erva washed the dishes in the kitchen sink and
Billy carried them back to the dining-room. His aunt caught him several
times prancing sideways in the most idiotic manner. He was making a
valiant effort to keep from exposing his rear elevation to her; once he
had to walk backward.

"William," she said sharply, "you will break my plates. What is the
matter with you to-night?"

A little later they were sitting quietly in Miss Minerva's room. She
was reading "The Christian at Home," and he was absently looking at a
picture book.

"Sam Lamb's wife Sukey sho' is a beautiful patcher," he remarked,
feeling his way.

She made no answering comment, and the discouraged little boy was silent
for a few minutes. He had worn Aunt Cindy's many-colored patches too
often to be ashamed of this one for himself, but he felt that he would
like to draw his aunt out and find how she stood on the subject of
patches.

"Aunt Minerva," he presently asked, "what sorter patches 'd you ruther
wear on yo' pants, blue patches or brown?"

"On my what?" she asked, looking at him severely over her paper.

"I mean if you's me," he hastily explained. "Don't you think blue
patches is the mos' nat'ral lookin'?"

"What are you driving at, William?" she asked; but without waiting for
his answer she went on with her reading.

The child was silent for a long time, his little mind busy, then he
began, "Aunt Minerva?"

She peered at him over her glasses a second, then dropped her eyes to
the paper where an interesting article on Foreign Missions held her
attention.

"Aunt Minerva, I snagged--Aunt Minerva, I snagged my--my skin, to-day."

"Let me see the place," she said absently, her eyes glued to a paragraph
describing a cannibal feast.

"I's a-settin' on it right now," he replied.

Another long silence ensued. Billy resolved to settle the matter.

"I's gettin' sleepy," he yawned. "Aunt Minerva, I wants to say my
prayers and go to bed."

She laid her paper down and he dropped to his knees by her side. He
usually sprawled all over her lap during his lengthy devotions, but
to-night he clasped his little hands and reared back like a rabbit on
its haunches.

After he had rapidly repeated the Lord's prayer, which he had
recently learned, and had invoked blessings on all his new friends and
never-to-be-forgotten old ones, he concluded with:

"An', O Lord, You done kep' me f'om meddlin' with Aunt Minerva's hose
any mo', an' you done kep' me f'om