“We’ll git a watchman an’ put him on the job,—­that’s what we’ll do!  They ain’t goin’ to be any more o’ this sort o’ thing.”

And Bill chimed in:  “Good idea.  There’s George, Mr. Hooper; we’re nearly through with him and we’ve been wondering what to put him at, for we’d be sorry to lose him.”

So it was arranged then and there, much to the satisfaction of everyone, especially the old darkey, and Mr. Hooper, saying nothing more but looking as though there were a death in his family, started away toward home.

CHAPTER XV

MR. EDDY’S SON’S SONS

It took but a short time to repair the break; before many other days had passed the Pelton wheel, a direct action turbine, was going at a tremendous rate, driven by a nozzled stream from the pipe.  It was necessary to belt it down from a small to a larger pulley to run the generator at a slower speed, which was 1200 a minute.  Then came the boxing in, the wiring to the house, and the making of connections with the wiring to the house after the town company’s service was dispensed with, and it was a proud moment when Gus turned on the first bulb and got a full and brilliant glare.

Mr. Hooper clasped the hands of both boys, compelled them to spend the evening, ordered special refreshments for the occasion, told Grace to invite a lot of the young folks and when, at dusk all the lights of the house went on with an illumination that fairly startled the guests, the host proposed a cheer for the boys which found an eager and unanimous response.  Mr. Hooper attempted to make a speech, with his matronly and contented wife laughing and making sly digs at his effort, and his daughter encouraging him.

“Now, young fellers,” he began, “these boys—­uh, Mister Bill Brown an’ Mister ’Gustus Grier,—­I says to them,—­in the first place, I says:  ‘Perfesser, these here kids don’t know enough to build a chicken coop,’ I says, an’ Perfesser Gray he says to me, he says, he would back them fellers to build a battleship or tunnel through to Chiny, he says.  So I says:  ‘You kids kin go ahead,’ I says, an’ these blame boys they went ahead an’ shucks! you all see what they, Bill an’ Gus, has done.  You fellers has got to have a lot o’ credit an’ you are goin’ to git it!

“Now, my wife she don’t think I’m any good at makin’ a speech an ’I ain’t, but I’m a-makin’ it jes’ the same fer these boys, Bill an’ Gus, b’jinks!  They got to git credit fer what they done, jes’ two kids doin’ a reg’lar man’s job.  An’ I reckon that not even that feller Eddy’s son, that there chap they call the ‘Wizard of Menlo Park,’ I reckon he couldn’t ‘lectrocute nothin’ no better’n these here boys, Bill an’ Gus, has lighted this here domycile.  An’—­oh, you kin laugh, Ma Hooper, b’jinks, but I reckon you’re as proud o’ these here young Eddy’s son’s sons as I be.  Now, Mister Bill an’ Mister Gus, you kin bet all these folks’d like to have a few words.  Now, as they say in prayer meetin’, ‘Mister Bill Brown’ll lead us in a speech.’  Hooray!”