"And the Captain hath a
purpose to take him to Provincetown and meet me here on my return."

"The land is mayhap safer than the sea should another earthquake visit
us," said the Governor gravely, "and he will more than earn his keep
if he will but help William with the corn and other tasks. Like
thyself we are in sad need of more hands."

Daniel looked eagerly at his father, for he already greatly admired
his cousin William and longed to stay with him. Moreover, the
earthquake had somewhat modified his appetite for adventure.

"His eyes plead," said the Goodman, "and I know it would please his
mother. So by your leave he may stay."

A whoop of joy from the three young Bradfords was promptly suppressed
by their mother. "For shame!" she said. "Thy cousin Daniel will think
thou hast learned thy manners from the savages. Thou shouldst take a
lesson from his behavior."

Poor Daniel squirmed on his stool and thought if he must be an example
every moment of his stay he would almost choose being swallowed up by
a tidal wave at sea after all. The matter had been settled, however,
and that very afternoon the Goodman set off on a hired horse, with his
musket across his saddle-bow, and a head full of instructions from
the Governor about the dangers of the road, and houses where he might
spend the nights.

There was a queer lump in Daniel's throat as he caught the last
glimpse of his father's sturdy back as it disappeared down the forest
trail, and that night, when he went to bed with William in the loft of
the Governor's log house, he thought long and tenderly of his mother
and Nancy. If he had only had a magic mirror such as Beauty had in the
palace of the Beast, he might have looked into it and seen them going
patiently about their daily tasks with nothing to break the monotonous
routine of work except a visit from Gran'ther Wattles, who came to see
if Nancy knew her catechism. The earthquake had been felt there so
very slightly that they did not even know there had been one, until
the Captain stopped on his return voyage the next week to bring them
word of the safe journey to Plymouth.

IV

A FOREST TRAIL

To Daniel the days of his stay in Plymouth passed quickly. He hoed
corn with his cousin William and pulled weeds in the garden with
Joseph and Mercy, and in the short hours allowed them for play there
was always the sea. They ran races on the sand when the tide was out
and were never tired of searching for