Look at old Eph!" suddenly cried Gerald, happening to turn
about.

"Huh! Now ain't that clever? Wonder I never thought o' that myself!"
cried the Colonel, with some animation. "Clever enough for a white
man. Billy, you'd ought have conjured that yourself. But that's always
the way. I cayn't think a thought but somebody else has thought it
before me. I cayn't never get ahead of the tail end of things. Oh!
hum!"

The Colonel might be sighing but the three lads were laughing heartily
enough to drown the sighs, for there was the old negro starting one
after another of the great melons a-roll down the gentle slope, to
bring up on the grassy bank at the very side of the Water Lily. If a
few fell over into the water they could easily be fished out, reasoned
Ephraim, proud of his own ingenuity.

But the group beside the bars didn't watch to see the outcome of that
matter, nor Ephraim's reception. They were too busy expostulating with
Billy, and lavishing endearments upon him.

"'Stubborn as a mule'," quoted Melvin, losing patience.

"Or fate," responded the Colonel, drearily.

"Please, sir, won't you try to make him go?" pleaded Gerald. "I think
if you just started him on the right way he'd keep at it."

"Billy is--Billy!" said the farmer. He was really greatly interested.
Nothing so agreeable as this had happened in his monotonous life since
he could remember. Here were three lads, as full of life as he had
been once, jolly, hearty, with a will to do and conquer everything;
and--here was Billy. A great, awkward, inert mass of bone and muscle,
merely, calmly holding these clever youngsters at bay.

"Can he be ridden?" demanded Jim, at length.

"He might. Try;" said the man, in heart-broken accents.

Jim tried. Melvin tried. Gerald tried. With every attempt to cross his
back the animal threw up his heels and calmly shook the intruder off.

The Colonel folded his arms and sorrowfully regarded these various
attempts and failures; then dolefully remarked:

"It seems I cayn't even _give_ Billy away. Ah! hum."

Jim lost his temper.

"Well, sir, we'll call it off and bid you good night. Somebody will
come back to pay you for the melons."

As he turned away in a huff his mates started to follow him; but
Melvin was surprised by a touch on his shoulder and looked up to see
the Colonel beside him.

"Young man, you look as if you came of gentle stock. Billy was brought
up by a gentlewoman, my daughter. She forsook him a