days, and give her as much as she wants."

"All right!" chuckled Leon, because it was a lot of fun to see her run
her bill around, and gobble up the corn, and stick up her head.

The next day was Saturday, so after breakfast I went with Leon to drive
the sheep and geese to the creek to water; the trough was so high it
was only for the horses and cattle; when we let out the geese, the blue
one wasn't there.

"Oh Leon, did you forget to come back and put her in?"

"Yes I did!" he said. "I meant to when I looked at you to keep still,
and I started to do it, but Sammy Deam whistled, so I went down in the
orchard to see what he wanted, and we got to planning how to get up a
fox chase, and I stayed until father called for night, and then I ran
and forgot all about the blame old goose."

"Oh Leon! Where is she? What will mother say? 'Spose a fox got her!"

"It wouldn't help me any if it had, after I was to blame for leaving
her outside. Blast a girl! If you ever amounted to anything, you
could have put her in while I fixed the horses. At least you could
have told me to."

I stood there dumblike and stared at him. He has got the awfulest way
of telling the truth when he is scared or provoked. Of course I should
have thought of the goose when he was having such a hard fight with the
horses. If I'd been like he was, I'd have told him that he was older,
mother told HIM to do it, and it wasn't my fault; but in my heart I
knew he did have his hands full, and if you're your brother's keeper,
you ought to HELP your brother remember. So I stood gawking, while
Leon slowly turned whiter and whiter.

"We might as well see if we can find her," he said at last, so slow and
hopeless like it made my heart ache. So he started around the straw
stack one way, and I the other, looking into all the holes, and before
I had gone far I had a glimpse of her, and it scared me so I screamed,
for her head was down, and she didn't look right. Leon came running
and pulled her out. The swelled corn rolled in a little trail after
her, and the pigs ran up and began to eat it. Pigs are named righter
than anything else I know.

"Busted!" cried Leon in tones of awe; about the worst awe you ever
heard, and the worst bust you ever saw.

From bill to breast she was wide open, and the hominy spilling. We
just stood staring at her, and then Leon began to kick the pigs;
because it would be no use to kick the goose; she would never know.
Then