Zenas Henry slapped the reins over the horse's flank and waited breathlessly, hoping some further comment would come from the little inventor, but as Willie remained silent, he at length could restrain his impatience no longer and ventured with diffidence: "S'pose you ain't got any notion what we could do about it, have you, Willie?" The old man shrugged his shoulders. "No, not the ghost," was his terse reply. That night, however, Celestina was awakened from her dreams by the ring of a hammer. She rose, and lighting her candle, tip-toed into the hall. It was one o'clock, and she could see that Willie's bedroom door was ajar and the bed untouched. With a little sigh she blew out the flame in her hand and crept back beneath the shelter of her calico comforter. She knew the symptoms only too well. Willie was once again "kitched by an idee!" CHAPTER III A NEW ARRIVAL The new idea, whatever it was, was evidently not one to be hastily perfected, for the next morning when Celestina went down stairs, she found the jaded inventor seated moodily in a rocking-chair before the kitchen stove, his head in his hands. "Law, Willie, are you up already?" she asked, as if unconscious of his nocturnal activities. The reply was a wan smile. "An' you've got the fire built, too," went on Celestina cheerily. "How nice!" "Eh?" repeated he, giving her a vague stare. "The fire?" "Yes. I was sayin' how good it was of you to start it up." The man gazed at her blankly. "I ain't touched the fire," he answered. "I might have, though, as well as not, Tiny, if I'd thought of it." "That's all right," Celestina declared, making haste to repair her blunder. "I've plenty of time to lay it myself. 'Twas only that when I saw you settin' up before it I thought mebbe you'd built it 'cause you were cold." "I was cold," acquiesced Willie, his eyes misty with thought. "But I warn't noticin' there was no heat in the stove when I drew up here." Celestina bit her lip. How characteristic the confession was! "Well, there'll be a fire now very soon," said she, bustling out and returning with paper and kindlings. "The kitchen will be warm as toast in no time. An' I'll make you some hot coffee straight away. That will heat you up. This northerly wind blows the cobwebs out of the sky, but it does make it chilly."