in the morning, when there were any on it. Once or twice they
allowed themselves to visit an Indian mound or burial-place on the
summit of a neighboring hill, where idle boys and other loungers had dug
up many bones and thrown them down the declivity. Jack, who had thoughts
of being a doctor, made an effort to gather a complete Indian skeleton,
but the dry bones had become too much mixed up. He could not get any
three bones to fit together, and his man, as he tried to put him
together, was the most miscellaneous creature imaginable,--neither man,
woman, nor child. Bob was a little afraid to have these human ruins
stored under the house, lest he might some night see a ghost with
war-paint and tomahawk; but Jack, as became a boy of scientific tastes,
pooh-poohed all superstitions or sentimental considerations in the
matter. He told Bob that, if he should ever see the ghost which that
framework belonged to, it would be the ghost of the whole Shawnee tribe,
for there were nearly as many individuals represented as there were
bones in the skeleton.

The one thing that troubled Jack was that he couldn't get rid of the
image of Columbus as they had seen him when they left Greenbank,
standing sorrowfully on the river bank. The boys often debated between
themselves how they could manage to have him one of their party, but
they were both too poor to pay the small tuition fees, though his board
would not cost much. They could not see any way of getting over the
difficulty, but they talked with Susan about it, and Susan took hold of
the matter in her fashion by writing to her father on the subject.

The result of her energetic effort was that one afternoon, as they came
out of school, when the little packet-steamer was landing at the wharf,
who should come ashore but Christopher Columbus, in his best but
thread-bare clothes, tugging away at an old-fashioned carpet-bag, which
was too much for him to carry. Bob seized the carpet-bag and almost
lifted the dignified little lad himself off his feet in his joyful
welcome, while Jack, finding nothing else to do, stood still and
hurrahed. They soon had the dear little spindle-shanks and his great
carpet-bag stowed away in the skiff. As they rowed to the north bank of
the river, Columbus explained how Dr. Lanham had undertaken to pay his
expenses, if the boys would take him into partnership, but he said he
was 'most afraid to come, because he couldn't chop wood, and he wasn't
good for much