sitated. He felt suddenly the hopeless, overwhelming
dearth of words against which he labored in the attempt to carry the
tidings worthily.

"Big!" He repeated the other's question. "Big! Why, Godfrey 'Lisha,
boy, it's the biggest thing that's ever happened to this town.
It--it's terrific! We'll be famous--that's what we'll be! In a week
or two Boltonwood'll be as famous as--as--why, we'll be as famous as
the Chicago Fair!"

He broke off with a gasp for breath and started fluttering madly
through the paper which he had wrenched from Young Denny's bundle of
closely wrapped mail, until he found the page he sought.

"There 'tis," he cried, and pointed out a lurid headline that ran half
across the head of the sporting section. "There 'tis--or leastwise
that's a part on it. But they's more a-comin'--more that that won't be
a patch to! But you just take a look at that!"

Young Denny took the paper from his hand with a sort of sober
patience, and there across the first three column heads, following the
direction of Old Jerry's quivering forefinger, he found his first
inkling of the astounding news.

"Jed The Red wins by knockout over The Texan in fourteenth round," ran
the red-inked caption.

Word by word he read it through, and a second time his grave eyes went
through it, even more painstakingly, as though he had not caught at a
single reading all its sensational significance. Then he looked up
into the seamed old face above him, a-gleam and a-quiver with
excitement.

"Jed The Red," the boy said in his steady voice. "Jed The Red!" And
then, levelly: "Who's he?"

Old Jerry stared at him a moment before he shook his head hopelessly
and collapsed with a thud upon the torn seat behind him, in an excess
of disgust for the boy's stupidity which he made no effort to
conceal.

"Jed who?" he mimicked, his voice shrill with sarcasm. "Now what in
time Jed would it be, if 'twa'n't Jeddy Conway--our own Jeddy Conway
from this very village? What other Jed is there? Ain't you got no
memory at all, when you ought to be proud to be able to say that you
went to school with him yourself, right in this town?"

Again Young Denny nodded a silent agreement, but Old Jerry's feverish
enthusiasm had carried him far beyond mere anger at his audience's
apparent lack of appreciation.

"And that ain't all," he rushed on breathlessly, "not by a lot, it
ain't! That ain't nothin' to compare with what's to come. Why, right
this minute there's