of "seed." -"Even if we'd saved all you got of Mrs. Smith they wouldn't have begun -to go around. I might--do you suppose I could make biscuit enough, like -you taught me for father's supper--if there was flour--and maybe butter, -and there was time!" - -Mrs. Cecil laughed and drew the girl close to her for a moment; then, -rising, said: - -"Don't worry, Mrs. Chester, nor Dolly dear. These folks haven't come to -make trouble but to save it. I see that the women are gathering in that -far field that has already been mowed and raked. Herbert Montaigne is -there, with his horse-rake, and I'm curious to see if he can manage -something useful as easily as he does his own fast horse. Besides, -country women are a bit shy, sometimes, and I want you to go among them -with me and get acquainted. Get your--Mrs. Chester a hat, my darling, -and your own if you need it, Dorothy." - -She spoke with a tone of authority, habitual enough, but she had -hesitated for an instant over the word "mother," and Martha's tender, -jealous heart was quick to notice it and to assure herself that "she has -taken a notion to my girl and wants to adopt her from me. I know it. I'm -as sure as if she'd said so outright. But she shan't. She shall not. -Dorothy is not the kind of child to be handed from pillar to post, that -fashion. She's mine. She was sent to me and I shall keep her, even if -John did once say that a richer woman could do more for her than we can. -I--I begin almost to--to hate Mrs. Cecil! And I'm glad I didn't borrow -money of her instead of that nice old Friend." - -By which reflections it seemed that poor, jealous mother Martha likened -herself to a "pillar" and the mistress of Deerhurst to a "post." It was -in that mood she followed the old lady down to that far field in which -the group of women, aided by a few lads, seemed so strangely busy. - -Busy, indeed! In a community accustomed to "picnics" conveniences for -such were a matter of course; so in some of the wagons had been brought -wooden tressels, and the long boards that were laid upon these made the -necessary tables for the great feast to come. - -In one corner of this field, fragrant now with the freshly cut grass -which Herbert had raked into windrows, was a cluster of trees, giving a -comfortable shade; and beneath these the helpful lads detailed for the -task set up the tressels and placed the boards in readiness; then -brought from the wagons in the road outside such big baskets and so -many, all so heavily laden with the best their owners could provide, -that Dorothy could only clasp her hands and cry out in amazement: - -"Why, this is far and away beyond anything we ever had at home! Even the -Sunday-school excursions down the Bay didn't have so many baskets! I -wish--how I wish that father was here!" - -"Here he shall be!" cried Herbert, jumping from his seat upon the rake -and hurrying toward her. "I've gathered up all that's in this lot and -I'll go fetch him. Goodness! If there isn't the little mother herself! -Come to see if her precious son has overheated himself by doing -something useful! Wait, Dorothy! Here's a lark! My mother wouldn't mix -with 'common folks'--I mean she wouldn't be let by Helena--but now she -shall. She has let her curiosity and her anxiety over her son and -heir"--here the lad swept Dolly a profound bow which she as merrily -returned by as profound a courtesy, each laughing as if no disagreement -had marked their last interview--"she has come to the 'Bee' and she -shall taste of its honey!" - -Away he sped, scattering jests and laughter as he went, the farm-wives -whom his friendliness had already propitiated looking after him with -ready approval, while more than one remarked on the absence of that -"insolence" which had been attributed to him. - -"The father and daughter may be terrible top-lofty, but there ain't no -nonsense in the boy, and the mother looks as if she'd like to be -neighborly, if she dared to," said Mrs. Smith, advancing to meet Mrs. -Calvert and Martha. "How-do, Mis' Cecil? It's the crownin' top-notch of -the whole business, havin' you come, too. But I knowed you would. I said -to John, says I, 'Mis' Calvert's sure to be on hand if she can shake a -leg, she ain't one to miss no doin's, she ain't,' I says, and I'm -tickled to death to see you can, ma'am." - -With this conclusion Mrs. Smith turned a triumphant eye upon her -neighbors as if to show them how exceedingly familiar and intimate she -was with the greatest lady "up-mounting." Besides, as wife of the -commander of this expedition, she realized her own important position: -and set to work at once to introduce everybody to Mrs. Chester, for Mrs. -Calvert was already known to most and waited no introduction to those -she did not know. - -"Now, boys, get them benches sot up right to once! wouldn't keep -visitin' ladies standing, would you?" ordered this mistress of -ceremonies, herself setting the example by placing a bench under the -very shadiest tree and beside the head table. "Now, Mis' Calvert, Mis' -Chester, Dolly, and you, old Mis' Turnbull, step right up and se' down. -Comfortable, be ye? All right, then, we'll have dinner ready in the jerk -of a lamb's tail! Mis' Spencer, you set that cherry pie o' yourn on this -particular spot an' figure of this table-cloth! I want Mis' Calvert to -taste it, an' when she does she'll say she never knew before what cherry -pie could be! Fact. Oh! you needn't wriggle an' try to make believe you -don't know it yourself, Sarah Spencer, so bein's you've took first prize -for pies at the county fair, three-four years hand-runnin'. Fit to set -off this very best table-cloth in the bunch--My! but it's fine! yet the -lucky woman 'at owns it didn't think the best none too good for this -here joyful occasion. I tell you, isn't it a good thing the Lord sent -us such a splendid day? Hot? Well, maybe, but need hot weather to make -the corn grow an' hay cure right. Now, if that don't beat the Dutch! -here comes the boss himself! Bore right along like a king on his throne! -Hurray!" - -By the "boss," of course, it was Mr. Chester she meant: smiling as even -that sunny-tempered gentleman had rarely smiled, and carried in a stout -chair upon the shoulders of two strong men, while waving them to the -tune of his merry whistle, followed Herbert with the crutches. - -"Coffee? Smell it! Fried chicken? Well, that's a smart trick. Wait till -I copy that over at the camp!" cried the lad, always a hungry chap but -never quite so hungry as now; and watching with admiration how deftly -two women were deep-frying in a kettle, suspended by three crotched -sticks above a fire on the ground, the already prepared fowls which had -once been the choicest of their flocks. - -Plenty of other things there were, roasts and broils and brews, but Mrs. -Smith's mandate had long before gone forth that: "Our men must have -something hot with their dinner, and not all 'cold victuals.' John he -can get more work out of a hired man 'an anybody else I ever saw, an' he -does it by feedin' 'em. He says, says he, in hayin' time when he wants -folks to swing their scythes lively: 'Buttermilk an' whey, Draggin' all -the day; Ham an' eggs--Look out for your legs!' So I'm bound to have -that tried to Mr. Chester's 'Bee.'" - -So not only figuratively but practically it was a case of "ham and -eggs," and brimful of his enjoyment, master Herbert now deposited the -crutches within easy reach of their owner and hurried to the road, where -his mother and sister sat amusedly watching in their phaeton. He made -one attempt to vault over the intervening wall, but it was so wide he -failed and struck the top in an ignominous heap, which set all the other -lads in the field into uproarious laughter--himself joining in it with -perfect good humor. Even his mother, whose idol he was, looked at him in -surprise, anticipating scowls instead of smiles; but the love and -sympathy which had emanated from Seth Winters's big heart had touched, -that day, the more selfish heart of many another--even the "spoiled" -lad, Herbert's. Ah! the bliss of bestowing kindness! how it returns in -an overflow of happiness! - -"O son! Are you hurt?" cried Mrs. Montaigne, in alarm. How could anybody -fall upon stones in that way and not be injured? But "son" had rebounded -from the impact like a rubber ball, or the best trained gymnast of his -school, as he was. - -Another leap brought him to the side of the carriage and to insisting -that his women should return with him to what he called "the festal -board," adding "it's literally such, though don't they look dainty? -those rough planks covered with white linen? Oh! but they've got the -'fixings' to make your mouth water. Please get out, mother, Helena, and -come. I'll help you over the wall. It's easy. Come!" - -But Helena drew up with haughtiness, demanding: - -"What can you be thinking of, Herbert Montaigne? The idea of mother or I -mixing in such a crowd. If it suits you to play the fool----" - -"No foolishness about what I did, I tell you! Why, child alive, I raked -the hay together on three whole six-acre fields! I! your -good-for-something brother! Think of that, then put it in your pipe and -smoke it!" - -With that he began strutting up and down beside the phaeton with such a -comical resemblance to a pouter pigeon that coachman James had to turn -his face aside, lest he should disgrace himself by a smile, while Mrs. -Montaigne laughed aloud. - -"Herbert, you dreadful boy! You use more shocking language every day. -There's no need for you to suffer any further contamination by mingling -with such persons as are yonder. Don't go back. Ride home with us, and -let's go into Newburgh and pay visits upon somebody worth while," coaxed -Helena, whose mission in life seemed to be the reconstruction of all -with whom she came in contact. - -"Not much I go! I hate visits, and if you think you're going to drag me -away from Skyrie just the minute the real fun begins, you're mistaken, -that's all. Besides, what would my friend Mrs. Calvert think if I -deserted her in this base fashion? Why, we've settled it that I'm to be -her attendant at this famous dinner--I tell you it's going to make -history, this busy bumble 'Bee'! It will be told of and held up as an -example of what can be done and should be done, sometimes. No, indeed, I -shan't miss it, and you won't unless you're a bigger--I mean more unwise -than I think you. Mother's coming anyway, to sit next to Mrs. Calvert -and that pretty Dorothy. Huh! Talk about girls! She's a daisy, she is! -Good deal more of one than that little-boy-calf of hers she's so fond -of. That's right, mother! Have a will of your own or a will of mine, -once in a lifetime!" commended this persuasive son. - -Mrs. Montaigne loved both her children, said that she did so equally, -and they both ruled her; Helena by fear, Herbert by love. Under all his -rollicking nonsense the deepest feeling of the lad's heart was love for -the timid little woman who was so ready to sacrifice herself to them -all, and who he believed was also the superior of all. Once in a long -while she acted with decision. She did so now. Whether the name of -Calvert had been one to conjure with, or because she was really anxious -to see what sort of people these were who had so evidently "bewitched" -her son, she descended from the phaeton, laughingly demanding if -Herbert thought she "possibly could get over that dreadful wall, or -should they go further and through the gate?" - -"Over it? Easy as breathing!" - -She was a tiny woman and he a very strong lad: and before she knew what -he was about he had caught her over his back, sack-fashion, and leaped -to the top of the wide wall. A couple of steps, and he had swung her -down upon the grass within the field, where she stood too amazed to -speak: though Mrs. Smith, observant from a distance, dramatically -exclaimed: - -"My soul and body! You could knock me down with a feather!" - - - - -CHAPTER XIV - -AN ASTONISHING QUESTION - - -"Everybody's here, with all his first wife and children!" cried -somebody, facetiously, as the tin horn was blown to summon the men from -their labors in the field to their dinner. - -"So they be! So they be! yonder comes Mis' Babcock with all her flock, -root and branch. Reckoned she'd strike Skyrie about feedin' time; but -there's plenty, plenty for everyone; and she's a nice woman, a hard -worker an' kind neighbor. Sho! Look at Seth Winters! If that man ain't a -kind of a mesmeriser, or somethin' like it! for he's actually coaxed -that proud Miss Montaigne to join the merry throng! Fact. I just seen -him escortin' her through the gate, an', Dorothy! mind you put on your -best manners an' treat her real polite, like city folks is supposed to -know how. Since she's put her pride in her pocket an' come, I'd like to -have her see she ain't the only young lady up-mounting. 'Cause you -belong now, you know; you're one of _us_. Go meet her, whilst I fix -another chair right alongside her ma and Mis' Calvert!" directed Mrs. -Smith, handing the girl a plate of rusk, with the added injunction: -"Take special care o' them biscuit, too, child. I made them myself, I -did, an' I want the 'ristocratics to have first chance at 'em. If some -them men folks tackle them on the road to table, there won't be nothin' -left of them but the plate. Take care! I--Why, I don't believe she heard -a word I said!" - -Dorothy had heard in part. She obediently carried the plate to the -table, though not to that part of it which its owner had designated, and -she had answered: "Yes, Mrs. Smith, I will try." But she had suddenly -perceived a forlorn figure, leaning against the stone wall that -separated the field from the road, and her interest centered on that. - -Poor Peter Piper was peering wistfully into that busy, happy, laughing -assemblage of people, as if he longed to be among them yet felt himself -shut out. He had not heard about the "Bee," and even if he had might -not have comprehended what it meant. Had he been at the blacksmith's -home once after the scheme was started, Seth would assuredly have given -the half-wit as courteous a chance to share in the fun and labor of that -day as he had given all his other neighbors. But Peter had not been seen -by anybody who knew him since that visit of his to Skyrie, in company -with old Brindle. He had departed then, frowning and greatly troubled. -Why, his clouded mind could not understand; but something had gone -wrong. The once deserted farm had become the home of strangers and he -could visit it no more. Thus much he felt and knew; and that night he -disappeared. - -However, the poor fellow's absences were so frequent that nobody missed -him from the neighborhood and Dorothy had utterly forgotten him. Now, as -she saw him, her heart throbbed with pity. - -"He looks as if this picnic were Paradise, and he shut out! I'm going to -ask him here!" - -With a swoop upon it Mrs. Smith rescued her fine rusk from the plebeian -appetites which would have consumed it and carried it triumphantly to -the "aristocratic" end of the head table, then stood arms akimbo, -staring after Dorothy and ejaculating: - -"If that don't beat all my first wife's relations! That chit of a child -set down the biscuit, but she snatched up a big cake worth twice as -much. She's going to coax that simpleton with it, just as a body has to -coax a wild critter to come an' be caught. And I plain told her that -Helena Montaigne was here, and 'twas her chanst to make friends with -_her_. Pshaw! I don't believe that Dorothy Chester cares a pin whether -she gets in with rich folks or not! 'Tain't five minutes ago 't I heard -her sassin' Herbert same as she might one my own boys. Don't stand in -awe of nobody, Dorothy don't, an' yet nobody gets mad at her. 