'No, my boy; but we have all finished breakfast, and as I felt sure you must be ravenous after your long fast, I thought it wiser to wake you up. You'll like to have a wash and a brush, and then come into the kitchen.'
'Thank you, sir,' said Jack, following him, and after a good wash in a big basin of clear creek water, he felt quite refreshed and terribly hungry.
'There's the kitchen,' said Mr. Stuart, pointing to a door; 'find your way in there and they'll give you your breakfast. I must go to the corral.'
Jack walked to the house and knocked shyly at the door before entering. Mrs. Stuart opened it and gave him a welcome.
'Come in, come in, Jack,' she said; 'I hope you are quite rested. I saw you last night, but you were so tired and fast asleep, we decided not to wake you up. We are very glad to see you here, and when you have had your breakfast, you must make friends with my little boy and girl. Look after him well, Martha,' she said, as she turned to leave the room, 'and give him plenty to eat.'
'I'll see to him, marm,' said the servant, who was a rough girl, but good-nature itself. She proceeded to heap his plate with food, and poured him out a cup of nice hot coffee, which smelt delicious to the hungry boy. She was very proud of her hot buckwheat cakes, and Jack did ample justice to them, smothered as they were in butter and syrup.
When he had finished, he pleased Martha very much by helping her to wash up the breakfast-things, and she was surprised and delighted to find how careful he was in drying and putting by the cups and saucers tidily in the cupboards.
He carried her in some buckets of water from the creek, and cleaned the knives.
'Is there anything else for me to do?' he asked presently.
'Can you work a bucksaw?' she said dubiously.