The record-union., 1898-02-21
He's the handiest boy 1 ever

ny nOt! SAID her mother, serene
ly.
| After supper Ada and her mother
drove to the village to concert, and
drove home in the moonlit stiffness OF
the evening. Sam Humphrey WAS
| waiting to put up the horse.
What made you?" Adas mother
! demonstrated. Il told you not to.
could have put the horse up as well as
not
| How they do spoil that boy,"
| thought Ada. The tramp" was get
| ting to be a real thorn in her flesh. But
she was too sleepy to dwell upon it. She
| got into bed without delay, and fell at
once into peaceful, dreamless sleep.
She woke suddenly and sat up, star
! ing before her. Something had awak-
] ened her. some unwonted sound. She
wondered if she had dreamed it-but
| it came again, soft scrapins, bump
| ing that seemed to come from directly
under her window.
! Her heart pounded in her ears. Her
| frightened impulse was to burrow into
her pillow and cover her head; but,
conquering it, she stepped out of bed
and stole to the open window.
! What she saw, with perfect plainness
/ in the clear moonlight made her
humping heart stand still. Against
! the house just under the window,
| long ladder rested; one man stood be
! side it, and on a lower rung stood an
other The sound of their muttered
| speech was distinct in her ears.
She tried to scream, but only a chok-
| ing sound came. She was almost too
terrified to stir, but she ran from the
room and into her mothers room, and
shook her until she wakened.
"Burglars." she painted. Her voice
forsook her. but she clutched her moth
er's arm. Her mother stared at her,
bewildered and incredulous.
They've got ladder" Ada gasped.
They're getting into my window"
Her mother sprang out of bed and
rushed across the hall. Shaking like
| leaf and with her knees weakly
trembling under her, Ada followed.
In the square of the window they
saw mans head blackly silhouetted
then his shoulders. Another moment
and the man would have been in the
room.
But of a sudden voice broke out on
the air: Get out of therei'' it shout
! ed. Get down and get out or I'll
fill you full of holes, both of you.'
In flash the mans head dropped
/ from view. Til count ten the voice
yelled, and unless you're both off these
premises by that time I'll shoot"
/ Ada's mother pointed with a shaking
/ hand at window in the wing of the
house plainly visible to them. It was
| that of Sam Humphreys room, and he
/ stood there, has head and shoulders
/ thrust out. He stood motionless: there
/ rested on his shoulder the butt of a
/ gun, pointed downward. and his eyes
/ We're on it's muZzle and his hand on
! the trigger. .One-two-three-' he
counted, none too slowly.
There was a sound of rushing steps
below; the ladder fell with a crash and
! they saw two figures, bent as If with
| fear of the well-aimed gun, run skulk-
| ing out of the yard and up the road.
They saw Sam Humphreys bound
! away from the window and heard him
pound through the farther hallway and
go tearing down stairs. He's going
after them," cried Ada's mother, ard
catching up a shawl and finging it
over her shoulders she sped down stairs
after him.
| Ada hung trembling over the banis-
| ters. You shall not go.' she heard
her mother say. NO, no. You, a
! boy. Suppose those men have pistols.
! You've saved our property, and our
lives too, maybe, who knows? and you
shan't risk your life chasing up those
men Ada's mother broke down in
tears of agitation, and thereby won the
day
All right, maam. if you feel So
said Sam Humphreys, but wouldn't I
like to land the pair of them in jail,"
/ There was no more sleep for any
body that night The hired girl, tar
dily awakened by the rumpus, came
hurrying in. enveloped in a blue coun-
/ terpane Ada and her mother made
hasty toilets. and then they all gath
cred in the sitting room and lighted the
lamp
You're completely dressed, Sam
Humphreys" said Adas mother.
Your shoes are laced. even. You
don't mean to say you hadn't gone to
bed? It's o'clock"
'I-no ma'am. / hadn't l was
sitting up. You see, ma'am-" He
turned to Ada Did you see that man
on the ladder? Did you see who II
was?' said he
No" Ada shuddered.
1T was the man that borrowed the
hammer last night" said Sam Hum
phreys. Ada stared "a him.
You see, said the boy, Il heard
( what he said when he asked you foi
it. and / thought he acted queer. il
| seemed 10 me he was trying to find
out if your father was going TO be
gone all night, and whether / was ali
| the hired man there was, and | prick@d
up my ears. That's why | was bound
to tag after him with the hammer. i
/ wanted TO see if 1t was all straight.
! well, there was wagon waiting
UP the road, and another man in II,
and they pottered around under the
wagon awhile, and tried to make out
/ there was a bolt loose somewhere and
that they'd fixed it. But I looked my
self. and / couldn't see any bolt loose,
and I thought the whole thing was
mighty funny. anyway.
Il didn't want to say anything TO the
rest Of you and scare you. | didn't
know but l was too suspicious. and /
didn't want to get you frightened for
nothing But | kept thinking about
Il. and I made up my mind to he good
and ready If anything did happen; and
so ! got that gun in shape, and oiled ii