road ran close to the low, rough stone wall, and when we had
come opposite the gate Alf stopped the mare and got out to buckle a
strap. But I noticed that he was looking more at the house than at the
strap. A broad porch, or gallery, as we term it, ran nearly half way
round the house, and out upon this a girl stepped and stood looking over
us at the hills far away. I saw Alf blush, and the next moment he had
sprung upon the buck-board and was driving off almost furiously. I
wondered why he should be afraid of her. He was not overgrown, not
awkward, but lithe, and I knew that he loved her and that his own
emotion had frightened him.

Perdue lived but a short distance beyond the General's place, and soon
we were there, talking to the old fellow out at the fence. When I told
him my business he looked sharply at me, appearing to measure me from
head to foot; and he said I was, no doubt, the man he had been longing
to see. "And now," said he, after we had talked for a time, "if you are
willing to take this school and go ahead with it, all right. I am
determined that the boys and girls of this community shall get an
education even if they choke the creek with teachers. If I had full
swing I'd raise a lot of men and go around and club the big boys. Oh, it
hasn't been this way very long. We've had first-rate schools here, but
those devilish Aimes boys are so full of the old Harry--but we'll fix
'em. The ground will be all right for plowin' to-morrow, and the big
boys will have to work until the corn is laid by, but I reckon you'll
get a pretty fair turn-out. There's enough money appropriated to have a
rattlin' good school, and if you'll stick by me we'll have it."

I told him that I would stick by him. "All right," said he, "see that
you do. Let me see. This is Friday. You hold yourself in readiness to
begin Monday mornin', and to-morrow I will ride around the neighborhood
and spread the news."

So that was settled. Briskly we drove away, and again upon nearing the
house of the old General, Alf pulled the mare back into a walk. This
time, though, he did not stop, but as we slowly passed he swept the
house and the yard with his eager glance. The sun was down when we
reached home. How long the day had been, what a stretch of time lay
between the going down of the sun now and its rising, when I had
shouldered my trunk at the railway station!

As I was getting down in front of the door I heard Mr. Jucklin calling
me, and when