worried Gracie,—­she was a thin-skinned little critter, and if I didn’t eat the same as usual she’d always take it into her head there was something wrong with the victuals.  I fell asleep in my cheer right after supper, and slept till nine o’clock; and then Gracie woke me, and ast me if I didn’t think I’d better go to bed.  I said yes, I s’posed I had; but by that time I was hungry, and I ast her what she had good in the pantry.  She brightened up wonderful at that,—­though when I come to look closer at her I see she’d been cryin’,—­and she said there was doughnuts, fresh fried that day, and the best half of a mince pie.  I told her that was all right so far as it went, but I’d like somethin’ a little solider to begin with:  so she found me a few slices of cold pork and one of her cowcumber pickles, and I eat a right good supper.  She picked at a piece of pie, by way of keepin’ me company, but she didn’t eat much.  Now, I tell you this, which you may think isn’t revelant to the subject, to let you see I went to bed comfortable.  We laughed and talked over our little supper, and pretended we was city-folks, on our way home from the theater, gettin’ a fancy supper at Delmonico’s.  And I forgot all about the check for the time bein’, as slick and clean as if I’d never had it nor lost it.  But, nevertheless, when I went to sleep I begun to dream about it, and was to the full as much worried in my dream as I was when I was awake.  I seemed to myself to be huntin’ all over the house, in every hole and corner I could think of, and sometimes I’d come on pieces of paper that looked so like it outside I’d make sure I’d found it, and then when I opened ’em they’d be ridickilous rhymes, ’ithout any sense to ’em; when all of a sudden I heard Lavina’s voice, as plain as you hear mine now.  It seemed to come from a good ways off just at first, callin’ ’Father,’—­she always called me ‘Father,’ partly because she didn’t like the name of Jabez, and it is a humbly name, I’m free to confess,—­and then again nearer, ‘Father;’ and then again, as if it was right at the foot of the stairs.  And this time it went on to say, loud and plain, so’s ’t I could hear every word, ’You look in the little black teapot on the top shelf of the pantry, where I kep’ the missionary money, and see what you’ll find.’  And with that I heard her laugh; and I’d know Lavina’s laugh among a thousand.  I was too dazed like to do it right away, and I must ‘a’ fell asleep while I was thinkin’ about it, for when I woke up it was broad daylight and Gracie was callin’ to me to get up.  But I hadn’t forgot a word that Lavina’d said, and I went for that teapot as quick as I was dressed, and there was the check, sure enough, in good order and condition!”

He paused to look round at his audience and see the effect of this statement, and the schoolmaster took advantage of the pause to ask, “Were you in the habit of putting money in that teapot for safe-keeping, Uncle Jabez?”