Ill niiii ir<" 
 
 3 1822 
 
 
 
 CY WHITTAKER S 
 PLACE 
 
 JOSEPH C.LINCOLN
 
 UNIVERSITY OF 
 CALIPORNIA 
 
 SAN DIEGO 

 
 3 1822 01322 1205 
 
 ps
 
 UN 
 
 C 
 
 s
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE
 
 "Isn t it a truly bell? Didn t it ought to ring?" 
 
 [Page 91]
 
 CY WHITTAKER S 
 PLACE 
 
 By 
 JOSEPH C. LINCOLN 
 
 Author of 
 "Cap n Eri," "Mr. Pratt," etc. 
 
 WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY 
 
 WALLACE MORGAN 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 GROSSET & DUNLAP 
 
 PUBLISHERS
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1908, BY 
 D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 
 
 FubUfheJ September, 1WS
 
 TO 
 
 F. S. L.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 I. THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE .... i 
 
 II. THE WANDERER S RETURN 20 
 
 III "Fixm OVER" 32 
 
 IV. BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 53 
 
 V. A FRONT DOOR CALLER 78 
 
 VI. ICICLES AND DUST 98 
 
 VII. CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT. . . .115 
 
 VIIL THE "Cow LADY" 140 
 
 IX. POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 157 
 
 X. A LETTER AND A VISITOR 177 
 
 XL A BARGAIN OFF 190 
 
 XII. "TowN MEETIN " 212 
 
 XIII. THE REPULSE 234 
 
 XIV. A CLEW 256 
 
 XV. DEBBY BEASLEY TO THE RESCUE .... 275 
 
 vii
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTEa PAGE 
 
 XVI. A REMARKABLE DRIVE AND WHAT FOLLOWED . 292 
 
 XVII. THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS His AGE . . . 310 
 
 XVIII. CONGRESSMAN EVERDEAN 329 
 
 XIX. THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT .... 346 
 
 XX. DIVIDED HONORS 367 
 
 XXI. CAPTAIN Cv s "PICTURE" 386
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 " Isn t it a truly bell ? Didn tit oughttoring? " Frontispiece 
 "We was a spunky, dare-devil lot in the old days, wan t 
 
 we, Ase? " 14 
 
 "Is this your horse? demanded the newcomer." Facing 24 
 "Matildy/ I says, he s got a screw loose up aloft just as sure 
 
 as you re a born woman. " 33 
 
 " How are you, Heman ? Fatter n you used to be, ain t 
 
 you?" 1 Facing 46 
 
 "Well, I don t want none of your miser ble money! " . . 73 
 " Excuse me . . . but don t you think that plate had better 
 
 be done over? " . 107 
 
 "We we didn t know you had company. " . Facing no 
 "I should say that was a real stylish rig-out. " . . .123 
 "Scat! Go home! ordered the lady." . . . Facing 134 
 "I don t think we need to say any more. Good day. " 
 
 Facing 152 
 "Look here, you two! how would I look on the school 
 
 committee?" 1 164 
 
 "So get every vote you can. Never mind how; just get 
 
 em. " Facing 166 
 
 "I ll kill you like a dog. " 208 
 
 ix
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 "You ve said enough! Now let me say a word! " . . 225 
 "He stepped upon the platform beside the congressman." . 231 
 "The teacher rose and laid a hand on his arm." . . . 245 
 " Evenin , gentlemen, said the captain." . . Facing 250 
 " Ain t that fine? The paper says: "When Congressman 
 
 Atkins delivered this noble sentiment a hush fell upon 
 
 the excited throng. " Facing 258 
 
 " I did find out something too; but it don t really amount to 
 
 nothin ." Facing 270 
 
 "Sprawled across the rear axle, and still clinging to the reins, 
 
 hung an individual by the name of Bangs." . Facing 302 
 " Don t don t get mad, Whit. I ain t said nothin . " . 326 
 " Set still! he ordered. Set still, I tell you! " . Facing 344 
 The receiver fell from the congressman s hand." Facing 352 
 "He was on his knees beside the bed, his face buried in 
 
 his arms." Facing 362 
 
 " Cyrus, he said, it is my pleasant duty ... to welcome 
 
 you to your er ancestral home. " . . Facing 382 
 
 "I don t think I d ought to let you shake hands with me, 
 
 Phoebe. " Facing 396
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE 
 
 IT is queer, but Captain Cy himself doesn t 
 remember whether the day was Tuesday or 
 Wednesday. Asaph Tidditt s records ought to 
 settle it, for there was a meeting of the board of 
 selectmen that day, and Asaph has been town clerk 
 in Bayport since the summer before the Baptist meet 
 ing house burned. But on the record the date, in 
 Asaph s handwriting, stands " Tuesday, May 10, 
 189- " and, as it happens, May 10 of that year fell 
 on Wednesday, not Tuesday at all. 
 
 Keturah Bangs, who keeps " the perfect boarding 
 house," says it was Tuesday, because she remembers 
 they had fried cod cheeks and cabbage that day as 
 they have every Tuesday and neither Mr. Tidditt 
 nor Bailey Bangs, Keturah s husband, was on hand 
 when the dinner bell rang. Keturah says she is cer 
 tain it was Tuesday, because she remembers smelling 
 the boiled cabbage as she stood at the side door, look 
 ing up the road to see if either Asaph or Bailey was 
 coming. As for Bailey, he says he remembers being 
 
 I
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 late to dinner and his wife s " startin to heave a 
 broadsides into him " because of it, but he doesn t 
 remember what day it was. This isn t surprising; 
 Keturah s verbal cannonades are likely to make one 
 forgetful of trifles. 
 
 At any rate, whether Tuesday or Wednesday, it is 
 certain that it was quarter past twelve, according to 
 the clock presented to the Methodist Society by 
 the Honorable Heman Atkins, when Asaph Tidditt 
 came down the steps of the townhall, after the select 
 men s meeting, and saw Bailey Bangs waiting for him 
 on the opposite side of the road. 
 
 "Hello, Ase!" hailed Mr. Bangs. "You ll be 
 late to dinner, if you don t hurry. I was headin for 
 home, all sail sot, when I see you. What kept you? " 
 
 Town business, of course," replied Mr. Tidditt, 
 with the importance pertaining to his official position. 
 "What kept you, for the land sakes? Won t Ke- 
 tury be in your wool? " 
 
 Bailey hasn t any " wool " worth mentioning now, 
 and he had very little more then, but he mopped his 
 forehead, or the extension above it, taking off his cap 
 to do so. 
 
 " I cal late she will," he said, uneasily. " Tell you 
 the truth, Ase, I was up to the store, and Cap n Jo- 
 siah Dimick and some more of em drifted in and we 
 got talkin about the chances of the harbor appro 
 priation, and one thing or nother, and twas later n 
 I thought twas fore I knew it." 
 
 2
 
 THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE 
 
 The appropriation from the government, which 
 was to deepen and widen our harbor here at Bayport, 
 was a very vital topic among us just then. Heman 
 Atkins, the congressman from our district, had prom 
 ised to do his best for the appropriation, and had for 
 a time been very sanguine of securing it. Recently, 
 however, he had not been quite as hopeful. 
 
 " What s Cap n Josiah think about the chances? " 
 asked Asaph eagerly. 
 
 " Well, sometimes he thinks * Yes and then again 
 he thinks * No, " replied Bailey. " He says, of 
 course, if Heman is able to get it he will, but if he 
 ain t able to, he he " 
 
 " He won t, I s pose. Well, / can think that my 
 self, and I don t set up to be no inspired know-it-all, 
 like Joe Dimick. He ain t heard from Heman lately, 
 has he?" 
 
 " No, he ain t. Neither s anybody else, so fur as 
 I can find out." 
 
 " Oh, yes, they have. / have, for one." 
 
 Mr. Bangs stopped short in his double-quick march 
 for home and dinner, and looked his companion in 
 the face. 
 
 " Ase Tidditt ! " he cried. " Do you mean to tell 
 me you ve had a letter from Heman Atkins, from 
 Washin ton?" 
 
 Asaph nodded portentously. 
 
 Yes, sir," he declared. " A letter from the 
 Honorable Heman G. Atkins, of Washin ton, 
 
 3
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 D. C., come to me last night. I read it afore I 
 turned in." 
 
 "You did! And never said nothin about it? " 
 
 " Why should I say anything about it? Twas ad 
 dressed to me as town clerk, and was concernin a 
 matter to be took up with the board of s lectmen. I 
 ain t in the habit of hollerin town affairs through a 
 speakin trumpet. Folks that vote for me town-meet- 
 in day know that, I guess. Angie Phinney says to 
 me only yesterday, Mr. Tidditt, says she, there s 
 one thing I ll say for you you don t talk. 
 
 Miss Phinney boarded with the Bangses, and 
 Bailey was acquainted with her personal peculiari 
 ties; for that matter so were most of Bayport s per 
 manent residents. 
 
 " Humph ! " he snorted indignantly. " She 
 thought twas a good thing not to talk, hey? She 
 did? Well, by mighty! you never get no chance to 
 talk when she s around. Angie Phinney! Why, 
 when that poll parrot of hers died, Alph us Smalley 
 declared up and down that what killed it was jeal 
 ousy and disapp inted ambition; he said it broke its 
 heart tryin to keep up with Angie. Her ma was the 
 same breed of cats. I remember " 
 
 The talking proclivities of females is the one topic 
 upon which Keturah s husband is touchiest. Asaph 
 knew this, but he delighted to stir up his chum oc 
 casionally. He chuckled as he interrupted the flow of 
 reminiscence.
 
 THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE 
 
 " There, there, Bailey! " he exclaimed. " I know 
 as much about Angle s tribe as you do, I cal late. 
 Ain t we a little mite off the course? Seems to me 
 we was talkin about Heman s letter." 
 
 " Is that so? I judged from what you said we 
 wa n t goin to talk about it. Aw, don t be so mean, 
 Ase ! Showin off your importance like a young one ! 
 What did Heman say about the appropriation? Is 
 he goin to get it? " 
 
 Mr. Tidditt paused before replying. Then, bend 
 ing over, he whispered in his chum s ear : 
 
 " He never said one word about the appropriation, 
 Bailey; not one word. He wanted to know if we d 
 got this year s taxes on the Whittaker place. And, 
 if we hadn t, what was we goin to do about it? 
 Bailey, between you and me and the mizzenmast, He- 
 man Atkins wants to get ahold of that place the 
 worst way." 
 
 " He does? He does! For the land sakes, ain t 
 he got property enough already? Ain t a a palace 
 like that enough for one man, without wantin to buy 
 a rattletrap like that? " 
 
 The first " that " w r as emphasized by a brandished 
 but reverent left hand; the second by a derisively 
 pointing right. The two friends had reached the 
 crest of the long slope leading up from the townhall. 
 On one side of the road stretched the imposing front 
 age of the " Atkins estate," with its iron fence and 
 stone posts; on the other slouched the weed-grown, 
 
 2 5
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 tumble-down desolation of the " Cy Whittaker 
 place." The contrast was that of opulent prosperity 
 and poverty-stricken neglect. 
 
 If our village boasted one of those horseless jug 
 gernauts, such as are used to carry sightseers in Bos 
 ton from the old North Church to the Public Library 
 and other points of interest that is, if there was a 
 " seeing Bayport " car, it is from this hill that its 
 occupants would be given their finest view of the vil 
 lage and its surroundings. As Captain Josiah Dim- 
 ick always says: " Bayport is all north and south, 
 like a codfish line. It puts me in mind of Seth Hig- 
 gins s oldest boy. He was so tall and thin that when 
 they bought a suit of clothes for him, they used to 
 take reefs in the sides of the jacket and use the cloth 
 to piece onto the bottoms of the trousers legs." 
 What Captain Joe means is that the houses in the 
 village are all built beside three roads running longi 
 tudinally. There is the " main road " and the " up 
 per road " or " Woodchuck Lane," just as you pre 
 fer and the " lower road," otherwise known as 
 Bassett s Holler." 
 
 The " upper road " is sometimes called the " de 
 pot road," because the railroad station is conveniently 
 located thereon convenient for the railroad, that is 
 the station being a full mile from Simmons s " gen 
 eral store," which is considered the center of the 
 town. The upper road enters the main road at the 
 corner by the store, and there also are the Methodist 
 
 6
 
 THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE 
 
 meetinghouse and the schoolhouse. The townhall 
 is in the hollow farther on. Then comes the big hill 
 " Whittaker s Hill " and from the top of this 
 hill you can, on a clear day, see for miles across the 
 salt marshes and over the bay to the eastward, and 
 west as far as the church steeple in Orham. If there 
 happens to be a fog, with a strong easterly wind, you 
 cannot see the marshes or the bay, but you can smell 
 them, wet and salty and sweet. It is a smell that the 
 born Bayporter never forgets, but carries with him 
 in memory wherever he goes; and that, in the palmy 
 days of the merchant marine, was likely to be far, 
 for every male baby in the village was born with web 
 feet, so people said, and was predestined to be a sailor. 
 
 When Heman Atkins came back from the South 
 Seas early in the 6o s, " rich as dock mud," though 
 still a young man, he promptly tore down his father s 
 old house, which stood on the crest of Whittaker s 
 Hill, and built in its place a big imposing residence. 
 It was by far the finest house in Bayport, and Heman 
 made it finer as the years passed. There were imi 
 tation brownstone pillars supporting its front porch, 
 iron dogs and scroll work iron benches bordering its 
 front walk, and a pair of stone urns, in summer filled 
 with flowers, beside its big iron front gate. 
 
 Heman was our leading citizen, our representative 
 in Washington, and the town s philanthropist. He 
 gave the Atkins memorial window and the Atkins 
 tower clock to the Methodist Church. The Atkins 
 
 7
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 town pump, also his gift, stood before the townhall. 
 The Atkins portrait in the Bayport Ladies Library 
 was much admired; and the size of the Atkins for 
 tune was the principal subject of conversation at sew 
 ing circle, at the table of " the perfect boarding 
 house," around the stove in Simmons s store, or 
 wherever Bayporters were used to gather. We never 
 exactly worshipped Heman Atkins, perhaps, but we 
 figuratively doffed our hats when his name was men 
 tioned. 
 
 The " Cy Whittaker place " faced the Atkins es 
 tate from the opposite side of the main road, but it 
 was the general opinion that it ought to be ashamed 
 to face it. Almost everybody called it " the Cy Whit- 
 taker place," although some of the younger set spoke 
 of it as the " Sea Sight House." It was a big, old- 
 fashioned dwelling, gambrel-roofed and brown and 
 dilapidated. Originally it had enjoyed the dignified 
 seclusion afforded by a white picket fence with square 
 gateposts, and the path to its seldom-used front door 
 had been guarded by rigid lines of box hedge. This, 
 however, was years ago, before the second Captain 
 Cy Whittaker died, and before the Howes family 
 turned it into the " Sea Sight House," a hotel for 
 summer boarders. 
 
 The Howeses " improved " the house and grounds. 
 They tore down the picket fence, uprooted the box 
 hedges, hung a sign over the sacred front door, and 
 built a wide veranda under the parlor windows.
 
 THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE 
 
 They took boarders for five consecutive summers; 
 then they gave up the unprofitable undertaking, re 
 turned to Concord, New Hampshire, their native 
 city, and left the Cy Whittaker place to bear the 
 ravages of Bayport winters and Bayport small boys 
 as best it might. 
 
 For years it stood empty. The weeds grew high 
 about its foundations ; the sparrows built nests behind 
 such of its shutters as had not been ripped from their 
 hinges by February no theasters; its roof grew bald 
 in spots as the shingles loosened and were blown 
 away; the swallows flew in and out of its stone-broken 
 windowpanes. Year by year it became more of a dis 
 grace in the eyes of Bayport s neat and thrifty in 
 habitants for neat and thrifty we are, if we do say 
 it. The selectmen would have liked to tear it down, 
 but they could not, because it was private property, 
 having been purchased from the Howes heirs by the 
 third Cy Whittaker, Captain Cy s only son, who ran 
 away to sea when he was sixteen years old, and was 
 disinherited and cast off by the proud old skipper in 
 consequence. Each March, Asaph Tidditt, in his 
 official capacity as town clerk, had been accustomed 
 to receive an envelope with a South American post 
 mark, and in that envelope was a draft on a Boston 
 banking house for the sum due as taxes on the " Cy 
 Whittaker place." The drafts were signed " Cyrus 
 M. Whittaker." 
 
 But this particular year the year in which this 
 
 9
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 chronicle begins no draft had been received. Asaph 
 waited a few weeks and then wrote to the address 
 indicated by the postmark. His letter was unan 
 swered. The taxes were due in March and it was 
 now May. Mr. Tidditt wrote again ; then he laid the 
 case before the board of selectmen, and Captain Eben 
 Salters, chairman of that august body, also wrote. 
 But even Captain Eben s authoritative demand was 
 ignored. Next to the harbor appropriation, the ques 
 tion of what should be done about the " Cy Whit- 
 taker place " filled Bayport s thoughts that spring. 
 No one, however, had supposed that the Honorable 
 Heman might wish to buy it. Bailey Bangs s sur 
 prise was excusable. 
 
 " What in the world," repeated Bailey, " does He- 
 man want of a shebang like that? Ain t he got 
 enough already? " 
 
 His friend shook his head. 
 
 " Pears not," he said. " I judge it s this way, 
 Bailey: Heman, he s a proud man " 
 
 " Well, ain t he got a right to be proud? " broke 
 in Mr. Bangs, hastening to resent any criticism of the 
 popular idol. " Cal late you and me d be proud if 
 we was able to carry as much sail as he does, wouldn t 
 we?" 
 
 " Yes, I guess like we would. But you needn t get 
 red in the face and strain your biler just because I 
 said that. I ain t finding fault with Heman ; I m only 
 
 tellin you. He s proud, as I said, and his wife " 
 
 10
 
 THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE 
 
 " She s dead this four year. What are you resur- 
 rectin her for? " 
 
 " Land! you re peppery as a West Injy omelet this 
 mornin . Let me alone till I ve finished. His wife, 
 when she was alive, she was proud, too. And his 
 daughter, Alicia, she s eight year old now, and by and 
 by she ll be grown up into a high-toned young woman. 
 Well, Heman is fur-sighted, and I s pose likely he s 
 thinkin of the days when there ll be young rich fel 
 lers senators and and well, counts and lords, 
 maybe cruisin down here courtin her. By that 
 time the Whittaker place ll be a worse disgrace than 
 tis now. I presume he don t want those swells to sit 
 on his front piazza and see the crows buildin nests 
 in the ruins acrost the road. So " 
 
 " Crows ! Did you ever see a crow build a nest 
 in a house? I never did! " 
 
 " Oh, belay ! Crows or canary birds, what dif 
 ference does it make? Somethin 11 nest there, if it s 
 only A nt Sophrony Hallett s hens. So Heman he 
 writes to the board, askin if the taxes is paid, if we ve 
 heard any reason why they ain t paid, and what we re 
 goin to do about it. If there s a sale for taxes he 
 wants to be fust bidder. Then, when the place is his, 
 he can tear down or rebuild, just as he sees fit. See ? " 
 Yes, I see. Well, I feel about that the way Joe 
 Dimick felt when he heard the doctor had told Elviry 
 Pepper she must stop singin in the choir or lose her 
 voice altogether. Whichever happens 11 be an im- 
 
 ii
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 provement, says Cap n Joe; and whatever Heman 
 does 11 help the Whittaker place. What did you 
 decide at the meetin ? " 
 
 " Nothin . We can t decide yet. We ain t sure 
 about the law and we want to wait a spell, anyhow. 
 But I know how twill end: Atkins 11 get the place. 
 He always gets what he wants, Heman does." 
 
 Bailey turned and looked back at the old house, 
 forlorn amidst its huddle of blackberry briers and 
 weeds, and with the ubiquitous " silver-leaf " saplings 
 springing up in clusters everywhere about it and clos 
 ing in on its defenseless wails like squads of victori 
 ous soldiery making the final charge upon a con 
 quered fort. 
 
 " Well," sighed Mr. Bangs, " so that 11 be the end 
 of the old Whittaker place, hey? Sho ! things change 
 in a feller s lifetime, don t they? You and me can 
 remember, Ase, when Cap n Cy Whittaker was one 
 of the biggest men we had in this town. So was his 
 dad afore him, the Cap n Cy that built the house. I 
 wonder the looks of things here now don t bring 
 them two up out of their graves. Do you remember 
 young Cy Whit we used to call him or Reddy 
 Whit, count of his red hair? I don t know s you 
 do, though ; guess you d gone to sea when he run 
 away from home." 
 
 Mr. Tidditt shook his head. 
 
 " No, no ! " he said. " I was to home that year. 
 Remember Whit ? Well, I should say I did. He 
 
 12
 
 THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE 
 
 was a holy terror yes, sir ! Wan t no monkey shines 
 or didos cut up in this town that young Cy wan t into. 
 Fur s that goes, you and me was in em, too, Bailey. 
 We was all holy terrors then. Young ones nowadays 
 ain t got the spunk we used to have." 
 
 His friend chuckled. 
 
 "That s so," he declared. "That s so. Whit 
 was a good-hearted boy, too, but full of the Old 
 Scratch and as sot in his ways as his dad, and if Cap n 
 Cy wan t sot, then there ain t no sotness. You ll go 
 to college and be a parson, says the Cap n. I ll go 
 to sea and be a sailor, same as you done, says Whit. 
 And he did, too ; run away one night, took the packet 
 to Boston, and shipped aboard an Australian clipper. 
 Cap n Cy didn t go after him to fetch him home. 
 No, sir ee ! not a fetch. Sent him a letter plumb to 
 Melbourne and, says he: You ve made your bed; 
 now lay in it. Don t you never dast to come back to 
 me or your ma, he says. And Whit didn t, he wan t 
 that kind." 
 
 " Pretty nigh killed the old lady Whit s ma 
 that did," mused Asaph. " She died a little spell af 
 terwards. And the old man pined away, too, but he 
 never give in or asked the boy to come back. Stub 
 born as all get-out to the end, he was, and willed the 
 place, all he had left, to them Howes folks. And a 
 nice mess they made of it. Young Cy, he " 
 
 "Young Cy!" interrupted Bailey. "We re al 
 ways callin him young Cy, and yet, when you come 
 
 13
 
 " We aw a spunky, dare-devil lot in the old days, 
 wan t we, Ase ? ; 
 
 to think of it, he must be pretty nigh fifty-five now; 
 most as old as you and I be. Wonder if he ll ever 
 come back here." 
 
 " You bet he won t ! " was the oracular reply. 
 
 14
 
 THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE 
 
 " You bet he won t ! From what I hear he got to be 
 a sea cap n himself and settled down there in Buenos 
 Ayres. He s made all kinds of money, they say, out 
 of hides and such. What he ever bought his dad s 
 old place for, 7 can t see. He ll never come back to 
 these common, one-horse latitudes, now you mark my 
 word on that! " 
 
 It was a prophecy Mr. Tidditt was accustomed to 
 make each year to the crowd at the post office, when 
 the receipt for the draft for taxes caused him to wax 
 reminiscent. The younger generation here in Bay- 
 port regard their town clerk as something of an ora 
 cle, and this regard has made Asaph a trifle vain and 
 positive. 
 
 Bailey chuckled again. 
 
 We was a spunky, dare-devil lot in the old days, 
 wan t we, Ase? " he said. " Spunk was kind of born 
 in us, as you might say. And even now we re " 
 
 The Atkins tower clock boomed once a solemn, 
 dignified stroke. Mr. Tidditt and his companion 
 started and looked at each other. 
 
 "Godfrey scissors!" gasped Asaph. "Is that 
 half past twelve? " 
 
 Mr. Bangs pulled a big worn silver watch from 
 his pocket and glanced at the dial. 
 
 " It is! " he moaned. "As sure s you re born, it 
 is! We ve kept Ketury s dinner waitin twenty min 
 utes. You and me are in for it now, Ase Tidditt! 
 Twenty minutes late ! She ll skin us alive." 
 
 15
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Mr. Tidditt did not pause to answer, but plunged 
 headlong down the hill at a race-horse gait, Bailey 
 pounding at his heels. For " born dare-devils," self- 
 confessed, they were a nervous and apprehensive pair. 
 
 The " perfect boarding house " is situated a quar 
 ter of a mile beyond " Whittaker s Hill," nearly op 
 posite the Salters homestead. The sign, hung on the 
 pole by the front gate, reads, " Bayport Hotel. 
 Bailey Bangs, Proprietor," but no one except the 
 stranger in Bayport accepts that sign seriously. 
 When, owing to an unexpected change in the admin 
 istration at Washington, Mr. Bangs was obliged to 
 relinquish his position as our village postmaster, his 
 wife came to the rescue with the proposal that they 
 open a boarding house. " Whatsoe er you find to 
 do, quoted Keturah at sewing-circle meeting, do 
 it then with all your might ! That s a good Sabbath- 
 school hymn tune and it s good sense besides. I in 
 tend to make it my life work to run just as complete 
 a a eatin and lodgin establishment as I can. If, 
 when I m laid to rest, they can put onto my grave 
 stone, She run the perfect boardin house, / // be 
 satisfied. 1 
 
 This remark, and subsequent similar declarations, 
 were widely quoted, and, therefore, though casual 
 visitors may refer to the " Bayport Hotel," to us 
 natives the Bangs residence is always " Keturah s per 
 fect boarding house." As for the sign s affirmation 
 of Mr. Bangs proprietorship, that is considered the 
 
 16
 
 THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE 
 
 cream of the joke. The idea of meek, bald-headed 
 little Bailey posing as proprietor of anything while 
 his wife is on deck, tickles Bayport s sense of humor. 
 
 The perspiring delinquents panted into the yard of 
 the perfect boarding house and tremblingly opened 
 the door leading to the dining room. Dinner was 
 well under way, and Mrs. Bangs, enthroned at the 
 end of the long table, behind the silver-plated tea 
 pot, was waiting to receive them. The silence was 
 appalling. 
 
 " Sorry to be a little behindhand, Ketury," stam 
 mered Asaph hurriedly. " Town affairs are impor 
 tant, of course, and can t be neglected. I " 
 
 "Yes, yes; that s so, Ketury," cut in Mr. Bangs. 
 You see " 
 
 " Hum ! Yes, I see." Keturah s tone was several 
 degrees below freezing. " Hum ! I s pose twas town 
 affairs kept you, too, hey? " 
 
 Well, well er not exactly, as you might say, 
 but " Bailey squeezed himself into the armchair 
 at the end of the table opposite his wife, the end 
 which, with sarcasm not the less keen for being unin 
 tentional, was called the " head." " Not exactly 
 town affairs, twan t that kept me, Ketury, but 
 My! don t them cod cheeks smell good? You always 
 could cook cod cheeks, if I do say it." 
 
 The compliment was wasted. Mrs. Bangs had a 
 sermon to deliver, and its text was not " cod cheeks." 
 
 " Bailey Bangs," she began, " when I was brought
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 to realize that my husband, although apparently an 
 able-bodied man, couldn t support me as I d been 
 used to be supported, and when I was forced to sup 
 port him by keepin boarders, I says, If there s one 
 thing that my house shall stand for it s punctual 
 promptness at meal times. I say nothing, I says 
 about the inconvenience of gettin on with only one 
 hired help when we ought to have three. If Provi 
 dence, in its unscrutable wisdom, I says, has seen fit 
 to lay this burden onto me, the burden of a household 
 of boarders and a husband whom 
 
 And just then the power referred to by Mrs. Bangs 
 intervened to spare her husband the remainder of the 
 preachment. From the driveway of the yard, beside 
 the dining-room windows, came the rattle of wheels 
 and the tramp of a horse s feet. Mrs. Matilda 
 Tripp, who sat nearest the windows, on that side, rose 
 and peered out. 
 
 " It s the depot wagon, Ketury," she said. 
 " There s somebody inside it. I wonder if they re 
 comin here." 
 
 " Transients " were almost unknown quantities at 
 the Bayport Hotel in May. Consequently, all the 
 boarders and the landlady herself crowded to the 
 windows. The " depot wagon " had drawn up by 
 the steps, and Gabe Lumley, the driver, had de 
 scended from his seat and was doing his best to open 
 the door of the ancient vehicle. It stuck, of course; 
 the doors of all depot wagons stick. 
 
 18
 
 THE PERFECT BOARDING HOUSE 
 
 " Hold on a shake! " commanded some one inside 
 the carriage. " Wait till I get a purchase on her. 
 Now, then! All hands to the ropes! Heave hoi 
 There she comes! " 
 
 The door flew back with a bang. A man sprang 
 out upon the lower step of the porch. The eye of 
 every inmate of the perfect boarding house was 
 on him. Even the " hired help " peered from the 
 kitchen door. 
 
 " He s a stranger," whispered Mrs. Tripp. " I 
 never see him before, did you, Mr. Tidditt? " 
 
 The town clerk did not answer. He was staring 
 at the depot wagon s passenger, staring with a face 
 the interested expression of which was changing to 
 that of surprise and amazed incredulity. Mrs. Tripp 
 turned to Mr. Bangs; he also was staring, open- 
 mouthed. 
 
 "Godfrey scissors!" gasped Asaph, under his 
 breath. " Godfrey scissors ! Bailey, I I believe 
 I swan to man, I believe " 
 
 "Ase Tidditt!" exclaimed Mr. Bangs, "am I 
 goin looney, or is that is that " 
 
 Neither finished his sentence. There are times 
 when language seems so pitifully inadequate.
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 THE WANDERER S RETURN 
 
 HERE in Bayport, nowadays, the collecting of 
 " antiques " is a favorite amusement of our 
 summer visitors. Those of us who were 
 fortunate enough to possess a set of nicked blue 
 dishes, a warming pan, or a tall clock with wooden 
 wheels, have long ago parted with these treasures for 
 considerable sums. Oddly enough Sylvanus Cahoon 
 has profited most by this craze. Sylvanus used to be 
 judged the unluckiest man in town; of late this judg 
 ment has been revised. 
 
 It was Sylvanus who, confined to the house by an 
 illness brought on by eating too much " sugar cake " 
 at a free sociable given by the Methodist Society, 
 arose in the night and drank copiously of what he sup 
 posed to be the medicine left by the doctor. It hap 
 pened to be water-bug poison, and Sylvanus was 
 nearly killed by the dose. He is reported as having 
 admitted that he " didn t mind dyin so much, but 
 hated to die such a dum mean death." 
 
 While convalescent he took to smoking in bed and 
 was burned out of house and home in consequence. 
 
 20
 
 THE WANDERER S RETURN 
 
 Then it was that his kind-hearted fellow citizens do 
 nated, for the furnishing of his new residence, all the 
 cast-oft bits of furniture and odds and ends from their 
 garrets. " Charity," observed Captain Josiah Dim- 
 ick at the time, " begins at home with us Bayporters, 
 and it generally begins up attic, that bein nighest to 
 heaven." 
 
 Later Sylvanus sold most of the donations as " an 
 tiques " and made money enough therefrom to buy 
 a new plush parlor set. Miss Angeline Phinney never 
 called on the Cahoons after that without making her 
 appearance at the front door. " I ll get some good 
 out of that plush sofy I helped to pay for," de 
 clared Angeline, " if it s only to wear it out by 
 settin on it." 
 
 There are two " antiques " in Bayport which have 
 not yet been sold or even bid for. One is Gabe 
 Lumley s " depot wagon," and the other is " Dan l 
 Webster," the horse which draws it. Both are very 
 ancient, sadly in need of upholstery, and jerky of 
 locomotion. 
 
 Gabe was, as usual, waiting at the station when the 
 down train arrived, on the Tuesday or Wednesday 
 of the selectmen s meeting. The train was due, ac 
 cording to the time-table, at eleven forty-five. This 
 time-table, and the signboard of the " Bayport Ho 
 tel " are the only bits of humorous literature peculiar 
 to our village, unless we add the political editorials 
 of the Bayport Breeze. 
 
 3 21
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 So, at eleven forty-five, Mr. Lumley was serenely 
 dozing on the baggage truck, which he had wheeled 
 to the sunny side of the platform. At five minutes 
 past twelve, he yawned, stretched, and looked at his 
 watch. Then, rolling off the truck, he strolled to the 
 edge of the platform and spoke authoritatively to 
 " Dan l Webster." 
 
 " Hi there! stand still! " commanded Mr. Lumley. 
 
 Standing still being DanTs long suit, the order 
 was obeyed. Gabe then loafed to the door of 
 the station and accosted the depot master, who 
 was nodding in his chair beside the telegraph in 
 strument. 
 
 "Where is she now, Ed?" asked Mr. Lumley, 
 referring to the train. 
 
 " Just left South Harniss. Be here pretty soon. 
 What s your hurry? Expectin anybody? " 
 
 " Naw; nobody that I know of, special. Sophrony 
 Hallett s gone to Ostable, but she won t be back 
 till to-morrow I cal late. Hello ! there she whistles 
 now." 
 
 Needless to say it was the train, not the widow 
 Hallett, that had whistled. The depot master rose 
 from his chair. A yellow dog, his property, scram 
 bled from beneath it, and rushing out of the door and 
 to the farther end of the platform, barked furiously. 
 Cephas Baker, who lives across the road from the 
 depot, slouched down to his front gate. His wife 
 opened the door of her kitchen and stood there, her 
 
 22
 
 THE WANDERER S RETURN 
 
 wet arms wrapped in her apron. The five Baker 
 children tore round the corner of the house, over the 
 back fence, and lined up, whooping joyously, on the 
 platform. A cloud of white smoke billowed above 
 the clump of cedars at the bend of the track. Then 
 the locomotive rounded the curve and bore down 
 upon the station. 
 
 " Stand still, I tell you ! " shouted Gabe, addressing 
 the horse. 
 
 Dan l Webster opened one eye, closed it and re 
 lapsed into slumber. 
 
 The train, a combination baggage car and smoker, 
 two freight cars and a passenger coach, rolled ponder 
 ously alongside the platform. From the open door 
 of the baggage car were tossed the mail sack and two 
 express packages. The conductor stepped from the 
 passenger coach. Following him came briskly a 
 short, thickset man with a reddish-gray beard and 
 grayish-red hair. 
 
 " Coin down to the village, Mister? " inquired 
 Mr. Lumley. " Carriage right here." 
 
 The stranger inspected the driver of the depot 
 wagon, inspected him deliberately from top to toe. 
 Then he said: 
 
 " Down to the village? Why, yes, I wouldn t 
 wonder. Say! you re a Lumley, ain t you? " 
 
 " Why! why yes, I be! How d you know that? 
 Ain t ever seen you afore, have I? " 
 
 " Guess not," with a quiet chuckle. " I ve never 
 
 23
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 seen you, either, but I ve seen your nose. I d know a 
 Lumley nose if I run across it in China." 
 
 The possessor of the " Lumley nose " rubbed that 
 organ in a bewildered fashion. Recovering in a 
 measure he laughed, rather half-heartedly, and 
 begged to know if the trunk, then being unloaded 
 from the baggage car, belonged to his prospective 
 passenger. As the answer was an affirmative nod, he 
 secured the trunk check and departed, still rubbing 
 his nose. 
 
 When he returned, with the trunk on the truck, 
 he found the stranger, with his hands in his pockets, 
 standing before Dan l Webster and gazing at that 
 animal with an expression of acute interest. 
 
 " Is this your horse? " demanded the newcomer, 
 pausing before the final word of his question. 
 
 " It s so cal lated to be," replied Gabe, with dig 
 nity. 
 
 " Hum ! Does he work nights? " 
 
 " Work nights? No, course he don t! " 
 
 " Oh, all right! Then you can wake him up with 
 a clear conscience. I didn t know but he needed the 
 sleep. What s his record? " 
 
 "Record?" 
 
 Yup; his trottin record. Anybody can see he s 
 built for speed, narrow in the beam and sharp fore 
 and aft. Shall I get aboard the barouche? " 
 
 The depot master, who was on hand to help with 
 the trunk, grinned broadly. Mr. Lumley sulkily 
 
 24
 
 THE WANDERER S RETURN 
 
 made answer that his passenger might get aboard if 
 he wanted to. Apparently he wanted to, for he 
 sprang into the depot wagon with a bounce that made 
 the old vehicle rock on its springs. 
 
 Jerushy ! " he exclaimed, " she rolls some, don t 
 she ? Never mind, my ballast 11 keep her on an even 
 keel. Trunk made fast astern? All right! Say! 
 you might furl some of this spare canvas so s I can 
 take an observation as we go along. Don t go so fast 
 that the scenery gets blurred, will you? It s been 
 some time since I made this cruise, and I d rather like 
 to keep a lookout." 
 
 The driver " furled the canvas " that is, he rolled 
 up the curtains at the sides of the carryall. Then he 
 climbed to the front seat and took up the reins. 
 
 " Git up ! " he shouted savagely. Dan l Webster 
 did not move. 
 
 The passenger offered a suggestion. " Why don t 
 you try hangin an alarm clock in his fore-riggin ? " 
 he asked. 
 
 " Haw ! haw ! " roared the depot master. 
 
 " Git up, you you lump!" bellowed the har 
 assed Mr. Lumley. Dan l pricked up one ear, then a 
 hoof, and slowly got under way. As the equipage 
 passed the Baker homestead, the whole family was 
 clustered about the gate, staring at the occupant of 
 the wagon. The stare was returned. 
 
 Who lives in there?" demanded the stranger. 
 "Who are those folks?" 
 
 25
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Ceph Baker s tribe," was the sullen answer. 
 
 "Baker, hey? Humph! new folks, I presume 
 likely. Used to be Seth Snow s house, that did. 
 Where d Seth go to?" 
 
 Gabe grunted that he did not know. He believed 
 Mr. Snow was dead, had died years before. 
 
 "Humph! dead, hey? Then I know where he 
 went. Do you ever smoke or does drivin this 
 horse make you too nervous? " 
 
 Mr. Lumley thawed a bit at the sight of the prof 
 fered cigar. He admitted that he smoked occasion 
 ally and that he guessed " twouldn t interfere with 
 the drivin none." 
 
 " Good enough ! then we ll light up. I can talk 
 better if I m under a head of steam. There s a new 
 house; who built that? " 
 
 The " new " house was fifteen years old, but Gabe 
 gave the name of its builder. Then, thinking that 
 the catechising had been altogether too one-sided, he 
 ventured an observation of his own. 
 
 " This is a pretty good cigar, Mister," he said. 
 " Smokes like a Snowflake." 
 
 "Like a what?" 
 
 " Like a Snowflake. That s about the best 
 straight five center you can get around here. Sim 
 mons used to keep em, but the drummer s cart ain t 
 called lately and he s all out." 
 
 That s a shame. I told the train boy that these 
 smoked like somethin , but I didn t know what to call 
 
 26
 
 THE WANDERER S RETURN 
 
 it. Much obliged to you. Here s another; put it in 
 your pocket. Oh, no thanks; pleasure s all mine. 
 Who s Simmons? " 
 
 Gabe described the Simmons general store and its 
 proprietor. Then he added: 
 
 "I was noticin that trunk of yours, Mister; it s 
 all plastered over with labels, ain t it? Cal late that 
 trunk s done some traveling hey? " 
 
 "Think so, do you?" 
 
 " Yup. Gee ! I d like to travel myself. But no ! 
 I got to stay all my life in this dead n alive hole. I 
 wanted to go to Boston and clerk in a store, but the 
 old man put his foot down, and here I ve stuck ever 
 sence. Git up, Dan l ! What s the matter with 
 you?" 
 
 The passenger smiled, but there was a dreamy look 
 in his gray eyes. 
 
 " Don t find fault, son," he said. " There s worse 
 places in the world than old Bayport, and worse judg 
 ment than mindin your dad. Don t forget that or 
 you may be sorry for it some day." He sniffed 
 eagerly. " Ah! " he exclaimed, " just smell that, will 
 you? Ain t that fine? " 
 
 " Humph ! that s the flats. You can smell em any 
 time when the tide s out and the wind s right. You 
 see, the tide goes out pretty fur here and 
 
 ; Don t I know it? Son, I ve been waitin thirty 
 odd year for that smell and here tis at last. Drive 
 slow and let me fill up on it. Just blow that that 
 
 27
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Snowstorm of yours the other way for a spell, won t 
 you? Thanks." 
 
 The request to be driven slow was so superfluous 
 that Mr. Lumley paid no attention to it. He puffed 
 industriously at the Snowflake and watched his com 
 panion, who, leaning forward on the seat, was gazing 
 out at the town and the bay beyond it. The " depot 
 hill " is not as high as Whittaker s Hill, but the view 
 is almost as extensive. 
 
 " Excuse me, Mister," observed Gabe, after an in 
 terval, " but you ain t said where you re goin ." 
 
 The passenger came out of his day dream with a 
 start. 
 
 "Why, that s right!" he exclaimed. "So I 
 haven t! Well, now, where would you go, if you 
 was me? Is there a hotel or tavern or somethin ? " 
 
 " Yup. There s the Bayport Hotel. Tain t ex 
 actly a hotel, neither. We call it the perfect boardin 
 house round here. You see " 
 
 He proceeded to tell the story of " the perfect 
 boarding house." His listener seemed greatly inter 
 ested, and although he laughed, did not interrupt un 
 til the tale was ended. 
 
 " So! " he said, chuckling. " Bailey Bangs, hey? 
 Stub Bangs! Well, well! And he married Ketury 
 Payson ! How in time did he ever find spunk enough 
 to propose? And Ketury runs the perfect boardin 
 house ! Well, that ought to be job enough for one 
 woman. She runs Bailey, too, on the side, I s pose? " 
 
 28
 
 THE WANDERER S RETURN 
 
 " You bet you ! He don t dast to say * boo to a 
 chicken when she s round. I say, Mister! I don t 
 know s I know your name, do I? I judge you ve 
 been here afore so " 
 
 " Yes, I ve been here before. Whose is that big 
 place up there across our bows? The one with the 
 cupola on the main truck? " 
 
 " That, sir," said Mr. Lumley, oratorically, " be 
 longs to the Honorable Heman G. Atkins, and it s 
 probably the finest in this county. Heman is our 
 representative in Washin ton, and Did you say 
 anything? " 
 
 The passenger had said something, but he did not 
 repeat it. He was leaning from the carriage and 
 gazing steadily up the slope ahead. And his gaze, 
 strange to say, was not directed at the imposing At 
 kins estate, but at its opposite neighbor, the old " Cy 
 Whittaker place." 
 
 Slowly, laboriously, Dan l Webster mounted the 
 hill. At the crest he would have paused to take 
 breath, but the driver would not let him. 
 
 " Git along, you 1 " he commanded, flapping the 
 reins. 
 
 And then Mr. Lumley suffered the shock of a sur 
 prise. The hitherto cool and self-possessed occupant 
 of the rear seat seemed very much excited. His big 
 red hand clasped Mr. Lumley s over the reins, and 
 Dan l was brought to an abrupt standstill. 
 
 Heave to ! " he ordered, sharply, and the tone 
 
 29
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 was that of one who has given many orders and ex 
 pects them to be obeyed. "Belay! Whoa, there! 
 Great land of love! look at that! look at it! Who 
 did that?" 
 
 The mate to the big red hand pointed to the front 
 door of the Whittaker place. Gabe was alarmed. 
 
 " Done what? Done which? " he gasped. " What 
 you talkin about? There ain t nobody lives in there. 
 That house has been empty for 
 
 "Where s the front fence?" demanded the ex 
 cited passenger. "What s become of the hedge? 
 And who put up that that darned piazza? " 
 
 The piazza had been where it now was almost 
 since Mr. Lumley could remember. He hastened to 
 reply that he didn t know; he wasn t sure; he 
 presumed likely twas " them New Hampshire 
 Howeses," when they ran a summer boarding house. 
 
 The stranger drew a long breath. Well, of all 
 the " he began. Then he choked, hesitated, and 
 ordered his driver to heave ahead and run alongside 
 the hotel as quick as the Almighty would let him. 
 Gabe hastened to obey. He was now absolutely cer 
 tain that his companion was an escaped lunatic, and 
 the sooner another keeper was appointed the better. 
 The remainder of the trip was made in silence. 
 
 Mrs. Bangs opened the door of the perfect board 
 ing house and stood majestically waiting to receive 
 the prospective guest. Over her shoulders peered the 
 faces of the boarders. 
 
 30
 
 THE WANDERER S RETURN 
 
 " Good afternoon," began the landlady. " I pre 
 sume likely you would like to " 
 
 She was interrupted. The newcomer turned to 
 ward her and extended his hand. 
 
 "Hello, Ketury!" he said. "I ain t seen you 
 sence you wore your hair up, but you re just as good- 
 lookin as ever. And ain t that Bailey? Yes, tis, 
 and Asaph, too! How are you, boys? Shake! " 
 
 Mr. Bangs and his chum, the town clerk, had 
 emerged from the doorway. Their mouths and eyes 
 were wide open and they seemed to be suffering from 
 a sort of paralysis. 
 
 "Well? What s the matter with you?" de 
 manded the arrival. " Ain t too stuck up to shake 
 hands after all these years, are you? " 
 
 Bailey s mouth closed in order that it s possessor 
 might swallow. Then it slowly reopened. 
 
 " I swan to man ! " he ejaculated. " W ell! I swan 
 to man ! I I b lieve you re Cy Whittaker ! " 
 
 " Course I am. Have to dye my carrot top if I 
 want to play anybody else. But look here, boys, you 
 answer my question : who had the cheek to rig up that 
 blasted piazza on my house? It starts to come down 
 to-morrow mornin ! "
 
 MISS ANGELINE PHINNEY made no 
 less than nine calls that afternoon. Be 
 fore bedtime it was known, from the last 
 house in " Woodchuck Lane " to the fish shanties at 
 West Bayport, that " young Cy " Whittaker had 
 come back; that he had come back " for good "; that 
 he was staying temporarily at the perfect boarding 
 house; that he was " awful well off " having made 
 lots of money down in South America; that he in 
 tended to " fix over " the Whittaker place, and that 
 it was to be fixed over, not in a modern manner, with 
 plush parlor sets a la Sylvanus Cahoon nor with 
 onyx tables and blue and gold chairs like those adorn 
 ing the Atkins mansion. It was to be, as near as pos 
 sible, a reproduction of what it had been in the time 
 of the late " Cap n Cy," young Cy s father. 
 
 " / think he s out of his head," declared Miss 
 Phinney, in confidence, to each of the nine females 
 whom she favored with her calls. " Not crazy, you 
 understand, but sort of touched in the upper story. 
 I says so to Matildy Tripp, said it right out, too: 
 
 32
 
 " Matildy, I says, he s got a screw joose up aloft just 
 as sure as you re a born woman! 
 
 * Matildy, I says, he s got a screw loose up aloft just 
 as sure as you re a born woman ! What makes 
 you think so? says she. Well, says I, do you 
 s pose anybody that wan t foolish would be for 
 spendin good money on an old house to make it 
 older! I says. Coin to tear down the piazza the 
 fust thing! Perfectly good piazza that cost ninety- 
 
 33
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 eight dollars and sixty cents to build; I know, because 
 I see the bill when the Howeses had it done. And 
 he s goin to set out box hedges, somethin that ain t 
 been the style in this town sence Congressman Atkins 
 pulled up his. What in the world, Cap n Whit- 
 taker, says I to him, do you want of box hedges? 
 Homely and stiff and funeral lookin ! I might have 
 em around my grave in the buryin ground, I says, 
 but nowheres else. All right, Angie, says he, 
 you shall have em there; I ll cut some slips purpose 
 for you. It ll be a pleasure, he says. Now ain t that 
 crazy talk for a grown man?" 
 
 Miss Phinney was not the only one in our village 
 to question Captain Cy Whittaker s sanity during the 
 next few months. The majority of our people didn t 
 understand him at all. He was generally liked, for 
 although he had money, he did not put on airs, but he 
 had his own way of doing things, and they were not 
 Bayport ways. 
 
 True to his promise, he had a squad of carpenters 
 busy, on the day following his arrival, tearing down 
 the loathed piazza. These carpenters, and more, 
 were kept busy throughout that entire spring and 
 well into the summer. Then came painters and gar 
 deners. The piazza disappeared; a new picket fence, 
 exactly like the old one torn down by the Howeses, 
 was erected; new shutters were hung; new window- 
 panes were set; the roof was newly shingled. Cap 
 tain Cy, Senior, had, in his day, cherished a New 
 
 34
 
 "FIXIN OVER" 
 
 England fondness for white and green paint; there 
 fore the new fence was white and the house was 
 white and the blinds a brilliant green. Rows of box 
 hedge, the plants brought from Boston, were set out 
 on each side of the front walk. The Howes front 
 door bell a clamorous gong was removed, and a 
 glass knob attached to a spring bell of the old-fash 
 ioned " jingle " variety took its place. An old-fash 
 ioned flower garden Cap n Cy s mother had loved 
 posies was laid out on the west lawn beyond the 
 pear trees. All these changes the captain superin 
 tended; when they were complete he turned his at 
 tention to interior decoration. 
 
 And now Captain Cy proceeded to, literally, as 
 tonish the natives. Among the Howes " improve 
 ments " were gilt wall papers and modern furniture 
 for the lower floor of the house. The furniture they 
 had taken with them ; the wall paper had perforce 
 been left behind. And the captain had every scrap 
 of that paper stripped from the walls, and the latter 
 re-covered with quaint, ugly, old-fashioned patterns, 
 stripes and roses and flowered sprays with impossible 
 birds flitting among them. The Bassett decorators 
 has pasted the gilt improvement over the old Whit- 
 taker paper, and it was the Whittaker paper that the 
 captain did his best to match, sending samples here, 
 there, and everywhere in the effort. Then, upon the 
 walls he hung old-fashioned pictures, such as Bay- 
 port dwellers had long ago relegated to their attics, 
 4 35
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 pictures like " From Shore to Shore," " Christian 
 Viewing the City Beautiful," and " Signing the Dec 
 laration." To these he added, bringing them from 
 the crowded garret of the homestead, oil paintings 
 of ships commanded by his father and grandfather, 
 and family portraits, executed which is a peculiarly 
 fitting word by deceased local artists in oil and 
 crayon. 
 
 He boarded up the fireplace in the sitting room 
 and installed a base-burner stove, resurrected from 
 the tinsmith s barn. He purchased a full " haircloth 
 set" of parlor furniture from old Mrs. Penniman, 
 who never had been known to sell any of her hoarded 
 belongings before, even to the " antiquers," and 
 wouldn t have done so now, had it not been that the 
 captain s offer was too princely to be real, and the 
 old lady feared she might be dreaming and would 
 wake up before she received the money. And from 
 Trumet to Ostable he journeyed, buying a chair here 
 and a table there, braided rag mats from this one, 
 and corded bedsteads and " rising sun " quilts from 
 that. At least half of Bayport believed with Gabe 
 Lumley and Miss Phinney that, if Captain Cy had 
 not escaped from a home for the insane, he was a 
 likely candidate for such an institution. 
 
 At the table of the perfect boarding house the cap 
 tain was not inclined to be communicative regarding 
 his reasons and his intentions. He was a prime fa 
 vorite there, praising Keturah s cooking, joking with 
 
 36
 
 "FIXIN OVER" 
 
 Angelina concerning what he was pleased to call her 
 " giddy " manner of dressing and wearing " side 
 curls," and telling yarns of South American dress 
 and behavior, which would probably have shocked 
 Mrs. Tripp she having recently left the Methodist 
 church to join the " Come-Outers," because the 
 Sunday services of the former were, with the organ 
 and a paid choir, altogether " too play-actin " if 
 they had not been so interesting, and if Captain Cy 
 had not always concluded them with the observation : 
 " But there ! you can t expect nothln more from ig 
 norant critters denied the privileges of congregational 
 singin and experience meetin s; hey, Matilda? " 
 
 Mrs. Tripp would sigh and admit that she sup 
 posed not, 
 
 " Only I do wish Mr. Daniels, our minister, might 
 have a chance to preach over em, poor things ! " 
 
 " So do I," with a covert wink at Mrs. Bangs, who 
 was a stanch adherent of the regular faith. " South 
 America d be just the place for him; ain t that so, 
 Keturah?" 
 
 He evaded all personal questions put to him by 
 the boarders, explaining that he was renovating the 
 old place just for fun he always had had a gang 
 of men working for him, and it seemed natural some 
 how. But to the friends of his boyhood, Asaph Tid- 
 ditt and Bailey Bangs, he told the real truth. 
 
 " I swan to man! " exclaimed Bailey, almost tear 
 fully, as the trio wandered through the rooms of the 
 
 37
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Cy Whittaker place, dodging paper hangers and 
 plasterers; " I swan to man, Whit, if it don t almost 
 seem as though I was a boy again. Why ! it s your 
 dad s house come back alive, it is so ! Look at this 
 settin room ! Seem s if I could see him now a-settin 
 by that ere stove, and Mrs. Whittaker, your ma, over 
 there a-sewin , and old Cap n Cy your granddad 
 snoozin in that big armchair Why ! why, 
 Whit ! it s the very image of the chair he always set 
 in!" 
 
 Captain Cy laughed aloud. 
 
 "It s more n that, Bailey," he said; "it s the 
 chair. Twas up attic, all busted and crippled, but I 
 had it made over like new. And there s granddad s 
 picture, lookin just as I remember him only he 
 wan t quite so much of a frozen wax image as he s 
 painted there. I m goin to hang it where it always 
 hung, over the mantelpiece, next to the lookin glass. 
 
 " Great land of love, boys! " he went on, "you 
 fellers don t know what this means to me. Many 
 and many s the time I ve had this old house and this 
 old room in my mind. I ve seen em aboard ship in 
 a howlin gale off the Horn. I ve seen em down in 
 Surinam of a hot night, when there wan t a breath 
 scurcely and the Caribs went around dressed in a 
 handkerchief and a paper cigar, and it made you wish 
 you could. I ve seen em but there ! every time I ve 
 seen em I ve swore that some day I d come back and 
 live em, and now, by the big dipper I here I am. Oh, 
 
 38
 
 "FIXIN 1 OVER" 
 
 I tell you, chummies, you want to be fired out of ai 
 home and out of a town to appreciate em ! Not that 
 I blame the old man; he and I was too much alike 
 to cruise in company. But Bayport I was born in, 
 and in the Bayport graveyard they can plant me 
 when I m ready for the scrap heap. It s in the blood 
 and Why, see here! Don t I talk like a Bay- 
 porter? " 
 
 "You sartin do!" replied Asaph emphatically. 
 " A body d think you d been diggin clams and pick- 
 in cranberries in Bassett s Holler all your life long, 
 to hear you." 
 
 "You bet! Well, that s pride; that s what that 
 is. I prided myself on hangin to the Bayport twang 
 through thick and thin. Among all the Spanish 
 * Carambas and Madre de Dioses it did me good 
 to come out with a good old Yankee darn once 
 in a while. Kept me feelin like a white man. Oh, 
 I m a Whittaker! / know it. And I ve got all the 
 Whittaker pig-headedness, I guess. And because the 
 old man bless his heart, I say now told me I 
 shouldn t be a Whittaker no more, nor live like a 
 Whittaker, I simply swore up and down I would be 
 one and come back here, when I d made my pile, to 
 heave anchor and stay one till I die. Maybe that s 
 foolishness, but it s me." 
 
 He puffed vigorously at the pipe which had taken 
 the place of the Snowflake cigar, and added: 
 
 " Take this old settin room why, here it is; see! 
 
 39
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Here s dad in his chair and ma in hers, and, if you 
 go back far enough, granddad in his, just as you say, 
 Bailey. And here s rne, a little shaver, squattin on 
 the floor by the stove, lookin at the pictures in a 
 heap of Godey s Lady s Book. And says dad, 
 Bos n, he says he used to call me Bos n in those 
 days Bos n, says dad, run down cellar and fetch 
 me up a pitcher of cider, that s a good feller. Yes, 
 yes; that s this room as I ve seen it in my mind ever 
 since I tiptoed through it the night I run away, with 
 my duds in a bundle under my arm. Do you won 
 der I was fightin mad when I saw what that Howes 
 tribe had done to it? " 
 
 Superintending the making over of the old home 
 occupied most of Captain Cy s daylight time that 
 summer. His evenings were spent at Simmons s 
 store. We have no clubs in Bayport, strictly speak 
 ing, for the sewing circle and the Shakespeare Read 
 ing Society are exclusively feminine in membership; 
 therefore Simmons s store is the gathering place of 
 those males who are bachelors or widowers or who 
 are sufficiently free from petticoat government to risk 
 an occasional evening out. Asaph Tidditt was a 
 regular sojourner at the store. Bailey Bangs, hap 
 pening in to purchase fifty cents worth of sugar or 
 to have the molasses jug filled, lingered occasionally, 
 but not often. Captain Cy explained Bailey s ab 
 sence in characteristic fashion. 
 
 " Variety," observed the captain, " is the spice of 
 40
 
 "FIXIN OVER" 
 
 life. Bailey gets talk enough to home. What s the 
 use of his comin up here to get more? " 
 
 " Oh, I don t know," said Josiah Dimick, with a 
 grin, " we let him do some of the talkin himself up 
 here. Down at the boardin house Keturah and 
 Angie Phinney do it all." 
 
 " Yes. Still, if a feller was condemned to live over 
 a biler factory he wouldn t hanker to get a job in it, 
 would he? When Bailey was a delegate to the 
 Methodist Conference up in Boston, him and a crowd 
 visited the deef and dumb asylum. When twas time 
 to go, he was missin , and they found him in the fe 
 male ward lookin at the inmates. Said that the sight 
 of all them women, every one of em not able to say 
 a word, was the most wonderful thing ever he laid 
 eyes on. Said it made him feel kind of reverent and 
 holy, almost as if he was in Paradise. So Ase Tid- 
 ditt says, anyway; it s his yarn." 
 
 " Tain t nuther, Cy Whittaker! " declared the in 
 dignant Asaph. l< If you expect I m goin to father 
 all your lies, you re mistaken." 
 
 The crowd at Simmons s discuss politics, as a gen 
 eral thing; state and national politics in their seasons, 
 but county politics and local affairs always. The 
 question in Bayport that summer, aside from that of 
 the harbor appropriation, was who should be hired 
 as downstairs teacher. Our schoolhouse is a two- 
 story building, with a schoolroom on each floor. The 
 lower room, where the little tots begin with their
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " C A T Cat," and progress until they have mas 
 tered the Fourth Reader, is called " downstairs." 
 " Upstairs " is, of course, the second story, where the 
 older children are taught. To handle some of the 
 " big boys " upstairs is a task for a healthy man, 
 and such a one usually fills the teacher s position 
 there. Downstairs being, in theory, at least, less stren 
 uous, is presided over by a woman. 
 
 Miss Seabury, who had been downstairs teacher 
 for one lively term, had resigned that spring in tears 
 and humiliation. Her scholars had enjoyed them 
 selves and would have liked her to continue, but the 
 committee and the townspeople thought otherwise. 
 There was a general feeling that enjoyment was not 
 the whole aim of education. 
 
 " Betty," said Captain Dimick, referring to his 
 small granddaughter, " has done fust rate so fur s 
 marksmanship and lung trainin goes. I cal late she 
 can hit a nail head ten foot off with a spitball three 
 times out of four, and she can whisper loud enough 
 to be understood in Jericho. But, not wishing to be 
 unreasonable, still I should like to have her spell 
 door without an e. I ve always been used to 
 seein it spelled that way and well, I m kind of old- 
 fashioned, anyway." 
 
 There was a difference of opinion concerning 
 Miss Seabury s successor. A portion of the towns 
 people were for hiring a graduate of the State Nor 
 mal School, a young woman with modern training. 
 
 42
 
 "FIXIN OVER" 
 
 Others, remembering that Miss Seabury had gradu 
 ated from that school, were for proved ability and 
 less up-to-date methods. These latter had selected a 
 candidate in the person of a Miss Phoebe Dawes, a 
 resident of Wellmouth, and teacher of the Well- 
 mouth " downstairs " for some years. The argu 
 ments at Simmons s were hot ones. 
 
 " What s the use of hirin somebody from right 
 next door to us, as you might say? " demanded Al- 
 pheus Smalley, clerk at the store. " Don t we want 
 our teachin to be abreast of the times, and is W T ell- 
 mouth abreast of anything? " 
 
 " It s abreast of the bay, that s about all, I will 
 give in," replied Mr. Tidditt. " But, the way I look 
 at it, we need discipline more n anything else, and 
 Phoebe Dawes has had the best discipline in her 
 school, that s been known in these latitudes. Order? 
 Why, say! Eben Salters told me that when he 
 visited her room over there twas so still that he 
 didn t dast to rub one shoe against t other, it sounded 
 up so. He had to set still and bear his chilblains best 
 he could. And popular \ Why, when she hinted 
 that she might leave in May, her scholars more 
 n ha f of em, bust out cryin . Now you hear 
 me, I " 
 
 It seems to me," put in Thaddeus Simpson, who 
 ran the barber shop and was something of a politi 
 cian, " it seems to me, fellers, that we d better wait 
 and hear what Mr. Atkins has to say in this matter. 
 
 43
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 I guess that s what the committee 11 do, anyhow. 
 We wouldn t want to go contrary to Heman, none 
 of us; hey?" 
 
 Tad " Simpson was known to be deep in Con 
 gressman Atkins s confidence. The mention of the 
 great man s name w r as received with reverence and 
 nods of approval. 
 
 " That s right. We mustn t do nothin to dis 
 please Heman," was the general opinion. 
 
 Captain Cy did not join the chorus. He refilled 
 his pipe and crossed his legs. 
 
 " Humph ! " he grunted. " Heman Atkins seems 
 to be Give me a match, Ase, won t you? Thanks. 
 I understand there s a special prayer meetin at the 
 church to-morrow night, Alpheus. What s it for? " 
 
 " For? " ?\lr. Smalley seemed surprised. " It s to 
 pray for rain, that s what. You know it, Cap n, as 
 well s I do. Ain t everybody s garden dryin up and 
 the ponds so low that we shan t be able to get water 
 for the cranberry ditches pretty soon? There s need 
 to pray, I should think! " 
 
 " Humph ! Seems a roundabout way of gettin a 
 thing, don t it? Why don t you telegraph to Heman 
 and ask him to fix it for you ? Save time." 
 
 This remark was received in horrified silence. Tad 
 Simpson was the first to recover. 
 
 " Cap n," he said, " you ain t met Mr. Atkins yet. 
 When you do, you ll feel same as the rest of us. He s 
 comin home next week; then you ll see." 
 
 44
 
 "FIXIN OVER" 
 
 A part at least of Mr. Simpson s prophecy proved 
 true. The Honorable Atkins did come to Bayport 
 the following week, accompanied by his little daugh 
 ter Alicia, the housekeeper, and the Atkins servants. 
 The Honorable and his daughter had been, since the 
 adjournment of Congress, on a pleasure trip to the 
 Yosemite and Yellowstone Park, and now they were 
 to remain in the mansion on the hill for some time. 
 The big house was opened, the stone urns burst into 
 refulgent bloom, the iron dogs were refreshed with 
 a coat of black paint, and the big iron gate was swung 
 wide. Bayport sat up and took notice. Angeline 
 Phinney was in her glory. 
 
 The meeting between Captain Cy and Mr. Atkins 
 took place the morning after the latter s return. The 
 captain and his two chums had been inspecting the 
 progress made by the carpenters and were leaning 
 over the new fence, then just erected, but not yet 
 painted. Down the gravel walk of the mansion 
 across the road came strolling its owner, silk-hatted, 
 side-whiskered, benignant. 
 
 " Godfrey ! " exclaimed Asaph. " There s Heman. 
 See him, Whit?" 
 
 Yup, I see him. Seems to be headin this way." 
 
 " I I do believe he s comin across," whispered 
 Mr. Bangs. " Yes, he is. He s real everyday, Cy. 
 Pie won t mind if you ain t dressed up." 
 
 "Won t he? That s comfortin . Well, I ll do 
 the best I can without stimulants, as the doctor says. 
 
 45
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 If you hear my knees rattle just nudge me, will you, 
 Bailey?" 
 
 Mr. Tidditt removed his hat. Bailey touched his. 
 Captain Cy looked provokingly indifferent; he even 
 whistled. 
 
 " Good mornin , Mr. Atkins," hailed the town 
 clerk, raising his voice because of the whistle. " I m 
 proud to see you back among us, sir. Hope you 
 and Alicia had a nice time out West. How is she 
 pretty smart? " 
 
 Mr. Atkins smiled a bland, congressional smile. 
 He approached the group by the fence and extended 
 his hand. 
 
 "Ah, Asaph!" he said; "it is you then? I 
 thought so. And Bailey, too. It is certainly de 
 lightful to see you both again. Yes, my daughter is 
 well, I thank you. She, like her father, is glad to be 
 back in the old home nest after the round of hotel 
 life and gayety which we have er recently under 
 gone. Yes." 
 
 " Mr. Atkins," said Bailey, glancing nervously at 
 Captain Cy, who had stopped whistling and was re 
 garding the Atkins hat and whiskers with an in 
 terested air, " I want to make you acquainted with 
 your new neighbor. You used to know him when 
 you was a boy, but but er Mr. Atkins, this is 
 Captain Cyrus Whittaker. Cy, this is Congressman 
 Atkins. You ve heard us speak of him." 
 
 The great man started. 
 46
 
 i 
 
 o 
 
 T3 
 
 ffi
 
 "FIXIN OVER" 
 
 " Is it possible! " he exclaimed. " Is it possible 
 that this is really my old playmate Cyrus Whit- 
 taker? " 
 
 " Yup," replied the captain calmly. " How are 
 you, Heman? Fatter n you used to be, ain t you? 
 Washin ton must agree with you." 
 
