as by no means dark. As he entered the lane Nat
looked back, to see if his departure from the house had been discovered.

A sight met his gaze which caused his heart to jump. A man was crossing
the dooryard and coming toward the barn!

"It must be Uncle Abner!" he thought. "Perhaps he heard me leave after
all!"

He looked back again, but could not see the man now, and then broke
into a run. Soon a row of trees in the orchard hid both the barn and the
house from view. He continued to run, however, and did not slacken his
pace until he reached the pasture where the cows were at rest.

Jennie did not relish having her rest disturbed and had to be prodded
several times before she would arise and move in the direction he
desired. Some of the other cows wished to follow, but he drove them
back.

"I only want my own," he murmured half aloud. "I don't want a thing that
belongs to Uncle Abner."

Nat had expected to take to the highway which ran directly beside the
house. But he was afraid that his uncle was watching for him from the
barn, and so he drove Jennie along a back road, leading to another
highway which was but little traveled and which had along it only a
handful of farmhouses.

"He shan't catch me if I can help it," the boy told himself. "Now I've
left I'm going to stay away."

Nat was still very much agitated in his mind, so no thought of sleep
came to him as he trudged along, mile after mile, driving the tired cow
before him. He met not a soul; and thus he progressed until three
o'clock in the morning.

Boy and cow had now been on the road six hours and Jennie refused to go
further. Seeing this, he turned into a small patch of woods and there
tied the creature to a tree. Then, finding a sheltered nook, he threw
himself down to rest and was soon fast asleep.

"Hullo, there, what are you doing here?"

Such was the demand which aroused Nat several hours later, and he sprang
up to find himself confronted by a farmer boy of about his own age.

"Hullo, Sam," he answered. "I--I was driving the cow to market and I got
so tired I thought I'd take a nap."

"Going to sell the cow?" asked Sam Price.

"Yes, if I can."

"Where?"

"Over to Brookville, if anybody will buy her."

"Jackson the butcher was after cows only day before yesterday."

"Then maybe I'll go and see him."

"You must have got an early start," went on Sam Price.

"I did. But I must hurry along," continued Nat, not caring to answer too
m