nd she
stretched out her arms.

"Oh, longer--terrible long legs--long as _this_"--and the Colonel's
arms went out to their full length.

Jim's eyes were now popping out of his head, but his place was behind
his Mistress's chair, ready for her orders, and he had had so many
scoldings that day that he thought it best not to move.

"And does he puff himself out like a real turkey in the picture
books?"

"Oh, worse than a real turkey,--big as _so_"--and the Colonel's arms
went round in a circle.

The child thought hard for a moment until she had the picture of the
strutting gobbler fastened in her mind, and said, cuddling closer to
the Colonel: "Tell me some more."

"About turkeys?"

"Yes, about turkeys."

"About wild ones or tame ones?"

"Was that a wild one that the dogs couldn't catch?"

"Yes."

"Then tell me about some tame ones. Do they live in the woods?"

"No, they live in the barnyard with the chickens, and the cows, and
the horses. Why, did you never see one?"

"Yes, but I want to hear you tell about them--that's better than
seeing."

Jim could hold in no longer. He had become so excited that he kept
rubbing one shoe against the other, twisting and squirming like an
eel. At last he burst out:

"An' one o' gobble-gobble was dat ornery, Mammy Henny shut him up in
de coop!"

Aunt Nancy turned in astonishment, and Chad, who had come in with some
dishes, was about to crush him with a look, when the Colonel said,
with a sly twinkle in his eye:

"What did he do, Jim?"

"Jes' trompled de li'l teeny chickens an' eat up all de corn an'
wouldn't let nobody come nigh him. An' he was dat swelled up!"

Katy laughed, and turning to the Colonel, said:

"Tell me about that one."

The Colonel ruminated for a moment, looked at Chad with a
half-humorous expression, and motioned to little Jim to come over and
stand by his chair so that he could hear the better, his own arm still
about Katy, her head on his shoulder.

"About that big gobbler, Katy, that was so bad they had to put him in
a coop?"

"Yes, that very one."

"Well, when I fust knew him he was a little teeny turkey--oh, not near
so high as Jim; 'bout up to Jim's knees, I reckon. He'd follow 'round
after his mammy and go where she wanted him to go and mind her like a
nice little turkey as he was. He didn't live on my plantation then--he
lived on Judge Barbour's plantation next to mine. Well, one day, Aunt
Nancy--that dear lady over there--wan