“Every day, if you’ve a mind to. It certainly improves your appearance. Don’t you feel good?”
“Yessirree! Jes’ like a mockin’ bird sounds on a mornin’ in May when his wife wants him to come on and help her build the nes’ aginst the time when she has got to lay the eggs, and he wants to sing all day and jes’ use las’ year’s nes’. Don’t know as we uns ever did feel quite so like a—a—gentleman.”
“Good for you, Josh! Now put on your clothes. Here’s a towel. We’ve got a lot of work to do to-day, and you and Josephus must help.”
“All right, sir! Wish Josephus could a had the beatin’ we uns done got. ’Twould sho have made him feel like he had a extra feedin’ er oats. We uns is ’bliged to you uns, sir. You uns done made a gentleman out’n we uns an’ mebbe a few more showers will turn we uns into a nigger lover,” and Josh’s blue eyes twinkled merrily from the setting of a clean, pink face.
Bobby was the only person not pleased by the improvement in Josh. “Grown-ups is all time wantin’ to clean up folks. Josh was a million times prettier dirty, an’ now he can’t make choclid milk no mo’. I think Cousin Lewis is done ruint him.”
After that morning, whenever Josh was wanted and not to be found he could usually be discovered taking a shower bath. He evidently felt he must make up for lost time, all those years when he had gone crusty, as he expressed it.
CHAPTER XIV.
THE WEEK-ENDERS.
“If the weather only holds!” exclaimed Douglas. “This first week-end is the most important of all. If the boarders have a good time they will want to come back, and then they will give us such a good name that others will want to come, too.”