 Bailey and Asaph were scandalized. Mr. Atkins 
 himself seemed a trifle taken aback. Comments on 
 his personal appearance were not usual in Bayport. 
 But he rallied bravely. 
 
 "Well, well!" he cried. "Cyrus, I am de 
 lighted to welcome you back among us. I should 
 scarcely have known you. You are older yes, 
 much older." 
 
 " Well, forty year more or less, added to what you 
 started with, is apt to make a feller some older. 
 Don t need any Normal School graduate to do that 
 sum for us. I m within seven or eight year of bein 
 as old as you are, Heman, and that s too antique to 
 be sold for veal." 
 
 Mr. Atkins changed the subject. 
 
 " I had heard of your return, Cyrus," he said. 
 " It gave me much pleasure to learn that you were 
 rebuilding and er renovating the er the ances 
 tral er " 
 
 The old home nest? Yup, I m puttin back a 
 few feathers. Old birds like to roost comf table. 
 You ve got a fairly roomy coop yourself." 
 
 "Hum! Isn t it er I should suppose you 
 
 47
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 would find it rather expensive. Can you do 
 you " 
 
 " Yes, I can afford it, thank you. Maybe there ll 
 be enough left in the stockin to buy a few knick- 
 knacks for the yard. You can t tell." 
 
 The captain glanced at the iron dogs guarding the 
 Atkins gate. His tone was rather sharp. 
 
 Yes, yes, certainly; certainly; of course. It gives 
 me much pleasure to have you as a neighbor. I have 
 always felt a fondness for the old place, even when 
 you allowed it even when it was most er run 
 down, if you ll excuse the term. I always felt a lik 
 ing for it and " 
 
 " Yes," was the significant interruption. " I 
 judged you must have, from what I heard." 
 
 This was steering dangerously close to the select 
 men and the contemplated " sale for taxes." The 
 town clerk broke in nervously. 
 
 " Mr. Atkins," he said, " there s been consider ble 
 talk in town about who s to be teacher downstairs 
 this comin year. We ve sort of chawed it over 
 among us, but naturally we wanted your opinion. 
 What do you think? I m kind of leanin toward the 
 Dawes woman, myself." 
 
 The Congressman cleared his throat. 
 
 " Far be it from me, 11 he said, " to speak except 
 as a mere member of our little community, an ordi 
 nary member, but, as such a member, with the welfare 
 of my birthplace very near and dear to me, I confess 
 
 48
 
 "FIXIN OVER" 
 
 that I am inclined to favor a modern teacher, one 
 educated and trained in the institution provided for 
 the purpose by our great commonwealth. The Dawes 
 er person is undoubtedly worthy and capable in 
 her way, but well er we know that Wellmouth 
 is not Bayport." 
 
 The reference to " our great commonwealth " had 
 been given in the voice and the manner wont to thrill 
 us at our Fourth-of-July celebrations and October 
 " rallies." Two of his hearers, at least, were visibly 
 impressed. Asaph looked somewhat crestfallen, but 
 he surrendered gracefully to superior wisdom. 
 
 "That s so," he said. "That s so, ain t it, Cy? 
 I hadn t thought of that." 
 
 " What s so? " asked the captain. 
 
 " Why why, that Wellmouth ain t Bayport." 
 
 " No doubt of it. They re twenty miles apart." 
 
 " Yes. Well, I m glad to hear you put it so con 
 clusive, Mr. Atkins. I can see now that Phoebe 
 wouldn t do. Hum ! Yes." 
 
 Mr. Atkins buttoned the frock coat and turned 
 to go. 
 
 " Good day, gentlemen," he said. " Cyrus, per 
 mit me once more to welcome you heartily to our 
 village. We my daughter and myself will prob 
 ably remain at home until the fall. I trust you will 
 be a frequent caller. Run in on us at any time. Pray 
 do not stand upon ceremony." 
 
 " No," said Captain Cy shortly, " I won t." 
 5 49
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " That s right. That s right. Good morning." 
 
 He walked briskly down the hill. The trio gazed 
 after him. 
 
 "Well," sighed Mr. Tidditt. "That s settled. 
 And it s a comfort to know tis settled. Still I did 
 kind of want Phoebe Dawes; but of course Heman 
 knows best." 
 
 " Course he knows best ! " snapped Bailey. " Ain t 
 he the biggest gun in this county, pretty nigh? I d 
 like to know who is if he ain t. The committee 11 
 call the Normal School girl now, and a good thing, 
 too." 
 
 Captain Cy was still gazing at the dignified form 
 of the " biggest gun in the county." 
 
 " Let s see," he asked. " Who s on the school 
 committee? Eben Salters, of course, and " 
 
 " Yes. Eben s chairman and he ll vote Phoebe, 
 anyhow ; he s that pig-headed that nobody not even 
 a United States Representative could change him. 
 But Darius Ellis 11 be for Heman s way and so 11 
 Lemuel Myrick. 
 
 " Lemuel Myrick? Lem Myrick, the painter? " 
 
 " Sartin. There ain t but one Myrick in town." 
 
 " Hum ! " murmured the captain and was silent 
 for some minutes. 
 
 The school committee met on the following 
 Wednesday evening. On Thursday morning a 
 startling rumor spread throughout Bayport. Phoebe 
 Dawes had been called, by a vote of two to one, to 
 
 50
 
 "FIXIN OVER" 
 
 teach the downstairs school. Asaph, aghast, rushed 
 out of Simmons s store and up to the hill to the Cy 
 Whittaker place. He found Captain Cy in the 
 front yard. Mr. Myrick, school committeeman and 
 house painter, was with him. 
 
 " Hello, Ase! " hailed the captain. " What s the 
 matter? Hasn t the tide come in this mornin ? " 
 
 Asaph, somewhat embarrassed by the presence of 
 Mr. Myrick, hesitated over his news. Lemuel came 
 to his rescue. 
 
 " Ase has just heard that we called Phoebe," he 
 said. " What of it? I voted for her, and I ain t 
 ashamed of it." 
 
 " But but Mr. Atkins, he " 
 
 ; Well, Heman ain t on the committee, is he? I 
 vote the way I think right, and no one in this town 
 can change me. Anyway," he added, " I m going to 
 resign next spring. Yes, Cap n Whittaker, I think 
 three coats of white 11 do on the sides here." 
 
 " Lem s goin to do my paintin jobs," explained 
 Captain Cy. " His price was a little higher than 
 some of the other fellers, but I like his work." 
 
 Mr. Tidditt pondered deeply until dinner time. 
 Then he cornered the captain behind the Bangs barn 
 and spoke with conviction. 
 
 Whit," he said, " you re the one responsible for 
 the committee s hirin Phoebe Dawes. You offered 
 Lem the paintin job if he d vote for her. W T hat did 
 you do it for? You don t know her, do you? " 
 
 51
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Never set eyes on her in my life." 
 Then then You heard Heman say he wanted 
 the other one. What made you do it? " 
 
 Captain Cy grinned. 
 
 " Ase," he said, " I ve always been a great hand 
 for tryin experiments. Had one of my cooks aboard 
 put raisins in the flapjacks once, just to see what they 
 tasted like. I judged Heman had had his own way 
 in this town for thirty odd year. I kind of wanted 
 to see what would happen if he didn t have it."
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 EMUEL MYRICK S painting jobs have the 
 quality so prized by our village small boys in 
 the species of candy called " jaw breakers," 
 namely, that of " lasting long." But even Lem must 
 finish sometime or other and, late in July, the Cy 
 Whittaker place was ready for occupancy. The pic 
 tures were in their places on the walls, the old-fash 
 ioned furniture filled the rooms, there was even a pile 
 of old magazines, back numbers of Godey s Lady s 
 Book, on the shelf in the sitting room closet. 
 
 Then, when Captain Cy had notified Mrs. Bangs 
 that the perfect boarding house would shelter him no 
 longer than the coming week, a new problem arose. 
 
 " Whit," said Asaph earnestly, " you ve sartin 
 made the place rise up out of its tomb; you have so. 
 It s a miracle, pretty nigh, and I cal late it must have 
 cost a heap, but you ve done it all but the old folks 
 themselves. You can t raise them up, Cy; money 
 won t do that. And you can t live in this great house 
 all alone. Who s goin to cook for you, and sweep 
 and dust, and swab decks, and one thing a nother? 
 
 53
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 You ll have to have a housekeeper, as I told you 
 a spell ago. Have you done any thinkin about 
 that?" 
 
 And the captain, taking his pipe from his lips, 
 stared blankly at his friend, and answered: 
 
 " By the big dipper, Ase, I ain t ! I remember we 
 did mention it, but I ve been so busy gettin this craft 
 off the ways that I forgot all about it." 
 
 The discussion which followed Mr. Tidditt s re 
 minder was long and serious. Asaph and Bailey 
 Bangs racked their brains and offered numerous sug 
 gestions, but the majority of these were not favorably 
 received. 
 
 " There s Matildy Tripp," said Bailey. " She d 
 like the job, I m sartin. She s a widow, too, and she s 
 had experience keepin house along of Tobias, him 
 that was her husband. But, if you do hire her, don t 
 let Ketury know I hinted at it, cause we re goin to 
 lose one boarder when you quit, and that s too many, 
 cordin to the old lady s way of thinkin ." 
 
 " You can keep Matildy, for all me," replied 
 the captain decidedly. " Come-Outer religion s all 
 right, for those that have that kind of appetite, but 
 havin it passed to me three times a day, same as 
 I ve had it at your house, is enough; I don t hanker 
 to have it warmed over between meals. If I shipped 
 Matildy aboard here she and the Reverend Daniels 
 would stand over me, watch and watch, till I was 
 converted or crazy, one or the other." 
 
 54
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 " Well, there s Angle. She " 
 
 " Angle ! " sniffed Mr. Tidditt. ; Stop your jok- 
 in , Bailey. This is a serious matter." 
 
 " I wan t jokin . What " 
 
 "There! there! boys," interrupted the captain; 
 " don t fight. Bailey didn t mean to joke, Ase; he s 
 full of what the papers call unconscious humor. I ll 
 give in that Angie is about as serious a matter as I 
 can think of without settin down to rest. Humph ! 
 so fur we haven t gained any knots to speak of. Any 
 more candidates on your mind? " 
 
 More possibilities were mentioned, but none of 
 them seemed to fill the bill. The conference broke up 
 without arriving at a decision. Mr. Bangs and the 
 town clerk walked down the hill together. 
 
 ; Do you know, Bailey," said Asaph, " the way 
 I look at it, this pickin out a housekeeper for Whit 
 ain t any common job. It s somethin to think over. 
 Cy s a restless critter; been cruisin hither and yon 
 all his life. I m sort of scared that he ll get tired of 
 Bayport and quit if things here don t go to suit 
 him. Now if a real good nice woman a nice- 
 lookin woman, say was to keep house for him 
 itit " 
 
 "Well?" 
 
 Well, I mean that is, don t you s pose if some 
 such woman as that was to be found for the job he 
 might in time come to like her and and er " 
 
 " Ase Tidditt, what are you drivin at? " 
 
 55
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Why, I mean he might come to marry her ; there ! 
 Then he d be contented to settle down to home and 
 stay put. What do you think of the idea? " 
 
 Think of it? I think it s the dumdest foolishness 
 ever I heard. I declare if the very mention of a 
 woman to some of you old baches don t make your 
 heads soften up like a jellyfish in the sun ! Ain t Cy 
 Whittaker got money? Ain t he got a nice home? 
 Ain t he happy? " 
 
 " Yes, he is now, I s pose, but 
 
 " Well, then ! And you want him to get married ! 
 What do you know about marryin ? Never tried it. 
 have you ? " 
 
 " Course I ain t! You know I ain t." 
 
 " All right. Then I d keep quiet about such 
 things, if I was you." 
 
 " You needn t fly up like a settin hen. Every 
 body s wife ain t " 
 
 He stopped in the middle of the sentence. 
 
 "What s that?" demanded his companion, 
 sharply. 
 
 "Nothin ; nothin . / don t care; I was only try- 
 in to fix things comf table for Whit. Has Heman 
 said anything about the harbor appropriation sence 
 he s been home? I haven t heard of it if he 
 has." 
 
 Mr. Bangs s answer was a grunt, signifying a nega 
 tive. Congressman Atkins had been, since his return 
 to Bayport, exceedingly noncommittal concerning the 
 
 56
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 appropriation. To Tad Simpson and d very few 
 chosen lieutenants and intimates he had said that he 
 hoped to get it; that was all. This was a disquieting 
 change of attitude, for, at the beginning of the term 
 just passed, he had affirmed that he was going to get 
 it. However, as Mr. Simpson reassuringly said: 
 The job s in as good hands as can be, so what s the 
 use of our worryin ? " 
 
 Bailey Bangs certainly was not troubled on that 
 score; but the town clerk s proposal that Captain Cy 
 be provided with a suitable wife did worry him. 
 Bailey was so very much married himself and had 
 such decided, though unspoken, views concerning 
 matrimony that such a proposal seemed to him lu 
 nacy, pure and simple. He had liked and admired 
 his friend " Whit " in the old days, when the latter 
 led them into all sorts of boyish scrapes; now he re 
 garded him with a liking that was close to worship. 
 The captain was so jolly and outspoken; so brave and 
 independent witness his crossing of the great At 
 kins in the matter of the downstairs teacher. That 
 was a reckless piece of folly which would, doubtless, 
 be rewarded after its kind, but Bailey, though he 
 professed to condemn it, secretly wished he had the 
 pluck to dare such things. As it was, he didn t dare 
 contradict Keturah. 
 
 With the exception of one voyage as cabin boy to 
 New Orleans, a voyage which convinced him that 
 he was not meant for a seaman, Mr. Bangs had never 
 
 57
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 been farther from his native village than Boston. 
 Captain Cy had been almost everywhere and seen 
 almost everything. He could spin yarns that beat the 
 serial stories in the patent inside of the Bayport 
 Breeze all hollow. Bailey had figured that, when the 
 " fixin over " was ended, the Cy Whittaker place 
 would be for him a delightful haven of refuge, where 
 he could put his boots on the furniture, smoke until 
 dizzy without being pounced upon, be entertained and 
 thrilled with tales of adventure afloat and ashore, 
 and even express his own opinion, when he had any, 
 with the voice and lung power of a free-born Ameri 
 can citizen. 
 
 And now Asaph Tidditt, who should know better, 
 even though he was a bachelor, wanted to bring a 
 wife into this paradise; not a paid domestic who 
 could be silenced, or discharged, if she became a nui 
 sance, but a wife \ Bailey guessed not; not if he could 
 prevent it. 
 
 So he lay awake nights thinking of possible house 
 keepers for Captain Cy, and carefully rejecting all 
 those possessing dangerous attractions of any kind. 
 Each morning, after breakfast, he ran over the list 
 with the captain, taking care that Asaph was not 
 present. Captain Cy, who was very busy with the 
 finishing touches at the new old house, wearied on the 
 third morning. 
 
 " There, there, Bailey 1 " he said. " Don t bother 
 me now. I ve got other things on my mind. How 
 
 58
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 do I know who all these women folks are you re 
 stringing off to me? Let me alone, do." 
 
 " But you must have a housekeeper, Cy. You ll 
 move in Monday and you won t have nobody to " 
 
 " Oh, dry up ! I want to think who I must see 
 this morning. There s Lem and old lady Penniman, 
 and " 
 
 " But the housekeeper, Cy ! Don t you see " 
 
 " Hire one yourself, then. You know em ; I 
 don t." 
 
 "Hey? Hire one myself? Do you mean you ll 
 leave it in my hands? " 
 
 Yes, yes ! I guess so. Run along, that s a good 
 feller." 
 
 He departed hurriedly. Mr. Bangs scratched his 
 head. A weighty responsibility had been laid upon 
 him. 
 
 Monday morning after breakfast Captain Cy s 
 trunk was put aboard the depot wagon, and Dan l 
 Webster drew it to its owner s home. The farewells 
 at the perfect boarding house were affecting. Mrs. 
 Tripp said that she had spoken to the Reverend Mr. 
 Daniels, and he would be sure to call the very first 
 thing. Keturah affirmed that the captain s stay had 
 been a real pleasure. 
 
 * You never find fault, Cap n Whittaker," she 
 said. You re such a manly man, if you ll excuse 
 my sayin so. I only wish there was more like you," 
 with a significant glance at her husband. As for Miss 
 
 59
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Phinney, she might have been saying good-by yet if 
 the captain had not excused himself. 
 
 Asaph accompanied his friend to the house on the 
 hill. The trunk was unloaded from the wagon and 
 carried into the bedroom on the first floor, the room 
 which had been Captain Cy s so long ago. Gabe 
 shrieked at Dan l Webster, and the depot wagon 
 crawled away toward the upper road. 
 
 " Got to meet the up train," grumbled the driver. 
 " Not that anybody ever comes on it, but I cal late 
 I m s posed to be there. Be more talk than a little 
 if I wan t. Git dap, Dan l! you re slower n the 
 moral law." 
 
 " So you re goin to do your own cookin for a 
 spell, Cy?" observed Asaph, a half hour later. 
 " Well, I guess that s a good idea, till you can find 
 the right housekeeper. I ain t been able to think of 
 one that would suit you yet." 
 
 " Nor I, either. Neither s Bailey, I judge, though 
 for a while he was as full of suggestions as a pine 
 grove is of woodticks. He started to say somethin 
 about it to me last night, but Ketury hove in sight 
 and yanked him off to prayer meetin ." 
 
 " Yes, I know. She cal lates to get him into 
 heaven somehow." 
 
 " I guess twouldn t be heaven for her unless he 
 was round to pick at. There he comes now. How d 
 he get out of wipin dishes?" 
 
 Mr. Bangs strolled into the yard. 
 60
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 " Hello! " he hailed. " I was on my way to Sim- 
 mons s on an errand and I thought I d stop in a min 
 ute. Got somethin to tell you, Whit." 
 
 "All right. Overboard with it! It won t keep 
 long this hot weather." 
 
 Bailey smiled knowingly. " Didn t I hear the up 
 train whistle as I was comin along? " he asked. 
 " Seems to me I did. Yes; well, if I ain t mistaken 
 somebody s comin on that train. Somebody for you, 
 Cy Whittaker." 
 
 " Somebody for met " 
 
 " Um hum ! I can gen rally be depended on, I 
 cal late, and when you says to me : Bailey, you get 
 me a housekeeper, I didn t lose much time. I got 
 her." 
 
 Mr. Tidditt gasped. 
 
 "Go/ her?" he repeated. "Got who? Got 
 what? Bailey Bangs, what in the world have " 
 
 " Belay, Ase ! " ordered Captain Cy. " Bailey, 
 what are you givin us ? " 
 
 " Givin you a housekeeper, and a good one, too, 
 I shouldn t wonder. She may not be one of them 
 ten-thousand-dollar prize museum beauties," with a 
 scornful wink at Asaph, " but if what I hear s true 
 she can keep house. Anyhow she s kept one for forty 
 odd year. Her name s Deborah Beasley, she s a 
 widow over to East Trumet, and if I don t miss my 
 guess, she s in the depot wagon now headed in this 
 direction." 
 
 61
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Captain Cy whistled. Mr. Tidditt was too much 
 surprised to do even that. 
 
 " I was speakin to the feller that drives the candy 
 cart," continued Bailey, " and I asked him if he d run 
 acrost anybody, durin his trips round the country, 
 who d be likely to hire out for a housekeeper. He 
 thought a spell and then named over some. Among 
 em was this Beasley one. I asked some more ques 
 tions and, the answers bein satisfactory to me, though 
 they might not be to some folks " another derisive 
 wink at Asaph " I set down and wrote her, tellin 
 what you d pay, Cy, what she d have to do, and when 
 she d have to come. Saturday night I got a letter, 
 sayin terms was all right, and she d be on hand by 
 this mornin s train. Course she s only on trial for a 
 month, but you had to have somebody, and the candy- 
 cart feller said " 
 
 The town clerk slapped his knee. 
 
 " Debby Beasley! " he cried. " I know who she 
 is! I ve got a cousin in Trumet. Debby Beasley! 
 Aunt Debby, they call her. Why! she s old enough 
 to be Methusalem s grandmarm, and " 
 
 " If I recollect right," interrupted Bailey, with 
 dignity, " Cy never said he wanted a young woman 
 a frivolous, giddy critter, always riggin up and 
 chasin the fellers. He wanted a sot, sober house 
 keeper." 
 
 "Godfrey! Aunt Debby ain t frivolous! She 
 couldn t chase a lame clam and catch it. And deef \ 
 
 62
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 Godfrey scissors! she s deefer n one of them cast- 
 iron Newfoundlands in Heman s yard I Do you 
 mean to say, Bailey Bangs, that you went ahead, on 
 your own hook, and hired that old relic to " 
 
 " I did. And I had my authority, didn t I, Whit? 
 You told me you d leave it in my hands, now didn t 
 you?" 
 
 The captain smiled somewhat ruefully, and 
 scratched his head. " Why, to be honest, Bailey, I 
 believe I did," he admitted. " Still, I hardly ex 
 pected Humph! is she deef, as Ase says? " 
 
 " I understand she s a little mite hard of hearin ," 
 replied Mr. Bangs, with dignity; " but that ain t any 
 drawback, the way I look at it. Fact is, I d call it 
 an advantage, but you folks seem to be hard to please. 
 I ruther imagined you d thank me for gettin her, but 
 I s pose that was too much to expect. All right, pitch 
 her out ! Don t mind my feelin s ! Poor homeless 
 critter comin to " 
 
 "Homeless!" repeated Asaph. "What s that 
 got to do with it? Cy ain t runnin the Old Woman s 
 Home." 
 
 Well, well!" observed the captain resignedly. 
 There s no use in rowin about what can t be helped. 
 Bailey says he shipped her for a month s trial, and 
 here comes the depot wagon now. That s her on the 
 aft thwart, I judge. She ain t what you d call a 
 spring pullet, is she ! " 
 
 She certainly was not. The occupant of the depot 
 
 63
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 wagon s rear seat was a thin, not to say scraggy, fe 
 male, wearing a black, beflowered bonnet and a black 
 gown. A black knit shawl was draped about her 
 shoulders and she wore spectacles. 
 
 " Whoa ! " commanded Mr. Lumley, piloting the 
 depot wagon to the side door of the Whittaker house. 
 Dan l Webster came to anchor immediately. Gabe 
 turned and addressed his passenger. 
 
 " Here we be! " he shouted. 
 
 " Hey? " observed the lady in black. 
 
 " Here we be ! " repeated Gabe, raising his 
 voice. 
 
 "See? See what?" 
 
 "Oh, heavens to Betsey! I m gettin the croup 
 from howlin . I say here we be! Get out! " 
 
 He accompanied the final bellow with an express 
 ive pantomime indicating that the passenger was ex 
 pected to alight. She seemed to understand, for she 
 opened the door of the carriage and slowly de 
 scended. Mr. Bangs advanced to meet her. 
 
 " How d ye do, Mrs. Beasley ! " he said. " Glad 
 to see you all safe and sound." 
 
 Mrs. Beasley shook his hand; hers were covered, 
 as far as the knuckles, by black mitts. 
 
 "How d ye do, Cap n Whittaker?" she said, in 
 a shrill voice. " You pretty smart? " 
 
 Bailey hastened to explain. 
 
 " I ain t Cap n Whittaker," he roared. " I m 
 Bailey Bangs, the one that wrote to you." 
 
 64
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 "Hey?" 
 
 Mr. Lumley and Asaph chuckled. Bailey colored 
 and tried again. 
 
 " I ain t the cap n," he whooped. " Here he is 
 here!" 
 
 He led her over to her prospective employer and 
 tapped the latter on the chest. 
 
 " How d ye do, sir? " said the housekeeper. ; I 
 don t know s I just caught your name." 
 
 In five minutes or so the situation was made rea 
 sonably clear. Mrs. Beasley then demanded her 
 trunk and carpet bag. The grinning Lumley bore 
 them into the house. Then he drove away, still grin 
 ning. Bailey looked fearfully at Captain Cy. 
 
 " She is kind of hard of hearin , ain t she? " he 
 said reluctantly. " You remember I said she was." 
 
 The captain nodded. 
 
 " Yes," he answered, " you re a truth-tellin chap, 
 Bailey, I ll say that for you. You don t exaggerate 
 your statements." 
 
 " Hard of hearin ! " snapped Mr. Tidditt. " If 
 the last trump ain t a steam whistle she ll miss Judg 
 ment Day. I ll stop into Simmons s on my way along 
 and buy you a bottle of throat balsam, Cy; you re 
 goin to need it." 
 
 The captain needed more than throat balsam dur 
 ing the fortnight which followed. The widow Beas- 
 ley s deafness was not her only failing. In fact she 
 was altogether a failure, so far as her housekeeping 
 
 6 65
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 was concerned. She could cook, after a fashion, but 
 the fashion was so limited that even the bill of fare 
 at the perfect boarding house looked tempting in 
 retrospect. 
 
 " Baked beans again, Cy ! " exclaimed Asaph, 
 dropping in one evening after supper. Tain t 
 Saturday night so soon, is it? " 
 
 " No," was the dismal rejoinder. " It s Tuesday, 
 if my almanac ain t out of joint. But we had beans 
 Saturday and they ain t all gone yet, so I presume 
 we ll have em till the last one s swallowed. Aunt 
 Debby s got what the piece in the Reader used to 
 call a frugal mind. She don t intend to waste any 
 thing. Last Thursday I spunked up courage enough 
 to yell for salt fish and potatoes fixed up with pork 
 scraps, you know, same s we used to have when I 
 was a boy. We had em all right, and if beans of a 
 Saturday hadn t been part of her religion we d be 
 warmin em up yet. I took in a cat for company 
 tother day, but the critter s run away. To see it look 
 at the beans in its saucer and then at me was pitiful; 
 1 felt like handin myself over to the Cruelty to Ani 
 mals folks." 
 
 " Is she neat? " inquired Mr. Tidditt. 
 
 " I don t know. I guess so on the installment 
 plan. It takes her a week to scrub up the kitchen, and 
 then one end of it is so dirty she has to begin again. 
 Consequently the dust is so thick in the rest of the 
 house that I can see my tracks. If twan t so late in 
 
 66
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 the season I d plant garden stuff in the parlor nice 
 soil and lots of shade, with the curtains down." 
 
 From the rooms in the rear came the words of a 
 gospel hymn sung in a tremulous soprano and at con 
 cert pitch. 
 
 " Music with my meals, just like a high-toned res 
 taurant," commented Captain Cy. 
 
 " But what makes her sing so everlastin loud! " 
 
 " Can t hear herself if she don t. I could stand 
 her deefness, because that s an affliction and we may 
 all come to it; but " 
 
 The housekeeper, still singing, entered the room 
 and planted herself in a chair. 
 
 " Good evenin , Mr. Tidditt," she said, smiling 
 genially. " Nice weather we ve been havin ." 
 
 Asaph nodded. 
 
 " Sociable critter, ain t she! " observed the captain. 
 " Always willin to help entertain. Comes and sets 
 up with me till bedtime. Tells about her family 
 troubles. Preaches about her niece out West, and 
 how set the niece and the rest of the Western rela 
 tions are to have her make em a visit. I told her 
 she better go I thought twould do her good. I 
 know twould help me consider ble to see her start. 
 
 " She s got so now she finds fault with my neck 
 ties," he added, " says I must be careful and not get 
 my feet wet. Picks out what I ought to wear so s 
 1 won t get cold. She ll adopt me pretty soon. Oh, 
 it s all right! She can t hear what you say. Are
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 your dishes done?" he shrieked, turning to the old 
 lady. 
 
 "One? One what?" inquired Mrs. Beasley. 
 
 " They won t be done till you go, Ase," continued 
 the master of the house. " She ll stay with us till 
 the last gun fires. T other day Angle Phinney 
 called and I turned Debby loose on her. I didn t 
 believe anything could wear out Angie s talkin ma 
 chinery, but she did it. Angeline stayed twenty min 
 utes and then quit, hoarse as a crow." 
 
 Here the widow joined in the conversation, evi 
 dently under the impression that nothing had been 
 said since she last spoke. Continuing her favorable 
 comments on the weather she observed that she was 
 glad there was so little fog, because fog was hard for 
 folks with " neuralgy pains." Her brother s wife s 
 cousin had " neuralgy " for years, and she described 
 his sufferings with enthusiasm and infinite detail. 
 Mr. Tidditt answered her questions verbally at first; 
 later by nods and shakes of the head. Captain Cy 
 fidgeted in his chair. 
 
 " Come on outdoor, Ase," he said at last. " No 
 use to wait till she runs down, cause she s a self- 
 winder, guaranteed to keep goin for a year. Good 
 night ! " he shouted, addressing Mrs. Beasley, and 
 heading for the door. 
 
 " Where you goin ? " asked the old lady. 
 
 "No. Yes. Who said so? Hooray! Three 
 cheers for Gen ral Scott ! Come on, Ase I " And 
 
 68
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 the captain, seizing his friend by the arm, dragged 
 him into the open air, and slammed the door. 
 
 " Are you crazy? " demanded the astonished town 
 clerk. " What makes you talk like that? " 
 
 " Might as well. She wouldn t understand it any 
 better if twas Scripture, and it saves brain work. 
 The only satisfaction I get is bein able to give my 
 opinion of her and the grub without hurtin her feel- 
 in s. If I called her a wooden-headed jumpin jack 
 she d only smile and say No, she didn t think twas 
 goin to rain, or somethin just as brilliant." 
 
 Well, why don t you give her her walkin 
 papers? " 
 
 " I shall, when her month s up." 
 
 " I wouldn t wait no month. I d heave her over 
 board to-night. You hear mel " 
 
 Captain Cy shook his head. 
 
 " I can t, very well," he replied. " I hate to make 
 her feel too bad. When the month s over I ll have 
 some excuse ready, maybe. The joke of it is that she 
 don t really need to work out. She s got some money 
 of her own, owns cranberry swamps and I don t know 
 what all. Says she took up Bailey s offer cause she 
 cal lated I d be company for her. I had to laugh, 
 even in the face of those beans, when she said that." 
 
 " Humph ! if I don t tell Bailey what I think of 
 him, then " 
 
 " No, no ! Don t you say a word to Bailey. It s 
 principally on his account that I m tryin to stick it 
 
 69
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 out for the month. Bailey did his best; he thought 
 he was helpin . And he feels dreadfully because she s 
 so deef. Only yesterday he asked me if I believed 
 there was anything made that would fix her up and 
 make it more comfortable for me. I could have pre 
 scribed a shotgun, but I didn t. You see, he thinks 
 her deefness is the only trouble; I haven t told him the 
 rest, and don t you do it, either. Bailey s a good- 
 hearted chap." 
 
 " Humph ! his heart may be good, but his head s 
 goin to seed. I ll keep quiet if twill please you, 
 though." 
 
 "Yes. And, see here, Ase! I don t care to be 
 the laughin stock of Bayport. If any of the folks 
 ask you how I like my new housekeeper, you tell em 
 there s nothin like her anywhere. That s no lie." 
 
 So Mrs. Beasley stayed on at the Whittaker place 
 and, thanks to Mr. Tidditt, the general opinion of in 
 quisitive Bayport was that the new housekeeper was 
 a grand success. Only Captain Cy and Asaph knew 
 the whole truth, and Mr. Bangs a part. That part, 
 Deborah s deafness, troubled him not a little and he 
 thought much concerning it. As a result of this 
 thinking he wrote a letter to a relative in Boston. 
 The answer to this letter pleased him and he wrote 
 again. 
 
 One afternoon, during the third week of Mrs. 
 Beasley s stay, Asaph called and found Captain Cy 
 in the sitting room, reading the Breeze. The captain 
 
 70
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 urged his friend to remain and have supper. " We ve 
 run out of beans, Ase," he explained, " and are just 
 startin in on a course of boiled cod. Do stay and 
 eat a lot; then there won t be so much to warm over." 
 
 Mr. Tidditt accepted the invitation, also a section 
 of the Breeze. While they were reading they heard 
 the back door slam. 
 
 " It s the graven image," explained the captain. 
 " She s been on a cruise down town somewheres. Be 
 a lot of sore throats in that direction to-morrow 
 mornin ." 
 
 The town clerk looked up. 
 
 " There now ! " he exclaimed. " I believe twas 
 her I saw walkin with Bailey a spell ago. I thought 
 so, but I didn t have my specs and I wan t sure." 
 
 "With Bailey, hey? Humph! this is serious. 
 Hope Ketury didn t see em. We mustn t have any 
 scandal." 
 
 The housekeeper entered the dining room. She 
 was singing " Beulah Land," but her tone was more 
 subdued than usual. They heard her setting the table. 
 
 " How s she gettin along? " asked Asaph. 
 
 " Progressin backwards, same as ever. She s no 
 better, thank you, and the doctor s given up hopes." 
 
 When you goin to tell her she can clear out? " 
 
 What? " Captain Cy had returned to his paper 
 and did not hear the question. 
 
 " I say when is she goin to be bounced? Deef- 
 ness ain t catchin , is it? "
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " I wouldn t wonder if it might be. If tis, mine 
 ought to be developin fast. What makes her so still 
 all at once? " 
 
 " Gone to the kitchen, I guess. Wonder she hasn t 
 sailed in and set down with us. Old chromo ! You 
 must be glad her month s most up? " 
 
 Asaph proceeded to give his opinion of the house 
 keeper, raising his voice almost to a howl, as his in 
 dignation grew. If Mrs. Beasley s ears had been or 
 dinary ones she might have heard the unflattering 
 description in the kitchen; as it was Mr. Tidditt felt 
 no fear. 
 
 " Comin here so s you could be company for her! 
 The idea ! Good to herself, ain t she ! Godfrey 
 scissors ! And Bailey was fool enough to " 
 
 " There, there ! Don t let it worry you, Ase. I ve 
 about decided what to say when I let her go. I ll tell 
 her she is gettin too old to be slavin herself to death. 
 You see, I don t want to make the old critter cry, nor 
 I don t want her to get mad. Judgin by the way she 
 used to coax the cat outdoors with the broom handle 
 she s got somethin of a temper when she gets started. 
 I ll give her an extry month s wages, and " 
 
 "You will, hey? You*^//?" 
 
 The interruption came from behind the partially 
 closed dining-room door. Mr. Tidditt sank back in 
 his chair. Captain Cy sprang from his and threw 
 the door wide open. Behind it crouched Mrs. Deb 
 orah Beasley. Her eyes snapped behind her specta- 
 
 72
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 cles, her lean form was trembling all over, and in her 
 right hand she held a mammoth trumpet, the smaller 
 end of which was connected with her ear. 
 
 Well, I don t want none of your miser ble money! 
 
 You will, hey? " she screamed, brandishing her 
 left fist, but still keeping the ear trumpet in place with 
 her right. " You will? Well, I don t want none of 
 your miser ble money! Land knows how you made 
 
 73
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 it, anyhow, and I wouldn t soil my hands with it. 
 After all I ve put up with, and the way I ve done my 
 work, and the things I ve had to eat, and and " 
 
 She paused for breath. Captain Cy scratched his 
 chin. Asaph, gazing open-mouthed at the trumpet, 
 stirred in his chair. Mrs. Beasley swooped down 
 upon him like a gull on a minnow. 
 
 " And you!" she shrieked. You! a miserable 
 little, good-for-nothin , lazy, ridiculous, dried-up 
 . . . Oo oo ohl You call yourself a town clerk! 
 You do! I I wouldn t have you clerk for a hen 
 house ! I m an old chromo, be I ? Yes ! that s 
 nice talk, ain t it, to a woman old enough to be- 
 that is er er most as old as you be! You 
 sneakin , story-tellin , little, fat thing, you ! You 
 oh, I can t lay my tongue to words to tell you what 
 you are." 
 
 You re doin pretty well, seems to me," observed 
 Captain Cy dryly. " I wouldn t be discouraged if 
 I was you." 
 
 The only effect of this remark was to turn the 
 wordy torrent in his direction. The captain bore it 
 for a while; then he rose to his feet and commanded 
 silence. 
 
 " That s enough ! Stop it ! " he ordered, and, 
 strange to say, Mrs. Beasley did stop. " I m sorry, 
 Debby," he went on, " but you had no business to be 
 listenin even if " and he smiled grimly, " you have 
 got a new fog horn to hear with. You can go and 
 
 74
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 pack your things as soon as you want to. I made up 
 my mind the first day you come that you and me 
 wouldn t cruise together long, and this only shortens 
 the trip by a week or so. I ll pay you for this month 
 and for the next, and I guess, when you come to think 
 it over, you ll be willin to risk soilin your hands with 
 the money. It s your own fault if anybody knows 
 that you didn t leave of your own accord. / shan t 
 tell, and I ll see that Tidditt doesn t. Now trot! 
 Ase and I ll get supper ourselves." 
 
 It was evident that the ex-housekeeper had much 
 more which she would have liked to say. But there 
 was that in her late employer s manner which caused 
 her to forbear. She slammed out of the room, and 
 they heard her banging things about on the floor 
 above. 
 
 ; But where where" repeated Mr. Tidditt, over 
 and over, " did she get that trumpet? " 
 
 The puzzle was solved soon after, when Bailey 
 Bangs entered the house in a high state of excitement. 
 
 " Well," he demanded, expectantly. " Did they 
 help her? Has anything happened? " 
 
 " Happened! " began Asaph, but Captain Cy si 
 lenced him by a wink. 
 
 Yes," answered the captain; "something s hap 
 pened. Why?" 
 
 " Hurrah ! I thought twould. She can hear bet 
 ter, can t she ? " 
 
 Yes, I guess it s safe to say she can." 
 75
 
 " Good ! You can thank me for it. When I see 
 how dreadful deef she was I wrote my cousin Eddie 
 T, who s an optician up to Boston you know him, 
 Ase and I says : Ed, you know what s good for 
 folks who can t see? Ain t there nothin , says I, 
 1 that ll help them who can t hear? How about ear 
 trumpets? And Ed wrote that an ear trumpet 
 would probably help some, but why didn t I try a pair 
 of them patent fixin s that are made to put inside 
 deef people s ears? He d known of cases where 
 they helped a lot. So I sent for a pair, and the 
 biggest ear trumpet made, besides. And when I 
 met Debby to-day I give em to her and told her 
 to put the patent things in her ears and couple on 
 the trumpet outside em. And not to say nothin to 
 you, but just surprise you. And it did surprise you, 
 didn t it?" 
 
 The wrathful Mr. Tidditt could wait no longer. 
 He burst into a vivid description of the " surprise." 
 Bailey was aghast. Captain Cy laughed until his 
 face was purple. 
 
 " I declare, Cy I " exclaimed the dejected purchaser 
 of the " ear fixin s " and the trumpet. " I do declare 
 I m awful sorry! if you d only told me she was no 
 good I d have let her alone; but I thought twas just 
 the deefness. I I 
 
 " I know, Bailey; you meant well, like the layin - 
 on-of-hands doctor who rubbed the rheumatic man s 
 wooden leg. All right; / forgive you. Twas worth 
 
 76
 
 BAILEY BANGS S EXPERIMENT 
 
 it all to see Asaph s face when Marm Beasley was 
 complimentin him. Ha ! ha ! Oh, dear me ! I ve 
 laughed till I m sore. But there s one thing I should 
 like to do, if you don t mind: I should like to pick 
 out my next housekeeper myself."
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 MRS. BEASLEY departed next morning, 
 taking with her the extra month s wages, 
 in spite of fervid avowals that she 
 wouldn t touch a cent of it. On the way to the de 
 pot she favored Mr. Lumley with sundry hints con 
 cerning the reasons for her departure. She " couldn t 
 stand it no longer"; if folks only knew what she d 
 had to put up with she cal lated they d be some sur 
 prised; she could " tell a few things " if she wanted 
 to, and so on. Incidentally she was kind of glad she 
 didn t like the place, because now she cal lated she 
 should go West and visit her niece; they d been 
 wanting her to come for so long. 
 
 Gabe was much interested and repeated the mono 
 logue, with imaginative additions, to the depot mas 
 ter, who, in turn, repeated it to his wife when he 
 went home to dinner. That lady attended sewing 
 circle in the afternoon. Next day a large share of 
 Bayport s conversation dealt with the housekeeper s 
 leaving and her reasons therefor. The reasons dif 
 fered widely, according to the portion of the town 
 
 78
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 in which they were discussed, but it was the general 
 opinion that the whole affair was not creditable to 
 Captain Whittaker. 
 
 Only at the perfect boarding house was the cap 
 tain upheld. Miss Phinney declared that she knew 
 he had made a mistake as soon as she heard the Beas- 
 ley woman talk; nobody else, so Angeline declared, 
 could " get a word in edgeways." Mrs. Tripp sighed 
 and affirmed that going out of town for a woman to 
 do housework was ridiculous on the face of it; there 
 were plenty of Bayport ladies, women of capability 
 and sound in their religious views, who might be hired 
 if they were approached in the right way. Keturah 
 gave, as her opinion, that if the captain knew when 
 he was well off, he would " take his meals out." 
 Asaph snorted and intimated that that Debby Beas- 
 ley wasn t fit to " keep house in a pigsty, and anybody 
 but a born gump would have known it." Bailey, the 
 " born gump," said nothing, but looked appealingly 
 at his chum. 
 
 As for Captain Cy, he did not take the trouble to 
 affirm or deny the rumors. Peace and quiet domi 
 nated the Whittaker house for the first time in three 
 weeks and its owner was happier. He cooked his 
 own food and washed his own dishes. The runaway 
 cat ventured to return, found other viands than beans 
 in its saucer, and decided to remain, purring thankful 
 contentment. The captain made his own bed, after 
 a fashion, when he was ready to occupy it, but he was 
 
 79
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 conscious that it might be better made. He refused, 
 however, to spend his time in sweeping and dusting, 
 and the dust continued to accumulate on the carpets 
 and furniture. This condition of affairs troubled 
 him, but he kept his own counsel. Asaph and Bailey 
 called often, but they offered no more suggestions 
 as to hiring a housekeeper. Mr. Tidditt might 
 have done so, but the captain gave him no encour 
 agement. Mr. Bangs, recent humiliation fresh in 
 his mind, would as soon have suggested setting the 
 house on fire. 
 
 One evening Asaph happened in, on his way to 
 Simmons s. He desired the captain to accompany 
 him to that gathering place of the wise and talkative. 
 Captain Cy was in the sitting room, a sheet of note 
 paper in his hand. The town clerk entered without 
 ceremony and tossed his hat on the sofa. 
 
 " Evenin , Ase," observed the captain, folding the 
 sheet of paper and putting it into his pocket. " Glad 
 you come. Sit down. I wanted to ask you some- 
 thin ." 
 
 " All right! Here I be. Heave ahead and ask." 
 
 Captain Cy puffed at his pipe. He seemed about 
 to speak and then to think better of it, for he crossed 
 his legs and smoked on in silence, gazing at the nickel 
 work of the " base-burner " stove. It was badly in 
 need of polishing. 
 
 " Well? " inquired Asaph, with impatient sarcasm. 
 " Thinkin of askin me to build a fire for you, was 
 
 80
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 you ? Nobody else but you would have set up a stove 
 in summer time, anyhow." 
 
 " Hey? No, you needn t start a fire yet awhile. 
 That necktie of yours 11 keep us warm till fall, I 
 shouldn t wonder. New one, ain t it? Where d you 
 get it?" 
 
 Mr. Tidditt was wearing a crocheted scarf of a 
 brilliant crimson hue, particularly becoming to his 
 complexion. The complexion now brightened until 
 it was almost a match for the tie. 
 
 "Oh!" he said, with elaborate indifference. 
 That? Yes, it s new. Yesterday was my birthday, 
 and Matildy Tripp she knew I needed a necktie, so she 
 give me this one." 
 
 " Oh ! One she knit purpose for you, then? Dear 
 me ! Look out, Ase. Widow v/omen are dangerous, 
 they say; presents are one of the first baits they heave 
 out." 
 
 " Don t be foolish, now ! I couldn t chuck it back 
 at her, could I? That would be pretty manners. 
 You needn t talk about widders not after Debby! 
 Ho! ho!" 
 
 Captain Cy chuckled. Then he suddenly became 
 serious. 
 
 " Ase," he said, " you remember the time when the 
 Howes folks had this house? Course you do. Yes; 
 well, was there any of their relations here with em? 
 A a cousin, or somethin ? " 
 
 " No, not as I recollect. Yes, there was, too, come 
 7 Si
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 to think. A third cousin, Mary Thayer her name 
 was. I think she was a third cousin of Betsy Howes, 
 Seth Howes s second wife. Betsy s name was Ginn 
 afore she married, and the Ginns was related on their 
 ma s side to a Richards Emily Richards, I think 
 twas and Emily married a Thayer. Would that 
 make this Mary a third cousin ? Now let s see ; Sarah 
 Jane Ginn, she had an aunt who kept a boardin house 
 in Harniss. I remember that, count of her sellin 
 my Uncle Bije a pig. Seems to me twas a pig, but I 
 ain t sure that it mightn t have been a settin of Ply 
 mouth Rock hens eggs. Anyhow, Uncle Bije kept 
 hens, because I remember one time " 
 
 " There! there! we ll be out of sight of land in a 
 minute. This Mary Thayer old, was she? " 
 
 " No, no! Just a young girl, eighteen or twenty 
 or so. Pretty and nice and quiet as ever I see. By 
 Godfrey, she was pretty I I wan t as old as I be now, 
 and " 
 
 " Ase, don t tell your heart secrets, even to me. I 
 might get absent-minded and mention em to Matildy. 
 And then whew I " 
 
 " If you don t stop tryin to play smarty I ll go 
 home. What s Matildy Tripp to me, I d like to 
 know? And even when Mary Thayer was here I 
 was old enough to be her dad. But I remember what 
 a nice girl she was and how the boarders liked her. 
 They used to say she done more than all the Howes 
 tribe put together to make the Sea Sight House a 
 
 82
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 good hotel. Young as she was she done most of the 
 housekeepin and done it well. If the rest of em had 
 been like her you mightn t have had the place yet, 
 Whit. But what set you to thinkin about her? " 
 
 " Oh, I don t know ! Nothin much; that is well, 
 I ll tell you some other time. What became of her? " 
 
 " She went up to New Hampshire along with the 
 Howes folks and I ain t seen her since. Seems to me 
 I did hear she was married. See here, Whit, what is 
 it about her? Tell a feller ; come !" 
 
 But Captain Cy refused to gratify his chum s lively 
 curiosity. Also he refused to go to Simmons s that 
 evening, saying that he was tired and guessed he d 
 stay at home and " turn in early." Mr. Tidditt de 
 parted grumbling. After he had gone the captain 
 drew his chair nearer the center table, took from his 
 pocket a sheet of notepaper, and proceeded to read 
 what was written on its pages. It was a letter which 
 he had received nearly a month before and had not 
 yet answered. During the past week he had read it 
 many times. The writing was cramped and blotted 
 and the paper cheap and dingy. The envelope bore 
 the postmark of a small town in Indiana, and the in- 
 closure was worded as follows : 
 
 CAPTAIN CYRUS WHITTAKER. 
 
 DEAR SIR: I suppose you will be a good deal surprised to hear 
 from me, especially from way out West here. When you bought 
 the old house of Seth, he and I was living in Concord, N. H. He 
 couldn t make a go of his business there, so we came West and he 
 
 83
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 has been sick most of the time since. We ain t well off like you, 
 and times are hard with us. What I wanted to write you about 
 was this. My cousin Mary Thomas, Mary Thayer that was, is 
 still living in Concord and she is poor and needs help, though I 
 don t suppose she would ask for it, being too proud. False pride 
 I call it. Me and Seth would like to do something for her, but we 
 have a hard enough job to keep going ourselves. Mary married a 
 man by the name of Henry Thomas, and he turned out to be a 
 miserable good-for-nothing, as I always said he would. She 
 wouldn t listen to me though. He run off and left her seven year 
 ago last April, and I understand was killed or drowned some- 
 wheres up in Montana. Mary and [several words scratched out 
 here] got along somehow since, but I don t know how. While we 
 lived in Concord Seth sort of kept an eye on her, but now he can t 
 of course. She s a good girl, or woman rather, being most forty, 
 and would make a good housekeeper if you should need one as I 
 suppose likely you will. If you could help her it would be an act 
 of charity and you will be rewarded Above. Seth says why not 
 write to her and tell her tc come and see you ? He feels bad about 
 her, because he is so sick I suppose. And he knows you are rich 
 and could do good if you felt like it. Her father s name was John 
 Thayer. I wouldn t wonder if you used to know her mother. She 
 was Emily Richards afore she married and they used to live in 
 Orham. Yours truly, 
 
 ELIZABETH HOWES. 
 
 P. S. Mary s address is Mrs. Mary Thomas, care Mrs. Oliver, 
 128 Blank Street, Concord, N. H. 
 
 N. B. Seth won t say so, but I will: we are very hard up our 
 selves and if you could help him and me with the loan of a little 
 money it would be thankfully received. 
 
 Captain Cy read the letter, folded it, and replaced 
 it in his pocket. He knew the Howes family by repu- 
 
 84
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 tation, and the reputation was that of general sharp 
 ness in trade and stinginess in money matters. Betsy s 
 personal appeal did not, therefore, touch his heart 
 to any great extent. He surmised also that for Seth 
 Howes and his wife to ask help for some per 
 son other than themselves premised a darky in the 
 woodpile somewhere. But for the daughter of Emily 
 Richards to be suggested as a possible housekeeper at 
 the Cy Whittaker place that was interesting, cer 
 tainly. 
 
 When the captain was not a captain \vhen he was 
 merely " young Cy," a boy, living with his parents, a 
 dancing school was organized in Bayport. It was an 
 innovation for our village, and frowned upon by 
 many of the older and stricter inhabitants. However, 
 most of the captain s boy friends were permitted to 
 attend; young Cy was not. His father considered 
 dancing a waste of time and, if not wicked, certainly 
 frivolous and nonsensical. So the boy remained at 
 home, but, in spite of the parental order, he prac 
 ticed some of the figures of the quadrilles and the con 
 tra dances in his comrades barns, learning them at 
 second hand, so to speak. 
 
 One winter there was to be a party in Orham, 
 given by the Nickersons, wealthy people with a 
 fifteen-year-old daughter. It was to be a grand af 
 fair, and most of the boys and girls in the neighbor 
 ing towns were invited. Cy received an invitation, 
 and, for a wonder, was permitted to attend. The 
 
 85
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Bayport contingent went over in a big hayrick on 
 runners and the moonlight ride was jolly enough. 
 The Nickerson mansion was crowded and there were 
 music and dancing. 
 
 Young Cy was miserable during the dancing. He 
 didn t dare attempt it, in spite of his lessons in the 
 barn. So, while the rest of his boy friends sought 
 partners for the " Portland Fancy " and " Hull s 
 Victory " he sat forlorn in a corner. 
 
 As he sat there he was approached by a young 
 lady, radiant in muslin and ribbons. She was three 
 or four years older than he was, and he had wor 
 shipped her from afar as she whirled up and down 
 the line in the Virginia Reel. She never lacked part 
 ners and seemed to be a great favorite with the young 
 men, especially one good-looking chap with a sun 
 burned face, who looked like a sailor. 
 
 They were forming sets for "Money Musk"; 
 it was " ladies choice," and there was a demand 
 for more couples. The young lady came over 
 to Cy s corner and laughingly dropped him a 
 courtesy. 
 
 " If you please," she said, " I want a partner. 
 Will you do me the honor? " 
 
 Cy blushingly avowed that he couldn t dance any 
 to speak of. 
 
 " Oh, yes, you can ! I m sure you can. You re 
 the Whittaker boy, aren t you? I ve heard about 
 your barn lessons. And I want you to try this with 
 
 86
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 me. Please do. No, John," she added, turning to 
 the sunburned young fellow who had followed her 
 across the room ; " this is my choice and here is my 
 partner. Susie Taylor is after you and you mustn t 
 run away. Come, Mr. Whittaker." 
 
 So Cy took her arm and they danced " Money 
 Musk " together. He made but a few mistakes, and 
 these she helped him to correct so easily that none 
 noticed. His success gave him courage and he es 
 sayed other dances; in fact, he had a very good time 
 at the party after all. 
 
 On the way home he thought a great deal about 
 the pretty young lady, whose name he discovered was 
 Emily Richards. He decided that if she would only 
 wait for him, he might like to marry her when he 
 grew up. But he was thirteen and she was seventeen, 
 and the very next year she married John Thayer, the 
 sailor in the blue suit. And two years after that 
 young Cy ran away to be a sailor himself. 
 
 In spite of his age and his lifetime of battering 
 about the world, Captain Cy had a sentimental streak 
 in his makeup; his rejuvenation of the old home 
 proved that. Betsy s letter interested him. He had 
 made guarded inquiries concerning Mary Thayer, 
 now Mary Thomas, of others besides Asaph, and the 
 answers had been satisfactory so far as they went; 
 those who remembered her had liked her very much. 
 The captain had even begun a letter to Mrs. Thomas, 
 but laid it aside unfinished, having, since Bailey s un- 
 
 8?
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 fortunate experience with the widow Beasley, a preju 
 dice against experiments. 
 
 But this evening, before Mr. Tidditt called, he had 
 been thinking that something would have to be done 
 and done soon. The generally shiftless condition of 
 his domestic surroundings was getting to be unbear 
 able. Dust and dirt did not fit into his mental picture 
 of the old home as it used to be and as he had tried 
 to restore it. There had been neither dust nor dirt 
 in his mother s day. 
 
 He meditated and smoked for another hour. 
 Then, his mind being made up, he pulled down the 
 desk lid of the old-fashioned secretary, resurrected 
 from a pile of papers the note he had begun to Mrs. 
 Thomas, dipped a sputtering pen into the ink bottle 
 and proceeded to write. 
 
 His letter was a short one and rather noncommit 
 tal. As Mrs. Thomas no doubt knew he had come 
 back to live in his father s house at Bayport. He 
 might possibly need some one to keep house for him. 
 He understood that she, Mary Thayer that was, was 
 a good housekeeper and that she was open to an en 
 gagement if everything was mutually satisfactory. 
 He had known her mother slightly when the latter 
 lived in Orham. He thought an interview might be 
 pleasant, for they could talk over old times if noth 
 ing more. Perhaps, on the whole, she might care 
 to risk a trip to Bayport, therefore he inclosed money 
 for her railroad fare. You understand, of course," 
 
 88
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 so he wrote in conclusion, " that nothing may come 
 of our meeting at all. So please don t say a word to 
 anybody when you strike town. You ve lived here 
 yourself, and you know that three words hove over 
 board in Bayport will dredge up gab enough to sink 
 a dictionary. So just keep mum till the business is 
 settled one way or the other." 
 
 He put on his hat and went down to the post office, 
 where he dropped his letter in the slot of the box 
 fastened to the front door. Then he returned home 
 and retired at exactly eleven o clock. In spite of his 
 remarks to Asaph, he had not " turned in " so early 
 after all. 
 
 If the captain expected a prompt reply to his note 
 he was disappointed. A week passed and he heard 
 nothing. Then three more days and still no word 
 from the New Hampshire widow. Meanwhile fresh 
 layers of dust spread themselves over the Whittaker 
 furniture, and the gaudy patterns of the carpets 
 blushed dimly beneath a grimy fog. The situation 
 was desperate; even Matilda Tripp, Come-Outer 
 sermons and all, began to be thinkable as a possi 
 bility. 
 
 The eleventh day began with a pouring rain that 
 changed, later on, to a dismal drizzle. The silver- 
 leaf tree in the front yard dripped, and the overflow 
 ing gutters gurgled and splashed. The bay was 
 gray and lonely, and the fish weirs along the outer 
 bar were lost in the mist. The flowers in the Atkins 
 
 89
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 urns were draggled and beaten down. Only the 
 iron dogs glistened undaunted as the wet ran off 
 their newly painted backs. The air was heavy, and 
 the salty flavor of the flats might almost be tasted 
 in it. 
 
 Captain Cy was in the sitting room, as usual. His 
 spirits were as gray as the weather. He was actually 
 lonesome for the first time since his return home. 
 He had kindled a wood fire in the stove, just for the 
 sociability of it, and the crackle and glow behind the 
 isinglass panes only served to remind him of other 
 days and other fires. The sitting room had not been 
 lonesome then. 
 
 He heard the depot wagon rattle by and, peering 
 from the window, saw that, except for Mr. Lumley, 
 it was empty. Not even a summer boarder had come 
 to brighten our ways and lawns with reckless raiment 
 and the newest slang. Summer boarding season was 
 almost over now. Bayport would soon be as dull 
 as dish water. And the captain admitted to him 
 self that it was dull. He had half a mind to take a 
 flying trip to Boston, make the round of the wharves, 
 and see if any of the old shipowners and ship cap 
 tains whom he had once known were still alive and in 
 harness. 
 
 "JINGLE! Jingle! Jingle! Jingle! Jingle! 
 Jing! Jing! Jing! " 
 
 Captain Cy bounced in his chair. That was the 
 front-door bell. The front-door bell ! Who on 
 
 90
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 earth, or, rather, who in Bayport, would come to the 
 front door? 
 
 He hurried through the dim grandeur of the best 
 parlor and entered the little dark front hall. The 
 bell was still swinging at the end of its coil of 
 wire. The dust shaken from it still hung in the 
 air. The captain unbolted and unlocked the big 
 front door. 
 
 A girl was standing on the steps between the lines 
 of box hedge a little girl under a big " grown-up " 
 umbrella. The wet dripped from the umbrella top 
 and from the hem of the little girl s dress. 
 
 Captain Cy stared hard at his visitor; he knew 
 most of the children in Bayport, but he didn t know 
 this one. Obviously she was a stranger. Portuguese 
 children from " up Harniss way " sometimes called 
 to peddle huckleberries, but this child was no " Por- 
 tugee." 
 
 " Hello ! " exclaimed the captain wonderingly. 
 "Did you ring the bell?" 
 
 " Yes, sir," replied the girl. 
 
 "Humph! Did, hey? Why?" 
 
 " Why? Why, I thought Isn t it a truly bell? 
 Didn t it ought to ring? Is anybody sick or dead? 
 There isn t any crape." 
 
 " Dead? Crape? " Captain Cy gasped. " What 
 in the world put that in your head? " 
 
 Well, I didn t know but maybe that was why 
 you thought I hadn t ought to have rung it. When
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 mamma was sick they didn t let people ring our bell. 
 And when she died they tied it up with crape." 
 
 " Did, hey? Hum! " The captain scratched his 
 chin and gazed at the small figure before him. It 
 was a self-poised, matter-of-fact figure for such a lit 
 tle one, and, out there in the rain under the tent roof 
 of the umbrella, it was rather pitiful. 
 
 " Please, sir," said the child, " are you Captain 
 Cyrus Whittaker? " 
 
 " Yup ! That s me. You ve guessed it the first 
 time." 
 
 " Yes, sir. I ve got a letter for you. It s pinned 
 inside my dress. If you could hold this umbrella 
 maybe I could get it out." 
 
 She extended the big umbrella at arm s length, 
 holding it with both hands. Captain Cy woke up. 
 
 " Good land! " he exclaimed, " what am I thinkin 
 of? You re soakin wet through, ain t you? " 
 
 " I guess I m pretty wet. It s a long ways from 
 the depot, and I tried to come across the fields, be 
 cause a boy said it was nearer, and the bushes were 
 ^^ i) 
 
 " Across the fields? Have you walked all the way 
 from the depot? " 
 
 " Yes, sir. The man said it was a quarter to ride, 
 and auntie said I must be careful of my money be 
 cause " 
 
 " By the big dipper! Come in! Come in out of 
 that this minute ! " 
 
 92
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 He sprang down the steps, furled the umbrella, 
 seized her by the arm and led her into the house, 
 through the parlor and into the sitting room, where 
 the fire crackled invitingly. He could feel that the 
 dress sleeve under his hand was wet through, and 
 the worn boots and darned stockings he could see 
 were soaked likewise. 
 
 There!" he cried. "Set down in that chair. 
 Put your feet up on that h ath. Sakes alive ! Your 
 folks ought to know better than to let you stir out 
 this weather, let alone walkin a mile and no rub 
 bers ! Them shoes ought to come off this minute, I 
 s pose. Take em off. You can dry your stockings 
 better that way. Off with em ! " 
 
 Yes, sir," said the child, stooping to unbutton 
 the shoes. Her wet fingers were blue. It can be cold 
 in our village, even in early September, when there is 
 an easterly storm. Unbuttoning the shoes was slow 
 work. 
 
 Here, let me help you ! " commanded the cap 
 tain, getting down on one knee and taking a foot in 
 his lap. Tut ! tut ! tut ! you re wet ! Been some 
 time sence I fussed with button boots; lace or long- 
 legged cowhides come handier. Never wore cow 
 hides, did you? " 
 
 " No, sir." 
 
 " I s pose not. I used to when I was little. Re 
 member the first pair I had. Copper toes on em 
 whew ! The copper was blacked over when they come 
 
 93
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 out of the store and that wouldn t do, so we used to 
 kick a stone wall till they brightened up. There! 
 there she comes. Humph ! stockin s soaked, too. 
 Wish I had some dry ones to lend you. Might give 
 you a pair of mine, but they d be too scant fore and 
 aft and too broad in the beam, I cal late. Humph ! 
 and your top-riggin s as wet as your hull. Been on 
 your beam ends, have you? " 
 
 " I don t know, sir. I fell down in the bushes 
 coming across. There were vines and they tripped 
 me up. And the umbrella was so heavy that 
 
 Yes, I could see right off you was carryin too 
 much canvas. Now take off your bunnit and I ll get 
 a coat of mine to wrap you up in." 
 
 He went into his bedroom and returned with a 
 heavy " reefer " jacket. Ordering his caller to stand 
 up he slipped her arms into the sleeves and turned the 
 collar up about her neck. Her braided u pigtail " of 
 yellow hair stuck out over the collar and hung down 
 her back in a funny way. The coat sleeves reached 
 almost to her knees and the coat itself enveloped her 
 like a bed quilt. 
 
 " There! " said Captain Cy approvingly. " Now 
 you look more as if you was under a storm rig. Set 
 down and toast your toes. Where s that letter you 
 said you had? " 
 
 " It s inside here. I don t know s I can get at it; 
 these sleeves are so long." 
 
 " Reef em. Turn em up. Let me show you. 
 94
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 That s better ! Hum ! So you come from the depot, 
 hey? Live up that way? " 
 
 " No, sir ! I used to live in Concord, but " 
 
 " Concord? Concord? Concord where? " 
 
 " Concord, New Hampshire. I came on the cars. 
 Auntie knew a man who was going to Boston, and 
 he said he d take care of me as far as that and then 
 put me on the train to come down here. I stopped 
 at his folks house in Charlestown last night, and 
 this morning we got up early and he bought me a 
 ticket and started me for here. I had a box with 
 my things in it, but it was so heavy I couldn t 
 carry it, so I left it up at the depot. The man 
 there said it would be all right and you could send 
 for it when 
 
 "I could send for it? / could? What in the. 
 world Say, child, you ve made a mistake in your 
 bearin s. Taint me you want to see, it s some of 
 your folks, relations, most likely. Tell me who they 
 are; maybe I know em." 
 
 The girl sat upright in the big chair. Her dark 
 eyes opened wide and her chin quivered. 
 
 " Ain t you Captain Cyrus Whittaker? " she de 
 manded. You said you was." 
 
 Yes, yes, I am. I m Cy Whittaker, but 
 w hat " 
 
 " Well, auntie told me " 
 
 " Auntie ! Auntie who ? " 
 
 " Auntie Oliver. She isn t really my auntie, but 
 
 95
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 mamma and me lived in her house for ever so long 
 and so 
 
 "Wait! wait! wait! I m hull down in the fog. 
 This is gettin too thick for me. Your auntie s name s 
 Oliver and you lived in Concord, New Hampshire. 
 For for thunder sakes, what s your name? " 
 
 " Emily Richards Thomas." 
 
 " Em Emily Richards Thomas ! " 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 " Emily Richards Thomas! What was your ma s 
 name? " 
 
 " Mamma was Mrs. Thomas. Her front name 
 was Mary. She s dead. Don t you want to see your 
 letter? I ve got it now." 
 
 She lifted one of the flapping coat sleeves and ex 
 tended a crumpled, damp envelope. Captain Cy took 
 it in a dazed fashion and drew a long breath. Then 
 he tore open the envelope and read the following: 
 
 DEAR CAPTAIN WHITTAKER: 
 
 The bearer of this is Emily Richards Thomas. She is seven, 
 going on eight, but old for her years. Her mother was Mary 
 Thomas that used to be Mar} Thayer. It was her you wrote to 
 about keeping house for you, but she had been dead a fortnight 
 before your letter come. She had bronchial pneumonia and it 
 carried her off, having always been delicate and with more troubles 
 to bear than she could stand, poor thing. Since her husband, who 
 I say was a scamp even if he is dead, left her and the baby, she has 
 took rooms with me and done sewing and such. When she passed 
 away I wrote to Seth Howes, a relation of hers out West, and, so 
 far as I know, the only one she had. I told the Howes man that 
 
 9 6
 
 A FRONT-DOOR CALLER 
 
 Mary had gone and Emmie was left. Would they take her? I 
 wrote. And Seth s wife wrote they couldn t, being poorer than 
 poverty themselves. I was afraid she would have to go to a Home, 
 but when your letter came I wrote the Howeses again. And Mrs. 
 Howes wrote back that you was rich, and a sort of far-off relation 
 of Mary s, and probably you would be glad to take the child to bring 
 up. Said that she had some correspondence with you about Mary 
 before. So I send Emmie to you. Somebody s got to take care of 
 her and I can t afford it, though I would if I could, for she s a real 
 nice child and some like her mother. I do hope she can stay with 
 you. It seems a shame to send her to the orphan asylum. I send 
 along what clothes she s got, which ain t many. 
 
