Part 41 (1/2)

”I s'pose the story'll go all over the country and make me ridic'lous,”

he said, gloomily. Feeling the corners of his mouth tenderly: ”I thought at first I'd choke to death before I'd let anybody see me. What I'll do to that cook,” his eyes gleaming, ”won't stand repeatin'. And if anybody dast say 'teeth' to me----”

”Whatever made you do it?”

Too angry for finesse, Pinkey replied bluntly:

”I done it fer you. I thought you'd like me better if I had teeth, and now I s'pose you can't ever look at me without laughin'.”

Miss Eyester flipped a bit of plaster from his s.h.i.+rtsleeve with her thumb and finger.

”I wouldn't do anything to hurt your feelings, ever.”

”Never?”

”Never.”

”Then don't you go ridin' again with that old gummer.”

”Do you care, really?” shyly.

”I'll tell the world I do!”

Miss Eyester fibbed without a pang of conscience:

”I never dreamed it.”

”I thought you wouldn't look at anybody unless they had money--you bein'

rich 'n' ever'thing.”

”In the winter I earn my living cataloguing books in a public library. I hate it.”

Pinkey laid an arm about her thin shoulders.

”Say, what's the chanct of gittin' along with you f'rever an' ever?”

”Pretty good,” replied Miss Eyester, candidly.

CHAPTER XXII

”KNOCKING 'EM FOR A CURVE”

It had been put to a vote as to whether the party should make the trip through the Yellowstone Park by motor, stopping at the hotels, or on horseback with a camping outfit.

Mr. Stott, after the persuasive manner in which he addressed a jury, argued:

”We can ride in automobiles at home. That is no novelty. Than horseback riding, there is no more healthful exercise. We are all agreed that we have had enough of hotels, while camping will be a new and delightful experience. In the brief period that we shall lie next to nature's heart we will draw strength from her bosom. By camping, we can loaf along in leisurely fas.h.i.+on, taking our own time for seeing the wonders of the Yellowstone, and fis.h.i.+ng.”

The programme he outlined was so sensible and attractive that everybody was in favour of it strongly except old Mr. Penrose, who declared that sleeping on the ground would give him rheumatism, and the fear that bugs would crawl in his ears made him restless. Mr. Stott, however, overcame his objection by a.s.suring him that the ground was too dry to give any one rheumatism and he could provide himself with cotton against the other contingency.

The outlook for a successful trip from every viewpoint was most promising, yet there were moments when Wallie had his doubts and misgivings. He supposed that it was his experience in dry-farming which had made him pessimistic concerning all untried ventures. Certainly it had destroyed his beautiful, child-like faith in the teaching that the hairs of his head were numbered and no harm could come to him. He had noticed that everyone who ever had dry-farmed carried the scars afterward. It was an unforgettable experience, like a narrow escape from lynching.