ave Harum, f'm over to Homeville. He's a great
feller fer hosses,' he says."

"Dave," said Mrs. Bixbee, "them chaps jest laid fer ye, didn't they?"

"I reckon they did," he admitted; "an' they was as slick a pair as was
ever drawed to," which expression was lost upon his sister. David rubbed
the fringe of yellowish-gray hair which encircled his bald pate for a
moment.

"Wa'al," he resumed, "after the talk with the barn man, I smelt woolen
stronger'n ever, but I didn't say nothin', an' had the mare hitched an'
started back. Old Jinny drives with one hand, an' I c'd watch the new
one all right, an' as we come along I begun to think I wa'n't stuck
after all. I never see a hoss travel evener an' nicer, an' when we come
to a good level place I sent the old mare along the best she knew, an'
the new one never broke his gait, an' kep' right up 'ithout 'par'ntly
half tryin'; an' Jinny don't take most folks' dust neither. I swan!
'fore I got home I reckoned I'd jest as good as made seventy-five
anyway."

CHAPTER II.

"Then the' wa'n't nothin' the matter with him, after all," commented
Mrs. Bixbee in rather a disappointed tone.

"The meanest thing top of the earth was the matter with him," declared
David, "but I didn't find it out till the next afternoon, an' then I
found it out good. I hitched him to the open buggy an' went 'round by
the East road, 'cause that ain't so much travelled. He went along all
right till we got a mile or so out of the village, an' then I slowed him
down to a walk. Wa'al, sir, scat my ----! He hadn't walked more'n a rod
'fore he come to a dead stan'still. I clucked an' git-app'd, an' finely
took the gad to him a little; but he only jest kind o' humped up a
little, an' stood like he'd took root."

"Wa'al, now!" exclaimed Mrs. Bixbee.

"Yes'm," said David; "I was stuck in ev'ry sense of the word."

"What d'ye do?"

"Wa'al, I tried all the tricks I knowed--an' I could lead him--but when
I was in the buggy he wouldn't stir till he got good an' ready; 'n' then
he'd start of his own accord an' go on a spell, an'--"

"Did he keep it up?" Mrs. Bixbee interrupted.

"Wa'al, I s'd say he did. I finely got home with the critter, but I
thought one time I'd either hev to lead him or spend the night on the
East road. He balked five sep'rate times, varyin' in length, an' it was
dark when we struck the barn."

"I should hev thought you'd a wanted to kill him," said Mrs. Bixbee;
"an' the fellers th