ide of the
group, and, lowering his voice, replied, "That's Pete's mother."

Mr. Howitt pointed to the grave; "You mean she sleeps there?"

"No, no, not there; there!" He pointed up to the big tree, itself.
"She never sleeps; don't you hear her?" He paused. The wind moaned
through the branches of the pine. Drawing closer to the stranger's
side, the boy whispered, "She always talks that a way; always, and
it makes Pete feel bad. She wants somebody. Hear her callin',
callin', callin'? He'll sure come some day, Mister; he sure will.
Say, do you know where he is?"

The stranger, startled, drew back; "No, no, my boy, certainly not;
what do you mean; who are you?"

Like the moaning of the pines came the reply, "Nothin', Mister,
nobody can't mean nothin', can they? I'm jest nobody. But Pete
lives in here; ask Pete."

"Is Pete watching the sheep?" asked Mr. Howitt, anxious to divert
the boy's mind to other channels.

"Yes, we're a tendin' 'em now; but they can't trust us, you know;
when they call Pete, he just goes, and course I've got to go
'long."

"Who is it calls Pete?"

"Why, they, don't you know? I 'lowed you knowed about things. They
called Pete last night. The moonlight things was out, and all the
shadow things; didn't you see them, Mister? The moonlight things,
the wind, the stars, the shadow things, and all the rest played
with Pete in the shiny mists, and, course, I was along. Didn't you
hear singin'? Pete he always sings that a way, when the moonlight
things is out. Seems like he just can't help it."

"But what becomes of the sheep when Pete goes away?"

The boy shook his head sadly; "Sometimes they get so lost that
Young Matt can't never find 'em; sometimes wolves get 'em; it's
too bad, Mister, it sure is." Then laughing aloud, he clapped his
hands; "There was a feller at the ranch to keep 'em, but he didn't
stay; Ho! Ho! he didn't stay, you bet he didn't. Pete didn't like
him, Brave didn't like him, nothing didn't like him, the trees
wouldn't talk when he was around, the flowers died when he looked
at 'em, and the birds all stopped singin' and went away over the
mountains. He didn't stay, though." Again he laughed. "You bet he
didn't stay! Pete knows."

"Why did the man go?" asked Mr. Howitt, thinking to solve a part
of the mystery, at least. But the only answer he could draw from
the boy was, "Pete knows; Pete knows."

Later when the stranger returned to the house, Pete went with him;
at the big