"Shady shot the mother," Knight explained, and then wished he had not,--Blue Bonnet looked so grieved. "She killed a calf a few nights ago," he said in extenuation, "and Shady was 'laying for' her. She made for her hole after she was wounded and we followed,--that's how we came to find the pups. Lucky we did or they'd have had a hard time of it." "Poor babies," said Blue Bonnet. "Let's go and show them to Grandmother and Debby--I reckon they never saw a real live coyote before. Here, Sarah, you carry one." She generously held out one of the bright-eyed babies, but to her surprise Sarah drew back. "Why, you can't be afraid, Sarah?" "N-no," Sarah replied, edging away as she spoke. "But I don't like to touch--live animals." "Well, I'd much rather touch live ones than dead things!" exclaimed Blue Bonnet. "Here, Alec, you take the poor baby--Sarah doesn't know how to mother it!" Grandmother and Debby were rather lukewarm in their praise, Blue Bonnet thought, when the coyotes were brought to them on the veranda. Grandmother did not look in the least delighted when the two sharp-nosed, long-haired puppies were dropped into her lap; and finally Blue Bonnet gathered them both in her arms, declaring that nobody knew how to appreciate real Texas babies except herself. "I'm going to keep them always," she said. "And Don and Solomon will just have to be reconciled." "Have you asked your uncle if he is willing for you to keep two such pets?" her grandmother asked. Blue Bonnet looked over to Uncle Cliff and laughed. "Asked Uncle Cliff? Why, Grandmother, I brought him up and he knows better than to oppose me at this late day!" Uncle Cliff smiled back at her whimsically. "I hope I'm a credit to your training! Two new pets is quite a modest demand. I've known her to have a dozen or two at a time. One summer she had twin lambs, a magpie, a lizard, bunnies--" "Don't forget the snakes," Blue Bonnet interrupted. "Blue Bonnet Ashe--you never made pets of snakes!" gasped Debby. "Three of them; beauties, too," Blue Bonnet replied. "Weren't you afraid of them?" Sarah asked wonderingly. "These were perfectly harmless; nobody should be afraid of such pretty little things. But the magpie had fits over them, so they had to go," Blue Bonnet remarked regretfully. "What became of the magpie?" asked Kitty. "Poor Mag died of curiosity," said Mr. Ashe. "She sampled some cyanide of potassium I had put out for ants. We had a most impressive funeral. You must get Blue Bonnet to show you her grave." "I will some day. We chose Mag's favorite spot--under a dewberry bush. Now what shall we call these cherubs?" "You've just called them 'Texas babies,' why not call one 'Texas?'" Knight suggested. "And the other 'Massachusetts,'" said Sarah.