“Thank you, Miss Carey,” says Edmund, “and please excuse us for troubling you.” So he leads the way back into the store and goes behind his desk. If anybody expected him to make another speech they was disappointed. Edmund looked cold and ca’m, and just as unconcerned as though he’d been addin’ sums or readin’ a two-weeks-old newspaper. He starts writin’ at his ledger.
“Well, I’ll be late for dinner,” says the Texan.
“I told y’u where it was,” says another.
One by one they shuffles out, Jake and Baldy mixed in with them, and they swings up on to their horses and slowly goes away—up the river and down the river and acrost the bridge—till y’u could see none of em no more through the fallin’ snow; and in the store was just Edmund writin’, and me lookin’ at him, and the sound of the rapids.
Did Edmund talk then? That wouldn’t have been Edmund. Nothin’ was said in that store by him or me for—well, it must have been quite a while before the door opened and Miss Carey she pokes her head in and wants to know if she may be so bold as to inquire what all that meant in the school-room. The kids had gone home early for fear of the snow. So Edmund he smiles perfectly peaceful and tells her about it. So, of course, she thinks it very comic and she laughs hearty—but all of a sudden she remembers and expresses sympathy for Edmund’s misplaced generosity.
“Don’t let that trouble you,” says he, gay enough. “I meant to grubstake ’em, and I will. It shall not cost ’em a cent. Don’t tell the poor old idiots.”
So that was that. But the poor old idiots had somethin’ more to say. They had a thought. It snowed away all that night—a great big snow—but next mornin’ it had quit and there was promise of its turnin’ into a fine large day. The kids had come to school pretty late, but they come. And then into the store walks Kultus Jake and Frisco Baldy. For a while they walks around and just inspects all the goods they knowed by heart anyway.
“Well?” says Edmund. And they looks at each other.
“Could we step into the school-room just a minute?” says Jake then.
Edmund he looks surprised, but asks no questions, and in we all goes. Miss Carey she gets up again.