第8章

Whenmotheraskedhertodinnershesaid：“Thankyoukindly。I

shouldbegladtogo，butmypeopleexpectmeathomeandtheywouldbeuneasy。Perhapsyouwouldallowmetorideoversomeweekdayandbecomeacquainted？“

Mothersaidshewouldbehappytohaveher，andShelleysaidsotoo，butSallywasnonetoocordial。Shehaddarkcurlsandpinkcheeksherself，andeveryonehadsaidshewastheprettiestgirlinthecountybeforeShelleybegantoblossomoutandshowwhatshewasgoingtobe。Sallynevermindedthat，butwhenthePrincesscameshewasalittletaller，andherhairwasatriflelonger，andheavier，andblacker，andhereyeswerealittlelargeranddarker，andwhereSallyhadpinkskinandredlips，thePrincesswasdarkasolive，andherlipsandcheekswerelikeredvelvet。Anyway，thePrincesshadsaidshewouldcomeover；

motherandShelleyhadbeendecenttoher，andSallyhadn’tbeenexactlyinsulting。ItwouldbealittlemorethanyoucouldexpectforhertobewildaboutthePrincess。Ibelieveshewaspleasedoverhavingbeeninvitedtodinner，andasshewasastrangershecouldn’tknowthatmotherhadwhatwecalledthe“invitationhabit。“

IhaveseenheraskfromfifteentotwentyinonetripdowntheaisleonSundaymorning。Shewantedthemtocometoo；themorewhocame，thebettershelikedit。IfthehitchingrackandbarnyardwerefullonSundayshejustbeamed。Ifthesermonpleasedher，sheinvitedmore。Thatmorningshewasfeelingsogoodsheaskedseventeen；andassheonlyhaddressedsixchickens——thirdtable，backsandham，formeasusual；butwhentheprospectswereasnow，IalwaysmanagedtocoaxafewgizzardsfromCandace；shedidn’tdaregivemelivers——theywerecounted。Almosteveryoneinthechurchwasthehappiestthatmorningtheyhadbeeninyears。Whenthepreachercame，hebreatheditfromtheair，anditworkedonhimsohepreachedthebestsermonheeverhad，andneverknewthatLeonmadehimdoit。

Maybeafterallit’sagoodthingtotellpeopleabouttheirmeannessandgivethemastirringuponceinawhile。

CHAPTERIII

Mr。Pryor’sDoor“GriefwillbejoyifonitsedgeFallsoftthatholiestray，JoywillbegriefifnofaintpledgeBethereofheavenlyday。“

HaveSallyandPetersaidanythingaboutgettingmarriedyet？“

askedmybigsisterLucyofmother。Lucywashomeonavisit。

Shewasbathingherbabyandmotherwassewing。

“Notaword！“

“Aretheyengaged？“

“Sallyhasn’tmentionedit。“

“Well，can’tyoufindout？“

“HowcouldI？“askedmother。

“Why，watchthemalittleandseehowtheyactwhentheyaretogether。Ifhekissesherwhenheleaves，ofcoursetheyareengaged。“

“ItwouldbebesttowaituntilSallytellsme，“laughedmother。

Iheardthisfromthebacksteps。NeithermothernorLucyknewI

wasthere。Iwentintoseeiftheywouldletmetakethebaby。

Ofcoursetheywouldn’t！Mothertookitherself。Shewasrocking，andsoftlysingingmyDutchsongthatIlovedbest；I

can’tspellit，butitsoundslikethis：

“Trus，trus，trill；

Derpowerridderfill，Fillsphringaveck，Plodschlicterpowerinderdreck。“

OnceIaskedmothertosingitinEnglish，andshecouldn’tbecauseitdidn’trhymethatwayandthewordswouldn’tfitthenotes；itwasjust，“Trot，trot，trot，aboyrodeacolt。Thecoltsprangaside；downwenttheboyinthedirt。“

