"That shows how much Mr. Antis thinks of him," said Osric Dennison. "He never would let Jerry Blythe drive the old gray. He thinks as much of that old horse as if it were a man."
"Good reason why, when it carried him all through the wars," said David. "But I don't think, boys, you need be in any hurry to pity Eben, or to look down on him, either. I guess you will find he will come out about as well as any of us."
Eben, on his part, did not find his place at all an unpleasant one. He had a good many different things to do, which used up his time and kept him busy, but none of them were hard or disagreeable, and some of them were very much to his taste. Especially did he like taking care of the garden. Eben had always been very fond of flowers, and Mrs. Antis had a beautiful collection of them. One day, Eben observed to her that the flower-beds needed weeding.
"Yes, the plants are getting smothered out of existence," said Mrs. Antis, "but I seem to get no time to attend to them."
"I might weed them this afternoon, if you like," suggested Eben. "The rain has softened the ground, so the weeds can be got up without disturbing the other things."
Mrs. Antis looked doubtful. "I don't know about setting you to work at my flower-beds, Eben. When boys get to weeding, they are apt to pull up plants as well as weeds."
"I guess I sha'n't do that," said Eben. "I weeded the onions all out yesterday, and I don't think I pulled up many of the plants."
"I dare say you will do it very well," said Mrs. Antis. "Anyhow, the poor plants might as well be pulled up, as run out by the weeds. I believe I am very ungracious, Eben, but the truth is I am so tired I can hardly breathe."
"No wonder, with so much company and all the work to do," said Eben. "I'm afraid you will be down sick if you don't get some one to help you. I wish I could do more. I don't believe but that I could get the breakfast as well as not, if you would only tell me what you want. Come, Mrs. Antis! Now, you lie in bed to-morrow morning, and let me try."
Mrs. Antis smiled in rather a tearful fashion, for she was nervous, and, as she said, fairly worn out.