more of that let's-play-Injun
business going on around this ranch. Why, I'd lead you down there by the
ear, every mother's son of you, and tell that man Stanley to SPANK you!"

"Mum can whip her weight in wildcats any old time," Wally announced
after a heavy silence, and glared aggressively from one foolish-looking
face to another.

As was frequently the case, the wave of Phoebe's wrath ebbed harmlessly
away in laughter as the humorous aspect of her tirade was brought to her
attention.

"Just the same, I want you should mind what I tell you," she said, in
her old motherly tone, "and keep away from those ruffians down there.
You can't do anything but make 'em mad, and give 'em an excuse for
killing someone. When your father gets back, we'll see what's to be
done."

"All right, Mum. We won't look toward the garden to-day," Wally promised
largely, and held out his cup to her to be refilled. "You can keep my
gun, if you want to make dead sure."

"No, I can trust my boys, I hope," and she glowed with real pride in
them when she said it.

Good Indian lingered on the porch for half an hour or so, waiting for
Evadna to appear. She may have seen him through the window--at any rate
she slipped out very quietly, and had her breakfast half eaten before
he suspected that she was up; and when he went into the kitchen, she was
talking animatedly with Marie about Mexican drawn-work, and was drawing
intricate little diagrams of certain patterns with her fork upon the
tablecloth.

She looked up, and gave him a careless greeting, and went back to
discussing certain "wheels" in the corner of an imaginary lunch-cloth
and just how one went about making them. He made a tentative remark or
two, trying to win her attention to himself, but she pushed her cup and
saucer aside to make room for further fork drawings, and glanced at him
with her most exaggerated Christmas-angel look.

"Don't interrupt, please," she said mincingly. "This is IMPORTANT. And,"
she troubled to explain, "I'm really in a hurry, because I'm going to
help Aunt Phoebe make strawberry jam."

If she thought that would fix his determination to remain and have her
to himself for a few minutes, she was mistaken in her man. Good Indian
turned on his heel, and went out with his chin in the air, and found
that Gene and Clark had gone off to the meadow, with Donny an unwelcome
attendant, and that Wally and Jack were keeping the dust moving between
the gate and the stable,