I. And Mitchie says: "I wanted to tell you that night
what was on my mind; but somehow I couldn't."

Just then we became aware of voices near us, around a kind of corner.
And one voice was a woman's and another was a man's who was talkin' kind
of thick and kept repeatin' hisself. And Mitch says, "Wait--listen." So
we listened. And this man's voice said:

"What can I do, Gwen? I'll leave it to you. Ain't I done the right
thing? Have I harmed any one? But I might have, I know myself, and I
might have harmed some one as easy as that. I know what's what, and even
now I do, and when I have no drinks, I know better, and you'll see I
done the right thing. Why look at it--they rush on me there in all that
hurry and scare and say go out where it is--where his pistol is--right
by the side of the porch and you or some of you pick it up and bring it
back in the house. What did that mean? It meant some one knew where the
pistol was before anybody seen it--and you can't make me believe that
kind of a story would wash."

[Illustration: We Got up and Walked Past 'Em]

Then the woman said, "It did wash."

"It washed because they didn't have me there and try to fetch in this
story. I couldn't a stood cross-questioning a minute. That's why I say I
know what I can do."

Then the woman says: "He's goin' to be tried again and you'd better go
back and be a man. Mrs. Rainey died and it's time Temple Scott was dead
too."

"Listen," says Mitch, "did you hear that--that's Harold Carman. Come."

We got up and walked past 'em--there he was huddled close to a woman,
the moon almost shining in their faces. We heard the orchestra and went
around and found Colonel Lambkin dancing and everybody havin' a
wonderful time. My pa sat there so big and powerful and I was proud to
death of him.

Well, we had wonderful sleeps on board and we all sat at the captain's
table and had the most splendid meals--fish all the time if we wanted
it; and beefsteak, and all kinds of pie and everything. Mitch and me
went into the kitchen; but just to call and say "howdy" to Susie and the
cook.

It was on a morning when we hove in sight of St. Louis. There she was
stretched further than you could see, smoke all over her, rumblin', a
scary looking monster, seemed alive, seemed full of all kinds of
terrible things, but also awful beautiful, too. We got off the boat and
there was two or three policemen there. My pa and Colonel Lambkin
talked to 'em, and then just as