“Aw，don’tsingmysongtothatlittlered，pug-nosedbald-head！“

Isaid。

Really，itwasaverynicebaby；IonlysaidthatbecauseI

wantedtoholdit，andmotherwouldn’tgiveitup。ItriedtocoaxMaytothedamsnakehunting，butshecouldn’tgo，soIhadtoamusemyself。Ihadadoll，butIneverplayedwithitexceptwhenIwasdresseduponSunday。Anyway，what’stheuseofadollwhenthere’salivebabyinthehouse？Ididn’tcaremuchformyplayhousesinceIhadseenonesomuchfinerthatLaddiehadmadeforthePrincess。OfcourseIknewmosswouldn’ttakerootinourorchardasitdidinthewoods，neitherwouldwillowcuttingsortheredflowers。Finally，Idecidedtogohunting。

Iwentintothegardenandgatheredeveryripetouch-me-notpodI

couldfind，andalltheportulaca。ThenIstrippedthetigerliliesofeachlittleblackballatthebasesoftheleaves，andtookallthefouro’clockseedtherewas。ThenIgotmybiggestalderpopgunandstarteduptheroadtowardSarahHood’s。

Iwasgoingalongsingingalittleverse；itwasn’tDutcheither；

theoldbabycouldhavethatifitwantedit。SoonasIgotfromsightofthehouseImadeapowderhornofacurledleaf，loadedmygunwithportulacapowder，rammedinatigerlilybullet，laidtheweaponacrossmyshoulder，andsteppedhighandlightlyasLaddiedoeswhenhe’sintheBigWoodshuntingforsquirrel。Itmusthavebeenmyownsinging——Iamrathergoodathearingthings，butInevernoticedasoundthattime，untilavoicelikearustysawsaid：“Goodmorning，Nimrod！“

Isprangfromthesoftdustandlandedamongthedogfennelofafencecorner，inaflyingleap。ThenIlooked。ItwasthePrincess’father，tall，andgray，andgrim，ridingabigblackhorsethatseemedasifithadbeencurriedwiththefinecombandbrushedwiththegreaserag。

“Goodmorning！“IsaidwhenIcouldspeak。

“AmIcorrectinthesurmisethatyouareonthechasewithapopgun？“heaskedpolitely。

“Yessir，“Ianswered，gettingmybreaththebestIcould。

ItcameeasierafterInoticedhedidn’tseemtobeangryaboutanything。

“Whereisyourhuntingground，andwhatgameareyouafter？“heaskedgravely。

“YoucanseethegreatAfricanjungleoverthere。Iamgoingtohuntforlionsandtigers。“

Youalwaysmustanswerpolitelyanyonewhospeakstoyou；andyougetsoundlythrashed，atleastatourhouse，ifyoudon’tbepolitestofalltoanolderpersonespeciallywithwhitehair。

Fatherisextremelyparticularaboutwhitehair。Itisa“crownofglory，“whenitisfoundinthewayoftheLord。MahlonPryorhadenoughcrownofgloryforthreemen，butmaybehiswasn’texactlyglory，becausehewasn’tinthewayoftheLord。Hewasinawayofhisown。Hemusthavehadmuchconfidenceinhimself。AtourhousewewouldrathertrustintheLord。Ionlytoldhimaboutthelionsandtigersbecauseheaskedme，andthatwasthewayIplayed。Butyoushouldhaveheardhimlaugh。Youwouldn’thavesupposedtoseehimthathecould。

“Umph！“hesaidatlast。“Iamalittlecuriousaboutyourammunition。Justhowtoyoubringdownyourprey？“

“Iuseportulacapowderandtigerlilybulletsonthetigers，andfouro’clocksonthelions，“Isaid。

Youcouldhaveheardhimamile，driedupashewas。

“Iusedtoweararedcoatandridetothehoundsfoxhunting，“

hesaid。“It’sgreatsport。Won’tyoutakemewithyoutothejungle？“

Ididn’twanthimintheleast，butifanyoneolderasksrightouttogowithyou，whatcanyoudo？Iamgoingtotellseveralthingsyouwon’tbelieve，andthisisoneofthem：Hegotoffhishorse，tiedittothefence，andclimbedoverafterme。HewentonaskingquestionsandofcourseIhadtotellhim。Mostofwhathewantedtoknow，hispeopleshouldhavetaughthimbeforehewastenyearsold，butfathersaystheydothingsdifferentlyinEngland。

