t of sugar in."

"For the land sakes!" Mrs. Little did not take correction of this kind
happily, but when she was made to fairly acknowledge the need of it, she
showed no resentment. She laid the upper crust back on the board and
sweetened the pie. Ann Mary watched her gravely, but she was inwardly
complacent. After she had rescued the pudding from being baked without
the plums, and it was nearly dinner-time, her grandfather came home. He
had been over to the village to buy the Thanksgiving turkey. Ann Mary
looked out with delight when he drove past the windows on his way to the
barn.

"Grandpa's got home," said she.

It was snowing quite hard, and she saw the old man and the steadily
tramping white horse and the tilting wagon through a thick mist of
falling snow-flakes.

Before Mr. Little came into the kitchen, his wife warned him to be sure
to wipe all the snow from his feet, and not to track in any, so he
stamped vigorously out in the shed. Then he entered with an air of
pride. "There!" said he, "what do ye think of that for a turkey?" Mr.
Little was generally slow and gentle in his ways, but to-day he was
quite excited over the turkey. He held it up with considerable
difficulty. He was a small old man, and the cords on his lean hands
knotted. "It weighs a good fifteen pound'," said he, "an' there wasn't a
better one in the store. Adkins didn't have a very big lot on hand."

[Illustration: MR. LITTLE SELECTS THE THANKSGIVING TURKEY]

"I should think that was queer, the day before Thanksgivin'," said Mrs.
Little. She was examining the turkey critically. "I guess it'll do," she
declared finally. That was her highest expression of approbation. "Well,
I rayther thought you'd think so," rejoined the old man, beaming. "I
guess it's about as good a one as can be got--they said 'twas, down
there. Sam White he was in there, and he said 'twas; he said I was goin'
to get it in pretty good season for Thanksgivin', he thought."

"I don't think it's such very extra season, the day before
Thanksgivin'," said Mrs. Little.

"Well, I don't think 'twas, nuther. I didn't see jest what Sam meant by
it."

Ann Mary was dumb with admiration. When the turkey was laid on the broad
shelf in the pantry, she went and gazed upon it. In the afternoon there
was great enjoyment seeing it stuffed and made ready for the oven.
Indeed, this day was throughout one of great enjoyment, being full of
the very aroma of festivity and good cheer and