'Course, I -don't begrudge Peter Piper a mouthful o' victuals. None of us would, but -what's _left over_ after the rest is done would be plenty good enough -for him. Huh! All that splendid chocolate cake--five-layer-thick!" - -As Dorothy approached the wall Peter dodged behind it and, for a moment, -she thought he had run away. If he had she meant to follow; and with -the ease that her long practice in chasing Hannah had given her she -vaulted over the wall to pursue. But he had not run, and she landed on -the further side plump beside him where he sat huddled against the -stones. - -"Well! It was lucky for you I didn't jump on you instead of by you!" -cried the girl, as she, also, sat down on the bank. - -Peter shrank aside, as one who wards off a blow, and mumbled something -which she made out to mean: - -"I didn't do any harm. I didn't!" - -His speech was thick and he lisped like a baby learning to talk, but his -face brightened when she answered quickly: - -"Of course you didn't. But why aren't you in there with all the others? -You must come, in a minute, back with me. First, see here?" - -With the friendliest of smiles she held aloft the monster cake she had -judged would be the waif's proper share of the feast, choosing for him, -as she would for herself, to have the dessert come before the bread and -butter. - -Peter's protruding eyes fastened upon the dainty and his mouth opened -widely, and for a time, at least, he knew nothing beyond that cake. -Breaking it into bits, Dorothy fed him. He did not offer to take the -food in his own hands, he simply opened that cavernous mouth and -received with a snap of his jaws the portions she dropped therein. The -operation became fascinating to the girl and she marveled to see no -movement of swallowing; only that automatic opening and closing, and the -subsequent absorption of the cake. - -She had not supposed he would consume the whole loaf at one meal. He -did. The last morsel followed the first and still there was no sign of -surfeit, and the girl sprang up, saying: - -"Now I must go back to help those ladies wait on the table. Will you -come?" - -With some hesitation Peter Piper got to his feet, and now his gaze was -riveted upon her face as closely as it had been upon the chocolate cake -and almost as greedily. As if within her bonny smile and unshrinking -friendliness he beheld something new and wonderfully beautiful. It was -just as they stood up that somebody behind the wall called out: - -"Well, Peter Piper! Good enough! So you've come to the 'Bee,' too, have -you? If you'd let me know where you were you'd have had your invitation -long ago. Time enough, though, time enough. Always is to do a good deed, -and there's a deal of work yet to be finished before nightfall. Let me -tell you, Miss Dorothy Chester, there isn't a better gardener anywhere -around than our friend Peter! If he'd only stick to it--if the lad would -only stick to it!" - -It was Seth Winters, of course, who had seen Dorothy's crossing of the -field to that same spot where he, also, had discovered the feathered cap -of the poor imbecile. He was honestly glad of the lad's return, being -always somewhat anxious over his long absences. Much experience of life -had shown him that the world is not very kind to such as Peter, and he -tried by fatherly interest and goodness to make up to the boy somewhat -for the harshness of others. Dorothy's action had delighted him: and -with an approving smile he held his hands toward her, across the wall, -and bade: - -"Give me your hands, lassie! I'll help you back over; and, Peter, come." - -Dorothy sprang lightly to the top of the wall and he swung her as -lightly down; the half-wit following with a nimbleness one would not -have expected and, like a child, catching hold of the girl's skirt and -thus firmly attaching himself to her. - -"Why, Peter! Don't do that! Young ladies don't like to drag big fellows -like you around by main force!" remonstrated the smith, smiling and -shaking his head at the youth, who merely smiled in return and clutched -the tighter, even though the girl once or twice tried to loosen his -grasp, attempting this so gently that it produced no effect; and thus -escorted she came back to the stables beneath the trees and to the -presence of Helena, toward whom officious Mrs. Smith immediately forced -her. - -Oddly enough, since they were so unlike, there was instant liking -between the two girls; and with a smile Helena made room for Dorothy on -the bench beside her. But there was no room for Peter, nor would he have -claimed it now had there been plenty. With intense and haughty surprise -Helena had stared at the unfortunate for a moment, till an amused -contempt curved her lips in a disdainful smile. - -In general, people did not credit the poor creature with sensitiveness; -none save Seth Winters believing that he keenly felt the scoffs and -gibes so often put upon him; but he now proved the truth of the -blacksmith's opinion. Helena's scornful look did what Dorothy's efforts -had failed to do--it loosened Peter's fingers from her skirt and sent -him, cowering and abashed, to the furthest limit of the group. -Fortunately, for him, straight also to a spot where Herbert Montaigne -was merrily helping--or hindering--the women busy cooking over the fires -upon the ground. Herbert had seen Dorothy's exit from the field with the -great cake in hand and had, for an instant, intended pursuit that should -end in a lark; then he had seen the red feathers of Peter's cap and -reflected: - -"That girl's got some fellow over there she's going to feed on the sly. -They've both dropped down out of sight now--I reckon I won't spoil -sport--shouldn't like it myself. It's none of my business anyhow, though -I wouldn't mind being the fellow in the case--this time." - -Also he made it sufficiently his business to watch for the reappearance -of Dolly, minus the cake and attended by Seth and the too appreciative -Peter. Then the whole significance of the incident flashed upon him, and -to his boyish fancy for the little maid was instantly added a deep -respect. - -"Bless my eyes! I called her a 'daisy,' but she's more than that. There -isn't a girl in a thousand who'd have done that decent thing without -being bidden; but--Hello! seems as if she'd got what Mrs. Smith calls -her 'come uppance'! The simpleton has glued himself to her petticoats -and she can't shake him free!" Then a moment more of watching showed him -the result of his sister's haughtiness and made him exclaim aloud: "Good -enough for Helena! The first time I ever knew her confounded pride to be -of any use. But here comes the victim of her scorn, and it's up to me to -finish the job Dorothy C. has so well begun!" - -In all his life poor Peter Piper had never been so happy as that day -made him. Instead of the indifference or aversion commonly shown him, he -was met with an outstretched hand and the genial greeting of another lad -not much younger than himself; and if, for the sake of impressing others -into the same friendliness, the greeting was rather overdone, the fault -was on the right side and Peter was too simple to suspect it. - -With a confused expression and an unaccountable warmth in his lonely -heart, the "touched of God" accepted the extended hand and cast a -grateful glance into Herbert's face. A look that, for an instant, -suffused that youngster's own because he felt his present kindness to be -"second hand." Then Peter turned about and pointed to where Dorothy now -sat laughing and feasting, and volubly explaining to Mrs. Smith, between -mouthfuls: - -"I really couldn't help taking the nicest cake in sight, dear Mrs. -Smith! I knew it was yours and belonged now to the public; and I will -make you another to take its place. I--I hope it wasn't 'stealing----'" -she finished, with a momentary gravity. - -"Bless all my first wife's relations! Don't let such a horrid word as -that come to this merry 'Bee!' It was yours, your very own, leastwise -your ma's and pa's, to eat or give away just as you'd ruther. I do still -think that broken pieces, after the rest has finished, would have -answered the purpose full as well, but----" - -"Broken pieces, Mrs. Smith! On a day like this?" cried Mrs. Calvert, -reprovingly. "You do yourself an injustice. If I'm not mistaken you've -put aside some mighty tender pieces of chicken and part of your own -biscuits for this same poor estray." - -The mistress of ceremonies blushed and bridled her head. In truth she -had, indeed, "put aside" the dainties mentioned, but alas! they had been -intended for the delectation of her own and her cronies' palates. With -instant change of mind, however, she caught up the basket hidden beneath -the table and marched valiantly forward to the spot where Herbert was -supplying Peter with the best of everything he could lay his hands on. -Admirably frank--when found out--good Mrs. Smith now added her store to -Herbert's, and the half-wit's eyes grew more protruding than ever. -Also, to the disgust of both watchful lad and woman, Peter caught the -food from the basket and thrust it within his oilcloth jacket. He knew, -if those watching him did not, the terrible pangs of starvation and here -was provision for many a day. Besides, the whole of a rich chocolate -cake does have a diminishing effect upon even such appetites as Peter's. - -Bounteous as the feast was, but a brief half-hour was permitted for its -consumption; then the master of the day announced: - -"Our job's well begun and so half-done. Now for a fine finish -and--home!" - -All who were standing hurried to their tasks at this word of command, -and all who were sitting as promptly rose. Among them Mrs. Cecil, with a -sudden realization of her eighty years of cushioned ease and her one -hour of sitting on a board. Also, her zest of the occasion had as -suddenly passed. She had taken a moment's chance to speak to "Johnnie" -of money matters; how it would "really be an accommodation for him to -take and use some of her own superfluous ready cash, till such time as -Skyrie began to yield a comfortable income"; and to her delicately -worded offer "Johnnie" had returned a most awkward refusal. He had tried -to soften his reply, but not being politic or tactful had succeeded only -in expressing himself more brusquely. When pressed to tell if any other -person had superseded her, he had to acknowledge that Friend Oliver -Sands had done so, but that the affair belonged to his wife, etc. - -That was the climax. Between the mistress of Deerhurst and the miller -there was a grudge of long standing. Though liberal in her business -dealings the old gentlewoman hated to be cheated, and she had openly -declared to all who chose to listen that Oliver had cheated her. She -stopped buying her feed of him and went to the extra trouble of sending -all the way to Newburgh for everything in his line that was required at -Deerhurst. - -Few like to have their kindnesses returned upon themselves, -unappreciated: Betty Calvert less than most: so with a feeling of -affront, which she was too outspoken wholly to corer by politeness, she -said: - -"Mr. Smith, I must go home. May Dorothy Chester take your horse and -wagon and drive me there?" - -"Of course, and proud to have you use it. But can that little girl -drive?" he asked, glancing at the child with a funny smile. Well he knew -the retort he might expect--and presently received, amid a burst of -kindly laughter from others around--from the lady: - -"My good Mr. Smith, _I_ sold you that nag. He's twenty years old if a -day. A babe in arms could drive him! and I'll send a capable horseman -back with him--and her. Good-day, all; and God speed the finish!" - -She said it quite devoutly, thankful for the present help given the -crippled, would-be farmer, and knowing that with even the best of help -his future would be difficult. - -A few moments later, for the first time in her life, Dorothy held a pair -of reins in her hands, clutching them tightly as if all her strength -were required to restrain the speed of the venerable animal hitched -before the open "democrat" in which she sat, and that nothing could -induce to anything swifter than a walk. Once she opened her lips and -asked, nervously: - -"Are you--much afraid, Mrs. Calvert?" - -"Not--much!" quavered that lady, in mimicry, and with the most admiring -contemplation of the earnest young face beside her. From the flapping -ears of their steed Dorothy's own eyes never wavered. It was a wonderful -experience. To pull on either rein and guide so big a creature to the -right or left--Why, she had seen others drive but she had never before -realized the great intelligence of a horse! Oh! how delightful it would -be to own one for one's self! All the inborn love of horseflesh that, -till that moment, she had not realized woke up in her small breast, and -finally found voice in the exclamation: - -"Oh! If Daisy-Jewel had only been a colt instead of a calf!" - -"A perfectly simple matter to change him into one," quietly returned -Mrs. Cecil; and hearing her, Dorothy wondered if this old gentlewoman -were in truth the "fairy godmother" to whom she had sometimes likened -her. - -The girl did not answer. They had arrived at the gates of Deerhurst and -this young "coachman" was gravely considering how to drive through them -without hitting either ivy-covered pillar. So earnest was she now that -Mrs. Calvert had twice to repeat a question she had long been pondering; -but which fell upon Dorothy Chester's ears, at last, with the sound of -an exploding bomb. - -"My little Dorothy, will you come to live with me, and become _my_ -adopted daughter?" - - - - -CHAPTER XV - -CONCERNING SEVERAL MATTERS - - -"O Jim! I feel so--so guilty! Just as if I had done something dreadfully -wrong!" cried troubled Dorothy C. to her faithful if jealous friend, as -they were driving homeward again. The reins were in his hands this time -and he held them with an ease which left everything to the old horse -itself, and which would have surprised the girl had room been left in -her mind for any smaller surprises after that great one of Mrs. Cecil's -question. - -"Don't see why," returned practical Jim. His own satisfaction was great, -just then, for he had seen Herbert Montaigne driving homeward on his -brand-new horse-rake, brilliant in red paint and purchased by that -extravagant youth expressly for the Skyrie "Bee." Herbert had forsaken -that laborious festivity, soon after the departure of Mrs. Calvert and -Dorothy; but not till after he had also finished all the raking there -had been for him to do. Much of the ground was so overrun with bushes -and brambles that only hand-rakes were available, and to the more -difficult task of these the lad did not aspire. - -Now, at ease with his own conscience and at peace with all the world, he -drove by the gates of Deerhurst whistling his merriest, and bent upon -ending his rarely useful day by a row upon the river. He even caught a -glimpse of Dorothy sitting in the farm wagon waiting for Jim to "make -himself tidy after his gardening," as his mistress had directed; and had -called out some bit of nonsense to her which she was too absorbed in -thought to notice. - -"That's all right. Needn't answer if she doesn't wish! I'll see her -to-morrow and get her to go on that picnic at the camp. One picnic paves -the way to another--that's easy! I don't feel now any great longing even -for planked shad--such a dinner I ate! But that's one good thing about a -dinner, little Kit! Take a few hours off and you'll be ready for the -next one! Good thing my top-lofty sister 'took a notion' to sweet Dolly! -That's going to make things lots easier for my scheme, 'but I'll 'bide -a wee' before I spring it on the Pater. Eh, little Kit? Aren't you a -beauty? and--good luck! You're just the thing to take her, to-morrow. -She told me, to-day, they hadn't a single cat. '_Not a single cat!_' In -a tone of regular heartbreak, she said it, Kit! That's why I heard you -squalling by the roadside and picked you up. Somebody dropped you, -didn't he? Somebody a deal richer in cats than Dorothy C. Why, little -Kit, I heard a workman telling the other day how he found a bag of -kittens, a whole bag of them, 'lost' by somebody as heartless as your -own late owner, probably, but far less wise. For the bag was a potato -sack and it had the owner's name stamped in full on it. Must have lost -it out the back of a wagon, the workman thought. Anyway, next day he -gathered up all the stray cats and kittens he could find and in the dead -of night--the dead of night, little Kit! when all dire deeds are -done!