a-rattlin' around, but Ah teks mah ole hat off
to um yehafteh. Yes, seh, Ah lays Ah will! Them engineahs an' fiahmen
an' them Cunnels with gole on they hats, Ah gaiss they go'n' a' have all
th' money in th' world maghty shawtly. They looks highly awdinahy an'
unpetentious, but they suttinly p'duces th' revenue. Ah sho'ly go'n' a'
repoht mahse'f to um ve'y honably when they pass me by yehafteh. Yo'
don't gaiss they made a errah, Mahstah Majah?"

He searched my face with a sudden hope:--

"Yo' don't reckon they git a idy them funichas an' home-fixin's ain't
been paid foh in th' fust place?"

I took the packet from his hands and glanced over it.

"No, these seem to be all right, Clem--only freight is charged for. But
you must remember Virginia is a long way off."

"Yes, seh--it ain't neveh raghtly come upon me befoh."

"And freights are high, of course?"

"Yes, seh, th' freight p'fession does look lahk it ort a' be maghty
gainful. Ah gaiss them engineahs go'n' a' do raght well in it, with
evabody movin' 'round considable."

"Well, how many more loads do you expect?"

"Well, seh, Ah don't raghtly know. Ah tell that drivah yestaday Ah
already got a gret abundance to mek evabody comf'table, an' a little bit
oveh, but he jes' sais, 'Oh, tha's all raght,' an' so fothe, an' he
still is _a-bringin_' it. Lohks ve'y strongly lahk he ain't go'n' a'
stop at _mah_ implications. Mahstah Majah, maght happen lahk he'd ack
mo' reasonin' ef yo' was t' have a good long talk with him."

"Oh, he hasn't anything to do with it. He only brings what your Miss
Caroline has shipped. She shouldn't have sent so much, that's all."

He took the troubling bills again.

"Yo' _sounds_ raght, Mahstah Majah--you suttinly do sound _raght_! Ah
gaiss Ah got a' raise ten hund'ed thousan' pulletts an mo'."

For three more days the juggernaut of Sam Murdock's dray hauled heavy
furniture over the prostrate spirit of Clem. Faster than he could unpack
the stuff was it unpiled at his door. And it was poor stuff, moreover,
in the opinion of Little Arcady. Clem's history was known, of course,
and during these busy days the town made it a point to pass his door in
friendly curiosity about the belongings of his mistress. When these
could not be satisfactorily appraised from the yard, they sauntered up
to the porch and surveyed Clem in the front room at his work of
unpacking and cleaning. Often, indeed, some kindly disposed observer
with time to spare woul