 Respectfully yours, 
 
 SARAH OLIVER. 
 
 Captain Cy read the letter through. Then he 
 wiped his forehead. 
 
 " Well! " he muttered. " Well I I never in my 
 life! I I never did! Of all " 
 
 Emily Richards Thomas looked up from the 
 depths of the coat collar. 
 
 ;< Don t you think," she said, " that you had better 
 send to the depot for my box? I can get dry some 
 this way, but mamma always made me change my 
 clothes as soon as I could. She used to be afraid I d 
 get cold."
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 ICICLES AND DUST 
 
 CAPTAIN CY did not reply to the request 
 for the box. It is doubtful if he even heard 
 it. Mrs. Oliver s astonishing letter had, as 
 he afterwards said, left him " high and dry with no 
 tug in sight." Mary Thomas was dead, and her 
 daughter, her daughter I of whose very existence he 
 had been ignorant, had suddenly appeared from no 
 where and been dropped at his door, like an out-of- 
 season May basket, accompanied by the modest sug 
 gestion that he assume responsibility for her there 
 after. No wonder the captain wiped his forehead in 
 utter bewilderment. 
 
 " Don t you think you d better send for the box? " 
 repeated the child, shivering a little under the big 
 coat. 
 
 "Hey? What say? Never mind, though. Just 
 keep quiet for a spell, won t you. I want to let this 
 soak in. By the big dipper! Of all the solid brass 
 cheek that ever I run across, this beats the whole 
 cargo! And Betsy Howes never hinted! Probably 
 you would be glad to take Be glad ! Why, blast 
 
 98
 
 ICICLES AND DUST 
 
 their miserable, stingy What do they take me for? 
 / // show em I Indiana ain t so fur that I can t 
 Hey? Did you say anything, sis? " 
 
 The girl had shivered again. " No, sir," she re 
 plied. " It was my teeth, I guess. They kind of 
 rattled." 
 
 " What? You ain t cold, are you? With all that 
 round you and in front of that fire? " 
 
 " No, sir, I guess not. Only my back feels 
 sort of funny, as if somebody kept dropping icicles 
 down it. Those bushes and vines were so wet that 
 when I tumbled down twas most like being in a 
 pond." 
 
 " Sho ! sho ! That won t do. Can t have you laid 
 up on my hands. That would be worse than 
 Humph ! Tut, tut ! Somethin ought to be done, 
 and I m blessed if I know what. And not a woman 
 round the place not even that Debby. Say, look 
 here, what s your name er Emmie, hadn t I better 
 get the doctor? " 
 
 The child looked frightened. 
 Why? " she cried, her big eyes opening. " I m 
 not sick, am I? " 
 
 " Sick? No, no! Course not, course not. What 
 would you want to be sick for? But you ought to 
 get warm and dry right off, I s pose, and your duds 
 are all up to the depot. Say, what does what did 
 your ma used to do when you felt er them icicles 
 and things? " 
 
 99
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " She changed my clothes and rubbed me. And, 
 if I was very wet she put me to bed sometimes." 
 
 "Bed? Sure! why, yes, indeed. Bed s a good 
 place to keep off icicles. There s my bedroom right 
 in there. You could turn in just as well as not. Bunk 
 ain t made yet, but I can shake it up in no time. Say 
 er er you can undress yourself, can t you? " 
 
 "Oh, yes, sir! Course I can! I m most eight." 
 
 " Sure you are ! Don t act a mite babyish. All 
 right, you set still till I shake up that bunk." 
 
 He entered the chamber, his own, opening from 
 the sitting room, and proceeded, literally, to " shake 
 up " the bed. It was not a lengthy process and, when 
 it was completed, he returned to find his visitor al 
 ready divested of the coat and standing before the 
 stove. 
 
 " I guess perhaps you ll have to help undo me 
 behind," observed the young lady. " This is my best 
 dress and I can t reach the buttons in the middle of 
 the back." 
 
 Captain Cy scratched his head. Then he clumsily 
 unbuttoned the wet waist, glancing rather sheepishly 
 at the window to see if anyone was coming. 
 
 "So this is your best dress, hey?" he asked, to 
 cover his confusion. It was obviously not very new, 
 for it was neatly mended in one or two places. 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 " So. Where d you buy it up to Concord? " 
 
 " No, sir. Mamma made it, a year ago." 
 
 100
 
 ICICLES AND DUST 
 
 There was a little choke in the child s voice. The 
 captain was mightily taken back. 
 
 "Hum! Yes, yes," he muttered hurriedly. 
 " Well, there you are. Now you can get along, can t 
 you?" 
 
 " Yes, sir. Shall I go in that room? " 
 
 " Trot right in. You might er maybe you 
 might sing out when you re tucked up. I I ll want 
 to know if you re got bedclothes enough." 
 
 Emily disappeared in the bedroom. The door 
 closed. Captain Cy, his hands in his pockets, walked 
 up and down the length of the sitting room. The 
 expression on his face was a queer one. 
 
 " I haven t got any nightgown," called a voice 
 from the other room. The captain gasped. 
 
 " Good land ! so you ain t," he exclaimed. " What 
 in the world Humph ! I wonder " 
 
 He went to the lower drawer of a tall " highboy " 
 and, from the tumbled mass of apparel therein took 
 one of his own night garments. 
 
 " Here s one," he said, coming back with it in his 
 hand. " I guess you ll have to make this do for now. 
 It ll fit you enough for three times to once, but it s 
 all I ve got." 
 
 A small hand reached round the edge of the door 
 and the nightshirt disappeared. Captain Cy chuckled 
 and resumed his pacing. 
 
 I m tucked up," called Miss Thomas. The cap 
 tain entered and found her in bed, the patchwork 
 
 101
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 points and diamonds of the " Rising Sun " quilt cov 
 ering her to the chin and her head denting the upper 
 most of the two big pillows. Captain Cy liked to 
 " sleep high." 
 
 " Got enough over you? " he asked. 
 
 " Yes, sir, thank you." 
 
 " That s good. I ll take your togs out and dry em 
 in the kitchen. Don t be scared; I ll be right back." 
 
 In the kitchen he sorted the wet garments and hung 
 them about the cook stove. It was a strange occupa 
 tion for him and he shook his head whimsically as he 
 completed it. Then he took a flat iron, one of Mrs. 
 Beasley s purchases, from the shelf in the closet and 
 put it in the oven to heat. Soon afterwards he re 
 turned to the bedroom, bearing the iron wrapped in 
 a dish towel. 
 
 " My ma always used to put a hot flat to my feet 
 when I was a young one and got chilled," he ex 
 plained. " I ain t used one for some time, but I guess 
 it s a good receipt. How do you feel now? Any 
 more icicles? " 
 
 " No, sir. I m ever so warm. Isn t this a nice 
 bed?" 
 
 " Think so, do you? Glad of it. Well, now, I m 
 goin to leave you in it while I step down street and 
 see about havin your box sent for. I ll be back in 
 a shake. If anybody comes to the door while I m 
 gone don t you worry; let em go away again." 
 
 He put on his hat and left the house, walking rap- 
 102
 
 ICICLES AND DUST 
 
 idly, his head down and his hands in his pockets. At 
 times he would pause in his walk, whistle, shake his 
 head, and go on once more. Josiah Dimick met him, 
 and his answers to Josiah s questions were so vague 
 and irrelevant that Captain Dimick was puzzled, and 
 later expressed the opinion that " Whit s cookin must 
 be pretty bad; acted to me as if he had dyspepsy of 
 the brain." 
 
 Captain Cy stopped at Mr. Lumley s residence to 
 leave an order for the delivery of the box. Then he 
 drifted into Simmons s and accosted Alpheus Smalley. 
 
 " Al," he said, " what s good for a cold? " 
 
 " Why? " asked Mr. Smalley, in true Yankee fash 
 ion. " You got one? " 
 
 "Hey? Oh, yes! Yes, I ve got one." By way 
 of proof he coughed until the lamp chimneys rattled 
 on the shelf. 
 
 " Judas ! I should think you had ! Well, there s 
 Pine Bark Oil and Sassafras Elixir and two kinds 
 of sass p rilla that s good for most everything 
 and Is your throat sore? " 
 
 " Hey? Yes, I guess so." 
 
 "Don t you know? If you ve got sore throat 
 there ain t nothin better n Arabian Balsam. But 
 what in time are you doin out in this drizzle with 
 a cold and no umbrella? Do you want to " 
 
 " Never mind my umbrella. I left it in the church 
 entry t other Sunday and somebody got out afore I 
 did. This Arabian Balsam seems to me I re- 
 
 103
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 member my ma s usin that on me. Wet a rag with 
 it, don t you, and tie it round your neck?" 
 
 " Yup. Be sure and use a flannel rag, and red 
 flannel if you ve got it; that acts quicker n the other 
 kinds. Fifteen cent bottle? " 
 
 " I guess so. Might s well give me some sass - 
 p rilla, while you re about it; always handy to have 
 in the house. And er say, is that canned soup 
 you ve got up on that shelf? " 
 
 The astonished clerk admitted that it was. 
 
 " Well, give me a can of the chicken kind." 
 
 Mr. Smalley, standing on a chair to reach the shelf 
 where the soup was kept, shook his head. 
 
 " Now, that s too bad, Cap n," he said, " but we re 
 all out of chicken just now. Fact is, we ain t got 
 nothin but termatter and beef broth. Yes, and I 
 declare if the termatter ain t all gone." 
 
 " Humph ! then I guess I ll take the beef. Needn t 
 mind wrappin it up. So long." 
 
 He departed bearing his purchases. When Mr. 
 Simmons, proprietor of the store, returned, Alpheus 
 told him that he " cal lated " Captain Cy Whittaker 
 was preparing to " go into a decline, or somethin ." 
 
 " Anyhow," said Alpheus, " he bought sass p rilla 
 and Arabian Balsam, and I sold him a can of that 
 beef soup you bought three year ago last summer, 
 when Alicia Atkins had the chicken pox." 
 
 The captain entered the house quietly and tiptoed 
 to the door of the bedroom. Emily was asleep, and 
 
 104
 
 ICICLES AND DUST 
 
 the sight of the childish head upon the pillow gave 
 him a start as he peeped in at it. It looked so natu 
 ral, almost as if it belonged there. It had been in a 
 bed like that and in that very room that he had slept 
 when a boy. 
 
 Gabe, brimful of curiosity, brought the box a little 
 later. His curiosity was ungratified, Captain Cyrus 
 explaining that it was a package he had been expect 
 ing. The captain took the box to the bedroom, 
 and, finding the child still asleep, deposited it on 
 the floor and tiptoed out again. He went to the 
 kitchen, poked up the fire, and set about getting 
 dinner. 
 
 He was warming the beef broth in a saucepan on 
 the stove when Emily appeared. She was dressed in 
 dry clothes from the box and seemed to be feeling 
 as good as new. 
 
 "Hello!" exclaimed Captain Cy. "You re on 
 deck again, hey? How s icicles?" 
 
 " All gone," was the reply. " Do you do your 
 own work? Can t I help? I can set the table. I 
 used to for Mrs. Oliver." 
 
 The captain protested that he could do it himself 
 just as well, but the girl persisting, he showed her 
 where the dishes were kept. From the corner of his 
 eye he watched her as she unfolded the tablecloth. 
 
 " Is this the only one you ve got? " she inquired. 
 " It s awful dirty." 
 
 " Hum ! Yes, I ain t tended up to my washin 
 105
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 and ironin the way I d ought to. I ll lose my job if 
 I don t look out, hey?" 
 
 Before they sat down to the meal Captain Cy in 
 sisted that his guest take a tablespoonful of the sar- 
 saparilla and decorate her throat with a section of 
 red flannel soaked in the Arabian Balsam. The 
 perfume of the latter was penetrating and might 
 have interfered with a less healthy appetite than that 
 of Miss Thomas. 
 
 "Have some soup? Some I bought purpose for 
 you. Best thing goin for folks with icicles," re 
 marked the captain, waving the iron spoon he had 
 used to stir the contents of the saucepan. 
 
 " Yes, sir, thank you. But don t you ask a bless 
 ing?" 
 
 "Hey?" 
 
 " A blessing, you know. Saying that you re thank 
 ful for the food now set before us." 
 
 " Hum ! Why, to tell you the truth I ve kind of 
 neglected that, I m afraid. Bein thankful for the 
 grub I ve had lately was most too much of a strain, 
 I shouldn t wonder." 
 
 " I know the one mamma used to say. Shall I ask 
 it for you ? " 
 
 " Sho! I guess so, if you want to." 
 
 The girl bent her head and repeated a short grace. 
 Captain Cy watched her curiously. 
 
 " Now, I ll have some soup, please," observed Em 
 ily. " I m awful hungry. I had breakfast at five 
 
 106
 
 " Excuse me, . . . but don t you think that plate had 
 better be done over ? 
 
 o clock this morning and we didn t have a chance 
 to eat much." 
 
 A good many times that day the captain caught 
 himself wondering if he wasn t dreaming. The 
 
 107
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 whole affair seemed too ridiculous to be an actual 
 experience. Dinner over, he and Emmie attended to 
 the dishes, he washing and she wiping. And even at 
 this early stage of their acquaintance her disposition 
 to take charge of things was apparent. She found 
 fault with the dish towels; they were almost as bad 
 as the tablecloth, she said. Considering that the 
 same set had been in use since Mrs. Beasley s depar 
 ture, the criticism was not altogether baseless. But 
 the young lady did not stop there her companion s 
 skill as a washer was questioned. 
 
 " Excuse me," she said, " but don t you think that 
 plate had better be done over? I guess you didn t 
 see that place in the corner. Perhaps you ve forgot 
 your specs. Auntie Oliver couldn t see well without 
 her specs." 
 
 Captain Cy grinned and admitted that a second 
 washing wouldn t hurt the plate. 
 
 " I guess your auntie was one of the particular 
 kind," he said. 
 
 " No, sir, twas mamma. She couldn t bear dirty 
 things. Auntie used to say that mamma hunted dust 
 with a magnifying glass. She didn t, though; she 
 only liked to be neat. I guess dust doesn t worry 
 men so much as it does women." 
 
 "Why?" 
 
 " Oh, cause there s so much of it here; don t you 
 think so? I ll help you clean up by and by, if you 
 want to." 
 
 108
 
 ICICLES AND DUST 
 
 "Tow will?" 
 
 " Yes, sir. I used to dust sometimes when mamma 
 was out sewing. And once I swept, but I did it 
 so hard that auntie wouldn t let me any more. She 
 said twas like trying to blow out a match with a 
 tornado." 
 
 Later on he found her standing in the sitting room, 
 critically inspecting the mats, the furniture, and the 
 pictures on the walls. He stood watching her for a 
 moment and then asked : 
 
 "Well, what are you lookin for more dust? 
 Twon t be hard to find it. * Dust thou art and unto 
 dust thou shalt return. Every time I go outdoor 
 and come In again I realize how true that is." 
 
 Emily shook her head. 
 
 " No, sir," she said; " I was only looking at things 
 and thinking." 
 
 " Thinkin , hey? What about? or is that a 
 secret? " 
 
 " No, sir. I was thinking that this room was dif 
 ferent from any I ve ever seen." 
 
 " Humph ! Yes, I presume likely tis. Don t like 
 it very much, do you? " 
 
 Yes, sir, I think I do. It s got a good many 
 things in it that I never saw before, but I guess they re 
 pretty after you get used to em." 
 
 Captain Cy laughed aloud. " After you get used 
 to em, hey? " he repeated. 
 
 Yes, sir. That s what mamma said about Auntie 
 109
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Oliver s new bonnet that she made herself. I I was 
 thinking that you must be peculiar." 
 
 "Peculiar?" 
 
 " Yes, sir. I like peculiar people. I m peculiar 
 myself. Auntie used to say I was the most peculiar 
 child she ever saw. P raps that s why I came to you. 
 P raps God meant for peculiar ones to live together. 
 Don t you think maybe that was it? " 
 
 And the captain, having no answer ready, said 
 nothing. 
 
 That evening when Asaph and Bailey, coming for 
 their usual call, peeped in at the window, they were 
 astounded by the tableau in the Whittaker sitting 
 room. Captain Cy was seated in the rocking chair 
 which had been his grandfather s. At his feet, on 
 the walnut cricket with a haircloth top, sat a little girl 
 turning over the leaves of a tattered magazine, a 
 Godey s Lady s Book. A pile of these magazines 
 was beside her on the floor. The captain was smiling 
 and looking over her shoulder. The cat was curled 
 up in another chair. The room looked more home 
 like than it had since its owner returned to it. 
 
 The friends entered without knocking. Captain 
 Cy looked up, saw them, and appeared embarrassed. 
 
 " Hello, boys ! " he said. " Glad to see you. 
 Come right in. Clearin off fine, ain t it? " 
 
 Mr. Tidditt replied absently that he wouldn t be 
 surprised if it was. Bailey, his eyes fixed upon the 
 occupant of the cricket, said nothing. 
 
 no
 
 I
 
 ICICLES AND DUST 
 
 " We we didn t know you had company, Whit," 
 said Asaph. We been np to Simmons s and Alpheus 
 said you was thin and peaked and looked sick. Said 
 you bought sass p rilla and all kind of truck. He 
 was afraid you had fever and was out of your head, 
 cruisin round in the rain with no umbrella. The 
 gang weren t talkin of nothin else, so me and Bailey 
 thought we d come right down." 
 
 That s kind of you, I m sure. Take your things 
 off and set down. No, I m sorry to disappoint Smal- 
 ley and the rest, but I m able to be up and er 
 make my own bed, thank you. So Alpheus thought 
 I looked thin, hey? Well, if I had to live on 
 that soup he sold me, I d be thinner n I am now. 
 You tell him that canned hot water is all right 
 if you like it, but it seems a shame to put mud 
 in it. It only changes the color and don t help the 
 taste." 
 
 Mr. Bangs, who was still staring at Emily, now 
 ventured a remark. 
 
 Is that a relation of yours, Cy? " he asked. 
 
 " That? Oh ! Well, no, not exactly. And yet I 
 don t know but she is. Fellers, this is Emmie Thomas. 
 Can t you shake hands, Emmie? " 
 
 The child rose, laid down the magazine, which 
 was open at the colored picture of a group of ladies 
 in crinoline and chignons, and, going across the room, 
 extended a hand to Mr. Tidditt. 
 
 " How do you do, sir? " she said. 
 9 in
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Why er how d ye do? I m pretty smart, 
 thank you. How s yourself? " 
 
 " I m better now. I guess the sass parilla was 
 good for me." 
 
 " Twan t the sass p rilla," observed the captain, 
 with conviction. " Twas the Arabian Balsam. 
 Ma always cured ,me with it and there s nothin 
 finer." 
 
 " But what in time began Bailey. Captain 
 Cy glanced at the child and then at the clock. 
 
 " Don t you think you d better turn in now, Em 
 mie?" he said hastily, cutting off the remainder of 
 the Bangs query. " It s after eight, and when I was 
 little I was abed afore that." 
 
 Emily obediently turned, gathered up the Lady s 
 Books and replaced them in the closet. Then she 
 went to the dining room and came back with a hand 
 lamp. 
 
 " Good night," she said, addressing the visitors. 
 Then, coming close to the captain, she put her face 
 up for a kiss. 
 
 " Good night," she said to him, adding, " I like it 
 here ever so much. I m awful glad you let me stay." 
 
 As Bailey told Asaph afterwards, Captain Cy 
 blushed until the ends of the red lapped over at the 
 nape of his neck. However, he bent and kissed the 
 rosy lips and then quickly brushed his own with his 
 hand. 
 
 Yes, yes," he stammered. " Well er good 
 112
 
 ICICLES AND DUST 
 night. Pleasant dreams to you. See you in the 
 
 mornin . 
 
 The girl paused at the chamber door. " You 
 won t have to unbutton my waist now," she said. 
 " This is my other one and it ain t that kind." 
 
 The door closed. The captain, without looking at 
 his friends, led the way to the dining room. 
 
 " Come on out here," he whispered. " We can 
 talk better here." 
 
 Naturally, they wanted to know all about the girl, 
 who she was and where she came from. Captain Cy 
 told as much of the history of the affair as he thought 
 necessary. 
 
 " Poor young one," he concluded, " she landed on 
 to me in the rain, soppin wet, and ha f sick. I 
 couldn t turn her out then nobody could. Course 
 it s an everlastin outrage on me and the cheekiest 
 thing ever I heard of, but what could I do? I was 
 fixed a good deal like an English feller by the name 
 of Gatenby that I used to know in South America. 
 He woke up in the middle of the night and found a 
 boa constrictor curled on the foot of his bed. Next 
 day, when a crowd of us happened in, there was 
 Gatenby, white as a sheet, starin down at the snake, 
 and it sound asleep. I didn t invite him, he says, 
 but he looked so bloomin comf table I adn t the 
 eart to disturb im. Same way with me; the child 
 seemed so comf table here I ain t had the heart to 
 disturb her yet."
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " But she said she was goin to stay," put in Bailey. 
 " You ain t goin to keep her, are you? " 
 
 The captain s indignation was intense. 
 
 " Who me? " he snorted. " What do you think 
 I am? I ain t runnin an orphan asylum. No, sir! 
 I ll keep the young one a day or so or maybe a week 
 and then I ll pack her off to Betsy Howes. I ain t 
 so soft as they think I am. I ll show em 1 " 
 
 Mr. Tidditt looked thoughtful. 
 
 "She s a kind of cute little girl, ain t she?" he 
 observed. 
 
 Captain Cy s frown vanished and a smile took its 
 place. 
 
 " That s so," he chuckled. " She is, now that s a 
 fact ! I don t know s I ever saw a cuter."
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 AVHEEK isn t a very long time even in Bayport. 
 True, there was once a drummer for a Boston 
 " notion " house who sprained his ankle on 
 the icy sidewalk in front of Simmons s, and was there 
 fore obliged to remain in the front bedroom of the 
 perfect boarding house for seven whole days. He is 
 quoted as saying that next time he hoped he might 
 break his neck. 
 
 " Brother," asked the shocked Rev. Mr. Daniels, 
 who was calling upon the stranger, " are you pre 
 pared to face eternity? " 
 
 "What?" was the energetic reply. "After a 
 week in this town, and in this bedroom ? Look here, 
 Mister, if you want to scare me about the future you 
 just hint that they ll put me on a straw tick in an ice 
 chest. Anything hot and lively 11 only be tempting 
 after this." 
 
 But to us, who live here throughout the year, a 
 week soon passes. And the end of the week follow 
 ing Emily Thomas s arrival at the Cy Whittaker 
 place found the little girl still there and apparently
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 no nearer being shipped to Indiana than when she 
 came. Not so near, if Mr. Tidditt s opinion counts 
 for anything. 
 
 " Gone? " he repeated scoffingly in reply to Bailey 
 Bangs s question. " Course she ain t gone ! And, 
 what s more, she ain t goin to go. Whit s got so 
 already that he wouldn t part with her no more n 
 he d cut off his hand." 
 
 " But he keeps sayin she s got to go. Only yester 
 day he was tellin how Betsy d feel when the girl 
 landed on her with his letter in her pocket." 
 
 " Sayin don t count for nothin . Zoeth Cahoon 
 keeps sayin he s goin to stop drinkin , but he only 
 stops long enough to catch his breath. Cy s tellin 
 himself fairy yarns and he hopes he believes em. 
 Man alive! can t you seel Ain t he gettin more 
 foolish over the young one every day? Don t she 
 boss him round like the overseer on a cranberry 
 swamp? Don t he look more contented than he has 
 sence he got off the cars ? I tell you, Bailey, that child 
 fills a place in Whit s life that s been runnin to seed 
 and needed weedin . Nothin could fill it better 
 unless twas a nice wife." 
 
 " Wife! Oh, do be still ! I believe you re woman- 
 struck and at an age when it hadn t ought to be 
 catchin no more n whoopin cough." 
 
 Mr. Bangs and the town clerk were the only ones, 
 except Captain Cy, who knew the whole truth con 
 cerning the little girl. Not that the child s arrival 
 
 116
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 wasn t noted and vigorously discussed by a large por 
 tion of the townspeople. Emily had not been in the 
 Whittaker house two days before Angeline Phinney 
 called, hot on the trail of gossip and sensation. But, 
 persistent as Angeline was, she departed knowing not 
 quite as much as when she came. The interview be- * 
 tween Miss Phinney and the captain must have been 
 interesting, judging by the lady s account of it. 
 
 " I never see such a man in my born days," de 
 clared Angie disgustedly. " You couldn t get nothin 
 out of him. Not that he wan t pleasant and socia 
 ble; land sakes! he acted as glad to see me as if I 
 was his rich aunt come on a visit. And he was willin 
 to talk, too. That s the trouble; he done all the 
 talkin . I happened to mention, just as a sort of 
 starter, you know, somethin about the cranb ry crop 
 this fall; and after that all he could say was 4 cran- 
 b ries, cranb ries, cranb ries ! Hear you ve got 
 comp ny, says I. * Did you? says he. Now ain t 
 it strange how things ll get spread around? Only 
 yesterday I heard that Joe Dimick s swamp was just 
 loaded down with " early blacks." And yet when I 
 went over to look at it there didn t seem to be so 
 many. There ain t much better cranb ries anywhere ( 
 than our early blacks, he says. You take em 
 And so on, and so on, and so on. / didn t care 
 nothin about the dratted early blacks, but he didn t 
 seem to care for nothin else. He talked cranb ries 
 steady for an hour and a half and I left that house 
 
 117
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 with my mouth all puckered up; it s tasted sour ever 
 sence. I never see such a man ! " 
 
 When Captain Cy was questioned by Asaph con 
 cerning the acid conversation, he grinned. 
 
 " I didn t know you was so interested in cran- 
 b ries," observed Tidditt. 
 
 " I ain t," was the reply; " but I m more interested 
 in em than I am in Angie. I see she was sufferin 
 from a rush of curiosity to the head and I cured her 
 by homeopath doses. Every time she opened her 
 mouth I dropped an early black into it. It s a good 
 receipt; you tell Bailey to try it on Ketury some time." 
 
 To his chums the captain was emphatic in his or 
 ders that secrecy be preserved. No one was to be 
 told who the child was or where she came from. 
 " What they don t know won t hurt em any," de 
 clared Captain Cy. And Emily s answer to inquiring 
 souls who would fain have delved into her past was 
 to the effect that " Uncle Cyrus " didn t like to have 
 her talk about herself. 
 
 " I don t know s I m ashamed of anything I ve 
 done so far," said the captain; " but I ain t braggin , 
 either. Time enough to talk when I send her back 
 to Betsy." 
 
 That time, apparently, was not in the near future. 
 The girl stayed on at the Whittaker place and grew 
 to be more and more a part of it. At the end of the 
 second week Captain Cy began calling her " Bos n." 
 
 " A bos n s a mighty handy man aboard ship," he 
 118
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 explained, " and you re so handy here that it fits in 
 first rate. And, besides, it sounds so natural. My 
 dad called me Bos n when I was little." 
 
 Emily accepted the title complacently. She was 
 quite contented to be called almost anything, so long 
 as she was permitted to stay with her new friend. 
 Already the bos n had taken charge of the deck and 
 the rest of the ship s company; Captain Cy and 
 " Lonesome," the cat, obeyed her orders. 
 
 On the second Sunday morning after her arrival 
 " Bos n " suggested that she and Captain Cy go to 
 church. 
 
 " Mother and I always went at home," she said. 
 " And Auntie Oliver used to say meeting was a good 
 thing for those that needed it." 
 
 Think I need it, do you?" asked the captain, 
 who, in shirt sleeves and slippers, had prepared for 
 a quiet forenoon with his pipe and the Boston Tran 
 script. 
 
 " I don t know, sir. I heard what you said when 
 Lonesome ate up the steak, and I thought maybe you 
 hadn t been for a long time. I guess churches are 
 different in South America." 
 
 So they went to church and sat in the old Whittaker 
 pew. The captain had been there once before, when 
 he first returned to Bayport, but the sermon was more 
 somnolent than edifying, and he hadn t repeated the 
 experiment. The pair attracted much attention. 
 Fragments of a conversation, heard by Captain Cy 
 
 119
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 as they emerged into the vestibule, had momentous 
 consequences. 
 
 "Kind of a pretty child, ain t she?" commented 
 Mrs. Eben Salters, patting her false front into place 
 under the eaves of her Sunday bonnet. 
 
 " Pretty enough in the face," sniffed Mrs. " Tad " 
 Simpson, who was wearing her black silk for the first 
 time since its third making-over. " Pretty enough that 
 way, I s pose. But, my land ! look at the way she s 
 rigged. Old dress, darned and patched up and all 
 outgrown! If I had Cy Whittaker s money I d be 
 ashamed to have a relation of mine come to meetin 
 that way. Even if her folks was poorer n Job s off 
 ox I d spend a little on my own account and trust to 
 getting it back some time. I d have more care for 
 my own self-respect. Look at Alicia Atkins. See 
 how nice she looks. Them feathers on her hat must 
 have cost somethin , I bet you. Howdy do, Licia, 
 dear? When s your pa comin home? " 
 
 The Honorable Heman had left town on a business 
 trip to the South. Alicia was accompanied by the 
 Atkins housekeeper and, as usual, was garbed regard 
 less of expense. 
 
 Mrs. Salters smiled sweetly upon the Atkins heir 
 and then added, in a church whisper: " Don t she 
 look sweet? I agree with you, Sarah; it is strange 
 how Captain Whittaker lets his little niece go. And 
 him rich ! " 
 
 " Niece? " repeated Mrs. Simpson eagerly. " Who 
 120
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 said twas his niece? I heard twas a child he d 
 adopted out of a home. There s all sorts of queer 
 yarns about. I Oh, good mornin , Cap n Cyrus! 
 How do you do ? " 
 
 The captain grunted an answer to the effect that 
 he was bearing up pretty well, considering. There 
 was a scowl on his face, and he spoke little as, hold 
 ing Emily by the hand, he led the way home. That 
 evening he dropped in at the perfect boarding house 
 and begged to know if Mrs. Bangs had any u fashion 
 books " around that she didn t want. 
 
 " I mean er er magazines with pictures of 
 women s duds in em," he stammered, in explanation. 
 " Bos n likes to look at em. She s great on fashion 
 books, Bos n is." 
 
 Keturah got together a half dozen numbers of the 
 Home Dressmaker and other periodicals of a similar 
 nature. The captain took them under his arm and 
 departed, whispering to Mr. Tidditt, as he passed the 
 latter in the hall : 
 
 " Come up by and by, Ase. I want to talk to you. 
 Bring Bailey along, if you can do it without startin 
 divorce proceedings." 
 
 Later, when the trio gathered in the Whittaker 
 sitting room, Captain Cy produced the " fashion 
 books " and spoke concerning them. 
 
 " You see," he said, " I I ve been thinkin that 
 Bos n Emily, that is wan t rigged exactly the way 
 she ought to be. Have you fellers noticed it? " 
 
 121
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 His friends seemed surprised. Neither was ready 
 with an immediate answer, so the captain went on. 
 
 " Course I don t mean she ain t got canvas enough 
 to cover her spars," he explained; " but what she has 
 got has seen consider ble weather, and it seemed to 
 me twas pretty nigh time to haul her into dry dock 
 and refit. That s why I borrowed these magazines 
 of Ketury. I ve been lookin them over and there 
 seems to be plenty of riggin for small craft; the only 
 thing is I don t know what s the right cut for her 
 build. Bailey, you re a married man; you ought to 
 know somethin about women s clothes. What do 
 you think of this, now ? " 
 
 He opened one of the magazines and pointed to 
 the picture of a young girl, with a waspy waist and 
 Lilliputian feet, who, arrayed in flounces and furbe 
 lows, was toddling gingerly down a flight of marble 
 steps. She carried a parasol in one hand, and the 
 other held the end of a chain to which a long-haired 
 dog was attached. 
 
 The town clerk and his companion inspected the 
 young lady with deliberation and interest. 
 
 " Well, what do you say? " demanded Captain Cy. 
 
 " I don t care much for them kind of dogs," ob 
 served Asaph thoughtfully. 
 
 " Good land ! you don t s pose they heave the dog 
 in with the clothes, for good measure, do you? 
 Bailey, what s your opinion?" 
 
 Mr. Bangs looked wise. 
 122
 
 " I should say that was a real stylish rig-out. 
 
 ; I should say " he said, " yes, sir, I should say 
 that was a real stylish rig-out. Only thing is, that 
 girl is consider ble less fleshy than Emily. This one 
 looks to me as if she was breakin in two amidships. 
 Still, I s pose likely the duds don t come ready made, 
 so they could be let out some, to fit. What s the price 
 of a suit like that, Whit? " 
 
 123
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 The captain looked at the printed number beneath 
 the fashion plate and then turned to the description 
 in the text. 
 
 " Afternoon gown for miss of sixteen, " he read. 
 " Humph ! that settles that, first crack. Bos n ain t 
 but half of sixteen." 
 
 " Anyway," put in Asaph, " you need somethin 
 she could wear forenoons, if she wanted to. What s 
 this one? She looks young enough." 
 
 The u one " referred to turned out to be a " coat 
 for child of four." It was therefore scornfully re 
 jected. One after another the different magazines 
 were examined and the pictures discussed. At length 
 a " costume for miss of eight years " was pronounced 
 to be pretty nearly the thing. 
 
 " Godfrey scissors! " exclaimed the admiring Mr. 
 Tidditt. "That s mighty swell, ain t it? What s 
 the stuff goes into that, Cy?" 
 
 " Material, batiste, trimmed with embroidered 
 batiste. What in time is batiste?" 
 
 " I don t know. Do you, Bailey? " 
 
 " No; never heard of it. Ketury never had nothin 
 like that, I m sure. French, I shouldn t wonder. 
 Well, Ketury s down on the French ever sence 
 she read about Napoleon leavin his fust wife to 
 take up with another woman. Does it say any 
 more?" 
 
 " Let s see. Makes a beautiful gown for evening 
 or summer wear. Summer! Why, by the big dip- 
 
 124
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 per, we re aground again ! Bos n don t want summer 
 clothes. It s comin on winter." 
 
 He threw the magazine on the floor, rubbed his 
 forehead, and then burst into a laugh. 
 
 " For goodness sake, don t tell anybody about this 
 business, boys! " he said. " I guess I must be havin 
 an early spring of second childhood. But when I 
 heard those women at the meetin house goin on 
 about how pretty Licia Atkins was got up and how 
 mean and shabby Bos n looked, it made me bile. 
 And, by the big dipper, I will show em somethin 
 afore I get through, too! Only, dressin little girls 
 is some off my usual course. Bailey, does Ketury 
 make her own duds? " 
 
 " Why, no ! Course she helps and stands by for 
 orders, but Effie Taylor comes and takes the wheel 
 while the riggin s goin on. Effie s a dressmaker 
 and " 
 
 There ! See, Ase ? It is some good to have a 
 married man aboard, after all. A dressmaker s what 
 we want. I ll hunt up Effie to-morrow." 
 
 And hunt her up he did, with the result that Miss 
 Taylor came to the Whittaker place each day during 
 the following week and Emily was, as the captain 
 said, " rigged out fresh from main truck to keelson." 
 In this " rigging " Captain Cy and his two partners 
 Josiah Dimick had already christened the pair 
 The Board of Strategy " took a marked interest. 
 They were on hand when each new garment was 
 
 125
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 tried on, and they approved or criticised as seemed 
 to them best. 
 
 " Ain t that kind of sober lookin for a young one 
 like Bos n?" asked the captain, referring to one of 
 the new gowns. " I don t want her to look as if she 
 was dressed cheap." 
 
 " Land sakes ! " mumbled Miss Taylor, her mouth 
 full of pins. " There ain t anything cheap about it, 
 and you ll find it out when you get the bill. That s 
 a nice, rich, sensible suit." 
 
 " I know, but it s so everlastin quiet ! Don t you 
 think a little yellow and black or some red strung 
 along the yards would sort of liven it up? Why! 
 you ought to see them Greaser girls down in South 
 America of a Sunday afternoon. Color! and go! 
 Jerushy ! they d pretty nigh knock your eye out." 
 
 The dressmaker sniffed disdain. 
 
 " Cap n Whittaker," she retorted, " if you want 
 this child to look like an Indian squaw or a barber s 
 pole you ll have to get somebody else to do it. I m 
 used to dressing Christians, not yeller and black 
 heathen women. Red strung along a skirt like that ! 
 I never did! " 
 
 " There, there, Effie ! Don t get the barometer 
 fallin . I was only suggesting you know. What do 
 you think, Bos n? " 
 
 " Why, Uncle Cyrus, I don t believe I should like 
 red very much; nor the other colors, either. I like 
 this just as it is," 
 
 126
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 "So? Well, you re the doctor. Maybe you re 
 right. I wouldn t want you to look like a barber s 
 pole. Don t love Tad Simpson enough to want to 
 advertise his business." 
 
 Miss Taylor s coming had other results besides the 
 refitting of " Bos n." She found much fault with the 
 captain s housekeeping. It developed that her sister 
 Georgiana, who had been working in a Brockton shoe 
 shop, was now at home and might be engaged to at 
 tend to the household duties at the Whittaker estab 
 lishment, provided she was allowed to " go home 
 nights." Georgiana was engaged, on trial, and did 
 well. So that problem was solved. 
 
 School in Bayport opens the first week in October. 
 Of late there has been a movement, headed by some 
 of the townspeople who think city ways are best, to 
 have the term begin in September. But this idea has 
 little chance of success as long as cranberry picking 
 continues to be our leading industry. So many of the 
 children help out the family means by picking cran 
 berries in the fall that school, until the picking season 
 was over, would be slimly attended. 
 
 The last week in September found us all discussing 
 the coming of the new downstairs teacher, Miss 
 Phoebe Dawes. Since it was definitely settled that 
 she was to come, the opposition had died down and 
 was less openly expressed; but it was there, all the 
 same, beneath the surface. Congressman Atkins had 
 accepted the surprising defiance of his wish with calm 
 10 127
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 dignity and the philosophy of the truly great who arc 
 not troubled by trifles. His lieutenant, Tad Simpson, 
 quoted him as saying that, of course, the will of the 
 school committee w r as paramount, and he, as all good 
 citizens should, bowed to their verdict. " Far be it 
 from me," so the great man proclaimed, " to desire 
 that my opinion should carry more weight than that 
 of the humblest of my friends and neighbors. Speak 
 ing as one whose knowledge of the world was, per 
 haps er more extensive than er others, I fa 
 vored the Normal School candidate. But the persons 
 chosen to select thought or appeared to think 
 otherwise. I therefore say nothing and await devel 
 opments." 
 
 This attitude was considered by most of us to re 
 flect credit upon Mr. Atkins. There were a few scof 
 fers, however. When the proclamation was repeated 
 to Captain Cy he smiled. 
 
 " Alpheus," he said to Mr. Smalley, his informant, 
 " you didn t use to know Deacon Zeb Clark, who 
 lived up by the salt works in my granddad s time, 
 hey ? No, course you didn t ! Well, the deacon was 
 a great believer in his own judgment. One time, it 
 bein Saturday, his wife wanted him to pump the 
 washtub full and take a bath. He said, no; said 
 the cistern was awful low and twould use up all the 
 water. She said no such thing; there was water 
 a-plenty. To prove she was wrong he went and pried 
 the cistern cover off to look, and fell in. Mrs. Clark 
 
 128
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 peeked down and saw him there, standin up to his 
 neck. 
 
 " 4 Tabby, says he, you would have your way and 
 I m takin the bath. But you can see for yourself 
 that we ll have to cart water from now on. How 
 ever, / ain t responsible ; throw me down the soap and 
 towel. " 
 
 " Humph ! " grunted Smalley, " I don t see what 
 that s got to do with it. Heman ain t takin no bath." 
 
 " I don t know s it s got anything to do with it. 
 But he kind of made me think of Zeb, all the same." 
 
 The first day of school was, of course, a Monday. 
 On Sunday afternoon Captain Cy and Bos n went for 
 a walk. These walks had become a regular part of 
 the Sabbath programme, the weather, of course, per 
 mitting. After church the pair came home for din 
 ner. The meal being eaten, the captain would light 
 a cigar a pipe was now hardly " dressed-up " enough 
 for Sunday and, taking his small partner by the 
 hand, would lead the way across the fields, through 
 the pines and down by the meadow " short cut" to 
 the cemetery. The cemetery is a favorite Sabbath 
 resort for the natives of Bayport, who usually speak 
 of it as the graveyard. It is a pleasant, shady spot, 
 and to visit it is considered quite respectable and in 
 keeping with the day and a due regard for decorum. 
 The ungodly, meaning the summer boarders and the 
 village no-accounts, seem to prefer the beach and the 
 fish houses, but the cemetery attracts the churchgoers. 
 
 129
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 One may gossip concerning the probable cost of a 
 new tombstone and still remain faithful to the most 
 rigid creed. 
 
 Captain Cy was not, strictly speaking, a religious 
 man, according to Bayport standards. Between his 
 attendance to churchly duties and that of the Hon 
 orable Heman Atkins there was a great gulf fixed. 
 But he rather liked to visit the graveyard on Sunday 
 afternoons. His mother had been used to stroll there 
 with him, in his boyhood, and it pleased him to follow 
 in her footsteps. 
 
 So he and Bos n walked along the grass-covered 
 paths, between the iron-fenced " lots " of the well- 
 to-do and the humble mounds and simple slabs where 
 the poor were sleeping; past the sumptuous granite 
 shaft of the Atkins lot and the tilted mossy stone 
 which told how " Edwin Simpson, our only son," had 
 been "accidentally shot in the West Indies"; out 
 through the back gate and up the hill to the pine 
 grove overlooking the bay. Here, on a scented car 
 pet of pine needles, they sat them down to rest and 
 chat. 
 
 Emily, her small knees drawn up and encircled by 
 her arms, looked out across the flats, now half covered 
 with the rising tide. It was a mild day, more like 
 August than October, and there was almost no wind. 
 The sun was shining on the shallow water, and the 
 sand beneath it showed yellow, checkered and mar 
 bled with dark green streaks and patches where the 
 
 130
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 weed-bordered channels wound tortuously. On the 
 horizon the sand hills of Wellmouth notched the blue 
 sky. The girl drew a long breath. 
 
 " Oh ! " she exclaimed. " Isn t this just lovely! I 
 do like the sea an awful lot." 
 
 " That s natural enough," replied her companion. 
 " There s a big streak of salt water in your blood 
 on your ma s side. It pulls, that kind of a streak 
 does. There s days when I feel uneasy every minute 
 and hanker for a deck underneath me. The settin 
 room floor stays altogether too quiet on a day like 
 that; I d like to feel it heavin over a ground swell. 
 
 " Say, Bos n," he said a few minutes later; " I ve 
 been thinkin about you. You ve been to school, 
 haven t you? " 
 
 " Course I have," was the rather indignant answer. 
 : I went two years in Concord. Mamma used to help 
 me nights, too. I can read almost all the little words. 
 Don t I help you read your paper most every night? " 
 
 " Sartin you do ! Yes, yes ! Well, our school opens 
 to-morrer and I ve been thinkin that maybe you d 
 better go. There s a new teacher comin , and I hear 
 she s pretty good." 
 
 " Don t you know! Why, Mr. Tidditt said you 
 was the one that got her to come here ! " 
 
 Yes; well, Asaph says most everything but his 
 prayers. Still, he ain t fur off this time; I cal late I 
 was some responsible for her bein voted in. Yet I 
 don t really know anything about her. You see, I
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 well, never mind. What do you think? Want to 
 go?" 
 
 Bos n looked troubled. 
 
 " I d like to," she said. " Course I want to learn 
 how to read the big words, too. But I like to stay 
 at home with you more." 
 
 " You do, hey? Sho, sho! Well, I guess I can 
 get along between times. Georgiana s there to keep 
 me straight and she ll see to the dust and the dishes. 
 I guess you d better go to-morrer mornin and see how 
 you like it, anyhow." 
 
 The child thought for a moment. 
 
 " I think you re awful good," she said. " I like 
 you next to mamma ; even better than Auntie Oliver. 
 I printed a letter to her the other day. I told her you 
 were better than we expected and I had decided to 
 live with you always." 
 
 Captain Cy was startled. Considering that, only 
 the day before, he had repeated to Bailey the declara 
 tion that the arrangement was but temporary, and 
 that Betsy Howes was escaping responsibility only for 
 a month or so, he scarcely knew what to say. 
 
 "Humph!" he grunted. "You ve decided it, 
 have you? Well, we ll see. Now you trot around 
 and have a good time. I m goin to have another 
 smoke. I ll be here when you get back." 
 
 Bos n wandered off in search of late golden rod. 
 The captain smoked and meditated. By and by the 
 puffs were less frequent and the cigar went out. It 
 
 132
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 fell from his fingers. With his back against a pine 
 tree Captain Cy dozed peacefully. 
 
 He awoke with a jump. Something had awakened 
 him, but he did not know what. He blinked and 
 gazed about him. Then he heard a faint scream. 
 
 " Uncle ! " screamed Bos n. " O o o h ! 
 Uncle Cyrus, help me! Come quick! " 
 
 The next moment the captain was plunging through 
 the scrub of huckleberry and bayberry bushes, bump 
 ing into pines and smashing the branches aside as he 
 ran in the direction of the call. 
 
 Back of the pine grove was a big inclosed pasture 
 nearly a quarter of a mile long. Its rear boundary 
 was the iron fence of the cemetery. The other three 
 sides were marked by rail fences and a stone wall. 
 As the captain floundered from the grove and vaulted 
 the rail fence he swore aloud. 
 
 " By the big dipper," he groaned, " it s that cussed 
 heifer! I forgot her. Keep dodgin , Bos n girl! 
 I m comin ." 
 
 The pasture was tenanted by a red and white cow 
 belonging to Sylvanus Cahoon. Whether or not the 
 animal had, during her calfhood days, been injured 
 by a woman is not known ; possibly her behavior was 
 due merely to innate depravity. At any rate, she 
 cherished a mortal hatred toward human beings of 
 her own sex. With men and boys she was meek 
 enough, but no person wearing skirts, and alone, 
 might venture in that field without being chased by 
 
 133
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 that cow. What would happen if the pursued one 
 was caught could only be surmised, for, so far, no 
 female had permitted herself to be caught. Few 
 would come even so near as the other side of the pas 
 ture walls. 
 
 Bos n had forgotten the cow. She had gone from 
 one golden-rod clump to another until she had tra 
 versed nearly the length of the field. Then the vicious 
 creature had appeared from behind a knoll in the 
 pasture and, head down and bellowing wickedly, had 
 rushed upon her. When the captain reached the far- 
 off fence, the little girl was dodging from one dwarf 
 pine to the next, with the cow in pursuit. The pines 
 were few and Bos n was nearly at the end of her 
 defenses. 
 
 " Help ! " she screamed. " Oh, uncle, where are 
 you? What shall I do?" 
 
 Captain Cy roared in answer. 
 
 " Keep it up !" he yelled. " I m a-comin ! Shoo! 
 you everlastin critter! I ll break your back for 
 you!" 
 
 The cow didn t understand English it seemed, even 
 such vigorous English as the captain was using. Em 
 ily dodged to the last pine. The animal was close 
 upon her. Her rescuer was still far away. 
 
 And then the cemetery gate opened and another 
 person entered the pasture. A small person a wom 
 an. She said nothing, but picking up her skirts, ran 
 straight toward the cow, heedless of the latter s repu- 
 
 134
 
 T3 
 O 
 
 S 
 o 
 
 JZ 
 
 o 
 
 o
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 tation and vicious appearance. One hand clutched 
 the gathered skirts. In the other she held a book. 
 
 " Don t be scared, dear," she called reassuringly. 
 Then to the cow : " Stop it I Go away, you wicked 
 thing!" 
 
 The animal heard the voice and turned. Seeing 
 that the newcomer was only a woman, she lowered 
 her head and pawed the ground. 
 
 " Run for the gate, little girl," commanded the 
 rescuer. " Run quick! " Bos n obeyed. She made 
 a desperate dash from her pine across the open space, 
 and in another moment was safe inside the cemetery 
 fence. 
 
 " Scat! Go home! " ordered the lady, advancing 
 toward the cow and shaking the book at her, as if 
 the volume was some sort of deadly weapon. " Aren t 
 you ashamed of yourself! Go away! You needn t 
 growl at me ! I m not a bit afraid of you." 
 
 The " growling " was the muttered bellow with 
 which the cow was wont to terrorize her feminine 
 victims. But this victim refused to be terrorized. 
 Instead of screaming and running she continued to 
 advance, brandishing the book and repeating her or 
 ders that the creature " go home " at once. The cow 
 did not know what to make of it. Before she could 
 decide whether to charge or retreat, a good-sized stick 
 descended upon her back with a " whack " that set 
 tled the question. Captain Cy had reached the scene 
 of battle. 
 
 135
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Then the rescuer s courage seemed to desert her, 
 for she ran back to the cemetery even faster than she 
 had run from it. When the indignant captain, hav 
 ing pursued and chastised the cow until the stick was 
 but a splintered remnant, reached the haven behind 
 the iron fence, he found her soothing the frightened 
 Bos n who was sobbing and hysterical. 
 
 Emily saw her " Uncle Cyrus " coming and rushed 
 into his arms. He picked her up and, holding her 
 with a grip which testified to the nerve strain he had 
 been under, stepped forward to meet the stranger, 
 whose coming had been so opportune. 
 
 And she was a stranger. The captain knew most 
 of Bayport s inhabitants by this time, or thought he 
 did, but he did not know her. She was a small 
 woman, quietly dressed, and her hair, under a neat 
 black and white hat, was brown. The hat was now 
 a trifle to one side and the hair was the least bit dis 
 arranged, an effect not at all unbecoming. She was 
 tucking in the stray wisps as the captain, with Bos n 
 in his arms, came up. 
 
 "Well, ma am!" puffed Captain Cy. " Well, 
 ma am ! I must say that was the slickest, pluckiest 
 thing ever I saw anywheres. I don t know what 
 would I I declare I don t know how to thank 
 you." 
 
 The lady looked at him a moment before replying. 
 Then she began to laugh, a jolly laugh that was 
 pleasant to hear. 
 
 136
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 " Don t try, please," she said chokingly. " It 
 wasn t anything. Oh, mercy me ! I m all out of 
 breath. You see, I had been warned about that cow 
 when I started to walk this afternoon. So when I 
 saw her chasing your poor little girl here I knew 
 right away what was the matter. It must have been 
 foolish enough to look at. I m used to dogs and 
 cats, but I haven t had many pet cows. I told her 
 to go home and to scat and all sorts of things. 
 Wonder I didn t tell her to lie down ! And the way 
 I shook that ridiculous book at her was " 
 
 She laughed again and the captain and Bos n joined 
 in the laugh, in spite of the fright they both had 
 experienced., 
 
 " That book was dry enough to frighten almost 
 anything," continued the lady. " It was one I took 
 from the table before I left the place where I m stay 
 ing, and a duller collection of sermons I never saw. 
 Oh, dear ! . . . there 1 Is my hat any more respect 
 able now? " 
 
 Yes m. It s about on an even keel, I should say. 
 But I must tell you, ma am, you done simply great 
 pnd " 
 
 " Seems to me the people who own that cow must 
 be a poor set to let her make such a nuisance of her 
 self. Did your daughter run away from you? " 
 
 Well, you see, ma am, she ain t really my daugh 
 ter. Bos n here that s my nickname for her, ma am 
 she and I was out walkin . I set down in the pines 
 
 137
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 and I guess I must have dozed off. Anyhow, when 
 I woke up she was gone, and the first thing I knew 
 of this scrape was hearin her hail." 
 
 The little woman s manner changed. Her gray 
 eyes flashed indignantly. 
 
 " You dozed off? " she repeated. " With a little 
 girl in your charge, and in the very next lot to that 
 cow? Didn t you know the creature chased women 
 and girls? " 
 
 " Why, yes; I d heard of it, but " 
 
 " It wasn t Uncle Cyrus s fault," put in Bos n 
 eagerly. " It was mine. I went away by myself." 
 
 Beyond shifting her gaze to the child the lady paid 
 no attention to this remark. 
 
 " What do you think her mother 11 say when she 
 sees that dress?" she asked. 
 
 It was Emily s best gown, the finest of the new 
 " rig out " prepared by Miss Taylor. The girl and 
 Captain Cy gazed ruefully at the rents and pitch 
 stains made by the vines and pine trees. 
 
 " Well, you see," replied the abashed captain, " the 
 fact is, she ain t got any mother." 
 
 "Oh! I beg your pardon. And hers, too, poor 
 dear. Well, if I were you I shouldn t go to sleep 
 next time I took her walking. Good afternoon." 
 
 She turned and calmly walked down the path. At 
 the bend she spoke again. 
 
 " I should be gentle with her, if I were you," she 
 said. " Her nerves are pretty well upset. Besides, 
 
 138
 
 CAPTAIN CY PROVES DELINQUENT 
 
 if you ll excuse my saying so, I don t think she is the 
 one that needs scolding." 
 
 They thought she had gone, but she turned once 
 more to add a final suggestion. 
 
 " I think that dress could be fixed," she said, " if 
 you took it to some one who knew about such things." 
 
 She disappeared amidst the graveyard shrubbery. 
 Captain Cy and Bos n slowly followed her. From the 
 pasture the red and white cow sent after them a 
 broken-spirited " Moo I " 
 
 Bos n was highly indignant. During the home 
 ward walk she sputtered like a damp firecracker. 
 
 " The idea of her talking so to you, Uncle Cyrus I " 
 she exclaimed. " It wasn t your fault at all." 
 
 The captain smiled one-sidedly. 
 
 " I don t know about that, shipmate," he said. " I 
 wouldn t wonder if she was more than half right. 
 But say! she was all business and no frills, wasn t 
 she ! Ha, ha ! How she did spunk up to that heifer ! 
 Who in the dickens do you cal late she is? "
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 THE " COW LADY " 
 
 THAT question was answered the very next 
 day. Bos n, carefully dressed by Georgi- 
 anna under the captain s supervision, and 
 weighted down with advice and counsel from the lat 
 ter, started for the schoolhouse at a quarter to nine. 
 Only a sense of shame kept Captain Cy from walking 
 to school with her. He spent a miserable forenoon. 
 They were quite the longest three hours in his varied 
 experience. The house was dreadfully lonely. He 
 wandered from kitchen to sitting room, worried 
 Georgianna, woke up the cat, and made a complete 
 nuisance of himself. Twelve o clock found him lean 
 ing over the gate and looking eagerly in the direction 
 of the schoolhouse. 
 
 Bos n ran all the way home. She was in a high 
 state of excitement. 
 
 "What do you think, Uncle Cyrus?" she cried. 
 " What do you think? I ve found out who the cow 
 lady is!" 
 
 " The cow lady ? Oh, yes, yes ! Have you ? Who 
 is she?" 
 
 140
 
 THE "COW LADY 
 
 " She s teacher, that s who she is! " 
 
 The captain was astonished. 
 
 "No!" he exclaimed. "Phoebe Dawes? You 
 don t say so ! Well, well ! " 
 
 " Yes, sir. When I went into school and found 
 her sitting there I was so surprised I didn t know 
 what to do. She knew me, too, and said good morn 
 ing, and was I all right again and was my dress really 
 as bad as it looked to be ? I told her that Georgianna 
 thought she could fix it, and if she couldn t, her sister 
 could. She said that was nice, and then twas time 
 for school to begin." 
 
 " Did she say anything about me? " inquired Cap 
 tain Cy when they were seated at the dinner table. 
 
 " Oh, yes ! I forgot. She must have found out 
 who you are, cause she said she was surprised that a 
 man who had made his money out of hides should 
 have been so careless about the creatures that wore 
 em." 
 
 ; Humph ! How d she get along with the young 
 ones in school? " 
 
 It appeared that she had gotten along very well 
 with them. Some of the bigger boys in the back 
 seats, cherishing pleasant memories of the " fun " 
 they had under Miss Seabury s easy-going rule, at 
 tempted to repeat their performances of the previous 
 term. But the very first " spitball " which spattered 
 upon the blackboard proved a disastrous missile for 
 its thrower. 
 
 11 141
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " She made him clean the board," proclaimed 
 Bos n, big-eyed and awestruck, " and then he had to 
 stand in the corner. He was Bennie Edwards, and 
 he s most thirteen. Miss Seabury, they said, couldn t 
 do anything with him, but teacher said Go, as 
 quiet as could be and just looked at him, and he 
 went. And he s most as tall as she is. He did look 
 so silly ! " 
 
 The Edwards youth was not the only one who was 
 made to " look silly " by little Miss Dawes during 
 the first days of her stay in Bayport. She dealt with 
 the unruly members of her classes as bravely as she 
 had faced the Cahoon cow, and the results were just 
 as satisfactory. She was strict, but she was impar 
 tial, and Alicia Atkins found, to her great surprise, 
 that the daughter of a congressman was expected to 
 study as faithfully and behave herself as well as 
 freckled-faced Noah Hamlin, whose father peddled 
 fish and whose everyday costume was a checkered 
 " jumper " and patched overalls. 
 
 The school committee, that is, the majority of it, 
 was delighted with the new teacher. Lemuel Myrick 
 boasted loudly of his good judgment in voting for 
 her. But Tad Simpson and Darius Ellis and others 
 of the Atkins following still scoffed and hinted at 
 trouble in the future. 
 
 " A new broom sweeps fine," quoted Mr. Simp 
 son. " She s doin all right now, maybe. Anyway, 
 the young ones are behavin themselves, but 
 
 142
 
 THE "COW LADY 
 
 line ain t the whole thing. Heman told me that the 
 teacher he wanted could talk French language and 
 play music and all kinds of accomplishments. Phoebe 
 not findin any fault with her, you understand 
 don t know no more about music than a hen; my wife 
 says she don t even sing in church loud enough for 
 anybody to hear her. And as for French ! why every 
 body knows she uses the commonest sort of United 
 States, just as easy to understand as what I m sayin 
 now." 
 
 Miss Dawes boarded at the perfect boarding house. 
 There opinion was divided concerning her. Bailey 
 and Mr. Tidditt liked her, but the feminine boarders 
 were not so favorably impressed. 
 
 " I think she s altogether too pert about what don t 
 concern her," commented Angeline Phinney. " Sarah 
 Emma Simpson dropped in t other day to dinner, and 
 we church folks got to talkin about the minister s 
 preachin such advanced sermons. And Sarah 
 Emma told how she d heard he said he d known 
 some real moral Universalists in his time, or some 
 such unreligious foolishness. And I said I wondered 
 he didn t get a new tail coat; the one he preached 
 in Sundays was old as the hills and so outgrown it 
 wouldn t scurcely button acrost him. * A man bein 
 paid nine hundred a year, I says, ought to dress 
 decent, anyhow. And that Phoebe Dawes speaks up, 
 without bein asked, and says for her part she d ruther 
 hear a broad man in a narrer coat than t other way 
 
 143
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 about. Twas a regular slap in the face for me, and 
 Sarah Emma and I ain t got over it yet." 
 
 Captain Cy heard the gossip concerning the new 
 teacher and it rather pleased him. She appeared to 
 be independent, and he liked independence. He met 
 her once or twice on the street, but she merely bowed 
 and passed on. Once he tried to thank her again 
 for her part in the cow episode, but she would not 
 listen to him. 
 
 Bos n was making good progress with her studies. 
 She was naturally a bright child not the marvel the 
 captain and the " Board of Strategy " considered 
 her, but quick to learn. She was not a saint, how 
 ever, and occasionally misbehaved in school and was 
 punished for it. One afternoon she did not return 
 at her usual hour. Captain Cy was waiting at the 
 gate when Asaph Tidditt happened along. Bailey, 
 too, was with him. 
 
 14 Waitin for Bos n, was you?" asked the town 
 clerk. " Well, you ll have to wait quite a spell, I 
 cul late. She s been kept after school." 
 
 " Yes; and she s got to write fifty lines of copy," 
 added Bailey. 
 
 Captain Cy was highly indignant. 
 
 " Get out! " he cried. " She ain t neither." 
 
 Yes, she has, too. One of the Salters young ones 
 told me. I knew you d be mad, though I s pose folks 
 that didn t know her s well s we do would say she s 
 no different from other children." 
 
 144
 
 THE "COW LADY 
 
 This was close to heresy, according to the captain s 
 opinion. 
 
 " She ain t! " he cried. " I d like to know why 
 not! If she ain t twice as smart as the run of young 
 ones round here then Humph! And she s kept 
 after school! Well, now; I won t have it! There s 
 enough time for studyin without wearin out her 
 brains after hours. Oh, I guess you re mistaken." 
 
 " No, we ain t. I tell you, Whit, if I was you I d 
 make a fuss about this. She s a smart child, Bos n 
 is; I never see a smarter. And she ain t any too 
 strong." 
 
 "That s so, she ain t." The idea that Emily s 
 health was " delicate " had become a fixed fact in 
 the minds of the captain and the " Board." It made 
 a good excuse for the systematic process of " spoil 
 ing " the girl, which the indulgent three were doing 
 their best to carry on. 
 
 " I wouldn t let her be kept, Cy," urged Bailey. 
 " Why don t you go right off and see Phoebe and 
 settle this thing? You ve got a right to talk to her. 
 She wouldn t be teacher if it wasn t for you." 
 
 Asaph added his arguments to those of Mr. Bangs, 
 Captain Cy, carried away by his firm belief that Bos n v 
 was a paragon of all that was brilliant and good, 
 finally yielded. 
 
 " All right! " he exclaimed. " Come on! That 
 poor little thing shan t be put upon by nobody." 
 
 The trio marched majestically down the hill. As 
 
 145
 
 they neared the schoolhouse Bailey s courage began 
 to fail. Miss Dawes was a boarder at his house, and 
 he feared consequences should Keturah learn of his 
 interference. 
 
 " I I guess you don t need me," he stammered. 
 The three of us 11 scare that teacher woman most 
 to death. And she s so little and meek, you know. 
 If I should lose my temper and rare up I might say 
 somethin that would hurt her feelin s. I ll set on the 
 fence and wait for you and Ase, Whit." 
 
 Mr. Tidditt s scornful comments concerning "white 
 feathers " and " backsliders " had no effect. Mr. 
 Bangs perched himself on the fence. 
 
 "Give it to her, fellers!" he called after them. 
 "Talk Dutch to her! Let her know that there s 
 one child she can t abuse." 
 
 At the foot of the steps Asaph paused. 
 
 " Say, Cy," he whispered, " don t you think I bet 
 ter not go in ? It ain t really my business, you know, 
 and and Well, I m on the s lectmen and she 
 might be frightened if she see me pouncin down on 
 her. Tain t as if I was just a common man. I ll 
 go and set along of Bailey and you go in and 
 talk quiet to her. She d feel so sort of ashamed 
 if there was anyone else to hear the rakin over 
 hey?" 
 
 " Now, see here, Ase," expostulated the captain, 
 "I don t like to do this all by myself! Besides, 
 twas you chaps put me up to it. You ain t goin 
 
 146
 
 THE "COW LADY 
 
 to pull out of the race and leave me to go over 
 the course alone, are you ? Come on ! what are you 
 afraid of?" 
 
 His companion hotly denied that he was " afraid " 
 of anything. He had all sorts of arguments to back 
 his decision. At last Captain Cy lost patience. 
 
 " Well, be a skulk, if you want to ! " he declared. 
 " I ve set out to see this thing through, and I m goin 
 to do it. Only," he muttered, as he entered the down 
 stairs vestibule, " I wish I didn t feel quite so much 
 as if I was stealin hens eggs." 
 
 Miss Dawes herself opened the door in response 
 to his knock. 
 
 " Oh, it s you, Cap n Whittaker," she said. 
 " Come in, please." 
 
 Captain Cy entered the schoolroom. It was empty, 
 save for the teacher and himself and one little girl, 
 who, seated at a desk, was writing busily. She looked 
 up and blushed a vivid red. The little girl was Bos n. 
 
 " Sit down, Cap n," said Miss Phoebe, indicating 
 the visitor s chair. " What was it you wanted to see 
 me about? " 
 
 The captain accepted the invitation to be seated, 
 but he did not immediately reply to Miss Dawes s 
 question. He dropped his hat on the floor, crossed 
 his legs, uncrossed them, and then observed that it 
 was pretty summery weather for so late in the fall. 
 The teacher admitted the truth of his assertion and 
 waited for him to continue.
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " I I s pose school s pretty full, now that cran- 
 b ryin s over," said Captain Cy. 
 
 " Yes, pretty full." 
 
 " Gettin along first rate with the scholars, I hear." 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 This was a most unpromising beginning, really no 
 beginning at all. The captain cleared his throat, set 
 his teeth, and, without looking at his companion, dove 
 headlong into the business which had brought him 
 there. 
 
 " Miss Dawes," he said, " I I s pose you know 
 that Bos n I mean Emily there is livin at my 
 house and that I m taking care of her for for the 
 present." 
 
 The lady smiled. 
 
 " Yes," she said. u I gathered as much from what 
 you said when we first met." 
 
 She herself had said one or two things on that 
 occasion. Captain Cy remembered them distinctly. 
 
 " Yes, yes," he said hastily. " Well, my doin s 
 that time wasn t exactly the best sample of the care, 
 I will say. Wan t even a fair sample, maybe. I 
 try to do my best with the child, long as she stays 
 with me, and er and er I m pretty particular 
 about her health." 
 
 " I m glad to hear it." 
 
