imself might have envied, and bending over the
prostrate gobbler exclaimed in concert: "Ain't he a dandy, though!"

They examined him critically, cutting out his beard as a trophy, and
measured the spread of his wings.

"But he's yourn, after all, Dick," said Grandpa Davis ruefully. "These
here ain't none of my shot, so I reckon I must have missed him."

"I knowed you would, Billy, afore your fired," Grandpa Dun replied,
with mock gravity, "but that don't cut no figger. He's big enough for
us to go halvers and both have plenty. More'n that, you done the
callin' anyhow."

Then they laughed, and as they looked into one another's faces, each
seemed to realize for the first time that his quondam chum was an old
man.

A moment before they had been two rollicking boys off on a lark
together--playing hooky, perhaps--and in the twinkling of an eye some
wicked fairy had waved her wand and metamorphosed them into Walter's
two grandfathers, who had not spoken to each other since years before
the lad was born.

Yet the humour of the situation was irresistible after all, and,
without knowing just how it happened, or which made the first advance,
Dick and Billy found themselves still laughing until the tears coursed
down their furrowed cheeks, and shaking hands with as much vigour as
though each one had been working a pump handle.

"I'll tell you what it is, Billy," said Dick at last; "you all come
over to my house, and we'll eat him together on Thanksgivin'."

"See here, Dick," suggested Billy, abstracting a nickel from his
trousers' pocket; "heads at your house, and tails at mine."

"All right," came the hearty response.

Billy tossed the coin into the air: it struck a twig and hid itself
among the fallen leaves, where they sought it in vain.

"'Tain't settled yet," announced Dick; "but lemme tell you what let's
do. S'posin' we all go over to-morrow--it'll be Thanksgivin', you
know--and eat him at John's house."

"Good!" cried Billy, with beaming face. "You always did have a head
for thinkin' up things, Dick, and this here'll sorter split the
difference, and ease matters so as--"

"Yes, and our two old women can draw straws, if they've got a mind to,
and see which of them is obligated to make the fust call," interrupted
Dick.

"Jist heft him, old feller," urged one of them.

"Ain't he a whopper, though!" exclaimed the other.

"Have a chaw, Dick?" asked Billy, offering his plug of tobacco.

"Don't keer if I do,