As he entered the Squibbs' gateway he saw the girl and
Bridge standing upon the verandah waiting his coming,
and as he approached them and they caught a nearer
view of his great burden of provisions they hailed him
with loud acclaim.
"Some artist!" cried the man. "And to think that I
doubted your ability to make a successful touch! For-
give me! You are the ne plus ultra, non est cumquidibus,
in hoc signo vinces, only and original kind of hand-out
compellers."
"How in the world did you do it?" asked the girl,
rapturously.
"Oh, it's easy when you know how," replied The Oska-
loosa Kid carelessly, as, with the help of the others, he
carried the fruits of his expedition into the kitchen. Here
Bridge busied himself about the stove, adding more
wood to the fire and scrubbing a portion of the top plate
as clean as he could get it with such crude means as he
could discover about the place.
The youth he sent to the nearby brook for water after
selecting the least dirty of the several empty tin cans
lying about the floor of the summer kitchen. He warned
against the use of the water from the old well and while
the boy was away cut a generous portion of the bacon
into long, thin strips.
Pages:
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115