o come! You lemme out!' and then we'd slack
on the old sweep and down he'd go again--haw! haw!"

"He! he!" cackled Mr. Sim, rubbing his little withered hands. "I can see
the tossel on his cap now, bobbin' up and down, and his little picked
nose under it--he! he!"

"Ho! ho!" chimed in Mr. Sam suddenly. "And I can see you--I mean, tell
him I can see _him_ bobbin' up and down on Ma's knee when she spanked
him for it."

"That's too long to say," said Mary Sands placidly; "think likely he
heard it, didn't you, Cousin Sim?"

"Tell him he got jest as good!" retorted Mr. Sim.

"Cousin Sam, Cousin Sim says you got it just as good!" said Mary. "Now,
Mr. Parks, if you're a mind to carry the turkey out while I bring in the
pies--if nobody'll have any more, that is to say!"

"Well!" said Calvin Parks, rising and lifting the huge platter; "if all
had eat what I have, there'd be nothin' _to_ carry out, that's all I
have to say. After you, Miss Hands!"

He closed the pantry door cautiously after him.

"How do you think it's goin'?" he asked eagerly.

"Splendid!" cried Mary Sands under her breath. "It's goin' splendid!
They've looked at each other much as four or five times, and twice they
only just stopped in time or they'd have spoke to each other. I saw
Cousin Sam catch his breath and fairly choke the words back. Keep right
on as you are, Mr. Parks, and we'll have 'em talkin' in another hour,
see if we don't!"

The pies--such pies!--had come and gone. With furtive blinks, Mr. Sam
had unbuttoned the lower buttons of a black, Mr. Sim of a red waistcoat;
they leaned back in their chairs, their sharp little features relaxed,
and they stirred their coffee with the air of men at peace with the
world.

Calvin Parks bent over his cup with an attentive look.

"Boys," he said pensively, "warn't this your Ma's cup?"

The twins started, and looked at the dark blue cup with gold on the
handle.

"It was so!" said Mr. Sam.

"Certin!" said Mr. Sim.

"I thought so!" said Calvin. "Miss Hands, you ought to have this cup by
rights; and yet I'm pleased to have it, for I thought a sight of the
boys' Ma, and she knowed it. She was always good to me, if she did call
me a rover; always good to me she was, from the time I was knee high to
a grasshopper. The boys was bigger than me in those days, Miss Hands; I
dono as you'd think it now, but so it was. They stopped growin' at the
same time; didn't you, boys? Along about fourteen year old,