deas in your head,
anyhow!--they never get into mine."

"Well, I'll never get to my plan at this rate," said Noll, laughing a
bit. "I don't believe the people will ever be any cleaner or more
industrious till they have better houses to live in, and they're too
poor to buy lumber and make repairs. Now, if I could only accomplish
that, I think they'd soon have some pride in keeping their dwellings
nice and neat, and that would keep the fever away, and perhaps--I
almost _know_--they'd soon be a different people!"

"My stars!" exclaimed Ned, "what're you thinking of? Do you really
mean that--that you're going to repair their huts for them?"

"Yes, that is what I wish to do, and what I've been planning for,"
said Noll, peering through the dusk to see how Ned received the
project; "and do you think I'll succeed?--do you think it is
possible?"

Ned was silent a few seconds, and the low voice of the sea rose and
murmured far up and down the beach-line and died away in a faint
whisper before he replied, "Well, I _am_ astonished! and if any one
else had proposed it, I should say they were out of their wits. Now,
what are those dirty fishermen to you, Noll?"

"That was not the question," said Noll. "Do you think I can succeed?"

"I don't know,--can't tell,--it's all so sudden. Where will you get
the money? and why don't your Uncle Richard do the work, instead of
you?"

"Uncle Richard? why, he--he doesn't care for the Culm people," Noll
was obliged to confess; "but as for the money, I think I can manage
that. You see, he gives me more spending-money every week than I used
to have in a whole quarter,--I showed you all my savings the other
night, you remember,--and it has got to be quite a sum. Then I have
about as much more that Mr. Gray gave me when I came away, and with
this I'll make a commencement. The--"

"But what will your uncle say? Does he know?" queried Ned.

"No, he knows nothing about it. But he gave me permission, a long time
ago, to aid the Culm people, and he lets me do as I choose with my
money. So doesn't my plan seem possible?"

"Yes, if you can tell where lumber and nails and a carpenter are to
come from," said Ned.

"Oh! but those will have to come down from Hastings, on the 'Gull,' of
course. There's nothing here to do with," said Noll; "and I mean to
coax Ben Tate to buy the lumber and hire a carpenter for me. You see,
I've got it all planned, and if it will only work!"