--he carried the replenished sack back and left it on the 'loser's' -doorstep. Good for that workman! but, query. What became of the cats? -Never mind, Kitty, I know what will become of you, and your fate will -be the happiest possible. Get up there, Slowpoke!" finished the lad, -thrusting the tiny kitten he had found astray on the road into his -blouse, and urging the work horse forward. In any case it is probable he -would have picked up the lost kitten and given it a home in his father's -barn, but it suited well with Dorothy's pathetic regret that he should -have found it. - -"You 'don't see why,' Jim Barlow, I feel so worried over what Mrs. -Calvert asked? Then you're stupider than I thought. She is so kind, she -found and saved me--after you, of course--and she is so old and lonely. -I'd love to live with her if--if there were two of me. Already she looks -to me to do little things for her that nobody else seems to think she -wants, and to do them without her asking. I love her. Seems if she was -sort of my folks--_my own folks_ that I must have had sometime. We like -the same things. She adores Dickens, so do I. She loves outdoors, so do -I. She--But there, it's no use! I can't go to live with her and leave -father John and mother Martha. It would break their hearts and mine, -too! Oh! dear! I wish she hadn't asked me; then I wouldn't have had to -say 'No,' and see her beautiful old face lose all its lovely brightness. -When I think how old she is, how it's but a little while she'll need -me--Why, then my heart breaks in two the other way! O Jim! Isn't life a -terrible, terrible perplexity?" demanded this small maid to whom "life" -was, indeed, just showing its realities. - -Jim listened silently, but it wouldn't have flattered her to know that -it was her ready flow of language and the rather long words she used -which mainly impressed him. To his practical mind it was simply -impossible for any right-minded girl to forsake those who had cared for -her all her life, in order to gratify the whim of an old lady whom she -had known but a short time. Nor did it enter the thoughts of either of -these young folks that the material advantages offered to Dorothy would -be very great. It was only a question of happiness; the happiness of the -Chesters or that of Mrs. Cecil. - -As they left Deerhurst behind them and still Jim had answered nothing -except that provoking "Don't see why," Dorothy lost her patience. - -"Jim Barlow, have you lost your tongue? I think--I think you're horribly -unsympathetic!" she cried, flashing a glance upon him that was meant for -anger, yet ended in surprise at his actually smiling countenance. "I -don't see anything funny in this business, if you do! What are you -laughing at?" - -Now he looked at her, his face radiant with the fun of his own thoughts, -and replied: - -"Lots o' things. Fust off, Dorothy, will you correct me every time I use -bad language?" - -"Bad--language! Swearing, you mean? Why, Jim, I never heard you, not -once. Huh! If I did I reckon I _would_ correct you, so quick 'twould -make you dizzy!" - -"Pshaw! I don't mean that, silly thing! I mean--Dorothy, I want to talk -like other folks: like Mis' Calvert----" - -"Then begin to call her 'Mrs.'" - -"Mrs. Calvert," answered Jim, obediently. "To you and her and Mr. -Chester, talkin'----" - -"Talking, Jim. Don't clip the g's off your words!" - -He half-frowned, then laughed. She was almost too ready with her -corrections. But he went on: - -"I'm studyin'--studying--every night, as long as I dast----" - -"Dare, you mean." - -Poor Jim gasped and retorted: - -"Well, dare, then, if you say so. D-a-r-e! and be done with it! Mis', I -mean Mrs., Calvert has give orders----" - -"Given orders, boy." - -"Shut up! I mean she's told the old man and woman that keeps----" - -"Who keep!" - -"That keeps the gate and lives in the lodge an' I live with 'em, if you -want to know the hull kit an' boodle of the story, she's give 'em orders -I can't have no light lit after half-past ten o'clock, 'cause I'll spile -my eyes an' break down my strength--Pshaw! as if a feller could, just -a-studyin', when he's so powerful bent on't as I be! But, you know I -know I don't talk quite the same as them 'at knows better an' has had -more book l'arnin'," explained the young student, hopelessly relapsing -into the truck-farm vernacular. - -"Yes, Jim, I do know that you know, as you so tellingly put it. I've -seen you flush more than once when you've noticed the difference in -speech, and I'll help you all I can. I don't know much myself. I'm only -a girl, not far along in her own education, but I'll do what I can; -only, Jim Barlow, don't you go and get offended when I set you right. If -you do you shall go on 'wallowing in your ignorance,' as I've read -somewhere. Now, that's enough 'correction' for once. Tell me the other -'lots of things' you were laughing at." - -"Sure! The first one, how we're goin' to get ahead of that old Quaker -miller. Mis'--Mrs.--Calvert's planned the hull--whole--business. She -don't like him none. She stopped me an' told me things, a few. She 'lows -he's got some scheme or other, 'at ain't no good to your folks, -a-lettin' good money on a wore-out farm like Skyrie. There's more in his -doin's than has come to light yet. That's what she says. Even his -sellin' your ma that jumpin' cow was a low-down, ornery trick. An' that -bull calf--no more use to such as you-all 'an a white elephant, she -says. Less; 'cause I s'pose a body'd _could sell_ a elephant, if they -was put to it. Say, Dorothy. They's a-goin' to be a circus come to -Newburgh bime-by. The pictures of it is all along the fences an' walls; -an', say--I'm earnin' wages now, real good ones. I told Mis', Mrs., -Calvert 't I didn't think I ought to take any money off her, 'cause -she's give--given--me all these new clothes an' treats me so like a -prince; but she laughed an' said how 'twas in the Bible that 'a laborer -is worthy of his hire' and she'd be a poor sort of Christian that didn't -at least try to live up to her Bible. Say, Dorothy, she's even give me -one for myself! Fact. She give it an' says she, she says: 'James, if you -make that the rule of your heart and life, you can't help being a -gentleman, 'at you aspire to be, as well as a good man.' Then she -fetched out another book, big--Why, Dorothy! So big it's real heavy to -lift! An' she called that one a 'Shakespeare.' The name was printed on -it plain; an' she said the man what wrote it more years ago 'an I can -half-tell, had 'done the thinkin' for half--the world, or more,' she -said. And how 'if I'd use them two books constant an' apply 'em to my -own life I'd never need be ashamed an' I could hold up my head in even -the wisest company.' Say, Dorothy! Mis' Calvert knows a powerful lot, -seems if!" - -"Well, she ought. She's lived a powerful long time." - -"An' I've been thinkin' things over. I don't believe I _will_ try to be -President, like we planned. Lookin' into that Shakespeare feller's book -I 'low I'd ruther write one like it, instead." - -"O Jim! That's too delightful! I must tell father that. I must! _You_, a -new _Shakespeare_! Why, boy, he's the wisest writer ever lived. I'm only -just being allowed to read a little bit of him, old as I am. My father -picks out the best parts of the best dramas and we often read them -together, evenings. But--What are the other things you thought about, -and made you laugh? That circus, too; shall you go to it, Jim? Did you -ever go to one?" - -"Never. _Never._ But I'm just sufferin' to go. Say, Dorothy? If I can -get all my work done, an' Mrs. Calvert she don't think it's sinful waste -o' good money, an' your folks'll let you, an' it don't come on to rain -but turns out a real nice day, an' I can get the loan of Mrs. Calvert's -oldest horse an' rig--'cause I wouldn't dast--dare--to ask for a young -one--an' I felt as if I could take care of you in such a terrible crowd -as Ephraim says they always is to circuses, would you, will you, go with -me?" - -In spite of herself Dorothy could not help laughing. Yet there was -something almost pathetic in the face of this poor youth, possessing a -small sum of money for the first time, beset by the caution which had -hedged his humble, dependent life, yet daring--actually daring, of his -own volition--to be generous! Generous of that which Miranda Stott had -taught him was the very best thing in the world--money! Of himself, his -strength, his unselfishness and devotion,--all so much higher than that -"money,"--he had always been most lavish; and remembering this, with a -sympathy wise beyond her years, Dorothy speedily hushed her laughter and -answered eagerly: - -"Indeed, I will, you dear, care-taking, cautious boy, and thank you -heartily. I love a circus. Father John used to take mother Martha and me -to one once every summer. Why, what a perfectly wild and giddy creature -I shall be! To a circus with you, a camp-picnic with Herbert and -Helena, and this splendid farmers' 'Bee'--Hurray!" - -Jim's countenance fell. "I didn't know 'bout that other picnic," said -he. "When's it comin' off? And what is a picnic, anyway?" - -"You'll see when we get home to Skyrie. A picnic is the jolliest thing -there is--except a circus. _Except a circus._ When it's to come off I -don't know, but when it does I mean you shall be in it, too, Jim Barlow. -Yet you haven't finished about poor, dear Mr. Oliver Sands. You have -wandered all over the face of the earth, as my teacher used to complain -I did in writing my compositions. I didn't stick to my subject. You -haven't stuck to yours, the Quaker man. Finish him up, for we're almost -at Skyrie now." - -Comforted by her ranking of a circus as something infinitely more -delightful than even a rich boy's picnic, and because the fields of -Skyrie were, indeed, now in view, Jim resumed concerning the gentleman -in question: - -"Dorothy, that calf o' yours won't never be no good. The man give him to -you, all right, an' 'peared amazin' generous. But--he cal'lated on -gettin' back more'n his money's worth. He'd tried to sell old Hannah -time an' again, so Mrs. Calvert was told, an' couldn't, 'count of her -being so hard to keep track of. He didn't dast to sell without the calf -alongside, for if he did the critter's so tearin' lively she'd 'a' got -back home to his farm 'fore he did, drive as fast as he might. But what -he planned was: your ma take the calf for a gift an' she'd have to send -to his mill to get feed an' stuff for to raise it on. To keep both cow -an' calf would cost--I don't know how much, but enough to suit him all -right. 'Tother side the matter, his side, you did get Hannah cheap. -She's good breed, her milk'll make nice butter----" - -"It does! Splendid, perfectly splendid! Mrs. Smith showed mother how to -manage and it all came back to her, for she had only, as father says, -'mislaid her knowledge' and she makes all the butter we need. Not all we -want--We could eat pounds and pounds! But it takes a good many quarts of -milk to make a pound of butter, I've learned; and an awful lot of what -father calls 'circular exercise' to make the 'butter come.' Mother -bought one of those churns that you turn around and around, I mean a -dasher around and around inside the churn--I get my talk mixed up, -sometimes--and it takes an hour, maybe, to turn and turn. Worse than -freezing ice cream in a 'ten-minute' freezer, like we had in Baltimore, -yet had to work all morning to get it frozen ready for Sunday dinner. -Mother thinks a dash-churn, stand and flap the dasher straight up and -down till your arms and legs give out, is the best kind. But the -around-and-around is the modern sort; so, of course, she got that. If -Daisy-Jewel and Piggy-Wig didn't need so much milk themselves there'd be -more for us. And somehow, you don't make me feel very nice toward Mr. -Oliver Sands." - -"Say, Dorothy. Mis' Calvert's notion is for you to sell Daisy an' buy a -horse. Will you, if you get a chance?" - -"Simple Simon! A horse is worth lots and lots more than a calf! was that -what she meant when she said a calf might turn into a colt? A colt is a -horse, after all. A little horse. Well, maybe she was right. I might -sell a little calf and get a little colt. But who in the world would -buy? Besides, despite all the trouble she makes, mother wouldn't part -with that pretty, écru-colored cow, and Hannah will not be separated -from Daisy-Jewel. I mean Daisy-Jewel will not be separated from Hannah. -Even a man, Mr. Oliver Sands, said that would be 'cruel.' You don't want -to have me cruel, do you, Jim Barlow?" - -"Shucks! Hannah won't mourn for no calf, longer 'n a couple of hours, -'less she's different from any cow I ever see, light-complected or -otherwise. As for that jumpin' notion o' hern; I'll fix her! I've been -layin' out to do it, ever since I heard she done it, but somehow I -didn't get the chance." - -"You didn't get the chance because you never take it. I don't think it's -right, Jim Barlow, for you to work every minute of daylight, fearing you -won't do all your horrid 'duty' to your employer, then study all night -to make yourself 'fit for your friends,' as you told me. Maybe, some of -your friends might like to see you, now and then, before you _are_ -'fit,'" returned Dorothy, and with that they came to the gate of Skyrie -and drove over the path to the barn, the path, or driveway, which that -very morning had been overgrown and hidden with grass and weeds, but -now lay hard and clean as if just newly made. - -"Pshaw! Somebody's been busy, I declare!" cried Jim, admiringly, and -leaped out to tie Mr. Smith's "nag" in a comfortable shady place. He did -not offer to help Dorothy alight, nor did she either wait for or expect -this courtesy; but seeing mother Martha in the kitchen, ran to her with -an account of her brief outing. - -The housemistress had slipped away from the few women guests left -remaining in the field where dinner had been served. Most of them had -already left for home, their part in the day's proceedings having been -well finished, and each a busy farmwife who had snatched a half-day from -her own crowding tasks to help the "Bee" along. - -She had made many acquaintances, she was glad to know them. She "liked -folks better than scenery," as she had once complained to her husband, -during a fit of homesickness for "dear old Baltimore"; but she was very -tired. The excitement of this unexpected visitation, and the varying -emotions of the day had strangely wearied her. Besides, deep down in her -heart--as in father John's--lay a feeling of wounded pride. She had -been very happy, for a time, she had found herself the center of much -kindly attention: and yet--she wished that the need for such attention -had not existed. So she was glad now of the privacy of her kitchen -whither none would intrude; and into which Dorothy ran, full of talk and -eager above all things to tell of that astonishing offer of Mrs. -Calvert's to re-adopt her. - -But something stopped the words on her lips. She could not herself have -explained why she refrained from speaking, unless it were that weary, -fretful expression of Mrs. Chester's face. So, instead of bestowing -confidences, she merely said: - -"Mother dear, do come upstairs to your own pretty room and lie down. -It's grown terribly warm this afternoon and you look so tired. I'll shut -the blinds and make it all dark and cool; then I'll find father John and -see if he needs me too. Come, mother, come." - -With a sudden burst of affection, such as rarely came from Mrs. Chester, -that lady caught the girl in her arms and kissed her fondly, saying: - -"You are my good angel, Dolly darling! You are the brightness of my -life. Don't ever let anybody else steal you away from me, will you? I -couldn't live without you, now--and here." - -Dorothy's breath came quick and sharp. How odd this was, to have her -mother touch upon that very subject lying uppermost in her own heart! -Could she and Mrs. Calvert have been discussing her in this way? Well, -at least, she now knew that she had been wholly right. The reluctant -"No" she had given Mrs. Betty was the only word to say. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI - -THE FATE OF DAISY-JEWEL - - -The "Bee" was a thing of the past. Everybody had gone, leaving a vastly -different Skyrie from that which greeted the rising sun of that -memorable day. Weed-grown, bramble-infested fields lay cleared of -débris, that had been gathered into heaps and burned. The garden plot -was now a stretch of well-made beds wherein had been sown or set such -things as would develop to ripeness that season, although it was long -past orthodox time for garden-making. To the delight of his obstinate -soul, even Pa Babcock's asparagus trench had been duly prepared and a -sufficient number of the roots set out. But the work of the trench, or -bed, had not been accomplished by himself. He had explained the pressing -need of such a thing to Mrs. Calvert, who, to rid herself and others of -his "talk," had promptly furnished the necessary funds to pay for the -plants and had dispatched him to a distant market gardener's to procure -them. He had returned sooner than was expected or desired, but could he -relegate his own intelligent task to anybody else? So, for once, he -really did work faithfully, spreading out each tiny rootlet with a care -that insured a prompt growth, and deluging them with water which it took -many trips to the spring to bring. - -The old well-curb had been repaired, the well emptied of water, and -cleaned. The barn had been put in order, so far as might be with the -time and material at command. The roof would not leak again nor the -blinds fall because of rusted hinges. Even the cellar had been swept, -and garnished with double coatings of sweet-smelling whitewash; and, -indeed, all that these willing helpers could think of and accomplish had -been done to make the Skyrie household "start farming fair and square." - -The last event of the "Bee" had been an auction. - -Mrs. Calvert had sent a brief note of instructions to Seth Winters and -he had promptly acted upon them. With such an assembly at hand the time -was ripe for selling Daisy-Jewel to the highest bidder. So the -blacksmith held a short parley with Bill Barry, the village auctioneer, -and afterward started the sale by a fair price named for such a blooded -quadruped. - -"Seven dollars! Seven dollars! Did I hear somebody bid seven dollars? -only seven for such a beautiful Jewel and Daisy combined?" - -"Seven fifty!" called Jim Barlow, also acting upon instructions. - -"Seven fifty--somebody higher? _And_ eight dollars? Eight, eight, eight, -somebody raise me eight-eight-eight--_And_ fifty! Eight dollars and -fifty cents! Why, you folks, you make me blush to be an auctioneer, -standing here on a horse-block and selling away from a little girl the -only piece of stawk she owns for just eight dollars and fifty cents. -That I should live to--Nine, nine, nine, nine! Somebody raise me nine -dollars for a full-bred Jersey bull calf! nine, nine, nine----" - -"Ten!" shouted Mr. Smith, who knew he could reimburse himself in some -way for this recklessly extravagant purchase. - -But the chance was not for him. "Ten fifty!" shouted somebody at the -rear of the crowd, and: - -"Ten and fifty! Fifty, fifty, fifty--Hard word that to rattle off--Make -it 'leven; and ease my poor tongue! 