you really didn't want
me to."

"You are keen," he replied, with his good nature entirely restored.
"You can see that you get me right under your thumb when you talk that
way. But we must both be on our guard against your fault, you know, or
pretty soon you'll be taking the whole work of the farm off my hands."

"To be serious," she resumed, accompanying him to the barn for the
first time, "I think YOU are working too hard. I'm not. Our meals are
so simple that it doesn't take me long to get them. I'm through with
the hurry in my sewing, the old dog does the churning, and you give me
so much help in the dairy that I shall soon have time on my hands. Now
it seems to me that I might soon learn to take entire care of the
chickens, big and little, and that would be so much less for you to
look after. I'm sure I would enjoy it very much, especially the
looking after the little chickens."

"So you really think you'd like to do that?" he asked, as he turned to
her from unharnessing the horses.

"Yes, indeed, if you think I'm competent."

"You are more so than I am. Somehow, little chickens don't thrive
under a busy man's care. The mother hens mean well, but they are so
confoundedly silly. I declare to you that last year I lost half the
little chicks that were hatched out."

"Well, then," she replied, laughing, "I won't be afraid to try, for I
think I can beat you in raising chickens. Now, show me how much you
feed them at night and how much I'm to give them in the morning, and
let me take the whole care of them for a month, get the eggs, and all.
If they don't do so well, then I'll resign. I can't break you in a
month."

"It looks more as if you'd make me. You have a good big bump of order,
and I haven't any at all in little things. Tom Watterly was right. If
I had tried to live here alone, things would have got into an awful
mess. I feel ashamed of myself that I didn't clear up the yard before,
but my whole mind's been on the main crops."

"As it should be. Don't you worry about the little things. They
belong to me. Now show me about the chickens, or they'll go to roost
while we're talking."

"But I, as well as the chickens, shall want some supper."

"I won't let either of you starve. You'll see."

"Well, you see this little measure? You fill it from this bin with
this mixture of corn and wheat screenings. That's the allowance,
morning and evening. Then you go out to the barnyard there, an