hard--swallowing with
great, noisy gulps, and he lifted the lantern until the yellow light
fell full upon the twitching face below him, illuminating every
feature. And he stared hard at all that the light revealed, for Old
Jerry's face was very white.

"Jest a little, no-account jug that's got busted," the shrill,
bodiless voice went chattering on, while its owner recoiled from the
light. "Busted all to pieces from hittin' into a tree!" And then,
reassuringly, on a desperate impulse: "But don't you go to worryin'
over it--don't you worry one mite! I'm goin' to fix it for you. Old
Jerry's a-goin' to fix it for you in the morning, so's it'll be just
as good as new! You run right along in now. It's kinda wet out
here--and--and I got to be gittin' along toward home."

Absolute silence followed the promise. Young Denny only lowered the
lantern--and then lifted it and stared, and lowered it once more.

"Fix it!" he echoed, his voice heavy with wonder. "Fix it?"

Then he noted, too, the chattering teeth and meager, trembling body,
and he thought he understood.

"You'd better come along in," he ordered peremptorily. "You come along
inside. I'll rake up the fire and you can warm up a bit. I--I didn't
think, keeping you out here in the rain. Why, you'll feel better after
you've had a little rest. You ought not to be out all day in weather
like this, anyway. You're too--too----"

He was going to say too old, but a quick thought saved him. Old Jerry
did not want to accompany him; he would have done almost anything else
with a light heart; but that big hand had fallen again upon his
shoulder, and there was no choice left him.

Young Denny clicked the door shut before them and pulled a chair up
before the stove with businesslike haste. After he had stuffed the
fire-box full of fresh fuel and the flame was roaring up the pipe, he
turned once more and stood, hands resting on his hips, staring down at
the small figure slumped deep in its seat.

"I didn't understand," he apologized again, his voice very sober.
"I--I ought to have remembered that maybe you'd be tired out and wet,
too. But I didn't--I was just thinking of how I could best show
you--these things--so's you'd understand them. You're feeling better
now?"

Furtively, from the corners of his eyes, Old Jerry had been watching
every move while the boy built up the fire. And now, while Denny stood
over him talking so gravely, his head came slowly around until his
eyes w