 " Yes. Now, Miss Phoebe, I appreciate what you 
 did for Bos n and me that Sunday, and I m thankful 
 
 for it. I ve tried to thank " 
 
 148
 
 THE "COW LADY 
 
 " I know. Please don t say any more about it. I 
 imagine there is something else you want to say, isn t 
 there?" 
 
 Why, yes, there is. I I heard that Emmie had 
 been kept after school. I didn t believe it, of course, 
 but I thought I d run up and see what " 
 
 He hesitated. The teacher finished the sentence 
 for him. 
 
 " To see if it was true? " she said. " It is. I told 
 her to stay and write fifty lines." 
 
 You did? Well, now that s what I wanted to 
 speak to you about. Course I ain t interferin in your 
 affairs, you know, but I just wanted to explain about 
 Bos n Emmie, I mean. She ain t a common child; 
 she s got too much head for the rest of her. If you d 
 lived with her same as I have you d appreciate it. 
 Her health s delicate." 
 
 " Is it? She seems strong enough to me. I haven t 
 noticed any symptoms." 
 
 " Course not, else you wouldn t have kept her in. 
 But / know, and I think it s my duty to tell you. 
 Never mind if she can t do quite so much writin . 
 I d rather she wouldn t; she might bust a blood ves 
 sel or somethin . Such things have happened, to 
 extry smart young ones. You just let her trot along 
 home with me now and 
 
 " Cap n Whittaker," Miss Dawes had risen to her 
 feet with a determined expression on her face. 
 
 " Yes, ma am," said the captain, rising also. 
 149
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Cap n Whittaker," repeated the teacher, " I m 
 very glad that you called. I ve been rather expect 
 ing you might, because of certain things I have 
 heard." 
 
 "You heard? What was it you heard if you 
 don t mind my askin ? " 
 
 " No, I don t, because I think we must have an 
 understanding about Emily. I have heard that you 
 allow her to do as she pleases at home ; in other words, 
 that you are spoiling her, and " 
 
 " Spoilin her ! / spoilin her? Who told you such 
 an unlikely yarn as that? I ain t the kind to spoil 
 anybody. Why, I m so strict that I m ashamed of 
 myself sometimes." 
 
 He honestly believed he was. Miss Phoebe calmly 
 continued. 
 
 " Of course, what you do at home is none of my 
 business. I shouldn t mention it anyhow, if you hadn t 
 called, because I pay very little attention to town talk, 
 having lived in this county all my life and knowing 
 what gossip amounts to. I like Emily; she s a pretty 
 good little girl and well behaved, as children go. But 
 this you must understand. She can t be spoiled here. 
 She whispered this afternoon, twice. She has been 
 warned often, and knows the rule. I kept her after 
 school because she broke that rule, and if she breaks 
 it again, she will be punished again. I kept the Ed 
 wards boy two hours yesterday and 
 
 " Edwards boy ! Do you mean to compare that 
 150
 
 THE "COW LADY 
 
 that young rip of a Ben Edwards with a girl like 
 Bos n? I never heard " 
 
 " I m not comparing anybody. I m trying to be 
 fair to every scholar in this room. And, so long as 
 Emily behaves herself, she shall be treated accord 
 ingly. When she doesn t, she shall be punished. You 
 must understand that." 
 
 " But Ben Edwards! Why, he s a wooden-head, 
 same as his dad was afore him! And Emmie s the 
 smartest scholar in this town." 
 
 " Oh, no, she isn t ! She s a good scholar, but there 
 are others just as good and even quicker to learn." 
 
 This was piling one insult upon another. Other 
 children as brilliant as Bos n ! Captain Cy was burst 
 ing with righteous indignation. 
 
 "Well!" he exclaimed. "Well! for a teacher 
 that we ve called to " 
 
 " And that s another thing," broke in Miss Dawes 
 quickly. " I ve been told that you, Cap n Whittaker, 
 are the one directly responsible for my being chosen 
 for this place. I don t say that you are presuming 
 on that, but " 
 
 " I ain t! I never thought of such a thing! " 
 
 " But if you are you mustn t, that s all. I didn t 
 ask for the position and, now that I ve got it, I shall 
 try to fill it without regard to one person more than 
 another. Emily stays here until her lines are written. 
 I don t think we need to say any more. Good day." 
 
 She opened the door. Captain Cy picked up his
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 hat, swallowed hard, and stepped across the thresh 
 old. Then Miss Phoebe added one more remark. 
 
 " Cap n," she said, " when you were in command 
 of a ship did you allow outsiders to tell you how to 
 treat the sailors? " 
 
 The captain opened his mouth to reply. He 
 wanted to reply very much, but somehow he couldn t 
 find a satisfying answer to that question. 
 
 " Ma am," he said, " all I can say is that if you d 
 been in South America, same as I have, and seen the 
 way them half-breed young ones act, you d 
 
 The teacher smiled, in spite of an apparent effort 
 not to. 
 
 " Perhaps so," she said, " but this is Massachusetts. 
 And well, Emily isn t a half-breed." 
 
 Captain Cy strode through the vestibule. Just be 
 fore the door closed behind him he heard a stifled sob 
 from poor Bos n. 
 
 The Board of Strategy was waiting at the end of 
 the yard. Its members were filled with curiosity. 
 
 " Did you give it to her good? " demanded Asaph. 
 " Did you let her understand we wouldn t put up 
 with such cruelizin ?" 
 
 " Where s Bos n? " asked Mr. Bangs. 
 
 Their friend s answers were brief and tantalizingly 
 incomplete. He walked homeward at a gait which 
 caused plump little Bailey to puff in his efforts to 
 keep up, and he would say almost nothing about the 
 interview in the schoolroom. 
 
 152
 
 I don t think we need to say any more. Good day.
 
 THE "COW LADY 
 
 " Well," said Mr. Tidditt, when they reached the 
 Whittaker gate, " I guess she knows her place now; 
 hey, Cy? I cal late she ll be careful who she keeps 
 after school from now on." 
 
 " Didn t use no profane language, did you, Cy? 
 asked Bailey. " I hope not, cause she might have 
 you took up just out of spite. Did she ask your par 
 don for her actions? " 
 
 " No ! " roared the captain savagely. Then, bang 
 ing the gate behind him, he strode up the yard and 
 into the house. 
 
 Bos n came home a half hour later. Captain Cy 
 was alone in the sitting room, seated in his favorite 
 rocker and moodily staring at nothing in particular. 
 The girl gazed at him for a moment and then climbed 
 into his lap. 
 
 " I wrote my fifty lines, Uncle Cyrus," she said. 
 " Teacher said I d done them very nicely, too." 
 
 The captain grunted. 
 
 " Uncle Cy," whispered Bos n, putting her arms 
 around his neck, " I m awful sorry I was so 
 bad." 
 
 " Bad? Who you? You couldn t be bad if you 
 wanted to. Don t talk that way or I ll say somethin 
 I hadn t ought to." 
 
 " Yes, I could be bad, too. I was bad. I whis 
 pered." 
 
 "Whispered! What of it? That ain t nothin . 
 When I was a young one in school I used to whis 
 
 153
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 . . . Hum ! Well, anyhow, don t you think any 
 more about it. Tain t worth while." 
 
 They rocked quietly for a time. Then Bos n 
 said: 
 
 " Uncle Cyrus, don t you like teacher? " 
 
 " Hey? Like her? Well, if that ain t a question? 
 Yes, I like her about as well as Lonesome likes Eben 
 Salter s dog." 
 
 " I m sorry. I like her ever so much." 
 
 You do? Go long! After the way she treated 
 you, poor little thing! " 
 
 " She didn t treat me any worse than she does the 
 other girls and boys when they re naughty. And I 
 did know the rule about whispering." 
 
 " Well, that s different. Comparin you with that 
 Bennie Edwards the idea ! And then makin you 
 cry!" 
 
 " She didn t make me cry." 
 
 " Did, too. I heard you." 
 
 The child looked up at him and then hid her face 
 in his waistcoat. 
 
 " I wasn t crying about her," she whispered. " It 
 was you." 
 
 "Me!" The captain gasped. "Good land!" 
 he muttered. " It s just as I expected. She s studied 
 too hard and it s touchin her brain." 
 
 " No, sir, it isn t. It isn t truly. I did cry about 
 you because I didn t like to hear you talk so. And I 
 was so sorry to have you come there." 
 
 154
 
 THE "COW LADY 1 
 
 "Youttw!" 
 
 " Yes, sir. Other children s folks don t come when 
 they re bad. And I kept feeling so sort of ashamed 
 of you." 
 
 "Ashamed of me?" 
 
 Bos n nodded vigorously. 
 
 u Yes, sir. Everything teacher said sounded so 
 right, and what you said didn t. And I like to have 
 you always right." 
 
 "Do, hey? Hum!" Captain Cy didn t speak 
 again for some few minutes, but he held the little 
 girl very tight in his arms. At length he drew a long 
 breath. 
 
 "By the big dipper, Bos n!" he exclaimed. 
 " You re a wonder, you are. I wouldn t be surprised 
 if you grew up to be a mind reader, like that feller in 
 the show we went to at the townhall a spell ago. To 
 tell you the honest Lord s truth, I ve been ashamed 
 of myself ever since I come out of that schoolhouse 
 door. When that teacher woman sprung that on me 
 about my fo mast hands aboard ship I was set back 
 about forty fathom. I never wanted to answer any 
 body so bad in my life, and I couldn t cause there 
 wasn t anything to say. I cal late I ve made a fool 
 of myself." 
 
 Bos n nodded again. 
 
 We won t do so any more, will we? " she said. 
 You bet we won t ! / won t, anyhow. You 
 haven t done anything." 
 
 12 155
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " And you ll like teacher? " 
 
 The captain stamped his foot. 
 
 " No, 5/r! " he declared. " She may be all right 
 in her way I s pose she is; but it s too Massachu- 
 settsy a way for me. No, sir ! I don t like her and 
 I w, o / like her. No, sir-ee, never ! She she 
 ain t my kind of a woman," he added stubbornly. 
 44 That s what s the matter! She ain t my kind of 
 a woman."
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 
 
 TOWN meeting " was called for the twenty- 
 first of November. 
 With the summer boarders gone, the 
 cranberry picking finished, state election over, school 
 begun and under way, and real winter not yet upon 
 us, Bayport, in the late fall, distinctly needs some 
 thing to enliven it. The Shakespeare Reading Society 
 and the sewing circle continue, of course, to interest 
 the " women folks," there is the usual every evening 
 gathering at Simmons s, and the young people are 
 looking forward to the " Grand Ball " on Thanks 
 giving eve. But for the men, on week days, there 
 is little to do except to " putter " about the house, 
 banking its foundations with dry seaweed as a pre 
 caution against searching no theasters, whitewashing 
 the barns and outbuildings, or fixing things in the 
 vegetable cellar where the sticks of smoked herring 
 hang in rows above the barrels of cabbages, potatoes, 
 and turnips. The fish weirs, most of them, are taken 
 up, lest the ice, which will be driven into the bay 
 later on, tear the nets to pieces. Even the hens grow 
 
 157
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 lazy and lay less frequently. Therefore, away back 
 in the " airly days," some far-sighted board of select 
 men arranged that " town meeting " should be held 
 during this lackadaisical season. A town meeting 
 and particularly a Bayport town meeting, where 
 everything from personal affairs to religion is likely 
 to be discussed can stir up excitement when nothing 
 else can. 
 
 This year there were several questions to be talked 
 over and settled at town meeting. Two selectmen, 
 whose terms expired, were candidates for reelection. 
 Lem Myrick had resigned from the school commit 
 tee, not waiting until spring, as he had announced 
 that he should do. Then there was the usual senti 
 ment in favor of better roads and the usual opposi 
 tion to it. Also there was^the ever-present hope of the 
 government appropriation for harbor improvement. 
 
 Mr. Tidditt was one of the selectmen whose terms 
 expired. In his dual capacity as selectman and town 
 clerk Asaph felt himself to be a very important per 
 sonage. To elect some one else in his place would 
 be, he was certain, a calamity which would stagger 
 the township. Therefore he was a busy man and 
 made many calls upon his fellow citizens, not to in 
 fluence their votes he was careful to explain that 
 but just, as he said, " to see how they was gettin 
 along," and because he " thought consider ble of 
 em " and " took a real personal interest, you under 
 stand," in their affairs. 
 
 158
 
 POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 
 
 To Captain Cy he came, naturally, for encourage 
 ment and help, being as was his habit at such times 
 in a state of gloom and hopeless despair. 
 
 " No use, Whit," he groaned. " Tain t no use 
 at all. I m licked. I m gettin old and they don t 
 want me no more. I guess I d better get right up 
 afore the votin begins and tell em my health 
 ain t strong enough to be town clerk no longer. 
 It s better to do that than to be licked. Don t you 
 think so?" 
 
 "Sure thing!" replied his friend, with sarcasm. 
 " If I was you I d be toted in on a bed so they can 
 see you re all ready for the funeral. Might have the 
 doctor walkin ahead, wipin his eyes, and the joyful 
 undertaker trottin along astern. What s the par 
 ticular disease that s got you by the collar just now 
 facial paralysis? " 
 
 " No. What made you think of that? " 
 
 " Oh, nothin ! Only I heard you stopped in at 
 ten houses up to the west end of the town yesterday, 
 and talked three quarters of an hour steady at every 
 one. That would fit me for the scrap heap inside of 
 a week, and you ve been goin it ever since September 
 nearly. What does ail you anything? " 
 
 Why, no; nothin special that way. Only there 
 don t seem to be any enthusiasm for me, somehow. 
 I just hint at my bein a candidate and folks say, 
 1 Yes, indeed. Looks like rain, don t it? and that s 
 about all." 
 
 159
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Well, that hadn t ought to surprise you. If any 
 body came to me and says, The sun s goin to rise 
 to-morrer mornin , I shouldn t dance on my hat and 
 crow hallelujahs. Enthusiasm ! Why, Ase, you ve 
 been a candidate every two years since Noah got the 
 ark off the ways, or along there. And there ain t 
 been any opposition to you yet, except that time when 
 Uncle Bial Stickney woke up in the wrong place and 
 hollered No, out of principle, thinkin he was to 
 home with his wife. If I was you I d go and take a 
 nap. You ll read the minutes at selectmen s meetings 
 for another fifty year, more or less ; take my word for 
 it. As for the school committee, that s different. I 
 ain t made up my mind about that." 
 
 There had been much discussion concerning the 
 School committee. Who should be chosen to replace 
 Mr. Myrick on the board was the gravest question to 
 come before the meeting. Many names had been 
 proposed at Simmons s and elsewhere, but some of 
 those named had refused to run, and others had not, 
 after further consideration, seemed the proper per 
 sons for the office. In the absence of Mr. Atkins, 
 Tad Simpson was our leader in the political arena. 
 But Tad so far had been mute. 
 
 " Wait a while," he said. u There s some weeks 
 afore town meetin day. This is a serious business. 
 We can t have no more I mean no unsuitable man 
 to fill such an important place as that. The welfare 
 of our posterity," he added, and we all recognized the 
 
 1 60
 
 POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 
 
 quotation, " depends upon the choice that s to be 
 made." 
 
 A choice was made, however, on the very next day 
 but one after this declaration. A candidate an 
 nounced himself. Asaph and Bailey hurried to the 
 Cy Whittaker place with the news. Captain Cy was 
 in the woodshed building a doll house for Bos n. 
 " Just for my own amusement," he hastily ex 
 plained. " Somethin for her to take along when she 
 goes out West to Betsy." 
 
 Mr. Tidditt was all smiles. 
 
 " What do you think, Cy? " he cried. " The new 
 school committee man s as good as elected. Lonzo 
 Snow s goin to take it." 
 
 The captain laid down his plane. 
 
 " Lonzo Snow! " he repeated. "You don t say! 
 Humph! Well, well!" 
 
 " Yes, sir! " exclaimed Bailey. " He s come for 
 ward and says it s his duty to do so. He " 
 
 " Humph ! His duty, hey ? I wonder who pointed 
 it out to him? " 
 
 " Well, I don t know. But even Tad Simpson s 
 glad; he says that he knows Heman will be pleased 
 with that kind of a candidate and so he won t have 
 to do any more huntin . He thinks Lonzo s comin 
 out by himself this way is a kind of special Provi 
 dence." 
 
 Yes, yes ! I shouldn t wonder. Did you ever 
 notice how dead sure Tad and his kind are that 
 
 161
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Providence is workin with em ? Seems to me twould 
 be more satisfactory if we could get a sight of the 
 other partner s signature to the deed." 
 
 " What s the matter with you? " demanded Asaph. 
 " You ain t findin fault with Lonzo, are you? Ain t- 
 he a good man? " 
 
 " Good ! Sure thing he s good ! Nobody can say 
 he isn t and tell the truth." 
 
 No one could truthfully speak ill of Alonzo Snow, 
 that was a fact. He lived at the lower end of the 
 village, was well to do, a leading cranberry grower, 
 and very prominent in the church. A mild, easy 
 going person was Mr. Snow, with an almost too keen 
 fear of doing the wrong thing and therefore prone 
 to be guided by the opinion of others. He was dis 
 tinctly not a politician. 
 
 Then what ails you? " asked Asaph hotly. 
 
 " Why, nothin , maybe. Only I m always suspi 
 cious when Tad pats Providence on the back. I gen 
 erally figure that I can see through a doughnut, when 
 there s a light behind the hole. Who is Lonzo s 
 best friend in this town? Who does he chum with 
 most of anybody? " 
 
 " Why, Darius Ellis, I guess. You know it." 
 
 " Um hum. And Darius is on the committee 
 why?" 
 
 " Well, I s pose cause Heman Atkins thought he d 
 be a good feller to have there. But " 
 
 " Yes, and Lonzo s pew in church is right under 
 162
 
 POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 
 
 the Atkins memorial window. The light from it 
 makes a kind of halo round his bald head every 
 Sunday." 
 
 "Well, what of it? Heman, nor nobody else, 
 could buy Lonzo Snow." 
 
 " Buy him? Indeed they couldn t. But there are 
 some things you get without buyin the measles, for 
 instance. And the one that s catchin em don t know 
 he s in danger till the speckles break out. Fellers, 
 this committee voted in Phoebe Dawes by just two 
 votes to one, and one of the two was Lem Myrick. 
 Darius was against her. Now with Tad and his 
 Providence puttin in Lonzo Snow, and Heman 
 Atkins settin behind the screen workin his Normal 
 School music box so s they can hear the tune well, 
 Phoebe may stay this term out, but how about next? " 
 
 " Hey ? Why, I don t know. Anyhow, you re 
 down on Phoebe as a thousand of brick. I don t see 
 why you worry about her. After the way she treated 
 poor Bos n and all." 
 
 Captain Cy stirred uneasily and kicked a chip across 
 the floor. 
 
 "Well," he said, "well, I I don t know s that s 
 That is, right s right and wrong s wrong. I ve seen 
 bullfights down yonder " jerking his thumb over 
 his shoulder in the vague direction of Buenos Ayres, 
 " and every time my sympathy s been with the bull. 
 Not that I loved the critter for his own sake, but 
 because all Greaserdom was out to down him. From 
 
 163
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 what I hear, this Phoebe Dawes for all her pesky 
 down-East stubbornness is teachin pretty well, and 
 
 " Look here, you two! how would I look on the 
 school committee ? 
 
 anyhow she s one little woman against Tad Simpson 
 and Heman Atkins and and Tad s special brand of 
 Providence. She deserves a fair shake and, by the 
 
 164
 
 POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 
 
 big dipper, she s goin to have it! Look here, you 
 two ! how would I look on the school committee? " 
 
 "You?" repeated the pair in concert. " You?" 
 
 " Yes, me. I ain t a Solomon for wisdom, but I 
 cal late I d be as near the top of the barrel as Darius 
 Ellis, and only one or two layers under Eben Salters 
 or Lonzo Snow. I m a candidate see? " 
 
 " But but, Whit," gasped the town clerk, " are 
 you popular enough? Could you get elected? " 
 
 " I don t know, but I can find out. You and 
 Bailey 11 vote for me, won t you? " 
 
 " Course we will, but " 
 
 " All right. Thefe s two votes. A hundred and 
 odd more ll put me in. Here goes for politics and 
 popularity. I may be president yet; you can t tell. 
 And say ! this town meetin won t be dull, whichever 
 way the cat jumps." 
 
 This last was a safe prophecy. All dullness disap 
 peared from Bayport the moment it became known 
 that Captain Cyrus Whittaker was " out " for the 
 school committee. The captain began his electioneer 
 ing at once. That very afternoon he called upon 
 three people Eben Salters, Josiah Dimick, and Lem 
 uel Myrick. 
 
 Captain Salters was chairman of selectmen as well 
 as chairman of the committee. He was a hard-headed 
 old salt, who had made money in the Australian 
 packet service. He had common sense, independence, 
 and considerable influence in the town. Next to 
 
 165
 
 Congressman Atkins he was, perhaps, our leading 
 citizen. And, more than all, he was not afraid, 
 when he thought it necessary, to oppose the great 
 Heman. 
 
 " Well," he said reflectively, after listening to Cap 
 tain Cy s brief statement of his candidacy, " I cal late 
 I ll stand in with you, Cy. I ain t got anything 
 against Lonzo, but but well, consarn it! maybe 
 that s the trouble. Maybe he s so darned good it 
 makes me jealous. Anyhow, I ll do what I can for 
 you." 
 
 Joe Dimick laughed aloud. He was an iconoclast, 
 seldom went to church, and was entirely lacking in 
 reverence. Also he really liked the captain. 
 
 " Ho, ho ! " he crowed. " Whit, do you realize 
 that you re underminin this town s constitution? 
 Oh, sartin, I m with you, if it s only to see the fur 
 fly ! I do love a scrap." 
 
 With Lem Myrick Captain Cy s policy was differ 
 ent. He gently reminded that gentleman of the paint 
 ing contract, intimated that other favors might be 
 forthcoming, and then, as a clincher, spoke of Tad 
 Simpson s comment when Mr. Myrick voted for 
 Phoebe Dawes. 
 
 " Of course," he added, " if you think Tad s got 
 a right to boss all hands and the cook, why, I ain t 
 complainin . Only, if / was a painter doin a good, 
 high-class trade, and a one-hoss barber tried to dic 
 tate to me, I shouldn t bow down and tell him to kick 
 
 1 66
 
 .3 
 S 
 
 O 
 CO
 
 POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 
 
 easy as he could. Seems to me I d kick first. But 
 I m no boss ; I mustn t influence you." 
 
 Lemuel was indignant. 
 
 " No barber runs me," he declared. " You stand 
 up for me when that townhall paintin s to be done 
 and I ll work hard for you now, Cap n Whittaker. 
 Lonzo Snow s an elder and all that, but I can t help 
 it. Anyway, his place was all fixed up a year ago 
 and I didn t get the job. A feller has to look after 
 himself these days." 
 
 With these division commanders to lead their 
 forces into the enemy s country and with Asaph and 
 Bailey doing what they could to help, Captain Cy s 
 campaign soon became worthy of respectful consid 
 eration. For a while Tad Simpson scoffed at the 
 opposition; then he began to work openly for Mr. 
 Snow. Later he marshaled his trusted officers around 
 the pool table in the back room of the barber shop 
 and confided to them that it was anybody s fight and 
 that he was worried. 
 
 ; It s past bein a joke," he said. ic It s mighty 
 serious. We ve got to hustle, we have. Heman 
 trusted me in this job, and if I fall down it 11 be 
 bad for me and for you fellers, too. I wish he was 
 home to run things himself, but he s got business 
 down South there some property he owns or some- 
 thin and says he can t leave. But we must win! 
 By mighty ! we ve got to. So get every vote you can. 
 Never mind how; just get em, that s all." 
 
 167
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Captain Cy was thoroughly enjoying himself. 
 The struggle suited him to perfection. He was 
 young, in spite of his fifty-five years, and this tussle 
 against odds, reminding him of other tussles during 
 his first seasons in business, aroused his energies and, 
 as he expressed it, " stirred up his vitals and made 
 him hop round like a dose of pain killer. 
 
 He did not, however, forget Bos n. He and she 
 had their walks and their pleasant evenings together 
 in spite of politics. He took the child into his con 
 fidence and told her of the daily gain, or loss, in 
 votes, as if she were his own age. She understood a 
 little of all this, and tried hard to understand the rest, 
 preaching between times to Georgianna how " the 
 bad men were trying to b^at Uncle Cyrus because 
 he was gooder than they, but they couldn t, cause 
 everybody loved him so." Georgianna had some 
 doubts, but she kept them to herself. 
 
 Among the things in Bos n s " box " was a long 
 envelope, sealed with wax and with a lawyer s name 
 printed in one corner. The captain opened it, at Em 
 ily s suggestion, and was astonished to find that the 
 inclosure was a will, dated some years back, in which 
 Mrs. Mary Thomas, the child s mother, left to her 
 daughter all her personal property and also the land 
 in Orham, Massachusetts, which had been willed to 
 her by her own mother. There was a note with the 
 will in which Mrs. Thomas stated that no one save 
 herself had known of this land, not even her husband. 
 
 168
 
 POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 
 
 She had not told him because she feared that, like 
 everything else, it would be sold and the money wasted 
 in dissipation. " He suspected something of the 
 sort," she added, " but he did not find out the secret, 
 although he " She had evidently scratched out 
 what followed, but Captain Cy mentally filled in the 
 blank with details of abuse and cruelty. " If any 
 thing happens to me," concluded the widow, " I want 
 the land sold and the money used for Emily s mainte 
 nance as long as it lasts." 
 
 The captain went over to Orham and looked up 
 the land. It was a strip along the shore, almost 
 worthless, and unsalable at present. The taxes had 
 been regularly paid each year by Mary Thomas, who 
 had sent money orders from Concord. The self- 
 denial represented by these orders was not a little. 
 
 " Never mind, Bos n," said Captain Cy, when he 
 returned from the Orham trip. " Your ancestral es 
 tates ain t much now but a sand-flea menagerie. 
 However, if this section ever does get to be the big 
 summer resort folks are prophesying for it, you may 
 sell out to some millionaire and you and me ll go to 
 Europe. Meantime, we ll try to keep afloat, if the 
 Harniss Bank don t spring a leak." 
 
 On the day following this conversation he took a 
 flying trip to Ostable, the county seat, returning the 
 same evening, and saying nothing to anyone about 
 his reasons for going nor what he had done while 
 there. 
 
 13 169
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Bos n s birthday was the eighteenth of November. 
 The captain, in spite of the warmth of his struggle 
 for committee honors, determined to have a small 
 celebration on the afternoon and evening of that day. 
 It was to be a surprise for Emily, and, after school 
 was over, some of her particular friends among the 
 scholars were to come in, there was to be a cake with 
 eight candles on it, and a supper at which ice cream 
 lemon and vanilla, prepared by Mrs. Cahoon 
 was to be the principal feature. Also there would be 
 games and all sorts of fun. 
 
 Captain Cy was tremendously interested in the 
 party. He spent hours with Georgianna and the 
 Board of Strategy, preparing the list of guests. His 
 cunning in ascertaining from .the unsuspecting child 
 who, among her schoolmates, she would like to in 
 vite, was deep and guileful. 
 
 " Now, Bos n," he would say, " suppose you was 
 goin to clear out and leave this town for a spell, 
 who " 
 
 " But, Uncle Cyrus " Bos n s eyes grew fright 
 ened and moist in a moment, " I ain t going, am I? 
 I don t want to go." 
 
 " No, no ! Course you ain t goin that is, not 
 for a long while, anyhow," with a sidelong look at 
 the members of the " Board," then present. " But 
 just suppose you and me was startin on that Europe 
 trip. Who d you want to say good-by to most of 
 all?" 
 
 170
 
 POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 
 
 Each name given by the child was surreptitiously 
 penciled by Bailey on a scrap of paper. The list was 
 a long one and, when the great afternoon came, the 
 Whittaker house was crowded. 
 
 The supper was a brilliant success. So was the 
 cake, brought in with candles ablaze, by the grinning 
 Georgianna. Beside the children there were some 
 older people present, Bailey and Asaph, of course, 
 and the " regulars " from the perfect boarding house, 
 who had been invited because it was fairly certain that 
 Mr. Bangs wouldn t be allowed to attend if his wife 
 did not. Miss Dawes had also been asked, at Bos n s 
 well-understood partiality, but she had declined. 
 
 Toward the end of the meal, when the hilarity at 
 the long table was at its height, an unexpected guest 
 made his appearance. There was a knock at the 
 dining-room door, and Georgianna, opening it, was 
 petrified to behold, standing upon the step, no less a 
 personage than the Honorable Heman Atkins, sup 
 posed by most of us to be then somewhere in that wide 
 stretch of territory vaguely termed " the South." 
 
 " Good evening, all," said the illustrious one, re 
 moving his silk hat and stepping into the room. 
 " What a charming scene ! I trust I do not intrude." 
 
 Georgianna was still speechless, in which unwonted 
 condition she was not alone, Messrs. Bangs and Tid- 
 ditt being also stricken dumb. But Captain Cy rose 
 to the occasion grandly. 
 
 "Intrude?" he repeated. "Not a mite of it! 
 171
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Mighty glad to see you, Heman. Here, give us 
 your hat. Pull up to the table. When did you get 
 back? Thought you was in the orange groves some- 
 wheres." 
 
 " Ahem ! I was. Yes, I was in that neighbor 
 hood. But it is hard to stay away from dear old 
 Bayport. Home ties, you know, home ties. I came 
 down on the morning train, but I stopped over at 
 Harniss on business and drove across. Ahem ! Yes. 
 The housekeeper informed me that my daughter was 
 here, and, seeing the lights and hearing the laughter, 
 I couldn t resist making this impromptu call. I m 
 sure as an old friend and neighbor, Cyrus, you will 
 pardon me. Alicia, darling, come and kiss papa." 
 
 Darling Alicia accepted the invitation with a rustle 
 of silk and an ecstatic squeal of delight. During this 
 affecting scene Asaph whispered to Bailey that he 
 " cal lated " Heman had had a hurry-up distress sig 
 nal from Simpson; to which sage observation Mr. 
 Bangs replied with a vigorous nod, showing that 
 Captain Cy s example had had its effect, in that they 
 no longer stood in such awe of their representative 
 at Washington. 
 
 However true Asaph s calculation might have been, 
 Mr. Atkins made no mention of politics. He was ur 
 banity itself. He drew up to the table, partook of 
 the ice cream and cake, and greeted his friends and 
 neighbors with charming benignity. 
 
 " Wan t it sweet of him to come?" whispered 
 172
 
 POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 
 
 Miss Phinney to Keturah. " And him so nice and 
 everyday and sociable. And when Cap n Whittaker s 
 runnin against his friend, as you might say." 
 
 Keturah replied with a dubious shake of the head. 
 
 " I think Captain Cyrus is goin to get into 
 trouble," she said. " I ve preached to Bailey more 
 n a little about keepin clear, but he won t." 
 
 " Games in t other room now," ordered Captain 
 Cy. But Mr. Atkins held up his hand. 
 
 " Pardon me, just a moment, Cyrus, if you please," 
 he said. " I feel that on this happy occasion, it is my 
 duty and pleasure to propose a toast." He held his 
 lemonade glass aloft. " Permit me," he proclaimed, 
 " to wish many happy birthdays and long life to 
 Miss I beg pardon, Cyrus, but what is your lit 
 tle friend s name?" 
 
 " Emily Richards Thayer," replied the captain, 
 carried away by enthusiasm and off his guard for 
 once. 
 
 " To Em " began Heman. Then he paused 
 and for the first time in his public life seemed at a 
 loss for words. "What? " he asked, and his hand 
 shook. " I fear I didn t catch the name." 
 
 " No wonder," laughed Mr. Tidditt. " Cy s so 
 crazy to-night he d forget his own name. Know what 
 you said, Cy? You said she was Emily Richards 
 Thayer \ Haw! haw! She ain t a Thayer, Heman; 
 her last name s Thomas. She s Emily Richards 
 Thayer s granddaughter though. Her granddad was 
 
 173
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 John Thayer, over to Orham. Good land ! I forgot. 
 Well, what of it, Cy? Twould have to be known 
 some time." 
 
 Everyone looked at Captain Cy then. No one ob 
 served Mr. Atkins for the moment. When they did 
 turn their gaze upon the great man he had sunk back 
 in his chair, the glass of lemonade was upset upon 
 the cloth before him, and he, with a very white face, 
 was staring at Emily Richards Thomas. 
 
 " What s the matter, Heman? " asked the captain 
 anxiously. " Ain t sick, are you? " 
 
 The congressman started. 
 
 " Oh, no ! " he said hurriedly. " Oh, no ! but I m 
 afraid I ve soiled your cloth. It was awkward of me. 
 I I really, I apologize I " 
 
 He wiped his face with his handkerchief. Captain 
 Cy laughed. 
 
 " Oh, never mind the tablecloth," he said. " I 
 cal late it s too soiled already to be hurt by a bath, 
 even a lemon one. Well, you ve all heard the toast. 
 Full glasses, now. Here s to you, Bos n! Drink 
 hearty, all hands, and give the ship a good name." 
 
 If the heartiness with which they drank is a cri 
 terion, the good name of the ship was established. 
 Then the assembly adjourned to the sitting room and 
 yes, even the front parlor. Not since the days 
 when that sacred apartment had been desecrated by 
 the irreverent city boarders, during the Howes 
 regime, had its walls echoed to such whoops and 
 
 174
 
 POLITICS AND BIRTHDAYS 
 
 shouts of laughter. The children played " Post Of 
 fice " and " Copenhagen " and " Clap in, Clap out," 
 while the grown folks looked on. 
 
 " Ain t they havin a fine time, Cap? " gushed Miss 
 Phinney. " Don t it make you wish you was young 
 again? " 
 
 " Angie," replied Captain Cy solemnly, " don t 
 tempt me ; don t ! If they keep on playin that Copen 
 hagen and you stand right alongside of me, there s 
 no tellin what 11 happen." 
 
 Angeline declared that he was " tumble," but she 
 faced the threatened danger nevertheless, and bravely 
 remained w r here she was. 
 
 Mr. Atkins went home early in the evening, taking 
 Alicia with him. He explained that his long railroad 
 journey had er somewhat fatigued him and, 
 though he hated to leave such a er delightful 
 gathering, he really felt that, under the circumstances, 
 his departure would be forgiven. Captain Cy opened 
 the door for him and stood watching as, holding his 
 daughter by the hand, he marched majestically down 
 the path. 
 
 " Hum ! " mused the captain aloud. " I guess he 
 has been travelin nights. Thought he ought to be 
 here quick, I shouldn t wonder. He does look tired, 
 that s a fact, and kind of pale, seemed to me." 
 
 Well, there, now! " exclaimed Mrs. Tripp, who 
 was looking over his shoulder. " Did you see that? " 
 
 "No; what was it?" 
 
 175
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Why, when he went to open his gate, one of 
 them arbor vity bushes he set out this spring knocked 
 his hat off. And he never seemed to notice, but went 
 right on. If Licia hadn t picked it up, that nice 
 new hat would have been layin there yet. That s 
 the most undignified thing ever I see Heman Atkins 
 do. He must be tired out, poor man 1 "
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 A LETTER AND A VISITOR 
 
 WHIT," asked Asaph next day, " wan t you 
 surprised to see Heman last night?" 
 Captain Cy nodded. He was once more 
 busy with the doll house, the construction of which 
 had progressed slowly of late, owing to the demands 
 which the party and politics made upon its builder s 
 time. 
 
 " Yup," he said, " I sartinly was. Pretty good 
 sign, I shouldn t wonder. Looks as if friend Tad 
 had found the tide settin too strong against him 
 and had whistled for a tug. All right; the more 
 scared the other side get, the better for us." 
 
 " But what in the world made Heman come over 
 and have supper? He never so much as stepped 
 foot in the house afore, did he? That s the biggest 
 conundrum of all." 
 
 " Well, I guess I ve got the answer. Strikes me 
 that Heman s sociableness is the best sign yet. He- 
 man s a slick article, and when he sees there s danger 
 of losin the frostin on the cake he takes care to 
 scrape the burnt part off the bottom. I may be 
 
 177
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 school committeeman after town meetin . He ll 
 move all creation to stop me, of course in his quiet, 
 round-the-corner way but, if I do win out, he 
 wants to be in a position to take me one side and 
 tell me that he s glad of it; he felt all along I was 
 the right feller for the job, and if there s anything 
 he can do to make things easier for me just call on 
 him. That s the way I size it up, anyhow." 
 
 " Cy, I never see anybody like you. You re dead 
 set against Heman, and have been right along. And 
 he s never done anything to you, fur s I see. He s 
 given a lot to the town, and he s always been the 
 most looked-up-to man we ve got. Joe Dimick and 
 two or three more chronic growls have been the only 
 ones to sling out hints against him, till you come. 
 Course I m working* for you, tooth and nail, and I 
 will say that you seem to be gettin the votes some 
 way or other. But if Heman should step right out 
 and say: Feller citizens, I m behind Tad Simpson 
 in this fight, and as a favor to me and cause I think 
 it s right and best, I want Lonzo Snow elected 
 well, / don t believe you d have more n one jack and 
 a ten spot to count for game." 
 
 " Probably not, Ase; I presume likely not. But 
 you take a day off some time and see if you can re 
 member that Heman ever stepped right out and said 
 things. Blame it ! that s just it. As for why he 
 riles me up and makes me stubborn as a balky mule, 
 I don t know exactly. All I m sure is that he does. 
 
 178
 
 A LETTER AND A VISITOR 
 
 Maybe it s cause I don t like the way he wears his 
 whiskers. Maybe it s because he s so top-lofty and 
 condescendin . A feller can whistle to me and say: 
 * Come on, Bill, and I ll trot at his heels all day. 
 But when he pats me on the head and says : There I 
 there ! nice doggie. Go under the bed and lay down, 
 my back bristles up and I commence to growl right 
 off. There s consider ble Whittaker in me, as I ve 
 told you before." 
 
 The town clerk pondered over this rather unsat 
 isfactory line of reasoning for some minutes. His 
 companion fitted a wooden chimney on the doll 
 house, found it a trifle out of plumb, and proceeded 
 to whittle a shaving off the lower edge. Then Asaph 
 sighed, as one who gives up a perplexing riddle, put 
 his hand in his pocket, and produced a bundle of 
 papers. 
 
 " I made out a list of fellers down to the east ard 
 that I m goin to see this afternoon," he said. 
 " Some of em I guess 11 vote for you, but most of 
 em are pretty sartin for Lonzo. However, I 
 Where is that list? I had it somewhere s. And 
 well, I swan ! I come pretty near forgettin it my 
 self. I m most as bad as Bailey." 
 
 From the bundle of papers he produced a crum 
 pled envelope. 
 
 That Bailey," he observed, " must be in love, I 
 cal late, though I don t know who with. Ketury, I 
 s pose, cordin to law and order, but Well, any- 
 
 179
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 how, he s gettin more absent-minded all the time. 
 Here s a letter for you, Cy, that he got at the post- 
 office a week ago Monday. Twas the night of the 
 church sociable, and he had on his Sunday cutaway, 
 and he ain t worn it sence, till the party yesterday. 
 When he took off the coat, goin to bed, the letter 
 fell out of it. I guess he was ashamed to fetch it 
 round himself, so he asked me to do it. Better late 
 than never, hey? Here s that list at last." 
 
 He produced the list and handed it to the captain 
 for inspection. The latter looked it over, made a 
 few comments and suggestions, and told his friend 
 to heave ahead and land as many of the listed as 
 possible. This Mr. Tidditt promised to do, and, 
 replacing the papers in his pocket, started for the 
 gate. 
 
 "Oh! Say, Ase!" 
 
 The town clerk, his hand on the gate latch, turned. 
 
 " Well, what is it? " he asked. " Don t keep me 
 no longer n you can help. I got work to do, I 
 have." 
 
 " All right, I won t stop you. Only fallin in love 
 is kind of epidemic down at the boardin house, I 
 guess. Who is it that s got you in tow Matildy? " 
 
 "What are you talkin about? Didn t I tell you 
 to quit namin me with Matildy Tripp? I like a 
 joke as well as most folks, but when it s wore into 
 the ground I 
 
 " Sho, sho ! Don t get mad. It s your own fault. 
 1 80
 
 A LETTER AND A VISITOR 
 
 iYou said that absent-mindedness was a love symp 
 tom, so I just got to thinkin , that s all. That let 
 ter that Bailey forgot you haven t given it to me 
 yet." 
 
 Asaph turned red and hastily snatched the papers 
 from his pocket. He strode back to the door of the 
 woodshed, handed his friend the crumpled envelope, 
 and stalked off without another word. The cap 
 tain chuckled, laid the letter on the bench beside 
 him and went on with his work. It was perhaps 
 ten minutes later when, happening to glance at the 
 postmark on the envelope, he saw that it was " Con 
 cord, N. H." 
 
 Asaph s vote-gathering trip " to the east ard " 
 made a full day for him. He returned to the per 
 fect boarding house just at supper time. During 
 the meal he realized that Mr. Bangs seemed to be 
 trying to attract his attention. Whenever he glanced 
 in that gentleman s direction his glance was met by 
 winks and mystifying shakes of the head. Losing 
 patience at last, he demanded to know what was the 
 matter. 
 
 " Want to say somethin to me, do you? " he in 
 quired briskly. "If you do, out with it! Don t 
 set there workin your face as if twas wound up, 
 like a clockwork image." 
 
 This remark had the effect of turning all the 
 other faces toward Bailey s. He was very much 
 upset. 
 
 181
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " No, no ! " he stammered. " No, no ! I don t 
 want you for nothin . Was I makin my face go? 
 I I didn t know it. I ve been washin carriages 
 and cleanin up the barn all day and I cal late I ve 
 overdone. I m gettin old, and hard work s likely 
 to bring on shakin palsy to old folks." 
 
 His wife tartly observed that, if work was the 
 cause of it, she guessed he was safe from palsy for 
 quite a spell yet. At any rate, a marked recovery 
 set in and he signaled no more during the meal. But 
 when it was over, and his task as dish-wiper com 
 pleted, he hurried out of doors and found Mr. Tid- 
 ditt, shivering in the November wind, on the front 
 porch. 
 
 "Now what is it?" asked Asaph sharply. "I 
 know there s somethin and I ve froze to death by 
 sections waitin to hear it." 
 
 " Have you seen Cy?" whispered Bailey, glanc 
 ing fearfully over his shoulder at the lighted win 
 dows of the house. 
 
 " No, not sence mornin . Why?" 
 
 " Well, there s somethin the matter with him. 
 Somethin serious. I was swabbin decks in the barn 
 about eleven o clock, when he come postin in, white 
 and shaky, and so nervous he couldn t stand still. 
 Looked as if he had had a stroke almost. I " 
 
 " Godfrey scissors ! You don t s pose Heman s 
 comin back has knocked out his chances for the 
 committee, do you? " 
 
 182
 
 A LETTER AND A VISITOR 
 
 " No, sir-ee ! twan t that. Cy s anxious to be 
 elected and all, but you know his politics are more 
 of a joke with him than anything else. And any 
 rap Heman or Tad could give him would only make 
 him fight harder. And he wouldn t talk politics at 
 all; didn t seem to give a durn about em, one way 
 or t other. No, twas somethin about that letter, 
 the one I forgot so long. He wanted to know why 
 in time I hadn t given it to him when it fust come. 
 He was real ugly about it, for him, and kept pacin* 
 up and down the barn floor and layin into me, till 
 I begun to think he was crazy. I guess he see my 
 feelin s were hurt, cause, just afore he left, he held 
 out his hand and said I mustn t mind his talk; he d 
 been knocked on his beam ends, he said, and wan t 
 really responsible." 
 
 ;< Wouldn t he say what had knocked him?" 
 " No, couldn t get nothin out of him. And when 
 he quit he went off toward home, slappin his fists 
 together and actin as if he didn t see the road across 
 his bows. Now, you know how cool and easy goin 
 Whit generally is. I swan to man, Ase! he made 
 me so sorry for him I didn t know what to do." 
 " Ain t you been up to see him sence ? " 
 " No, Ketury was sot on havin the barn cleaned, 
 and she stood over me with a rope s end, as you 
 might say. I couldn t get away a minute, though I 
 made up more n a dozen errands at Simmons s and 
 the like of that. You hold on till I sneak into the 
 
 183
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 entry and get my cap and we ll put for there now. 
 I won t be but a jiffy. I m worried." 
 
 They entered the yard of the Cy Whittaker place 
 together and approached the side door. As they 
 stood on the steps Asaph touched his chum on the 
 arm and pointed to the window beside them. The 
 shade was half drawn and beneath it they had a clear 
 view of the interior of the sitting room. Captain 
 Cy was in the rocker before the stove, holding Bos n 
 in his arms. The child was sound asleep, her yel 
 low braid hanging over the captain s broad shoulder. 
 He was gazing down into her face with a look which 
 was so full of yearning and love that it brought a 
 choke into the throats of the pair who saw it. 
 
 They entered the dining room. The captain " 
 sprang from his chair and, still holding the little 
 girl close against his breast, met them at the sitting- 
 room door. When he saw who the visitors were, 
 he caught his breath, almost with a sob, and seemed 
 relieved. 
 
 "S-s-h-h!" he whispered warningly. "She s 
 asleep." 
 
 The members of the Board of Strategy nodded 
 understandingly and sat down upon the sofa. Cap 
 tain Cy tiptoed to the bedroom, turned back the bed 
 clothes with one hand and laid Bos n down. They 
 saw him tuck her carefully in and then stoop and 
 kiss her. He returned to the sitting room and closed 
 the door behind him. 
 
 184
 
 " We see she was asleep afore we come in," ex 
 plained Asaph. " We see you and her through the 
 window." 
 
 The captain looked hurriedly at the window indi 
 cated. Then he stepped over and pulled the shade 
 down to the sill, doing the same with the curtains 
 of the other two windows. 
 
 What s the matter?" inquired Bailey, trying to 
 be facetious. " Fraid of Lonzo s crowd spyin 
 on us? " 
 
 Captain Cy did not reply. He did not even 
 sit down, but remained standing, his back to the 
 stove. 
 
 "Well?" he asked shortly. "Did you fellers 
 want to see me for anything special?" 
 
 :< Wanted to see what had struck you all to once," 
 replied Mr. Tidditt. u Bailey says you scared him 
 half to death this forenoon. And you look now as 
 if somebody s ghost had riz and hollered Boo ! 
 at you. For the land sakes, Whit, what is it? " 
 
 The captain drew his hand across his forehead. 
 
 " Ghost? " he repeated absently. " No, I haven t 
 seen a ghost. There ! there ! don t mind me. I ain t 
 real well to-day, I guess." He smiled crookedly. 
 
 " Don t you want to hear about my vote-grabbin 
 cruise?" asked Tidditt. "I was flatterin myself 
 you d be tickled to hear I d done so well. Why, 
 even Marcellus Parker says he may vote for you 
 if he makes up his mind that way." 
 14 185
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Marcellus was a next-door neighbor of Alonzo 
 Snow s. But Captain Cy didn t seem to care. 
 
 "Hey?" he murmured. "Yes. Well?" 
 
 " Well! Is that all you ve got to say? Are you 
 really sick, Cy? Or is Bos n sick? " 
 
 u No ! " was the answer, almost fierce in its utter 
 ance. " She isn t sick. Don t be a fool." 
 
 "What s foolish about that? I didn t know but 
 she might be. There s mumps in town and " 
 
 "She s all right; so shut up, will you! There, 
 Ase!" he added. "I m the fool myself. Don t 
 mind my barkin ; I don t mean it. I am about sick, 
 I cal late. Be better to-morrer, maybe." 
 
 "What s got into you? Was that letter of 
 Bailey s " 
 
 " Hush ! " The captain held up his hand. " I 
 thought I heard a team." 
 
 " Depot wagon, most likely," said Bailey. " About 
 time for it! Humph! seems to be stoppin , don t it? 
 Was you expectin anybody? Shall I go and " 
 
 "No! Set still." 
 
 The pair on the sofa sat still. Captain Cy stood 
 like a statue in the middle of the floor. He squared 
 his shoulders and jammed his clenched fists into 
 his pockets. Steps crunched the gravel of the 
 walk. There came a knock at the door of the 
 dining room. 
 
 Walking steadily, but with a face set as the figure 
 head on one of his own ships, the captain went to 
 
 186
 
 A LETTER AND A VISITOR 
 
 answer the knock. They heard the door open, and 
 then a man s voice asked: 
 
 "Is this Cap n Whittaker?" 
 
 " Yes," was the short answer. 
 
 " Well, Cap, I guess you don t know me, though 
 maybe you know some of my family. Ha, ha ! 
 Don t understand that, hey? Well, you let me in 
 and I ll explain the joke." 
 
 The captain s reply was calm and deliberate. 
 
 " I shouldn t wonder if I understood it," he said. 
 " Come in. Don t " The remainder of the sen 
 tence was whispered and the listeners on the sofa 
 could not hear it. A moment later Captain Cy en 
 tered the sitting room, followed by his caller. 
 
 The latter was a stranger. He was a broad- 
 shouldered man of medium height, with a yellowish 
 mustache and brown hair. He was dressed in rather 
 shabby clothes, without an overcoat, and he had a 
 soft felt hat in his hand. The most noticeable thing 
 about him was a slight hesitancy in his walk. He 
 was not lame, he did not limp, yet his left foot 
 seemed to halt for an instant as he brought It for 
 ward in the step. They learned afterwards that it 
 had been hurt in a mine cave-in. He carried himself 
 with a swagger, and, after his entrance, there was a 
 perceptible aroma of alcohol in the room. 
 
 He stared at the Board of Strategy and the stare 
 was returned in full measure. Bailey and Asaph 
 were wildly curious. They, of course, connected the 
 
 187
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 stranger s arrival with the mysterious letter and the 
 captain s perturbation of the day. 
 
 But their curiosity was not to be satisfied, at least 
 not then. 
 
 "How are you, gents?" hailed the newcomer 
 cheerfully. " Like the looks of me, do you?" 
 
 Captain Cy cut off further conversation. 
 
 " Ase," he said, " this er gentleman and I have 
 got some business to talk over. I know you re good 
 enough friends of mine not to mind if I ask you to 
 clear out. You ll understand. You will understand, 
 boys, won t you?" he added, almost entreatingly. 
 
 " Sartin sure!" replied Mr. Tidditt, rising hur 
 riedly. " Don t say another word, Whit." And the 
 mystified Bangs concurred with a " Yes, yes! Why, 
 of course ! Didn t have nothin that amounts to 
 nothin to stay for anyhow. See you to-morrer, Cy." 
 
 Outside and at the gate they stopped and looked 
 at each other. 
 
 "Well!" exclaimed Asaph. "If that ain t the 
 strangest thing! Who was that feller? Where d 
 he come from? Did you notice how Cy acted? 
 Seemed to be holdin himself in by main strength." 
 
 "Did you smell the rum on him?" returned 
 Bailey. " On that t other chap, I mean? Didn t he 
 look like a reg lar no-account to you ? And say, Ase, 
 didn t he remind you of somebody you d seen some- 
 wheres kind of, in a way?" 
 
 They walked home in a dazed state, asking un-
 
 A LETTER AND A VISITOR 
 
 answerable questions and making profitless guesses. 
 But Asaph s final remark seemed to sum up the 
 situation. 
 
 " There s trouble comin of this, Bailey," he de 
 clared. " And it s trouble for Cy Whittaker, I m 
 afraid. Poor old Cy! Well, we ll stand by him, 
 anyhow. I don t believe he ll sleep much to-night. 
 Didn t look as though he would, did he? Who is 
 that feller?" 
 
 If he had seen Captain Cy, at two o clock the 
 next morning, sitting by Bos n s bedside and gazing 
 hopelessly at the child, he would have realized that, 
 if his former predictions were wiped off the slate and 
 he could be judged by the one concerning the cap 
 tain s sleepless night, he might thereafter pose as a 
 true prophet.
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 MORNIN , Georgianna," said Captain Cy 
 to his housekeeper as the latter unlocked 
 the back door of the Whittaker house 
 next morning. " I m a little ahead of you this 
 time." 
 
 Miss Taylor, being Bayport born and bred, was 
 an early riser. She lodged with her sister, in Bas- 
 sett s Hollow, a good half mile from the Cy Whit- 
 taker place, but she was always on hand at the latter 
 establishment by six each morning, except Sundays. 
 Now she glanced quickly at the clock. The time was 
 ten minutes to six. 
 
 " Land sakes ! " she exclaimed. " I should say 
 you was ! What in the world got you up so early ? 
 Ain t sick, are you? " 
 
 " No," replied the captain wearily. " I ain t 
 sick. I didn t sleep very well last night, that s all." 
 
 Georgianna looked sharply at him. His face was 
 haggard and his eyes had dark circles under them. 
 
 "Humph!" she grunted. "No, I guess you 
 didn t. Looks to me as if you d been up all night." 
 
 190
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 Then she added an anxious query: " Tain t Bos n 
 she ain t sick, I hope? " 
 
 " No. She s all right. I say, Georgianna, you 
 put on an extry plate this mornin . Got company 
 for breakfast." 
 
 The housekeeper was surprised. 
 
 " For breakfast? " she repeated. " Land of good 
 ness! who s comin for breakfast? I never heard 
 of company droppin in for breakfast. That s one 
 meal folks generally get to home. Who is it? Mr. 
 Tidditt? Has Ketury turned him out door because 
 he s too bad an example for her husband?" 
 
 " No, tain t Ase. It s a a friend of mine. Well, 
 not exactly a friend, maybe, but an acquaintance 
 from out of town. He came last evenin . He s 
 up in the spare bedroom." 
 
 "Well, I never! Come unexpected, didn t he? 
 I wish I d known he was comin . That spare room 
 bed ain t been aired I don t know when." 
 
 " I guess he can stand it. I cal late he s slept in 
 consider ble worse Hum ! Yes, he did come kind 
 of sudden." 
 
 "What s his name?" 
 
 What difference does that make? I don t know s 
 his name makes any odds about gettin his break 
 fast for him." 
 
 Georgianna was hurt. Her easy-going employer 
 had never used this tone before when addressing 
 her. 
 
 191
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Oh! " she sniffed. " Is that the way you feel? 
 All right ! I can mind my own business, thank 
 you. I only asked because it s convenient some 
 times to know whether to call a person Bill Smith 
 or Sol Jones. But I don t care if it s Nebuchad 
 nezzar. I know when to keep my tongue still, I 
 guess." 
 
 She flounced over to the range. Captain Cy 
 looked ashamed of himself. 
 
 " I m kind of out of sorts to-day," he said. " Got 
 some headache. Why, his name is is yes, tis 
 Smith, come to think of it John Smith. Funny 
 you should guess right, wan t it?" 
 
 "Humph!" was the ungracious answer. 
 " Names don t interest me, I tell you." 
 
 The captain was in the dining room when Bos n 
 appeared. 
 
 " Good morning, Uncle Cyrus," she said. 
 You ve been waiting, haven t you ? Am I late ? 
 I didn t mean to be." 
 
 "No, no! you ain t late. Early, if anything. 
 Breakfast ain t quite ready yet. Come here and set 
 in my lap. I want to talk to you." 
 
 He took her on his knee. She looked up into his 
 face. 
 
 "What s the matter, Uncle Cy?" she asked. 
 What makes you so sober? " 
 
 "Sober? If you ain t the oldest young one for 
 eight years I ever saw! Why, I ain t sober. No, 
 
 192
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 no ! Say, Bos n, do you like your school as well as 
 ever? " 
 
 " Yes, sir. I like it better all the time." 
 
 " Do, hey? And that teacher woman go on 
 likin her?" 
 
 The child nodded emphatically. " Yes, sir," she 
 said. " And I haven t been kept after since that 
 once." 
 
 "Sho! sho! Course you ain t! So you think 
 Bayport s as nice as Concord, do you? " 
 
 "Oh! lots nicer! If mamma was only here I d 
 never want to be anywhere else. And not then, 
 maybe, unless you was there, too." 
 
 " Hum ! Want to know! Say, Bos n, how would 
 you feel if you had to go somewheres else? " 
 
 To live? Have we got to? I d feel dreadful, 
 of course. But if you ve got to go, Uncle Cyrus, 
 why " 
 
 "Me? No; I ain t got to go anywheres. But 
 twas you I was thinkin of. Wouldn t want to leave 
 the old man, hey? " 
 
 To leave youl Oh, Uncle Cyrus! " 
 
 She was staring at him now and her chin was 
 trembling. 
 
 " Uncle," she demanded, " you ain t going to send 
 me away? Haven t I been a good girl?" 
 
 The captain s lips shut tight. He waited a mo 
 ment before replying. " Deed you ve been a good 
 girl!" he said brusquely. "I never saw a better 
 
 193
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 one. No, I ain t goin to send you away. Don t 
 you worry about that." 
 
 " But Alicia Atkins said one time you told some 
 body you was going to send me out West, after a 
 while. I didn t believe it, then, she s so mean, but 
 she said you said " 
 
 " Said! " Captain Cy groaned. " The Lord 
 knows what I ain t said ! I ve been a fool, dearie, 
 and it s a judgment on me, I guess." 
 
 " But ain t you goin to keep me? I I 
 
 She sobbed. The captain stroked her hair. 
 
 "Keep you?" he muttered. "Yes, by the big 
 dipper! I m goin to keep you, if I can if I can." 
 
 " Hello! " said a voice. The pair looked up. The 
 man who had arrived on the previous night stood 
 in the sitting-room doorway. How long he had been 
 standing there the captain did not know. What he 
 did know was that Mr. John Smith by daylight was 
 not more prepossessing than the same individual 
 viewed by the aid of a lamp. 
 
 Emily saw the stranger and slid from Captain 
 Cy s knees. The captain rose. 
 
 " Bos n," he said, "this is Mr. er Smith, 
 who s goin to make us a little visit. I want you to 
 shake hands with him." 
 
 The girl dutifully approached Mr. Smith and 
 extended her hand. He took it and held it in 
 his own. 
 
 " Is this the " he began. 
 194
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 Captain Cy bowed assent. 
 
 " Yes," he said, his eyes fixed on the visitor s 
 face. " Yes. Don t forget what you said last 
 night." 
 
 Smith shook his head. 
 
 " No," he replied. " I ain t the kind that for 
 gets, unless it pays pretty well. There s some things 
 I ve remembered for quite a few years." 
 
 He looked the child over from head to foot and 
 his brows drew together in an ugly frown. 
 
 "So this is her, hey?" he muttered musingly. 
 " Humph! Well, I don t know as I d have guessed 
 it. Favors the other side of the house more the 
 respectable side, I should say. Still, there s a little 
 brand of the lost sheep, hey? Enough to prove 
 property, huh? Mark of the beast, I s pose the 
 psalm-singin relations would call it. D n em! 
 I " 
 
 "Steady!" broke in the captain. Mr. Smith 
 started, seemed to remember where he was, and his 
 manner changed. 
 
 " Come and see me, honey," he coaxed, drawing 
 the girl toward him by the hand he was holding. 
 " Ain t you got a nice kiss for me this fine mornin ? 
 Don t be scared. I won t bite." 
 
 Bos n looked shrinkingly at Mr. Smith s unshaven 
 cheeks and then at Captain Cy. The latter s face 
 was absolutely devoid of expression. He merely 
 nodded. 
 
 195
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 So Emily kissed one of the bristling cheeks. 
 The kiss was returned full upon the mouth. She 
 wiped her lips and darted away to her chair by the 
 table. 
 
 "What s your hurry?" inquired the visitor. 
 " Don t I do it right? Been some time since I kissed 
 a girl a little one, anyhow," he added, winking at 
 his host. " Never mind, we ll know each other bet 
 ter by and by." 
 
 He looked on in wondering disgust as Bos n said 
 her " grace." 
 
 "What in blazes! " he burst out when the little 
 blessing was finished. "Who put her up to that? 
 A left-over from the psalm-singers, is it?" 
 
 " I don t know," answered the captain, speaking 
 with deliberation. " I do know that I like to have 
 her do it and that she shall do it as long s she s at 
 this table." 
 
 "Oh! she shall, hey? Well, I reckon- 
 
 " She shall as long as she s at this table. Is that 
 real plain and understandable, or shall I write it 
 down?" 
 
 There was an icy clearness in the captain s tone 
 which seemed to freeze further conversation on the 
 part of Mr. Smith. He merely grunted and ate his 
 breakfast in silence. He ate a great deal and ate it 
 rapidly. 
 
 Bos n departed for school when the meal was 
 over. Captain Cy helped her on with her coat and 
 
 196
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 hood. Then, as he always did of late, he kissed 
 her good-by. 
 
 " Hi ! " called Mr. Smith from the sitting room. 
 "Ain t I in on that? If there s any kisses goin I 
 want to take a hand before the deal s over." 
 
 " Must I? " whispered Bos n pleadingly. " Must 
 I, Uncle Cy? I don t want to. I don t like him." 
 
 "Come on!" called Mr. Smith. "I m gettin 
 over my bashfulness fast. Hurry up ! " 
 
 "Must I kiss him, Uncle Cyrus?" whispered 
 Bos n. "MttJf I?" 
 
 " No ! " snapped the captain sharply. " Trot 
 right along now, dearie. Be a good girl. Good- 
 by." 
 
 He entered the sitting room. His guest had 
 found the Sunday box and was lighting one of his 
 host s cigars. 
 
 ;< Well," he inquired easily, " what s next on the 
 bill? Anything goin on in this forsaken hole?" 
 
 There s a barber shop down the road. You 
 might go there first, I should say. Not that you 
 need it, but just as a novelty like." 
 
 "Humph! I don t know. What s the matter 
 with your razor? " 
 
 Nothin . At least I ain t found anything wrong 
 with it yet." 
 
 " Oh ! Say, look here ! you re a queer guy, you 
 are. I ain t got you right in my mind yet. One 
 minute butter wouldn t melt in your mouth, and the 
 
 197
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 next you re fresh as a new egg. What is your little 
 game, anyway? You ve got one, so don t tell me 
 you ain t." 
 
 Captain Cy was plainly embarrassed. He gazed 
 at the " Shore to Shore " picture on the wall as he 
 answered. 
 
 " No game about it," he said. " Last night you 
 and I agreed that nothin was to be said for a few 
 days. You was to stay here and I d try to make 
 you comfort ble, that s all. Then we d see about 
 that other matter, settle on a fair price, and " 
 
 " Yes, I know. That s all right. But ]-ou re too 
 willin . There s something else. Say!" The ugly 
 scowl was in evidence again. " Say, look here, you ! 
 you ain t got somethin up your sleeve, have you? 
 There ain t somethin more that I don t know about, 
 is there? No more secrets than that " 
 
 "No! You hear me? No! You ll get your 
 rights, and maybe a little more than your rights, if 
 you re decent. And it ll pay you to be decent." 
 
 " Humph ! " Mr. Smith seemed to be thinking. 
 Then he added, looking up keenly under his brows: 
 " How about the the incumbrance on the property? 
 Of course, when I go I ll have to take that with me, 
 and " 
 
 Captain Cy interrupted. 
 
 " There ! there ! " he exclaimed, and there was a 
 shake in his voice, "there! there! Don t let s talk 
 about such things now. I I Let s wait a spell. 
 
 198
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 We ll have some more plans to make, maybe. If 
 you want to use my razor it s right in that drawer. 
 Just help yourself." 
 
 The visitor laughed aloud. He nodded as if sat 
 isfied. " Ho! ho! "he chuckled. "I see! Humph! 
 yes I see. The fools ain t all dead, and there s 
 none to beat an old one. Well ! well ! All right, 
 pard! I guess you and me ll get along fine. I ve 
 changed my mind; I will go to the barber shop, 
 after all. Only I m a little shy of dust just at pres 
 ent. So, to oblige a friend, maybe you ll hand over, 
 huh?" 
 
 The captain reached into his pocket, extracted a 
 two-dollar bill, and passed it to the speaker. Mr. 
 Smith smiled and shook his head. 
 
 You can t come in on that, pard," he said. 
 " The limit s five." 
 
 Captain Cy took back the bill and exchanged it 
 for one with a V in each corner. The visitor took 
 it and turned toward the door. 
 
 * Ta ! ta ! " he said, taking his hat from the peg 
 in the dining room. " I m off for the clippers. 
 When I come back I ll be the sweetest little Willie 
 in the diggin s. So long." 
 
 Bos n and the captain sat down to the dinner at 
 noon alone. Mr. Smith had not returned from his 
 trip to the barber s. He came in, however, just be 
 fore the meal was over, still in an unshorn condition, 
 somewhat flushed and very loquacious. 
 
 199
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Say! " he exclaimed genially. " That Simpson s 
 the right sort, ain t he? Him and me took a shine 
 to each other from the go-off. He s been West him 
 self and he s got some width to him. He s no psalm 
 singer." 
 
 " Humph ! " commented the captain, with delicate 
 sarcasm. " He don t seem to be much of a barber, 
 either. What s the matter? Gone out of business, 
 has he? Or was you so wild or woolly he got dis 
 couraged before he begun? " 
 
 " Great snakes! " exclaimed the visitor. " I for 
 got all about the clippers ! Well, that s one on me, 
 pard ! I ll make a new try soon s grub s over. 
 Don t be so tight-fisted with the steak; this is a plate 
 I m passin , not a contribution box." 
 
 He winked at Bos n and would have chucked her 
 under the chin if she had not dodged. She seemed 
 to have taken a great aversion to Mr. Smith and 
 was plainly afraid of him. 
 
