Jimmy was sitting on his front steps and the proverbial red flag could not have excited a bull to quicker action.  He hopped down the steps and ran across his own yard toward Billy as fast as his short, fat legs, could carry him.

“Git ’way f’om me; you’ll ketch ’em if you teches me,” warned Billy; “an’ you too little to have ’em,” and he waved an authoritative hand at the other child.  But Jimmy’s curiosity was aroused to the highest pitch.  He promptly jumped the fence and gazed at his chum with critical admiration.

“What’s the matter,” he inquired, “you got the toothache?”

“Toothache!” was the scornful echo, “well, I reckon not.  Git back; don’t you tech ’em; you ain’t ol’ ’nough to have ’em.”

Billy’s head was swathed in a huge, white cloth; his usually lean little cheeks were puffed out till he resembled a young hippopotamus, and his pretty grey eyes were almost invisible.

“You better git ‘way f’om me an’ don’t tech ’em, like I tells you,” he reiterated.  “Aunt Minerva say you ain’t never had ’em an’ she say fer me to make you keep ’way f’om me ’cause you ain’t a ol’ chile like what I is.”

“You ain’t but six,” retorted angry Jimmy, “and I’ll be six next month; you all time trying to ’suade little boys to think you’re ’bout a million years old.  What’s the matter with you, anyhow?  You ’bout the funniest looking kid they is.”

Billy theatrically touched a distended cheek.  “These here is mumps,” he said impressively; “an’ when you got ’em you can make grown folks do perzactly what you want ’em to.  Aunt Minerva’s in the kitchen right now makin’ me a ’lasses custard if I’ll be good an’ stay right in the house an’ don’t come out here in the yard an’ don’t give you the mumps.  Course I can’t tech that custard now ‘cause I done come out here an’ it ain’t honer’ble; but she’s makin’ it jes’ the same.  You better git ’way f’om me an’ not tech ’em; you too little to have ’em.”

“Are they easy to ketch?” asked the other little boy eagerly; “lemme jest tech ’em one time, Billy.”

“Git ’way, I tell you,” warned the latter with a superior air.  To increase Jimmy’s envy he continued:  “Grown folks tries to see how nice they can be to chillens what’s got the mumps.  Aunt Minerva ain’t been impedent to me to-day; she lemme do jest ‘bout like I please; it sho’ is one time you can make grown folks step lively.”  He looked at Jimmy meditatively, “It sho’ is a plumb pity you ain’t a ol’ chile like what I is an’ can’t have the mumps.  Yo’ ma ’d be skeered to spank you, skeered she ‘d injuh yo’ mumps.  Don’t you come any closter to me,” he again warned, “you too little to have ’em.”

“I’ll give you five peewees if you’ll lemme tech ’em so ’s I can get ’em,” pleaded the younger boy.

Billy hesitated.  “You mighty little—­” he began.

“And my stoney,” said the other child eagerly.

“If you was a ol’ little boy,” said Billy, “it wouldn’t make no diffunce; I don’t want to make yo’ ma mad an’ Aunt Minerva say for me to keep ’way f’om you anyhow, though I didn’t make her no promises.”