nightgowns for a sight and hearing of the pore gentleman. They struggled
madly to climb over their parents, and failing this--under them. But the
opening that served as a door to the shanty being small, and being as it
was completely stoppered by their father and mother who were in no mood
to yield an inch, they distributed themselves in quest of convenient
holes in the bark edifice through which to peer at the pore gentleman.
And since the number of youthful Cavendishes exceeded the number of such
holes, the sound of lamentation and recrimination presently filled the
morning air.

"I kin see the soles of his feet!" shrieked Keppel with passionate
intensity, his small bleached eye glued to a crack.

He was instantly ravished of the sight by Henry.

"You mean hateful thing!--just because you're bigger than Kep!" and
Constance fell on the spoiler. As her mother's right-hand man she
had cuffed and slapped her way to a place of power among the little
brothers.

Mr. Cavendish appeared to allay hostilities.

"I 'low I'll skin you if you don't keep still! Dress!--the whole kit and
b'ilin' of you!" he roared, and his manner was quite as ferocious as his
words.

But the six little Cavendishes were impressed by neither. They instantly
fastened on him like so many leeches. What was the pore gentleman
saying?--why couldn't they hear, too? Then they'd keep still, sure they
would! Did he say he knowed who throwed him in the river?

"I wonder, Connie, you ain't able to do more with these here children.
Seems like you ought to--a great big girl like you," said Mr. Cavendish,
reduced to despair.

"It was Henry pickin' on Kep," cried Constance.

"I found a crack and he took it away from me! drug me off by the legs,
he did, and filled my stomach full of slivers!" wailed Keppel, suddenly
remembering he had a grievance. "You had ought to let me see the pore
gentleman!" he added ingratiatingly.

"Well, ain't you been seein' him every day fo' risin' two weeks and
upwards?--ain't you sat by him hours at a stretch?" demanded Mr.
Cavendish fiercely.

Sho--that didn't count, he only kept a mutterin'--sho!--arollin' his
head sideways, sho! And their six tow heads were rolled to illustrate
their meaning. And a-pluckin' at a body's hands!--and they plucked at
Mr. Cavendish's hands. Sho--did he say why he done that?

"If you-all will quit yo' noise and dress, you-all kin presently set by
the pore gentleman. If you don't, I'll have to