 " Is he going to stay very long, Uncle Cyrus?" 
 she whispered, when it was school time once more. 
 " Do you think he s nice? " 
 
 Captain Cy did not answer. When she had gone 
 and the guest had risen from the table and put on 
 his hat, the captain said warningly: 
 
 There s one little bit of advice I want to give 
 you, Mister Man: A bargain s a bargain, but it 
 takes two to keep it. Don t let your love for Tad 
 Simpson lead you into talkin too much. Talk s 
 
 200
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 cheap, they say, but too much of it might be mighty 
 dear for you. Understand?" 
 
 Smith patted him on the back. " Lord love you, 
 pard!" he chuckled, "I m no spring chicken. I m 
 as hard to open as a safe, I am. It takes a can 
 opener to get anything out of me." 
 
 "Yes; well, you can get inside some folks easier 
 with a corkscrew. I ve been told that Tad s a kind 
 of a medium sometimes. If he raises any spirits in 
 that back room of his, I d leave em alone, if I was 
 you. So long as you re decent, I ll put up with " 
 
 But Mr. Smith was on his way to the gate, whis 
 tling as if he hadn t a care in the world. Captain 
 Cy watched him go down the road, and then, with 
 the drawn, weary look on his face which had been 
 there since the day before, he entered the sitting room 
 and threw himself into a chair. 
 
 Miss Phoebe Dawes, the school teacher, worked 
 late that evening. There were examination papers to 
 be gone over, and experience had demonstrated that 
 the only place where she could be free from inter 
 ruptions was the schoolroom itself. At the perfect 
 boarding house the shrill tones of Keturah s voice 
 and those of Miss Phinney and Mrs. Tripp pene 
 trated through shut doors. It is hard to figure per 
 centages when the most intimate details of Bayport s 
 family life are being recited and gloated over on the 
 other side of a thin partition. And when Matilda 
 undertook to defend the Come-Outer faith against 
 15 201
 
 the assaults of the majority, the verbal riot was, as 
 Mr. Tidditt described it, " like feedin time in a 
 parrot shop." 
 
 So Miss Phoebe came to the boarding house for 
 supper and then returned to the schoolroom, where, 
 with a lighted bracket lamp beside her on the desk, 
 she labored until nine o clock. Then she put on her 
 coat and hat, extinguished the light, locked the door, 
 and started on her lonely walk home. 
 
 The main road " in our village is dark after 
 nine o clock. There is a street light a kerosene 
 lamp on a post in front of the Methodist meeting 
 house, but the sexton forgets it, generally speaking, 
 or, at any rate, neglects to fill it except at rare in 
 tervals. Simmons s front windows are ablaze, of 
 course, and so are the dingy panes of Simpson s 
 barber shop. But these two centers of sociability 
 are both at the depot road corner, and when they 
 are passed the only sources of illumination are the 
 scattered gleams from the back windows of dwell 
 ings. As most of us retire by half-past eight, the 
 glow along the main road is not dazzling, to say 
 the very least. 
 
 Miss Dawes was not afraid of the dark. She 
 had been her own escort for a good many years. 
 She walked briskly on, heard the laughter and loud 
 voices in the barber shop die away behind her, 
 passed the schoolhouse pond, now bleak and chill 
 with the raw November wind blowing across it, and 
 
 202
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 began to climb the slope of Whittaker s Hill. And 
 here the wind, rushing in unimpeded over the flooded 
 salt meadows from the tumbled bay outside, wound 
 her skirts about her and made climbing difficult and 
 breath-taking. 
 
 She was, perhaps, half way up the long slope, 
 when she heard, in the intervals between the gusts, 
 footsteps behind her. She knew most of the village 
 people by this time and the thought of company was 
 not unpleasant. So she paused and pantingly waited 
 for whoever was coming. She could not see more 
 than a few yards, but the footsteps sounded nearer 
 and nearer, and, a moment later, a man s voice 
 began singing " Annie Rooney," a melody then past 
 its prime in the cities, but popularized in Bayport 
 by some departed batch of summer boarders. 
 
 She did not recognize the voice and she did not 
 particularly approve of singing in the streets, espe 
 cially such loud singing. So she decided not to wait 
 longer, and was turning to continue her climb, when 
 the person behind stopped his vocalizing and called. 
 
 " Hi ! " he shouted. " Hello, ahead there ! Who 
 is it? Hold on a minute, pard! I m comin ." 
 
 She disobeyed the order to " hold on," and began 
 to hurry. The hurry was of no avail, however, for 
 the follower broke into a run and soon was by her 
 side. He was a stranger to her. 
 
 ; Wheel Wow! " he panted. "This is no race 
 track, pard. Pull up, and let s take it easy. My 
 
 203
 
 off leg s got a kink in it, and I don t run so easy as 
 I used to. Great snakes; what s your rush? Ain t 
 you fond of company? Hello! I believe it s a 
 woman ! " 
 
 She did not answer. His manner and the smell 
 of liquor about him were decidedly unpleasant. The 
 idea that he might be a tramp occurred to her. 
 Tramps are our bugaboos here in Bayport. 
 
 " A woman ! " exclaimed the man hilariously. 
 " Well, say ! I didn t believe there was one loose 
 in this tail-end of nowhere. Girlie, I m glad to see 
 you. Not that I can see you much, but never mind. 
 All cats are gray in the dark, hey? You can t see 
 me, neither, so we ll take each other on trust. She s 
 my sweetheart, I m her beau. Say, Maud, may I 
 see you home? " 
 
 She was frightened now. The Whittaker place 
 on the hilltop was the nearest house, and that was 
 some distance off. 
 
 " What s the matter, Carrie? " inquired the man. 
 " Don t be scared. I wouldn t hurt you. I m just 
 lonesome, that s all, and I need society. Don t 
 rush, you ll ruin your complexion. Here ! come 
 under my wing and let s toddle along together. 
 How s mamma? " 
 
 He seized her arm and pulled her back beside 
 him. She tried to free herself, but could not. Her 
 unwelcome escort held her fast and she was obliged 
 to move as slowly as he did. It was very dark. 
 
 204
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 " Say, what is your name? " coaxed the man. " Is 
 is Maud, hey? Or Julia? I always liked Julia. 
 Don t be peevish. Tell us, that s a good girl." 
 
 She gave a quick jerk and managed to pull her 
 arm from his grasp, giving him a violent push as 
 she did so. He, being unsteady on his feet, tumbled 
 down the low bank which edged the sidewalk. Then 
 she ran on up the hill as fast as she could. She 
 heard him swear as he fell. 
 
 She had nearly reached the end of the Whittaker 
 fence when he caught her. He was laughing, and 
 that alarmed her almost as much as if he had been 
 angry. 
 
 "Naughty! naughty!" he chuckled, holding her 
 fast. " Tryin to sneak, was you? Not much! 
 Not this time ! Did you ever play forfeits when 
 you was little? Well, this is a forfeit game and 
 you re It. You must bow to the prettiest, kneel to 
 the wittiest, and kiss the one you love best. And 
 I ll let you off on the first two. Come now ! Pay 
 up!" 
 
 Then she screamed. And her scream was an 
 swered at once. A gate swung back with a bang 
 and she heard some one running along the walk 
 toward her. 
 
 "O Cap n Whittaker!" she called. "Come! 
 Come quick, please ! " 
 
 How she knew that the person running toward 
 her was Captain Cy has not been satisfactorily ex- 
 
 205
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 plained even yet. She cannot explain it and neither 
 can the captain. And equally astonishing was the 
 latter s answer. He certainly had not heard her 
 voice often enough to recognize it under such cir 
 cumstances. 
 
 " All right, teacher! " he shouted. " I m comin ! 
 Let go of that woman, you Oh, it s you, is it? " 
 
 He had seized Mr. Smith by the coat collar and 
 jerked him away from his victim. Miss Dawes took 
 refuge behind the captain s bulky form. The two 
 men looked at each other. Smith was recovering his 
 breath. 
 
 "It s you, is it?" repeated Captain Cy. Then, 
 turning to Miss Phoebe, he asked: "Did he hurt 
 you?" 
 
 " No ! Not yet. But he frightened me dread 
 fully. Who is he? Do you know him?" 
 
 Her persecutor answered the question. 
 
 You bet your life he knows me!" he snarled. 
 " He knows me mighty well ! Pard, you keep your 
 nose out of this, d you see! You mind your own 
 business. I wan t goin to hurt her any." 
 
 The captain paid no attention to him. 
 
 " Yup, I know him," he said grimly. Then 
 he added, pointing toward the lighted window of 
 the house ahead : " You Smith, you go in there 
 and stay there ! Trot ! Don t make me speak 
 twice." 
 
 But Mr. Smith was too far gone with anger and 
 206
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 the " spirits " raised by Tad Simpson to heed the 
 menace in the words. 
 
 "Smith, hey?" he sneered. "Oh, yes, Smithl 
 Well, Smith ain t goin , d you see ! He s goin to 
 do what he pleases. I reckon I m on top of the 
 roost here! I know what s what! You can t talk 
 to me. I ve got rights, I have, and " 
 
 " Blast your rights! " 
 
 "What? What? Blast my rights, hey? Oh, 
 yes ! Think because you ve got money you can cheat 
 me out of em, do you? Well, you can t! And how 
 about the other part of those rights? S pose I walk 
 right into that house and " 
 
 " Stop it ! Shut up ! You d better not " 
 
 "And into that bedroom and just say: Emmie, 
 here s your 
 
 He didn t finish the sentence. Captain Cy s big 
 fist struck him fairly between the eyes, and the back 
 of his head struck the walk with a " smack ! " Then, 
 through the fireworks which were illuminating his 
 muddled brain, he heard the captain s voice. 
 
 You low - down, good - for - nothin scamp ! " 
 growled Captain Cy. " All this day I ve been hatin 
 myself for the way I ve acted to you. I ve hated 
 myself and been tryin to spunk up courage to say 
 It s all off ! But I was too much of a coward, I 
 guess. And now the Lord A mighty has made me 
 say it. You want your rights, do you ? So ? Then 
 get em if you can. It s you and me for it, and we ll 
 
 207
 
 " I ll kill you like a dog." 
 
 see who s the best man. Teacher, if you re ready 
 I ll walk home with you now." 
 
 Mr. Smith was not entirely cowed. 
 
 "You go!" he yelled. "Go ahead! And I ll 
 go to a lawyer s to-morrow. But to-night, and in- 
 
 208
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 side of five minutes, I ll walk into that house of 
 yours and get my " 
 
 The captain dropped Miss Dawes s arm and 
 strode back to where his antagonist was sitting in 
 the dust of the walk. Stooping down, he shook a 
 big forefinger in the man s face. 
 
 You ve been out West, they tell me," he whis 
 pered sternly. " Yes ! Well, out West they take 
 the law into their own hands, sometimes, I hear. 
 I ve been in South America, and they do it there, 
 too. Just so sure as you go into my house to-night 
 and touch well, you know what I mean just so 
 sure I ll kill you like a dog, if I have to chase you 
 to Jericho. Now you can believe that or not. If 
 I was you I d believe it." 
 
 Taking the frightened schoolmistress by the arm 
 once more he walked away. Mr. Smith said noth 
 ing till they had gone some distance. Then he 
 called after them. 
 
 "You wait till to-morrow!" he shouted. "You 
 just wait and see what ll happen to-morrow ! " 
 
 Captain Cy was silent all the way to the gate of 
 the perfect boarding house. Miss Dawes was silent 
 likewise, but she thought a great deal. At the gate 
 she said: 
 
 " Captain Whittaker, I m ever so much obliged 
 to you. I can t thank you enough." 
 
 " Don t try, then. That s what you said to me 
 about the cow." 
 
 209
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " But I m almost sorry you were the one to come. 
 I m afraid that man will get you into trouble. Has 
 he can he What did he mean about to-mor 
 row? Who M he?" 
 
 The captain pushed his cap back from his fore 
 head. 
 
 " Teacher," he said, " there s a proverb, ain t 
 there, about lettin to-morrow take care of itself? 
 As for trouble well, I did think I d had trouble 
 enough in my life to last me through, but I cal late 
 I ve got another guess. Anyhow, don t you fret. 
 I did just the right thing, and I m glad I did it. 
 If it was only me I wouldn t fret, either. But 
 there s He stopped, groaned, and pulled the 
 cap forward again. " Good night," he added, and 
 turned to go. 
 
 Miss Dawes leaned forward and detained him. 
 
 Just a minute, Cap n Whittaker," she said. " I 
 was a little prejudiced against you when I came here. 
 I was told that you got me the teacher s position, 
 and there was more than a hint that you did it for 
 selfish reasons of your own. When you called that 
 afternoon at the school I was 
 
 "Don t say a word! I was the biggest fool in 
 town that time, and I ve been ashamed to look 
 in the glass ever since. I ain t always such an 
 idiot." 
 
 " But I ve had to judge people for myself in my 
 lifetime," continued the schoolmistress, " and I ve 
 
 210
 
 A BARGAIN OFF 
 
 made up my mind that I was mistaken about you. 
 I should like to apologize. Will you shake hands? " 
 
 She extended her hand. Captain Cy hesitated. 
 
 "Hadn t you better wait a spell?" he asked. 
 You ve heard that swab call me partner. 
 Hadn t " 
 
 "No; I don t know what your trouble is, of 
 course, and I certainly shan t mention it to anyone. 
 But whatever it is I m sure you are right and it s 
 not your fault. Now will you shake hands?" 
 
 The captain did not answer. He merely took the 
 proffered hand, shook it heartily, and strode off into 
 the dark.
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 " TOWN-MEETIN 
 
 THIS is goin to be a mewzoriable town meet- 
 in ! " declared Sylvanus Cahoon, with 
 unction, rising from the settee to gaze about 
 him over the heads of the voters in the townhall. 
 " I bet you every able-bodied man in Bayport 11 be 
 here this forenoon. Yes, sir! that s what I call it, 
 a me-wo-riable meetin ! " 
 
 "See anything of Cy?" inquired Josiah Dimick, 
 who sat next to Sylvanus. 
 
 " No, he ain t come yet. And Heman ain t here, 
 neither. Hello ! there s Tad. Looks happy, seems 
 to me." 
 
 Captain Dimick stood up to inspect Mr. Simpson. 
 
 " Humph ! " he muttered. " Well, unless my 
 count s wrong, he ain t got much to be happy about. 
 Lonzo Snow s with him. Tad does look sort of joy 
 ful, don t he? Them that laughs last laughs best. 
 When the vote for school committee s all in we ll see 
 who does the grinnin . But I can t understand 
 Hello ! there s Tidditt. Asaph ! Ase ! S-s-t-t ! Come 
 here a minute." 
 
 212
 
 " TOWN-MEETIN 
 
 Mr. Tidditt, trembling with excitement, and shak 
 ing hands effusively with everyone he met, pushed 
 his way up the aisle and bent over his friend. 
 
 " Say, Ase," whispered Josiah, " where s Whit? 
 Why ain t he on hand? Nothin s happened, has it? "j 
 
 " No," replied the town clerk. " Everything 
 seems to be all right. I stopped in on the way along 
 and Cy said not to wait; he d be here on time. He s 
 been kind of off his feed for the last day or so, and 
 I cal late he didn t feel like hurryin . Say, Joe, now 
 honest, what do you think of my chances? " 
 
 Such a confirmed joker as Dimick couldn t lose an, 
 opportunity like this. With the aid of one trying to 
 be cheerful under discouragement he answered that, 
 so far, Asaph s chances looked fair, pretty fair, but 
 of course you couldn t always sometimes tell. Mr. 
 Tidditt rushed away to begin the handshaking all 
 over again. 
 
 From this round of cordiality he was reluctantly 
 torn and conducted to the platform. After thump 
 ing the desk with his fist he announced that the 
 gathering would " come to order right off, as there 
 was consider ble business to be done and it ought to 
 be goin ahead." He then proceeded to read the call 
 for the meeting. This ceremony was no sooner over 
 than Abednego Small, " Uncle Bedny," was on his 
 feet loudly demanding to be informed why the town 
 " hadn t done nothin " toward fixing up the Bassett s 
 Hollow road. Uncle Bedny s speech had proceeded 
 
 213
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 no further than " Feller citizens, in the name of an 
 outrageous I should say outraged portion of our 
 community I " when he was choked off by a self- 
 appointed committee who knew Mr. Small of old and 
 had seated themselves near him to be ready for just 
 such emergencies. The next step, judged by meet 
 ings of other years, should have been to unani 
 mously elect Eben Salters moderator; but as Cap 
 tain Eben refused to serve, owing to his interest in 
 the Whittaker campaign, Alvin Knowles was, by a 
 small majority, chosen for that office. Mr. Knowles 
 was a devout admirer of the great Atkins, and his 
 election would have been considered a preliminary 
 victory for the opposition had it not been that many 
 of Captain Cy s adherents voted for Alvin from a 
 love of mischief, knowing from experience his ig 
 norance of parliamentary law and his easy-going 
 rule. " Now there ll be fun ! " declared one delighted 
 individual. " Anything s in order when Alvin s 
 chairman." 
 
 The proceedings of the first half hour were dis 
 appointingly tame. Most of us had come there to 
 witness a political wrestling match between Tad 
 Simpson and Cyrus Whittaker. Some even dared 
 hope that Congressman Atkins might direct his fight 
 in person. But neither the Honorable nor Captain 
 Cy was in the hall as yet. Solon Eldridge was re- 
 elected selectman and so also was Asaph Tidditt. 
 Nobody but Asaph seemed surprised at this result. 
 
 214
 
 " TOWN-MEETIN 
 
 His speech of acceptance would undoubtedly have 
 been a triumph of oratory had it not been interrupted 
 by Uncle Bedny, who rose to emphatically protest 
 against " settin round and wastin time " when the 
 Bassett s Hollow road " had ruts deep enough to 
 drown a cat in whenever there was a more n average 
 heavy dew." 
 
 The Bassett s Hollow delegate being again tem 
 porarily squelched, Moderator Knowles announced 
 that nominations for the vacant place on the school 
 committee were in order. There was a perceptible 
 stir on the settees. This was what the meeting had 
 been waiting for. 
 
 " No sign of Cy or Heman yet," observed Mr. 
 Cahoon, craning his neck in the direction of the door. 
 " It s the queerest thing ever I see." 
 
 " Queer enough about Cy, that s a fact," con 
 curred Captain Dimick. " I ain t so surprised about 
 Heman s not comin . Looks as if Whit was right; 
 he always said Atkins dodged a row where folks 
 could watch it. Does most of his fightin from 
 round the corner. Hello ! there s Tad. Now you ll 
 see the crown of glory set on Lonzo Snow s head. 
 Hope the crown s padded nice and soft. Anything 
 with sharp edges would sink in." 
 
 But Mr. Simpson, it seemed, was not yet ready to 
 proceed with the coronation. He had risen to ask 
 permission of the meeting to defer the school com 
 mittee matter for a short time. Persons, important 
 
 215
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 persons, who should be present while the nominat 
 ing was going on, had not yet arrived. He was sure 
 that the gathering would wish to hear from these 
 persons. He asked for only a slight delay. Matters 
 such as this, affecting the welfare of our posterity, 
 ought not to be hurried, etc., etc. 
 
 Mr. Simpson s request was unexpected. The meet 
 ing, apparently, didn t know how to take it. Uncle 
 Bedny was firmly held in his seat by those about him. 
 Lemuel Myrick took the floor to protest. 
 
 " I must say," he declared, " that I don t see any 
 reason for waitin . If folks ain t here, that s their 
 own fault. Mr. Moderator, I demand that the nom- 
 inatin go ahead." . 
 
 Tad was on his feet instantly. 
 
 " I m goin to appeal," he cried, " to the decency 
 and gratitude of the citizens of the town of Bayport. 
 One of the persons I m that is, we re waitin for 
 has done more for our beautiful village than all the 
 rest of us put together. There ain t no need for 
 me to name him. A right up-to-date town pump, a 
 lovely memorial window, a " 
 
 "How about that harbor appropriation?" cried 
 a voice from the settees. 
 
 Mr. Simpson was taken aback. His face flushed 
 and he angrily turned toward the interrupter. 
 
 " That s you, Joe Dimick ! " he shouted, pointing 
 an agitated forefinger. " You needn t scooch down. 
 I know your tongue. The idea of you findin fault 
 
 216
 
 " TOWN-MEETIN 
 
 because a big man like Congressman Atkins don t 
 jump when you holler Git up ! What do you know 
 about doin s at Washington? That harbor appro 
 priation 11 go through if anybody on earth can get 
 it through. There s other places besides Bayport to 
 be provided for and " 
 
 " And their congressmen provide for em," called 
 another voice. Tad whirled to face his new tor 
 mentor. 
 
 " Huh! he grunted with sarcasm. " That s Lem 
 Myrick, / know. Lem, the great painter, who votes 
 where he paints and gets paid accordin ." 
 
 " Order! " cried several. 
 
 " Oh, all right, Mr. Moderator! I ll keep order 
 all right. But I say to you, Lem, and you, Joe Dim- 
 ick, that I know who put these smart notions into 
 your heads. We all know, unless we re born fools. 
 Who is it that s been sayin the Honorable Heman 
 Atkins was shirkin that appropriation? Who was 
 it said if he was representative the thing would have 
 gone through afore this? Who s been makin his 
 brags that he could get it through if he had the 
 chance ? You know who 1 So do I ! I wish he was 
 here. I only wish he was here! I d say it to his 
 face." 
 
 Well, he is. Heave ahead and say it." 
 
 Everyone turned toward the door. Captain Cy 
 had entered the hall. He was standing in the aisle, 
 and with him was Bailey Bangs. The captain looked 
 16 217
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 very tired, almost worn out, but he nodded coolly to 
 Mr. Simpson, who had retired to his seat with sur 
 prising quickness and apparent discomfiture. 
 
 " Here I am, Tad," continued the captain. " Say 
 your piece." 
 
 But Tad, it appeared, was not anxious to " say 
 his piece." He was whispering earnestly with a 
 group of his followers. Captain Cy held up his 
 hand. 
 
 " Mr. Moderator," he asked, " can I hav- the 
 floor a minute? All I want to say is that I cal late 
 I m the feller the last speaker had reference to. I 
 have said that I didn t see why that appropriation 
 was so hard to get. I say it again. Other appro 
 priations are got, and why not ours? I did say if I 
 was a congressman I d get it. Yes, and I ll say 
 more," he added, raising his voice, " I ll say that if 
 I was sent to Washin ton by this town, congressman 
 or not, I d move heaven and earth, and all creation 
 from the President down till I did get it. That s 
 all. So would any live man, I should think." 
 
 He sat down. There was some applause. Before 
 it had subsided Abel Leonard, one of the quickest- 
 witted of Mr. Simpson s workers, was on his feet, 
 gesticulating for attention. 
 
 " Mr. Moderator," he shouted, " I want to make 
 a motion. We ve all heard the big talk that s been 
 made. All right, then! I move you, sir, that Cap 
 tain Cyrus Whittaker be appointed a committee of 
 
 218
 
 " TOWN-MEETIN 
 
 one to go to Washin ton, if he wants to, or any 
 wheres else, and see that we get the appropriation. 
 And if we don t get it the blame s his! There, 
 now! " 
 
 There was a roar of laughter. This was exactly 
 the sort of " tit-for-tat " humor that appeals to a 
 Yankee crowd. The motion was seconded half a 
 dozen times. Moderator Knowles grinned and 
 shook his head. 
 
 " A joke s a joke," he said, " and we all like a 
 good one. However, this meetin is supposed to be 
 for business, not fun, so " 
 
 "Question! Question! It s been seconded! 
 We ve got to vote on it ! " shouted a chorus. 
 
 " Don t you think seems to me that ain t in 
 order," began the moderator, but Captain Cy rose 
 to his feet. The grim smile had returned to his face 
 and he looked at the joyous assemblage with almost 
 his old expression of appreciative alertness. 
 
 " Never mind the vote," he said. " I realize that 
 Brother Leonard has rather got one on me, so to 
 speak. All right, I won t dodge. I ll be a committee 
 of one on the harbor grab, and if nothin comes o 
 it I ll take my share of kicks. Gentlemen, I appreci 
 ate your trustfulness in my ability." 
 
 This brief speech was a huge success. If, for a 
 moment, the pendulum of public favor had swung 
 toward Simpson, this trumping of the latter s lead 
 ing card pushed it back again. The moderator had 
 
 219
 
 ;CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 some difficulty in restoring order to the hilarious 
 meeting. 
 
 Then Mr. Myrick was accorded the privilege of 
 the floor, in spite of Tad s protests, and proceeded 
 to nominate Cyrus Whittaker for the school com 
 mittee. Lem had devoted hours of toil and weari 
 some mental struggle to the preparation of his ad 
 dress, and it was lengthy and florid. Captain Cy 
 was described as possessing all the virtues. Bailey, 
 listening with a hand behind his ear, was moved 
 to applause at frequent intervals, and even Asaph 
 forgot the dignity of his exalted position on the 
 platform and pounded the official desk in ecstasy. 
 The only person to appear uninterested was the 
 nominee himself. He sat listlessly in his seat, his 
 eyes cast down, and his thoughts apparently far 
 away. 
 
 Josiah Dimick seconded the captain s nomination. 
 Then Mr. Simpson stepped to the front and, after 
 a wistful glance at the door, began to speak. 
 
 " Feller citizens," he said, " it is my privilege to 
 put in nomination for school committee a man whose 
 name stands for all that s good and clean and pro 
 gressive in this township. But afore I do it I m 
 goin to ask you to let me say a word or two con- 
 cernin somethin that bears right on this matter, and 
 which, I believe, everyone of you ought to know. 
 It s somethin that most of you don t know, and 
 it ll be a surprise, a big surprise. I ll be as quick 
 
 220
 
 TOWN-MEETIN 
 
 as I can, and I cal late you ll thank me when I m 
 done." 
 
 He paused. The meeting looked at each other in 
 astonishment. There was whispering along the set 
 tees. Moderator Knowles was plainly puzzled. He 
 looked inquiringly at the town clerk, but Asaph was 
 evidently quite as much in the dark as he concerning 
 the threatened disclosure. 
 
 " Feller Bayporters," went on Tad, " there s one 
 thing we ve all agreed on, no matter who we ve 
 meant to vote for. That is, that a member of our 
 school committee should be an upright, honest man, 
 one fit morally to look out for our dear children. 
 Ain t that so? Well, then, I ask you this: Would 
 you consider a man fit for that job who deliberately 
 came between a father and his child, who pizened 
 the mind of that child against his own parent, and 
 when that parent come to claim that child, first tried 
 to buy him off and then turned him out of the house? 
 Yes, and offered violence to him. And done it 
 mark what I say for reasons which which well, 
 we can only guess em, but the guess may not be so 
 awful bad. Is that the kind of man we want to 
 honor or to look out for our own children s school- 
 in ?" 
 
 Mr. Simpson undoubtedly meant to cause a sen 
 sation by his opening remarks. He certainly did so. 
 The stir and whispering redoubled. Asaph, his 
 mouth open, stared wildly down at Captain Cy. The 
 
 221
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 captain rose to his feet, then sank back again. His 
 listlessness was gone and, paying no attention to 
 those about him, he gazed fixedly at Tad. 
 
 " Gentlemen," continued the speaker, " last night 
 I had an experience that I shan t forget as long as 
 I live. I met a poor man, a poor, lame man who d 
 been away out West and got hurt bad. Folks 
 thought he was dead. His wife thought so and 
 died grievin for him. She left a little baby girl, 
 only seven or eight year old. When this man come 
 back, well again but poor, to look up his family, he 
 found his wife had passed away and the child had 
 been sent off, just to get rid of her, to a stranger in 
 another town. That stranger fully meant to send 
 her off, too; he said so dozens of times. A good 
 many of you folks right here heard him say it. But 
 he never sent her he kept her. Why? Well, that s 
 the question. / shan t answer it. / ain t accusin 
 nobody. All T say is, what s easy enough for any of 
 you to prove, and that is that it come to light the 
 child had property belongin to her. Property ! land, 
 wuth money! " 
 
 He paused once more and drew his sleeve across 
 his forehead. Most of his hearers were silent now, 
 on tiptoe of expectation. Dimick looked searchingly 
 at Captain Cy. Then he sprang to his feet. 
 
 "Order! " he shouted. "What s all this got to 
 do with nominatin for school committee? Ain t he 
 out of order, Alvin? " 
 
 222
 
 " TOWN-MEETIN 
 
 The moderator hesitated. His habitual indecision 
 was now complicated by the fact that he was as curi 
 ous as the majority of those before him. There were 
 shouts of, " Go ahead, Tad! " " Tell us the rest! " 
 " Let him go on, Mr. Moderator! " 
 
 Cy Whittaker slowly rose. 
 
 " Alvin," he said earnestly, " don t stop him yet. 
 As a favor to me, let him spin his yarn." 
 
 Simpson was ready and evidently eager to spin It. 
 
 " This man," he proclaimed, " this father, mourn- 
 in for his dead wife and longin for his child, comes 
 to the town where he was to find and take her. And 
 when he meets the man that s got her, when he comes, 
 poor and down on his luck, what does this man this 
 rich man do? Why, fust of all, he s sweeter n 
 sirup to him, takes him in, keeps him overnight, 
 and the next day he says to him : You just be quiet 
 and say nothin to nobody that she s your little girl. 
 I ll make it wuth your while. Keep quiet till I m 
 ready for you to say it. And he gives the father 
 money not much, but some. All right so fur, may 
 be ; but wait ! Then it turns out that the father 
 knows about this land this property. And then the 
 kind, charitable man this rich man with lots of 
 money of his own turns the poor father out, tell- 
 in him to get the girl and the land if he can, knowin 
 knowin , mind you that the father ain t got a 
 cent to hire lawyers nor even to pay for his next 
 meal. And when the father says he won t go, but 
 
 223
 
 wants his dear one that belongs to him, the rich 
 feller abuses him, knocks him down with his fist ! 
 Knocks down a poor, weak, lame invalid, just off 
 a sick bed ! Is that the kind of a man we want on 
 our school committee?" 
 
 He asked the question w r ith both hands outspread 
 and the perspiration running down his cheeks. The 
 meeting was in an uproar. 
 
 " No need for me to tell you who I mean," 
 shouted Tad, waving his arms. " You know who, 
 as well as I do. You ve just heard him praised as 
 bein all that s good and great. But / say " 
 
 " You ve said enough ! Now let me say a word ! " 
 
 It was Captain Cy who interrupted. He had 
 pushed his way through the crowd, down the aisle, 
 and now stood before the gesticulating Mr. Simpson, 
 who shrank back as if he feared that the treatment 
 accorded the u poor weak invalid " might be con 
 tinued with him. 
 
 " Knowles," said Captain Cy, turning to the mod 
 erator, "let me speak, will you? I won t be but a 
 minute. Friends," he continued, facing the excited 
 gathering " for some of you are my friends, or I ve 
 come to think you are a part of what this man says 
 is so. The girl at my house is Emily Thomas; her 
 mother was Mary Thomas, who some of you know, 
 and her father s name is Henry Thomas. She came 
 to me unexpected, bein sent by a Mrs. Oliver up to 
 Concord, because twas either me or an orphan 
 
 224
 
 " You ve said enough ! Now let me say a word ! 
 
 asylum. I took her m meanin to keep her a little 
 while, and then send her away. But as time went on 
 I kept puttin off and puttin off, and at last I realized 
 I couldn t do it; I d come to think too much of- her. 
 " Fellers," he went on, slowly, " I I hardly know 
 how to tell you what that little girl s come to be to 
 me. When I first struck Bayport, after forty years 
 away from it, all I thought of was makin over the 
 
 225
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 old place and livin in it. I cal lated it would be a 
 sort of Paradise, and how I was goin to live or 
 whether or not I d be lonesome with everyone of my 
 folks dead and gone, never crossed my mind. But 
 the longer I lived there alone the less like Paradise 
 it got to be; I realized more and more that it ain t 
 furniture and fixin s that make a home; it s them 
 you love that s in it. And just as I d about reached 
 the conclusion that twas a failure, the whole busi 
 ness, why, then, Bos n Emily, that is dropped in, 
 and inside of a week I knew I d got what was miss- 
 in in my life. 
 
 " I never married and children never meant 
 much to me till I got her. She s the best little 
 little . . . There I I mustn t talk this way. I bluffed 
 a lot about not keepin her permanent, bein kind of 
 ashamed, I guess, but down inside me I d made up 
 my mind to bring her up like a daughter. She and 
 me was to live together till she grew up and got 
 married and I ... Well, what s the use? A few 
 days ago come a letter from the Oliver woman in 
 Concord sayin that this Henry Thomas, Bos n s 
 father, wan t dead at all, but had turned up there, 
 havin learned somehow or nother that his wife was 
 gone and that his child had been willed a little bit 
 of land which belonged to her mother. He had 
 found out that Emmie was with me, and the letter 
 said he would likely come after her and the land. 
 
 " That letter was like a flash of lightnin to me. I 
 226
 
 1 TOWN-MEETIN 
 
 was dismasted and on my beam ends. I didn t knoV 
 what to do. I d learned enough about this Henry 
 Thomas to know that he was no use, a drunken, good- 
 for-nothin scamp who had cruelized his wife and 
 then run off and left her and the baby. But when 
 he come, the very night I got the letter, I gave him 
 a chance. I took him in; I was willin to give him 
 a job on the place; I was willin to pay for his keep, 
 and more. I did ask him to keep his mouth shut 
 and even to use another name. Twas weak of me, 
 maybe, but you want to remember this had come on 
 me sudden. And last night the very second night, 
 mind you he went out somewhere, perhaps we can 
 guess where, bought liquor with the money I gave 
 him, got drunk, and then insulted one of the best 
 women in this town. Yes, sir! I say it right here, 
 one of the best, pluckiest little women anywhere, al 
 though she and I ain t always agreed on certain mat 
 ters. I did tell him to clear out, and I did knock 
 him down. Yes, and by the big dipper, I d do it 
 again under the same circumstances ! 
 
 " As for the property," he added fiercely, " why, 
 darn the property, I say! It ain t wuth much, any 
 how, and, if twas anybody s else, he should have it 
 and welcome. But it s Bos n s, and, bein what he 
 is, he shan t have it. And he shan t have her to 
 cruelize, neither! By the Almighty! he shan t, so 
 long as I ve got a dollar to fight him with. I say 
 that to you, Tad Simpson, and to the man to who- 
 
 227
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 ever put you up to this. There ! I ve said my say. 
 Now, gentlemen, you can choose your side." 
 
 He strode back to his seat. There was silence for 
 a moment. Then Josiah Dimick sprang up and 
 waved his hat. 
 
 " That s the way to talk ! " he shouted. " That s 
 a man! Three cheers for Cap n Whittaker! Come 
 on, everybody ! " 
 
 But everybody did not " come on." The cheers 
 were feeble. It was evident that the majority of 
 those present did not know how to meet this unex 
 pected contingency. It had taken them by surprise 
 and they were undecided. The uproar of argument 
 and question began again, louder than ever. The 
 bewildered moderator thumped his desk and shouted 
 feebly for order. Tad Simpson took the floor and, 
 in a few words and at the top of his lungs, nomi 
 nated Alonzo Snow. Abel Leonard seconded the 
 nomination. There were yells of " Question ! Ques 
 tion! " and "Vote! Vote!" 
 
 Eben Salters was recognized by the chair. Cap 
 tain Salters made few speeches, and when he did 
 make one it was because he had something to say. 
 
 " Mr. Moderator," he said, " I, for one, hate to 
 vote just now. It isn t that the school committee is 
 so important of itself. But I do think that the rights 
 of a father with his child is pretty important, and our 
 vote for Cap n Whittaker and most of you know I 
 intended votin for him and have been workin for 
 
 228
 
 " TOWN-MEETIN 
 
 him might seem like an indorsement of his posi 
 tion. This whole thing is a big surprise to me. I 
 don t feel yet that we know enough of the inside facts 
 to give such an indorsement. I d like to see this 
 Thomas man before I decide to give it or not to 
 give it, either. It s a queer thing to come up at town 
 meetin , but it s up. Hadn t we better adjourn until 
 next week? " 
 
 He sat down. The meeting was demoralized. 
 Some were shouting for adjournment, others to 
 Vote it out." A straw would turn the scale and the 
 straw was forthcoming. While Captain Cy was 
 speaking the door had silently opened and two men 
 entered the hall and sought seclusion in a corner. 
 Now one of these men came forward the Honora 
 ble Heman Atkins. 
 
 Mr. Atkins walked solemnly to the front, amidst 
 a burst of recognition. Many of the voters rose to 
 receive him. It was customary, when the great man 
 condescended to attend such gatherings, to offer him 
 a seat on the platform. This the obsequious Knowles 
 proceeded to do. Asaph was too overcome by the 
 disclosure of " John Smith s " identity and by Mr. 
 Simpson s attack on his friend to remember even 
 his manners. He did not rise, but sat stonily 
 staring. 
 
 The moderator s gavel descended " Order 1" 
 he roared. "Order, I say! Congressman Atkins 
 is goin to talk to us." 
 
 229
 
 The Honorable Heman faced the excited crowd. 
 One hand was in the breast of his frock coat; the 
 other was clenched upon his hip. He stood calm, 
 benignant, dignified the incarnation of wisdom and 
 righteous worth. The attitude had its effect; the 
 applause began and grew to an ovation. Men who 
 had intended voting against his favored candidate 
 forgot their intention, in the magnetism of his pres 
 ence, and cheered. He bowed and bowed again. 
 
 " Fellow townsmen," he began, " far be it from 
 me to influence your choice in the matter of the school 
 committee. Still further be it from me to influence 
 you against an old boyhood friend, a neighbor, one 
 whom I believe er had believed to be all that was 
 sincere and true. But, fellow townsmen, my es 
 teemed friend, Captain Salters, has expressed a wish 
 to see Mr. Thomas, the father whose story you have 
 heard to-day. I happen to be in a position to gratify 
 that wish. Mr. Thomas, will you kindly come for 
 ward?" 
 
 Then from the rear of the hall Mr. Thomas came. 
 But the drunken rowdy of the night before had been 
 transformed. Gone was the scrubby beard and the 
 shabby suit. Shorn was the unkempt mop of hair 
 and vanished the impudent swagger. He was dressed 
 in clean linen and respectable black, and his manner 
 was modest and subdued. Only a discoloration of 
 one eye showed where Captain Cy s blow had left its 
 mark. 
 
 230
 
 "He stepped upon the platform beside the congressman." 
 
 He stepped upon the platform beside the con 
 gressman. The latter laid a hand upon his shoulder. 
 
 " Gentlemen and friends," said Heman, " my name 
 has been brought into this controversy, by Mr. Simp 
 son directly, and in insinuation by er another. 
 
 231
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Therefore it is my right to make my position clear. 
 Mr. Thomas came to me last evening in distress, 
 both of mind and body. He told me his story sub 
 stantially the story which has just been told to you 
 by Mr. Simpson and, gentlemen, I believe it. But 
 if I did not believe it, if I believed him to have been 
 in the past all that his opponent has said; even if I 
 believed that, only last evening, spurned, driven from 
 his child, penniless and hopeless, he had yielded to 
 the weakness which has been his curse all his life 
 even if I believed that, still I should demand that 
 Henry Thomas, repentant and earnest as you see 
 him now, should be given his rightful opportunity to 
 become a man again. He is poor, but he is not 
 shall not be friendless. No ! a thousand times, no I 
 You may say, some of you, that the affair is not my 
 business. I affirm that it is my business. It is my 
 business as a Christian, and that business should 
 come before all others. I have not allowed sympathy 
 to influence me. If that were the case, my regard for 
 my neighbor and friend of former days would have 
 held me firm. But, gentlemen, I have a child of my 
 own. I know what a father s love is, as only a father 
 can know it. And, after a sleepless night, I stand 
 here before you to-day determined that this man shall 
 have his own, if my money which you will, I m sure, 
 forgive my mentioning and my unflinching support 
 can give it to him. That is my position, and I state 
 it regardless of consequences." He paused, and with 
 
 232
 
 11 TOWN-MEETIN 
 
 raised right hand, like the picture of Jove in the old 
 academy mythology, launched his final thunderbolt. 
 " Whom God hath joined," he proclaimed, " let no 
 one put asunder ! " 
 
 That settled it. The cheers shook the walls. 
 Amidst the tumult Dimick and Bailey Bangs seized 
 Captain Cy by the shoulders and endeavored to lift 
 him from his seat. 
 
 " For the love of goodness, Whit ! " groaned Jo- 
 siah, desperately, " stand up and answer him. If you 
 don t, we ll founder sure." 
 
 The captain smiled grimly and shook his head. He 
 had not taken his eyes from the face of the great 
 Atkins since the latter began speaking. 
 
 " What? " he replied. " After that * put asunder 
 sockdolager? Man alive! do you want me to add 
 Sabbath breakin to my other crimes? " 
 
 The vote, by ballot, followed almost immediately. 
 It was pitiful to see the erstwhile Whittaker ma 
 jority melt away. Alonzo Snow was triumphantly 
 elected. But a handful voted against him. 
 
 Captain Cy, still grimly smiling, rose and left the 
 hall. As he closed the door, he heard the shrill 
 voice of Uncle Bedny demanding justice for the Bas- 
 sett s Hollow road. 
 
 It had, indeed, been a " memoriable " town meet 
 ing. 
 
 17
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 WHEN Deacon Zeb Clark the same Dea 
 con Zeb who fell into the cistern, as 
 narrated by Captain Cy made his first 
 visit to the city, years and years ago, he stayed but 
 two days. As he had proudly boasted that he should 
 remain in the metropolis at least a week, our peo 
 ple were much surprised at his premature return. To 
 the driver of the butcher cart who found him sitting 
 contentedly before his dwelling, amidst his desolate 
 acres, the nearest neighbor a half mile away, did 
 Deacon Zeb disclose his reason for leaving the 
 crowded thoroughfares. " There was so many folks 
 there," he said, " that I felt lonesome." 
 
 And Captain Cy, returning from the town meet 
 ing to the Whittaker place, felt lonesome likewise. 
 Not for the Deacon s reason he met no one on the 
 main road, save a group of school children and Miss 
 Phinney, and, sighting the latter in the offing, he 
 dodged behind the trees by the schoolhouse pond 
 and waited until she passed. But the captain, his 
 trouble now heavy upon him, did feel the need of 
 
 234
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 sympathy and congenial companionship. He knew 
 he might count upon Dimick and Asaph, and, when 
 ever Keturah s supervision could be evaded, upon Mr. 
 Bangs. But they were not the advisers and com 
 forters for this hour of need. All the rest of Bay- 
 port, he felt sure, would be against him. Had not 
 King Heman the Great from the steps of the throne, 
 banned him with the royal displeasure! " If Heman 
 ever should come right out and say " began Asaph s 
 warning. Well, strange as it might seem, Heman 
 had " come right out." 
 
 As to why he had come out there was no question 
 in the mind of the captain. The latter had left Mr. 
 Thomas, the prodigal father, prostrate and blasphe 
 mous in the road the previous evening. His next 
 view of him was when, transformed and sanctified, 
 he had been summoned to the platform by Mr. At 
 kins. No doubt he had returned to the barber shop 
 and, in his rage and under Mr. Simpson s cross ex 
 amination, had revealed something of the truth. 
 Tad, the politician, recognizing opportunity when it 
 knocked at his door, had hurried him to the congress 
 man s residence. The rest was plain enough, so Cap 
 tain Cy thought. 
 
 However, war was already declared, and the rea 
 sons for it mattered little. The first skirmish might 
 occur at any moment. The situation was desperate. 
 The captain squared his shoulders, thrust forward 
 his chin, and walked briskly up the path to the door 
 
 235
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 of the dining room. It was nearly one o clock, but 
 Bos n had not yet gone. She was waiting, to the very 
 last minute, for her " Uncle Cyrus." 
 
 " Hello, shipmate," he hailed. " Not headed for 
 school yet? Good! I cal late you needn t go 
 this afternoon. I m thinkin of hirin a team and 
 drivin to Ostable, and I didn t know but you d 
 like to go with me. Think you could, without 
 that teacher woman havin you brought up aft for 
 mutiny? " 
 
 Bos n thought it over. 
 
 "Yes, sir," she said; "I guess so, if you wrote 
 me an excuse. I don t like to be absent, cause I 
 haven t been before, but there s only my reading 
 lesson this afternoon and I know that ever so well. 
 I d love to go, Uncle Cy." 
 
 The captain removed his coat and hat and pulled 
 a chair forward to the table. 
 
 "Hello!" he exclaimed. "What s this the 
 mail?" 
 
 Bos n smiled delightedly. 
 
 " Yes, sir," she replied. " I knew you was at the 
 meeting and so I brought it from the office. Ain t 
 you glad? " 
 
 "Sure! Yes, indeed! Much obliged. Tryin to 
 keep house without you would be like steerin with 
 out a rudder." 
 
 Even as he said it there came to him the realiza 
 tion that he might have to steer without that rudder 
 
 236
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 in the near future. His smile vanished. He smoth 
 ered a groan and picked up the mail. 
 
 " Hum! " he mused, " the Breeze, a circular, and 
 one letter. Hello! it isn t possible that Well! 
 well!" 
 
 The letter was in a long envelope. He hastily 
 tore it open. At the inclosure he glanced in evident 
 excitement. Then his smile returned. 
 
 " Bos n," he said, after a moment s reflection, 
 " I guess you and me won t have to go to Ostable 
 after all." Noticing the child s look of disappoint 
 ment, he added: "But you needn t go to schooL 
 Maybe you d better not. You and me ll take a tramp 
 alongshore. What do you say? " 
 
 " Oh, yes, Uncle Cy ! Let s shall we ? " 
 
 " Why, I don t see why not. We ll cruise in com 
 pany as long as we can, hey, little girl? The squall s 
 likely to strike afore night," he muttered half aloud. 
 "We ll enjoy the fine weather till it s time to shorten 
 sail." 
 
 They walked all that afternoon. Captain Cy was 
 even more kind and gentle with his small companion 
 than usual. He told her stories which made her 
 laugh, pointed out spots in the pines where he had 
 played Indian when a boy, carried her " pig back " 
 when she grew tired, and kissed her tenderly when, 
 at the back door of the Whittaker place, he set her 
 on her feet again. 
 
 " Had a good time, dearie? " he asked. 
 
 237
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Oh, splendid ! I think it s the best walk we ever 
 had, don t you, Uncle Cy?" 
 
 " I shouldn t wonder. You won t forget our 
 cruises together when you are a big girl and off 
 somewheres else, will you ? " 
 
 " I ll never forget em. And I m never going any 
 where without you." 
 
 It was after five as they entered the kitchen. 
 
 " Anybody been here while I was out? " asked the 
 captain of Georgianna. The housekeeper s eyes were 
 red and swollen, and she hugged Bos n as she helped 
 her off with her jacket and hood. 
 
 " Yes, there has," was the decided answer. " First 
 Ase Tidditt, and then Bailey Bangs, and then that 
 that Angie Phinney." 
 
 " Humph ! " mused Captain Cy slowly. " So An 
 gie was here, was she? Where the carcass is the 
 vultures are on deck, or words similar. Humph ! 
 Did our Angelic friend have much to say?" 
 
 "Did she? And / had somethin to say, too! I 
 never in my life! " 
 
 " Humph ! " Her employer eyed her sharply. 
 "So? And so soon? Talk about the telegraph 
 spreadin news I I d back most any half dozen 
 tongues in Bayport to spread more news, and add 
 more trimmin to it, in a day than the telegraph 
 could do in a week. Especially if all the telegraph 
 operators was like the one up at the depot. Well, 
 Georgianna, when you goin to leave?" 
 
 238
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 "Leave? Leave where? What are you talkin 
 about?" 
 
 " Leave here. Of course you realize that this ship 
 of ours," indicating the house by a comprehensive 
 wave of his hand around the room, " is goin to be 
 a mighty unpopular craft from now on. We may 
 be on a lee shore any minute. You ve got your own 
 well-bein to think of." 
 
 My own well-bein ! What do you s pcse I 
 care for my well-bein when there s Cap n Whit- 
 taker, you tell me now ! Is it so? " 
 
 " Some of it is yes. He s come back and he s 
 who he says he is. You ve seen him. He was here 
 all day yesterday." 
 
 " So Angle said, but I couldn t scarcely believe it. 
 That toughy! Cap n Whittaker, do you intend to 
 hand over that poor little innocent thing to to such 
 a man as that? " 
 
 " No. There ll be no handin over about it. But 
 the odds are against us, and there s no reason why 
 you should be in the rumpus, Georgianna. You may 
 not understand what we re facin ." 
 
 The housekeeper drew herself up. Her face was 
 very red and her small eyes snapped. 
 
 " Cy Whittaker," she began, manners and defer 
 ence to employer alike forgotten, " don t you say no 
 more of that wicked foolishness to me. I ll leave the 
 minute you re mean-spirited enough to let that child 
 go and not afore. And when that happens I ll be 
 
 239
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 gla d to leave. Land sakes ! there s somebody at the 
 door; and I expect I m a perfect sight." 
 
 She rubbed her face with her apron, thereby mak 
 ing it redder than ever, and hurried into the dining 
 room. 
 
 " Bos n," said Captain Cy quickly, " you stay 
 here in the kitchen." 
 
 Emmie looked at him in surprised bewilderment, 
 but she suppressed her curiosity concerning the iden 
 tity of the person who had knocked, and obeyed. 
 The captain pulled the kitchen door almost shut 
 and listened at the crack. 
 
 The first spoken words by the visitor appeared to 
 relieve Captain Cy s anxiety; but they seemed to 
 astonish him greatly. 
 
 "Why!" he exclaimed in a whisper. "Ain t 
 that It sounds like " 
 
 " It s teacher," whispered Bos n, who also had 
 been listening. " She s come to find out why I wasn t 
 at school. You tell her, Uncle Cy." 
 
 Georgianna returned to announce: 
 
 " It s Miss Dawes. She says she wants to see you, 
 Cap n. She s in the settin room." 
 
 The captain drew a long breath. Then, repeating 
 his command to Emmie to stay where she was, he 
 left the room, closing the door behind him. The 
 latter procedure roused Bos n s indignation. 
 
 " What made him do that? " she demanded. " I 
 haven t been bad. He never shut me up before ! " 
 
 240
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 The schoolmistress was standing by the center 
 table in the sitting room when Captain Cy entered. 
 
 " Good evenin , he said politely. " Won t you 
 sit down?" 
 
 But Miss Dawes paid no attention to trivialities. 
 She seemed much agitated. 
 
 " Cap n Whittaker," she began, " I just heard 
 something that " 
 
 The captain interrupted her. 
 
 u Excuse me," he said, " but I think we ll pull 
 down the curtains and have a little light on the sub 
 ject. It gets dark early now, especially of a gray 
 day like this one." 
 
 He drew the shades at the windows and lit the 
 lamp on the table. The red glow behind the panes 
 of the stove door faded into insignificance as the yel 
 low radiance brightened. The ugly portraits and the 
 stiff old engravings on the wall retired into a be 
 coming dusk. The old-fashioned room became more 
 homelike. 
 
 "Now won t you sit down?" repeated Captain 
 Cy. "Take that rocker; it s the most comf table 
 one aboard so Bos n says, anyhow." 
 
 Miss Phoebe took the rocker, under protest. Her 
 host remained standing. 
 
 " It s been a nice afternoon," he said. " Bos n 
 Emmie, of course and I have been for a walk. 
 Twan t her fault, twas mine. I kept her out of 
 school. I was well, kind of lonesome." 
 
 241
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 The teacher s gray eyes flashed in the lamp 
 light. 
 
 " Cap n Whittaker," she cried, " please don t 
 waste time. I didn t come here to talk about the 
 weather nor Emily s reason for not attending school. 
 I don t care why she was absent. But I have just 
 heard of what happened at that meeting. Is it true 
 that " She hesitated. 
 
 That Emmie s dad is alive and here? Yes, 
 it s true." 
 
 " But but that man last night? Was he that 
 man?" 
 
 The. captain nodded. 
 
 That s the man," he said briefly. 
 
 Miss Dawes shuddered. 
 
 " Cap n Whittaker," she asked earnestly, " are 
 you sure he is really her father? Absolutely sure? " 
 
 " Sure and sartin." 
 
 " Then she belongs to him, doesn t she? Legally, 
 I mean?" 
 
 " Maybe so." 
 
 " Are are you going to give her up to him? " 
 
 " No." 
 
 " Then what I heard was true. You did say at 
 the meeting that you were going to do your best to 
 keep him from getting her." 
 
 " Um hum ! What I said amounts to just about 
 that." 
 
 "Why?" 
 
 242
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 Captain Cy was surprised and a little disappointed 
 apparently. 
 
 "Why?" he repeated. 
 
 "Yes. Why?" 
 
 " Well, for reasons I ve got." 
 
 " Do you mind telling me the reasons? " 
 
 " I cal late you don t want to hear em. If you 
 don t understand now, then I can t make it much 
 plainer, I m afraid." 
 
 The little lady sprang to her feet. 
 
 " Oh, you are provoking ! " she cried indignantly. 
 " Can t you see that I want to hear the reasons from 
 you yourself? Cap n Whittaker, I shook hands with 
 you last night." 
 
 You remember I told you you d better wait." 
 
 " I didn t want to wait. I believed I knew some 
 thing of human nature, and I believed I had learned 
 to understand you. I made up my mind to pay no 
 more attention to what people said against you. I 
 thought they were envious and disliked you because 
 you did things in your own way. I wouldn t be 
 lieve the stories I heard this afternoon. I wanted 
 to hear you speak in your own defense and you 
 refuse to do it. Don t you know what people are 
 saying? They say you are trying to keep Emily 
 because Oh, I m ashamed to ask it, but you 
 make me: Has the child got valuable property of 
 her own ? " 
 
 Captain Cy had been, throughout this scene, stand- 
 
 243
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 ing quietly by the table. Now he took a step for 
 ward. 
 
 " Miss Dawes," he said sharply, " sit down." 
 
 " But I- 
 
 " Sit down, please." 
 
 The schoolmistress didn t mean to obey the order, 
 but for some reason she did. The captain went on 
 speaking. 
 
 " It s pretty plain," he said, " that what you heard 
 at the boardin house for I suppose that s where 
 you did hear it was what you might call a Phinney- 
 ized story of the doin s at the meetin . Well, there s 
 another yarn, and it s mine; I m goin to spin it and 
 I want you to listen." 
 
 He went on to spin his yarn. It was practically a 
 repetition of his reply to Tad Simpson that morning. 
 Its conclusion was also much the same. 
 
 " The land ain t worth fifty dollars," he declared, 
 " but if it was fifty million he shouldn t have it. 
 Why? Because it belongs to that little girl. And 
 he shan t have her until he and those back of him 
 have hammered me through the courts till I m down 
 forty fathom under water. And when they do get 
 her and, to be honest, I cal late they will in the 
 end I hope to God I won t be alive to see it! 
 There ! I ve answered you." 
 
 He was walking up and down the room, with the 
 old quarter-deck stride, his hands jammed deep in his 
 pockets and his face working with emotion. 
 
 244
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 " It s pretty nigh a single-handed fight for me," he 
 continued, " but I ve fought single-handed before. 
 The other side s got almost all the powder and the 
 Heman and Tad and that Thomas have got 
 
 men. 
 
 "The teacher rose and laid a hand on his arm." 
 
 seven eighths of Bayport behind em, not to mention 
 the Providence they re so sure of. My crowd is 
 a mighty forlorn hope : Dimick and Ase Tidditt, and 
 Bailey, as much as his wife 11 let him. Oh, yes! " 
 and he smiled whimsically, " there s another one. A 
 
 245
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 new recruit s just joined; Georgianna s enlisted. 
 That s my army. Sort of rag-jacketed cadets, we 
 are, small potatoes, and few in a hill." 
 
 The teacher rose and laid a hand on his arm. He 
 turned toward her. The lamplight shone upon her 
 face, and he saw, to his astonishment, that there were 
 tears in her eyes. 
 
 " Cap n Whittaker," she said, " will you take an 
 other recruit? I should like to enlist, please." 
 
 "You? Oh, pshaw! I m thick-headed to-night. 
 I didn t see the joke of it at first." 
 
 " There isn t any joke. I want you to know that I 
 admire you for the fight you re making. Law or no 
 law, to let that dear little girl go away with that 
 dreadful father of hers is a sin and a crime. I came 
 here to tell you so. I did want to hear your story, 
 and you made me ask that question; but I was certain 
 of your answer before you made it. I don t suppose 
 I can do anything to help, but I m going to try. So, 
 you see, your army is bigger than you thought it was 
 though the new soldier isn t good for much, I m 
 afraid," she added, with a little smile. 
 
 Captain Cy was greatly disturbed. 
 
 " Miss Phoebe," he said, " I I won t say that it 
 don t please me to have you talk so, for it does, 
 more n you can imagine. Sympathy means somethin 
 to the under dog, and it gives him spunk to keep on 
 kickin . But you mustn t take any part in the row; 
 you simply mustn t. It won t do." 
 
 246
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 "Why not? Won t I be any help?" 
 
 " Help? You d be more help than all the rest of 
 us put together. You and me haven t seen a great 
 deal of each other, and my part in the few talks we 
 have had has been a mean one, but I knew the 
 first time I met you that you had more brains and 
 common sense than any woman in this county 
 though I was too pig-headed to own it. But that 
 ain t it. I got you the job of teacher. It s no credit 
 to me; twas just bull luck and for the fun of jarrin 
 Heman. But I did it. And, because I did it, the 
 Atkins crowd and that means most everybody now 
 haven t any love for you. My tryin for school 
 committee was really just to give you a fair chance 
 in your position. I was licked, so the committee s 
 two to one against you. Don t you see that you 
 mustn t have anything to do with me? Don t you 
 see it?" 
 
 She shook her head. 
 
 " I see that common gratitude alone should be 
 reason enough for my trying to help you," she said. 
 " But, beside that, I know you are right, and I shall 
 help, no matter what you say. As for the teacher s 
 position, let them discharge me. I " 
 
 " Don t talk that way. The youngsters need you, 
 and know it, no matter what their fool fathers and 
 mothers say. And you mustn t wreck your chances. 
 You re young " 
 
 She laughed. 
 
 247
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 "Oh, no! I m not," she said. "Young! Cap n 
 Whittaker, you shouldn t joke about a woman s age." 
 
 " I ain t jokin . You are young." As she stood 
 there before him he was realizing, with a curiously 
 uncomfortable feeling, how much younger she was 
 than he. He glanced up at the mirror, where his 
 own gray hairs were reflected, and repeated his as 
 sertion. You re young yet," he said, " and bein 
 discharged from a place might mean a whole lot 
 to you. I m glad you take such an interest in Bos n, 
 and your comin here on her account 
 
 He paused. Miss Dawes colored slightly and 
 said: 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " Your comin here on her account was mighty 
 good of you. But you ve got to keep out of this 
 trouble. And you mustn t come here again. That s 
 owner s orders. Why, I m expectin a boardin party 
 any minute," he added. " I thought when you 
 knocked it was papa comin for his child. You d 
 better go." 
 
 But she stood still. 
 
 " I shan t go," she declared. " Or, at least, not 
 until you promise to let me try to help you. If they 
 come, so much the better. They ll learn where my 
 sympathies are." 
 
 Captain Cy scratched his head. 
 
 " See here, Miss Phoebe," he said. " I ain t sure 
 that you fully understand that Scripture and every- 
 
 248
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 thing else is against us. Did Angle turn loose on 
 you the Whom the Lord has joined avalanche?" 
 
 The schoolmistress burst into a laugh. The cap 
 tain laughed, too, but his gravity quickly returned. 
 For steps sounded on the walk, there was a whis 
 pering outside, and some one knocked on the dining- 
 room door. 
 
 The situation was similar to that of the evening 
 when the Board of Strategy called and " John 
 Smith " made his first appearance. But now, oddly 
 enough, Captain Cy seemed much less troubled. He 
 looked at Miss Dawes and there was a dancing twin 
 kle in his eye. 
 
 " Is it " began the lady, in an agitated whisper. 
 
 "The boardin party? I presume likely." 
 
 " But what can you do? " 
 
 " Stand by the repel, I guess," was the calm re 
 ply. " I told you that they had most of the ammu 
 nition, but ours ain t all blank cartridges. You stay 
 below and listen to the broadsides." 
 
 They heard Georgianna cross the dining room. 
 There was a murmur of voices at the door. The 
 captain nodded. 
 
 " It s them," he said. " Well, here goes. Now 
 don t you show yourself." 
 
 "Do you think I am afraid? Indeed, I shan t 
 stay below as you call it ! I shall let them see " 
 
 Captain Cy held up his hand. 
 
 "I m commodore of this fleet," he said; "and 
 18 249
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 that bein the case, I expect my crew to obey orders. 
 There s nothin you can do, and Why, yes! there 
 is, too. You can take care of Bos n. Georgianna," 
 to the housekeeper who, looking frightened and ner 
 vous, had appeared at the door, " send Bos n in here 
 quick." 
 
 They re there," whispered Georgianna. " Mr. 
 Atkins and Tad and that Thomas critter, and lots 
 more. And they ve come after her. What shall we 
 do?" 
 
 " Jump when I speak to you, that s the first thing. 
 Send Bos n in here and you stay in your galley." 
 
 Emily came running. Miss Dawes put an arm 
 about her. Captain Cy, the battle lanterns still 
 twinkling under his brows, stepped forth to meet the 
 " boarding party." 
 
 They were there, as Georgianna had said. Mr. 
 Thomas on the top step, Heman and Simpson on the 
 next lower, and behind them Abel Leonard and a 
 group of interested volunteers, principally recruited 
 from the back room of the barber shop. 
 
 " Evenin , gentlemen," said the captain, opening 
 the door so briskly that Mr. Thomas started back 
 ward and came down heavily upon the toes of the 
 devoted Tad. Mr. Simpson swore, Mr. Thomas 
 clawed about him to gain equilibrium, and the dig 
 nity of the group was seriously impaired. 
 
 " Evenin ," repeated Captain Cy. " Quite a sur 
 prise party you re givin me. Come in." 
 
 250
 
 a 
 6 
 
 u 
 
 G 
 w 
 
 WJ 
 
 H 
 
 "g 
 *H
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 " Cyrus," began the Honorable Atkins, " we are 
 here to claim " 
 
 " Give me my daughter, you robber! " demanded 
 Thomas, from his new position in the rear of the 
 other two. 
 
 " Mr. Thomas," said Heman, " please remember 
 that I am conducting this affair. I respect the nat 
 ural indignation of an outraged father, but ahem ! 
 Cyrus, we are here to claim " 
 
 " Then do your claimin inside. It s kind of chilly 
 to-night, there s plenty of empty chairs, and we don t 
 need to hold an overflow meetin . Come ahead in." 
 
 The trio looked at each other in hesitation. Then 
 Mr. Atkins majestically entered the dining room. 
 Thomas and Simpson followed him. 
 
 " Abe," observed Captain Cy to Leonard, who 
 was advancing toward the steps, " I m sorry not to 
 be hospitable, but there s too many of you to invite 
 at once, and tain t polite to show partiality. You 
 and the rest are welcome to sit on the terrace or 
 stroll round the deer park. Good night." 
 
 He closed the door in the face of the disappointed 
 Abel and turned to the three in the room. 
 
 " Well," he said, " out with it. You ve come to 
 claim somethin , I understand." 
 
 I come for my rights," shouted Mr. Thomas. 
 
 Yes? Well, this ain t State s prison or I d give 
 em to you with pleasure. Heman, you d better do 
 the talkin . We ll probably get ahead faster."
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 The Honorable cleared his throat and waved his 
 hand. 
 
 " Cyrus," he began, " you are my boyhood friend 
 and my fellow townsman and neighbor. Under such 
 circumstances it gives me pain 
 
 " Then don t let us discuss painful subjects. Let s 
 get down to business. You ve come to rescue Bos n 
 Emily, that is, from the robber I m quotin 
 Deacon Thomas here that s got her, so s to turn 
 her over to her sorrowin father. Is that it? Yes. 
 Well, you can t have her not yet." 
 
 " Cyrus," said Mr. Atkins, " I m sorry to see that 
 you take it this way. You haven t the shadow of a 
 right. We have the law with us, and your conduct 
 will lead us to invoke it. The constable is outside. 
 Shall I call him in?" 
 
 " Uncle Bedny " was the town constable and had 
 been since before the war. The purely honorary office 
 was given him each year as a joke. Captain Cy 
 grinned broadly, and even Tad was obliged to smile. 
 
 " Don t be inhuman, Heman," urged the captain. 
 You wouldn t turn me over to be man-handled by 
 Uncle Bedny, would you ? " 
 
 This is not a humorous affair " began the con 
 gressman, with dignity. But the " bereaved father " 
 had been prospecting on his own hook, and now he 
 peeped into the sitting room. 
 
 " Here she is! " he shouted. " I see her. Come 
 on, Emmie ! Your dad s come for you. Let go of 
 
 252
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 her, you woman! What do you mean by holdin on 
 to her?" 
 
 The situation which was " not humorous " imme 
 diately became much less so. The next minute was 
 a lively one. It ended as Mr. Thomas was picked up 
 by Tad from the floor, where he had fallen, having 
 been pushed violently over a chair by Captain Cy. 
 Bos n, frightened and sobbing, was clinging wildly 
 to Miss Dawes, who had clung just as firmly to her. 
 The captain s voice rang through the room. 
 
 " That s enough," he said. " That s enough and 
 some over. Atkins, take that feller out of this house 
 and off my premises. As for the girl, that s for us 
 to fight out in the courts. I m her guardian, law 
 fully appointed, and you nor nobody else can touch 
 her while that appointment s good. Here it is 
 right here. Now look at it and clear out." 
 
