John was listless, and
often entirely without any indications of what was going on all about
him. The only characteristics were shown at intervals, where he would,
probably, recall something, or instinctively be brought into contact
with a former phase of his life; but now those periods seemed to be
vanishing, and he became a more normal being at all times, without
showing the marked eccentricities.

The boys reached the home, and Harry opened the door, and stood ready to
receive and welcome their new companions.

When the wagon came up John and the Professor marched up, and the latter
approached with the deference of a courtier, and John, noting the
attitude of the Professor, made a like obeisance, and this act, so
gracefully performed, was such a wonderful and startling thing that the
boys were completely stunned. After making a show of welcome to the
Professor, they walked over to John and offered him a welcome that was
most touching to him.

The Professor and the boys now felt that they could not, in their future
conversations, make any allusion to him, as there was an evident dawning
of his intellect, and nothing must be said to attract his attention to
it by discussing his condition.

Angel was in the rafters for a moment only, and then down and darted
into the kitchen. Not for a moment did he rest content at any spot until
he had investigated every corner. Wasn't that a boyish trait? When the
whole house had been exhausted, he was over at the water wheel, and the
boys followed, but they did not take in every arm and blade of the
wheel, as he did. Then to the shop, and always leading the boys, who
were after him with shouts of merriment.

"Oh, isn't this wonderful!" exclaimed Tom. "What a glorious time you
must have had in building these things? And just to think of it, we were
so near you, and in misery all the time;" and he said it in such a
regretful manner that it drew forth the sympathy of all.

Nothing in the world could have hindered John and the Professor from
following up and witnessing the scene. Angel didn't try to run the
sawmill, or to turn the lathe, but he did the next best thing, he jumped
on the grindstone and sent it spinning while running over the top, a
trick he had learned and which was one of the ways he had to help out
George and Harry when at work.

If you should argue from now until you get to the end of this book that
Angel did not know what he was doing during these exhibitions,