'Leven, 'leven, 'leven, eleven -dollars and fifty cents. That's that blamed old fifty cropping up again. -Go it by even dollars, friends and feller citizens, Eleven and--twelve, -twelve, twelve--Almost as bad to say! Hump her up. Thirteen do I hear? -Thirteen? Don't let her stick at that! who'll pay just thirteen unlucky -dollars when they can buy a full-blooded bull calf for--Fourteen, do I -hear? Fourteen, fourteen, four--four--four--Fifteen good American -dollars for a poor little girl's pet calf! Neighbors, I am ashamed of -you, I certainly am. Why, I'll bid sixteen myself, ruther 'an have such -a blot as that printed on this town's archives! I will, I say, though I -haven't any more use for a poor little girl's one pet calf than I have -for two wives! Sixteen I bid, seventeen somebody lifts me. Eighteen? -Nineteen? Twenty? Now you begin to talk! But let me warn you fellers, -that this here sale is cash or its equivalent. So anyone who's just -biddin' to hear himself talk--take care! Twenty-one, one, one, one, one, -one, one----" - -The sale went on for a long time, and the bidding grew more spirited -continually. Bill Barry's taunt about cash payment touched the pride of -some, but the outcome of the matter was predestined from the beginning. -Seth Winters had had his instructions and now acted upon them. When -nobody would "raise" him any higher, the calf was knocked down to him at -thirty-five dollars and was promptly dispatched to a new home in charge -of the Smith boys, who had come to see the finish of the "Bee." - -Bill Barry refused to take any payment for his services in the matter, -so the blacksmith hurried to find Dorothy and to place the money in her -hands. To his surprise, he found her weeping bitterly, with her head -against old Hannah's hairy side, as if mingling her tears with that -bereaved mother's. - -"Why, Dorothy dear! I understood you were tired of Daisy-Jewel and more -than willing to exchange him for a colt. See here--thirty-five dollars, -all in crisp banknotes, and your very own!" - -But Dorothy would not be comforted, nor even lift her curly head to look -upon what she now sadly considered as the price of blood, while Hannah -continued to moo distractingly, yet, at the same time managed to chew -her cud--the sign of a well-contented bovine mind. - -Jim also drew near, a wide, short board in hand and, wholly disgusted -with Dorothy's inconsistency, exclaimed: - -"Pshaw! If girls don't beat all creation for changin' their minds! Here -was you wantin' to be rid of that calf, now cryin' like--most like one -yourself. Shucks! Dorothy Chester, where's your good sense at? An' you -stand aside, will you? I want to fix Hannah so you won't have to chase -her no more." - -Now the truth is that Dorothy had listened to the auction with keen -interest and no thought of grief till she heard Mr. Barry allude to -herself as a "poor little girl with only one calf." Then the springs of -self-pity were touched and she would have stopped the sale had she dared -or known quite how. That her father approved of it he had told her at -its beginning, and so did Jim. These two were the most sensibly -practical persons she knew, even more than mother Martha,--where the -question of live stock was concerned,--and she ought to be guided by -their judgment. Daisy-Jewel had been a trial and expense from the day of -his arrival at Skyrie, but--he was _her_ Daisy-Jewel, and she had sold -him into bondage--probably, into worse: the hands of a butcher! -Thirty-five dollars! It seemed incredible: but thirty-five dollars as -the price of a life. How dreadful! - -"Stand still, you old misery! Now, then, my Hannah, how do you find -yourself?" cried Jim, coolly pushing Dorothy aside and stepping back -himself to avoid the twisting and jerking of the cow's horns. "There you -be! Plenty of chance to look down on the pasture but none to go skippin' -over stun walls!" - -Dorothy wiped her eyes, indignant with Jim for his callous want of -sympathy in her own grief, and curious about Hannah; who had ceased both -mooing and chewing, confused and distracted by the thing which had -befallen her. - -Jim had simply hung the board he had brought upon Hannah's horns and -securely fastened it there, letting it fall forward over her face at an -angle which permitted her to see the ground but, as he had declared, -would not encourage her search for stone walls to leap. "Easy as fallin' -off a log, ain't it?" he demanded of Mr. Winters, who had watched the -operation with some amusement and some compassion. "Some folks think -it's mean to put boards on 'em, but Mis' Stott she said 'twas better to -be mean to critters than to have critters mean to folks. Why, here has -Dorothy been runnin' half over the hull farm, catchin' Hannah, when all -that time she might have been studyin' her books!" - -"Thanks, noble youth! I'm not 'sufferin'' to study in the summer and -vacation time," answered Dorothy, who had begun to recover her -cheerfulness and now asked the blacksmith, as he extended the money -toward her: "What will become of Daisy now?" - -"Mrs. Calvert has bought him. He will be kept on the Deerhurst farm, the -other side of the mountain, and will grow up, I trust, quite worthy of -his pedigree. She owns a fine herd of animals and her stock-farm is one -of her chief interests here." - -"Than he won't be--be murdered?" - -"No, indeed. Here is your money. I must be going. Good-night." - -"I'll go along with you. Good-night, Dorothy. Don't forget to ask your -folks 'bout that circus!" called Jim, casting a self-important glance -into Seth Winters's face as he followed him down the path. - -With her money in hand Dorothy joined her parents and was well commended -that she had consented to the sale of Daisy-Jewel; and for a little -while, until milking-time required Martha's presence in the barnyard, -the trio discussed its vast amount and the best sort of horse to be -selected. Neither Mr. Chester nor his wife dashed the girl's enthusiasm -or so much as hinted that the sum in hand would scarcely pay for a good -horse. To her it seemed all-sufficient, not only for a horse, but for a -wagon and harness as well. And--But let us not anticipate! - -The circus whose coming attractions now filled Jim Barlow's mind more -than even his beloved "study" had sent out its posters long ahead; so -that the country folk might accustom themselves to the ideas of its -tempting sights and to grow anxious to behold them. To the lad it seemed -as if the days would never pass. The only relief to his eagerness was -that Herbert's projected camp-picnic had been postponed on account of -Helena's sudden illness. One of her bronchial attacks had kept her a -prisoner within the Towers and she had become so interested in the idea -of the affair that her brother waited for her to recover. - -He contented himself the better by frequent visits to Skyrie, and by his -gift to Dorothy of the stray kitten. The rather disreputable-looking -little animal he had coaxed Miss Milliken to cleanse and adorn with a -blue ribbon before its advent at Skyrie, where it now resided, petted -and pampered till its thin outlines became plump ones and it almost -filled that place in Dorothy's heart left vacant by Daisy-Jewel. - -Also, Dolly herself had twice been sent for to visit Helena in her -confinement of the sick-room, and had won the liking of everybody who -saw her there. She was so simple and natural, so free from the -imitating manner of some of Helena's friends who envied and toadied to -the rich man's daughter, that the heiress found her society novel and -refreshing. It was something quite new for Helena to be told, one day -when she was "fussing" over the dainty meal sent up to her room, that: - -"Why, Helena Montaigne! You perfectly wicked girl! My mother and Mrs. -Calvert too both say that it's as sinful as it's ill-bred to quarrel -with your food. 'Not fit to eat' isn't true. Maybe you aren't 'fit' to -eat it yourself, poor dear, because you're ill. But I never saw such a -dainty lunch as that, even at Deerhurst itself. Eat it, do, and get -strong and make your mother happy. She's taken a lot of trouble for you. -I know she went into the kitchen and fixed those things herself, because -she thought your cook wasn't careful enough. Now, do behave! And I'll -sing to you while you eat. I've heard my father say that at the big -hotels at Atlantic City and other places they have a band play while the -people dine. Well, then, I'll be your band and sing. So begin! You must! -I shall make you!" - -Laughing, yet wholly in earnest, Dorothy had picked a morsel of food on -a fork and held it so close to Helena's lips that she had to take it, -whether or not. A second morsel followed the first, and the performance -was enlivened by a recital of Peter Piper's consumption of the chocolate -cake. - -Before she knew it Helena was laughing, and likewise before she quite -realized it--so swiftly had Dorothy fed and talked--she had made a -better meal than at any time since her illness. The food strengthened, -for the illness was really past, and seeing her darling recover made -Mrs. Montaigne very grateful to the girl whose influence had helped that -recovery. Also, this general liking for his own especial friend, as -Herbert considered her, fully confirmed the lad in the scheme he had -formed, but had not yet broached to his family. Thought he: - -"I'll wait a little longer yet, till even the Pater has seen how sweet -and unselfish she is, then I'll spring it on the family. If I carry it -through--Hurray!" - -But though Jim knew of these visits he had not resented them. It was -perfectly natural, he supposed, that girls should like other girls; and -that puling, sickly-looking, stuck-up daughter of those rich -folks--Well, he was glad that Dorothy could show them that a little maid -who had once worked alongside himself on a Maryland truck-farm could -"hold a candle" with the best of them! Herbert, himself, had not crossed -Jim's way. He had gone into camp with some other lads of the Heights and -had himself almost forgotten his home in the fun of that outing. - -But weeks do pass, no matter how they sometimes seem to drag; and the -day came when Jim and Dorothy were seated in Mrs. Calvert's runabout, a -gentle horse in the shafts, and themselves _en route_ for that -long-dreamed-of circus. - -Dorothy carried her money with her. As yet the sum received for -Daisy-Jewel remained unbroken. Neither parent would use any of it, each -insisting that it was Dorothy's own and that she should expend it as she -saw fit: though that this would be for the horse or colt into which the -calf had been thus changed was a foregone conclusion. - -It had become a standard jest with the ex-postman that she should never -go anywhere away from Skyrie without her pocket-book. "In case you -might meet the horse of your heart, somewhere along the road. It's the -unexpected that happens. You're certain to find Daisy's successor when -you're unaware that he, she, or it is near." And to-day he had added: - -"A circus is the very place to look for a horse! When you get there stir -around and--pick up a bargain, if you can! By all means, take your -pocket-book to-day!" - -She had kissed his merry lips to stop their teasing but--she had carried -the purse! Something unexpected was, in reality, to happen: Despite -their long anticipation, this happy pair of youngsters were to fall -short of their ambition--they were not to visit the circus. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII - -ON THE ROAD TO THE CIRCUS - - -"Ain't this grand, Dorothy? I never did see anybody so good as Mrs. -Calvert! She wouldn't hear tell o' my working half the day, though I -could well's not, 'cause the circus don't take in till two o'clock. No, -sir! She up an' give me the whole day an' said my pay was to go on just -the same as if I was hoein' them inguns 'at need it." - -"Onions, Jim; not 'inguns,'" corrected Dorothy with a smile. "You are -improving fast. I haven't heard you call anybody 'Mis',' for Mrs., in -ever so long, and most of the time you keep tight hold of your g's. Yes, -she is dear! but you deserve her kindness. Nobody else ever served her -so faithfully, she says; not even those old colored servants who love -her and--impose on her, too! You look fine, to-day. Those 'store -clothes' are mightily becoming and I'm proud of you. But whatever shall -we do with a whole day?" - -"Mrs. Calvert, she said we was to drive into the town, Newburgh, you -know, where the circus is to be at and to a livery stable that knows -her. Or the man who keeps it does. We was to put the horse up there an' -leave it till time to go home again. Then we was to walk around the city -an' see the sights. 'Bout noon she reckoned 'twould be a good plan to go -to what they call the 'Headquarters,' where General George Washington -lived at, when he fit into the Revolution. I've been readin' about that -in the History she give me and I'd admire to stand on the spot he stood -on once. There's a big yard around the house and benches for folks to -sit on, and a well o' water for 'em to drink; and nobody has to pay for -settin' nor drinkin', nary one. All the folks want you to do, and you -don't have to do it, you ain't really obleeged, is to go inside a room -an' write your name and where you come from in a 'Visitors' Book.' I've -been practicing right smart, ever since she told me that, an' I can -write my name real plain. What bothers me is to tell where I come from. -I don't much like to say the poorhouse, where I was took after my folks -died, and I hate to say Mrs. Stott's truck-farm. I haven't got no right -to say Riverside nor Deerhurst, 'cause I've only lately come _to_ them -places, I've never come _from_ 'em. I----" - -"O Jim! Stop 'splitting hairs'!" - -Thus arrested in his flow of language, the youth carefully inspected his -clothing and failed to perceive the "hairs" in question. Whereupon -Dorothy laughed and assured him that she had merely used a figure of -speech, and meant: "Don't fuss! Just write 'Baltimore,' as I shall, and -have done with it. Funny, Jim, but I just this minute thought that I'm -the one who doesn't know where I came from! Well, I'm _here_ now, and -what's behind me is none of my business. But, boy, you mustn't put that -'at' after places. It sounds queer, and I hate queer people. Ah! me!" - -Jim drove carefully along the fine road with a full appreciation of the -beautiful scenery through which it ran, yet in no wise moved to express -his admiration of it. He was too happy for words and his soaring -thoughts would have amazed even Dorothy, familiar though she had become -with his ambitions; and after driving onward for some time in this -contented silence he became suddenly aware that his companion was not as -happy as he. Her eyes were fixed upon the road and her face had a -troubled, preoccupied expression. - -"Dolly Chester, what you thinkin' of? Don't you like it? Ain't you glad -you come?" - -"Why--Jim! How you startled me! Of course I'm glad I come. The whole -trip is the most delightful thing; but--what I was thinking of, I'm -afraid would make you sneer if I told." - -"Tell an' see if it will. I ain't no great hand to make fun of folks--I -don't like to be made fun of myself. What was it?" - -"The _Ghost_ that haunts Skyrie. _Jim--I've seen it!