“Theredoesn’tseemtobemanytreesinthejungle。“

“Well，there’sone，andit’saboutthemostimportantonourland，“Itoldhim。“Fatherwouldn’tcutitdownforafarm。Youseethatlittledarkbagnearlyasbigasyourfist，swingingoutthereonthatlimb？Well，everyspringoneofthesebirds，yellowasorangepeel，withvelvetblackwings，weavesanestlikethat，andoveronthatbigbranch，highup，onejustasbrightredastheotherisyellow，andthesameblackwings，buildsacradleforhisbabies。Fathersaysaredbirdandayellowonekeepinghouseinthesametreeisthebiggestthingthateverhappenedinourfamily。Theycomeeveryyearandthatistheirtree。Ibelievefatherwouldshootanyonewhodrovethemaway。“

“Yourfatherisagunneralso？“heasked，andIthoughthewaslaughingtohimself。

“He’senoughofagunnertobringmotherinawagonfromPennsylvaniaallthewayhere，andhekeptwolves，bears，Indians，andGypsiesfromher，andshotthingsforfood。Yessir，myfathercanshootifhewantsto，betterthananyofourfamilyexceptLaddie。“

“AnddoesLaddieshootwell？“

“Laddiedoeseverythingwell，“Iansweredproudly。“Hewon’ttrytodoanythingatall，untilhepractisessohecandoitwell。“

“ScoreoneforLaddie，“hesaidinaqueervoice。

“Areyouinahurryaboutthelionsandtigers？“

“Notatall，“heanswered。

“Well，hereIalwaysstopandletGovernorOglesbygoswimming，“

Isaid。

Mr。MahlonPryorsatonthebankofourLittleCreek，tookoffhishatandshookbackhishairasifthewindfeltgoodonhisforehead。IfishedDickOglesbyfromtheammunitioninmyapronpocket，andheldhimtowardthecrossoldman，andhewasn’tcrossatall。It’sfunnyhowyoucometogetsuchwrongideasaboutpeople。

“MybigmarriedsisterwholivesinWestchestersenthimtomelastChristmas，“Iexplained。“Ihaveanotherdoll，greatbig，withaScotchplaiddressmadefrompiecesofmine，butIonlyplaywithheronSundaywhenIdarenotdomuchelse。IlikeDickthebestbecausehefitsmyapronpocket。FatherwantedmetochangehisnameandcallhimOliverP。Morton，afterafriendofhis，butItoldhimthisdollhadtobecalledbythenamehecamewith，andifhewantedmetohaveonenamedforhisfriend，togetit，andI’dplaywithit。“

“Whatdidhedo？“

“Hedidn’twantonenamedMortonthatmuch。“

Mr。PryortookDickOglesbyinhisfingersandlookedathiscurlyblackhairandblueeyes，hischubbyoutstretchedarms，likeababywhenitwantsyoutotakeit，andhisplumplittlefeetandthewhiteshirtwithredstripesallapieceofhimashewasmade，andsaid：“Thehonourablegovernorofoursisterstateseemsalittleweighty；Iamatalosstounderstandhowheswims。“

“It’sanewway，“Isaid。“Hejuststandsstillandthewaterswimsaroundhim。It’sveryeasyforhim。“

ThenIcarriedDicktothewater，wadedinandstoodhimagainstastone。Somethingfunnyhappenedinstantly。Italwaysdid。I

founditoutonedaywhenIgotsomeapplebutteronthegovernorgivinghimabiteofmybread，andputhiminthewashbowltosoak。Hewastwoandahalfinchestall；buttheminuteyoustoodhiminwaterhewentdowntoabouthalfthatheightandspreadouttotwicehissizearound。YoushouldhaveheardMr。

