This frightened Prince so that he shied.

The pony bounded up in the air first like a goat, lifting all his legs
from the ground at once in true buck-jumper fashion, after which he came
to a dead halt as if he had been shot; and then, placing his fore-feet
straight out before him he sent me flying over his head right through
the window of a little shop opposite with such force that I was picked
up insensible.

CHAPTER THREE.

CONVALESCENT.

The first face I saw when I came to myself was that of my father. He
was bending over me and looking very anxious. I think he had been
crying.

"Better, Tom?" he said softly, as if afraid of making a noise and
frightening me back into unconsciousness--everything seeming to be
strangely still around me!

"Oh, I'm all right," I answered joyfully, much pleased at seeing him.
"Why, how did you come here?" and I tried to get up from the sofa on
which I discovered that I Was lying. But it was only an attempt, for I
fell back again in a heap, feeling pain all over me. It seemed just as
if I had been broken into little pieces and somebody was now separating
the bits!

"Bress de Lor', him 'peak again!" I heard Jake ejaculate, and then I
noticed his black face behind dad's, while there was another gentleman
there too. The latter now took hold of my hand and felt my pulse, I
suppose, although he didn't ask me to put out my tongue, as he generally
did when he came up to Mount Pleasant specially to prescribe for me!

"Hallo, Doctor Martin!" I exclaimed, recognising him. "What's the
matter with me? I can't rise, or move my legs, or do anything."

"You confounded young rascal!" he rejoined in his hearty voice, "a nice
mess you have got yourself into, alarming us all in this way. What do
you mean by galloping down Constitution Hill as if you were after a pack
of foxhounds? It's a mercy you haven't broken every bone in your body."

"Poor Prince isn't hurt, is he?" I asked abruptly, without answering
him directly.

"No, Mass' Tom," eagerly cried out Jake, glad of saying something to me
in order to show his sympathy; "he berry well, no scrape um knees or
nuffin', he--"

"There, that will do," said Doctor Martin, interrupting the flow of the
good-natured darkey's eloquence, "you mustn't agitate Master Tom now;
he's in a very critical state, and any excitement is bad for him. You'd
better go and see after the horses."

"Me no want agg-agg-tate um, Mass' Doctor," pitiful