Andy left Norton\'s door and rapped softly at Tom\'s, tried the lock, found it unfastened, pushed his way quietly inside and called:

"Mister Tom!"

No answer came from the bed and Andy moved closer:

"Mister Tom—Mister Tom!"

"Ah—what\'s the matter with you—get out!" the sleeper growled.

The negro touched the boy\'s shoulder with a friendly shake, whispering:

"Yo\' Pa\'s here!"

Tom sat up in bed rubbing his eyes:

"What\'s that?"

"Yassah, I fotch him through the country and we rid all night——"

"What\'s the matter?\'

"Dat\'s what I wants ter see you \'bout, sah—an\' ef you\'ll des slip on dem clothes an\' meet me in de liberry, we\'ll hab a little confab an\' er council er war——"

The boy picked up a pillow and hurled it at Andy:

"Well, get out, you old rascal, and I\'ll be down in a few minutes."

Andy dodged the pillow and at the door whispered:[Pg 263]

"Yassah, an\' don\'t disturb de major! I hopes ter God he sleep er month when he git started."

"All right, I won\'t disturb him."

Tom dressed, wondering vaguely what had brought his father home at such an unearthly hour and by such a trip across the country.

Andy, arrayed in a suit of broadcloth which he had appropriated from Norton\'s wardrobe in his absence, was waiting for Tom with evident impatience.

"Now, what I want to know is," the boy began, "what the devil you mean by pulling me out of bed this time of day?"

Andy chuckled:

"Well, yer see, sah, de major git home kinder sudden like en\' I wuz jest er little oneasy \'bout dis here new suit er close er mine——"

"Well, that\'s not the first suit of his clothes you\'ve swiped—you needn\'t be scared."

"Scared—who me? Man, I ain\'t er skeered er yo\' Pa."

Minerva banged the dining-room door and Andy jumped and started to run. Tom laughed and seized his arm:

"Oh, don\'t be a fool! There\'s no danger."

"Nasah—I knows dey\'s no danger—but"—he glanced over his shoulder to be sure that the master hadn\'t come down stairs—"but yer know de ole sayin\' is dat indiscretion is de better part er value——"

"I see!" Tom smiled in perfect agreement.

"An\' I des has er little indiscretion——"

"Oh, you make me tired, how can I help a coward?"

Andy looked grieved:

"Lordy, Mister Tom—don\'t say dat, sah. I ain\'t[Pg 264] no coward—I\'se des cautious. Ye know I wuz in dat fus\' battle er Bull\'s Run wid de major. I git separated from him in a close place an\' hatter move my headquarters. Dey said I wuz er coward den \'cause I run. But twan\'t so, sah! Twan\'t cause I wuz er coward. I knowed zactly what I wuz doin\'. I run \'cause I didn\'t hab no wings! I done de very bes\' I could wid what I had. An\' fuddermo\', sah, de fellers dat wuz whar I wuz en\' didn\'t run—dey\'s all dar yit at Bull\'s Run! Nasah, I ain\'t no coward. I des got de indiscretion——"

Another door slammed and Andy dodged.

"What\'s the matter with you anyhow, you old fool, are you having fits?" Tom cried.

Andy looked around the room cautiously and took hold of the boy\'s coat:

"You listen to me, Mister Tom. I\'se gwine tell yer somfin\' now——"

"Well?"

"I ain\'t er skeered er de major—but he\'s dangous——"

"Bosh!"

"Dey\'s sumfin\' de matter wid him!"

"Had a few mint juleps with a friend, no doubt."

"Mint juleps! Huh! He kin swim in \'em—dive in \'em an\' stay down er whole day an\' never come up ter blow his bref—licker don\'t faze him!"

"It\'s politics. He\'s leading this devilish campaign and he\'s worried over politics."

"Nasah!" Andy protested with a laugh. "Dem fool niggers des well give up—dey ain\'t gwine ter vote no mo\'. De odder feller\'s doin\' all de worryin\'. He ain\'t worrin\'——"[Pg 265]

"Yes, he is, too," the boy replied. "He put a revolver in his pocket when he started on that trip."

"Yassah!" Andy laughed. "I know, but yer don\'t understan\'. Dat pistol\'s his flatform!"

"His platform?"

"You ain\' hear what he bin er doin\' wid dat pistol?"

"No—what?"

"Man erlive, yer des oughter see \'im yistiddy when I take \'im dem papers ter dat speakin\', down in one er dem po\' white counties full er Radicals dat vote wid niggers. Er Kermittee comes up an\' say dat de Internal Constertooshion er de Nunited States give \'em free speech an\' he gwine ter hear from \'em. De Lordy, man, but his bristles riz! I \'lows ter myself, folks yer sho is thumpin\' de wrong watermillion dis time!"

"And what did he say to the Committee?"

"I nebber hear nary word. He des turn \'roun an\' step up on dat flatform, kinder peart like, an\' yer oughter see \'im open dat meetin\'"—Andy paused and broke into a loud laugh.

"How did he open it?" Tom asked with indulgent interest.

Andy scratched his woolly head:

"Well, sah, hit warn\'t opened wid prayer—I kin tell ye dat! De fust thing he done, he reach back in his britches, kinder kereless lak, an\' pull dat big pistol an\' lay hit down afore him on\' de table beside his pitcher er lemonade. Man, you oughter see de eyes er dat crowd er dirty-lookin\' po\' whites! Dey fairly popped outen der heads! I hump myself an\' move out towards de outskirts——"

Tom smiled:

"I bet you did!"[Pg 266]

"Oh, I didn\'t run!" Andy protested.

"Of course not—far be it from you!"

"Nasah, I des tucken drawed out——"

"I understand, just a little caution, so to speak!"