 He held, for the congressman s inspection, the doc 
 ument which, inclosed in the long envelope, had been 
 received that morning. His visit to Ostable, made 
 some weeks before, had been for the purpose of ap 
 plying to the probate court for the appointment as 
 Emily s guardian. He had applied before the news 
 of her father s coming to life reached him. The 
 appointment itself had arrived just in time. 
 
 Mr. Atkins studied the document with care. When 
 he spoke it was with considerable agitation and with 
 out his usual diplomacy. 
 
 " Humph ! " he grunted. " Humph ! I see. Well, 
 
 253
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 sir, I have some influence in this section and I shall 
 see how long your your trick will prevent the 
 child s going where she belongs. I wish you to un 
 derstand that I shall continue this fight to the very 
 last. I I am not one to be easily beaten. Simpson, 
 you and Thomas come with me. This night s des 
 picable chicanery is only the beginning. This is 
 bad business for you, Cy Whittaker," he snarled, 
 his self-control vanishing, " and " with a vindictive 
 glance at the schoolmistress " for those who are 
 with you in it. That appointment w r as obtained un 
 der false pretenses and I can prove it. Your tricks 
 don t scare me. I ve had experience with tricks be 
 fore." 
 
 " Yup. So I ve heard. Well, Heman, I ain t as 
 well up in tricks as you claim to be, nor my stockin 
 isn t as well padded as yours, maybe. But while 
 there s a ten-cent piece left in the toe of it I ll fight 
 you and the skunk whose rights you seem to have 
 taken such a shine to. And, after that, while there s 
 a lawyer that 11 trust me. And, meantime, that 
 little girl stays right here, and you touch her if you 
 dare, any of you! Anything more to say? " 
 
 But the Honorable s dignity had returned. Pos 
 sibly he thought he had said too much already. A 
 moment later the door banged behind the discom 
 forted boarding party. 
 
 Captain Cy pulled his beard and laughed. 
 
 " Well, we repelled em, didn t we? " he observed. 
 254
 
 THE REPULSE 
 
 " But, as friend Heman says, the beginnin s only be 
 gun. I wish he hadn t seen you here, teacher." 
 
 Miss Dawes looked up from the task of stroking 
 poor Bos n s hair. 
 
 11 1 don t," she said, " I m glad of it." Then she 
 added, laughing nervously: " Cap n Whittaker, how 
 could you be so cool? It was like a play. I de 
 clare, you were just splendid! "
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 A CLEW 
 
 JOSIAH DIMICK has a unique faculty of 
 grasping a situation and summing it up in an 
 out-of-the-ordinary way. 
 
 " I think," observed Josiah to the excited group 
 at Simmons s, " that this town owes Cy Whittaker a 
 vote of thanks." 
 
 "Thanks! " gasped Alpheus Smalley, so shocked 
 and horrified that he put the one-pound weight 
 on the scales instead of the half pound. "Thanks! 
 After what we ve found out? Well, I must say! " 
 
 1 Ya-as," drawled Captain Josiah, " thanks was 
 what I said. If it wan t for him this gang and the 
 sewin circle wouldn t have nothin to talk about but 
 their neighbors. Our reputations would be as full 
 of holes as a skimmer by this time. Now all hands 
 are so busy jumpin on Whit, that the rest of us can 
 feel fairly safe. Ain t that so, Gabe?" 
 
 Mr. Lumley, who had stopped in for a half pound 
 of tea, grinned feebly, but said nothing. If he no 
 ticed the clerk s mistake in weights he didn t mention 
 it, but took his package and hurried out. After his 
 
 256
 
 A CLEW 
 
 departure Mr. Smalley himself discovered the error 
 and charged the Lumley account with " 1 1 / Ibs. 
 Mixed Green and Black." Meanwhile the assem 
 blage about the stove had put Captain Cy on the 
 anvil and was hammering him vigorously. 
 
 Bayport was boiling over with rumor and surmise. 
 Heman had appealed to the courts asking that Cap 
 tain Cy s appointment as Bos n s guardian be re 
 scinded. Cy had hired Lawyer Peabody, of Ostable, 
 to look out for his interests. Mr. Atkins and the 
 captain had all but come to blows over the child. 
 Thomas, the poor father, had broken down and 
 wept, and had threatened to commit suicide. Mrs. 
 Salters had refused to speak to Captain Cy when she 
 met the latter after meeting on Sunday. The land in 
 Orham had been sold and the captain was using 
 the money. Phoebe Dawes had threatened to resign 
 if Bos n came to school any longer. No, she had 
 threatened to resign if she didn t come to school. 
 She hadn t threatened to resign at all, but wanted 
 higher wages because of the effect the scandal might 
 have on her reputation as a teacher. These were 
 a few of the reports, contradicted and added to from 
 day to day. 
 
 To quote Josiah Dimick again : " Sortin out the 
 truth from the lies is like tryin to find a quart of 
 sardines in a schooner load of herrin . And they 
 dump in more herrin every half hour." 
 
 Angeline Phinney was having the time of her life. 
 
 257
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 The perfect boarding house hummed like a fly trap. 
 Keturah and Mrs. Tripp had deserted to the enemy, 
 and the minority, meaning Asaph and Bailey, had 
 little opportunity to defend their friend s cause, even 
 if they had dared. Heman Atkins, his Christian 
 charity and high-mindedness, his devotion to duty, 
 regardless of political consequences, and the magnifi 
 cent speech at town meeting were lauded and ex 
 alted. The Bayport Breeze contained a full account 
 of the meeting, and it was read aloud by Keturah, 
 amidst hymns of praise from the elect. 
 
 " Whom the Lord hath joined, " read Mrs. 
 Bangs, " let no man put asunder. Ain t that splen 
 did? Ain t that fine? The paper says: When Con 
 gressman Atkins delivered this noble sentiment a 
 hush fell upon the excited throng. I should think 
 twould. I remember when I was married the 
 minister said pretty nigh the same thing, and I 
 couldtit speak. I couldn t have opened my mouth 
 to save me. Don t you remember I couldn t, 
 Bailey?" 
 
 Mr. Bangs nodded gloomily. It is possible that 
 he wished the effect of the minister s declaration 
 might have been more lasting. Asaph stirred in his 
 chair. 
 
 " I don t care," he said. " This puttin asunder 
 business is all right, but there s always two sides to 
 everything. I see this Thomas critter when he fust 
 come, and he didn t look like no saint then nor 
 
 258
 
 1 
 
 T3 
 
 I 
 
 XO * 
 
 S 
 
 O <L 
 
 o 
 
 CL, 
 
 XJ 
 
 . 
 
 i 
 
 *- 
 
 r- 
 
 .S
 
 A CLEW 
 
 smell like one, neither, unless twas a specimen pick 
 led in alcohol." 
 
 Here was irreverence almost atheistic. Keturah s 
 face showed her shocked disapproval. Matilda Tripp 
 voiced the general sentiment. 
 
 " Humph! " she sniffed. " Well, all I can say is 
 that I ve met Mr. Thomas two or three times, and / 
 didn t notice anything but politeness and good man 
 ners. Maybe my nose ain t so fine for smellin liquor 
 as some folks s p raps it ain t had the experience 
 but all 7 saw was a poor lame man with a black 
 eye. I pitied him, and I don t care who hears me 
 say it." 
 
 " Yes," concurred Miss Phinney, " and if he was 
 a drinkin man, do you suppose Mr. Atkins would 
 have anything to do with him? Cyrus Whittaker 
 made a whole lot of talk about his insultin some 
 woman or other, but nobody knows who the woman 
 Was. Bout time for her to speak up, I should think. 
 Teacher," turning to Miss Dawes, " you was at the 
 Whittaker place when Mr. Atkins and Emily s father 
 come for her, I understand. I wish I d have been 
 there. It must have been wuth seein ." 
 
 " It was," replied Miss Dawes. She had kept 
 silent throughout the various discussions of the week 
 following the town meeting, but now, thus appealed 
 to, she answered promptly. 
 
 Angeline s news created a sensation. The school 
 mistress immediately became the center of interest. 
 
 259
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 "Is that so? Was you there, teacher? Well, I 
 declare!" The questions and exclamations flew 
 round the table. 
 
 " Tell us, teacher," pleaded Keturah. " Wasn t 
 Heman grand? I should so like to have heard 
 him. Didn t Cap n Whittaker look ashamed of 
 himself?" 
 
 " No, he did not. If anyone looked ashamed it 
 was Mr. Atkins and his friends. Perhaps I ought 
 to tell you that my sympathies are entirely with Cap 
 tain Whittaker in this affair. To give that little girl 
 up to a drunken scoundrel like her father would, in my 
 opinion, be a crime." 
 
 The boarders and the landlady gasped. Asaph 
 grinned and nudged Bailey under the table. Keturah 
 was the first to recover. 
 
 "Well!" she exclaimed. "Everybody s got a 
 right to their opinion, of course. But I can t see the 
 crime, myself. And as for the drunkenness, I d like 
 to know who s seen Mr. Thomas drunk. Cyrus 
 Whittaker says he has, but " 
 
 She waved her hand scornfully. Phoebe rose from 
 her chair. 
 
 " I have seen him in that condition," she said. 
 " In fact, I am the person he insulted. I saw Cap 
 tain Whittaker knock him down, and I honored the 
 captain for it. I only wished I were a man and 
 could have done it myself." 
 
 She left the room, and, a few moments later, the 
 260
 
 A CLEW 
 
 house. Mr. Tidditt chuckled aloud. Even Bailey 
 dared to look pleased. 
 
 " There ! " sneered the widow Tripp. " Ain t 
 that Perhaps you remember that Cap n Whittaker 
 got her the teacher s place? " 
 
 " Yes," put in Miss Phinney, " and nobody knows 
 why he got it for her. That is, nobody has known 
 up to now. Maybe we can begin to guess a little 
 after this." 
 
 " She was at his house, was she? " observed Ketu- 
 rah. " Humph! I wonder why? Seems to me if / 
 was a young that is, a single woman like her, I d 
 be kind of careful about callin on bachelors. 
 Humph ! it looks funny to me." 
 
 Asaph rose and pushed back his charr. 
 
 " I cal late she called to see Emily," he said sharp 
 ly. ; The child was her scholar, and I presume 
 likely, knowin the kind of father that has turned up 
 for the poor young one, she felt sorry for her. Of 
 course, nobody s hintin anything against Phoebe 
 Dawes s character. If you want a certificate of that, 
 you ve only got to go to Wellmouth. Folks over 
 there are pretty keen on that subject. I guess the 
 town would go to law about it rather n hear a word 
 against her. Libel suits are kind of uncomf table 
 things for them that ain t sure of their facts. I d 
 hate to get mixed up in one, myself. Bailey, I m 
 going up street. Come on, when you can, won t 
 you ? " 
 
 19 261
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 As if frightened at his own display of spirit, he 
 hurried out. There was silence for a time; then Miss 
 Phinney spoke concerning the weather. 
 
 Up at the Cy Whittaker place the days were full 
 ones. There, also, legal questions were discussed, 
 with Georgianna, the Board of Strategy, Josiah Dim- 
 ick occasionally, and, more infrequently still, Miss 
 Dawes, as participants with Captain Cy in the dis 
 cussions. Rumors were true in so far as they related 
 to Mr. Atkins s appeal to the courts, and the captain s 
 retaining Lawyer Peabody, of Ostable. Mr. Pea- 
 body s opinion of the case was not encouraging. 
 
 You see, captain," he said, when his client vis 
 ited him at his office, " the odds are very much 
 against us. The court appointed you as guardian 
 with the understanding that this man Thomas was 
 dead. Now he is alive and claims his child. More 
 than that, he has the most influential politician in this 
 county back of him. We wouldn t stand a fighting 
 chance except for one thing Thomas himself. He 
 left his wife and the baby; deserted them, so she 
 said; went to get work, he says. We can prove he 
 was a drunken blackguard before he went, and that 
 he has been drunk since he came back. But they ll 
 say Atkins and his lawyer that the man was des 
 perate and despairing because of your refusal to give 
 him his child. They ll hold him up as a repentant 
 sinner, anxious to reform, and needing the little girl s 
 influence to help keep him straight. That s their 
 
 262
 
 A CLEW 
 
 game, and they ll play it, be sure of that. It sounds 
 reasonable enough, too, for sinners have repented be 
 fore now. And the long-lost father coming back to 
 his child is the one sure thing to win applause from 
 the gallery, you know that." 
 
 Captain Cy nodded. 
 
 " Yup," he said, " I know it. The other night, 
 when Miss Ph when a friend of mine was at the 
 house, she said this business was like a play. I didn t 
 say so to her, but all the same I realize it ain t like 
 a play at all. In a play dad comes home, havin 
 been snaked bodily out of the jaws of the tomb by 
 his coat collar, and the young one sings out Papa ! 
 Papa ! and he sobs, Me child ! Me child ! and it s 
 all lovely, and you put on your hat feelin that the 
 old man is goin to be rich and righteous for the rest 
 of his days. But here it s different; dad s a rascal, 
 and anybody who s seen anything of the world knows 
 he s bound to stay so; and as for the poor little girl, 
 why why 
 
 He stopped, rose, and, striding over to the win 
 dow, stood looking out. After an interval, during 
 which the good-natured attorney read a dull business 
 letter through for the second time, he spoke again. 
 
 " I hope you understand, Peabody," he said. " It 
 ain t just selfishness that makes me steer the course 
 I m runnin . Course, Bos n s got to be the world and 
 all to me, and if she s taken away I don t know s I 
 care a tinker s darn what happens afterwards. But, 
 
 263
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 all the same, if her dad was a real man, sorry for 
 what he s done and tryin to make up for it why, 
 then, I cal late I m decent enough to take off my hat, 
 hand her over, and say: God bless you and good 
 luck. But to think of him carryin her off the Lord 
 knows where, to neglect her and cruelize her, and to 
 let her grow up among fellers like him, I I by 
 the big dipper, I can t do it! That s all; I can t! " 
 
 "How does she feel about it, herself?" asked 
 Peabody. 
 
 " Her? Bos n? Why, that s the hardest of all. 
 Some of the children at school pester her about her 
 father. I don t know s you can blame em; young 
 ones are made that way, I guess but she comes 
 home to me cryin , and it s O Uncle Cy, he ain t my 
 truly father, is he? and You won t let him take 
 me away from you, will you? till it seems as if I 
 should fly out of the window. The poor little thing ! 
 [And that puffed-up humbug Atkins blowin about his 
 Christianity and all ! D n such Christianity as that, 
 I say! I ve seen heathen Injuns, who never heard of 
 Christ, with more of His spirit inside em. There ! 
 I ve shocked you, I guess. Sometimes I think this 
 place is too narrer and cramped for me. I ve been 
 around, you know, and my New England bringin up 
 has wore thin in spots. Seem s if I must get some- 
 wheres and spread out, or I ll bust." 
 
 He threw himself into a chair. The lawyer 
 clapped him on the shoulder. 
 
 264
 
 A CLEW 
 
 " There, there, captain," he said. " Don t bust 
 yet awhile. Don t give up the ship. If we lose in 
 one court, we can appeal to another, and so on up the 
 line. And meantime we ll do a little investigating 
 of friend Thomas s career since he left Concord. 
 I ve written to a legal acquaintance of mine in Butte, 
 giving him the facts as we know them, and a descrip 
 tion of Thomas. He will try to find out what the 
 fellow did in his years out West. It s our best 
 chance, as I told you. Keep your pluck up and wait 
 and see." 
 
 The captain repeated this conversation to the 
 Board of Strategy when he returned to Bayport. 
 Miss Dawes had walked home from school with 
 Bos n, and had stopped at the house to hear the re 
 port. She listened, but it was evident that some 
 thing else was on her mind. 
 
 " Captain Whittaker," she asked, " has it ever 
 struck you as queer that Mr. Atkins should take such 
 an interest in this matter? He is giving time and 
 counsel and money to help this man Thomas, who is 
 a perfect stranger to him. Why does he do it? " 
 
 Captain Cy smiled. 
 
 "Why?" he repeated. "Why, to down me, of 
 course. I was gettin too everlastin prominent in 
 politics to suit him. I d got you in as teacher, and I 
 had Lonzo Snow as good as licked for school com 
 mittee. Goodness knows what I might have run for 
 next, cordin to Heman s reasonin , and I simply 
 
 265
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 had to be smashed. It worked all right. I m so un 
 healthy now in the sight of most folks in this town, 
 that I cal late they go home and sulphur-smoke their 
 clothes after they meet me, so s not to catch my 
 wickedness." 
 
 But the teacher shook her head. 
 
 That doesn t seem reason enough to me," she 
 declared. " Just see what Mr. Atkins has done. He 
 never openly advocated anything in town meeting be 
 fore; you said so yourself. Even when he must have 
 realized that you had the votes for committeeman he 
 kept still. He might have taken many of them from 
 you by simply coming out and declaring for Mr. 
 Snow; but he didn t. And then, all at once, he takes 
 this astonishing stand. Captain Whittaker, Mr. Tid- 
 ditt says that, the night of Emily s birthday party, 
 you and he told who she was, by accident, and that 
 Mr. Atkins seemed very much surprised and upset. 
 Is that so? " 
 
 Captain Cy laughed. 
 
 " His lemonade was upset; that s all I noticed 
 special. Oh ! yes, and he lost his hat off, goin home. 
 But what of it? What are you drivin at? " 
 
 " I was wondering if if it could be that, for some 
 reason, Mr. Atkins had a spite against Emily or her 
 people. Or if he had any reason to fear her." 
 
 "Fear? Fear Bos n? Oh, my, that s funny! 
 You ve been readin novels, I m fraid, teacher, 
 though I didn t suspect it of you." 
 
 266
 
 A CLEW 
 
 He laughed heartily. Miss Dawes smiled, too, 
 but she still persisted. 
 
 " Well," she said, " I don t know. Perhaps it is 
 because I m a woman, and politics don t mean as 
 much to me as to you men, but to me political rea 
 sons don t seem strong enough to account for such 
 actions as those of Mr. Atkins. Emily s mother was 
 a Thayer, wasn t she? and the Thayers once lived in 
 Orham. I wish we could find out more about them 
 while they lived there." 
 
 Asaph Tidditt pulled his beard thoughtfully. 
 
 " Well," he observed, " maybe we can, if we want 
 to, though I don t think what we find out 11 amount 
 to nothin . I was kind of cal latin to go to Orham 
 next week on a little visit. Seth Wingate over th^re 
 Barzilla Wingate s cousin, Whit is a sort of re 
 lation of mine, and we visit back and forth every 
 nine or ten year or so. The ten year s most up, and 
 he s been pesterin me to come over. Seth s been 
 Orham town clerk about as long as I ve been the Bay- 
 port one, and he s lived there all his life. What he 
 don t know about Orham folks ain t wuth knowin . 
 If you say so, I ll pump him about the Thayers and 
 the Richards. Twon t do no harm, and the old fool 
 likes to talk, anyhow. I don t know s I ought to 
 speak that way about my relations," he added doubt 
 fully, " but Seth is sort of stubborn and unlikely at 
 odd times. We don t always agree as to which is the 
 best town to live in, you understand." 
 
 267
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 So it was settled that Mr. Wingate should be sub 
 jected to the " pumping " process when Asaph vis 
 ited him. He departed for this visit the following 
 week, and remained away for ten days. Meanwhile 
 several things happened in Bayport. 
 
 One of these things was the farewell of the Hon 
 orable Heman Atkins. Congress was to open at 
 Washington, and the Honorable heeded the call of 
 duty. Alicia and the housekeeper went with him, 
 and the big house was closed for the winter. At 
 the gate between the stone urns, and backed by the 
 iron dogs, the great man bade a group of admiring 
 constituents good-by. He thanked them for their 
 trust in him, and promised that it should not be 
 betrayed. 
 
 " I leave you, my fellow townsmen, er ladies and 
 friends," he said, " with regret, tempered by pride 
 a not inexcusable pride, I believe. In the trying ex 
 perience which my self-respect and sympathy has so 
 recently forced upon me, you have stood firm and 
 cheered me on. The task I have undertaken, the 
 task of restoring to a worthy man his own, shall be 
 carried on to the bitterest extremity. I have put my 
 hand to the plow, and it shall not be withdrawn. 
 And, furthermore, I go to my work at Washington 
 determined to secure for my native town the appro 
 priation which it so sorely needs. I shall secure it 
 if I can, even though " and the sarcasm was hugely 
 enjoyed by his listeners " I am, as I seem likely to 
 
 268.
 
 A CLEW 
 
 be, deprived of the help of the committee, self- 
 appointed at our recent town meeting. If I fail 
 and I do not conceal the fact that I may fail I am 
 certain you will not blame me. Now I should like 
 to shake each one of you by the hand." 
 
 The hands were shaken, and the train bore the 
 Atkins delegation away. And, on the day following, 
 Mr. Thomas, the prodigal father, also left town. A 
 position in Boston had been offered him, he said, 
 and he felt that he must accept it. He would come 
 back some of these days, with the warrant from the 
 court, and get his little girl. 
 
 "Position offered him! Um ya-as ! " quoth 
 Dimick the cynical, in conversation with Captain 
 Cy. " Inspector of sidewalks, I shouldn t wonder. 
 Well, please don t ask me if I think Heman sent 
 him to Boston so s to have him out of the way, and 
 cause he d feel consider ble safer than if he was 
 loose down here. Don t ask me that, for, with my 
 strict scruples against the truth I might say, No. As 
 it is, I say nothin and wink my port eye." 
 
 The ten-day visit ended, Mr. Tidditt returned to 
 Bayport. On the afternoon of his return he and 
 Bailey called at the Whittaker place, and there they 
 were joined by Miss Dawes, who had been sum 
 moned to the conclave by a note intrusted to Bos n. 
 
 " Now, Ase," ordered Captain Cy, as the quar 
 tet gathered in the sitting room, " here we are, 
 hangin on your words, as the feller said. Don t 
 
 269
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 keep us strung up too long. What did you find 
 out?" 
 
 The town clerk cleared his throat. When he 
 spoke, there was a trace of disappointment in his 
 tone. To have been able to electrify his audience 
 with the news of some startling discovery would have 
 been pure joy for Asaph. 
 
 " Well," he began, " I don t know s I found out 
 anything much. Yet I did find out somethin , too; 
 but it don t really amount to nothin . I hoped 
 twould be somethin more n twas, but when nothin 
 come of it except the little somethin it begun with, 
 
 " For the land sakes ! " snapped Bailey Bangs, who 
 was a trifle envious of his friend s position in the 
 center of the stage, " stop them nothin s and 
 * somethin s, won t you? You keep whirlin em 
 round and over and over till my head s full of 
 nothin , and -- " 
 
 " That s what it s full of most of the time," in 
 terrupted Asaph tartly. Captain Cy hastened to act 
 as peacemaker. 
 
 "Never mind, Bailey," he said; "you let Ase 
 alone. Tell us what you did find out, Asc, and cut 
 out the trimmin s." 
 
 "Well," continued Mr. Tidditt, with a glare at 
 Bangs, " I asked Seth about the Thayers and the 
 Richards folks the very fust night I struck Orham. 
 He remembered em, of course; he can remember 
 
 270
 
 \ 
 
 g 
 IS 
 o
 
 A CLEW 
 
 Adam, if you let him tell it. He told me a whole 
 mess about old man Thayer and old man Richards 
 and their granddads and grandmarms, and what 
 houses they lived in, and how many hens they kept, 
 and what their dog s name was, and how they come 
 to name him that, and enough more to fill a hogshead. 
 Twas ten o clock afore he got out of Genesis, and 
 down so fur as John and Emily. He remembered 
 their bein married, and their baby Mary Thayer, 
 Bos n s ma bein born. 
 
 " Folks used to call John Thayer a smart young 
 feller, so Seth said. They used to cal late that he d 
 rise high in the seafarin and ship-ownin line. May 
 be he would, only he died somewheres in Californy 
 long in 54 or thereabouts. Twas the time of the 
 gold craziness out there, and he left his ship and 
 went gold huntin . And the next thing they knew 
 he was dead and buried." 
 
 ; When was that?" inquired the schoolmistress. 
 
 " In 54, I tell you. So Seth says." 
 
 ; What ship was he on? " asked Bailey. 
 
 ;< Wan t on any ship. Why don t you listen, in 
 stead of settin there moonin ? He was gold dig- 
 gin , I tell you." 
 
 " He d been on a ship, hadn t he? What was the 
 name of her? " 
 
 " I didn t ask. What diff rence does that make? " 
 Wasn t Mr. Atkins at sea in those days?" put 
 in the teacher. The captain answered her, 
 
 271
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Yes, he was," he said. That is, I think he was. 
 He was away from here when I skipped out, and he 
 didn t get back till 61 or thereabouts." 
 
 " Well, anyhow," went on Asaph, " that s all I 
 could find out. Seth and me went rummagin through 
 town records from way back to glory, him gassin 
 away and stringin along about this old settler and 
 that, till I most wished he d choke himself with 
 the dust he was raisin . We found John s grandad s 
 will, and Emily s dad s will, and John s own will, 
 and that s all. John left everything he had and all 
 he might become possessed of to his wife and baby 
 and their heirs forever. He died poorer n poverty. 
 What s the use of a will when you ain t got nothin 
 to leave ? " 
 
 "Why!" exclaimed Captain Cy. "The answer 
 to that s easy. John was goin to sea, and, more n 
 likely, intended to have a shy at the diggin s afore 
 he got back. So, if he did make any money, he 
 wanted his wife and baby to have it." 
 
 " Well, what they got wan t wuth havin . Emily 
 had to scrimp along and do dressmakin till she died. 
 She done fairly well at that, though, and saved 
 somethin and passed it over to Mary. And Mary 
 married Henry Thomas, after she went with the 
 Howes tribe to Concord, and he got rid of it for her 
 in double quick time all but the Orham land." 
 
 "So that was all you could find out, hey, Ase?" 
 asked the captain. " Well, it s at least as much as I 
 
 272
 
 A CLEW 
 
 expected. You see, teacher, these story-book notions 
 don t work out when it comes to real life." 
 
 Miss Dawes was plainly disappointed. 
 
 " I wish we knew more," she said. " Who was 
 on this ship with Mr. Thayer? And who sent the 
 news of his death home?" 
 
 " Oh, I can tell you that," said Asaph. " Twas 
 some one-hoss doctor out there, gold minin himself, 
 he was. John died of a quick fever. Got cold and 
 went off in no time. Seth remembered that much, 
 though he couldn t remember the doctor s name. He 
 said, if I wanted to learn more about the Thayers, 
 I might go see Humph, well, never mind that. 
 Twas just foolishness, anyhow." 
 
 But Phoebe persisted. 
 
 "To see whom?" she asked. "Some one you 
 knew? A friend of yours? " 
 
 Asaph turned red. 
 
 " Friend of mine ! " he snarled. " No, sir! she 
 ain t no friend of mine, I m thankful to say. More 
 a friend of Bailey s, here, if she s anybody s. One 
 of his pets, she was, for a spell. A patient of his, 
 you might say; anyhow, he prescribed for her. Twas 
 that deef idiot, Debby Beasley, Cy; that s who twas. 
 Her name was Briggs afore she married Beasley, 
 and she was hired help for Emily Thayer, when 
 Mary was born, and until John died." 
 
 Captain Cy burst into a roar of laughter. Bailey 
 sprang out of his chair. 
 
 273
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " De Debby Beasley! " he stammered. " Debby 
 Beasley! " 
 
 " She was that deef housekeeper Bailey hired for 
 me, teacher," explained the captain. " I ve told you 
 about her. Ho ! ho ! so that s the end of the mystery 
 huntin . We go gunnin for Heman Atkins, and we 
 bring down Debby! Well, Ase, goin to see the old 
 lady?" 
 
 Mr. Tidditt s retort was emphatic. 
 
 " Goin to see her? " he repeated. " I guess not! 
 Godfrey scissors ! I told Seth, says I, I ve had all 
 the Debby Beasley / want, and I cal late Cy Whit- 
 taker feels the same way. Go to see her! I wouldn t 
 go to see her if she was up in Paradise a-hollerin 
 for me." 
 
 " Nobody up there s goin to holler for you, Ase 
 Tidditt," remarked Bailey, with sarcasm; "so don t 
 let that worry you none." 
 
 " Are you going to see her, Captain Whittaker? " 
 asked Phoebe. 
 
 The captain shook his head. 
 
 " Why, no, I guess not," he said. " I don t take 
 much stock in what she d be likely to know; besides, 
 I m a good deal like Ase I ve had about all the 
 Debby Beasley I want."
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 DEBBY BEASLEY TO THE RESCUE 
 
 MRS. BANGS," said the schoolmistress, as 
 if it was the most casual thing in the 
 world, " I want to borrow your husband 
 to-morrow." 
 
 It was Friday evening, and supper at the perfect 
 boarding house had advanced as far as the stewed 
 prunes and fruit-cake stage. Keturah, who was care 
 fully dealing out the prunes, exactly four to each 
 saucer, stopped short, spoon in air, and gazed at 
 Miss Dawes. 
 
 "You you want to what!" she asked. 
 " I want to borrow your husband. I want him 
 all day, too, because I m thinking of driving over 
 to Trumet, and I need a coachman. You ll go, won t 
 you, Mr. Bangs?" 
 
 Bailey, who had been considering the advisability 
 o asking for a second cup of tea, brightened up 
 and looked pleased. 
 
 Why, yes," he answered, " I ll go. I can go 
 just as well as not. Fact is, I d like to. Ain t been 
 to Trumet I don t know when." 
 20 275
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Miss Phinney and the widow Tripp looked at each 
 other. Then they both looked at Keturah. That 
 lady s mouth closed tightly, and she resumed her 
 prune distribution. 
 
 " I m sorry," she said crisply, "but I m fraid he 
 can t go. It s Saturday, and I ll need him round the 
 house. Do you care for cake to-night, Elviry? I m 
 fraid it s pretty dry; I ain t had time to do much 
 bakin this week." 
 
 " Of course," continued the smiling Phoebe, " I 
 shouldn t think of asking him to go for nothing. I 
 didn t mean borrow him in just that way. I was 
 thinking of hiring your horse and buggy, and, as I m 
 not used to driving, I thought perhaps I might en 
 gage Mr. Bangs to drive for me. I expected to pay 
 for the privilege. But, as you need him, I suppose I 
 must get my rig and driver somewhere else. I m so 
 sorry." 
 
 The landlady s expression changed. This was the 
 dull season, and opportunities to " let " the family 
 steed and buggy " horse and team," we call it in 
 Bayport were few. 
 
 " Well," she observed, " I don t want to be un 
 likely and disobligin . Par s he s concerned, he d 
 rather be traipsin round the country than stay to 
 home, any day; though it s been so long sence he 
 took me to ride that I don t know s I d know how 
 to act." 
 
 Why, Ketury! " protested her husband. " How 
 276
 
 DEBBY BEASLEY TO THE RESCUE 
 
 you talk! Didn t I drive you down to the grave 
 yard only last Sunday or the Sunday afore?" 
 
 " Graveyard! Yes, I notice our rides always fetch 
 up at the graveyard. You re always willin to take 
 me there. Seems sometimes as if you enjoyed doin 
 it." 
 
 " Now, Keturah ! you know yourself that twas 
 you proposed goin there. You said you wanted to 
 look at our lot, cause you was afraid twan t big 
 enough, and you didn t know but we d ought to add 
 on another piece. You said that it kept you awake 
 nights worryin for fear when I passed away you 
 wouldn t have room in that lot for me. Land sakes ! 
 don t I remember? Didn t you give me the blue 
 creeps talkin about it?" 
 
 Mrs. Bangs ignored this outburst. Turning to the 
 school teacher, she said with a sigh: 
 
 Well, I guess he can go. I ll get along somehow. 
 I hope he ll be careful of the buggy; we had it 
 painted only last January." 
 
 Mrs. Tripp ventured a hinted question concerning 
 the teacher s errand at Trumet. The reply being 
 noncommittal, the widow cheerfully prophesied that 
 she guessed twas going to rain or snow next day. 
 It s about time for the line storm," she added. 
 
 But it did not storm, although a brisk, cold gale 
 was blowing when, after breakfast next morning, the 
 " horse and team," with Bailey in his Sunday suit 
 and overcoat, and Miss Dawes on the buggy seat 
 
 277
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 beside him, turned out of the boarding-house yard 
 and started on the twelve-mile journey to Trumet. 
 
 It was a bleak ride. Denboro, the village ad 
 joining Bayport on the bay side, is a pretty place, 
 with old elms and silverleafs shading the main street 
 in summer, and with substantial houses set each in 
 its trim yard. But beyond Denboro the Trumet road 
 winds out over rolling, bare hills, with cranberry 
 bogs, now flooded and skimmed with ice, in the hol 
 lows between them, clumps of bayberry and beach- 
 plum bushes scattered over their rounded slopes, and 
 white scars in their sides showing where the cran 
 berry growers have cut away the thin layer of coarse 
 grass and moss to reach the sand beneath, sand which 
 they use in preparing their bogs for the new vines. 
 
 And the wind! There is always a breeze along 
 the Trumet road, even in summer when the mos 
 quitoes lie in wait to leeward like buccaneers until, 
 sighting the luckless wayfarer in the offing, they 
 drive down before the wind in clouds, literally to eat 
 him alive. They are skilled navigators, those Trumet 
 road mosquitoes, and they know the advantage of 
 snug harbors under hat brims and behind spreading 
 ears. And each individual smashed by a frantic 
 palm leaves a thousand blood relatives to attend his 
 funeral and exact revenge after the Corsican fashion. 
 
 Now, in December, there were, of course, no mos 
 quitoes, but the wind tore across those bare hilltops 
 in gusts that rocked the buggy on its springs. The 
 
 278
 
 DEBBY BEASLEY TO THE RESCUE 
 
 bayberry bushes huddled and crouched before it. 
 The sky was covered with tumbling, flying clouds, 
 which changed shape continually, and ripped into 
 long, fleecy ravelings, that broke loose and pelted 
 on until merged into the next billowy mass. The bay 
 was gray and white, and in the spots where an oc 
 casional sunbeam broke through and struck it, flashed 
 like a turned knife blade. 
 
 Bailey drove with one hand and held his hat on 
 his head with the other. The road had been deeply 
 rutted during the November rains, and now the ruts 
 were frozen. The buggy wheels twisted and scraped 
 as they turned in the furrows. 
 
 " What s the matter? " asked the schoolmistress, 
 shouting so as to be heard above the flapping of the 
 buggy curtains. " Why do you watch that wheel? " 
 
 " Fraid of the axle," whooped Mr. Bangs in re 
 ply. " Nut s kind of loose, for one thing, and the 
 way the wheel wobbles I m scart she ll come off. Call 
 this a road ! " he snorted indignantly. " More like 
 a plowed field a consider ble sight. Jerushy, how she 
 blows ! No wonder they raise so many deef and dumb 
 folks in Trumet. I d talk sign language myself if I 
 lived here. What s the use of wastin strength pump- 
 in up words when they re blowed back down your 
 throat fast enough to choke you? Git dap, Henry! 
 Don t you see the meetin house steeple? We re 
 most there, thank the goodness." 
 
 In Trumet Center, which is not much of a center, 
 279
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Miss Dawes alighted from the buggy and entered 
 a building bearing a sign with the words " Metro 
 politan Variety Store, Joshua Atwood, Prop r, Gro 
 ceries, Coal, Dry Goods, Insurance, Boots and Shoes, 
 Garden Seeds, etc." A smaller sign beneath this 
 was lettered " Justice of the Peace," and one below 
 that read " Post Office." 
 
 She emerged a moment later, followed by an 
 elderly person in a red cardigan jacket and overalls. 
 
 " Take the fust turnin to the left, marm," he 
 said pointing. " It s pretty nigh to East Trumet 
 townhall. Fust house this side of the blacksmith 
 shop. About two mile, I d say. Windy day for 
 drivin , ain t it? That horse of yours belongs in 
 Bayport, I cal late. Looks to me like Hello, 
 Bailey!" 
 
 " Hello, Josh ! " grunted Mr. Bangs, adding an 
 explanatory aside to the effect that he knew Josh 
 Atwood, the latter having once lived in Bayport. 
 
 " But say," he asked as they moved on once more, 
 "have we got to go to East Trumet? Jerushy! 
 that s the place where the wind comes from. They 
 raise it over there; anyhow, they don t raise much 
 else. Whose house you goin to?" 
 
 He had asked the same question at least ten times 
 since leaving home, and each time Miss Dawes had 
 evaded it. She did so now, saying that she was sure 
 she should know the house when they got to it. 
 
 The two miles to East Trumet were worse than 
 280
 
 DEBBY BEASLEY TO THE RESCUE 
 
 the twelve which they had come. The wind fairly 
 shrieked here, for the road paralleled the edge of 
 high sand bluffs close by the shore, and the ruts and 
 " thank-you-marms " were trying to the temper. Bai 
 ley s was completely wrecked. 
 
 Teacher," he snapped as they reached the crest 
 of a long hill, and a quick grab at his hat alone 
 prevented its starting on a balloon ascension, " get 
 out a spell, will you? IVe got to swear or bust, 
 and long s you re aboard I can t swear. What you 
 standin still for, you? " he bellowed at poor Henry, 
 the horse, w r ho had stopped to rest. " I cal late the 
 critter thinks that last cyclone must have blowed me 
 sky high, and he s waitin to see where I light. Git 
 dap!" 
 
 " I guess I shall get out very soon now," panted 
 Phoebe. " There s the blacksmith shop over there 
 near the next hill, and this house in the hollow must 
 be the one I m looking for." 
 
 They pulled up beside the house in the hollow. A 
 little, story-and-a-half house it was, and, judging 
 by the neglected appearance of the weeds and bushes 
 in the yard, it had been unoccupied for some time. 
 However, the blinds were now open, and a few fowls 
 about the back door seemed to promise that some one 
 was living there. The wooden letter box by the gate 
 had a name stenciled upon it. Miss Dawes sprang- 
 from the buggy and looked at the box. 
 
 " Yes," she said. " This is the place. Will you 
 281
 
 come in, Mr. Bangs? You can put your horse in 
 that barn, I m sure, if you want to." 
 
 But Bailey declined to come in. He declared he 
 was going on to the blacksmith s shop to have that 
 wheel fixed. He would not feel safe to start for 
 home with it as it was. He drove off, and Miss 
 Dawes, knowing from lifelong experience that front 
 doors are merely for show, passed around the main 
 body of the house and rapped on the door in the ell. 
 The rap was not answered, though she could hear 
 some one moving about within, and a shrill voice 
 singing " The Sweet By and By." So she rapped 
 again and again, but still no one came to the door. 
 At last she ventured to open it. 
 
 A thin woman, with her head tied up in a colored 
 cotton handkerchief, was in the room, vigorously 
 wielding a broom. She was singing in a high cracked 
 voice. The opening of the door let in a gust of cold 
 wind which struck the singer in the back of the 
 neck, and caused her to turn around hastily. 
 
 " Hey? " she exclaimed. " Land sakes ! you scare 
 a body to death! Shut that door quick! I ain t 
 hankering for influenzy. Who are you? What do 
 you want? Why didn t you knock? Where s my 
 specs? " 
 
 She took a pair of spectacles from the mantel 
 shelf, rubbed them with her apron, and set them on 
 the bridge of her thin nose. Then she inspected the 
 schoolmistress from head to foot. 
 
 282
 
 DEBBY BEASLEY TO THE RESCUE 
 
 " I beg pardon for coming in," shouted Phoebe. 
 " I knocked, but you didn t hear. You are Mrs. 
 Beasley, aren t you? " 
 
 " I don t want none," replied Debby, with em 
 phasis. " So there s no use your wastin your breath." 
 
 " Don t want " repeated the astonished teacher. 
 " Don t want what?" 
 
 " Hey? I say I don t want none." 
 
 "Don t want what?" 
 
 " Whatever tis you re peddlin . Books or soap or 
 tea, or whatever tis. I don t want nothin ." 
 
 After some strenuous minutes, the visitor managed 
 to make it clear to Mrs. Beasley s mind that she was 
 not a peddler. She tried to add a word of further ex 
 planation, but it was effort wasted. 
 
 Tain t no use," snapped Debby, " I can t hear 
 you, you speak so faint. Wait till I get my horn; 
 it s in the settin room." 
 
 Phoebe s wonder as to what the " horn " might be 
 was relieved by the widow s appearance, a moment 
 later, with the biggest ear trumpet her caller had ever 
 seen. 
 
 There, now ! " she said, adjusting the instrument 
 and thrusting the bell-shaped end under the teacher s 
 nose. " Talk into that. If you ain t a peddler, what 
 be you sewin machine agent? " 
 
 Phoebe explained that she had come some dis 
 tance on purpose to see Mrs. Beasley. She was in 
 terested in the Thayers, who used to live in Orham, 
 
 283
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 particularly in Mr. John Thayer, who died in 1854. 
 She had been told that Debby formerly lived with 
 the Thayers, and could, no doubt, remember a great 
 deal about them. Would she mind answering a few 
 questions, and so on? 
 
 Mrs. Beasley, her hearing now within forty-five 
 degrees of the normal, grew interested. She ushered 
 her visitor into the adjoining room, and proffered her 
 a chair. That sitting room was a wonder of its kind, 
 even to the teacher s accustomed eyes. A gilt-framed 
 crayon enlargement of the late Mr. Beasley hung 
 in the center of the broadest wall space, and was not 
 the ugliest thing in the apartment. Having said this, 
 further description is unnecessary particularly to 
 those who remember Mr. Beasley s personal ap 
 pearance. 
 
 What you so interested in the Thayers for?" 
 inquired Debby. " One of the heirs, be you? They 
 didn t leave nothin ." 
 
 No, the schoolmistress was not an heir. Was not 
 even a relative of the family. But she was was 
 interested, just the same. A friend of hers was a rela 
 tive, and 
 
 "What is your friend?" inquired the inquisitor. 
 "A man?" 
 
 There was no reason why Miss Dawes should 
 have changed color, but, according to Debby s sub 
 sequent testimony, she did; she blushed, so the widow 
 declares. 
 
 284
 
 DERBY BEASLEY TO THE RESCUE 
 
 "No," she protested. "Oh, no! it s a she s a 
 child, that s all a little girl. But " 
 
 " Maybe you re gettin up one of them geo 
 graphical trees," suggested Mrs. Beasley. " I ve 
 seen em, fust settlers down in the trunk, and chil 
 dren and grandchildren spreadin out in the branches. 
 Is that it?" 
 
 Here was an avenue of escape. Phoebe stretched 
 the truth a trifle, and admitted that that, or some 
 thing of the sort, was what she was engaged in. The 
 explanation seemed to be satisfactory. Debby asked 
 her visitor s name, and, misunderstanding it, ad 
 dressed her as " Miss Dorcas " thereafter. Then she 
 proceeded to give her reminiscences of the Thayers, 
 and it did not take long for the disappointed 
 teacher to discover that, for all practical purposes, 
 these reminiscences were valueless. Mrs. Beasley 
 remembered many things, but nothing at all con 
 cerning John Thayer s life in the West, nor the 
 name of the ship he sailed in, nor who his ship 
 mates were. 
 
 " He never wrote home but once or twice afore 
 he died," she said. " And when he did Emily, his 
 wife, never told me what was in his letters. She 
 always burnt em, I guess. I used to hunt around 
 for em when she was out, but she burnt em to spite 
 me, I cal late. Her and me didn t get along any too 
 well. She said I talked too much to other folks about 
 what was none of their business. Now, anybody 
 
 285.
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 that knows me knows that ain t one of my failin s. 
 I told her so; says I " 
 
 And so on for ten minutes. Then Phoebe ven 
 tured to repeat the words " out West," and her com 
 panion went off on a new tack. She had just been West 
 nerself. She had been on a visit to her husband s 
 niece, who lived in Arizona. In Blazeton, Arizona. 
 " It s the nicest town ever you see," she continued. 
 " And the smartest, most up-to-date place. Talk 
 about the West bein oncivilized ! My land ! you 
 ought to see that town! Electric lights, and tele 
 phones, and and I don t know what all! Why, 
 Miss What s-your-name Miss Dorcas, marm, you 
 just ought to see the photygraphs I ve got that was 
 took out there. My niece, she took em with one of 
 them little mites of cameras. You wouldn t believe 
 such a little box of a thing could take such photy 
 graphs. I m goin to get em and show em to you. 
 No, sir! you ain t got to go, neither. Set right still 
 and let me fetch them photygraphs. Twon t be a 
 mite of trouble. I d love to do it." 
 
 Protests were unavailing. The photographs, at 
 least fifty of them, were produced, and the suffering 
 caller was shown the Blazeton City Hall, and the 
 Blazeton " Palace Hotel," and the home of the Beas- 
 ley niece, taken from the front, the rear, and both 
 sides. With each specimen Debby delivered a de 
 scriptive lecture. 
 
 " You see that house? " she asked. " Well, tain t 
 286
 
 much of a one to look at, but it s got the most inter- 
 estin story tagged on to it. I made Eva, that s my 
 niece, take a picture of it just on that account. The 
 woman that lives there s had the hardest time. Her 
 fust name s Desire, and that kind of made me take an 
 interest in her right off, cause I had an Aunt Desire 
 once, and it s a name you don t hear very often. Af 
 terwards I got to know her real well. She was a 
 widder woman, like me, only she didn t have as much 
 sense as I ve got, and went and married a second 
 time. Twas long in 1886 she done it. This man 
 Higgins, he went to work for her on her place, and 
 pretty soon he married her. They lived together,^ 
 principally on her fust husband s insurance money, I 
 cal late, until a year or so ago. Then the insurance 
 money give out, and Mr. Higgins he says : Old 
 woman, he says I d never let a husband of mine 
 call me old woman, but Desire didn t seem to 
 mind Old woman, he says, I m goin over to 
 Phoenix that s another city in Arizona to look 
 for a job. And he went, and she ain t heard hide 
 I mean seen hide nor heard hair What does ail me ? 
 , She ain t seen nor heard of him since. And she ad- 
 j vertised in the weekly paper, and I don t know what 
 all. She thinks he was murdered, you know; that s 
 what makes it so sort of creepy and interestin . 
 Everybody was awful kind to her, and we got to 
 
 be real good friends. Why, I " 
 
 This was but the beginning. It was evident that 
 287
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Mrs. Beasley had thoroughly enjoyed herself in 
 Blazeton, and that the sorrows of the bereaved De 
 sire Higgins had been one of the principal sources 
 of that enjoyment. The schoolmistress endeavored 
 to turn the subject, but it was useless. 
 
 " I fetched home a whole pile of them news 
 papers," continued Debby. They was awful inter 
 esting full of pictures of Blazeton buildin s and 
 leadin folks and all. And in some of the back num 
 bers was the advertisement about Mr. Higgins. I do 
 wish I could show em to you, but I lent em to Mrs. 
 Atwood up to the Center. If twan t such a ways I d 
 go and fetch em. Mrs. Atwood s been awful nice 
 to me. She took care of my trunks and things 
 when I went West yes, and afore that w r hen I 
 went to Bayport to keep house for that miser ble 
 Cap n Whittaker. I ain t told you about that, but 
 I will by and by. Them trunks had lots of things 
 in em that I didn t want to lose nor have anybody 
 see. My diaries I ve kept a diary since 1850 
 and " 
 
 "Diaries?" interrupted Phoebe, grasping at 
 straws. " Did you keep a diary while you were at 
 the Thayers?" 
 
 "Yes. Now, why didn t I think of that afore? 
 More n likely there d be somethin in that to help 
 you with that geographical tree. I used to put 
 down everything that happened, and Where you 
 goin ?" 
 
 288
 
 DERBY BEASLEY TO THE RESCUE 
 
 Miss Dawes had risen and was peering out of the 
 window. 
 
 " I was looking to see if my driver was anywhere 
 about," she replied. " I thought perhaps he would 
 i drive over to Mrs. Atwood s and get the diary for 
 you. But I don t see him." 
 
 Just then, from around the corner of the house, 
 peeped an agitated face; an agitated forefinger beck 
 oned. Debby stepped to the window beside her vis 
 itor, and the face and finger went out of sight as if 
 pulled by a string. 
 
 Miss Phoebe smiled. 
 
 " I think I ll go out and look for him," she said. 
 " He must be near here. I ll be right back, Mrs. 
 Beasley." 
 
 Without stopping to put on her jacket, she hurried 
 through the dining room, out of the door, and around 
 the corner. There she found Mr. Bangs in a highly 
 nervous state. 
 
 " Why didn t you tell me twas Debby Beasley 
 you was comin to see? " he demanded. " If you d 
 mentioned that deef image s name you d never got 
 \ me to drive you, I tell you that ! " 
 
 Yes," answered the teacher sweetly. " I im 
 agined that. That s why I didn t tell you, Mr. 
 Bangs. Now I want you to do me a favor. Will 
 you drive over to Trumet Center, and deliver a 
 note and get a package for me ? Then you can come 
 back here, and I shall be ready to start for home." 
 
 289
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 "Drive! Drive nothin ! The blacksmith s out, 
 and won t be back for another hour. His boy s 
 there, but he s a big enough lunkhead to try bailin 
 out a dory with a fork, and that buggy axle is bent 
 so it s simply got to be fixed. I d no more go home 
 to Ketury with that buggy as tis than I d Oh! 
 my land of love ! " 
 
 The ejaculation was almost a groan. There at the 
 corner, ear trumpet adjusted, and spectacles glisten 
 ing, stood Debby Beasley. Bailey appeared to wilt 
 under her gaze as if the spectacles were twin suns. 
 Miss Dawes looked as if she very much wanted to 
 laugh. The widow stared in silence. 
 
 "How how d ye do, Mrs. Beasley?" faltered 
 Mr. Bangs, not forgetting to raise his voice. " I 
 hope you re lookin as well as you feel. I mean, I 
 hope you re smart." 
 
 Mrs. Beasley nodded decisively. 
 
 " Yes," she answered. " I m pretty toler ble, 
 thank you. What was the matter, Mr. Bangs? Why 
 didn t you come in? Do you usually make your 
 calls round the corner?" 
 
 The gentleman addressed seemed unable to reply. 
 The schoolmistress came to the rescue. 
 
 " You mustn t blame Mr. Bangs, Mrs. Beasley," 
 she explained. " He w r asn t responsible for what hap 
 pened at Captain Whittaker s. He is the gentle 
 man who drove me over here. I was going to send 
 him to Mrs. Atwood s for the diary." 
 
 290
 
 DERBY BEASLEY TO THE RESCUE 
 
 "Who said I was blamin him?" queried the 
 widow. " If twas that little Tidditt thing I might 
 feel different. But, considerin that I got this horn 
 from Mr. Bangs, I m willin to let bygones be past. 
 It helps my hearin a lot. Them ear-fixin s was good 
 while they lasted, but they got out of kilter quick. / 
 shan t bother Mr. Bangs. If he can square his own 
 conscience, I m satisfied." 
 
 Bailey s conscience was not troubling him greatly, 
 and he seemed relieved. Phoebe told of the damaged 
 buggy. 
 
 " Humph I " grunted the widow. " The horse 
 didn t get bent, too, did he? " 
 
 Mr. Bangs indignantly declared that the horse was 
 all right. 
 
 " Um hum. Well, then, I guess I can supply a car 
 riage. My fust cousin Ezra that died used to be doctor 
 here, and he give me his sulky when he got a new one. 
 It s out in the barn. Go fetch your horse, and harness 
 him in. I ll be ready time the harnessin s done." 
 
 " You ? " gasped the teacher. " You don t need to 
 go, Mrs. Beasley. I wouldn t think of giving you 
 that trouble." 
 
 " No trouble at all. I wouldn t trust nobody else 
 with them trunks. And besides, I always do enjoy 
 ridin . You could go, too, Miss Dorcas, but the 
 sulky seat s too narrer for three. You can set in the 
 settin room till we get back. Twon t take us long. 
 Don t say another word; I m a-goin ." 
 21 291
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 A REMARKABLE DRIVE AND WHAT FOLLOWED 
 
 tHE number of reasons given by Mr. Bangs 
 one after the other, to prove that it would 
 be quite impossible for him to be Mrs. 
 Beasley s charioteer was a credit to the resources of 
 his invention. The blacksmith might be back any 
 minute; it was dinner time, and he was hungry; 
 Henry, the horse, was tired; it wasn t a nice day for 
 riding, and he would come over some other time and 
 take the widow out; he But Debby had a conclu 
 sive answer for each protest. 
 
 You said yourself the blacksmith wouldn t be 
 back for an hour," she observed. " And you can 
 leave word with the boy what he s to do when he 
 does come. As for dinner, I ll be real glad to give 
 you and Miss Dorcas a snack soon s we get back. I 
 don t mind if it ain t a pleasant day; a little fresh 
 air 11 do me good. I been shut up here houseclean- 
 in ever since I got back from out West. Now, hurry 
 right along, and fetch your horse. I ll unlock the 
 barn." 
 
 " But, Mrs. Beasley," put in the schoolmistress; 
 292
 
 A DRIVE AND WHAT FOLLOWED 
 
 " why couldn t you give us a note to Mrs. Atwood 
 and let us stop for the diary on our way home? I 
 could return it to you by mail. Or you might get 
 it yourself some other day and mail it to me." 
 
 " No, no ! Never put off till to-morrer what you 
 can do to-day. My husband was a great hand to put 
 off and put off. For the last eight years of his life I 
 was at him to buy a new go-to-meetin suit of clothes. 
 The one he had was blue to start with, but it faded to 
 a brown, and, toward the last of it, I declare if it 
 didn t commence to turn green. Nothin I could say 
 would make him heave it away even then. Seemed 
 to think more of it than ever. Said he wanted to 
 hang to it a spell and see what twould turn next. But 
 he died and was laid out in that same suit, and I 
 was so mortified at the funeral I couldn t think of 
 nothin else. No, I ll go after them papers and the 
 diary while they re fresh in my mind. And besides, 
 do you s pose I d let Sarah Ann Atwood rummage 
 through my trunks? I guess not! " 
 
 Phoebe began to be sorry she had thought of send 
 ing for the diary, particularly as the chance of its 
 containing valuable information was so remote. Mrs. 
 Beasley went into the house to dress for the ride. 
 The schoolmistress went with her as far as the sit 
 ting room. The perturbed Bailey stalked off, mut 
 tering, to the blacksmith s. 
 
 In a little while he returned, leading Henry by the 
 bridle. Debby, adorned with the befiowered bonnet 
 
 293
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 she had worn when she arrived at the Cy Whittaker 
 place, and with a black cloth cape over her lean 
 shoulders, was waiting for him by the open door of 
 the barn. The cape had a fur collar " cat fur," 
 so Mr. Bangs said afterwards in describing it. 
 
 " Pull the sulky right out," commanded the widow. 
 
 Bailey stared into the black interior of the barn. 
 
 "Which is it?" he shouted. 
 
 Mrs. Beasley pointed with her ear trumpet. 
 
 " Why, that one there, of course. Tother s a 
 truck cart. You wouldn t expect me to ride in that, 
 would you? " 
 
 Mr. Bangs entered the barn, seized the vehicle in 
 dicated by the shafts, and drew it out into the yard. 
 He inspected it deliberately, and then sat weakly 
 down on the chopping block near by. Apparently he 
 was overcome by emotion. 
 
 The " sulky " bequeathed by the late doctor had 
 been built to order for its former owner. It was of 
 the " carryall " variety, except that it had but a 
 single narrow seat. Its top was square and was cur 
 tained, the curtains being tightly buttoned down. 
 Altogether it was something of a curiosity. Miss 
 Dawes, who had come out to see the start, looked 
 at the " sulky," then at Mr. Bangs s face, and turned 
 her back. Her shoulders shook: 
 
 " It used to be a real nice carriage when Ezra had 
 it," commented the widow admiringly. " It needs 
 ilin and sprucin up now, but I guess twill do. 
 
 294
 
 Come ! " to Bailey, who had not risen from the chop 
 ping block. " Hurry up and harness or we ll never 
 get started. Thought you wanted to get back for 
 dinner? " 
 
 Mr. Bangs stood up and heaved a sigh. 
 
 " I did," he answered slowly, " but," with a glance 
 at the sulky, " somethin seems to have took away 
 my appetite. Teacher, do you mean to " 
 
 But Miss Dawes had withdrawn to the corner of 
 the house, from which viewpoint she seemed to be 
 inspecting the surrounding landscape. Bailey seized 
 Henry by the bridle and backed him into the shafts. 
 
 " Back up ! " he roared. " Back up, I tell you ! 
 You needn t look at me that way," he added, in a 
 lower tone. " 7 can t help it. You ain t any worse 
 ashamed than I am. There ! the ark s off the ways. 
 All aboard!" 
 
 Turning to the expectant widow, he " boosted " 
 her, not too tenderly, up to the narrow seat. Then 
 he climbed in himself. Two on that seat made a 
 tight fit. Bailey took up the reins. Debby leaned 
 forward and peered around the edge of the curtains. 
 
 " You ! " she shouted. " You, Miss What s-your- 
 name Dorcas! Come here a minute. I want to 
 tell you somethin ." 
 
 The schoolmistress, her face red and her eyes 
 moist, approached. 
 
 " I just wanted to say," explained Debby, " that 
 I ain t real sure as that diary s there. I burnt up a 
 
 295
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 lot of my old letters and things a spell ago, and seems 
 to me I burnt some old diaries, too, but maybe that 
 wan t one of em. Anyhow, I can get them Arizona 
 papers, and I do want you to see em. They re the 
 most interestin things. Now," she added, turning 
 to her companion on the seat, " you can git dap just 
 as soon as you want to." 
 
 Whether or not Mr. Bangs wanted to " git dap " 
 is a doubtful question. But at all events he did. Be 
 fore the astonished Miss Dawes could think of an 
 answer to the observation concerning the diary, the 
 carriage, its long unused axles shrieking protests, 
 moved out of the yard. The schoolmistress watched 
 it go. Then she returned to the sitting room and 
 collapsed in a rocking chair. 
 
 Once out from the shelter of the house and on the 
 open road, the sulky received the full force of the 
 wind. The first gust that howled in from the bay 
 struck its curtained side with a sudden burst of power 
 that caused Mrs. Beasley to clutch her driver s arm. 
 
 " Good land of mercy! she screamed. " It blows 
 real hard, don t it?" 
 
 Mr. Bangs s answer was in the form of delicate 
 sarcasm, bellowed into the ear trumpet. 
 
 " Sho ! " he exclaimed. "I want to know! 
 You don t say! Now you mention it, seems as if 
 I had noticed a little air stirrin ." 
 
 Another gust tilted the carriage top. Debby 
 clutched the arm still tighter. 
 
 296
 
 A DRIVE AND WHAT FOLLOWED 
 
 "Why, it blows awful hard!" she cried. "I d 
 no idee it blew like this." 
 
 Want to bout ship and go home again?" 
 whooped Bailey, hopefully. But the widow didn t 
 intend to give up the rare luxury of a " ride " which 
 a kind Providence had cast in her way. 
 
 " No, no! " she answered. " I guess if you folks 
 come all the way from Bayport I can stand it as fur s 
 the Center. But hurry all you can, won t you ? I m 
 kind of fraid of the springs." 
 
 " Springs? What springs? Let go my arm, will 
 you? It s goin to sleep." 
 
 Mrs. Beasley let go of the arm momentarily. 
 
 " I mean the springs on this carriage," she ex 
 plained. " Last time I lent it to anybody Solon 
 Davis, twas he said the bolts underneath was pretty 
 nigh rusted out, and about all that held the wagon 
 part on was its own weight. So we ll have to be 
 kind of careful." 
 
 Well I swan to man \ " was Mr. Bangs s 
 sole comment on the amazing disclosure; however, 
 as an expression of concentrated and profound dis 
 gust it was quite sufficient. He spoke but once dur 
 ing the remainder of the trip to the " Center." Then, 
 when his passenger begged to know if " that Whit- 
 taker man " had been well since she left, he shouted : 
 Yes ever since," and relapsed into his former 
 gloomy silence. 
 
 The widow s stop at the Atwood house, which was 
 
 297
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 in the immediate rear of the Atwood store, was of a 
 half hour s duration. Bailey refused to leave the 
 seat of the sulky and sat there, speaking to no 
 one; not even replying to the questions of a group 
 of loungers who gathered to inspect the ancient 
 vehicle, and professed to be in doubt as to whether 
 it had been washed in with the tide or been " left " 
 to him in a will. 
 
 At last Debby made her appearance, her arms 
 filled with newspapers. The latter she piled under 
 the carriage seat, and then climbed to her former 
 place beside the driver. Henry, in response to a slap 
 from the reins, got under way once more. The 
 axles squeaked and screamed. 
 
 " Gee ! " cried one youngster, from the steps of 
 the store. " It s the steam calliope. When s the rest 
 of the show comin ? " 
 
 " Hi ! " yelled another. " See how close they re 
 hugged up together. Ain t they lovin ! It s a wed- 
 din ! " 
 
 " Shut up ! " roared the tortured Bailey, whose hat 
 had blown back into the body of the sulky, leaving 
 his bald head exposed to the cutting wind. 
 
 The audience begged him to give them a lock of 
 his hair, and added other remarks of a personal 
 nature concerning the youth and beauty of the bridal 
 couple and their chariot. Mr. Bangs was in a state of 
 dumb frenzy. Debby, who, without her trumpet, had 
 heard nothing of all this, was smiling and garrulous. 
 
 298
 
 A DRIVE AND WHAT FOLLOWED 
 
 " I found all the papers," she said. " They re 
 right under the seat. I m goin to look em over so s 
 to have the interestin parts all ready to show Miss 
 Dorcas when we get home. Ain t it nice I found 
 em?" 
 
 In spite of her driver s remonstrances, unheard 
 because of the nonadjustment of the trumpet, she 
 reached under the seat and brought out the pile of 
 Blazeton weeklies. With her feet upon the pile to 
 keep it from blowing away, she proceeded to unfold 
 one of the papers. It crackled and snapped in the 
 wind like a loose mainsail. 
 
 " Keep that dratted thing out of my face, won t 
 you?" shrieked the agonized Bailey. " How m I 
 goin to see to steer with that smackin me between 
 the eyes every other second?" 
 
 " Hey? Did you speak to me? " asked the widow 
 sweetly. 
 
 "Did I speak! No, I screeched! What in 
 tunket " 
 
 u I want you to see this picture of the mayor s 
 house in Blazeton. Eva, my husband s niece, lives 
 right acrost the road from him. Many s the time 
 I ve set on their piazza and seen him come out and 
 go to the City Hall." 
 
 "Keep it out of my face, I tell you! Reef it! 
 Furl it, you you woman! I wish to thunder the 
 piazza had caved in on you ! I never see such an 
 old fool in my born days. Take It avuay! " 
 
 299
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Mrs. Beasley removed the paper, but only to sub 
 stitute another. 
 
 " Here s Eva s brother-in-law," she screamed. 
 " He s one of the prominent business men out 
 there, so they put him in the paper. Ain t he nice- 
 lookin ?" 
 
 Bailey s comments on the prominent business man s 
 appearance were anything but flattering. Debby con 
 tinued to reach for more papers, carefully replacing 
 those she had inspected in the pile beneath her feet. 
 The wind blew as hard as ever; even harder, 
 for it was now almost dead ahead. Henry plodded 
 along. They were in the hollow at the foot of the 
 last long hill, that from which the blacksmith shop 
 had first been sighted. 
 
 " I know what I ll do," declared the passenger. 
 " I ll hunt for that missin husband advertisement of 
 Desire Higgins s. Let s see now ! Twill be down 
 at the bottom of the pile, cause the paper it s in 
 is a last year one." 
 
 She bobbed down behind the high dashboard. Mr. 
 Bangs stood up in order that her gymnastics might 
 interfere, to a lesser degree, with his driving. The 
 equipage began to move up the slope of the hill, 
 bouncing and twisting in the frozen ruts. 
 
 "Here tis!" exclaimed Debby. "I remember 
 it s in this number, cause there s a picture of the 
 Palace Hotel on the front page. Let s see Dog 
 lost no, that ain t it. Corner lot for sale wish 
 
 300
 
 A DRIVE AND WHAT FOLLOWED 
 
 I had money enough to buy it; I d like nothin better 
 than to live out there. Information wanted of my 
 husband Here tis ! Um hum ! " 
 
 She straightened up and eagerly began reading the 
 advertisement. The hill was very steep just at its 
 top, and the sulky slanted backward at a sharp angle. 
 A terrific burst of wind tore around the corner of 
 the bluff. It eddied through the sulky between the 
 dashboard and the curtained sides. The widow, in 
 her excitement at finding the advertisement, had in 
 advertently removed her feet from the pile of papers. 
 In an instant the air was filled with whirling copies 
 of the Blazeton Weekly Courier. 
 
 Henry, the horse, was a sober animal who had long 
 ago reached the age of discretion. But to have his 
 old ears and eyes suddenly blanketed with a flapping 
 white thing swooping apparently from nowhere was 
 too much even for his sedate nerves. He jumped 
 sidewise. The reins were jerked from the driver s 
 hands and fell in the road. 
 
 " Mercy on us ! " shrieked Debby, clutching her 
 companion about the waist. " What " 
 
 " Let go of me ! " howled Bailey, pushing her vio 
 lently aside. " Whoa ! Stand still ! " 
 
 But Henry refused to stand still. The flapping 
 paper still clung to his agitated head. He reared 
 and pranced, jerking the sulky back and forth, its 
 wheels still wedged in the ruts. Bailey sprang to 
 the ground to pick up the reins. He seized them, 
 
 301
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 but fell as he did so. The tug at his bits turned 
 Henry s head, literally and figuratively. He reared 
 and whirled about. The sulky rose on two wheels. 
 The screaming Mrs. Beasley collapsed against its 
 downward side. Another moment, and the whole 
 upper half of the sulky body, seat, curtains, and 
 Debby tilted over the lower wheels, and, the rusted 
 bolts failing to hold, slid with a thump to the frozen 
 road. The wind, catching it underneath as it slid, 
 tipped it backward. Then Henry ran away. 
 
