er? That wallow must have been deep out in the middle. Let's try it
some time for ourselves when Will isn't around. I believe we could do it
as well as he did."

Charley was agreed, and the two smaller lads watched their chance. One
day when Will was not with them, they chose a wallow that they thought
would answer their purpose. "I'll go first," Charley said, and he
hurried forward as rapidly as his little crippled limb could carry him,
to the water's edge and out into the pond.

Suddenly poor little Charley disappeared. John saw his cousin as he
went down into the deep water, and realized his danger. He knew that
something must be done and done at once, and with a bound he sprang in
after his companion. He did not, however, go beyond the shallow water,
and when his cousin came to the surface, he reached out his hand and
caught him by the hair; and as Charley had not lost the power to help
himself, he was soon able, by John's assistance, to scramble to a place
of safety.

The boys decided that they would say nothing about the accident; and as
they remained away from the house long enough for Charley's clothing to
dry, no questions were asked. But was the scene unnoticed? No. He who
notes the sparrow's fall was watching over these little boys; He had not
forgotten John's little prayer that had been taught him by his father.
God was caring for these little untaught children in that vast prairie
pasture.

CHAPTER II

In the Sod Cellar

Almost without exception the homes on the prairies were provided with
sod cellars. Even the few modern dwellings in the community in which
John's uncle lived were not without these old-fashioned cellars, which
served as a protection in times of storms and tornadoes. The cellars
served also as places in which to store the fruits and vegetables for
winter use. And very often, too, a large quantity of tobacco leaves that
had been dried and kept back when the summer's crop was sold could be
discovered in one of these places.

The home of John's uncle was provided with just such a cellar--a deep
hole dug in the ground and covered over with a dense roofing of brush,
mud, and sod. Within this cellar a large supply of tobacco leaves had
been stored. John had been in the cellar many times. He knew the tobacco
was there, and he knew to what use his uncle put the tobacco. He knew
also that his cousin Will both chewed and smoked the leaves, but it had
not occurred to him that he himsel