The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1875-03-13
rConclatded from First Pare. !


barn as though he were a sneak thief, and
then hurried home as fast as he could, not
once thinking of his birdie. He had hardly
got seated IN his usual place in the big arm
chair before Philip came in. Philip ex-
pected his father would say, gruffly sit is
high time you were in bed" And so he was
taken by surprise when his father said
gently;
"Won't you hand me the almanac before
you sit down, Philip"
Philips mother raised her eyes from her
sewing and glanced at her husband as though
she wondered what had called forth such
unusual gentleness. Raymond opened the
almanac Of September, and, after glancing
down the page, he turned to his wife and
asked, as to-day the third or fourth Tues
day of the monthf"
1.-The fourth" she replied. "To-morrow
is the last day of the month";"
'Are you quite sure about it ? he queried
''if you are correct, / am a week behind
hand in my reckoning. I've had so many
things crowding upon me lately, I've hardly
known which way to turn first Ipromised
Mr., Skidmore that would take that two
year-old heifer away that ! bought of him
before the first of October. She must be
got home tomorrow"
Philip got up to go to bed. Raymond
said:
"Dont hurry, Philip; I'm thinking how
to get that heifer home. l believe l will
take you down there early in the morning,
and leave you to drive her up. 1t is nine
miles there, but you can come back leis-
urely, and feed along side the road. You'd
like it as well as to stay at home and work,
wouldn't you, Philip
ayes, SIR"
IL - I.1
He was in q quandary. Perhaps he had
better stay at home little longer and see
if things didn't seem more agreeable to him.
Maybe he had judged his father little too
harshly. Clinton Dexter could come to the
barn at midnight to meet him, and
Philip was arrested in his cogitations by
his father saying:
81 have so many cares, so many things
to think of, that l can hardly keep track of
my children's ages. believe, Philip, your
birthday comes the thirtieth of September,
doesn't itl'
s'Yes SIR"
"And so you will be fifteen years old to-
morrow. Well, well, it does beat all how
time flies. Fifteen years! 1t dosn't seem
more tn IN half that time since you were a
baby. Let me see. l believe promised
to let you go to Hartford this fall, didn't L?
Skidmores and seeing tomorrow is your
birthday, perhaps we had better keep on.
1 don't know as we had any better time to
leave. We can take an early start-have
breakfast at half-past five, and get off by
six. and by nine, if we have good luck, we
shall be there. We can stay there till three
o'clock in the afternoon, and you wouldn't
be late home. 1t will be light tomorrow
evening--there is a good moon, now. Well,
you may as well go to bed and get all the
sleep you can. shall call you at four
o'clock"
Philip started the second time to go, but
just as he got his hand on the latch his faith
err said:
"Wait minute, Philip. If you had
some one to keep you company from Skid
more's and help you to drive the heifer,
wouldn't mind staying till nearly night be-
Dexter would be willing TO walk up from
there with you and help drive her, if he
could go with US to Hartford, and spend
the day. If you think that he would, and
you would like to have him go, you may
run over to Mr.. Dexters and tell him that
if it is convenient for him to spare Clinton
l would like to have him go to Hartford
with us, tomorrow, and walk home from
Skidmore's with you in the evening. And
be sure and tell Clinton, if his father con-
sents to his going, that we will call for him
as early as six o'clock"
Philip said: "Yes, sir" and took up his
hat and went into the hall; but before he
got to the outside door, his father called
out.
"One thing more, Philip. l left my bri-
die hanging on bar post down by the sheep
barn, this afternoon. If you'll come back
tIa 1ota a hr;p
ing for it in the morning. l intended to get
it myself when came home from Mr.. Dex-
ter's but it slipped my mind"
'Lucky thing it did, Philip said to him
self as he stepped out of the door. "If he
had come around that way home and heard
Clint and tai ling in that barn 1 guess he
wouldn't be in quite so gentle mood to-
night. He would have given me 'Hail Col
umbia' right and left and Clint would have
Jared worse than I, for when his fathers
back is up he's as savage as tiger. Strange
what has come over father tonight! no.
ticed that mother was surprised to see him
so much more social and gentle than COM
mon."
On his way over to Mr.. Dexter's Philip
had as great variety of feelings and as
great a conflict with them as his father had
while standing behind the barn door; but
before he got there the summing up was
that he was an ungrateful scamp, and that
his father was ali right; only he had so
many cares and anxieties that it sometimes
made him little stern and grabbed.
Mr.. Dexter was always ready to oblige
his neighbor Raymond, and he cheerfully
gave his consent to Clinton's going. Clin-
ton didn't know what to make of this sud-
den turn of affairs. As he went with Philip
to the door, he whispered: tf
"Whats up, Phil? what has happened?
Has your father found out anything?"
"Not thing--not a thing" Philip hur-
redly whispered back. 'You don't sup
pose, Clint, he'd be taking us to Hartford,
Tomorrow, if he had? It's all right, but it's
the strangest thing that ever happened-I'll
tell you all about it, to-morrow-can't stay
long enough now"
Mr.. Raymond took up newspaper and
bowed his head over it as soon as his son
started for Mr.. Dexter's but if his wife had
observed BIN closely, she would have seen
that he did very little reading, and that
there was troubled expression on his
countenance. He did not raise his eyes
from the paper when he heard returning
footsteps, but he listened very intently,
and he knew tnat Philip stole softly and
hurriedly to the back end of the hall,
and opened the chamber door
before he came over the sitting room.
A look of relief came into his face,
and he Strengthened up as if a great burden
had been lifted from him. He had no doubt
but that bundle of clothing had been brought
up from the oat bin and left on the chamber
stairs till Philip should go to bed That is
what he hoped his boy would do when he
asked him to come around by the barn and
get the halter. He had nc further fear that
he would attempt to give him the slip that
night
Mr.. Raymond and Philip rode up 10 Mr..
Dexters door for Clinton, the next morning,
Just as the sun was peeping over the hills.
1t was as delightful September morning
as they could desire. AS soon as they were
on the road Mr.. Raymond said