 Miss Dawes, left alone in the house at the foot 
 of the hill, had amused herself for a time with the 
 Beasley library, which partially filled a shelf in the 
 sitting room. But " The Book of Martyrs " and " A 
 Believer s Thoughts on Death " were not cheering lit 
 erature, particularly as the author of the latter volume 
 " thought " so dismally concerning the future of all 
 who did not believe precisely as he did. So the 
 teacher laid down the book, with a shudder, and 
 wandered about the room, inspecting the late Mr. 
 Beasley s portrait, the photographs in splintwork 
 frames, the " alum basket " on the mantel, the blue 
 castles, blue trees, and blue people pictured on the 
 window shades, and other works of art in the apart 
 ment. She even peeped into the parlor, but the 
 musty, shut-up smell of that dusky tomb was too 
 much for her, and she sat down by the sitting-room 
 window, under the empty bird cage, to look up the 
 
 302
 
 " Sprawled across the rear axle and still clinging to the reins, 
 hung an individual by the name of Bangs."
 
 road and watch for the return of the sulky and its 
 occupants. 
 
 sitting there, she was a witness of the alarming 
 catistrophe on the hilltop, and reached the front gate 
 jus: in time to see Henry go galloping by, dragging 
 the four wheels and springs of the sulky, while, 
 spiawled across the rear axle and still clinging to the 
 rehs, hung a familiar, howling, and most wickedly 
 profane individual by the name of Bangs. 
 
 The runaway dashed on toward the blacksmith 
 shop. Phoebe, bareheaded and coatless, ran up the 
 hill. Before she reached the crest, she was aware 
 of muffled screams, which sounded as if the screamer 
 was shut up in a trunk. 
 
 "O-o-oh!" screamed Mrs. Beasley. "O-o-oh! 
 Ow ! Let me out ! Help ! I m stuck ! My back s 
 broke! He-e-lp!" 
 
 The upper part of the sulky, with its boxlike cur 
 tained top, lay on its side in the road. From some 
 where within the box came the groans and screams. 
 The gale swept the hilltop, and, for a quarter mile 
 to leeward, the scenery was animated by soaring, flut 
 tering copies of the Blazeton Courier, that swooped 
 and ducked like mammoth white butterflies. 
 
 The panting and alarmed teacher stooped and 
 peered into the dark shadow between the dashboard 
 and the back curtain. All she could make out at 
 first were a pair of thin ankles and " Congress " 
 shoes in agitated motion. These bobbed up and 
 
 303
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 down behind the overturned seat and its displaed 
 cushion. 
 
 " O Mrs. Beasley ! " screamed Phoebe. " Are you 
 hurt?" 
 
 Debby, of course, did not hear the question. She 
 continued to groan and scream for help. Her lungs 
 were not injured, at all events. The schoolmistress, 
 dropping on her knees, reached into the sulky top aid 
 tugged at the seat. It was rather tightly wedged, 
 but she managed to loosen it and pull it toward her. 
 
 The widow raised herself on an elbow and looked 
 out between the flowers of her smashed bonnet. 
 
 " Who is it? " she demanded. " Oh, is that you, 
 Miss Dorcas? Oh, my soul and body ! Oh, my stars ! 
 Oh, my goodness me ! " 
 
 " Are you hurt? " shrieked Phoebe. 
 
 " Hey? I don t know! I don t know what I be! 
 I don t know nothin ! " 
 
 " Can you help yourself? Can you get up? " 
 
 " Hey? I don t know. Maybe I can if you haul 
 that everlastin seat out of the way. Oh, my sakes 
 alive ! " 
 
 Her rescuer pulled the seat forward, and, with an 
 effort, tumbled it clear of the curtains. Debby raised 
 herself still higher. 
 
 " Oh ! " she groaned. " Talk about- Land 
 sakes! who s comin ? Men, ain t it? Let me out 
 of here quick ! quick \ " 
 
 She scrambled out of her prison on hands and 
 34
 
 A DRIVE AND WHAT FOLLOWED 
 
 knees, and jumped to her feet with reassuring alac 
 rity. Her fur-collared cape was draped in a roll 
 about her neck, and her bonnet hung jauntily over her 
 left eye. 
 
 "I m a sight, ain t I?" she asked. "Haul this 
 bunnet straight, quick s ever you can. Hurt? No, 
 no ! I ain t hurt none but my feelin s. Hurry up \ 
 S pose I want them men folks to see me with every 
 thing all hind side to? " 
 
 Miss Dawes, relieved to find that the accident had 
 had no serious consequences, and trying her hardest 
 not to laugh, assisted the widow to rearrange her 
 wearing apparel. The blacksmith and his helper 
 came running up the hill. 
 
 "Hello, Debby!" hailed the former. "What s 
 the matter? Hurt, be you? " 
 
 Mrs. Beasley, whether she heard or not, did not 
 deign to reply. 
 
 " Get my horn out of that carriage," she ordered. 
 " Don t stand there gapin . Get it." 
 
 The ear trumpet was resurrected from the in 
 terior of the vehicle. The widow adjusted it with 
 dignity. 
 
 "Had a spill, didn t you, Debby?" inquired the 
 blacksmith. " Upset, didn t you ?" 
 
 Debby glared at him. 
 
 " No," she replied with sarcasm. " Course I 
 didn t upset! Just thought I d roll round in the 
 road for the fun of it. Smart question, that is I 
 22 305
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Where s that Bailey Bangs gone to with the rest of 
 my carriage? " 
 
 The blacksmith pointed to his shop in the hollow. 
 Before it stood Mr. Bangs, holding Henry by the 
 bridle, and staring in their direction. 
 
 "He s all right," volunteered the "helper." 
 The horse stopped runnin soon s he got to the foot 
 of the next hill." 
 
 Mrs. Beasley was not, apparently, overjoyed at 
 the news. 
 
 "Humph!" she grunted. "I most wish he d 
 broke his neck! Pesky, careless thing! gettin us 
 run away with and upset. Who s goin to pay for 
 fixin my sulky, I want to know?" 
 
 " Mr. Bangs will pay for it, I m sure," said 
 Phoebe soothingly. " If he doesn t, I will. Oh, 
 Mrs. Beasley ! did you find the diary?" 
 
 " Diary? No, no! I told you I was afraid I d 
 burnt it up. Well, I had, and a whole lot more of 
 them old ones. But I did get all them Arizona 
 papers, and took the trouble to tote em all the way 
 here so s you could look at em. And now " she 
 shook with, indignation and waved her hand toward a 
 section of horizon where little white dots indicated 
 the whereabouts of the Couriers " now look where 
 they be ! Blowed from Dan to Beersheby ! Come 
 on to the house and let me set down. I been standin 
 on my head till I m tired. Here, Jabez," to the 
 blacksmith, " you tend to that carriage, will you ? " 
 
 306
 
 A DRIVE AND WHAT FOLLOWED 
 
 She stalked off down the hill. The schoolmistress 
 turning to follow her, caught a glimpse of the " help 
 er " doubled up with silent laughter, and the black 
 smith grinning broadly as he stooped toward the 
 capsized sulky. 
 
 Phoebe was downcast and disappointed. She was 
 convinced, in her own mind, that the Honorable 
 Atkins had some hidden motive for his espousal of 
 the Thomas cause. Asaph s fruitless quest in Orham 
 had not shaken her faith. Captain Cy had refused 
 to seek Debby Beasley for information concerning 
 the Thayers, and so she, on her own responsibility, 
 had done so. And this was the ridiculous ending of 
 her journey. The diary had been a forlorn hope; 
 now that was burned. Poor Bos n ! and poor some 
 one else ! 
 
 Debby marching down the hill, continued to sput 
 ter about the lost weeklies. 
 
 " It s an everlastin shame ! " she declared. " I d 
 just found the one with that advertisement in it and 
 was readin it. I remember the part I read, plain as 
 could be. While we re eatin dinner I ll tell you 
 about it." 
 
 But Miss Dawes did not care for dinner. Like 
 Mr. Tidditt and the captain, she had had about all 
 the Debby Beasley she wanted. 
 
 Yes, yes, you will stop, too," affirmed the widow. 
 " I want to tell you more about Blazeton. I can 
 see that advertisement this minute, right afore my 
 
 307
 
 eyes Information wanted of my husband, Ed 
 ward Higgins. Five foot eight inches tall, sandy 
 complected, brown hair, and yellowish mustache; not 
 lame, but has a peculiar slight limp with his left 
 foot " 
 
 "What?" asked the schoolmistress, stopping 
 short. 
 
 " Hey? Has a peculiar limp with his left foot. 
 I remember how Desire used to talk about that limp. 
 She said twas almost as if he stuttered with his leg. 
 He hurt it when he was up in Montana, and 
 
 "Oh!" cried Miss Dawes. The color had left 
 her face. 
 
 Yes. You see he used to be a miner or somethin 
 up there. He d never say much about his younger 
 days, but one time he did tell that. I d just got as 
 far as that limp when the sulky upset. Talk about 
 bein surprised ! I never was so surprised in my life 
 as when that horse critter rared up and " 
 
 Phoebe interrupted. Her color had come back, 
 and her eyes were shining. 
 
 " Mrs. Beasley," she cried, " I think I shall 
 change my mind. I believe I will stay to dinner 
 after all. I m ever so much interested in Arizona." 
 
 Bailey and the teacher began their long drive home 
 about four o clock. The buggy axle had been fixed, 
 and the wind was less violent. Mr. Bangs was glum 
 and moody. He seemed to be thinking. 
 
 308
 
 A DRIVE AND WHAT FOLLOWED 
 
 " Say, teacher," he said at length, " I d like to ask 
 a favor of you. If it ain t necessary, I wish you 
 wouldn t say nothin about that upsettin business 
 to the folks to home. It does sound so dum fool 
 ish ! I ll never hear the last of it." 
 
 Miss Dawes, who had been in high spirits, now 
 took a moment for reflection. 
 
 " All right! " she said, nodding vigorously. " We 
 won t mention it, then. We won t tell a soul. You 
 can say that I called at the Atwoods , if you want to; 
 that will be true, because I did. And we ll have Mrs. 
 Beasley for our secret yours and mine until we 
 decide to tell. It s a bargain, Mr. Bangs. We must 
 shake hands on it." 
 
 They shook hands, and Bailey, looking in her face, 
 thought he never saw her look so well or as young. 
 She was pretty, he decided. Then he thought of his 
 own choice of a wife, and well, if he had any 
 regrets, he hasn t mentioned them, not even to his 
 fellow-member of the Board of Strategy.
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS HIS AGE 
 
 DECEMBER was nearly over. Christmas 
 had come. Bos n had hung up her stock 
 ing by the base-burner stove, and found it 
 warty and dropsical the next morning, with a gener 
 ous overflow of gifts piled on the floor beneath it. 
 The Board of Strategy sent presents; so did Miss 
 Dawes and Georgianna. As for Captain Cy he spent 
 many evening hours, after the rest of his household 
 was in bed, poring over catalogues of toys and books, 
 and the orders he sent to the big shops in Boston were 
 lengthy and costly. The little girl s eyes opened 
 wide when she saw the stocking and the treasures 
 heaped on the floor. She sat in her " nighty " amidst 
 the wonders, books, and playthings in a circle about 
 her, and the biggest doll of all hugged close in her 
 arms. Captain Cy, who had arisen at half past five 
 in order to be with her on the great occasion, was 
 at least as happy as she. 
 
 " Like em, do you? " he asked, smiling. 
 
 " Like em ! O Uncle Cy ! What makes every 
 body so good to me?" 
 
 310
 
 THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS HIS AGE 
 
 " I don t know. Strange thing, ain t it con- 
 siderin what a hard little ticket you are." 
 
 Bos n laughed. She understood her " Uncle Cy," 
 and didn t mind being called a " hard ticket " by 
 him. 
 
 " I I didn t believe anybody could have such a 
 nice Christmas. I never saw so many nice things." 
 
 " Humph! What do you like best? " 
 
 The answer was a question, and was characteristic. 
 
 " Which did you give me? " asked Bos n. 
 
 The captain would have dodged, but she wouldn t 
 let him. So one by one the presents he had given 
 were indicated and put by themselves. The remain 
 der were but few, but she insisted that the givers 
 of these should be named. When the sorting was 
 over she sat silently hugging her doll and, apparently, 
 thinking. 
 
 Well?" inquired the amused captain. "Made 
 up your mind yet? Which do you like best?" 
 
 The child nodded. 
 
 " Why, these, of course," she declared with em 
 phasis, pointing with her dollie s slippered foot at 
 Captain Cy s pile. 
 
 "So? Do, hey? Didn t know I could pick so 
 well. All right; the first prize is mine. Who takes 
 the second? " 
 
 This time Bos n deliberated before answering. At 
 last, however, she bent forward and touched the 
 teacher s gifts.
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " These," she said. " I like these next best." 
 
 Captain Cy was surprised. 
 
 " Sho ! " he exclaimed. " You don t say ! " 
 
 " Yes. I think I like teacher next to you. I like 
 Georgianna and Mr. Tidditt and Mr. Bangs, of 
 course, but I like her a little better. Don t you, 
 Uncle Cyrus?" 
 
 The captain changed the subject. He asked her 
 what she should name her doll. 
 
 The Board of Strategy came in during the fore 
 noon, and the presents had to be shown to them. 
 While the exhibition was in progress Miss Dawes 
 called. And before she left Gabe Lumley drove up 
 in the depot wagon bearing a big express package 
 addressed to " Miss Emily Thomas, Bayport." 
 
 "Humph!" exclaimed Captain Cy. " Somethin 
 more for Bos n, hey ! Who in the world sent it, do 
 you s pose? " 
 
 Asaph and Bailey made various inane suggestions 
 as to the sender. Phoebe said nothing. There was a 
 frown on her face as she watched the captain get to 
 work on the box with chisel and hammer. It con 
 tained a beautiful doll, fully and expensively dressed, 
 and pinned to the dress was a card " To dear little 
 Emmie, from her lonesome Papa." 
 
 The Board of Strategy looked at the doll in won 
 der and astonishment. Captain Cy strode away to 
 the window. 
 
 " Well ! " exclaimed Mr. Bangs. " I didn t believe 
 312
 
 THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS HIS AGE 
 
 he had that much heart inside of him. I bet you 
 that cost four or five dollars; ain t that so, Cy?" 
 
 The captain did not answer. 
 
 "Don t you think so, teacher?" repeated Bailey, 
 turning to Phoebe. "What ails you? You don t 
 seem surprised." 
 
 " I m not," replied the lady. " I expected some 
 thing of that sort." 
 
 Captain Cy wheeled from the window. 
 
 "You did?" he asked. 
 
 Yes. Miss Phinney said the other day she had 
 heard that that man was going to give his daughter 
 a beautiful present. She was very enthusiastic about 
 his generosity and self-sacrifice. I asked who told 
 her and she said Mr. Simpson." 
 
 " Oh ! Tad? Is that so ! " The captain looked 
 at her. 
 
 Yes. And I think there is no doubt that Simp 
 son had orders to make the generosity known to 
 as many townspeople as possible." 
 
 " Hum ! I see. You figure that Thomas cal lates 
 twill help his popularity and make his case stronger; 
 is that it? " 
 
 " Not exactly. I doubt if he ever thought of such 
 a thing himself. But some one thought for him 
 and some one must have supplied the money." 
 
 ; Well, they say he s to work up in Boston." 
 
 " I know. But no one can tell where he works. 
 Captain Whittaker, this is Mr. Atkins s doing you 
 
 3*3
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 know it. Now, why does he, a busy man, take such 
 an interest in getting this child away from you?" 
 
 Captain Cy shook his head and smiled. 
 
 " Teacher," he said, " you re dead set on taggin 
 Heman with a mystery, ain t you? " 
 
 " Miss Dawes," asked the forgetful Bailey, " when 
 you and me went drivin t other day did you find 
 out anything from " 
 
 Phoebe interrupted quickly. 
 
 " Mr. Bangs," she said, " at what time do we dis 
 tribute Christmas presents at your boarding house? 
 I suppose you must have many Christmas secrets to 
 keep. You keep a secret so well." 
 
 Mr. Bangs turned red. The hint concerning secret 
 keeping was not wasted. He did not mention the 
 drive again. 
 
 A little later Captain Cy found Bos n busily play 
 ing with the doll he had given her. The other, her 
 father s gift, was nowhere in sight. 
 
 " I put her back in the box," said the child in reply 
 to his question. " She was awful pretty, but I think 
 I m goin to love this one best." 
 
 The remark seems a foolish thing to give comfort 
 to a grown man, but Captain Cy found comfort in it, 
 and comfort was what he needed. 
 
 He needed it more as time went on. In January 
 the court gave its decision. The captain s appoint 
 ment as guardian was revoked. With the father 
 alive, and professedly anxious to provide for the
 
 THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS HIS AGE 
 
 child s support, nothing else was to be expected, so 
 Mr. Peabody said. The latter entered an appeal 
 which would delay matters for a time, two or three 
 months perhaps ; meanwhile Captain Cy was to retain 
 custody of Bos n. 
 
 But the court s action, expected though it was, 
 made the captain very blue and downcast. He could 
 see no hope. He felt certain that he should lose the 
 little girl in the end, in spite of the long succession 
 of appeals which his lawyer contemplated. And 
 what would become of her then ? What sort of train 
 ing would she be likely to have? Who would her 
 associates be, under the authority of a father such 
 as hers? And what would he do, alone in the old 
 house, when she had gone for good? He could not 
 bear to think of it, and yet he thought of little else. 
 
 The evenings, after Bos n had gone to bed, were 
 the worst. During the day he tried his best to be 
 busy at something or other. The doll house was fin 
 ished, and he had begun to fashion a full-rigged 
 ship in miniature. In reality Emily, being a normal 
 little girl, was not greatly interested in ships, but, 
 because Uncle Cy was making it, she pretended to 
 be vastly concerned about this one. On Saturdays 
 and after school hours she sat on a box in the wood 
 shed, where the captain had put up a small stove, 
 and watched him work. The taboo which so many 
 of our righteous and Atkins-worshiping townspeo 
 ple had put upon the Whittaker place and its occu- 
 
 3*5
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 pants included her, and a number of children had 
 been forbidden to play with her. This, however, 
 did not prevent their tormenting her about her father 
 and her disreputable guardian. 
 
 But the captain s evenings were miserable. He no 
 longer went to Simmons s. He didn t care for the 
 crowd there, and knew they were all " down " on 
 him. Josiah Dimick called occasionally, and the 
 Board of Strategy often, but their conversation was 
 rather tiresome. There were times when Captain 
 Cy hated Bayport, the house he had " fixed up " 
 with such interest and pride, and the cM sitting room 
 in particular. The mental picture of comfort and 
 contentment which had been his dream through so 
 many years of struggle and wandering, looked far 
 ther off than ever. Sometimes he was tempted to 
 run away, taking Bos n with him. But the captain 
 had never run away from a fight yet; he had never 
 abandoned a ship while there was a chance of keep 
 ing her afloat. And, besides, there was another 
 reason. 
 
 Phoebe Dawes had come to be his chief reliance. 
 He saw a great deal of her. Often when she walked 
 home from school, she found him hanging over the 
 front gate, and they talked of various things of 
 Bos n s progress with her studies, of the school work, 
 and similar topics. He called her by her first name 
 now, although in this there was nothing unusual 
 after a few weeks acquaintance we Bayporters al- 
 
 316
 
 THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS HIS AGE 
 
 most invariably address people by their " front " 
 names. Sometimes she came to the house with 
 Emily. Then the three sat by the stove in the sitting 
 room, and the apartment became really cheerful, in 
 the captain s eyes. 
 
 Phoebe was in good spirits. She was as hopeful as 
 Captain Cy was despondent. She seemed to have 
 little fear of the outcome of the legal proceedings, 
 the appeals and the rest. In fact, she now appeared 
 desirous of evading the subject, and there was about 
 her an air of suppressed excitement. Her optimism 
 was the best sort of bracer for the captain s failing 
 courage. Her advice was always good, and a talk 
 with her left him with shoulders squared, mentally, 
 and almost happy. 
 
 One cold, rainy afternoon, early in February, she 
 came in with Bos n, who had availed herself of the 
 shelter of the teacher s umbrella. Georgianna was 
 in the kitchen baking, and Emily had been promised 
 a " saucer pie " so the child went out to superin 
 tend the construction of that treat. 
 
 " Set down, teacher," said Captain Cy, pushing 
 forward a rocker. " My ! but I m glad to see you. 
 Twas bluer n a whetstone round here to-day. 
 What s the news anything?" 
 
 " Why, no," replied Phrebe, accepting the rocker 
 and throwing open her wet jacket; " there s no news 
 in particular. But I wanted to ask if you had 
 seen the Breeze? " 
 
 317
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Um hum," was the listless answer. " I pre 
 sume likely you mean the news about the appropria 
 tion, and the editorial dig at yours truly? Yes, I ve 
 seen it. They don t bother me much. I ve got 
 more important things on my mind just now." 
 
 Congressman Atkins s pledge in his farewell 
 speech, concerning the mighty effort he was to make 
 toward securing the appropriation for Bayport har 
 bor, was in process of fulfillment so he had written 
 to the local paper. But, alas ! the mighty effort was 
 likely to prove unavailing. In spite of the Honora 
 ble Heman s battle for his constituents rights it 
 seemed certain that the bill would not provide the 
 thirty thousand dollars for Bayport; at least, not 
 this year s bill. Other and more powerful interests 
 would win out and, instead, another section of the 
 coast be improved at the public expense. The con 
 gressman was deeply sorry, almost broken-hearted. 
 He had battled hard for his beloved town, he had 
 worked night and day. But, to be perfectly frank, 
 there was little or no hope. 
 
 Few of us blamed Heman Atkins. The majority 
 considered his letter " noble " and " so feeling." But 
 some one must be blamed for a community disap 
 pointment like this, and the scapegoat was on the 
 premises. How about that " committee of one " 
 self-appointed at town meeting? How about the bla 
 tant person who had declared he could have gotten 
 the appropriation? What had the "committee"
 
 THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS HIS AGE 
 
 done? Nothing! nothing at all! He had not even 
 written to the Capital so far as anyone could find 
 out much less gone there. 
 
 So, at Simmons s and the sewing circle, and after 
 meeting on Sunday, Cy Whittaker was again dis 
 cussed and derided. And this week s Breeze, out 
 that morning, contained a sarcastic editorial which 
 mentioned no names, but hinted at " a certain now 
 notorious person " who had boasted loudly, but who 
 had again " been weighed in the balance of public 
 opinion and found wanting." 
 
 Miss Dawes did not seem pleased with the cap 
 tain s nonchalant attitude toward the Breeze and its 
 editorial. She tapped the braided mat with her foot. 
 
 " Captain Cyrus," she said, " if you intended do 
 ing nothing toward securing that appropriation why 
 did you accept the responsibility for it at the meet 
 ing?" 
 
 Captain Cy looked up. Her tone reminded him 
 of their first meeting, when she had reproved him 
 for going to sleep and leaving Bos n to the mercy of 
 the Cahoon cow. 
 
 Well," he said, " afore this Thomas business 
 happened, to knock all my plans on their beam ends, 
 I d done consider ble thinkin about that appropria 
 tion. It seemed to me that there must be some rea 
 son for Heman s comin about so sudden. He was 
 sartin sure of the thirty thousand for a spell; then, 
 all to once, he begun to take in sail and go on t other 
 
 319
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 tack. I don t know much about politics, but I know 
 he knows all the politics there is. And it seemed to 
 me that if a live man, one with eyes in his head, 
 went to Washington and looked around he might 
 find the reason. And, if he did find it, maybe Heman 
 could be coaxed into changin his mind again. Any 
 how, I was willin to take the risk of tryin ; and, be 
 sides, Tad and Abe Leonard had me on the griddle 
 at that meetin , and I spoke up sharp too sharp, 
 maybe." 
 
 u But you still believe that you might help if you 
 went to Washington?" 
 
 " Yes. I guess I do. Anyhow, I d ask some 
 pretty p inted questions. You see, I ain t lived here 
 in Bayport all my life, and I don t swaller all the bait 
 Heman heaves overboard." 
 
 Then why don t you go ? " 
 
 "Hey? Why don t I go? And leave Bos n 
 and " 
 
 " Emily would be all right and perfectly safe. 
 Georgianna thinks the world of her. And, Captain 
 Whittaker, I don t like to hear these people talk of 
 you as they do. I don t like to read such things in 
 the paper, that you were only bragging in order to 
 be popular, and meant to shirk when the time came 
 for action. I know they re not true. I know it ! " 
 
 Captain Cy was gratified, and his gratification 
 showed in his voice. 
 
 " Thank you, Phoebe," he said. " I am much 
 320
 
 THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS HIS AGE 
 
 obliged to you. But, you see, I don t take any in 
 terest in such things any more. When I realize that 
 pretty soon I ve got to give up that little girl for 
 good I can t bear to be away from her a minute 
 hardly. I don t like to leave her here alone with 
 Georgianna and " 
 
 " I will keep an eye on her. You trust me, don t 
 you?" 
 
 Trust you? By the big dipper, you re about 
 the only one I can trust these days. I don t know 
 how I d have pulled through this if you hadn t 
 helped. You re diff rent from Ase and Bailey and 
 their kind not meanin anything against them, 
 either. But you re broad-minded and cool-headed 
 and and Do you know, if I d had a woman like 
 you to advise me all these years and keep me from 
 goin off the course, I might have been somebody by 
 now." 
 
 " I think you re somebody as it is." 
 
 Don t talk that way. I own up I like to hear 
 you, but I m fraid it ain t true. You say I amount 
 to somethin . Well, what? I come back home here, 
 with some money in my pocket, thinkin that was 
 about all was necessary to make me a good deal 
 of a feller. The old Cy Whittaker place, I said to 
 myself, was goin to be a real Cy Whittaker place 
 again. And I d be a real Whittaker, a man who 
 should stand for somethin , as my dad and grand 
 dad did afore me. The town should respect me, and 
 23 321
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 I d do things to help it along. And what s it all 
 come to? Why, every young one on the street 
 is told to be good for fear he ll grow up like me. 
 Ain t that so? Course it s so! I m 
 
 "You shall not speak so! Do you imagine that 
 you re not respected by everyone whose respect counts 
 for anything? Yes, and by others, too. Don t you 
 suppose Mr. Atkins respects you, down in his heart 
 if he has one? Doesn t your housekeeper, who sees 
 you every day, respect and like you? And little 
 Emily doesn t she love you more than she does all 
 the rest of us together? " 
 
 " Well, I guess Bos n does care for the old man 
 some, that s a fact. She says she likes you next best, 
 though. Did you know that?" 
 
 But Miss Dawes was indignant. 
 
 " Captain Whittaker," she declared, " one would 
 think you were a hundred years old to hear you. 
 You are always calling yourself an old man. Does 
 Mr. Atkins call himself old? And he is older than 
 you." 
 
 " Well, I m over fifty, Phoebe." In spite of the 
 habit for which he had just been reproached, the cap 
 tain found this a difficult statement to make. 
 
 " I know. But you re younger than most of us at 
 thirty-five. You see, I m confessing, too," she added 
 with a laugh and a little blush. 
 
 Captain Cy made a mental calculation. 
 Twenty years," he said musingly. " Twenty 
 322
 
 THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS HIS AGE 
 
 years is a long time. No, I r m old. And worse than 
 that, I m an old fool, I guess. If I hadn t been I d 
 have stayed in South America instead of comin here 
 to be hooted out of the town I was born in." 
 
 The teacher stamped her foot. 
 
 " Oh, what shall I do with you I " she exclaimed. 
 ;i It is wicked for you to say such things. Do you 
 suppose that Mr. Atkins would find it necessary to 
 work as he is doing to beat a fool? And, besides, 
 you re not complimentary to me. Should I, do you 
 think, take such an interest in one who was an im 
 becile?" 
 
 " Well, tis mighty good of you. Your comin 
 here so to help Bos n s fight along is 
 
 " How do you know it is Bos n altogether? I " 
 She stopped suddenly, and the color rushed to her 
 face. She rose from the rocker. " I really, I 
 don t see how we came to be discussing such non 
 sense," she said. " Our ages and that sort of thing! 
 Captain Cyrus, I wish you would go to Washington. 
 I think you ought to go." 
 
 But the captain s thoughts were far from Wash 
 ington at that moment. His own face was alight, 
 and his eyes shone. 
 
 " Phoebe," he faltered unbelievingly, " what was 
 you goin to say? Do you mean that that " 
 
 The side door of the house opened. The next in 
 stant Mr. Tidditt, a dripping umbrella in his hand, 
 entered the sitting room. 
 
 323
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Hello, Whit! " he hailed. " Just run in for a 
 minute to say howdy." Then he noticed the school 
 mistress, and his expression changed. " Oh ! how 
 be you, Miss Dawes?" he said. " I didn t see you 
 fust off. Don t run away on my account. * 
 
 " I was just going," said Phoebe, buttoning her 
 jacket. Captain Cy accompanied her to the door. 
 
 " Good-by," she said. " There was something 
 else I meant to say, but I think it is best to wait. I 
 hope to have some good news for you soon. Some 
 thing that will send you to Washington with a light 
 heart. Perhaps I shall hear to-morrow. If so, I will 
 call after school and tell you." 
 
 " Yes, do," urged the captain eagerly. " You ll 
 find me here waitin . Good news or not, do come. 
 I I ain t said all I wanted to, myself." 
 
 He returned to the sitting room. The town clerk 
 was standing by the stove. He looked troubled. 
 
 "What s the row, Ase?" asked Cy cheerily. 
 He was overflowing with good nature. 
 
 " Oh, nothin special," replied Mr. Tidditt. " You 
 look joyful enough for two of us. Had good com 
 pany, ain t you? " 
 
 "Why, yes; bout as good as there is. What 
 makes you look so glum ? " 
 
 Asaph hesitated. 
 
 "Phoebe was here yesterday, too, wan t she?" 
 he asked. 
 
 "Yup. What of it?" 
 
 3 2 4
 
 THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS HIS AGE 
 
 "And the day afore that?" 
 
 " No, not for three days afore that. But what 
 of it, I ask you ? " 
 
 " Well, now, Cy, you mustn t get mad. I m a 
 friend of yours, and friends ought to be able to say 
 most anything to each other. If if I was you, I 
 wouldn t let Phoebe come so often not here, you 
 know, at your house. Course, I know she comes with 
 Bos n and all, but " 
 
 " Out with it! " The captain s tone was ominous. 
 " What are you drivin at? " 
 
 The caller fidgeted. 
 
 "Well, Whit," he stammered, "there s consid- 
 er ble talkin goin on, that s all." 
 
 " Talkin ? What kind of talkin ? " 
 
 ; Well, you know the kind. This town does a 
 good deal of it, specially after church and prayer 
 meetin . Seem s if they thought twas a sort of 
 proper place: / don t myself; I kind of like to keep 
 my charity and brotherly love spread out through the 
 week, but 
 
 " Ase, are the folks in this town sayin a word 
 against Phoebe Dawes because she comes here to 
 see Bos n?" 
 
 " Don t don t get mad, Whit, 
 me like that. / ain t said nothin . 
 ago, at the boardin house, I " 
 
 He told of the meal at the perfect boarding 
 house where Miss Dawes championed his friend s 
 
 325
 
 " Don t don t get mad, Whit. I ain t said nothin . 
 
 cause. Also of the conversation which followed, 
 and his own part in it. Captain Cy paced the floor. 
 " I wouldn t have her come so often, Cy," pleaded 
 326
 
 THE CAPTAIN REMEMBERS HIS AGE 
 
 Asaph. " Honest, I wouldn t. Course, you and me 
 know they re mean, miser ble liars, but it s her I m 
 thinkin of. She s a young woman and single. And 
 you re a good many years older n she is. And so, 
 of course, you and she ain t ever goin to get mar 
 ried. And have you thought what effect it might 
 have on her keepin her teacher s place? The com 
 mittee s a majority against her as tis. And you 
 know / don t think so, but a good many folks do 
 you ain t got the best name just now. Darn it all! 
 I ain t puttin this the way I d ought to, but you know 
 what I mean, don t you, Cy? " 
 
 Captain Cy was leaning against the window frame, 
 his head upon his arm. He was not looking out, 
 because the shade was drawn. Tidditt waited anxious 
 ly for him to answer. At last he turned. 
 
 " Ase," he said, " I m much obliged to you. You ve 
 pounded it in pretty hard, but I cal late I d ought 
 to have had it done to me. I m a fool an old 
 fool, just as I said a while back and nothin nor 
 nobody ought to have made me forget it. For a 
 minute or so I but there ! don t you fret. That 
 young woman shan t risk her job nor her reputation 
 on account of me nor of Bos n, either. I ll see to 
 that. And see here," he added fiercely, " I can t stop 
 women s tongues, even when they re as bad as some 
 of the tongues in this town, but if you hear a man 
 say one word against Phoebe Dawes, only one word, 
 you tell me his name. You hear, Ase? You tell me 
 
 327
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 his name. Now run along, will you? I ain t safe 
 company just now." 
 
 Asaph, frightened at the effect of his words, hur 
 riedly departed. Captain Cy paced the room for the 
 next fifteen minutes. Then he opened the kitchen door. 
 
 " Bos n," he called, " come in and set in my lap 
 a while; don t you want to? I m I m sort of 
 lonesome, little girl." 
 
 The next afternoon, when the schoolmistress, who 
 had been delayed by the inevitable examination 
 papers, stopped at the Cy Whittaker place, she was 
 met by Georgianna; Emily, who stood behind the 
 housekeeper in the doorway, was crying. 
 
 " Cap n Cy has gone away to Washin ton," de 
 clared Georgianna. " Though what he s gone there 
 for s more n I know. He said he d send his hotel 
 address soon s he got there. He went on the three 
 o clock train." 
 
 Phoebe was astonished. 
 
 "Gone?" she repeated. "So soon! Why, he told me 
 he should certainly be here to hear some news I ex 
 pected to-day. Didn t he leave any message for me? " 
 
 The housekeeper turned red. 
 
 " Miss Phoebe," she said, " he told me to tell you 
 somethin , and it s so dreadful I don t hardly dast 
 to say it. I think his troubles have driven him crazy. 
 He said to tell you that you d better not come to this 
 house any more." 
 
 328
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 CONGRESSMAN EVERDEAN 
 
 IN the old days, the great days of sailing ships 
 and merchant fleets, Bayport was a community 
 of travelers. Every ambitious man went to 
 sea, and eventually, if he lived, became a captain. 
 Then he took his wife, and in most cases his chil 
 dren, with him on long voyages. To the stay-at- 
 homes came letters with odd, foreign stamps and 
 postmarks. Our what-nots and parlor mantels were 
 filled with carved bits of ivory, gorgeous shells, ala- 
 oaster candlesticks, and plaster miniatures of the 
 Leaning Tower at Pisa or the Coliseum at Rome. 
 We usually began a conversation with " When my 
 husband and I were at Hong Kong the last time " 
 or " I remember at Mauritius they always " New 
 Orleans or Frisco were the nearest domestic ports 
 the mention of which was considered worth while. 
 
 But this is so no longer. A trip to Boston is, 
 of course, no novelty to the most of us; but when we 
 visit New York we take care to advertise it before 
 hand. And the few who avail themselves of the 
 spring " cut rates " and go on excursions to Wash- 
 
 329
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 ington, plan definite programmes for each day at 
 the Capital, and discuss them with envious friends 
 for weeks in advance. And if the prearranged 
 programme is not scrupulously carried out, we feel 
 that we have been defrauded. It was the regret of 
 Aunt Sophronia Hallett s life that, on her Washing 
 ton excursion, she had not seen the " Diplomatic 
 Corpse." She saw the President and the Monument 
 and Congress and " the relics in the Smithsonian In 
 stitute," but the " Corpse" was not on view; Aunt 
 Sophronia never quite got over the disappointment. 
 Probably no other Bayporter, in recent years, has 
 started for Washington on such short notice or with 
 so ill-defined a programme as Captain Cy. He went 
 because he felt that he must go somewhere. After 
 the conversation with Asaph, he simply could not 
 remain at home. If Phoebe Dawes called, he knew 
 that he must see her, and if he saw her, what should 
 he say to her? He could not tell her that she must 
 not visit the Cy Whittaker place again. If he did, 
 she would insist upon the reason. If he told her 
 of the " town talk," he felt sure, knowing her, that 
 she would indignantly refuse to heed the malicious 
 gossip. And he was firmly resolved not to permit 
 her to compromise her life and her future by friend 
 ship with a social outcast like himself. As for any 
 thing deeper and more sacred than friendship, that 
 was ridiculous. If, for a moment, a remark of 
 hers had led him to dream of such a thing, it was 
 
 330
 
 CONGRESSMAN EVERDEAN 
 
 because he was, as he had so often declared, an 
 " old fool." 
 
 So Captain Cy had resolved upon flight, and he 
 fled to Washington because the business of the " com 
 mittee of one " offered a legitimate excuse for going 
 there. The blunt message he had intrusted to Georgi- 
 anna would, he believed, arouse Phoebe s indignation. 
 She would not call again. And when he returned to 
 Bos n, it would be to take up the child s fight alone. 
 If he lost that fight, or when he lost it, he would close 
 the Cy Whittaker place, and leave Bayport for good. 
 
 He had been in Washington once before, years 
 ago, when he was first mate of a ship and had a few 
 weeks shore leave. Then he went there on a pleas 
 ure trip with some seagoing friends, and had a jolly 
 time. But there was precious little jollity in the pres 
 ent visit. He had never felt so thoroughly misera 
 ble. In order to forget, he made up his mind to 
 work his hardest to discover why the harbor appro 
 priation was not to be given to Bayport. 
 
 The city had changed greatly. He would scarcely 
 have known it. He went to the hotel where he had 
 stayed before, and found a big, modern building in its 
 place. The clerk was inclined to be rather curt and 
 perfunctory at first, but when he learned that the 
 captain was not anxious concerning the price of ac 
 commodations, but merely wanted a * comf table 
 berth somewheres on the saloon deck," and appeared 
 to have plenty of money, he grew polite. Captain 
 
 331
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Cy was shown to his room, where he left his valise. 
 Then he went down to dinner. 
 
 After the meal was over, he seated himself in one 
 of the big leather chairs in the hotel lobby, smoked 
 and thought. In the summer, before Bos n came, 
 and before her father had arisen to upset every calcu 
 lation and wreck all his plans, the captain had given 
 serious thought to what he should do if Congressman 
 Atkins failed, as even then he seemed likely to do, in 
 securing that appropriation. The obvious thing, of 
 course, would have been to hunt up Mr. Atkins and 
 question him. But this was altogether too obvious. 
 In the first place, the strained relations between them 
 w r ould make the interview uncomfortable; and, in 
 the second, if there was anything underhand in He- 
 man s backsliding on the appropriation, Atkins was 
 too wary a bird to be snared with questions. 
 
 But Captain Cy had another acquaintance in the 
 city, the son of a still older acquaintance, who had 
 been a wealthy shipping merchant and mine owner 
 in California. The son was also a congressman, from 
 a coast State, and the captain had read of him in the 
 papers. A sketch of his life had been printed, and 
 this made his identity absolutely certain. Captain 
 Cy s original idea had been to write to this congress 
 man. Now he determined to find and interview him. 
 
 He inquired concerning him of the hotel clerk, 
 who, like all Washington clerks, was a walking edi 
 tion of " Who s Who at the Capital." 
 
 332
 
 CONGRESSMAN EVERDEAN 
 
 " Congressman Everdean? " repeated the all-know* 
 ing young gentleman. " Yes. He s in town. Has 
 rooms at the Gloria; second hotel on the right as 
 you go up the avenue. Only a short walk. What 
 can I do for you, sir? " 
 
 The Gloria was an even bigger hotel than the one 
 where the captain had his " berth." An inquiry at 
 the desk, of another important clerk, was answered 
 with a brisk: 
 
 " Mr. Everdean? Yes, he rooms here. Don t 
 know whether he s in or not. Evening, judge. Nice 
 winter weather we re having." 
 
 The judge, who was a ponderous person vaguely 
 suggesting the great Heman, admitted that the weath 
 er was fine, patronizing it as he did so. The clerk 
 continued the conversation. Captain Cy waited. At 
 length he spoke. 
 
 " Excuse me, commodore," he said; " I don t like 
 to break in until you ve settled whether you have it 
 snow or not, but I m here to see Congressman Ever 
 dean. Hadn t you better order one of your fo mast 
 hands to hunt him up? " 
 
 The judge condescended to smile, as did sev 
 eral other men who stood near. The clerk red 
 dened. 
 
 " Do you want to see Mr. Everdean? " he snapped. 
 Why, yes, I did. But I can t see him from here 
 without strainin my eyesight." 
 
 The clerk sharply demanded one of the captain s 
 333
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 visiting cards. He didn t get one, for the very good 
 reason that there was none in existence. 
 
 u Tell him an old friend of his dad s is here on 
 the main deck waitin for him," said Captain Cy. 
 " That ll do first rate. Thank you, admiral." 
 
 Word came that the congressman would be down 
 in a few moments. The captain beguiled the inter 
 val by leaning on the rail and regarding the clerk 
 with an awed curiosity that annoyed its object ex 
 ceedingly. The inspection was still on when a tall 
 man, of an age somewhere in the early thirties, 
 walked briskly up to the desk. 
 
 " Who is it that wants to see me? " he asked. 
 
 The clerk waved a deprecatory hand in Captain 
 Cy s direction. The newcomer turned. 
 
 " My name is Everdean," he said. " Are you 
 hey? Great Scott! Is it possible this is Captain 
 Whittaker?" 
 
 The captain was immensely pleased. 
 
 " Well, I declare, Ed! " he exclaimed. " I didn t 
 believe you d remember me after all these years. 
 You was nothin but a boy when I saw you out in 
 Frisco. Well! well! No wonder you re in Con 
 gress. A man that can remember faces like that 
 ought to be President." 
 
 Everdean laughed as they shook hands. 
 
 " Don t suppose I d forget the chap who used to 
 dine with us and tell me those sea stories, do you? " 
 he said. " I m mighty glad to see you. What are 
 
 334
 
 CONGRESSMAN EVERDEAN 
 
 you doing here? The last father and I heard of you, 
 you were in South America. Given up the sea, they 
 said, and getting rich fast." 
 
 Captain Cy chuckled. 
 
 " It s a good thing I learned long ago not to be 
 lieve all I hear," he answered, " else I d have been 
 so sure I was rich that I d have spent all I had, and 
 been permanent boarder at the poorhouse by now. 
 No, thanks; I ve had dinner. Why, yes, I ll smoke, 
 if you ll help along. How s your father? Smart, 
 is he?" 
 
 The congressman insisted that they should adjourn 
 to his rooms. An unmarried man, he kept bachelor s 
 hall at the hotel during his stay in Washington. 
 There, in comfortable chairs, they spoke of old times, 
 when the captain was seafaring and the Everdean 
 home had been his while his ship was in port at 
 Frisco. He told of his return to Bayport, and the 
 renovation of the old house. Of Bos n he said 
 nothing. At last Everdean asked what had brought 
 him to Washington. 
 
 " Well," said Captain Cy, " I ll tell you. I m 
 like the feller in court without a lawyer; he said 
 he couldn t tell whether he was guilty or not count 
 of havin no professional advice. That s what I ve 
 come to you for, Ed professional advice." 
 
 He told the harbor appropriation story. At 
 the incident of the " committee of one " his friend 
 laughed heartily. 
 
 335
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 14 Rather put your foot in it that time, Captain, 
 didn t you? " he said. 
 
 4 Yup. Then I got t other one stuck tryin to get 
 the first clear. How s it look to you? All straight, 
 do you think? or is there a nigger in the wood pile? " 
 
 Mr. Everdean seemed to reflect. 
 
 " Well, Captain," he said, 44 I can t tell. You re 
 asking delicate questions. Politicians are like doc 
 tors, they usually back up each other s opinions. 
 Still, you re at least as good a friend of mine as 
 Atkins is. Queer he should bob up in this matter! 
 Why, he but never mind that now. I tell you, Cap 
 tain Whittaker, you come around and have dinner 
 with me to-morrow night. In the meantime I ll see 
 the chairman of the committee on that bill one of 
 the so-called pork bills it is. Possibly from him 
 and some other acquaintances of mine I may learn 
 something. At any rate, you come to dinner." 
 
 So the invitation was accepted, and Captain Cy 
 went back to his own hotel and his room. He slept 
 but little, although it was not worry over the appro 
 priation question which kept him awake. Next 
 morning he wrote a note to Georgianna, giving his 
 Washington address. With it he enclosed a long 
 letter to Bos n, telling her he should be home pretty 
 soon, and that she must be a good girl and 44 boss the 
 ship " during his absence. He sent his regards to 
 Asaph and Bailey, but Phoebe s name he did not 
 mention. Then he put in a miserable day wandering 
 
 336
 
 CONGRESSMAN EVERDEAN 
 
 about the city. At eight that evening he and his 
 Western friend sat down at a corner table in the 
 big dining room of the Gloria. 
 
 The captain began to ask questions as soon as the 
 soup was served, but Everdean refused to answer. 
 
 " No, no," he said, " pleasure first and business 
 afterwards; that s a congressional motto. I can t 
 talk Atkins with my dinner and enjoy it." 
 
 " Can t, hey? You wouldn t be popular at our per 
 fect boarding house back home. There they serve 
 Heman hot for breakfast and dinner, and warm him 
 over for supper. All right, I can wait." 
 
 The conversation wandered from Buenos Ayres 
 to Frisco and back again until the cigars and coffee 
 were reached. Then the congressman blew a fragrant 
 ring into the air and, from behind it, looked quiz 
 zically at his companion. 
 
 Well," he observed, " so far as that appropria 
 tion of yours is concerned " 
 
 He paused and blew a second ring. Captain Cy 
 stroked his beard. 
 
 " Um yes," he drawled, " now that you mention 
 it, seems to me there was some talk of an appropria 
 tion." 
 
 Mr. Everdean laughed. 
 
 " I ve been making inquiries," he said. " I saw 
 the chairman of the committee on the pork bill. I 
 
 know him well. He s a good fellow, but " 
 
 Yes, I know. I ve seen lots of politicians like 
 24 337
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 that; they re all good fellers, but If I was in poli 
 tics I d make a law to cut But out of the diction 
 ary." 
 
 " Well, this chap really is a good fellow. I asked 
 about the thirty thousand dollars for your town. He 
 asked me why I didn t go to the congressman from 
 that district, and not bother him about it. I said 
 perhaps I would go to the congressman later, but I 
 came to him first." 
 
 " Sartin. Same as the feller with a sick mother-in- 
 law stopped in at the undertaker s on his way to 
 call the doctor. All right; heave ahead." 
 
 Well, we had a rather long conversation. I dis 
 covered that the Bayport item was originally in 
 cluded in the bill, but recently had been stricken out." 
 
 Yes, I see. Uncle Sam had to economize, hey? 
 Save somethin for a rainy day." 
 
 " Well, possibly. Still the bill is just as heavy. 
 Now, Captain Whittaker, I don t know anything 
 about this affair, and it s not my business. But I ve 
 been about to-day, and I asked questions, and I m 
 going to tell you a fairy tale. It isn t as interesting 
 as your sea yarns, but Do you like fairy stories? " 
 
 " Land, yes ! Tell a few myself when it s neces 
 sary. Sometimes I almost believe em. Well?" 
 
 " Of course, you must remember this is a fairy 
 story. Let s suppose that once on a time that s the 
 way they always begin once on a time there was a 
 great man, great in his own country, who was sent 
 
 338
 
 CONGRESSMAN EVERDEAN 
 
 abroad by his people to represent them among the 
 rulers of the land. So, in order to typically repre 
 sent them, he dressed in glad and expensive raiment, 
 went about in dignity, and " 
 
 " And whiskers. Don t leave out the whiskers ! " 
 
 " All right and whiskers. And it came to pass 
 that the people whom he represented wished to to 
 er bring about a certain needed improvement in 
 their their beautiful and enterprising community." 
 
 " Sho ! sho ! how natural that sounds ! You must 
 be a mind reader." 
 
 " No. But I have to make speeches in my own 
 community occasionally. Well, the people asked 
 their great man to get the money needed for this im 
 provement from the rulers of the land aforemen 
 tioned. And he was at first all enthusiasm and upon 
 the the parchment scroll where such matters are 
 inscribed was written the name of the beautiful and 
 enterprising community, and the sum of money it 
 asked for. And the deal was as good as made. Ex 
 cuse the modern phraseology; my fairy lingo got 
 mixed there." 
 
 " Never mincL I can get the drift just as well 
 maybe better." 
 
 " And the deal was as good as made. But before 
 the vote was taken another chap came to the great 
 man and said : Look here I I want to get an appro 
 priation of, say, fifty thousand dollars, to deepen and 
 improve a river down in my State a Southern 
 
 339
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 State we ll say. * I ve been to the chairman of the 
 pork bill committee, and he says it s impossible. The 
 bill simply can t be loaded any further. But I find that 
 you have an item in there for deepening and improv 
 ing a harbor back in your own district. Why don t 
 you cut that item out shove it over until next year? 
 You can easily find a satisfactory explanation for 
 your constituents. And you want to remember this : 
 the improvement of this river means that the the 
 well, a certain sugar-growing company can get their 
 stuff to market at a figure which will send its stock up 
 and up. And you are said to own a considerable 
 amount of that stock. So why not drop the harbor 
 item and substitute my river slice? Then Well, 
 I guess that s the end of the tale." 
 
 He paused and relit his cigar. Captain Cy 
 thoughtfully marked with his fork on the table 
 cloth. 
 
 " Hum ! " he grunted. " That s a very interestin 
 yarn. Yes, yes! don t know s I ever heard a more 
 interestin one. I presume likely there ain t a mite 
 of proof that it s true? " 
 
 " Not an atom. I told you it was a fairy tale. 
 And I mustn t be quoted in the matter. Honestly, 
 the most of it is guess work, at that. But perhaps 
 a committee of one, dropping a hint at home, 
 might at least arouse some uncomfortable question 
 ing of a certain great man. That s about all, though. 
 Proof is quite another thing." 
 
 340
 
 CONGRESSMAN EVERDEAN 
 
 The captain pondered. He was fully aware that 
 the unpopularity of the " committee " would nullify 
 whatever good its hinting might do. 
 
 " Humph ! " he grunted again. " It s one thing to 
 smell a rat and another to nail its tail to the floor. 
 But I m mighty obliged to you, all the same. And 
 I ll think it over hard. Say! I can see one thing 
 you don t take a very big shine to Heman your 
 self." 
 
 "Not too big no. Do you?" 
 
 " Well, I don t wake up nights and cry for him." 
 
 Everdean laughed. 
 
 " That s characteristic," he said. " You have 
 your own way of putting things, Captain, and it s 
 hard to be improved on. Atkins has never done 
 anything to me. I just I just don t like him, that s 
 all. Father never liked him, either, in the old days; 
 and yet and it s odd, too he was the means of the 
 old gentleman s making the most of his money." 
 
 "He? Who? Not Heman?" 
 
 " Yes, Heman Atkins. But, so far as that goes, 
 father started him toward wealth, I suppose. At 
 least, he was poor enough before the mine was sold." 
 
 ; What are you talkin about? Heman got his 
 start tradin over in the South Seas. Sellin the 
 Kanakas glass beads and calico for pearls and copra 
 two cupfuls of pearls for every bead. Anyhow, 
 that s the way the yarn goes." 
 
 " I can t help that. He was just a common sailor 
 
 341
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 who had run away from his ship and was gold min 
 ing in California. And when he and his partner 
 struck it rich father borrowed money, headed a com 
 pany, and bought them out. That mine was the 
 Excelsior, and it s just as productive to-day as it 
 ever was. I rather think Atkins must be very sorry 
 he sold. I suppose, by right, I should be very grate 
 ful to your distinguished representative." 
 
 " Well, I do declare ! Sho, sho ! Ain t that funny 
 now? He s never said a word about it at home. 
 I don t believe there s a soul in Bayport knows that. 
 We all thought twas South Sea tradin that boosted 
 Heman. And your own dad! I declare, this is a 
 small world ! " 
 
 " It s odd father never told you about it. It s 
 one of the old gentleman s pet stories. He came 
 West in 1850, and was running a little shipping 
 store in Frisco. He met Atkins and the other young 
 sailor, his partner, before they left their ship. They 
 were in the store, buying various things, and father 
 got to know them pretty well. Then they ran away 
 to the diggings you simply couldn t keep a crew 
 in those times and he didn t see them again for a 
 good while. Then they came in one day and showed 
 him specimens from a claim they had back in the 
 mountains. They were mighty good specimens, and 
 what they said about the claim convinced father that 
 they had a valuable property. So he went to see 
 a few well-to-do friends of his, and the outcome was 
 
 342
 
 CONGRESSMAN EVERDEAN 
 
 that a party was made up to go and inspect. The 
 young fellows were willing to sell out, for it was a 
 quartz working and they hadn t the money to carry 
 it on. 
 
 " The inspection showed that the claim was likely 
 to be even better than they thought, so, after some 
 bargaining, the deal was completed. They sold out 
 for seventy-five thousand dollars, and it was the best 
 trade father ever made. He s so proud of his judg 
 ment and foresight in making it that I wonder he 
 never told you the story." 
 
 " He never did. When was this? " 
 
 "In 54. What?" 
 
 " I didn t speak. The date seemed kind of fa 
 miliar to me, that s all. Seem s as if I heard it 
 recent, but I can t remember when. Seventy-five 
 thousand, hey? Well, that wan t so bad, was it? 
 With that for a nest egg, no wonder Heman s 
 managed to hatch a pretty respectable brood of 
 dollars." 
 
 " Oh, the whole seventy-five wasn t his, of 
 course. Half belonged to his partner. But the 
 poor devil didn t live to enjoy it. After the articles 
 were signed and before the money was paid over, he 
 was taken sick with a fever and died." 
 
 " Hey? He died? With a f evert" 
 
 Yes. But he left a pretty good legacy to his 
 heirs, didn t he. For a common sailor or second 
 mate; I believe that s what he was thirty-seven 
 
 343
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 thousand five hundred is doing well. It must have 
 come as a big surprise to them. The whole sum was 
 paid to Atkins, who What s the matter with 
 you?" 
 
 Captain Cy was leaning back in his chair. He was 
 as white as the tablecloth. 
 
 "Are you ill?" asked the congressman anxiously. 
 " Take some water. Shall I call " 
 
 The captain waved his hand. 
 
 " No, no ! " he stammered. " No ! I m all right. 
 Do you for the Lord s sake tell me this! What 
 was the name of this partner that died? " 
 
 Mr. Everdean looked curiously at his friend be 
 fore he answered. 
 
 "Sure you re not sick?" he asked. "Well, all 
 right. The partner s name? Why, I ve heard it 
 often enough. It s on the deed of sale that father 
 has framed in his room at home. The old gentleman 
 is as proud of that as anything in the house. The 
 name was was " 
 
 " For God sakes," cried Captain Cy, " don t say 
 twas John Thayer! Cause if you do I shan t be 
 lieve it." 
 
 " That s what it was John Thayer. How did 
 you guess? Did you know him? I remember now 
 that he was another Down Easter, like Atkins." 
 
 The captain did not answer. He clasped his 
 forehead with both hands and leaned his elbows on 
 the table. Everdean was plainly alarmed. 
 
 344
 
 " Set still! he ordered. Set still, I tell you! "
 
 CONGRESSMAN EVERDEAN 
 
 " I m going to call a doctor," he began, rising. 
 But Captain Cy waved him back again. 
 
 " Set still! " he ordered. " Set still, I tell you! 
 You say the whole seventy-five thousand was paid to 
 Heman, but that John Thayer signed the bill of sale 
 afore he died, as half partner? And your dad s got 
 the original deed and and he remembers the 
 whole business? " 
 
 " Yes, he s got the deed framed. It s on record, 
 too, of course. Remembers? I should say he did! 
 He ll talk for a week on that subject, if you give him 
 a chance." 
 
 The captain sprang to his feet. His chair tipped 
 backward and fell to the floor. An obsequious waiter 
 ran to right it, but Captain Cy paid no attention to 
 him. 
 
 "Where s my coat?" he demanded. "Where s 
 my coat and hat ? " 
 
 "What ails you?" asked Everdean. "Are you 
 going crazy?" 
 
 " Coin crazy? No, no! I m goin to California. 
 When s the next train? "
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT 
 
 THE Honorable Heman Atkins sat in the li 
 brary of his (Washington home, before a 
 snapping log fire, reading a letter. Mr. At 
 kins had, as he would have expressed it, " served his 
 people " in Congress for so many years that he had 
 long since passed the hotel stage of living at the 
 Capital. He rented a furnished house on an emi 
 nently respectable street, and the polished doorplate 
 bore his name in uncompromising characters. 
 
 The library furniture was solid and dignified. Its 
 businesslike appearance impressed the stray excursion 
 ist from the Atkins district, when he or she visited 
 the great man in whose affairs we felt such a per 
 sonal interest. Particularly impressive and signifi 
 cant was a map of the district hanging over the con 
 gressman s desk, and an oil painting of the Atkins 
 mansion at Bayport, which, with the iron dogs and 
 urns conspicuous in its foreground, occupied the mid 
 dle of the largest wall space. 
 
 The cheery fire was very comforting on a night 
 like this, for the sleet was driving against the win- 
 
 346
 
 THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT 
 
 dowpanes, the sidewalks were ankle deep in slush, 
 and the wet, cold wind from the Potomac was whis 
 tling down the street. Somewhere about the house 
 an unfastened shutter slammed in the gusts. Mr. 
 Atkins should have been extremely comfortable as 
 he sat there by the fire. He had spent many com 
 fortable winters in that room. But now there was a 
 frown on his face as he read the letter in his hand. 
 It was from Simpson, and stated, among other things, 
 that Cyrus Whittaker had been absent from Bayport 
 for over two weeks, and that no one seemed to know 
 where he had gone. " The idea seems to be that 
 he started for Washington," wrote Tad; "but if 
 that is so, it is queer you haven t seen him. I am 
 suspicious that he is up to something about that 
 harbor business. I should keep my eye peeled if I 
 was you." 
 
 Alicia, the Atkins hopeful, rustled into the room. 
 
 " Papa," she said, " I ve come to kiss you good 
 night." 
 
 Her father performed the ceremony in a per 
 functory way. 
 
 " All right, all right," he said. " Now run along 
 to bed and don t bother me, there s a good girl. I 
 wish," he added testily to the housekeeper who had 
 followed Alicia into the room, " I wish you d see 
 to that loose blind. It makes me nervous. Such 
 things as that should be attended to without specific 
 orders from me." 
 
 347
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 The housekeeper promised to attend to the blind. 
 She and the girl left the library. Heman reread the 
 Simpson letter. Then he dropped it in his lap and 
 sat thinking and twirling his eyeglasses at the end 
 of their black cord. His thoughts seemed to be not 
 of the pleasantest. The lines about his mouth had 
 deepened during the last few months. He looked 
 older. 
 
 The telephone bell rang sharply. Mr. Atkins 
 came out of his reverie with a start, arose and walked 
 across the room to the wall where the instrument 
 hung. It was before the days of the convenient 
 desk phone. He took the receiver from its hook and 
 spoke into the transmitter. 
 
 "Hello!" he said. "Hello! Yes, yes! stop 
 ringing. What is it? " 
 
 The wire buzzed and purred in the storm. 
 " Hello ! " said a voice. " Hello, there ! Is this Mr. 
 Atkins s house?" 
 
 " Yes ; it is. What do you want ? " 
 
 " Hey? Is this where the Honorable Heman At 
 kins lives? " 
 
 " Yes, yes, I tell you 1 This is Mr. Atkins speak 
 ing. What do you want? " 
 
 " Oh ! is that you, Heman ? This is Whittaker 
 Cy Whittaker. Understand?" 
 
 Mr. Atkins understood. Yet for an instant he 
 did not reply. He had been thinking, as he sat by 
 the fire, of certain persons and certain ugly, though 
 
 348
 
 THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT 
 
 remote, possibilities. Now, from a mysterious 
 somewhere, one of those persons was speaking to 
 him. The hand holding the receiver shook mo 
 mentarily. 
 
 "Hello! I say, Heman, do you understand? 
 This is Whittaker talkin ." 
 
 " I er understand," said the congressman, slow 
 ly. "Well, sir?" 
 
 " I m here in Washin ton." 
 
 " I have been informed that you were in the city. 
 Well, sir?" 
 
 "Oh! knew I was here, did you? Is that so? 
 Who told you? Tad wrote, I suppose, hey? " 
 
 The congressman did not reply immediately. This 
 man, whom he disliked more than anyone else in the 
 world, had an irritating faculty of putting his 
 finger on the truth. And the flippancy in the tone 
 was maddening. Mr. Atkins was not used to flip 
 pancy. 
 
 " I believe I am not called upon to disclose my 
 source of information," he said with chilling dignity. 
 " It appears to have been trustworthy. I presume 
 you have phoned me concerning the appropriation 
 matter. I do not recognize your right to intrude 
 in that affair, and I shall decline to discuss it. Yes, 
 sir. To my people, to those who have a right to 
 question, I am and shall always be willing to explain 
 my position. Good night." 
 
 "Wait! Hello! Hold on a minute. Don t get 
 
 349
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 mad, Heman. I only wanted to say just a word. 
 You ll let me say a word, won t you? " 
 
 This was more like it. This was more nearly the 
 tone in which Mr. Atkins was wont to be addressed. 
 It was possible that the man, recognizing the use- 
 lessness of further opposition, desired to surrender. 
 
 " I cannot," declared the Honorable, " understand 
 why you should wish to speak with me. We have 
 very little in common, very little, I m thankful to say. 
 However, I will hear you briefly. Go on." 
 
 " Much obliged. Well, Heman, I only wanted 
 to say that I thought maybe you d better have a little 
 talk with me. I m here at the hotel, the Regent. 
 You know where tis, I presume likely. I guess you d 
 better come right down and see me." 
 
 Heman gasped, actually gasped, with astonish 
 ment. 
 
 " / had better come and see you ? I ! Well, sir ! 
 I am not accustomed - " 
 
 " I know, but I think you d better. It s dirty 
 weather, and I ve got cold somehow or other. I ain t 
 feelin quite up to the mark, so I cal late I ll stay in 
 port much as I can. You come right down. I ll be 
 in my room, and the hotel folks 11 tell you where tis. 
 I ll be waitin for you." 
 
 Mr. Atkins breathed hard. In his present frame 
 of mind he would have liked to deliver a blast into 
 that transmitter which would cause the person at the 
 other end of the line to shrivel under its heat. But 
 
 350
 
 THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT 
 
 he was a politician of long training, and he knew 
 that such blasts were sometimes expensive treats. It 
 might be well to hear what his enemy had to say. 
 But as to going to see him that was out of the 
 question. 
 
 " I do not," he thundered, " I do not care to con 
 tinue this conversation. If if you wish to see me, 
 after what has taken place between us, I am willing, 
 in spite of personal repugnance, to grant you a brief 
 interview. My servants will admit you here at nine 
 o clock to-morrow morning. But I tell you now, 
 that your interference with this appropriation matter 
 is as useless as it is ridiculous and impudent. It is 
 of a piece with the rest of your conduct." 
 
 " All right, Heman, all right," was the calm an 
 swer. u I don t say you ve got to come. I only say 
 I guess you d better. I m goin back to Bayport to- 
 morrer, early. And if I was you I d come and see 
 me to-night." 
 
 " I have no wish to see you. Nor do I care to 
 talk with you further. That appropriation " 
 
 " Maybe it ain t all appropriation." 
 
 Then I cannot understand " 
 
 " I know, but / understand. I ve come to under 
 stand consider ble many things in the last fortni t. 
 There ! I can t holler into this machine any longer. 
 I ve been clear out to Frisco and back in eleven 
 
 days, and I got cold in those blessed sleepin cars. 
 j 
 
 25 351
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 The receiver fell from the congressman s hand. It 
 was a difficult object to pick up again. Heman 
 groped for it in a blind, strangely inadequate way. 
 Yet he wished to recover it very much. 
 
 " Wait ! wait I " he shouted anxiously. " I I I 
 dropped the Are you there, Whittaker? Are 
 you Oh! yes! I didn t Did you say er 
 Frisco?" 
 
 " Yes, San Francisco, California. I ve been West 
 on a little cruise. Had an interestin time. It s an 
 interestin place; don t you think so? Well, I m 
 sorry you can t come. Good night." 
 
 " Wait ! " faltered the great man. " I I let 
 me think, Cyrus. I do not wish to seem er arro 
 gant in this matter. It is not usual for me to visit 
 my constituents, but but I have no engagement 
 this evening, and you are not well, and Hello! 
 are you there? Hello! Why, under the circum 
 stances, I think Yes, I will come. I ll come er 
 at once." 
 
 The telephone enables one to procure a cab in 
 a short time. Yet, to Heman Atkins, that cab was 
 years in coming. He paced the library floor, his 
 hand to his forehead and his brain whirling. It 
 couldn t be ! It must be a coincidence ! He had 
 been an idiot to display his agitation and surrender 
 so weakly. And yet and yet 
 
 The ride through the storm to the Regent Hotel 
 gave him opportunity for more thought. But he 
 
 352
 
 "The receiver fell from the congressman s hand."
 
 THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT 
 
 gained little comfort from thinking. If it was a 
 coincidence, well and good. If not 
 
 A bell boy conducted him to the Whittaker room 
 " on the saloon deck." It was a small room, very 
 different from the Atkins library, and Captain Cy, 
 in a cane-seated chair, was huddled close to the steam 
 radiator. He looked far from well. 
 
 " Evenin , Heman," he said as the congressman 
 entered. " Pretty dirty night, ain t it? What we d 
 call a gray no theaster back home. Sit down. Don t 
 mind my not gettin up. This heatin arrangement 
 feels mighty comf table just now. If I get too far 
 away from it I shiver my deck planks loose. Take 
 off your things." 
 
 Mr. Atkins did not remove his overcoat. His 
 hat he tossed on the bed. He glanced fearfully at 
 his companion. The latter s greeting had been so 
 casual and everyday that he took courage. And the 
 captain looked anything but formidable as he hugged 
 the radiator. Perhaps things were not so bad as he 
 had feared. He resolved not to seem alarmed, at all 
 events. 
 
 "Have a cigar, Heman?" said Captain Cy. 
 " No? Well, all right; I will, if you don t mind." 
 
 He lit the cigar. The congressman cleared his 
 throat. 
 
 " Cyrus," he said, " I am not accustomed to run 
 at the beck and call of my er acquaintances, but, 
 even though we have disagreed of late, even though 
 
 353
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 to me your conduct seems quite unjustifiable, still, 
 for the sake of our boyhood friendship, and, because 
 you are not well, I er came." 
 
 Captain Cy coughed spasmodically, a cough that 
 seemed to be tearing him to pieces. He looked at his 
 cigar regretfully, and laid it on the top of the radi 
 ator. 
 
 Too bad," he observed. " Tobacco gen rally 
 iles up my talkin machinery, but just now it seems 
 to make me bark like a ship s dog shut up in the hold. 
 Why, yes, Heman, I see you ve come. Much 
 obliged to you." 
 
 This politeness was still more encouraging. At 
 kins leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs. 
 
 " I presume," he said, " that you wish to ask con 
 cerning the appropriation. I regret " 
 
 You needn t. I guess we ll get the appropria 
 tion." 
 
 Heman s condescension vanished. He leaned for 
 ward and uncrossed his legs. 
 
 "Indeed?" he said slowly, his eyes fixed on the 
 captain s placid face. 
 
 " Yes indeed." 
 
 " Whittaker, what are you talking about? Do 
 you suppose that I have been the representative of 
 my people in Congress all these years without know 
 ing whereof I speak? They left the matter in my 
 hands, and your interference " 
 
 " I ain t goin to interfere. I m goin to leave it 
 
 354
 
 in your hands, too. And I cal late you ll be able 
 to find a way to get it. Um hum, I guess likely 
 you will." 
 
 The visitor rose to his feet. The time had 
 come for another blast from Olympus. He raised 
 the mighty right arm. -But Captain Cy spoke 
 first. 
 
 " Sit down, Heman," said the captain quietly. 
 " Sit down. This ain t town meetin . Never mind 
 the appropriation now. There s other matters to be 
 talked about first. Sit down, I tell you." 
 
 Mr. Atkins was purple in the face, but he sat 
 down. The captain coughed again. 
 
 " Heman," he began when the spasm was over, 
 " I asked you to come here to-night for well, blessed 
 if I know exactly. It didn t make much difference to 
 me whether you came or not." 
 
 Then, sir, I must say that, of all the impu 
 dent " 
 
 " S-s-h-h! for the land sakes! Speechmakin must 
 be as bad as the rum habit, when a feller s got it 
 chronic as you have. No, it didn t make much differ 
 ence to me whether you came or not. But, honest, 
 you ve got to be a kind of Bunker Hill monument 
 to the folks back home. They kneel down at your 
 foundations and look up at you, and tell each other 
 how many foot high you are, and what it cost to 
 build you, and how you stand for patriotism and 
 purity, till well, / couldn t see you tumble down 
 
 355
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 without givin you a chance. I couldn t; twould 
 be like blowin up a church." 
 
 The purple had left the Atkins face, but the 
 speechmaking habit is not likely to be broken. 
 
 " Cyrus Whittaker," he stammered, " have you 
 been drinking? Your language to me is abomina 
 ble. Why I permit myself to remain here and listen 
 to such 
 
 " If you ll keep still I ll tell you why. And, if 
 I was you, I wouldn t be too anxious to find out. 
 This everlastin cold don t make me over n above 
 good-tempered, and when I think of what you ve 
 done to that little girl, or what you tried to do, 
 I have to hold myself down tight, tight, and don t 
 you forget it ! Now, you keep quiet and listen. It ll 
 be best for you, Heman. Your cards ain t under the 
 table any longer. I ve seen your hand, and I know 
 why you ve been playin it. I know the whole game. 
 I ve been West, and Everdean and I have had a 
 talk." 
 
 Mr. Atkins had again risen from the chair. Now 
 he fell heavily back into it. His lips moved as if 
 he meant to speak, but he did not. At the mention 
 of the Everdean name he made a queer, choking 
 sound in his throat. 
 
 " I know the whole business, Heman," went on 
 the captain. " I know why you was so knocked over 
 when you learned who Bos n was, the night of the 
 party. I know why you took up with that black- 
 
 356
 
 THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT 
 
 guard, Thomas, and why you ve spent your good 
 money hirin lawyers for him. I know about the 
 mine. I know the whole thing from first to last. 
 Shall I tell you? Do you want to hear it? " 
 
 The great man did not answer. A drop of per 
 spiration shone on his high forehead, and the veins 
 of his big, white hands stood out as he clutched the 
 arms of his chair. The monument was tottering on 
 its base. 
 
 " It s a dirty mess, the whole of it," continued 
 Captain Cy. " And yet, I can see I suppose I can 
 see some excuse for you at the beginnin . When old 
 man Everdean and his crowd bought you and John 
 Thayer out, way back there in 54, after John died, 
 and all the money was put into your hands, I cal- 
 late you was honest then. I wouldn t wonder if 
 you meant to hand over the thirty-seven thousand five 
 hundred dollars to your partner s widow. But twas 
 harder and more risky to send money East in them 
 days than tis now, and so you waited, thinkin may 
 be that you d fetch it to Emily when you come your 
 self. But you didn t come home for some years; 
 you went tradin down along the Feejees and around 
 that way. That s how I reasoned it out these last 
 few days on the train. I give you credit for bein 
 honest first along, 
 
 " But never mind whether you was or not, you 
 haven t been since. You never paid over a cent of 
 that poor feller s money honest money, that be- 
 
 357
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 longed to his heirs, and belongs to em now. You ve 
 hung onto it, stole it, used it for yours. And Emily 
 worked and scratched for a livin and died poor. 
 And Mary, she died, after bein abused and deserted 
 by that cussed husband of hers. And you thought 
 you was safe, I cal late. And then Bos n turns up 
 right in your own town, right acrost the road from 
 you! By the big dipper! it s enough to make a 
 feller believe that the Almighty does take a hand 
 in straightenin out such things, when us humans 
 bungle em it is so ! 
 
 " Course I ain t sure, Heman, what you meant 
 to do when you found that the child you d stole that 
 money from was goin to be under your face and eyes 
 till you or she died. I cal late you was afraid I d 
 find somethin out, wan t you? I presume likely 
 you thought that I, not havin quite the reverence for 
 you that the rest of the Bayporters have, might be 
 sharp enough or lucky enough to smell a rat. Per 
 haps you suspicioned that I knew the Everdeans. 
 Anyhow, you wanted to get the child as fur out of 
 your sight and out of my hands as you could ain t 
 that so? And when her dad turned up, you thought 
 you saw your chance. Heman, you answer me this: 
 Ain t it part of your bargain with Thomas that when 
 he gets his little girl, he shall take her and clear out, 
 away off somevvheres, for good? Ain t it, now 
 what?" 
 
 The monument was swaying, was swinging from 
 358
 
 THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT 
 
 side to side, but it did not quite fall not then. The 
 congressman s cheeks hung flabby, his forehead was 
 wet, and he shook from head to foot ; but he clenched 
 his jaws and made one last attempt at defiance. 
 
 " I I don t know what you mean," he declared. 
 " You you seem to be accusing me of something. 
 Of stealing, I believe. Do you understand who I 
 am? I have some influence and reputation, and it 
 is dangerous to to try to frighten me. Proofs are 
 required in law, and " 
 
 " S-s-h-h! You know I ve got the proofs. They 
 were easy enough to get, once I happened on the 
 track of em. Lord sakes, Heman, I ain t a fool! 
 What s the use of your pretendin to be one? 
 There s the deed out in Frisco, with yours and 
 John s name on it. There s the records to prove 
 the sale. There s the receipt for the seventy- 
 five thousand signed by you, on behalf of your 
 self and your partner s widow. There s old 
 man Everdean alive and competent to testify. 
 There s John Thayer s will on file over to Orham. 
 Proofs! Why, you thief I if it s proofs you 
 want, I ve got enough to send you to state s 
 prison for the rest of your life. Don t you dare say 
 proofs to me again! Heman Atkins, you owe 
 me, as Bos n s guardian, thirty-seven thousand five 
 hundred dollars, with interest since 1854. What 
 you goin to do about it?" 
 
 Here was one ray, a feeble ray, of light. 
 359
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " You re not her guardian," cried Atkins. " The 
 courts have thrown you out. And your appeal won t 
 stand, either. If any money is due, it belongs to 
 her father. She isn t of age! No, sir! her 
 father " 
 
 Captain Cy s patience had been giving way. Now 
 he lost it altogether. He strode across the room and 
 shook his forefinger in his victim s face. 
 
 " So !" he cried. " That s your tack, is it? By the 
 big dipper! You go to her father just you go to 
 him and tell him ! Just hint to him that you o\ve 
 his daughter thirty-odd thousand dollars, and see 
 what he ll do. Good heavens above ! he was ready 
 to sell her out to me for fifty dollars wuth of sand 
 bank in Orham. Almost ready, he was, till you of 
 fered a higher price to him to fight. Why, he ll 
 have your hide nailed up on the barn door! If 
 you don t pay him every red copper, down on the 
 nail, he ll wring you dry. And then he ll blackmail 
 you forever and ever, amen ! Unless, of course, / 
 go home and stop the blackmail by printing my story 
 in the Breeze. I ve a precious good mind to do it. 
 By the Almighty, I luill do it! unless you come off 
 that high horse of yours and talk like a man." 
 
 And then the monument fell, fell prostrate, with 
 a sickly, pitiful crash. If we of Bayport could have 
 seen our congressman then ! The great man, great 
 no longer, broke down completely. He cried like 
 a baby. It was all true all true. He had not 
 
 360
 
 THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT 
 
 meant to steal, at first. He had been led into using 
 the money in his business. Then he had meant to 
 send it to the heirs, but he didn t know their where 
 abouts. Captain Cy smiled at this excuse. And 
 now he couldn t pay he couldn t. He had hardly 
 that sum in the world. He had lost money in stocks ; 
 his property in the South had gone to the bad! He 
 would be ruined. He would have to go to prison. 
 He was getting to be an old man. And there was 
 Alicia, his daughter! Think of her! Think of 
 the disgrace ! And so on, over and over, with the 
 one recurring burden what was the captain going 
 to do? what was he going to do? It was a misera 
 ble, dreadful exhibition, and Captain Cy could feel 
 no pride in his triumph. 
 
 There ! there ! " he said at last. " Stop it, man; 
 stop it, for goodness sakes! Pull yourself together. 
 I guess we can fix it up somehow. I ain t goin to 
 be too hard on you. If it wan t for your meanness 
 in bein willin to let Bos n suffer her life long with 
 that drunken beast of a dad of hers, I d feel almost 
 like tellin you to get up and forget it. But that s 
 got to be stopped. Now, you listen to me." 
 
 Heman listened. He was on his knees beside the 
 bed, his face buried in his arms, and his gray hair, 
 the leonine Atkins hair, which he was wont to toss 
 backward in the heated periods of his eloquence, 
 tumbled and draggled. Captain Cy looked down at 
 him. 
 
 361
 
 " This whole business about Bos n must be 
 stopped," he said, " and stopped right off. You tell 
 your lawyers to drop the case. Her dad is only 
 hangin around because you pay him to. He don t 
 want her; he don t care what becomes of her. If 
 you pay him enough, he ll go, won t he? and not 
 come back? " 
 
 The congressman raised his head. 
 
 " Why, yes," he faltered; " I think he will. Yes, 
 I think I could arrange that. But, Cyrus " 
 
 The captain held up his hand. 
 
 " I intend to look out for Bos n," he said. " She 
 cares for me more n anyone else in the world. She s 
 as much to me as my own child ever could be, and 
 I ll see that she is happy and provided for. I m 
 religious enough to believe she was sent to me, and 
 I intend to stick to my trust. As for the money " 
 
 " Yes, yes ! The money? " 
 
 " Well, I won t be too hard on you that way, 
 either. We ll talk that over later on. Maybe we 
 can arrange for you to pay it a little at a time. You 
 can sign a paper showin that you owe it, and we ll 
 fix the payin to suit all hands. Tain t as if the 
 child was in want. I ve got some money of my own, 
 and what s mine s hers. I think we needn t worry 
 about the money part." 
 
 " God bless you, Cyrus! I " 
 
 " Yes, all right. I m sure your askin for the bless- 
 in 11 be a great help. Now, you do your part, 
 
 362
 
 " He was on his knees beside the bed, his face buried in 
 his arms."
 
 THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT 
 
 and I ll do mine. No one knows of this business 
 but me. I didn t tell Everdean a word. He don t 
 know why I hustled out there and back, nor why I 
 asked so many questions. And he ain t the kind 
 to pry into what don t concern him. So you re 
 pretty safe, I cal late. Now, if you don t mind, 
 I wish you d run along home. I m I m used up, 
 sort of." 
 
 Mr. Atkins arose from his knees. Even then, 
 broken as he was he looked ten years older than 
 when he entered the room he could hardly believe 
 what he had just heard. 
 
 " You mean," he faltered, " Cyrus, do you mean 
 
 that that you re not going to reveal this this " 
 
 That I m not goin to tell on you? Yup; that s 
 w r hat I mean. You get rid of Thomas and squelch 
 that law case, and I ll keep mum. You can trust me 
 for that." 
 
 "But but, Cyrus, the people at home? Your 
 story in the Breeze! You re not " 
 
 ; No, they needn t know, either. It ll be between 
 you and me." 
 
 " God bless you ! I ll never forget " 
 
 That s right. You mustn t. Forgettin is the 
 one thing you mustn t do. And, see here, you re 
 boss of the political fleet in Bayport; you steer the 
 school committee now. Phoebe Dawes ain t too 
 popular with that committee; I d see that she was 
 popularized." 
 
 26 363
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Yes, yes; she shall be. She shall not be disturbed. 
 Is there anything else I can do? " 
 
 ;< Why, yes, I guess there is. Speakin of popular 
 ity made me think of it. That harbor appropriation 
 had better go through." 
 
 A very faint tinge of color came into the congress 
 man s chalky face. He hesitated in his reply. 
 
 " I I don t know about that, Cyrus," he said. 
 The bill will probably be voted on in a few days. 
 It is made up and " 
 
 Then I d strain a p int and make it over. I d 
 work real hard on it. I m sorry about that sugar 
 river, but I cal late Bayport 11 have to come first. 
 Yes, it ll have to, Heman; it sartin will." 
 
 The reference to the " sugar river " was the final 
 straw. Evidently this man knew everything. 
 
 " I I ll try my best," affirmed Heman. " Thank 
 you, Cyrus. You have been more merciful than I had 
 a right to expect." 
 
 " Yes, I guess I have. Why do I do it? " He 
 smiled and shook his head. " Well, I don t know. 
 For two reasons, maybe. First, I d hate to be re 
 sponsible for tippin over such a sky-towerin idol as 
 you ve been to make ruins for Angie Phinney and 
 the other blackbirds to peck at and caw over. And 
 second well, it does sound presumin , don t it, but 
 I kind of pity you. Say, Heman," he added with a 
 chuckle, " that s a kind of distinction, in a way, 
 ain t it? A good many folks have hurrahed over you 
 
 364
 
 THE TOPPLING OF A MONUMENT 
 
 and worshipped you some of em, I guess likely, 
 have envied you ; but, by the big dipper ! I do believe 
 I m the only one in this round world that ever pitied 
 you. Good-by. The elevator s right down the hall." 
 
 It required some resolution for the Honorable 
 Atkins to walk down that corridor and press the ele 
 vator button. But he did it, somehow. A guest 
 came out of one of the rooms and approached him 
 as he stood there. It was a man he knew. Heman 
 squared his shoulders and set every nerve and mus 
 cle. 
 
 " Good evening, Mr. Atkins," said the man. " A 
 miserable night, isn t it? " 
 
 " Miserable, indeed," replied the congressman. 
 The strength in his voice surprised him. The man 
 passed on. Heman descended in the elevator, 
 walked steadily through the crowded lobby and out 
 to the curb where his cab was waiting. The driver 
 noticed nothing strange in his fare s appearance. 
 He noticed nothing strange when the Atkins resi 
 dence was reached and its tenant mounted the stone 
 steps and opened the door with his latchkey. But, 
 if he had seen the dignified form collapse in a library 
 chair and moan and rock back and forth until the 
 morning hours, he would have wondered very much 
 indeed. 
 
 Meanwhile Captain Cy, coughing and shivering 
 by the radiator, had been summoned from that warm 
 
 365
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 haven by a knock at his door. A bell boy stood at the 
 threshold, holding a brown envelope in his hand. 
 
 4 The clerk sent this up to you, sir," he said. 
 " It came a week ago. When you went away, you 
 didn t leave any address, and whatever letters came 
 for you were sent back to Bayport, Massachusetts. 
 The clerk says you registered from there, sir. But 
 he kept this telegram. It was in your box, and the 
 day clerk forgot to give it to you this afternoon." 
 The captain tore open the envelope. The tele 
 gram was from his lawyer, Mr. Peabody. It was 
 dated a week before, and read as follows: 
 
 " Come home at once. Important."
 
 DIVIDED HONORS 
 
 THE blizzard began that night. Bayport has 
 a generous allowance of storms and gales 
 during a winter, although, as a usual thing, 
 there is more rain than snow and more wind than 
 either. But we can count with certainty on at least 
 one blizzard between November and April, and 
 about the time when Captain Cy, feverish and ill, 
 the delayed telegram in his pocket and a great fear 
 in his heart, boarded the sleeper of the East-bound 
 train at Washington, snow was beginning to fall in 
 our village. 
 
 Next morning, when Georgianna came downstairs 
 to prepare Bos n s breakfast the housekeeper had 
 ceased to " go home nights " since the captain s ab 
 sence the world outside was a tumbled, driving 
 whirl of white. The woodshed and barn, dimly 
 seen through the smother, were but gray shapes, 
 emerging now and then only to be wiped from the 
 vision as by a great flapping cloth wielded by the 
 mighty hand of the wind. The old house shook in 
 the blasts, the windowpanes rattled as if handfuls 
 
 367
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 of small shot were being thrown against them, and 
 the carpet on the floor of the dining room puffed 
 up in miniature billows. 
 
 School was out of the question, and Bos n, her 
 breakfast eaten, prepared to put in a cozy day with 
 her dolls and Christmas playthings. 
 
 When do you s pose Uncle Cyrus will get 
 home?" she asked of the housekeeper. She had 
 asked the same thing at least three times a day dur 
 ing the fortnight, and Georgianna s answer was al 
 ways just as unsatisfactory: 
 
 " I don t know, dearie, I m sure. He ll be here 
 pretty soon, though, don t you fret." 
 
 " Oh, I ain t going to fret. I know he ll come. 
 He said he would, and Uncle Cy always does what 
 he says he will." 
 
 About twelve Asaph made his appearance, a white 
 statue. 
 
 " Godfrey scissors ! " he panted, shaking his snow- 
 plastered cap over the coal hod. " Say, this is one 
 of em, ain t it? Don t know s I ever see more of a 
 one. Drift out by the front fence pretty nigh up to 
 my waist. This 11 be a nasty night along the Orham 
 beach. The lifesavers ll have their hands full. 
 Whew ! I m about tuckered out." 
 
 "Been to the post office?" asked Georgianna in 
 a low tone. 
 
 " Yup. I been there. Mornin mail just this 
 minute sorted. Train s two hours late. Gabe says 
 
 368
 
 DIVIDED HONORS 
 
 more n likely the evenin train won t be able to get 
 through at all, if this keeps up." 
 
 " Was there anything from " 
 
 Mr. Tidditt glanced at Bos n and shook his head. 
 
 "Not a word," he said. "Funny, ain t it? It 
 don t seem a bit like him. And he can t be to Wash- 
 in ton, because all them letters came back. I I 
 swan to man, I m beginnin to get worried." 
 
 "Worried? I m pretty nigh crazy! What does 
 Phoebe Dawes say? " 
 
 " She don t say much. It s pretty tough, when 
 everything else is workin out so fine, thanks to 
 her, to have this happen. No, she don t say much, 
 but she acts pretty solemn." 
 
 "Say, Mr. Tidditt?" 
 
 "Yes, what is it?" 
 
 " You don t s pose anything that happened be 
 twixt her and Cap n Whittaker that afternoon is 
 responsible for for his stayin away so, do you? 
 You know what he told me to tell her about her 
 not comin here? " 
 
 Asaph fidgeted with the wet cap. 
 
 " Aw, that ain t nothin ," he stammered. " That 
 is, I hope it ain t. I did say somethin to him that 
 but Phoebe understands. She s a smart woman." 
 
 You haven t told them boardin house tattle- 
 tales about the Emmie, you go fetch me a card of 
 matches from the kitchen, won t you of what s been 
 found out about that Thomas thing?" 
 
 369
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Course I ain t. Didn t Peabody say not to tell 
 a soul till we was sure? S pose I d tell Keturah and 
 Angie? Might s well paint it on a sign and be done 
 with it. No, no ! I ve kept mum and you do the 
 same. Well, I must be goin . Hope to goodness 
 we hear some good news from Whit by to-morrer." 
 
 But when to-morrow came news of any kind was 
 unobtainable. No trains could get through, and the 
 telephone and telegraph wires were out of commis 
 sion, owing to the great storm. Bayport was buried 
 under a white coverlet, three feet thick on a level, 
 which shone in the winter sun as if powdered with 
 diamond dust. The street-shoveling brigade, meaning 
 most of the active male citizens, was busy with plows 
 and shovels. Simmons s was deserted in the even 
 ings, for most of the regular habitues went to bed 
 after supper, tired out. 
 
 Two days of this. Then Gabe Lumley, his depot 
 wagon replaced by a sleigh, drove the panting Daniel 
 into the yard of the Cy Whittaker place. Gabe was 
 much excited. He had news of importance to com 
 municate and was puffed up in consequence. 
 
 " The wire s all right again, Georgianna," he 
 said to the housekeeper, who had hurried to the door 
 to meet him. " Fust message just come through. 
 Guess who it s for?" 
 
 "Stop your foolishness, Gabe Lumley! " ordered 
 Miss Taylor. " Hand over that telegram this min 
 ute. Don t you stop to talk! Hand it over! "
 
 DIVIDED HONORS 
 
 Gabe didn t intend to be " corked " thus peremp 
 torily. 
 
 " It s pretty important news, Georiganna," he de 
 clared. " Kind of bad news, too. I think I d ought 
 to prepare you for it, sort of. When Cap n Obed 
 Pepper died, I " 
 
 "Died! For the land sakes! What are you say- 
 in ? Give me that, you foolhead ! Give it to me ! " 
 
 She snatched the telegram from him and tore it 
 open. It was not as bad as might have been, but it 
 was bad enough. Lawyer Peabody wired that Cap 
 tain Cyrus Whittaker was at his home in Ostable, 
 sick in bed, and threatened with pneumonia. 
 
 Captain Cy, hurrying homeward in response to 
 the attorney s former telegram, had reached Boston 
 the day of the blizzard. He had taken the train 
 for Bayport that afternoon. The train had reached 
 Ostable after nine o clock that night, but could get 
 no farther. The captain, burning with fever and 
 torn by chills, had wallowed through the drifts to his 
 lawyer s home and collapsed on his doorstep. Now 
 he was very ill and, at times, delirious. 
 
 For two weeks he lay, fighting off the threatened 
 attack of pneumonia. But he won the fight, and, 
 at last, word came to the anxious ones at Bayport 
 that he was past the danger point and would pull 
 through. There was rejoicing at the Cy Whittaker 
 place. The Board of Strategy came and performed 
 
 371
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 an impromptu war dance around the dining-room 
 table. 
 
 "Whe-e-e!" shouted Bailey Bangs, tossing Bos n 
 above his head. " Your Uncle Cy s weathered the 
 Horn and is bound for clear water now. Three 
 cheers for our side ! Won t we give him a recep 
 tion when we get him back here ! " 
 
 " Won t we?" crowed Asaph. "Well, I just 
 guess we will ! You ought to hear Angie and the 
 rest of em chant hymns of glory about him. A 
 body d think they always knew he was the salt of the 
 earth. Maybe I don t rub it in a little, hey? Oh, 
 no, maybe not ! " 
 
 " And Heman ! " chimed in Mr. Bangs. " And 
 Heman ! Would you ever believe he d change so all 
 of a sudden? Bully old Whit! I can mention his 
 name now without Ketury s landin onto me like a 
 snowslide. Wheel I say, wh-e-e-e ! " 
 
 He continued to say it; and Georgianna and 
 Asaph said what amounted to the same thing. A 
 change had come over our Bayport social atmos 
 phere, a marvelous change. And at Simmons s and 
 more wonderful still at Tad Simpson s barber 
 shop, plans were being made and perfected for pro 
 ceedings in which Cyrus Whittaker was to play the 
 most prominent part. 
 
 Meanwhile the convalescence went on at a rapid 
 rate. As soon as he was permitted to talk, Captain 
 Cy began to question his lawyer. How about the 
 
 372
 
 DIVIDED HONORS 
 
 appeal? Had Atkins done anything further? The 
 answers were satisfactory. The case had been 
 dropped: the Honorable Heman had announced its 
 withdrawal. He had said that he had changed his 
 mind and should not continue to espouse the Thomas 
 cause. In fact, he seemed to have whirled com 
 pletely about on his pedestal and, like a compass, 
 now pointed only in one direction toward his " boy 
 hood friend " and present neighbor, Cyrus Whit- 
 taker. 
 
 " It s perfectly astounding," commented Peabody. 
 What in the world, captain, did you do to him 
 while you were in Washington?" 
 
 " Oh ! nothin much," was the rather disinterested 
 answer. " Him and me had a talk, and he saw the 
 error of his ways, I cal late. How s Bos n to-day? 
 Did you give her my love when you phoned?" 
 
 " So far as the case is concerned," went on the 
 lawyer, " I think we should have won that, anyway. 
 It s a curious thing. Thomas has disappeared. How 
 he got word, or who he got it from, / don t know; 
 but he must have, and he s gone somewhere, no one 
 knows where. And yet I m not certain that we 
 were on the right trail. It seemed certain a week 
 ago, but now " 
 
 The captain had not been listening. He was 
 thinking. Thomas had gone, had he ! Good ! He- 
 man was living up to his promises. And Bos n, 
 God bless her, was free from that danger. 
 
 373
 
 "Have you heard from Emmie, I asked you?" 
 he repeated. 
 
 He would not listen to anything further concern 
 ing Thomas, either then or later. He was sick of 
 the whole business, he declared, and now that every 
 thing was all right, didn t wish to talk about it again. 
 He asked nothing about the appropriation, and the 
 lawyer, acting under strict orders, did not mention it. 
 
 Only once did Captain Cy inquire concerning a 
 person in his home town who was not a member 
 of his household. 
 
 "How is er how s the teacher?" he inquired 
 one morning. 
 
 "How s who?" 
 
 " Why Phoebe Dawes, the school-teacher. Smart, 
 is she?" 
 
 " Yes, indeed ! Why, she has been the most 
 
 The doctor came in just then and the interview 
 terminated. It was not resumed, because that after 
 noon Mr. Peabody started for Boston on a business 
 trip, to be gone some time. 
 
 And at last came the great day, the day when 
 Captain Cy was to be taken home. He was up and 
 about, had been out for several short walks, and was 
 very nearly his own self again. He was in good 
 spirits, too, at times, but had fits of seeming depres 
 sion which, under the circumstances, were unexplain- 
 able. The doctor thought they were due to his 
 recent illness and forbade questioning. 
 
 374
 
 DIVIDED HONORS 
 
 The original plan had been for the captain to go 
 to Bayport in the train, but the morning set for his 
 departure was such a beautiful one that Mr. Pea- 
 body, who had the day before returned from the city, 
 suggested driving over. So the open carriage, drawn 
 by the Peabody " span," was brought around to the 
 front steps, and the captain, bundled up until, as he 
 said, he felt like a wharf rat inside a cotton bale, 
 emerged from the house which had sheltered him 
 for a weary month and climbed to the back seat. The 
 attorney got in beside him. 
 
 " All ashore that s goin ashore," observed Cap 
 tain Cy. Then to the driver, who stood by the 
 horses heads, he added: "Stand by to get ship 
 under way, commodore. I m homeward bound, and 
 there s a little messmate of mine waitin on the dock 
 already, I wouldn t wonder. So don t hang around 
 these waters no longer n you can help." 
 
 But Mr. Peabody smiled and laid a hand on his 
 shoulder. 
 
 " Just a minute, captain," he said. " We ve got 
 another passenger. She came to the house last 
 evening, but Dr. Cole thought this would be an 
 exciting day for you, and you must sleep in prepa 
 ration for it. So we kept her in the background. 
 It was something of a job but Hurrah ! here 
 she is!" 
 
 Mrs. Peabody, the lawyer s wife, opened the front 
 door. She was laughing. The next moment a small 
 
 375
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 figure shot past her, down the steps, and into the 
 carriage like a red-hooded bombshell. 
 
 " Uncle Cyrus! " she screamed joyously. " Uncle 
 Cyrus, it s me! Here I am!" 
 
 And Captain Cy, springing up and shedding wraps 
 and robes, received the bombshell with open arms 
 and hugged it tight. 
 
 "Bos n!" he shouted. "By the big dipper! 
 Bos nf Why, you little you you 
 
 That was a w y onderful ride. Emily sat in the cap 
 tain s lap he positively refused to let her sit beside 
 him on the seat, although Peabody urged it, fearing 
 the child might tire him and her tongue rattled 
 like a sewing machine. She had a thousand things 
 to tell, about her school, about Georgianna, about 
 her dolls, about Lonesome, the cat, and how many 
 mice he had caught, about the big snowstorm. 
 
 " Georgianna wanted me to stay at home and 
 wait for you, Uncle Cy," she said, " but I teased and 
 teased and finally they said I could come over. I 
 came yesterday on the train. Mr. Tidditt went with 
 me to the depot. Mrs. Peabody let me peek into 
 your room last night and I saw you eating supper. 
 You didn t know I was there, did you? " 
 
 " You bet I didn t! There d have been a mutiny 
 right then if I d caught sight of you. You little 
 sculpin ! Playin it on your Uncle Cy, was you? I 
 didn t know you could keep a secret so well." 
 
 " Oh, yes I can ! Why, I know an ever so much 
 376
 
 DIVIDED HONORS 
 
 bigger secret, too. It is Why! I most forgot e 
 You just wait." 
 
 The captain laughingly begged her to divulge the 
 big secret, but she shook her small head and refused. 
 The horses trotted on at a lively pace, and tlu .ales 
 separating Ostable and Bayport were subtracted one 
 by one. It was magnificent winter \veather. The 
 snow had disappeared from the road, except in 
 widely separated spots, but the big drifts still heaped 
 the fields and shone and sparkled in the sunshine. 
 Against their whiteness the pitch pines and cedars 
 stood darkly green and the skeleton scrub oaks and 
 bushes cast delicate blue-penciled shadows. The 
 bay, seen over the flooded, frozen salt meadows and 
 distant dunes, was in its winter dress of the deepest 
 sapphire, trimmed with whitecaps and fringed with 
 stranded ice cakes. There was a snap and tang in 
 the breeze which braced one like a tonic. The 
 party in the carriage was a gay one. 
 
 "Getting tired, captain?" asked Peabody. 
 
 "Who? Me? Well, I guess not. Most home, 
 Bos n. There s the salt works ahead there." 
 
 They passed the abandoned salt works, the crum 
 bling ruins of a dead industry, and the boundary 
 stone, now half hidden in a drift, marking the be 
 ginning of Bayport township. Then, from the pine 
 grove at the curve farther on, appeared two capped 
 and coated figures, performing a crazy fandango. 
 
 Who s them two lunatics," inquired Captain 
 
 377
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Cy, " whoopin and carryin on in the middle of the 
 road? Has anybody up this way had a jug come by 
 express or Hey! What? Why, you old idiots 
 you ! Come here and let me get a hold of you ! " 
 : Board of Strategy swooped down upon the 
 carriage like Trumet mosquitoes on a summer board 
 er. They swarmed into the vehicle, Bailey on the 
 front seat and Asaph in the rear, where, somehow 
 or other, they made room for him. There were 
 handshakings and thumps on the back. 
 
 " What you doin way up here in the west end 
 of nowhere?" demanded Captain Cy. "By the 
 big dipper, I m glad to see you ! How d you get 
 here?" 
 
 " Walked," cackled Bailey. " Frogged it all the 
 way. Soon s Mrs. Peabody wired you was goin 
 to ride, me and Ase started to meet you. Wan t 
 you surprised? " 
 
 " We wanted to be the fust to say howdy, old 
 man," explained Asaph. " Wanted to welcome you 
 back, you know." 
 
 The captain was immensely pleased. 
 
 " Well, I m glad I ve got so much popularity, 
 anyhow," he said. " Guess twill be different when 
 I get down street, hey? Don t cal late Tad and 
 Angie 11 shed the joyous tear over me. Never mind; 
 long s my friends are glad I don t care about the 
 rest." 
 
 The Board looked at each other. 
 378
 
 DIVIDED HONORS 
 
 " Tad? " repeated Bailey. " And Angle? What 
 you talkin about? Why, they Ugh!" 
 
 The last exclamation was the result of a tremen 
 dous dig in the ribs from the Tidditt fist. Asaph, 
 who had leaned forward to administer it, was frown 
 ing and shaking his head. Mr. Bangs relapsed into 
 a grinning silence. 
 
 West Bayport seemed to be deserted. At one or 
 two houses, however, feminine heads appeared at the 
 windows. One old lady shook a calico apron at the 
 carriage. A child beside her cried: "Hurrah!" 
 
 " Aunt Hepsy h istin colors by mistake," laughed 
 the captain. " She ain t got her specs, I guess, and 
 thinks I m Heman. That comes of ridin astern of 
 a span, Peabody." 
 
 But as they drew near the Center flags were flying 
 from front-yard poles. Some of the houses were 
 decorated. 
 
 What in the world " began Captain Cy. 
 "Land sakes! look at the schoolhouse. And Sim- 
 mons s! And and Simpson s !" 
 
 The schoolhouse flag was flapping in the wind. 
 The scarred wooden pillars of its portico were hidden 
 with bunting. Simmons s front displayed a row of 
 little banners, each bearing a letter the letters 
 spelled " Welcome Home." Tad s barber shop was 
 more or less artistically wreathed in colored tissue 
 paper. There, too, a flag was draped over the front 
 door. Yet not a single person was in sight. 
 
 27 379
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 "For goodness sake!" cried the bewildered 
 captain. "What s all this mean? And where is 
 everybody. Have all hands " 
 
 He stopped in the middle of the sentence. They 
 were at the foot of Whittaker s Hill. Its top, be 
 tween the Atkins s gate and the Whittaker fence, 
 was black with people. Children pranced about the 
 outskirts of the crowd. A shout came down the wind. 
 The horses, not in the least fatigued by their long 
 canter, trotted up the slope. The shouting grew 
 louder. A wave of youngsters came racing to meet 
 the equipage. 
 
 "What what in time?" gasped Captain Cy. 
 "What s up? I " 
 
 And then the town clerk seized him by the arm. 
 Peabody shook his other hand. Bos n threw her 
 arms about his neck. Bailey stood up and waved 
 his hat. 
 
 " It s you, you old critter ! " whooped Asaph. 
 "It s you, d you understand?" 
 
 " The appropriation has gone through," explained 
 the lawyer, " and this is the celebration in con 
 sequence. And you are the star attraction be 
 cause, you see, everyone knows you are responsible 
 for it." 
 
 " That s what ! " howled the excited Bangs. " And 
 we re goin to show you what we think of you for 
 doin it. We ve been plannin this for over a fort- 
 ni t." 
 
 380
 
 DIVIDED HONORS 
 
 " And I knew it all the time," squealed Bos n, 
 " and I didn t tell a word, did I ? " 
 
 "Three cheers for Captain Whittaker!" bel 
 lowed a person in the crowd. This person wonder 
 of wonders ! was Tad Simpson. 
 
 The cheering was, considering the size of the 
 crowd, tremendous. Bewildered and amazed, Cap 
 tain Cy was assisted from the carriage and escorted 
 to his front door. Amidst the handkerchief-waving, 
 applauding people he saw Keturah Bangs and Al- 
 pheus Smalley and Angeline Phinney and Captain 
 Salters even Alonzo Snow, his recent opponent in 
 town meeting. Josiah Dimick was there, too, ap 
 parently having a fit. 
 
 On the doorstep stood Georgianna and and 
 yes, it was true beside her, grandly extending a 
 welcoming hand, the majestic form of the Honora 
 ble Heman Atkins. Some one else was there also, 
 some one who hurriedly slipped back into the crowd 
 as the owner of the Cy Whittaker place came up the 
 path between the hedges. 
 
 Mr. Atkins shook the captain s hand and then, 
 turning toward the people, held up his own for si 
 lence. To all outward appearance, he was still the 
 great Heman, our district idol, philanthropist, and 
 leader. His silk hat glistened as of old, his chest 
 swelled in the old manner, his whiskers were just as 
 dignified and awe-inspiring. For an instant, as he 
 met the captain s eye, his own faltered and fell, and
 
 there was a pleading expression in his face, the lines 
 of which had deepened just a little. But only for an 
 instant; then he began to speak. 
 
 " Cyrus," he said, " it is my pleasant duty, on be 
 half of your neighbors and friends here assembled, 
 to welcome you to your er ancestral home after 
 your trying illness. I do it heartily, sincerely, gladly. 
 And it is the more pleasing to me to perform this 
 duty, because, as I have explained publicly to my 
 fellow-townspeople, all disagreement between us is 
 ended. I was wrong again I publicly admit it. A 
 scheming blackleg, posing in the guise of a loving 
 father, imposed upon me. I am sorry for the trouble 
 I have caused you. Of you and of the little girl with 
 you I ask pardon I entreat forgiveness." 
 
 He paused. Captain Cy, the shadow of a smile 
 at the corner of his mouth, nodded, and said briefly: 
 
 " All right, Heman. I forgive you." Few heard 
 him : the majority were applauding the congressman. 
 Sylvanus Cahoon, whispering in the ear of " Uncle 
 Bedny," expressed as his opinion that " that was 
 about as magnaminious a thing as ever I heard said. 
 Yes, sir! mag-na-min-ious that s what / call it." 
 
 " But," continued the great Atkins, " I have said 
 all this to you before. What I have to say now 
 what I left my duties in Washington expressly to 
 come here and say is that Bayport thanks you, / 
 thank you, for your tremendous assistance in obtain 
 ing the appropriation which is to make our harbor 
 
 382
 
 DIVIDED HONORS 
 
 a busy port where our gallant fishing fleet may ride 
 at anchor and unload its catch, instead of transfer 
 ring it in dories as heretofore. Friends, I have al 
 ready told you how this man " laying a hand on 
 the captain s shoulder " came to the Capital and 
 used his influence among his acquaintances in high 
 places, with the result that the thirty thousand dol 
 lars, which I had despaired of getting, was added 
 to the bill. I had the pleasure of voting for that 
 bill. It passed. I am proud of that vote." 
 
 Tremendous applause. Then some one called for 
 three cheers for Mr. Atkins. They were given. But 
 the recipient merely bowed. 
 
 " No, no," he said deprecatingly. " No, no ! not 
 for me, my friends, much as I appreciate your grati 
 tude. My days of public service are nearly at an 
 end. As I have intimated to some of you already, 
 I am seriously considering retiring from political 
 life in the near future. But that is irrelevant; it is 
 not material at present. To-day we meet, not to 
 say farewell to the setting, but to greet the rising 
 sun. / call for three cheers for our committee of 
 one Captain Cyrus Whittaker." 
 
 When the uproar had at last subsided, there were 
 demands for a speech from Captain Cy. But the 
 captain, facing them, his arms about the delighted 
 Bos n, positively declined to orate. 
 
 " I I m ever so much obliged to you, folks," he 
 stammered. " I am so. But you ll have to excuse 
 
 383
 
 me from speechmaking. They they didn t teach it 
 afore the mast, where I went to college. Thank you, 
 just the same. And do come and see me, everybody. 
 Me and this little girl," drawing Emily nearer to 
 him, " will be real glad to have you." 
 
 After the handshaking and congratulating were 
 over, the crowd dispersed. It was a great occasion; 
 all agreed to that, but the majority considered it a 
 divided triumph. The captain had done a lot for 
 the town, of course, but the Honorable Atkins had 
 made another splendid impression by his address of 
 welcome. Most people thought it as fine as his 
 memorable effort at town meeting. Unlike that 
 one, however, in this instance it is safe to say that 
 none, not even the adoring and praise-chanting Miss 
 Phinney, derived quite the enjoyment from the con 
 gressman s speech that Captain Cy did. It tickled 
 his sense of humor. 
 
 " Ase," he observed irrelevantly when the five 
 Tidditt, Georgianna, Bailey, Bos n, and himself 
 were at last alone again in the sitting room, " it don t 
 pay to tip over a monument, does it not out in 
 public, I mean. You wouldn t want to see me blow 
 up Bunker Hill, would you? " 
 
 " Blow up Bunker Hill ! " repeated Asaph in 
 alarmed amazement. "Godfrey scissors! I be 
 lieve you re goin loony. This day s been too much 
 for you. What are you talkin about? " 
 
 " Oh, nothin ," with a quiet chuckle. " I was 
 384
 
 DIVIDED HONORS 
 
 thinkin out loud, that s all. Did you ever notice 
 them imitation stone pillars on Heman s house? 
 They re holler inside, but you d never guess it. And, 
 long as you do know they re holler, you can keep 
 a watch on em. And there s one thing sure," he 
 added, " they are ornamental."
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 CAPTAIN CY S " PICTURE " 
 
 WONDER where Phoebe went to," re~ 
 marked Mr. Tidditt, a little later. " I 
 thought I saw her with Heman and 
 Georgianna on the front steps when we drove up." 
 
 " She was there," affirmed the housekeeper. 
 " She d been helpin me trim up the rooms here. 
 What do you think of em, Cap n Cyrus? Ain t they 
 pretty? " 
 
 The sitting room and dining room were gay with 
 evergreens and old-fashioned flowers. Our living 
 room windows in the winter time are usually filled 
 with carefully tended potted plants, and the neigh 
 bors had loaned their geraniums and fuchsias and 
 heliotrope and begonias to brighten the Whittaker 
 house for its owner s return. Captain Cy, who was 
 sitting in the rocker, with Bos n on his knee, looked 
 about him. Now that the first burst of excitement 
 was over, he seemed grave and preoccupied. 
 
 They look mighty pretty, Georgianna," he said. 
 " Fine enough. But what was that you just said? 
 Did- 
 
 386
 
 CAPTAIN CY S "PICTURE" 
 
 " Yup," interrupted Miss Taylor, who had scarce 
 ly ceased talking since breakfast that morning, 
 " Yes, twas teacher that helped fix em. Not that 
 I wouldn t have got along without her, but I had 
 more to do than a little, cleanin and scrubbin up. 
 So Phoebe she come in, and Oh! yes, as I was 
 sayin , she was out front with me, but the minute 
 your carriage drove up with that lovely span Ain t 
 that a fine span ! I cal late they re " 
 
 "What become of teacher?" broke in Bailey. 
 
 " Why, she run off somewheres. I didn t see 
 where she went to; I was too busy hollerin at 
 Cap n Whittaker and noticin that span. I bet 
 you they made Angie Phinney s eyes stick out. 
 I guess she realizes that we in this house are 
 some punkins now. If I don t lord it over her 
 when I run acrost her these days, then I miss my 
 guess. I " 
 
 " Belay! " ordered Captain Cy, his gravity more 
 pronounced than ever. " How does it happen that 
 you See here, Georgianna, did you tell Ph er 
 Miss Dawes what I told you to tell her when I went 
 away? " 
 
 " Why, yes, I told her. I hated to, dreadful, 
 but I done it. She was awful set back at fust, but I 
 guess she asked Mr. Tidditt Where you goin , 
 Mr. Tidditt?" 
 
 The town clerk, his face red, was on his way to 
 the door. 
 
 387
 
 "Asked Ase?" repeated the captain. " Ase, 
 come here! Did you tell her anything?" 
 
 Asaph was very much embarrassed. 
 
 " Well," he stammered, " I didn t mean to, Cy, 
 but she got to askin me questions, and somehow or 
 nother I did tell her about our confab, yours and 
 mine. I told her that I knew folks was talkin , and 
 I felt twas my duty to tell you so. That s why I 
 done it, and I told her you said well, you know 
 what you said yourself, Cy." 
 
 Captain Cy was evidently much disturbed. He 
 put Bos n down, and rose to his feet. 
 
 "Well," he asked sharply, "what did she say?" 
 
 " Oh ! she was white and still for a minute or two. 
 Then she kind of stamped her foot and went off 
 and left me. But next time she met me she was 
 nice as pie. She s been pretty frosty to Angie and 
 the rest of em, but she s been always nice to Bailey 
 and me. Why, when I asked her pardon, she said 
 not at all, she was very glad to know the truth; it 
 helped her to understand things. And you could see 
 she meant it, too. She 
 
 " So she has been comin here ever since. And the 
 gossip has been goin on, I s pose. Well, by the 
 big dipper, it ll stop now! I ll see to that." 
 
 The Board of Strategy and the housekeeper were 
 amazed. 
 
 " Gossip ! " repeated Bailey. " Well, I guess there 
 ain t nothin said against her now not in this town, 
 
 388
 
 CAPTAIN CY S "PICTURE" 
 
 there ain t ! Why, all hands can t praise her enough 
 for her smartness in findin out about that 
 Thomas. If it wan t for her, he d be botherin 
 you yet, Cy. You know it. What are you talkin* 
 about?" 
 
 Captain Cy passed his hand over his forehead. 
 
 " Bos n," he said slowly, " you run and help 
 Georgianna in the kitchen a spell. She s got her 
 dinner to look out for, I guess likely. Georgianna, * 
 to the housekeeper, who looked anything but eager, 
 " you better see to your dinner right off, and take 
 Emmie with you." 
 
 Miss Taylor reluctantly departed, leading Bos n 
 by the hand. The child was loath to leave her uncle, 
 but he told her he wouldn t give a cent for his first 
 dinner at home if she didn t help in preparing it. 
 So she went out happy. 
 
 " Now, then," demanded the captain, " what s 
 this about Phoebe and Thomas? I want to know. 
 Stop ! Don t ask another question. Answer me 
 first." 
 
 So the Board of Strategy, by turns and in concert, 
 told of the drive to Trumet and the call on Debby 
 Beasley. Asaph would have narrated the story of 
 the upset sulky, but Bailey shut him up in short 
 order. 
 
 " Never mind that foolishness," he snapped. 
 " You see, Cy, Debby had just been out to Arizona 
 visitin old Beasley s niece. And she d fell in with 
 
 389
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 a woman out there whose husband had run off and 
 left her. And Debby, she read the advertisement 
 about him in the Arizona paper, and it said he 
 had the spring halt in his off hind leg, or somethin 
 similar. Now, Thomas, he had that, too, and there 
 was other things that reminded Phoebe of him. So 
 she don t say nothin to nobody, but she writes to 
 this woman askin for more partic lars and a photo 
 graph of the missin one. The partic lars come, 
 but the photograph didn t; the wife didn t have 
 none, I b lieve. But there was enough to send 
 Phoebe hotfoot to Mr. Peabody. And Peabody he 
 writes to his lawyer friend in Butte, Montana. And 
 
 the Butte man he " 
 
 " Well, the long and short of it is," cut in 
 Tidditt, " that it looked safe and sartin that Thomas 
 had married the Arizona woman while his real wife, 
 Bos n s ma, was livin , and had run off and left her 
 
 same as he did Mary. And the funny part of it 
 
 
 " The funny part of it is," declared Bangs, drown 
 ing his friend s voice by raising his own, " that 
 somebody out there, some scalawag friend of this 
 Thomas, must have got wind of what was up, and 
 sent word to him. Cause, when they went to hunt 
 for him in Boston, he d gone, skipped, cut stick. 
 And they ain t seen him since. He was afraid of 
 bein took up for bigamist, you see for bein a 
 bigamy, I mean. Well, you know what I m tryin 
 
 390
 
 CAPTAIN CY S "PICTURE" 
 
 to say. Anyhow, if it hadn t been for me and 
 Phoebe " 
 
 " You and Phoebe ! " snorted Asaph. " You had 
 a whole lot to do with it, didn t you ? You and Aunt 
 Debby 11 do to go together. I understand she s 
 cruisin round makin proclamations that she was re 
 sponsible for the whole thing. No, sir-ree ! it s 
 Phoebe Dawes that the credit belongs to, and this 
 town ain t done nothin but praise her since it 
 come out. You never see such a quick come-about 
 in your life unless twas Heman s. But you 
 knew all this afore, Whit. Peabody must have 
 told you." 
 
 Captain Cy had listened to his friends story with 
 a face expressive of the most blank astonishment. As 
 he learned of the trip to Trumet and its results, his 
 eyes and mouth opened, and he repeatedly rubbed 
 his forehead and muttered exclamations. Now, at 
 the mention of his lawyer s name, he seemed to 
 awaken. 
 
 " Hold on ! " he interrupted, waving his hand. 
 " Hold on ! By the big dipper ! this is is Where 
 is Peabody? I want to see him." 
 
 " Here I am, captain," said the attorney. He had 
 been out to the barn to superintend the stabling of 
 the span, but for the past five minutes had been 
 standing, unnoticed by his client, on the threshold 
 of the dining room. 
 
 " See here," demanded Captain Cy, " see here, 
 
 391
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Peabody; is this yarn true? Is it, now? this about 
 about Phoebe and all?" 
 
 " Certainly it s true. I supposed you knew it. 
 You didn t seem surprised when I told you the case 
 was settled." 
 
 " Surprised? Why, no ! I thought Heman had 
 Never mind that. Land of love! She did it. 
 She!" 
 
 He sat weakly down. The lawyer looked anxious. 
 
 " Mr. Tidditt," he whispered, " I think perhaps 
 he had better be left alone for the present. He s 
 just up from a sick bed, and this has been a trying 
 forenoon. Come in again this afternoon. I shall 
 try to persuade him to take a nap." 
 
 The Board of Strategy, its curiosity unsatisfied, 
 departed reluctantly. When Mr. Peabody returned 
 to the sitting room he found that naps were far, in 
 deed, from the captain s thoughts. The latter was 
 pacing the sitting-room floor. 
 
 " Where is she? " he demanded. " She was stand- 
 in on the steps with Heman. Have you seen her 
 since? " 
 
 His friend was troubled. 
 
 " Why, yes, I ve seen her," he said. " I have 
 been talking with her. She has gone away." 
 
 "Gone away! Where? What do you mean? 
 She ain t ain t left Bayport?" 
 
 " No, no. What in the world should she lean 
 Bayport for? She has gone to her boarding house, 
 
 392
 
 CAPTAIN CY S "PICTURE" 
 
 I guess; at all events, she was headed in that direc 
 tion." 
 
 "Why didn t she shake hands with me? What 
 made her go off and not say a word? Oh, well, I 
 guess likely I know the why ! " He sighed despond 
 ently. " I told her never to come here again." 
 
 " You did? What in the world " 
 
 Well, for what I thought was good reasons; all 
 on her account they was. And yet she did come back, 
 and kept comin , even after Ase blabbed the whole 
 thing. However, I s pose that was just to help 
 Georgianna. Oh, hum ! I am an old fool." 
 
 The lawyer inspected him seriously. 
 
 " Well, captain," he said slowly, " if it is any 
 comfort for you to know that your reason isn t the 
 correct one for Miss Dawes s going away, I can as 
 sure you on that point. I think she went because 
 she was greatly disappointed, and didn t wish to see 
 you just now." 
 
 "Disappointed? What do you mean?" 
 
 "Humph! I didn t mean to tell you yet, but I 
 judge that I d better. No one knows it here but 
 Miss Dawes and I, and probably no one but us three 
 need ever know it. You see, the fact is that the 
 Arizona woman, Desire Higgins, isn t Mrs. Thomas 
 at all. He isn t her missing husband." 
 
 "What?" 
 
 " Yes, it s so. Really, it was too much of a co 
 incidence to be possible, and yet it certainly did seem 
 28 393
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 that it would prove true. This Higgins woman was, 
 apparently, so anxious to find her missing man that 
 she was ready to recognize almost any description; 
 and the slight lameness and the fact of his having 
 been in Montana helped along. If we could have 
 gotten a photograph sooner, the question would have 
 been settled. Only last week, while I was in Bos 
 ton, I got word from the detective agency that a 
 photo had been received. I went to see it im 
 mediately. There was some resemblance, but not 
 enough. Henry Thomas was never Mr. Higgins." 
 " But but they say Thomas has skipped out." 
 " Yes, he has. That s the queer part of it. At 
 the place where he boarded we learned that he got 
 a letter from Arizona trust the average landlady 
 to look at postmarks that he seemed greatly agi 
 tated all that day, and left that night. No one has 
 seen him since. Why he went is a puzzle. Where, 
 we don t care. So long as he keeps out of our way, 
 that s enough." 
 
 Captain Cy did not care, either. He surmised 
 that Mr. Atkins might probably explain the disap 
 pearance. And yet, oddly enough, this explanation 
 was not the true one. The Honorable Heman 
 solemnly assured the captain that he had not com 
 municated with Emily s father. He intended to do 
 so, as a part of the compact agreed upon at the hotel, 
 but the man had fled. And the mystery is still un 
 solved. The supposition is that there really was a 
 
 394
 
 CAPTAIN CY S "PICTURE" 
 
 wife somewhere in the West. Who or where she 
 was no Bayporter knows. Henry Thomas has never 
 come back to explain. 
 
 " I told Miss Dawes of the photograph and what 
 it proved," went on Peabody. " She was dread 
 fully disappointed. She could hardly speak when 
 she left me. I urged her to come in and see you, 
 but she wouldn t. Evidently she had set her heart 
 on helping you and the child. It is too bad, because, 
 practically speaking, we owe everything to her. 
 There is little doubt that the inquiry set on foot by 
 her scared the Thomas fellow into flight. And she 
 has worked night and day to aid us. She is a very 
 clever woman, Captain Whittaker, and a good one. 
 You can t thank her enough. Here ! what are you 
 about?" 
 
 Captain Cy strode past him into the dining room. 
 The hat rack hung on the wall by the side door. 
 He snatched his cap from the peg, and was strug 
 gling into his overcoat. 
 
 "Where are you going?" demanded the lawyer. 
 " You mustn t attempt to walk now. You need rest." 
 
 " Rest ! I ll rest by and by. Just now I ve got 
 business to attend to. Let go of that pea-jacket." 
 
 " But " 
 
 " No buts about it. I ll see you later. So long." 
 
 He threw open the door and hurried down the 
 walk. The lawyer watched him in amazement. 
 Then a slow smile overspread his face. 
 
 395
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 " Captain," he called. " Captain Whittakcr." 
 
 Captain Cy looked back over his shoulder. " What 
 do you want? " he asked. 
 
 Mr. Peabody s face was now intensely solemn, 
 but there was a twinkle in his eye. 
 
 " I think she s at the boarding house," he said 
 demurely. " I m pretty certain you ll find her 
 there." 
 
 All the regulars at the perfect boarding house 
 had, of course, attended the reception at the Cy 
 Whittaker place. None of them, with the exception 
 of the schoolmistress, had as yet returned. Dinner 
 had been forgotten in the excitement of the great 
 day, and Keturah and Angeline and Mrs. Tripp 
 had stopped in at various dwellings along the main 
 road, to compare notes on the captain s appearance 
 and the Atkins address. Asaph and Bailey and Al- 
 pheus Smalley were at Simmons s. 
 
 Captain Cy knew better than to attempt his hur 
 ried trip by way of the road. He had no desire to 
 be held up and congratulated. He went across lots, 
 in the rear of barns and orchards, wading through 
 drifts and climbing fences as no sane convalescent 
 should. But the captain at that moment was suf 
 fering from the form of insanity known as the fixed 
 idea. She had done all this for him for him. And 
 his last message to her had been an insult. 
 
 He approached the Bangs property by the stable 
 lane. No one locks doors in our village, and those 
 
 396
 
 don t think I d ought to let you shake hands with me, 
 Phoebe. "
 
 of the perfect boarding house were unfastened. He 
 entered by way of the side porch, just as he had 
 done when Gabe Lumley s depot wagon first de 
 posited him in that yard. But now he entered on 
 tiptoe. The dining room was empty. He peeped 
 into the sitting room. There, by the center table, 
 sat Phoebe Dawes, her elbow on the arm of her 
 chair, and her head resting on her hand. 
 
 "Ahem! Phoebe!" said Captain Cy. 
 
 She started, turned, and saw him standing there. 
 Her eyes were wet, and there was a handkerchief 
 in her lap. 
 
 " Phoebe," said the captain anxiously, " have you 
 been cryin ? " 
 
 She rose on the instant. A great wave of red 
 swept over her face. The handkerchief fell to the 
 floor, and she stooped and picked it up. 
 
 "Crying?" she repeated confusedly. "Why, 
 no, of course of course not! I How do you do, 
 Captain Whittaker? I m we re all very glad to 
 see you home again and well." 
 
 She extended her hand. Captain Cy reached for 
 ward to take it; then he hesitated. 
 
 " I don t think I d ought to let you shake hands 
 with me, Phoebe," he said. " Not until I beg your 
 pardon." 
 
 " Beg my pardon? Why?" 
 
 He absently took the hand and held it. 
 
 " For the word I sent to you when I went away. 
 
 397
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 Twas an awful thing to say, but I meant it for your 
 sake, you know. Honest, I did." 
 
 She laughed nervously. 
 
 "Oh! that," she said. "Well, I did think you 
 were rather particular as to your visitors. But Mr. 
 Tidditt explained, and then You needn t beg my 
 pardon. I appreciate your thoughtfulness. I knew 
 you meant to be kind to me." 
 
 " That s what I did. But you didn t obey orders. 
 You kept comin . Now, why 
 
 "Why? Did you suppose that / cared for the 
 malicious gossip of such people? I came because 
 you w r ere in trouble, and I hoped to help you. And 
 and I thought I had helped, until a few minutes 
 ago." 
 
 Her lip quivered. That quiver went to the cap 
 tain s heart. 
 
 "Helped?" he faltered. "Helped? Why, 
 you ve done so much that I can t ever thank you. 
 You ve been the only real helper I ve had in all this 
 miserable business. You ve stood by me all through." 
 
 " But it was all wrong. He isn t the man at all. 
 Didn t Mr. Peabody tell you?" 
 
 " Yes, yes, he told me. What difference does that 
 make? Peabody be hanged! He ain t in this. It s 
 you and me don t you see? What made you do all 
 this for me? " 
 
 She looked at the floor and not at him as she 
 answered. 
 
 398
 
 CAPTAIN CY S "PICTURE" 
 
 " Why, because I wanted to help you," she said. 
 " I ve been alone in the world ever since mother died, 
 years ago. I ve had few real friends. Your friend 
 ship had come to mean a great deal to me. The 
 splendid fight you were making for that little girl 
 proved what a man you were. And you fought so 
 bravely when almost everyone was against you, I 
 couldn t help wanting to do something for you. 
 How could I? And now it has come to nothing 
 my part of it. I m so sorry." 
 
 " It ain t, neither. It s come to everything. 
 Phoebe, I didn t mean to say very much more than 
 to beg your pardon when I headed for here. But 
 I ve got to I ve simply got to. This can t go 
 on. I can t have you keep comin to see me and 
 Bos n. I can t keep meetin you every day. I 
 can t." 
 
 She looked up, as if to speak, but something, pos 
 sibly the expression in his face, caused her to look 
 quickly down again. She did not answer. 
 
 " I can t do it," continued the captain desper 
 ately. " Tain t for what folks might say. They 
 wouldn t say much when I was around, I tell you. It 
 ain t that. It s because I can t bear to have you 
 just a friend. Either you must be more n that, or 
 or I ll have to go somewheres else. I realized that 
 when I was in Washin ton and cruisin to California 
 and back. I ve either got to take Bos n and go 
 
 away for good, or or " 
 
 399
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 She would not help him. She would not speak. 
 
 "You see?" he groaned. "You see, Phoebe, 
 what an old fool I am. I can t ask you to marry 
 me, me fifty-five, and rough from knockin round 
 the world, and you, young and educated, and a lady. 
 I ain t fool enough to ask such a thing as that. And 
 yet, I couldn t stay here and meet you every day, 
 and by and by see you marry somebody else. By the 
 big dipper, I couldn t do it ! So that s why I can t 
 shake hands with you to-day nor any more, ex 
 cept when I say good-by for keeps." 
 
 Then she looked up. The color was still bright 
 in her face, and her eyes were moist, but she was 
 smiling. 
 
 " Can t shake hands with me? " she said. " Please, 
 what have you been doing for the last five minutes? " 
 
 Captain Cy dropped her hand as if his own had 
 been struck with paralysis. 
 
 "Good land!" he stammered. "I didn t know 
 I did it; honest truth, I didn t." 
 
 Phoebe s smile was still there, faint, but very 
 sweet. 
 
 "Why did you stop?" she queried. "I didn t 
 ask you to." 
 
 "Why did I stop? Why, because I I I de 
 clare I m ashamed " 
 
 She took his hand and clasped it with both her 
 
 own. 
 
 " I m not," she said bravely, her eyes brightening 
 400
 
 CAPTAIN CY S "PICTURE" 
 
 as the wonder and incredulous joy grew in his. " I m 
 very proud. And very, very happy." 
 
 There was to be a big supper at the Cy Whit- 
 taker place that night. It was an impromptu affair, 
 arranged on the spur of the moment by Captain Cy, 
 who, in spite of the lawyer s protests and anxiety 
 concerning his health, went serenely up and down the 
 main road, inviting everybody he met or could think 
 of. The captain s face was as radiant as a spring sun 
 rise. His smile, as Asaph said, " pretty nigh cut the 
 upper half of his head off." People who had other 
 engagements, and would, under ordinary circum 
 stances, have refused the invitation, couldn t say no 
 to his hearty, " Can t come? Course you ll come! 
 Man alive ! I want you." 
 
 "Invalid, is he?" observed Josiah Dimick, after 
 receiving and accepting his own invitation. Well, 
 I wish to thunder I could be took down with the 
 same kind of disease. I d be willin to linger along 
 with it quite a spell if it pumped me as full of joy as 
 Whit seems to be. Don t give laughin gas to keep 
 off pneumonia, do they? No? Well, I d like to 
 know the name of his medicine, that s all." 
 
 Supper was to be ready at six. Georgianna, as 
 sisted by Keturah Bangs, Mrs. Sylvanus Cahoon, 
 and other volunteers, was gloriously busy in the 
 kitchen. The table in the dining room reached from 
 one end of the big apartment to the other. Guests 
 
 401
 
 CY WHITTAKER S PLACE 
 
 would begin to arrive shortly. Wily Mr. Peabody, 
 guessing that Captain Cy might prefer to be alone, 
 had taken the Board of Strategy out riding behind 
 the span. 
 
 In the sitting room, around the baseburner stove, 
 were three persons Captain Cy, Bos n, and Phoebe. 
 Miss Dawes had " come early," at the captain s 
 urgent appeal. Now she was sitting in the rocker, 
 at one side of the stove, gazing dreamily at the ruddy 
 light behind the isinglass panes. She looked quietly, 
 blissfully contented and happy. At her feet, on the 
 braided mat, sat Bos n, playing with Lonesome, who 
 purred lazily. The little girl was happy, too, for 
 was not her beloved Uncle Cyrus at home again, 
 with all danger of their separation ended forever- 
 more? 
 
 As for Captain Cy himself, the radiant expression 
 was still on his face, brighter than ever. He looked 
 across at Phoebe, who smiled back at him. Then 
 he glanced down at Bos n. And all at once he real 
 ized that this was the fulfillment of his dream. Here 
 was his " picture " ; the sitting room was now as he 
 had always loved to think of it as it used to be. He 
 was in his father s chair, Phoebe in the one his mother 
 used to occupy, and between them just where he 
 had sat so often when a boy the child. The Cy 
 Whittaker place had again, and at last, come into 
 its own. 
 
 He drew a long breath, and looked about the 
 402
 
 CAPTAIN CY S "PICTURE" 
 
 room; at the stove, the lamp, the old, familiar furni 
 ture, at his grandfather s portrait over the mantel. 
 Then, in a flash of memory, his father s words came 
 back to him, and he said, laughing aloud from pure 
 happiness : 
 
 " Bos n, run down cellar and get me a pitcher; 
 of cider, won t you? there s a good feller." 
 
 (7) 
 
 THE END
 
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