t Martha sighed painfully and Uncle Peter chuckled inwardly like
a mechanical toy hen.

On the train out to Jiggersville Clara J. was a picture entitled,
"The Joy of Living"--kind regards to Mrs. Pat Campbell; Ibsen
please write.

As for me with every revolution of the wheels I grew more and more
like a half portion of chipped beef.

"Oh, John!" said Clara J., her voice shrill with excitement; "I
forgot to tell you! I left my key with Mother, and she's going to
superintend the packing of the furniture this afternoon. By
evening she expects to have everything loaded in the van and we
won't have to wait any time for our trunks and things!"

"Great Scott!" I yelled; "maybe you won't like the house! Maybe
it's only a shanty with holes in the roof--er, I mean, maybe you'll
be disappointed with the lay-out! What's the blithering sense of
being in such a consuming fever about moving the fiendish
furniture? I'm certain you'll hate the very sight of this
corn-crib out among the ant hills. Can't you back-pedal on the
furniture gag and give yourself a chance to hear the answer to what
you ask yourself?"

Clara J. looked tearfully at me for a moment; then she went over
and sat with Aunt Martha and told her how glad she was we were
moving to the country where the pure air would no doubt have a
soothing effect on my nerves because I certainly had grown
irritable of late.

At last we reached the little old log cabin down the lane and after
the first glimpse I knew it was all off.

The place I had borrowed from Bunch for a few minutes was a dream,
all right, all right.

With its beautiful lawns and its glistening gravelled walks; with a
modern house perfect in every detail; with its murmuring brooklet
rushing away into a perspective of nodding green trees and with the
bright sunshine smiling a welcome over all it made a picture
calculated to charm the most hardened city crab that ever crawled
away from the cover of the skyscrapers.

As for Clara J. she simply threw up both hands and screamed for
help. She danced and yelled with delight. Then she hugged and
kissed me with a thousand reiterated thanks for my glorious present.

I felt as joyous as a jelly fish. Ten-legged microbes began to
climb into my pores. Everything I had in my system rushed to my
head. I could see myself in the giggle-giggle ward in a bat house,
playing I was the king of England.

I was a joke turned upside down.

After they had examined