"An' with thet he sprung at me like a tiger, an' the Lord only knows 't was my great pity fer him thet held my hand. But he did n't touch me—oh, no! His hand dropped as if it had been shot, an', leanin' all white an' quiverin' up against the fence, he dropped his head onter his folded arms an' burst inter great sobs thet shook the rails. It was like one of them spring freshets thet tears up the face of nature, an' I knew he 'd be the better fer it, fer he was only a boy in his years, if he was a man in his love.
"'You ain't goin' ter let 'em go?' was the first words I could muster courage to say, as I see him turnin' back ter the pasture bars again.
"'Yes, I 'm goin' ter let them go—ter the devil,' he muttered, between his teeth; then, turnin' ter me, as cool an' calm as if there war n't a woman nor a sarpent in the world, he says:
"'You know, Si, there 's the colts ter be ketched, an' it's gettin' late.'
"An', by the Lord Harry, they was ketched! I never see sech racin' an' tearin' an' rarin'! He was all over the pasture ter once, so it seemed, headin' 'em off, hangin' on ter their manes, throwin' himself astride of fust one then 'nother. I thought the old pasture would be ploughed ready fer spring sowin', the way their heels tore up the sod. I dass n't help him fer I knew the madness thet had been on him, an' the heat he was in, was workin' off thet way. So I kept out of his way, an' within three quarters of an hour he 'd got those four colts well in hand an' started fer home.
"Mother told me the rest.
"'Job had two sinkin' spells thet Sunday afternoon,' she said, 'an' there war n't a drop of sperits in the house. I 'd used up the last of the elderberry wine,' she said, 'an' long 'bout three o'clock, I told Happy she 'd better run down to Seth White's an' get some brandy. She come back in a hurry an' said he had n't a drop of anything in the house, an' she 'd run down to the Crick House,—'t war n't more 'n a mile—an' get some.
"'Thet's the last I see of her till half past eight,' said mother, 'an' when she did come she was all of a shake. She said she 'd hurried so, an' had ter wait at the tavern till they 'd sent down ter the next village. I thought 't was kinder queer,' mother used ter say, 'fer 't was the fust time I 'd ever known the Crick House to run dry of a Sunday.
"'I did n't say nothin', but took the bottle an' started upstairs, leavin' her settin' there on the settle. Job was ramblin' some, an' Keziah had all she could do to keep him pacified.'
"George and me,"—Cale interrupted his story to explain to us,—"had moved Job over inter the north chamber over the kitchen, fer 't was handier ter tend him there; an' all the cookin' was done in the woodshed. But you could hear every sound in the kitchen plain as could be.