any come unexpected, and nothing
would do Sarah but I must ride over here and ask you for some milk.
Condensed milk is good enough for us, but Sarah says it ain't good
enough for company."

Jessie had already taken the pail and started for the pantry; when she
re-appeared with it filled, she said, demurely:

"I thought that you said you were a cattleman, Mr. Wilson."

"Oh, bless you! Don't you know the old saying about a shoemaker's
wife? Lots of folks that can count their cattle by the thousand head
would be glad if they could be sure of as much nice milk and butter
as you girls get off your two cows, Miss Jessie. It's management, you
see."

"You mean want of management, don't you?" returned Jessie, smiling.

Mr. Wilson's jolly laugh floated back to us as he went down the walk
toward the horse that was waiting for him at the gate, and then I
roused myself to observe that Joe was again hunting for his tools. He
presently rescued them from Ralph's destructive little hands, and set
to work, only pausing the while to remark:

"I reckons dat ar watah sto'age camp gwine be a 'mighty good place fur
to sell we all's melon crap at."

CHAPTER IX

AN IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT

The Hortons' place was some five miles below ours, if one followed the
main road, but they were often passing the house on their way to and
from the little country store and post-office. So it was not
surprising that Mrs. Horton should reappear in a few days with a large
bundle of sewing of her own for Jessie to do, and the intelligence
that she had interviewed several of the neighbors, some of whom had
said that they would gladly employ Jessie.

"You are so good, Mrs. Horton," Jessie exclaimed gratefully. "It will
be a real help to us if we are able to earn a little in this way."

"Maybe you won't feel so anxious to do it when you see what I've
brought," the good woman said, as she proceeded to untie her bulky
bundle. "You see," she explained, "Jake nearly tore the coat from his
back when he went up to salt those cattle the other night. He seems,
from what I can make out, to have had a regular circus with himself,
and I'm so busy, what with the housework and being obliged to do all
the trading--for Jake never will go to the store if he can get out of
it--I've had no time to mend it. I put it right in here with the other
things, hoping that you or Leslie wouldn't mind mending it for me."

My very spine seemed to stiffen at the idea of me