vising him--with the hickory--that it was best to
proceed, but he seemed to have hardened his heart, and his back also,
and paid me no heed. There I sat--all was as still as the grave, save
for the dismal hoot of the screech-owl. There I was, five and a half
miles from home with no prospect of getting there.

I began to coax my mule with some words which perhaps are not in the
Sabbath School books, and to emphasize them with the rising and falling
inflection of the stick across his back; but still he moved not. Then
all at once my conscience smote me. I thought perhaps the faithful beast
might be sick. My mind reverted to Balaam, whose beast spoke to him when
he had smitten him but three times and here I had smitten my beast about
3,333 times. I listened almost in expectation of hearing him say,
"Johnson, Johnson, why smitest thou me 3,333 times?"

I got out of the buggy and looked at the mule; he gazed at me with a sad
far-away expression in his eye, which sent pangs of remorse to my heart.
I thought of the cruel treatment I had given him, and on the impulse of
the moment I went to the buggy, got out my large, luscious melon, burst
it open and laid it on the ground before the poor animal; and I firmly
resolved to be a friend of the mule ever after, and to join the Humane
Society as soon as I reached Atlanta.

As I watched that mule slowly munching away at my melon, I began to
wonder if I had not acted a little too hastily in giving it to him, but
I smothered that thought when I remembered the pledge I had just taken.
When he had finished he looked around with a satisfied air which
encouraged me; so I took hold of his bridle and after stroking him
gently for a moment, attempted to lead him off. But he refused to be
led. He looked at me from under his shabby eyebrows, but the sad,
far-away expression had vanished and in its stead there was a
mischievous gleam, born of malice afore-thought. I remonstrated with
him, but it only seemed to confirm his convictions that it was right
for him to stand there. I thought of my melon he had just devoured; then
I grew wrathy, and right there and then renounced all my Humane Society
resolutions, and began to shower down on that mule torrents of abuse and
hickory also, but all to no effect. Instead of advancing he began to
"revance." I pulled on the bridle until my hands and arms were sore, but
he only continued to back and pull me along with him. When I stopped
pulling he stopped ba