h--"I hollered ter yer so's yer could
get some for me from Hannah, and you was just dirt mean not to answer
me."

"Champ wouldn't let me go," said Romanzo sulkily; "besides, I dassn't
ask Hannah, not since I used the harness cloth she gave to clean down
Jim."

"Yer 'dassn't!' Fore I'd be a boy and say 'I dassn't!'" There was
inexpressible scorn in her voice. She turned to Champney, her eyes
brimming with mischief and flashing a challenge:

"And yer dassn't shake hands with me 'coz mine are all stuck up, so
now!"

Champney had not anticipated this _pronunciamento_, but he accepted the
challenge on the instant. "Dare not! You can't say that to me! Here,
give me your hands." Again he held out his shapely well-kept members,
and Aileen with a merry laugh brought her grimy sticky little paws into
view and, without a word, laid them in Champney's palms. He held them
close, purposely, that they might adhere and provide him with some fun;
then, breaking into his gay laugh he said:

"Clear out, Roman; Tave 'll be looking for the milk pails. As for you,
Miss Aileen Armagh-and-don't-yer-forget-it, you can't pull away from me
now. So, come on, and we'll get Hannah to give us some lard and then
we'll go down to the boat house where it is cool and cleanup. Come on!"

Holding her by both hands he raced her down the long lane, through the
vegetable garden, all chassez, down the middle, swing your
partner--Aileen wild with the fun--up the slate-laid kitchen walk to the
kitchen door. His own laughter and the child's, happy, merry, care-free,
rang out peal on peal till Ann and Hannah and Octavius paused in their
work to listen, and wished that such music might have been heard often
during their long years of faithful service in childless Champ-au-Haut.

"I hear you are acquainted with some of the nobility, marchionesses and
so forth," said Champney; the two were sitting in the shadow of the boat
house cleaning their fingers with the lard Hannah had provided. "Where
did you make their acquaintance?"

Aileen paused in the act of sliding her greasy hands rapidly over and
over in each other, an occupation which afforded her unmixed delight, to
look up at him in amazement. "How did yer know anything 'bout her?"

"Oh, I heard."

"Did Romanzo Caukins tell yer?" she demanded, as usual on the defensive.

"No, oh no; it was only hearsay. Do tell me about her. We don't have any
round here."

Aileen giggled and resumed the rapid rotary