The new minister and his
daughter came to dinner, and Jason and Minty were glad that the
children had seats at the far end of the table. The minister's
daughter was sixteen, and looked very stylish, and Aunt Kittredge said
she was glad enough that they had the snow pudding, and that she had
asked Aunt Piper to bring her sauce dishes.

It had begun to be very merry at the far end of the table, in a quiet
way, for Aunt Kittredge's stern eye wandered constantly in that
direction, and Jason and Minty had almost forgotten that there were
trials and difficulties in life, when suddenly Aunt Piper's loud voice
sounded across the table, striking terror to their souls:

"You don't say that this is the white turkey? Seems kind of a pity to
kill her, she was so handsome. But she eats real well. Now, you
mustn't forget to let me take a wing home to Sabriny. You know you
always promised her a wing for her hat when the white turkey was
killed."

Sabriny was Aunt Piper's niece, who had been left at home to keep
house.

"Sure enough I did," said Aunt Kittredge. "Jason, you go out to the
barn and get Cyrus to give you one of the white turkey's wings; and
Minty, you wrap it up nice, so it will be handy for your aunt to
carry. Go as soon as you've ate your dinner, so's to have it ready,
for Uncle Piper has got to get home before sundown."

"Yes'm," answered Jason hoarsely, without lifting his eyes from his
plate. He could scarcely eat another mouthful, and Minty found it
unexpectedly easy to obey Aunt Kittredge's injunction to decline snow
pudding lest there should not be "enough to go round."

"What are you going to do?" asked Minty, overtaking Jason, as he
walked dejectedly through the woodshed as soon as dinner was over.

"I don't know; run away and be a cowboy like Hiram Trickey, I guess."

Minty's heart gave a great throb. Hiram Trickey had sent home a
photograph, which showed him to have become very like the picture of a
pirate in Cyrus's old book, with pistols and a dirk at his belt.

"Jason, the new minister's daughter has got a white gull's wing on her
hat, and--it's up in the spare chamber on the bed, and I don't think
Sabriny would ever know the difference."

Jason stared in mild-eyed speechless wonder. Minty had never shown
herself a leading spirit before.

"It will be dark before the minister's daughter goes, and there's a
veil over the hat, and if we put a little something white on it I'm
sure she won't notice.