it's about the kind of a mother I'm
agoing to have. Suppose I quit acting square, an' told 'em, when they
bothered me, they weren't young enough to understand! Wish I had. Guess
I will, too, and watch 'em step around." For a moment his mind dwelt
upon this, and he whistled a revengeful strain.

"Goodness, Billy!" said Jessamine, at the sight of the next stocking.
"The whole heel is scorched off."

He eyed the ruin with indifference. "Ah, that was last month when I
and Lin shot the bear in the swamp willows. He made me dry off my legs.
Chuck it away."

"And spoil the pair? No, indeed!"

"Mother always chucked 'em, an' father'd buy new ones till I skipped
from home. Lin kind o' mends 'em."

"Does he?" said Jessamine, softly. And she looked at the photograph.

"Yes. What made you write him for to let me come and bring my stockin's
and things?"

"Don't you see, Billy, there is so little work at this station that I'd
be looking out of the window all day just the pitiful way you do?"

"Oh!" Billy pondered. "And so I said to Lin," he continued, "why didn't
he send down his own clothes, too, an' let you fix 'em all. And Honey
Wiggin laughed right in his coffee-cup so it all sploshed out. And the
cook he asked me if mother used to mend Lin's clothes. But I guess she
chucked 'em like she always did father's and mine. I was with father,
you know, when mother was married to Lin that time." He paused again,
while his thoughts and fears struggled. "But Lin says I needn't ever
go back," he went on, reasoning and confiding to her. "Lin don't like
mother any more, I guess." His pondering grew still deeper, and he
looked at Jessamine for some while. Then his face wakened with a new
theory. "Don't Lin like you any more?" he inquired.

"Oh," cried Jessamine, crimsoning, "yes! Why, he sent you to me!"

"Well, he got hot in camp when I said that about sending his clothes to
you. He quit supper pretty soon, and went away off a walking. And that's
another time they said I was too young. But Lin don't come to see you
any more."

"Why, I hope he loves me," murmured Jessamine. "Always."

"Well, I hope so too," said Billy, earnestly. "For I like you. When I
seen him show you our cabin on Box Elder, and the room he had fixed
for you, I was glad you were coming to be my mother. Mother used to be
awful. I wouldn't 'a' minded her licking me if she'd done other things.
Ah, pshaw! I wasn't going to stand that." Billy now came close to
Jes