“Who you driving for, Johnny?” she asked; and I told her.

“Captain Sproule is down-stairs,” said she.  “He’s looking for you.  Go on down!  And as for you, Madam, you get out of my house, and don’t come back until you can please my visitors—­you knife-drawin’ hussy!”

I went down to the room where the captain had left me; and just as he had begun making some sly blind jokes at my expense, the woman who had befriended me came down, followed by the fat virago, cursing her and ordering her out.

“Don’t let ’em hurt her!” said I.  “She’s a good woman.  She put me to bed, and was good to me.  Don’t let ’em hurt her!”

We all went out together, the captain asking me what I meant; and then went on walking beside the woman, whom he called Sally, and trying to understand the case.  I heard her say, “Mine would be about that size if he had lived.  I s’pose every woman must be a darned fool once in a while!” The rest of the case I did not understand very well; but I knew that she went to a tavern where we all spent the night, and that the captain seemed very thoughtful when we went to bed at last—­the second time for me.  When we finally pulled out of Buffalo for the East, Sally was on the boat—­not a very uncommon thing in those days; but the captain was very good and respectful to her until we reached a little village two or three days’ journey eastward, when Sally got off the boat after kissing me good-by and telling me to be good, and try to grow up and be a good man; and went off on a country road as if she knew where she was going.

“Where did Sally go?” I asked of Captain Sproule.

“Home,” said he; “and may God have mercy on her soul!”

4

I looked forward more longingly than ever to the time when I should be able to drop off the boat at Tempe, and run up to see my mother; and I fixed it up with Captain Sproule so that when we made our return trip I was to be allowed to stop over a day with her, and taking a fast boat catch up with our own craft farther east.  I was proud of the fact that I had two good suits of clothes, a good hat and boots, and money in my pocket.  I expected to turn my money out on the table and leave it with her.  I thought a good deal of my meeting with John Rucker, and hoped fervently that I should find him absent on one of his peddling trips, in which case I meant to stay over night with my mother; and I seriously pondered the matter as to whether or not I should fight Rucker if he attacked me, as I expected he might; and Ace and I had many talks as to the best way for me to fight him, if I should decide on such a course.  Ace was quite sure I could best Rucker; but I did not share this confidence.  A fight with a boy was quite a different thing from a battle with a man, even though he might be a coward as I was sure Rucker was.