An’ now I’ll go git yo’ horse—­an’ don’t ride ’er too hard to-night, ’cause I’ve put a double po’tion of oats in her trough awhile ago.  The junior member he give instructions that everything on the place was to have a’ extry feed to-night—­an’ of co’se I went and obeyed orders.

Now—­’fo’ you start, doctor—­I ain’t got a thing stronger ’n raspberry corjal in the house—­but ef you’ll drink a glass o’ that with me? (Of co’se he will!)

She made this ‘erself, doctor—­picked the berries an’ all—­an’ I raised the little sugar thet’s in it.  Well, good-night, doctor!  To-morrer, shore!

Sh-h!

How that do’-latch does click!  Thess like thunder!

Sh-h!  Dicey, you go draw yo’ pallet close-t outside the do’, an’ lay down—­an’ I’ll set here by the fire an’ keep watch.

How my ol’ stockin’-feet do tromp!  Do lemme hurry an’ set down!  Seem like this room’s awful rackety, the fire a-poppin’ an’ tumblin’, an’ me breathin’ like a porpoise.  Even the clock ticks ez excited ez I feel.  Wonder how they sleep through it all!  But they do.  He beats her a-snorin’ a’ready, blest ef he don’t!  Wonder ef he knows he’s born into the world, po’ little thing!  I reckon not; but they’s no tellin’.  Maybe that’s the one thing the good Lord gives ’em to know, so’s they’ll realize what to begin to study about—­theirselves an’ the world—­how to fight it an’ keep friends with it at the same time.  Ef I could giggle an’ sigh both at once-t, seem like I’d be relieved.  Somehow I feel sort o’ tight ‘roun’ the heart—­an’ wide awake an’—­

How that clock does travel—­an’ how they all keep time, he—­an’ she—­an’ it—­an’ me—­an’ the fire roa’in’ up the chimbley, playin’ a tune all around us like a’ organ, an’ he—­an’ she—­an’ he—­an’ it—­an’ he—­an’—­

Blest ef I don’t hear singing—­an’ how white the moonlight is!  They’s angels all over the house—–­an’ their robes is breshin’ the roof whilst they sing—­

His head had fallen.  He was dreaming.

[Illustration]

THE BOY

[Illustration:  ‘H’]

Here’s the doctor, now!  Hello, Doc, come right in!  Here’s yo’ patient, settin’ up on the po’ch, big ez life; but when we sent for you this mornin’ it seemed thess hit an’ miss whether he’d come thoo or not.

Thess the same sort o’ spells he’s had all along, doctor,—­seems you can’t never see ‘im in one,—­all brought on by us a-crossin’ ’im.  His gran’ma insisted on hidin’ the clock when he wanted it; but I reckon she’ll hardly resk it ag’in, she’s that skeert.  He’s been settin’ on the flo’ there thess the way you see ’im now, with that clock in his lap, all mornin’.

Of co’se it thess took him about ten minutes to bu’st all the little things his gran’ma give him to play with, ‘n’ then he nachelly called for the clock; ‘n’ when she wasn’t forthcomin’ immejate, why, he thess stiffened out in a spell.