"Wa'al," remarked Mr. Kimball, as he came home from Hank Mack's store, one cold night, stamping the snow from his boots in the wood-shed, "wa'al, I hope it's cloudy t'-morrow."
"Why?" asked Roger, who thought the more sun there was in winter the better it must be.
"Why? So's thi' b'ar won't see his shadder."
"What if he does see his shadow?"
"Land a' Goshen, th' boy never hearn tell a' Candlemas Day," ejaculated Mr. Kimball. "You see," he explained, "there's an ole sayin' 'n' I got it from my granddad, thet goes suthin' like this: Candlemas Day, half yer pork, 'n' half yer hay.' Thet means, 'cordin' t' my way a' thinkin' thet t'-morrow's 'bout th' middle a' winter, 'n' a keerful farmer'll only hev half his produce eat up. Ye know b'ars go inter holler logs t' sleep all winter. Come February second, which is Candlemas Day, there's a theory they come out t' see how th' weather is.
"Ef th' sun shines so's t' throw a shadder on th' ground, it skeers th' b'ar so, he skedaddles back inter his holler log, 'n' sleeps fer six weeks more, durin' which time we hev winter. But, ef th' sun don't shine, 'n' thar ain't no shadder, th' b'ar's satisfied. He don't git skeered, 'n' only goes back in his log fer four weeks more sleep, which means an early spring. So ye see why I don't want th' sun t' shine t'-morrow."
"I see," laughed Roger, as Mr. Kimball finished his explanation. "Will you have half your pork and half your hay left by to-morrow?"
"I calalate so," responded Mr. Kimball, "I calalate so."
The sun didn't shine next day, and Mr. Kimball was happy. For the following few days it snowed, and Roger began to feel that there would be several months more of winter, instead of the proverbial four weeks, but his uncle didn't seem to worry.
Whether it was due to the bear's action or not, there was an early spring that year. The bluebirds came about the middle of March, and farmers began their plowing several weeks ahead of the usual time. Every one was glad that winter was over, though Roger and the other boys in Cardiff had enjoyed it very much, and many of them wished for a second contest with the bobs down Lafayette hill. Gradually the days got warmer, and the damp earth gave out a pleasant odor that promised a ready sprouting of the seeds.