t do no sech thing," said the housewife. "I jest nachelly
borrowed him--jest for over night. And now you've got him, I hope
you're satisfied. And you kin jest clear out o' my house, do you hear?
And I can't scrub and sweep too soon where your lazy, dirty old boots
has been on the floor!"

"Wal," drawled Jim, "I can't throw away these boots any too soon,
neither. I wouldn't wear a pair of boots which had stepped on any
floor of yours."

He therefore left the house at once, even as the lady began her violent
sweeping. Interrupting Keno's mad chortles of joy at sight of little
Skeezucks, Jim gave him the tiny man for a moment's keeping, and,
taking off his boots, threw them down before Miss Dennihan's gate in
extravagant pride.

Then once more he took his little man on his arm and started away. But
when he had walked a half-dozen rods, on the rocks that indented the
tender soles of his stockinged feet, he was stepping with gingerly
uncertainty. He presently came to a halt. The ground was not only
lumpy, it was cold.

"I'll tell you what," he slowly drawled, "in this little world there's
about one chance in a million for a man to make a President of himself,
and about nine hundred and ninety-nine chances in a thousand for him to
make a fool of himself."

"That's what I thought," said Keno.

"All the same, if only I had the resolution I'd leave them boots there
forever!"

"What for?" said Keno.

"Wal," drawled Jim, "a man can't always tell he comes of a proud family
by the cut of his clothes. But, Keno, you ain't troubled with pride,
so you go back and fetch me the boots."

Then, when he presently drew his cowhide casings on, he sat for a
moment enjoying the comfort of those soles beneath his feet. For the
time that they halted where they were, he held his rescued little boy
to his heart in an ecstasy such as he never had dreamed could be given
to a man.

CHAPTER X

PREPARATIONS FOR CHRISTMAS

When the word spread 'round that Jim and the quaint little foundling
were once more united, the story of the episode at Miss Doc's home
necessarily followed to make the tale complete. Immensely relieved and
grateful, to know that no dire calamity had befallen the camp's first
and only child, the rough men nevertheless lost no time in conceiving
the outcome to be fairly amusing.

"You kin bet that Doc was awake all the time, and listenin', as long as
Jim was there," said Bone, "but six yoke of oxen co