"Yassah—dat\'s hit! Des tucken drawed out, whar I\'d have elbow room in de mergency——"

"In other words," the boy interrupted, "just used a little indiscretion!"

Andy chuckled:

"Yassah! Dat\'s hit! Well, sah, he pat dat pistol kinder familious like an\' say: \'Ef dey\'s any er you lowlife po\' white scoundrels here ter-day that don\'t want ter hear my speech—git! But ef yer stay an\' yer don\'t feel comfortable, I got six little lead pills here in a box dat\'ll ease yer pain. Walk right up to de prescription counter!\'"

"And they walked right up?"

"Well, sah, dey didn\'t crowd up!—nasah!" Andy paused and laughed immoderately. "An\' wid dat he des folded his arms an\' look at dat crowd er minute an\' his eyes began to spit fire. When I see dat, I feels my very shoes commin\' ontied. I sez ter myself, now folks he\'s gwine ter magnify——"

Tom laughed:

"Magnified, did he?"

The negro\'s eyes rolled and he lifted his hands in a gesture of supreme admiration:

"De Lordy, man—ef he didn\'t! He lit inter dem po\' white trash lak er thousand er brick——"

"Give \'em what Paddy gave the drum, I suppose?"

"Now yer talkin\', honey! Ef he didn\'t give \'em particular hell!"

"And what happened?"[Pg 267]

"Nuttin\' happened, chile—dat\'s what I\'m tryin\' ter tell ye. Nary one of \'em nebber cheeped. Dey des stood dar an\' listened lak er passel er sheep-killin\' dogs. Lemme tell ye, honey, politics ain\'t er worryin\' him. De odder fellers doin\' all de worrin\'. Nasah, dey\'s sumfin else de matter wid de major——"

"What?"

Andy looked around the room furtively and whispered:

"Dar\'s a quare look in his eye!"

"Ah, pooh!"

"Hit\'s des lak I tells ye, Mister Tom. I ain\'t seed dat quare look in his eye before since de night I see yo\' Ma\'s ghost come down outen dat big picture frame an\' walk cross dis hall——"

The boy smiled and looked at the shining yellow canvas that seemed a living thing gleaming in its dark setting:

"I suppose, of course, Andy, you really saw her do that?"

"\'Fore God, es sho\'s I\'m talkin\' ter you now, she done dat thing—yassah! Hit wus de las\' year befo\' you come back frum college. De moon wuz shinin\' froo dem big windows right on her face, an\' I seed her wid my own eyes, all of a sudden, step right down outen dat picture frame an\' walk across dis room, huggin\' her baby close up in her arms—an\' you\'se dat very baby, sah!"

The boy was interested in the negro\'s weird recital in spite of his amusement. He shook his head and said laughingly:

"Andy, you\'ve got the heat——"

"Hit\'s des lak I tells ye, sah," Andy solemnly repeated.[Pg 268] "I stood right dar by dat table froze in my tracks, till I seed her go froo dat do\' widout openin\' it——"

"Bah!" Tom cried in disgust.

"Dat she did!—an\' Miss Minerva she see her do dat same thing once before and tell me about it. But man erlive, when I see it, I let off one er dem yells dat wuz hark from de tomb——"

"I bet you did!"

"Yassah, I went froo dat big window dar an\' carry de whole sash wid me. De major he take out atter me when he hears de commotion, an\' when he kotch me down dar in de fiel\' I wuz still wearin\' dat sash fer a necktie!"

The boy laughed again:

"And I suppose, of course, he believed all you told him?"

The negro rolled his eyes solemnly to the ceiling and nodded his head:

"Dat he did, sah. When I fust told \'im dat I seed er ghost, he laft fit ter kill hissef——"

The boy nodded:

"I don\'t doubt it!"

"But mind ye," Andy solemnly continued, "when I tells him what kin\' er ghost I seed, he nebber crack anudder smile. He nebber open his mouf ergin fer er whole day. An\' dis here\'s what I come ter tell ye, honey——"

He paused and glanced over his shoulder as if momentarily fearing the major\'s appearance.

"I thought you\'d been telling me?"

"Nasah, I ain\'t told ye nuttin\' yit. When I say what kine er ghost I see—dat quare look come in his[Pg 269] eye—de same look dat come dar yistiddy when I tells \'im dat Miss Helen wuz here."

The boy looked at Andy with a sudden start:

"Ah, how could that sweet little girl upset him? He\'s her guardian\'s attorney and sent for her to come, of course——"

"I don\'t know \'bout dat, sah—all I know is dat he went wil\' es quick es I tells \'im, an\' he bin wil\' ever since. Mister Tom, I ain\'t skeered er de major—but he\'s dangous!"

"Ah, Andy, you\'re the biggest fool in the county," the boy answered laughing. "You know my father wouldn\'t touch a hair of your kinky head."

Andy grinned.

"\'Cose not, Mister Tom," he said with unction. "I knows dat. But all de same I gotter keep outen his way wid dis new suit er close till I see \'im smilin\'——"

"Always bearing in mind that indiscretion is the better part of value!"

"Yassah—yassah—dat\'s hit—an\' I wants you ter promise you\'ll stan\' by me, sah, till de major\'s in a good humor."

"All right; if you need me, give a yell."

Tom turned with a smile to go, and Andy caught his sleeve and laughed again:

"Wait—wait er minute, Mister Tom—hold yer hosses. Dey\'s anodder little thing I wants ye ter help me out erbout. I kin manage de major all right ef I kin des keep outen his sight ter-day wid dis suit er clothes. But de trouble is, I got ter wear \'em, sah—I got er \'pintment wid er lady!"

The boy turned good-naturedly, threw his leg over[Pg 270] the corner of the table and raised his eyebrows with a gleam of mischief:<............