That afternoon was a busy one for all on that mountain side. Gwen gave the cabin a thorough cleaning, washed all the dishes and put papers on the shelves that were already in the cabin, unpacked the provisions and placed them with the dishes neatly on the shelves and in the old cupboard that still stood in the corner, left there by the Englishman. She went back to her home for yeast and made up a sponge, planning to have hot rolls for breakfast.
Josephus showed the mettle of his pasture by scraping and dumping about three times as much dirt in an hour as the two West Pointers had been able to move in a whole morning’s work. Josh did very spirited driving, pretending all the time that his steed had to be handled very carefully or he would run away, road-shovel and all.
“How did your mule happen to have one leg shorter than the other?” teased Lewis.
“Wal, that’s a mounting leg. He got that walkin’ round the mounting. All critters in the mountings is built that a way. Ain’t you an’ Mr. Bill there a-planning that there buildin’ after we unses’ mule, with short legs up the hill an’ long legs down?”
Bill almost fell out of the poplar tree where he had climbed to saw off limbs for twenty feet or more. He laughed so loud and long at the way Josh had gotten ahead of his friend in repartee that Gwen came out of the cabin to see what was the matter. Bill’s laugh was a very disconcerting thing until you got used to him.
That first day showed much accomplished. The excavating was half done; the post holes were dug and logs cut and trimmed and planted ready for the beams. A load of lumber arrived before sundown and that meant no delay in the to-morrow’s work.
Six o’clock found them very tired and hungry but Gwen had supper all ready for them, a great dish of scrambled eggs and flannel cakes. She had brought from home a pitcher of milk that stayed delightfully cool in the mountain spring.
“There’ll be buttermilk to-morrow,” she said, blushing with pleasure at the praise the young men bestowed on her culinary efforts.
“Splendid and more splendid!” exclaimed Lewis. “And will you and your brother just come every day and take care of us?”
“You mean Josh? He is not my brother.”