Pryor。

“Ifyouwilllieonthebankandwatchyou’llhavemoretolaughatthanthat，“Ipromised。

Helaydownandneverpaidtheleastattentiontohisclothes。

PrettysoonalittlechubfishcameswimmingaroundtomakefriendswithGovernorOglesby，andthenashinerandsomemorechub。Theynibbledathishandsandtoes，andthenwentflashingaway，andfromunderthestonecamebackingabigcrayfishandseizedthegovernorbythelegandstarteddragginghim，soIhadtojumpinandstopit。Itookashotatthecrayfishwiththetigerammunitionandthenloadedforlions。

Wewentonuntilthemarshbecameathicketofcattails，bulrushes，willowbushes，andblueflags；thenIfoundapathwherethelionsleftthejungle，hidMr。Pryorandtoldhimhemustbeverystillortheywouldn’tcome。AtlastIheardone。

ItouchedMr。Pryor’ssleevetowarnhimtokeephiseyesonthetrail。Prettysoonthelioncameinsight。Reallyitwasonlyalittlegrayrabbithoppingalong，butwhenitwasoppositeus，I

pingeditintheside，itjumpedupandturnedasomersaultwithsurprise，andsquealedafunnylittlesqueal，——well，IwonderedifMr。Pryor’speopledidn’thearhim，andthinkhehadgonecrazyasPaddyRyan。Ineverdidhearanyonelaughso。I

thoughtifheenjoyeditlikethat，I’dlethimshootone。IdoMaysometimes；sowewenttoanotherplaceIknewwheretherewasatiger’sden，andIloadedwithtigerlilybullets，gavehimthegunandshowedhimwheretoaim。Afterwehadwaitedalongtimeoutcameamuskrat，andstartedfortheriver。IlookedtoseewhyMr。Pryordidn’tshoot，andtherehewasgazingatitasifasnakehadcharmedhim；hishandsshakingalittle，hischeeksalmostred，hiseyesverybright。

“Shoot！“Iwhispered。“Itwon’tstayallday！“

HeforgothowtopushtheramrodlikeIshowedhim，sohereachedoutandtriedtohititwiththegun。

“Don’tdothat！“Isaid。

“Butit’sgettingaway！It’sgettingaway！“hecried。

“Well，whatifitis？“Iasked，halfprovoked。“DoyousupposeI

reallywouldhurtapoorlittlemuskrat？Maybeithassixhungrybabiesinitshome。“

“OhTHATway，“hesaid，buthekeptlookingatit，sohemademethinkifIhadn’tbeenthere，hewouldhavethrownastoneorhititwithastick。Itisperfectlywonderfulabouthowsomemencan’tgetalongwithoutkillingthings，suchlittlebitsofhelplesscreaturestoo。Ithoughthe’dbetterbegotfromthejungle，soIinvitedhimtoseetheplaceatthefootofthehillbelowourorchardwheresomementhoughttheyhaddiscoveredgoldbeforethewar。TheyhadbeentoCaliforniain’49，andalthoughtheydidn’tcomehomewithmillions，oranythingelseexceptsickandtired，theythoughttheyhadlearnedenoughaboutgoldtoknowitwhentheysawit。

Itoldhimaboutitandhewasinterestedandanxioustoseetheplace。Iftherehadbeenashovel，Iamquitesurehewouldhavegonetodigging。Hekeptpokingaroundwithhisboottoe，andhesaidmaybetheyokelsdidn’tlookgood。

Hesaidourmeadowwasabeautifulplace，andwhenhepraisedthecreekItoldhimaboutthewildducks，andhelaughedagain。Hedidn’tseemtobethesamemanwhenwewentbacktotheroad。I

pulledsomesweetmarshgrassandgavehishorsebites，soMr。

PryoraskedifIlikedanimals。IsaidIlovedhorses，Laddie’sbestofall。HeaskedaboutitandItoldhim。

“Hasn’tyourfatherbutonethoroughbred？“

“Fatherhasn’tany，“Isaid。“FlosreallybelongstoLaddie，andwearemightygladhehasher。“

“Youshouldhaveonesoon，yourself，“hesaid。

“Well，iftherestofthemwillhurryupandmarryoff，sotheexpenseswon’tbesoheavy，maybeIcan。“

“Howmanyofyouarethere？“heasked。