'Waal, the Squair, he put his nose inter his book agin, an' then he 'lowed he'd hear Gid Fletcher's say-so. An' Gid—waal, he'll be mighty good metal fur the devil's anvil; I feel it in my bones how Satan will rej'ice ter draw Gid Fletcher down small—he got up an' 'lowed ez pa'son an' his uncle an' his gran'dad didn't wuth two thousand dollars. They hed what they hed all tergether, an' 'twarn't enough—'twarn't wuth more'n a thousan', ef that. An' so the Squair—waal, he looked toler'ble comical, a-nosin' in his book an' a-polishin' off the torp o' his head with his red handkercher, an' he war ez oneasy an' onsartain in his actions ez a man consortin' accidentally with a bumbly bee. He tried 'em all powerful in thar temper, bein' so gin over ter backin' an' fo'thin'; but ez he war the jestice they hed ter sot 'round an' look solemn an' respec'ful. An' at las' he said he couldn't accept the bail, ez 'twar insufficient. The dep'ty looked like h'd jump up and down, an' crack his heels together; 'peared like he war glad fur true. An' the Squair, he 'lowed ez the rescue war a crime ez mought make a jestice keerful how he tuk insufficient bail. Ennybody ez would holp a man ter escape from cust'dy would jump his bond hisself, though he war toler'ble keerful ter explain ter pa'son ez he never ondertook ter charge nuthin' on him, nuther. An' he hed ter bear in mind ez he oc'pied a m-m-mighty important place in the l-law—though I can't see ez it air so mighty important ter h-h-hev ter say, "I dunno; let the court decide."'
Amos James remembered the hopper at last. He turned, and, as he lifted a bag and poured in the corn, he asked, his eyes on the golden stream of grain:
'An' what did pa'son say when he fund it out?'
Pete Cayce laughed, his big teeth making the facetious demonstration peculiarly pronounced. He was looking out of the window, through the leafy bough of the overspreading chestnut-oak, at the deep, transparent water in the pond. The dark, lustrous reflection of the sassafras and huckleberry bushes on the summit of the vertical rocky bank was like some mezzotinted landscape under glass. A frog on one of the ledges at the waterside was a picture of amphibious content; sometimes his mouth opened and shut quickly, with an expression, if not beautiful, implying satisfaction. Pete lazily caught up a stick which he had been whittling. The slight missile flew through the air, catching the light as it went. Its aim was accurate, and the next moment the monotony of the placid surface was broken by the elastically widening circles above the spot where the frog jumped in.
'The pa'son,' he said languidly, having satisfactorily concluded this exploit—'at fust it looked like the c-critter couldn't make it out—he 'peared toler'ble peaked an' white-faced, but the way he behaved ter the sher'ff 'minds me o' the tales the old men tell 'bout'n Hangin' Maw an' Bloody Feller, an' them t'other wild Injuns that useter aggervate the white folks in the Big Smoky—proud an' straight, an' lookin' at 'Cajah Green ez ef he war jes' the dirt under his feet. Waal, pa'son 'lowed, calm an' quiet, ez I'd be skinnin' a deer or suthin', ez he'd ruther be obligated ter his own f-folks fur that holp, but ez that couldn't be he'd git bail from others. 'Twarn't m-much matter jes' till he could 'pear 'fore the court, fur nuthin' could be easier'n ter prove ez he hedn't rescued Rick Tyler, nor never gin offence agin the law. An' he turned round ez s-s-sure an' quiet ter Pa'son Tobin, who hed kem along ter see what mought be a-doin', an' sez he, "B-Brother Jake Tobin, you-uns an' some o' the c-church folks, I know, will be 'sponsible fur the bail." An' ef ye'll b'lieve me, Brother Jake Tobin, he got up slanch-wise, and in sech a hurry the cheer fell over ahint him; an' sez he, "Naw, brother—I will call ye brother,"—like that war powerful 'commodatin'—"I kin not sot my p-people ter do sech, arter yer words yestiddy. We kin lose no money by ye—the church air pore an' the cause air needy. I kin only pray fur the devil ter l-loose his holt on ye, f-fur I perceive the devil in ye." Waal, sir,' continued Pete, drawing a plug of tobacco from his pocket, and gnawing on it with tugging persistence, 'Christian perfesser ez I be, I felt sorter 'shamed o' Brother J-Jake Tobin—he looked s-s-sech a skerry h-half-liver, 'feard o' losin' money! Shucks! I could sca'cely keep my hands off 'n him. He looked so—so cur'ous, I wanted ter—ter'—he remembered the reverence due to the cloth—'ter trip him up,' he concluded temperately. 'An' then, ez he war a-whurlin' his fat sides around ter pick up the cheer, Pa'son K-Kelsey—he hed t-turned plumb bleached, like a corpse—he stood up, an' sez, "The Lord hev fursaken me!" An' Brother Jake Tobin humps around, with the cheer in his hand, an' sez, "Naw, brother, naw, ye hev fursook the Lord!"'
'Waal,' said the man on the bag of corn, gazing meditatively at the dusty floor and at a great yellow cur who had ventured within, as a shelter from the mid-day heat, and lay at ungainly length asleep near the door, 'I dunno ez I kin blame Brother Jake Tobin. 'Twould hev made a mighty scandal ter keep Pa'son Kelsey in the church, arter what he said agin' the faith. We'll hev ter turn him out; an' ez he air ter be turned out, I dunno ez the church members hev enny call ter go on his bond. He air none o' we-uns, nowadays.'
'Leastwise none o' 'em war a-goin' t-ter do it,' said Pete quietly. 'They air all mindful o' Brother Jake Tobin's longest ear, ez kin hear a call from the church yander in Cade's Cove ev'y time he g-gits mad at 'em. But I tell ye,' added Pete, restoring his plug of tobacco to his pocket, and chewing hard on the bit which his strong teeth had wrenched off, 'it did 'pear to me ez they mought hev stretched a p'int when I see the pa'son ridin' off with them two sneakin' off'cers. He hed so nigh los' his senses with the notion he war a-goin' ter be jailed ez they had ter hold him up in the saddle, else he'd hev been under the beastis's huffs in a minute.'
'Whyn't you-uns go on his bond?' asked Amos James suddenly.
'Who?' shouted Pete, in stentorian amaze, above the clamour of the old mill.
'You-uns—the whole Cayce lay-out,' reiterated Amos James.