"Give me that gun, Ham. Pick that one up, King." Both she handed to Pleasant, and then--no torrent came. She turned with a wave of her hand. "You can all go home now." There had been a moment of deadly quiet, but in the mountains even boys and girls do not take such events very seriously; the hubbub and tittering that had started again ceased again, and all left quickly and quietly--all but the teacher, Pleasant, and the two boys, for Polly too was moving away. King turned to go after her. "Wait a moment, King," said Miss Mary, and Polly cried fiercely: "He can stay till doomsday fer all o' me. I hain't goin' with ary one uv 'em." And she flirted away. "I am not going to talk to you two boys until to-morrow," said Miss Mary firmly, "and then I'm going to put a stop to all this. I want both of you to be here when school closes. I want you too, Pleasant, and I want you to bring Lum Chapman." Pleasant Trouble was as bewildered as the two shamefaced boys--did she mean to have him hold a gun on the two boys while Lum, the blacksmith, whaled them? "Me?--Lum?--why, whut----" "Never mind--wait till to-morrow. Will you all be here?" "Yes'm," said all. "Go with them up the river, Pleasant. Don't let them quarrel, and see that each one goes up his own creek." The two boys moved away like yoked oxen. At the bottom step Pleasant turned to look back. Very rigid and straight the little teacher stood under the lantern, and the pallor and distress of her face had given way to a look of stern determination. "Whew!" he breathed, and he turned a half-circle on his crutch into the dark. III