_ I myself with my -own eyes." - -He checked his horse in his amazement, and incredulously ejaculated: - -"You--don't!" - -"Yes, I do. I did. This very last night that ever was; and talk about -liking this ride? Huh! I'm more glad than I can say to get away from -home just this little while, even. Yet mother and father are left there, -and if IT should come and frighten them while I'm not there--O Jim! IT -scared me almost into a fit. Scared me so stiff and still I could -neither move nor speak. Now I'm rather glad I didn't. IT may not come -again, though IT has two or three times." - -They were nearly at the top of a long hill and, partly to rest the -perfectly untired horse, partly to hear in silence this remarkable -story, Jim drew aside into the shade of a wayside tree and commanded: - -"Silly Dolly! There ain't no such things; but--out with the hull -business, body an' bones!" - -"I'm glad to 'out' with it. It's seemed as if I should burst, keeping it -all to myself, and the worst is I feel that father wouldn't believe me. -There's something else, too. Jim, do you believe that Peter Piper is -really harmless? He follows me everywhere I go. He doesn't come near the -house because mother doesn't like him and shows that plain enough even -for him to understand. She never did like beggars down home in -Baltimore, and she's taken a fearful dislike to Peter." - -"Stick to what you started to tell; not get a body's ideas all on edge, -then switch off onto Peter Piper. As for that poor feller, he won't -hurt nobody what don't hurt him. But _he_ ain't a ghost. Tell what you -saw." - -"Will you promise not to laugh nor--nor disbelieve?" - -"I won't laugh an' I will believe--if I can." - -"You dear good Jim! I can always rely upon you to help me in my -troubles!" cried Dorothy, gratefully. - -With comfortable complacency Jim replied: "That's so." - -"You know Pa Babcock doesn't work for us any more. He left the next day -after the 'Bee.' Sent Alfaretta around to tell us that 'he'd overdone -hisself and was obliged to take a vacation.' Why, Jim Barlow, he was -engaged to work three days out of each week and he never got in more -than one. He was to 'find himself,' which father says means to furnish -his own food, and he never brought a single meal. Mother Martha had to -cook extra for him every time. We weren't real sorry to have him leave, -for we thought it would be easy to get another man, now that Skyrie had -been put in such good order. But it wasn't; besides, any that offered -asked from two to three dollars a day. Think of that! Why, of course -mother couldn't pay that, even if it was haying time and men scarce, as -they all told her. She said we must let all the farm alone except just -the garden patch and that field of corn which is to feed our stock next -winter. Jim, life in the country 'isn't all catnip!' I never, never -dreamed that I could work so hard or do so much. Look at my hands, will -you?" - -She thrust out her little hands, now scarred and blistered by the use of -heavy, unfamiliar tools, compared with which her old home "garden set" -were mere toys. - -For sympathy she received the assurance: - -"Won't blister nigh so much, after a spell, and the skin gets tough. Go -on with the ghost, will you?" - -"I am going on. It's all mixed up with Pa Babcock. If he hadn't left I -wouldn't have had to work in the garden nor mother in the cornfield. -That tires her awfully, and makes her fearfully cross; so that father -and I keep all little worries to ourselves that we can. He even tries to -help her hoe those terrible rows of corn that has come up so -beautifully and is growing so well. If only the weeds wouldn't grow just -as fast! But to see my mother handling a hoe and my father trying to do -so too, resting on his crutches and tottering along the row as he -works--Jim, it makes me wild! So of course I try to take all care of the -garden patch and--of course, I failed. Partly I was afraid to stay out -there alone, sometimes, for I might happen any time to look up and there -would be Peter Piper staring over the wall at me, or even inside it. -Then I have to run in and stop working for awhile. Mother would be angry -if she knew and drive him off with harsh words, and though I am afraid -of him, too, I can't bear to hurt his feelings. I am really so sorry for -him that often I carry my dinner out of doors with me and give it to -him, though mother Martha thinks I've taken it because I do so love to -eat out under the trees. I can't help feeling that he's hungrier than I -am; and I don't think it's wrong because I've never been forbidden nor -asked about it. Do you think it is, Jim dear?" - -"I ain't judgin' for other folks and I 'low your victuals is your own," -answered he. - -"That's a horrid word, 'victuals!' It makes me think of 'cold' ones and -beggars at the back gate." - -"All right. I won't say it again. Get back to that ghost." - -"I'm getting. Why hurry so? We have the whole day before us." - -"But, Dorothy Chester, _that circus takes in at two o'clock_!" warned -the careful lad. - -"And it can't be later than ten now. Jim Barlow--I've been to bed some -night, leaving those hateful garden beds all weedy and neglected: and -I've got up in the morning and--_found--them--in--perfect--order_! What -do you think of that?" - -"Think? Why, 't likely your pa or ma done 'em for you after you was -abed." - -"No, sir. I might have thought so, too, only they both denied it; nor -can I make them believe I didn't do the work myself. So, after I had -explained once or twice how it was and they only laughed, I gave up and -held my tongue. Mother Martha says that weeds can't pull themselves nor -'cultivators'--even little ones like mine--run over the beds as -something certainly did. However, if they won't listen they needn't. I -know it's true, though I dare not tell them I've seen the Ghost; -because they are both so discouraged and anxious over this farming -business that if they found the place was really haunted they'd leave -it. Yet, Jim, we can't leave. We mustn't, no matter what. Father came -here to get well--his only chance. We haven't enough money to move back -to Baltimore nor to live there afterward. We must stay and live with the -Ghost. It is the only way. But--O Jim! I've not only seen what IT has -done in the garden, I've seen IT at work there. Seen IT with my own two -eyes! Now, do you believe?" - -"Shucks! Pshaw! You don't!" - -Alas! Honest Jim did not believe but he was profoundly sorry for -Dorothy, who he felt sure had suffered from too great and unaccustomed -labor: and he could only answer according to his own convictions; as he -did with added gentleness: - -"I think that that there Babcock girl had ought to had her neck wrung -'fore she stuffed any such nonsense into your head, Dolly girl, an' I -wish to goodness, just as you did once, 't I 'could make two of myself.' -Then I'd make short work of that mite of gardening what seems such a -job to you. I--I don't know but I'd ought to quit Deerhurst an' hire -myself out to your folks." - -"No, no! Oh! no, indeed! You're in the right place now, just the best -place to get on as you couldn't do with us." - -This opinion was comforting. Jim was so happy in his new home that he -had no real desire to exchange it for Skyrie: where he felt his -conscience and "duty" would compel him to work so early and late that -there would be no time left for his "study." He changed the subject and -inquired: - -"If you seen IT, what did it look like?" - -"IT was tall, like a man. IT was all in some light-colored clothes and -it worked as steadily as if IT were a machine. But it made very little -noise. IT didn't want to be heard, I thought. When IT had finished IT -sort of vanished behind the lilac bushes and I thought I saw IT crossing -a field toward the south meadow. That's where the old 'gold mine' is, -that Alfaretta told of, and where she said IT lives part of the time. IT -used to come into the house itself, into the very room father sleeps in -now. So _she_ said." - -"Huh! She's the foolishest girl I ever heard of. Dorothy, don't you go -to takin' up with such a silly thing as her. Huh!" - -"Oh! I'm not taking up with her, she's taking up with me! The 'shoe is -on the other foot.' But she's real kind and good. She never comes to -Skyrie without trying to help in whatever we are doing. Mother thinks -she's a splendid girl, even if she is a little forward in her manners. -But I haven't told her about the ghost being true. I've told nobody but -you, Jim." - -Such exclusive confidence was flattering, but the boy was still -unconvinced. After a moment of pondering he asked: - -"Why didn't your folks see IT if you did?" - -"Because it was only an accident that I did, either. I had to go down -into the kitchen for a drink of water and so saw it through those -windows. We all sleep on the other side of the house, away from the -garden. That's why." - -"All right. Giddap!" commented Jim, driving back into the road and -chirruping to the horse, while, having relieved herself of her secret, -Dorothy gave herself up entirely to the pleasure of the moment, and -soon was eagerly discussing the chances of their finding a suitable -animal for their purchase at the circus, as father John had suggested -was possible. - -A turn of the road soon brought them to a small house standing within a -rude inclosure, and at present surrounded by such a concourse of people -that both Jim and Dorothy immediately conjectured: - -"Another auction! Let's stop and listen." - -It was that same Bill Barry who had officiated at Skyrie who now stood -on the box here; and, as Jim drove up toward the gate, he immediately -recognized the two young people and called out to them: - -"Hello, there! How-de-do? Lookin' for somethin' to put your money on? -Well, sorry, but all the household stuff's bid off. Jest a-comin' to the -prettiest little piece o' horseflesh 't ever you laid your eyes on." -Then with a general sweep of his eye over the assemblage, he added for -the benefit of all: "This here vandoo just sends the tears to my eyes, -hardened old sinner though I am. Auctioning off a poor widow woman's -goods ain't no joke, let me tell you. See this pretty little piebald -mare? Household pet, she is. Gentle as a kitten, broke to saddle or -harness, either one, used to children, got to be sold no matter how the -kids' hearts ache, nor the widow's either! Start her up, somebody! How -much am I bid for the beautiful calico pony, beloved of a widow and -orphans? How--much?" - -"Ten dollars!" cried somebody in the crowd and the auctioneer retorted -that the bidder must be joking. - -Dorothy, listening, flashed one indignant glance over the crowd and -stood up in the runabout, resisting Jim's abashed attempts to pull her -down upon the seat. She clutched her pocket-book with all her strength, -as if he might try to take it from her, and called out in her clear -treble: - -"Thirty-five dollars!" - -A silence that might be felt over that assembly, and no other bid -followed Dorothy's. Once, twice, thrice, Mr. Barry solicited a "raise" -but none was forthcoming. To nobody else in that company was the pretty, -piebald pony worth even half so much money. The creature had been born -on the western plains, and while it had a reputation for speed was not -strong enough for hard work, such as these other possible bidders -required. - -"Going, going, _gone_! Sold to Miss Dorothy Chester for thirty-five -dollars, cash down! Now for the cart and harness. How much?" - -While waiting offers for these articles the clerk of the auction -obligingly led the pony through the gate and fastened its halter to the -back of the runabout; whereupon Dorothy's consuming eagerness could -hardly wait to count out the seven crisp banknotes which made her the -happy possessor of that wonderful pony. - -Another moment found her on the ground beside it, patting its neck, -smoothing its velvety nostrils, and longing to kiss it with that sudden -affection born in her. So absorbed was she in the creature that she -noticed nothing further going on about her till somebody politely asked -her to "step aside and let us hitch up." - -Then she saw that Jim had left the runabout himself and was now between -the shafts of a small low wagon, drawing it into the road. Five minutes -later he announced: - -"We're ready to go now, Dorothy." - -"Shall we take the pony with us to the circus? Why are you turning the -runabout around to go back the way we came? Newburgh's not in that -direction." - -"I--I guess we won't finish our trip to Newburgh, to-day, Dolly," he -answered with a laugh. - -"Why not?" - -"Because--'cause you spent all _your_ money for the horse an' I spent -all _mine_, all 't I've earned yet, for the rig. Which critter'll you -drive home, Dorothy? Home it is where we'll eat that nice lunch o' Mrs. -Calvert's, 'cause I haven't got a cent left to buy them circus tickets. -Which one did you say?" - -"My own!" cried the girl, exultantly, as she sprang into the rickety -little phaeton and took up the pony's reins. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII - -THAT SOUTH MEADOW - - -When even before mid-day the two vehicles returned to Skyrie both Mr. -and Mrs. Chester were too astonished to do more than open their eyes and -mouths and wait explanations. - -These came with a volubility that was less wonderful in Dorothy than in -Jim, but each of the pair seemed to trip the other up with a flood of -words, till finally the listeners made out to sift the facts for -themselves. Then, while they were wholly delighted by the possession of -the pony, mother Martha's prudence was disturbed by the thought of debt, -and she promptly demanded to know what Jim had paid for the phaeton and -harness. - -For a time he stubbornly declined to tell, and it was not till Mrs. -Chester brought out her own purse and insisted upon repaying him that he -acknowledged: - -"Well, if you must know, 'twasn't but fifteen dollars, all told. _True._ -Like Dorothy here I took every cent I had with me an' now I'm powerful -glad I did. As for takin' your money, same's sellin' it to you, I -shan't. I'm makin' it a present to Dolly an' all of you. If it hadn't -been for her I never'd have known Mrs. Calvert nor had the chance of my -life. 'Tain't but little, seems if, to return for all you've brought to -me. If you don't want to hurt my feelin's and make me stay clean away -from Skyrie, you won't say another word on that subject. And I don't -want to stay away. I can't, not till some--some things gets straightened -out. So, I reckon I'd best go see if there's a good stall in that old -barn to put--Say, Dorothy? What you goin' to name the critter, anyway?" - -"James Barlow, she is not a 'critter.' She is a perfectly beautiful -piebald pony and her name is--Portia!" After which alliterative -statement Dorothy rushed toward the lad, intent upon hugging him in -gratitude for the gift from which none of them could dissuade him. - -But he had had experiences in that line and ungallantly backed away, -blushing furiously that these elder people should witness his -embarrassment, and covering his confusion by remarking: - -"I'm going to the barn now, and you can come with me if you want to. If -you do we can eat our dinner outside the door under that shady tree; -then, as I've got the hull day give to me, I'd like to go see that mine -in the south medder I've heard tell of." - -"All right," cheerfully answered the girl, not at all offended by his -rebuff of her attentions. "We'll find a place for my Portia and your -phaeton, and I think it's perfectly lovely for us to have them, -half-and-half, that way, Jim, just think! How little we dreamed of such -splendid times together when we were at Miranda Stott's!" - -Old "Si Waterman's Folly," as the rumored "mine" was called, seemed to -be coming into sudden prominence. For years it had lain unnoticed, but -some recent excavations on the other side of the mountain had recalled -to the public this long abandoned one at Skyrie. The very first time -that Dorothy had the delight of driving her father out in the phaeton, -which was so low and comfortable for him to use, they met Friend Oliver -Sands upon the road, and he brought up the subject by a roundabout -manner all his own. - -He had not been present at the "Bee." He had even expressed his -disapproval of such an affair, affirming that "nobody should undertake -to run a farm unless he knew he could do it." Which might be good sense -but influenced few. Indeed, when hearing afterward of the sale whereby -Daisy-Jewel was metamorphosed, so to speak, into a pony, he had been -angry--as angry as such a benign old gentleman could be. - -He had made an unnecessary gift to an unappreciative girl and _she_ had -made money out of it; whereas, if things had gone as he expected, it -would have been himself who should make it. Hannah had been transformed -into a model cow by the simplest of methods, one