nother might have criticised it as having the air of being glued on,
but Abijah was already in the toils and never wished it to move.

The next day being the glorious Fourth and a holiday, Jimmy Watson came
over like David, to visit his favorite Jonathan. His Jonathan met him
at the top of the hill, pleaded a pressing engagement, curtly sent him
home, and then went back to play with his new idol, with whom he
had already scraped acquaintance, her parents being exceedingly busy
settling the new house.

After the noon dinner Jimmy again yearned to resume friendly relations,
and, forgetting his rebuff, again toiled up the hill and appeared
unexpectedly at no great distance from the Perkins premises, wearing the
broad and beaming smile of one who is confident of welcome.

His morning call had been officious and unpleasant and unsolicited, but
his afternoon visit could only be regarded as impudent, audacious,
and positively dangerous; for Abijah and Emma Jane were cosily playing
house, the game of all others in which it is particularly desirable to
have two and not three participants.

At that moment the nature of Abijah changed, at once and forever.
Without a pang of conscience he flew over the intervening patch of
ground between himself and his dreaded rival, and seizing small stones
and larger ones, as haste and fury demanded, flung them at Jimmy Watson,
and flung and flung, till the bewildered boy ran down the hill howling.
Then he made a "stickin'" door to the play-house, put the awed Emma Jane
inside and strode up and down in front of the edifice like an Indian
brave. At such an early age does woman become a distracting and
disturbing influence in man's career!

Time went on, and so did the rivalry between the poorhouse boy and the
son of wealth, but Abijah's chances of friendship with Emma Jane grew
fewer and fewer as they both grew older. He did not go to school, so
there was no meeting-ground there, but sometimes, when he saw the knot
of boys and girls returning in the afternoon, he would invite Elijah and
Elisha, the Simpson twins, to visit him, and take pains to be in Squire
Bean's front yard, doing something that might impress his inamorata as
she passed the premises.

As Jimmy Watson was particularly small and fragile, Abijah generally
chose feats of strength and skill for these prearranged performances.

Sometimes he would throw his hat up into the elm trees as far as he
could and, when it came down, cat