that Kit should smart for his past
insubordination, though he had not yet decided in what way he would get
even with him. The unexpected submissiveness shown by Kit elated him,
and confirmed him in the idea he had long entertained that he could
manage boys a good deal better than the average of men.

"Talk about hard cases," he said one day to his wife. "I'd like to see
the boy that can get the start of Aaron Bickford. He'll have to get up
unusually airly in the mornin'."

Mr. Bickford felt a little like crowing over his captive, and turned his
head partly round to survey the boy on the back seat. Fortunately for
William the darkness was so great that there was small chance of his
detecting the imposture.

"I reckon you didn't expect to be ridin' back to Oakford along of me
this evenin'," he observed.

"No, sir," muttered William in a voice scarcely audible.

"Ho, ho, you feel kind of grouty, eh?" said the blacksmith. "Well, I
ain't much surprised. You thought you could have your own way with Aaron
Bickford, but you're beginnin' to see your mistake, I reckon?"

"Yes, sir," replied the supposed Kit, in a meek voice.

"Ho, ho! That's the way boys ginerally come out when they try to buck
agin' their elders. Not but you might have succeeded with some men, but
you didn't know the man you had to deal with this time."

There was a sort of gurgle, for William was trying hard not to laugh, as
he was picturing to himself the rage and mortification of Mr. Bickford
when he discovered the deceit that had been practiced upon him. But the
blacksmith misunderstood the sound, and thought Kit was sobbing.

"You needn't take on!" he said, magnanimously. "It ain't so bad as it
might be. You'll be a good deal better off learnin' a good trade than
trampin' round the country with the circus. I hope this'll be a lesson
to you. You'd better not try to run away ag'in, for it won't be no use.
You won't always have that long-legged giant to help you. If I'd done
right, I should have had him took up for 'sault and battery. He needn't
think because he's eight feet high, more or less, that he can defy the
laws of the land. I reckon he got a little skeered of what he done, or
he wouldn't have acted so different this evening."

William did not reply to this. He was rather in hopes Mr. Bickford would
stop addressing him, for he did not like to run the risk of answering,
as it might open the eyes of the blacksmith to the fact that he had the
w