that he should have -been wise enough to try for himself only--he hadn't thought of it. Of -course, it was a good thing for him who had advanced money upon the land -that Skyrie should be put into good condition, even though it were as -temporary as but one day's labor would make it. But he had heard things. -Rumors were afloat. He hoped these rumors had not yet reached the ears -of Skyrie's owners; but if they had he had still time to forestall them -and reap his own advantage. Altogether, a thrifty soul was Oliver, the -good; though his tones were sweetly sympathetic as he now brought his -own smart team to a standstill in the very path of Portia and the -phaeton. - -"Don't stop, Dolly, if you can help it, but drive straight past the -miller who's coming. Exchange bows, of course, if a Quaker will bow; but -I'm too happy to-day to be disturbed by talk with him. Ever since he -loaned us that money, 'payable on demand,' I've felt uncomfortable. It's -wretched enough to owe money to anybody, but I'd have felt safer if we'd -borrowed from Mrs. Calvert or even from a bank. Oh, dear! He's going to -stop and we will have to!" had been Mr. Chester's hurried comments, so -soon as from a little distance they saw Mr. Sands approaching. - -It was a rare bit of confidence and Dorothy looked at him in some -surprise. She did not share in her father's prejudice against the kind -gentleman who had given her the pretty calf, and indeed was doubly -grateful to him now that she had exchanged his gift for Portia. So it -was in all sincerity that she returned his pleasant: - -"I am glad to see thee again, little Dorothy. Thee has a bonny face that -should win thee many friends." - -"And I am glad to see you, Mr. Sands. I wish I understood the 'plain -language,' too, then I could answer 'thee' after thy own fashion. Do -you--does thee see my pretty pony? Her name is Portia. I bought her with -the money paid for the calf you gave me. The pony is more useful to us, -'cause my father's lame, and so I am twice pleased. This is the first -time he has ridden out with me, but I can drive real well already." - -"For a beginner thee does very well, and the plain speech is the -sweetest in the world--heard on the lips of pretty girls. By the way, -John, I was on my way to see thee about a little matter of business. -Thee may have heard that I like to acquire and hold land?" - -The statement was in the form of a question, to which the ex-postman -rather coldly replied: "Yes, so I have heard." He resented the familiar -"John" on this "plain" speaker's lips, though he had never felt -otherwise than complimented by Mrs. Cecil's even more familiar -"Johnnie." It was a case of like and dislike, and as inconsistent as -most such cases are. - -"Can you speak freely before the little maid, John Chester?" - -"With perfect freedom. There are no secrets in our household----" At -which remark Dorothy slightly winced, remembering that dreadful "secret" -of the "ghost," which she had hidden from her parents. "We are a united -family in all respects and Dorothy fully understands our circumstances." - -"Very well. That is a good thing. It speaks well for thy household. -Regarding that little loan of mine, 'payable on demand,' I have -considered the matter well. Thee needs money, I want land. If thee will -sell me a portion of Skyrie farm that transaction should offset the -other. That south meadow, for instance, known by the name of 'Si -Waterman's Folly,' is worth, at ruling prices for waste mountain land, -about two hundred dollars. I loaned thee three hundred; but on account -of thy affliction I would pay thee more than I would another man. What -does thee say?" - -"I say that the property is my wife's; just as I told you before. My -affliction does not enter into the case, but I shall certainly advise -her against such an unfair transaction as that. There are ten acres in -that south meadow, and I have learned that mountain land is not so cheap -as you would have me think." - -"Thee may have been misinformed. Ground suitable for fancy building lots -may command a slight advance upon the ruling price, but not an overgrown -piece, half-woods, half-rocks, like that misnamed 'south meadow.' Meadow -stands for rich and profitable land; not such as the 'Folly.' Why, -friend John, it would take all of that three hundred dollars I offer -thee to fill up that hole which required several years of Simon -Waterman's life to dig. The 'love of money is the root of evil,' the -Good Book tells us, and it was an undue love of money which sent friend -Simon to that hopeless task. A dream misled him--Thee has heard the -story, John?" - -"No, nor care to. We are going for a drive--my first, as Dolly -explained--and a storm threatens. I will add my thanks to hers, and do -appreciate the fact that but for your gift of the calf we should not now -own this pretty pony." - -"I trust thee may long enjoy the luxury. 'Calico' ponies are as pretty -as uncommon, and there is a superstition in the neighborhood that they -bring 'good luck.' Some even fancy that to 'wish upon one' has the same -result. I will not detain thee from thy recreation, but will pass on to -Skyrie and talk matters over with Martha herself." - -With a click of his unctuous lips the miller started his team into swift -motion and vanished from sight: but he left discomfort behind him and -had effectually spoiled that ride for father John. Also the few clouds -which had been gathering grew heavier with each passing moment and, as -the invalid was careful never to expose himself to a drenching, Dorothy -soon turned Portia's head homeward and arrived there just in time to -escape the slight summer shower. - -Martha met them with a brighter countenance than she had shown for many -days, and the exclamation: - -"Good news, dear ones! That splendid old Quaker gentleman has just left -here, and has made me such a generous offer. He says, since we so -dislike debt, that he will take that worthless south meadow off our -hands and call it an equivalent for the money he advanced. Farming is -hard enough, but farming free from debt would be lessened of half its -worries." - -"Martha, I hope you didn't tell him you would sell!" protested Mr. -Chester, alarmed. - -Her brightness faded into that unhappy sharpness which was becoming -habitual and she returned, sarcastically: - -"Of course, I didn't promise. A good wife never does dare promise -anything without consulting her husband, even about her own property. -I'll come with you, Dorothy, and help put up the pony." - -"O mother! Now you've hurt father's feelings and it isn't like you to do -that! I--I begin to understand why he dislikes that miller and his money -business, for he makes you disagree so. That's something never used to -be at dear old 77 Brown Street!" - -"Dorothy Chester! How dare you speak to me like that?" demanded the -overtired housemistress, with an asperity rarely shown to her beloved -child. - -"Beg pardon, mother. It was wrong. I only felt--I wish father liked Mr. -Sands as well as you and I do, but don't let's talk of him any more. No, -thank you, I don't need you to help with Portia. I'm proud to know how -to harness and unharness all by myself. It was good of Jim and old -Ephraim to teach me, and Mrs. Calvert says she is going to give me a -little side-saddle to fit the pony. She has ordered it made in Newburgh -from measures Ephraim took one day. Isn't she the dearest? Please, sit -down and rest, mother dear. I'll do whatever's needed as soon as I've -put Portia under cover." - -There were both balm and bane in Dorothy's words. Martha was soothed by -the child's sweet affection and jealous that that other richer woman had -the power to bestow gifts such as she could not. She had now learned of -the offer of Mrs. Cecil to adopt Dorothy and this had not diminished -her jealousy; but, at the same time, the longer and better she knew the -lady of Deerhurst the more she was forced to admire and respect her. - -As soon as Dorothy had driven toward the barn and Mr. Chester had -entered the kitchen his wife returned to the subject of that south -meadow. - -"That field is the laughing-stock of the whole town, John, and I can't -see why you should object to my selling it. To keep it would, it seems -to me, make it 'Chester's Folly,' as well as 'Waterman's.'" - -He answered rather sadly: - -"I have no right to object, Martha, and I will not if your heart is set -upon the deed. Yet I should not be loyal to your interests, if I did not -caution prudence. Wait a bit. Take advice upon the matter. Of that wise -Seth Winters, or Mr. Smith, or even of the best lawyer in Newburgh. -There----" - -"Lawyers! We've no money to waste upon lawyers, John." - -"I know. Still, there is such a thing as being 'penny wise and pound -foolish.' Oliver Sands is a long-headed, shrewd old chap. He sees -money, more of it than he suggested, in that south meadow, else he would -never try to buy it. As for that extra hundred dollars he proposes to -give--Pooh! He plans to more than reimburse himself. As Mrs. Calvert saw -he did in that smaller affair of the calf. That he was outwitted then -was due to Mrs. Cecil's knowledge of his character." - -"You've just had a ride behind a horse we shouldn't have owned except -for him," she reminded. - -"I know, and I give him all credit due. Only I do not want you to agree -to anything unfair to yourself. Why, Martha, we do not even know what -that 'mine' is like. We have seen that the top of the 'hole' is covered, -in part, by a sort of trap door, more than half-hidden by vines and -bushes, and almost half decayed away. I peered down under what was left -of the trap, that time I went there with Dorothy: but I was far too -tired with my crutch-walk to do more than that, even if I had not feared -some unseen danger. She was eager to slip under the trap and find out -for both of us, but, of course, that was out of the question. Probably, -it _is_ just a piece of 'Folly'; yet in other things Simon Waterman had -the reputation of being a sane, sensible man. He proved himself such by -willing so much of his property to you, my dear." - -"Humph! I don't see just now that it's so valuable. I feel as if Skyrie -farm was a burden that would crush the life out of me yet," she -returned, in that discouraged tone it was so painful to hear, and which -always stirred his deep regret for that affliction which had thrust upon -a woman's shoulders that weight of care which only the man's should have -borne. "He said that he wanted that meadow merely because it would -'square' out his own property. He holds a mortgage on land lying between -his Heartsease and Skyrie, of which our south meadow is the limit. He's -to foreclose that mortgage and longs to own that one field of ours just -to complete the shape of his farm. That's natural, isn't it?" - -"Wholly and entirely natural to him, from what I've heard the neighbors -say. But let him go. All I ask is that you should wait a little, until -you can make inquiries of persons wiser than we are in land-lore, -before you take a step you cannot retrace. Now, kiss me, my wife, and -don't let's allow the portly shadow of Oliver Sands to fall across our -peace again." - -She did kiss him, and she did feel so impressed by his wisdom that she -promised to follow his advice and "wait" before deciding the question of -the south meadow: which strangely enough seemed so much more important -to him than to her. - -So, coming in from the barn and Portia, "running between drops" as she -expressed it, Dorothy found happiness restored and hastened to unfold a -plan which Helena and she had thought out and to which her parents gave -a ready assent. - -"You see, mother, the summer is going very, very fast, and before we -know it, almost, Deerhurst and the Towers and all the big houses will be -closed and the families gone away for the _long_ winter. We haven't yet -had even that camp-picnic Herbert planned. First he was away, or Helena -sick, or something or other all the time kept happening. Now she wants -to give a picnic herself and ask all the young folks 'up-mounting' to -it. We made out a list the last time I went to see her, and first she -had written only the names of the rich young folks on the Heights. Then -I coaxed her and told her how much more it would mean to the poor ones, -like myself, than it possibly could to those others. Then she was as -nice as nice! and wrote down every name I said. Mrs. Smith's boys, and -every Babcock except Claretta and Diaretta. Jim, too, of course, if -he'll go. Helena is to provide the eating part of the picnic and I am to -provide the place, if you'll let me. That's the south meadow that so -many people are talking about, Herbert says, just now. Oh! I do hope you -won't sell it to Mr. Sands before we have the party!" - -"Not likely, unless you put it off too long," answered Mrs. Chester, -quietly. "Do you mean that Miss Montaigne is willing, can afford, to -provide food for a large company like that? Because, though I might----" - -"O mother! Don't you worry about that. Of course she can 'afford'--why, -anything in the world she wants, I reckon. The people at the Towers seem -to think as lightly about spending money as we would about using the -water from our well. I'm to take Portia to the Towers in the phaeton -and bring back Helena and the baskets. Funny! How that girl who has so -many faster horses of her own likes to ride behind my darling pet! But -Portia _can_ travel, too, if she takes a notion. Why, the other morning -when you sent me to Eliza Jane's store of an errand and an automobile -was going down the mountain behind us, she just picked up her little -heels and raced that auto--My! how she did run! But--the auto beat. -Wasn't it too bad? Portia was so disgusted. It must be awfully trying to -waste all one's breath racing an automobile and then get beaten." - -"It must, indeed; but I hope that's the last time you'll ever let her -enter such a race as that. Child, you might be killed! An accident to -either pony or machine--Dolly, never do it again!" cried father John, -alarmed by the danger already safely passed. - -"When do you want this picnic?" asked Mrs. Chester, with interest, and -feeling somewhat flattered that the chosen ground for it should be on -her own premises. - -"Why, Saturday, if it's fine. If not, then the next Monday. We want to -go early, in the morning sometime, and stay the whole day. We mean to -explore that mine they call the 'Folly,' and who knows? I may bring home -a nugget of pure gold! Wouldn't that be fine? I'm so glad you are -willing. I think I'll harness Portia again and ride to tell Helena, -after dinner; and I'll get that now. I can do it all alone if you'll -only trust me. You rest, mother dear, and read your Baltimore weekly. It -came last night and yet you haven't even taken the wrapper off." - -The dinner was to be a simple one and well-trained Dorothy was capable -of preparing it; so Mrs. Chester did take the proffered rest and was -deep in the home news which interested her so greatly when a shadow fell -upon the threshold and she glanced up to see two men who appeared to be -surveyors, for they carried the instruments of such over their -shoulders; and the announcement made by the elder of the two fairly took -her breath away: - -"We are sent by Oliver Sands to survey that south meadow you've sold -him. Will you direct us to it?" - - - - -CHAPTER XIX - -DOROTHY HAS ANOTHER SECRET - - -The inquirer went away with "a bee in his bonnet," as the saying goes; -and he promptly reported to Oliver Sands that he had been dismissed from -Skyrie as one who had gone there on a fool's errand. - -"Say they haven't sold me that south meadow, do they, friend? Well, they -are mistaken. Report to me again in one week from this day and I will -give thee further directions. I am a just man. I will pay thee and thy -assistant for the time thee has wasted, but the surveying will yet be -done," returned the miller, quietly. - -He even smiled, sitting comfortably in his great rocker upon his shaded -veranda; and he opened and closed his fat hands with a suggestive -gesture, as of one squeezing something soft and yielding. It was a -gesture habitual to him while transacting certain kinds of business, as -foreclosing a mortgage against some helpless person; and to keen -observers--Seth Winters, for one--seemed most significant. Friend Oliver -was in no wise disturbed by the indignant statement of the Chesters to -the surveyor. He was perfectly contented to bide his time, remembering -that adage: "All things come to him who waits." - -But valiant as their denial, the Chesters watched the surveyors depart -with sore misgivings. The bold falsity of the matter roused, at length, -even Martha's suspicions that Friend Oliver Sands was not as benign as -he appeared; and for the rest of that week she went about so silent and -sad that neither father John nor Dorothy dared intrude upon her reserve. - -Yet to the latter came a new trouble of her own: and knowing that she -must confide in somebody old and wise enough to counsel her, she went to -Seth Winters. She could not have done better. With almost the opening -sentence of her story about the surveyors' visit he seemed to understand -the whole matter, "body and bones" as Jim would say. - -"I am thankful you came to me, little Dorothy. We'll outwit that man by -meeting him on his own terms. I'm going to give you something to take -care of till the time comes for you to use it. We'll have what Herbert -calls a regular lark; and may I be there to see! Three hundred dollars, -'payable on demand, with interest from date.' Do you remember that date? -No? Never mind. I'll put the time sufficiently far back to make -everything secure, and I misjudge our floury Friend if he will object to -a little more than his due. Watch, scholar, and see if I figure right." - -Fetching pen and paper, the blacksmith made a rapid computation of what -would be due Oliver at any time within the next month. Then he went to a -cupboard in his room above the "office" and took from a small safe there -the amount of cash which should satisfy even the "just" holder of the -Chesters' "note." He gave the money into Dorothy's hands with a smile, -saying: - -"This is yours, your very own. It is no gift nor loan of mine. It was -intrusted to me by a law firm in Baltimore, the business managers of -Mrs. Calvert's property. Kidder & Kidder are the gentlemen. Well, -what?" - -"I've heard, I know about them. Why, Mr. Winters, I've _seen_ that old -Mr. Kidder!" cried Dorothy, eagerly. - -"I'm glad of it. Well, I cannot explain much to you; only I can and do -say that somebody related to you by blood, somebody of your own family -that you never knew, left this money and a little more with these -gentlemen; to be used by, or for, you whenever a case of real necessity -occurred. They are my own lawyers, too, as well as Mrs. Cecil's; so -after you moved to Skyrie, knowing I was such a near neighbor, they -wrote and asked me to take care of the small fund for you. I wasn't to -mention it until that case of need I spoke of, and that has now surely -arrived. Hurray! Three cheers for the climax! I can picture your -face--all your faces--when 'payment on demand' _is_ demanded, and you so -calmly--it must be very calmly, Dolly dear!