owed her example, and fingers and tongues moved ceaselessly,
in cheerful emulation of each other.

"I'd like to git hold o' Simon Hartley!" said Bubble, slicing vengefully
at a big potato. "I wish't he was this tater, so I do! _I'd_ skin him!
Yah! ornery critter! An' him standin' thar an' grinnin' at me over the
wall, an' I couldn't do nothin'! Seemed's though I sh'd _fly_, Miss
Hildy, it did; an' then not to be able to crawl even! I sw--I tell ye,
now, I didn't like that."

"Poor Bubble!" said Hilda, compassionately, "I'm sure you didn't. And
did he really start to crawl over to the farm, Pink?"

"Indeed he did!" replied Pink. "Nothing that I could say would keep him
from trying it; so I bandaged his ankle as well as I could, and off he
started. But he fainted twice before he got to the gate, so there was
nothing for it but to crawl back again, and--have the knees of his
trousers mended."

"Dear boy!" said Hilda, patting the curly head affectionately. "Good,
faithful boy! I shall think a great deal more of it, Bubble, than if
you had been able to walk all the way. And, after all," she added, "I am
glad I had to do it myself,--go down to the mill, I mean. It is
something to remember! I would not have missed it."

"No more wouldn't I!" cried Bubble, enthusiastically. "I'd ha' done it
for ye twenty times, ye know that, Miss Hildy; but I druther ha' hed you
do it;" and Hildegarde understood him perfectly.

The simple meal prepared and set out, Hilda bade farewell to her two
friends, and flitted back to the farm. Mrs. Chirk was to return in the
evening, so she felt no further anxiety about them.

She found the farmer just returned from the village in high spirits.
Squire Gaylord had examined the diamonds, pronounced them of great
value, and had readily advanced the money to pay off the mortgage,
taking two or three large stones as security. Lawyer Clinch had
reluctantly received his money, and relinquished all claim upon
Hartley's Glen, though with a very bad grace.

"He kind o' insinuated that the di'monds had prob'ly ben stole by Father
_or_ me, he couldn't say which; and he said somethin' about inquirin'
into the matter. But Squire Gaylord shut him up pooty quick, by sayin'
thar was more things than that as might be inquired into, and if he
began, others might go on; and Lawyer Clinch hadn't nothin' more to say
after that."

When dinner was over, and everything "redded up," Hildegarde sent Dame
Hartley upstair