ght and noiseless as a cat for all
his great height, he gathered together his few belongings; the
daguerreotype of his mother (saved from the burning house at the risk of
his boyish life), the Testament she gave him, Longfellow's poems, and
his few clothes; and packed them all hastily but neatly in his old
valise. When all was done he paused again; then finding a scrap of
paper, he sat down and wrote hurriedly;

"I shall not do anything about the money unless you try to follow
me; mebbe you need it more than I do; but you had best take back
the bunnet, _for you will never need that_. Wishin' you well and
more wisdom, from

"C. Parks.

"P. S. You be good to the old woman, or I will tell."

Put out the light now, Calvin! creep softly, softly, down the rickety
stairs, testing each board as you go, lest it creak. Out to the barn,
where the good brown horse is dozing peacefully. He has had a good
supper and a good rest; he is fit for the ten miles that lie between you
and safety. Stow the bells under the seat, muffling them carefully in
the horse-blanket lest any faintest jingle betray you. Now softly,
softly, out over the snow, out past the silent house where the two women
are watching for you behind closed shutters; out to the open road, and
away!

CHAPTER XVIII

MORNING

The sun was not yet up, but the sky was brightening in lovely pale
tints, pearl and opal and rose, when Mary Sands opened the shed door and
tripped lightly down the path to the barn. She unbarred the great doors,
and entering the dim, fragrant place, was greeted by a five-fold whinny
from the stalls, and a trampling of twenty friendly hoofs.

"Good morning, hossies!" she said cheerily. "I expect you're surprised
to see me. I've got to get breakfast for all hands this mornin', and I'm
goin' to begin with you. Mornin', colty! mornin', marey! mornin', John!
mornin', old hoss! Oh! you naughty old hoss, who ever would have
thought of your actin' that way at your time of life! I _was_
surprised--my goodness! who's this in the box-stall? Calvin Parks's
Hossy? What upon earth! Why, you darlin', where's your master?"

Hossy's explanations, though fervid, and accompanied by agreeable
rubbings of a soft brown nose on her shoulder, were not lucid, and Mary
gazed about her in bewilderment.

"You never run away, hossy?" she asked; "you wouldn't do that!
Then--where is he?"

Just then a golden finger of sunshine slanted thr