r, giggling as they wrestled, in the sheer delight of being alive on
such a day. When they finally killed a harmless little chicken-snake, no
prince of the royal blood, hunting tigers in Indian jungles, could have
been prouder of his striped trophies than they were of theirs.

Meanwhile Ivy slept peacefully on, one little hand sticking to her
plump, molasses-smeared cheek, the other holding fast to her headless
doll. Beside her on the floor lay a tattered picture-book, a big bottle
half full of red shelled corn, and John Jay's most precious treasure, a
toy watch that could be endlessly wound up. He had heaped them all
beside her, hoping they would keep her occupied until his return, in
case she should waken earlier than usual.

The sun was well on its way to bed when the little hunters shouldered
their clubs, with a snake dangling from each one, and started for the
cabin.

"My! I didn't know it was so late!" exclaimed John Jay ruefully, as they
met a long procession of home-going cows. "Ain't it funny how soon
sundown gets heah when yo' havin' a good time, and how long it is
a-comin' when yo' isn't!"

A dusky little figure rose up out of the weeds ahead of them. "Land
sakes! Ivy Hickman!" exclaimed John Jay, dropping his snake in surprise.
"How did you get heah?"

Ivy stuck her thumb in her mouth without answering. He took her by the
shoulder, about to shake a reply from her, when Bud exclaimed, in a
frightened voice, "Law, I see Mammy comin'. Look! There she is now, in
front of Uncle Billy's house!"

Throwing away his club, and catching Ivy up in his short arms, John Jay
staggered up the path leading to the back of the house as fast as such a
heavy load would allow, leaving Brer Tarrypin far in the rear. Just as
he sank down at the back door, all out of breath, old Sheba reached the
front one.

"John Jay," she called, "what you doing', chile?"

"Heah I is, Mammy," he answered. "I'se jus' takin' keer o' the chillun!"

"That's right, honey, I've got somethin' mighty good in my basket fo' we
all's suppah. Hurry up now, an' tote in some kin'lin' wood."

Never had John Jay sprung to obey as he did then. He shivered when he
thought of his narrow escape. His arms were piled so full of wood that
he could scarcely see over them, when he entered the poorly lighted
little cabin. He stumbled over the bottle of corn and the picture-book.
Maybe he would not have kicked them aside so gaily had he known that his
precious w