--come forward with that -'payment' in hand. One word of advice to you, more. Try to persuade your -parents to hold on to south meadow. Things are stirring nowadays, and -that very 'Folly' may yet show old Simon's wisdom, by proving the most -valuable spot on Skyrie farm or any other land 'up-mounting.' Keep the -fact of your having the money a secret till the right time comes. Then, -hurray!" - -For a few moments the astonished girl could do no more than turn over -and over the fat wallet which Seth had thrust into her hands; and she -was so enraptured by the thought that it was she, she herself, who -should come to her parents' relief that she could only smile and smile. -She could not even join in this boyish old fellow's hurraying; yet -looking on her happy face, he was quite satisfied. - -However, amid all her joy one dark word had fastened on her -consciousness: "Secret." She had come in part to confide her own dread -secret of the Ghost to this kind man, who would, she was sure, neither -deride her fear nor fail to help her. Seth Winters helped everybody -worthy of his help. All the mountain folk said so and trusted him. - -"Mr. Winters, that story about there being a ghost at Skyrie is--_is -true_. I suppose you've heard it, haven't you?" - -"Oh, yes! I've heard." - -There was no scorn in his expression. The same gentle gravity rested -upon his features that had inspired the confidences of so many troubled -souls and now won hers. All the boyish hilarity he had manifested over -the outwitting of Oliver Sands had vanished, and with a fatherly -tenderness he drew Dorothy to him and listened intently as she said: - -"Yes, Mr. Winters, it--is--true. I didn't believe Alfaretta when she -told about it. I thought there were no such things. But there _is_ a -ghost haunts Skyrie and--_I--have--seen--it_. I have to believe my own -eyes, haven't I?" - -"Most assuredly, my dear. And I, too, know it is true. I, too, have seen -it." - -"_You--have?_" - -"Often and often. A most beneficent and harmless ghost. One to be -cherished and not feared. One that has suffered much evil and done much -good. A ghost I pity and almost love." - -"Why, Mr. Winters! You make me feel as if--as if I could hardly breathe. -Could any ghost be _good_? Any ghost be _harmless_?" - -"This one is good, I told you. As for harm--has he harmed your garden -by his presence? Have the weeds grown faster or the vegetables less, -because of his nightly visitations to it? 'By their fruits ye shall know -them.' Eh? What?" - -"Why, you amaze me more and more. How did you know that about the garden -and the night-time? I hadn't told you yet, though I was going to, in a -minute." - -"Well, easily. I've seen the garden and I know that all ghosts prefer -the night. Not this one because his deeds are evil but because they are -good. A person may learn a lot of things, little maid, by merely keeping -his eyes open and putting two-and-two together." - -"Oh! of course; but do you really think I shouldn't fear this one at -all? I've been too afraid almost to live, and I've not dared to tell my -father or mother, because she's so nervous she wouldn't stay at Skyrie -even to get my father cured, and he must be. _He must be_--no matter -what happens. It must not be that a man so good, so kind, so altogether -faithful to us all should be an invalid forever. O Mr. Winters! You -don't at all know how brave he is! How he makes fun for mother and me -when his own heart aches. It seems to me as if he took hold of -everything, every little thing that happens, and turns it over and over, -till he finds out some humor in it. Then he points out to us that humor -which we'd never have discovered for ourselves. Why, I fancy he'd think -there was something funny even about that dreadful ghost!" - -"A brave and beautiful nature is poor John Chester's, little Dolly. I am -proud to know him, to have him call me friend. Nor should I have called -him 'poor' but rich. I would rather have his present poverty and his -wholesome, sweet outlook upon life than all the money owned by the -master of the Towers. By the way, he's not such a bad sort, either! come -to know him well enough to see beneath that crust of greed and arrogance -that he wears as if it were a coat. As for that fairy-faced daughter of -his, I'm wholly in love with her, since you've put your own hand to the -task of remodeling her into the simple, kindly creature God meant her to -be when He fashioned her. Pity! when that other good gift of too much -money buries beneath it the better side of the person to whom it is -given!" - -"Oh! Helena is sweet, Mr. Winters. It's not true at all that she is -haughty and 'stuck-up,' as folks say. She's just been petted at home, -and praised and sheltered so much, that she didn't have a chance to show -what she really was. Even to know it herself. But I love her. I love her -dearly. She's the nicest girl friend I ever had." - -"That's good! That's excellent! For if a certain scheme of our friend -Herbert's materializes it would be most important that there should be -love between you and Helena. By the way, neither of you young ladies -have invited me to your picnic!" - -Dorothy opened her eyes in surprise. "Why, Mr. Winters! How did you know -we were going to have one? I hadn't told that yet, either, and I do -believe you must be a witch--a gentleman witch--to guess at things the -way you do!" - -"I hope I'm a 'gentleman' witch if I'm any sort. I shouldn't like to be -a 'lady,' one that's always pictured as bestriding a broomstick. That -would be most uncomfortable. I prefer a horse. Well, am I to come to -your picnic, or am I not, Miss Dorothy Chester?" - -"O Mr. Winters! Will you? If you will, your coming will make us both so -happy. I'd rather have you than anybody I know, even young folks----" - -"As if I were not that! Thank you for your cordial 'bid.' I will be most -happy to accept the invitation I've had fairly to worm out of you. What -am I expected to provide as my share of the entertainment?" - -"Oh! you love to tease me, don't you? Nothing. Of course, you are to -provide nothing. Only come, and don't disappoint us." - -"I will surely come. But I hope to do my share, as I said; and if I -succeed in obtaining what I hope for, it will be a novelty in picnics!" - -"Now you've made me curious! I love novelties! What will yours be?" -asked Dorothy, eagerly, and rising to leave, since some men had arrived -with horses to be shod and her host must attend to business. - -"Take care of that parcel, child. Tell nobody of it, not even the father -and mother, till the right moment comes. You'll recognize it when it -does, and what shall I bring? Let me see--I think I will bring a GHOST!" - -It was a very happy girl who returned to Skyrie, carrying safely hid in -her pocket that which should "at the right time" release her beloved -parents from the power of debt, held over them by even so "generous" a -man as miller Sands. It was almost impossible for her to keep this new -and splendid "secret" from their knowledge. At times she felt she must, -she certainly must, break her promise to Seth Winters and disclose it; -but she had never knowingly broken her word and she would not let -herself begin to do so now. Besides, if she had been able to keep that -other, dreadful "secret" about the "ghost" she surely could keep this -happy one of the money. She had made it her business to bestow this in a -place of safety, although her frequent visits to the spot would have -betrayed her interest in it had the elder Chesters been at all -suspicious. - -The days sped by till the end of the week and that beautiful summer -Saturday appointed for Helena's picnic. They had been busy and peaceful -days at Skyrie. No further demands had been made upon the elder Chesters -by Mr. Oliver Sands. That most industrious of "ghosts" had not -reappeared nor nervous mother Martha so much as suspected his existence; -though rumors concerning him were rife in all Riverside. These rumors -had been freshly set afloat by the Babcocks. Dorothy had admitted to -Alfaretta that there "_might_ be some truth" in the story of a spooky -visitant, and Alfy had promptly stated that there _was_. Pa Babcock -affirmed the tale and declared that this was why he had left off working -on the haunted farm. "It had got upon my nerves to the extent of -interfering with my orations," he had explained, to whoever would -listen. Until then, nobody had credited Pa with possessing "nerves" of -any sort; but even such an absurd statement found credence with some. - -More than with the "spook," however, was the public mind agitated by -other rumors which touched upon "south meadow." The "Folly" was a word -often on men's lips, yet, as often happens, the persons most nearly -concerned in the subject were the last to hear of it. - -The promised saddle for Portia had been sent home and found to be a -delightful change from the bareback riding which ambitious Dorothy had -been practicing. So delightful, indeed, was it and so eager was she to -have all her own friends enjoy it with her that she decided: - -"I'm going to put the saddle in the phaeton along with the baskets when -we drive to the 'meadow.' The 'Bee' people fixed the bars to it so -nicely, we can drive along the road till we come to the field and then -through the bar-way into it. I'll take Portia out of the shafts and -saddle her, or the boys will do it for me. Then all the girls that wish -can take a ride, turn and turn about. It will add ever so much to our -fun--everybody I know simply loves and envies me my darling 'calico' -pony! I'll come back for you first, though, mother and father, for you -must be there. A picnic, or anything nice, wouldn't seem perfect without -you two. Dear Mr. Winters is sure to come. He said so and he's going to -bring--My! I almost let the cat out of the bag!" - -Dorothy's sudden pause and startled expression provoked no comment from -her parents other than mother Martha's protesting: - -"Cat! I wouldn't take Lady Rosalind, if I were you, Dolly dear. It would -only be a worry to you. Those little Babcocks are sure to come, invited -or not, and as surely would plague the life out of her. Why, Rosalind -runs under the lounge the very minute any Babcock, big or small, sets -foot inside the door. Don't take the cat." - -"It wasn't--it wasn't--that kind of a cat! and I haven't let it -out--yet!" laughed the girl, with a gayety that seemed exaggerated for -so humdrum a remark. - -"You're a queer child, Dorothy C. But--but I hope you'll have a happy -day," answered her mother, slipping an arm about the girl's shoulders -and lightly caressing the flushed young cheek; while Dolly answered, -trustfully: - -"I'm certain to! Mrs. Calvert is coming and says she _cannot_ unless Jim -Barlow brings her and waits upon her! That settles Jim and his refusals! -She's made it a point of 'duty' and that boy was never yet known to turn -his back on his duty--even when it led him into having a good time -himself at a picnic! Good-by, now. I'm off!" - -It did prove the happiest sort of a gathering. Everybody came who was -invited and some appeared who were not. But there were food and room and -fun enough for all. Portia did ample service in the cause; trotting -patiently around and around the smoother portions of the meadow, -carrying various small maidens on her back but, at length, being given a -chance to nibble her own dinner from that plentiful pasture. She was -still saddled and bridled, the smallest Babcock having testified by -screaming that she was still unsatisfied with her share of the exercise, -and being promised "one more ride after dinner." - -Never a Babcock screamed more wisely. But for that scream Portia would -have been unsaddled and but for Portia--a life might have been lost. - - - - -CHAPTER XX - -ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL - - -The chief event of the day was to be the exploration of "Si Waterman's -Folly." This occurred immediately after dinner. - -Jim and Herbert, aided by Mr. Winters's strong arms, found small -difficulty in removing the decayed plank covering which the old miner -had placed above his narrow-mouthed shaft. This had once rolled easily -enough upon deftly applied rollers and had been arranged to protect Mr. -Waterman from detection when excavating, in search of that gold which he -believed lay buried in south meadow. He was a secretive man who shared -no secrets with his neighbors if he could help it, yet whose very -idiosyncrasies betrayed them. - -"Well, that's a good job done!" cried Seth, as the cover was pushed -aside. "See there?" - -He placed his heel upon the boards, which at once broke into fragments -beneath his weight. - -"Why, anybody might have stepped upon it and fallen through!" cried -Dorothy, astonished. - -"Yes. A good job to have prevented such an accident. But the hole, or -shaft is--Hello, friend GHOST! Come out of that, if you please; all your -neighbors have come to visit you and expect you to show the honors of -your retreat!" - -Many heads were now crowded together, peering into the dimness of the -shaft. It sloped inward and downward into a wider opening that was -almost like a small chamber in its dimensions. Another entrance led to -this chamber, a passage of a few feet in length, burrowed beneath the -ground and opening upon the hillside beyond. Through this little tunnel -came fresh air and light; and within the chamber had been collected the -odds and ends of things which had caught the half-wit's fancy. A bundle -of straw and a worn-out horse-blanket which somebody had discarded -formed his bed. Some bits of broken crockery furnished his table, a -board wedged against the rock. A spring of water gushed from one wall -of the chamber and trickled into the depths below, and a curious odor -escaped from the spring. - -The leather jacket, the glazed hat with its bedraggled scarlet feathers, -lay carefully folded upon the straw pallet, and its owner sat beside the -jacket shamefaced and terrified by this intrusion upon his retreat. But -it was something else that caught Dorothy's attention--a simple suit of -denim that had once been blue but was now faded by sun and water to a -ghostly white. Peter wore these now and--she recognized them. - -"Peter! Peter! So _you_ are the good 'Ghost' that came in the