Elijah Butts’ eyes followed my fingers in a fascinated way; he could hardly believe his senses. “How did it get there?” he demanded.
“We moved it back,” I replied casually. “It was in the way of the maneuvers.”
Elijah Butts sputtered, choked, and was speechless.
But Miss Fairlee, the Commission lady, laughed until she had to grip the side of the buggy for support. “It’s the funniest thing I ever heard,” she gasped. “I’ve heard of the Mountain coming to Mahomet, but I never heard of the Mountain getting out of the road for Mahomet. Oh, Mr. Butts, I think the West is delightful. You people are so original and forceful!”
That took the wind out of Mr. Butts’ sails. What could he do after that neat little speech but take the compliment to himself and pass the matter off lightly?
The pageant was a wonderful success in spite of my misgivings. I didn’t forget to hand the torch to Columbia at the right moment and I didn’t forget to bring the brown stockings for little Lizzie Cooper, who was the Spirit of Nature, and I made fire with the bow and drill without any mishap. But one thing was a dreadful disappointment to me. Absalom Butts was not there, and I had no chance to work out my experiment on him. Where he was I couldn’t imagine. I had taken Clarissa home with me the night before to help me finish some things and she hadn’t seen him since he went home from school; Mr. Butts also said he didn’t know. He added, in a voice loud enough for Miss Fairlee to hear, that he would lick the tar out of him for not being in the patriotic pageant.
No one knew that I had picked Absalom in my mind to raise the flag. There had been much speculation about who was to have this honor and in order to keep everybody happy I said I would not announce this until the moment came. Then I planned to make a speech and award the honor to Absalom, thus singling him out for something besides punishment for once in his life. I had had him helping me for several days, and given him certain definite things to do on the great occasion and was much disappointed that he didn’t come to do them. Justice’s warning came back and I had an uneasy feeling that he was in hiding somewhere, plotting mischief.
I had a real inspiration, though, in regard to the flag raising. In a flowery speech I called upon Mr. Elijah Butts, the “President of the School Board and the most influential man in Spencer Township,” to perform that rite. He swelled up until he almost burst, like the frog in the fable, as he stood there, conscious of Miss Fairlee’s eye on him, with his great hairy hand on the pulley rope. Round the corner of the schoolhouse and hidden from view by the bush, I caught Justice Sherman’s eye and he applauded silently with his two forefingers, meaning to say that it was a master stroke on my part. Then he dropped his eye decorously and started the singing of the National Anthem.
The pageant ended up in a picnic supper eaten on the erstwhile parade ground, and then the people began to go home through the softly falling dusk. Miss Fairlee came to me and complimented me on the success of the pageant and asked to take some notes for future use; and Elijah Butts was quite cordial as he departed. I’ve discovered something to-day; if you want to win a person’s undying affection, single him out as the most important member of the bunch. He’ll fall for it every time. You note that I am talking about male persons, now.
“Well, the show’s over,” said Justice, when the last of the audience had departed. “Now the actors can take it easy. Come on, let’s get Sandhelo and go for a ride.”