will now, won't ye?"

"Yes, I will, Uncle Tom," said George seriously.

"And be careful of yer speaking, Mas'r George. Young boys, when they
comes to your age, is wilful, sometimes--it is natur they should be.
But real gentlemen, such as I hopes you'll be, never lets fall on words
that isn't 'spectful to thar parents. Ye an't 'fended, Mas'r George?"

"No, indeed, Uncle Tom; you always did give me good advice."

"I's older, ye know," said Tom, stroking the boy's fine, curly head with
his large, strong hand, but speaking in a voice as tender as a woman's,
"and I sees all that's bound up in you. O, Mas'r George, you has
everything,--l'arnin', privileges, readin', writin',--and you'll grow
up to be a great, learned, good man and all the people on the place and
your mother and father'll be so proud on ye! Be a good Mas'r, like yer
father; and be a Christian, like yer mother. 'Member yer Creator in the
days o' yer youth, Mas'r George."

"I'll be _real_ good, Uncle Tom, I tell you," said George. "I'm going to
be a _first-rater_; and don't you be discouraged. I'll have you back to
the place, yet. As I told Aunt Chloe this morning, I'll build our house
all over, and you shall have a room for a parlor with a carpet on it,
when I'm a man. O, you'll have good times yet!"

Haley now came to the door, with the handcuffs in his hands.

"Look here, now, Mister," said George, with an air of great superiority,
as he got out, "I shall let father and mother know how you treat Uncle
Tom!"

"You're welcome," said the trader.

"I should think you'd be ashamed to spend all your life buying men and
women, and chaining them, like cattle! I should think you'd feel mean!"
said George.

"So long as your grand folks wants to buy men and women, I'm as good
as they is," said Haley; "'tan't any meaner sellin' on 'em, that 't is
buyin'!"

"I'll never do either, when I'm a man," said George; "I'm ashamed, this
day, that I'm a Kentuckian. I always was proud of it before;" and George
sat very straight on his horse, and looked round with an air, as if he
expected the state would be impressed with his opinion.

"Well, good-by, Uncle Tom; keep a stiff upper lip," said George.

"Good-by, Mas'r George," said Tom, looking fondly and admiringly at him.
"God Almighty bless you! Ah! Kentucky han't got many like you!" he said,
in the fulness of his heart, as the frank, boyish face was lost to his
view. Away he went, and Tom looked, till the clatter o