“Waal, strange ez it may seem,” she said, tossing her hair backward, and the breeze, catching the locks, flung them gayly about, “I kin live without it. An’ I hev hearn ye talk ’bout yer feelin’s an’ sech till thar’s mighty leetle entertainment lef’ in ’em. An’ treatin’ this hyar leetle chile mean, till he looks ter be beat ef a body glances thar eye at him, ’pears ter me mightily of a piece with bein’ the captain o’ a gang o’ lynchers an’ sech evil doin’s.” There was a momentary silence. Her eyes, restless, unseeing, wandered vaguely over the broad brown expanse of valley and mountain. Once more she bethought herself of the sheep, and poured the salt out of the gourd on the ground. The excitement of the moment pulsed heavily in her temples; she felt a gnawing pain at her heart, and she was unhappy. The cause of all this trouble hardly comported himself in a congruous manner. Bob was relieved when her attention was diverted from him, and gave a fat little sigh of content. He sat for a moment quite still, looking very rotund in build, contemplating the resources of the scene for juvenile enjoyment. Then leaning forward, he placed his broad white wool hat on the unsuspecting head of a sheep near at hand, and it was difficult to say whether the smothered “baa” that proceeded from the eclipsed beast, or its groping as it rose to its feet, or its unique aspect as it stood, with the hat on its head, uncertain what might ensue, was the chief factor in eliciting a low, jovial chuckle from the distended gleeful lips. But neither of his elders noticed the wiles of the callow martyr, for Jepson’s attention was fixed upon the revelation contained in Marcella’s last words, and she, realizing now their full significance, was nervously biting her lips in futile regret that they had thence escaped.