The servant of the "Gov'mint" stood and stared down at the limp little roll of bills in his hand; he stared until something caught in his throat and made him gulp again noisily. But his face was shamelessly defiant of the mist that smarted under his eyelids when he looked up again. "Take care of her?" he whispered. "Me take care of her for you? Why--why, Godfrey--why, man----" He dashed one hand across his eyes. "I'm a old gossipy fool," he exclaimed. "Nothin' but a old gossipy fool; but I reckon you don't hev to _count_ them bills over before you leave 'em with me. Not unless you want to. I've been just an ordinary, common waggle-tongue. That's what I really come for in such a hurry tonight, once I'd thought of it. Jest to see if I couldn't nose around into business that wa'n't no concern of mine. But I'm gittin' over that--I'm gittin' over that fast! Learning a little dignity of bearin', too, as you might say. And I don't deny I ain't a little curious yet--more'n a little curious. But I want to tell you this: There's some folks that lies mostly for profit, and some that lies largely for their own amusement, and they both do jest about as much damage in the long run, and I ain't no better, jest because I never made nothin' outen mine. But if you could kinda drop me a line, maybe once in a while, and tell me how you're gittin' on, I'd be mighty glad to hear. An' it wouldn't do no harm, either." He nodded his head, in turn, in the direction of the drab cottage across the valley. "Because--because she's goin' to be waitin' to hear--she's goin' to be sorry, and kinda wonderin'. I know--well, jest because I know!" Still he lingered, with his fingers on the door catch. He shoved out his free hand. "I--I suppose we'd ought to shake hands, hedn't we," he faltered; "bein' as it's kinda considered the reg'lar and customary thing to do on such occasions?" Denny was smiling as his hand closed over those clawlike fingers; he was smiling in a way that Old Jerry had never seen before. Because the noise in his throat was growing alarmingly louder every moment, the latter went on talking almost wildly, to cover that weakness which he could not control. "I hope you git on," he said. "And I reckon you will. It's funny--it's more'n that--and I don't know where I got the idea. But it's kinda come to me, somehow, that maybe it was that account in the paper--that story of Jeddy Conway--that's set you to leavin'. It ain't none of my business, and I ain't askin' no questions, but I do want to say that there never was a time when you couldn't lick the everlastin' tar outen him. And you've growed some since then. Jest a trifle--jest a trifle!" The boy's smile widened and widened. Then he laughed aloud softly and nodded his head. "I'll send you the papers," he promised. "I'll send you all of them."