onished at the lack of change.
Everything was as it had always been. He could almost see himself, a
boy, doing the chores. There, in the woodshed, how many cords of wood
had he bucksawed and split! Well, thank the Lord, that was past.

The walk to the kitchen showed signs of recent snow-shovelling. That had
been one of his tasks. He wondered who did it now, and suddenly
remembered that his own son must be twelve. In another moment he would
have knocked at the kitchen door, but the _skreek_ of a bucksaw from the
woodshed led him aside. He looked in and saw a boy hard at work.
Evidently, this was his son. Impelled by the wave of warm emotion that
swept over him, he all but rushed in upon the lad. He controlled himself
with an effort.

"Father here?" he asked curtly, though from under the stiff brim of his
John B. Stetson he studied the boy closely.

Sizable for his age, he thought. A mite spare in the ribs maybe, and
that possibly due to rapid growth. But the face strong and pleasing and
the eyes like Uncle Isaac's. When all was said, a darn good sample.

"No, sir," the boy answered, resting on the saw-buck.

"Where is he?"

"At sea," was the answer.

Josiah Childs felt a something very akin to relief and joy tingle
through him. Agatha had married again--evidently a seafaring man. Next,
came an ominous, creepy sensation. Agatha had committed bigamy. He
remembered Enoch Arden, read aloud to the class by the teacher in the
old schoolhouse, and began to think of himself as a hero. He would do
the heroic. By George, he would. He would sneak away and get the first
train for California. She would never know.

But there was Agatha's New England morality, and her New England
conscience. She received a regular remittance. She knew he was alive. It
was impossible that she could have done this thing. He groped wildly for
a solution. Perhaps she had sold the old home, and this boy was somebody
else's boy.

"What is your name?" Josiah asked.

"Johnnie," came the reply.

"Last name I mean?"

"Childs, Johnnie Childs."

"And your father's name?--first name?"

"Josiah Childs."

"And he's away at sea, you say?"

"Yes, sir."

This set Josiah wondering again.

"What kind of a man is he?"

"Oh, he's all right--a good provider, Mom says. And he is. He always
sends his money home, and he works hard for it, too, Mom says. She says
he always was a good worker, and he's better'n other men she ever saw.
He don't smoke, or