[Illustration: Small Party:--"I'm a poor man, sir, with a large family, sir, an' I'd be very thankful for any small jobs, sir, like givin' you sparrin' lessons, or massage, or takin' care of the furnace, sir!" Editor W. W.:--"Well, call in again, Professor. This is my busy day."] [Illustration: Editor W. W.:--"_Come in!!_"] [Illustration] [Illustration: _The Kidnapping of Private Jean François: a frontier episode of the next war._] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration: _A low down trick or Louisa's capitulation._] [Illustration] [Illustration: "Dat's a bad trick yo' muel Louisa's got, Brer Jackson!" "I done bruk ebery shubel an' broom on de place on dat muel an' kyant cure her, Brer Peters." "I kin, Brer Jackson!" "Brer Peters, ef you cure that muel I gwine giv' yo' two pullets an' a water-million."] [Illustration: "I'se gwine off heah in de bushes, an' ef yo' a honorable muel like w'at you looks like, yo' gwine to stan' still, an' no pullin' on dat ole rope, w'at ain't strong, nohow; you heah me?"] [Illustration: "Look a' dat, Brer Jackson; look a' dat!" "Ki, Brer Peters, ain' she a-gwine?"] [Illustration: "Is yo' hurt, Louisa? Po' Louisa! I reely 'stonished w'en I see yo' git a fall like dat." "Did yo' foots slip, Louisa? W'at make yo' jump in de water dat-a-way?" "_Po' Louisa!_"] [Illustration: "Louisa look kin' a down-hearted Brer Jackson." "Dey ain' no mo' pull back in that muel; I jist keep de blinkers on her and tie her wif a piece of cotton thread dese days."] [Illustration: _A tale of two tails._] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] [Illustration] * * * * * Transcriber's Notes: Italic text is denoted by _underscores_. The spelling inconsistencies of the original have been retained in this book. Obvious printing mistakes have been corrected. Page 4, "Francois" changed to "François." Page 12, single opening quotation mark changed to double opening quotation mark. Page 60, closing quotation mark added. Page 77, closing quotation mark placed at the end of the sentence. Page 78, opening quotation mark added. End of Project Gutenberg's The Bull Calf and Other Tales, by A. B. Frost