night and -tilled my garden for me! Come out, come out and let me thank you!" - -Though he had obstinately refused to answer the call of Seth Winters, -the voice of the girl he had so secretly served, because she had been -kind to him, was instantly obeyed. He climbed out of the shaft and, -taking hold of her skirt as he had done once before, stood foolishly -smiling while his good friend, the blacksmith, gayly announced: - -"Behold the 'Haunt' of Skyrie! The honestest, most innocent, most -grateful of Ghosts! During the years it was vacant he made Skyrie his -home, sleeping of winters in its hillside room, and in summer seeking -this cool retreat where we have just unearthed him. He must, he will, -_haunt_ no more; for if I judge aright the new master of old Skyrie will -at once engage him to take the place of Pa Babcock, resigned. A better -gardener there isn't 'up-mounting.' A more devoted servitor no man can -find, once his affection is won as our little Dorothy has won it. What -say, neighbors Chester? Will you secure your greatly needed 'hired man' -and forever 'lay the ghost' of Skyrie at one 'fell swoop'?" - -"Aye, aye! Hear!" cried father John, entering fully into the -blacksmith's spirit, even while he did not fully understand, till -Dorothy explained all the mysterious, yet beneficent, happenings of the -past few weeks; and then not only he but mother Martha bade the poor -waif welcome to their home, while all the others standing by applauded -vigorously. - -"But this isn't all we came to see. The gold mine, the gold mine! Peter -may be human gold, but the rich yellow metal is what we want!" cried -Herbert, when the cheers had died away. - -"Who'll go first?" asked somebody. - -"Why, I, of course!" returned young Montaigne, springing recklessly into -that rough shaft which veered from the wide safety of the upper chamber. - -Whereat a strange thing happened. Peter dropped the fold of his new -mistress's skirt and stepped hastily forward, warning by gestures and -his uncertain mumbling that Herbert should not go. Alas! the warning was -useless. The spirit of adventure was on the whole party, an eager desire -to be the first who should unearth a "nugget," and even cautious Jim -Barlow caught the infection, while Dorothy ran forward as lightly as if -she were to cross only the smooth meadow. - -As the heads disappeared below the surface of the ground, and the shouts -of those who scrambled downward over the rude rocky shaft grew fainter, -Peter was seized with a terrible trembling and stood as if rooted to the -ground in fear. A minute more and a girl's scream aroused him. -Dorothy's! She was falling--falling--into an unknown depth! One -mis-step, the slimy stones, the unforeseen peril! Both Jim and Herbert -were already far below, following with extreme care, if still with all -the speed possible, the tortuous excavation, in search of that deluding -metal which has lured so many to their ruin. Only Peter Piper, the -simple, to hear and comprehend. - -As if by magic his trembling ceased and with a cat-like leap, so swift -and soft it was, he had also disappeared beneath the ground. Then -something whispered to the Chesters of their darling's danger. They -pressed forward to the edge of the pit, and almost equally pale with -fear, Mrs. Cecil joined them; clinging to Martha with a sympathy of -distress which broke down in a moment the younger woman's dislike of the -elder. - -None of the trio were prepared for that which followed. Dorothy's slight -figure came hurtling out of the pit's mouth, tossed to their very feet -by the long arms of Peter Piper. A moment later he stood beside them, -exhausted, silent; while the girl explained, as her own breath returned -and terror subsided: - -"Oh! he saved my life! He saved my life! I was falling--I knew--it was -death--those awful stones--so dark. He caught me, he knew. He isn't -'simple' but wise; wise and oh! so good! Peter, you blessed Ghost! I owe -you my life!" - -But this excitement ebbed only to give way to another. When Dorothy had -recovered her composure and sat quietly beside her elders, Peter beside -her, with no desire left on her part for either explorations or the -biggest of "nuggets," a fresh cry of alarm sounded from the mine. The -cry preluded the frenzied rush out of the chasm of those who could -escape it first; but it was upon Herbert and Jim that all were -intent--upon poor Jim more than the other. - -As they came up Peter Piper cast one glance upon them, then hid his face -and shuddered. - -"A horse! A doctor! Quick, quick! For the love of God, a horse!" gasped -Herbert, and in a few broken words explained: - -"We got into a nest--a nest of serpents. One had raised its head--I -didn't see it--to strike my hand! Jim--Jim caught it, it swung -around--bit him--O God! Don't let him die! He offered his life for mine -whom he didn't like! He saved me! Can nobody--nobody save him?" - -With his arm around his rescuer the frantic Herbert searched the -blanched faces for some sign of help; and out of the startled silence -which greeted his appeal came Seth Winters's calm voice: - -"To my shop. I've medicines there. I'll take one side, you the other, -Herbert. If need be, we can make a 'chair' and carry him between us. You -can walk, for a while anyway, Jim. You are not going to die. Steady now, -on your own feet, steady--as when you so nobly threw away your life to -save the boy you 'didn't like'!" - -The shop was, indeed, the nearest place where help could be obtained, -and they started, all following; a sad and terrified party that but an -hour before had been so gay and happy. And presently Jim's nerve -returned to him, for it had been worsted for the moment by the cries and -assertions of the others that he was doomed to death. - -But where was Dorothy--who should have been foremost with sympathy and -cheer? Halfway down the mountain before the company had all left that -unlucky south meadow. Fully down by the time the smithy was reached. -Race, Portia, race. A life hangs on your fleetness! Jim's life, Jim's! -Who has proved that "greater love hath no man but that he lay down his -life for his friend." And this was more than "friend"--it was the boy -"he didn't like"--yet by the strange rule of nature, was forever after -to be the Damon to his Pythias. Experience has long proved that the -surest way to overcome an aversion to a person is to do that person a -kindness. - -Where, too, was Peter, the simple? Not far behind his faithful friend, -the smith, having lingered only long enough to dart into the woods and -fill his hands with a certain herb he knew; then to follow and reach the -smithy just in time to hear its owner say: - -"Faint, Jim? Drink this. Herbert, bare his arm. It will be heroic -treatment, my lad, but, _my hero_--bear it! and live to teach the world -a lesson." - -Some turned their eyes aside as the smith drew from the glowing forge a -white-hot iron and held it to the wound upon Jim's sunburned flesh. Not -Jim! this wise old man toward whom his young soul had yearned from the -beginning had called him "hero": and within himself he knew that he was -far more such now than when he had rescued Dorothy from bondage, though -they had termed him "hero" even then. - -The wound cauterized, came Peter Piper with his healing leaves, bringing -infinite relief; and soon as might be came also Dorothy upon her piebald -mare, and the doctor close beside her on his own fleet steed; approving -all that had been done, assuring everybody that no fatal results could -follow such prompt treatment; and especially commending Peter Piper for -his knowledge of those simples which mother Nature grows so luxuriantly -for the use of all her children. - -Thus ended the picnic and the search for hidden gold. But so soon as -most of the company had departed from the over-crowded shop, Jim was -made to ride upon Portia home to Skyrie, though he was now able to smile -and declare that his legs were so long they would drag upon the ground. - -However, he managed to hold them sufficiently high and to adapt himself -to the despised saddle of a girl. With him went the few who knew him -best; Seth Winters and Herbert, Mrs. Cecil and Martha, Helena -herself--not to be outdone in gratitude for her brother's life; and -John Chester with his "little maid" beside him. They had all anticipated -finding a restful quiet at Skyrie; but they failed. The moving events of -that memorable day were not all accomplished yet. - -On the little upper porch sat Mr. and Mrs. Montaigne, waiting the return -of Skyrie's owners to lay before them the scheme first evolved by their -son and heir, and now indorsed with all heartiness by themselves. -Chatting familiarly alongside, was Friend Oliver Sands; never more -benignant nor complacent than now, and never more persistently engaged -in "squeezing his hands" than at that hour. - -Below, on the stone doorsteps, sat the two surveyors who had once before -visited the cottage; and at sight of these the hearts of the elder -Chester's sank, while Seth merrily whispered to Dorothy: - -"Behold the hour is ripe and I _am_ here to see!" - -One other group there was, strolling idly about the garden, toying with -Lady Rosalind, and contentedly amusing themselves until such time as -they could make their errand to Skyrie known. Nobody seemed to know -them; even Seth Winters failed to recognize the strangers and, for a -moment, feared what they might have come to say. The next instant his -brow cleared and his laughter was merrier than before. - -Mr. Montaigne was the first to state his business, when once all were -ready to listen. It was extremely simple and concerned Dorothy most of -all. Said he: - -"My dear young lady, we have come to invite you to accompany us to -Europe. We shall leave New York in a few weeks and remain abroad for -one, possibly two, years. We are going to give our children the benefit -of foreign education, which we want you to share with them and along -whatever lines you, or your parents, select. Of course, there will be no -expense to you, who will be to us exactly as our own daughter, and whom -we have learned to love almost as such. Will you go?" - -For a moment nobody spoke. Then said Dorothy very quietly, and scarcely -daring to look at Helena or Herbert in their so evident disappointment: - -"I thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Montaigne, for your great kindness. It is -very wonderful that you should have shown it to me whom you have known -such a little while. But I cannot go. My father and mother need me -and--I need them. A foreign education would not help me to earn my -living as I must do some day, and--I thank you again, but I cannot go." - -To Helena's and Herbert's pleadings, which so strenuously followed, she -could give no other answer. The invitation had been most tempting to her -who so dearly loved to see new places and new people, but--her answer -still was: "No." - -Then the family from the Towers departed and Friend Oliver began: - -"Thee is a good daughter, Dorothy Chester, and thee has well said that -as a poor girl thee will need only the plainest education." - -"Beg pardon, sir, but I did not say that! I shall get just as good an -education as I can, but I won't turn my back on those I love and who -love me for the sake of getting it. That's already planned for. Dear Mr. -Winters is going to open a school in the old smithy and all of us are to -attend it. We've talked it over many a day, knowing how soon our summer -friends would be away and our own real time for study and work would -come. Jim and I, all the Babcocks, and----" - -But the miller had scant interest in these plans. He interrupted her by -turning to Martha Chester and saying: - -"I suppose, Martha, that thee has reconsidered thy objection to selling -south meadow, or are ready to pay me my money loaned thee 'on demand.' -Is thee ready?" - -"Oh! sir!" began the troubled housemistress, and was amazed that a child -should interfere by saying: - -"Wait a moment, mother dear. How much do my parents owe you 'on -demand'?" - -At a nod from Mr. Winters she had slipped away and as swiftly returned -and now stood before the astonished company, holding a fat purse in her -hands and calmly awaiting the miller's reply. - -For an instant he could not make it. His amazement was too deep. The -next with a sort of chuckle, as if sure that so large an amount could -not be held in so small a compass, he announced the sum with interest in -full. - -"Very well. Here, father, is the money. More I think than you will need. -It is mine. My very own to give to you and mother, as I do give it now. -Mr. Winters knows. He will explain. Pay the man, do please, and let him -go." - -John Chester glanced at Seth Winters and received that gentleman's -confirmatory nod; then he promptly opened the pocket-book and counted -out the crisp banknotes which freed him and his home from the society of -the miller and his men. - -Oliver departed. If he were crestfallen he did not show it, and in that -respect the worthy smith and Mrs. Cecil both were disappointed. He even -ventured to congratulate the Chesters upon the possession of "such a -forehanded" daughter and to wish them every prosperity. With that and -summoning his surveyors, he took his benign presence out of the way. - -Strangely enough, the surveyors did not at once follow, even to secure -their wage which so just a man would surely pay. They even made light of -such wages. During the time of waiting they had made other possible -arrangements with the gentlemen in the garden, and they waited still -further, with admirable patience, to see if these arrangements were -correct. - -It was time for the strangers in the garden to have their own little -interview, and, seeing them approach, poor mother Martha passed her hand -across her tired brow, confused by all that had happened and dreading -what might come. Too tired, as yet, to fully realize herself that her -dreadful "debt" no longer rested on her shoulders. - -But she need not have feared. These strangers were plain business men, -with no sentiment about them. Said the foremost: - -"Madam, we represent a syndicate prepared to buy, or operate in common -with you, an iron mine that has been discovered on your land. In -connection with this mine there is also a mineral spring from which a -rich revenue may be obtained if properly managed. I have the honor to -lay before you the two propositions of our company and to close with you -as soon as the legal forms can be completed. It is royalty or open -sale--if you will consider either." - -Oh, but it was well that two such wise and faithful counselors as Seth -Winters and Mrs. Calvert were present then to advise these -inexperienced Chesters for their own best advantage. Be assured they did -so, and subsequently that "deal" was accomplished on the wise "royalty" -basis, which proved, in one sense, indeed a "gold mine"; although the -"gold" was but pure iron and a most unsavory water--that local -physicians had always maintained would cure many diseases, and which -soon received widespread attention elsewhere. - -Such a day and such an ending! What time more fitting to take a -temporary leave of our dear Dorothy? Whose life moves forward in -blessing, as all lives should move, and whom we must come back to at -some happy, future day. - -All partings hold a touch of sadness--so must ours. But there is -brightness in the sunset which floods the fields of Skyrie, a promise of -greater brightness on the morrow. Before the night falls, while the -sunshine still lasts, let us bid our heroine a real, old-fashioned -farewell: - -"Well, Dorothy, good-by!" - - -THE END - - * * * * * - -THE DOROTHY BOOKS - -By EVELYN RAYMOND - - -These stories of an American girl by an American author have made -"Dorothy" a household synonym for all that is fascinating. Truth and -realism are stamped on every page. The interest never flags, and is -ofttimes intense. No more happy choice can be made for gift books, so -sure are they to win approval and please not only the young in years, -but also "grown-ups" who are young in heart and spirit. - - Dorothy - Dorothy at Skyrie - Dorothy's Schooling - Dorothy's Travels - Dorothy's House Party - Dorothy in California - Dorothy on a Ranch - Dorothy's House Boat - Dorothy at Oak Knowe - Dorothy's Triumph - Dorothy's Tour - -Copyright, 1907, by The Platt & Peck Co. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Dorothy at Skyrie, by Evelyn Raymond - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DOROTHY AT SKYRIE *** - -***** This file should be named 41117-8.txt or 41117-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/1/1/1/41117/ - -Produced by D Alexander, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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