ope, "it don't make any difference in my duty. If
folks won't listen to what I am bound to say, that is no fault of mine.
My duty is to give warning when I see true signs of what's a-going to
happen. For a true sign is as plain as daylight to me. I never had a
caul, and I don't lay any claim to second sight. But I know what it
means when I hear the dogs a-baying the midnight moon. I know, too,
what's a-coming to pass when the death-watch goes thump, thump, thumping
in the wall right over my head the whole blessed night. And more than
that, I was a-looking for both these true signs of bad luck before I
heard 'em. That big black ring round the comet's head that I've seen for
a night or two back told me plain enough what to expect. And look at the
things that have already happened--all over the country. Nobody in this
world of trouble surely ever saw the like. Just look at the twins!"

This was the chance that the widow Broadnax had been waiting and
watching for in motionless silence. She seized it as suddenly as a
seemingly sleepy cat seizes an unwary mouse.

"I don't see any sign of bad luck in twins, or triplets either, for my
part," she said hoarsely and loudly. "They are every one of 'em bound to
be whole brothers and sisters. To my mind, it don't make any difference
how big a family is so long as it ain't mixed up."

Ruth and David seized the basket, and escaped--laughing and
running--carrying it between them.

The spot chosen for this Indian Summer dance in the forest was near
Cedar House. It was one of the natural open spaces, of which there were
many in the wilderness, and it overlooked the river. High walls of thick
green leaves enfolded it upon three sides, and it had a broad level
floor of greener sward. It was sun-lit when the shadowed woods were
dark. In the spring the greensward was gay with wild flowers; for it was
in these open spaces between the trees that Nature displayed her most
brilliant floral treasures which would not bloom in the shade. In the
fall the leafy walls were more brilliant than the flowery sward, and
they now rose toward the azure dome, gorgeously hung with bronzed and
golden vines, blossoming here and there with vivid scarlet leaves. Below
ran a dazzling border of shrubs--the sumac, which does not wait for the
coming of the frost king to put on its royal livery; the sassafras
already gleaming with touches of fire; the wild grape as red as the
reddest wine, and rioting over all the ri