something of the utmost importance to him, they argued. They could put the seed in as well without him as with him, which was doubtless as near the truth as anything could be. It was rather strange that, despite the rather explicit directions given him by the dilapidated bearer of the message — who, by the way, wouldn't look up and whose hat was down over his eyes, and his jaws tied up as though he had the toothache —-Bill Bailey should have gotten completely wound up and finally lost in the intricacy of mountain side-paths. The next morning on Bill's return, for he had been compelled to spend the night at one of the cabins, he was met by the invin cible six with the glowing news that every seed was in its place. Much elated Bailey went to take a survey. Serenely smiling lay the freshly-turned field, with the clods leveled about as well as the hoes of amateur farmers could be ex pected to do it. If it had a secret to dis close, it certainly guarded it well. You have heard of " show places" in city and country, spots to which the curious are drawn by the promise of some rare sight to behold. Well, when that field of Bill Bailey's came up it beat any "show spot" of which there is record. People came for miles to see it, not only the men, but the women and children. For weeks, nay, months, it was, to use the characteristic expression of an old inhabitant, " better'n a cirkis (circus)." As to Bill Bailey, he was so worked up over it, he could have wrung a half dozen necks with the utmost relish. The secret the smiling field had guarded so well, 'till bursting sod and springing shoot had given it away, was a heterogeneous mixture of cucumber, holly hock, watermelon, corn, turnip, sunflower, pea, four o'clock, wheat, and tobacco seed, all in turn committed to its keeping by the rollicking six on mischief bent. The sight presented when the disclosure was fully made by each shoot or vine, in turn struggling for its share of climbing or running space, can better be imagined than described.
In the meantime things were waxing warm for poor Alexander. Shutters would mysteri ously disappear from windows and as mys teriously turn up again in any but the right place. Strange sights and sounds would be seen and heard all around the barns and feed ing pens, until Alexander, who, like so many of the mountaineers, had a vein of super stition running all through him, would be half sick with nervous dread and apprehen sion. In the dead of night, blood-curdling cries and all sorts of uncanny noises would apparently issue from the very roof of the dwelling, windows would rattle, doors be shaken on their hinges, bricks, stones and chips fall down the chimney, and other terri ble and unaccountable demonstrations take place. When questioned in regard to these things, the students with very long faces would declare to have heard nothing and to know still less, if that were possible. In the same strange and unaccountable manner old " Bald," the one equine depen dence of the place, would disappear from his stall, and be found the next day, perhaps not till late in the afternoon, a half mile or more away, tied hard and fast to a clump of alder bushes by the long hairs of his tail. Then the students suggested witches, and poor Alexander, quite torn to pieces men tally by these dreadful occurrences, knew not what else to believe. About the roughest experience to which Alexander was subjected was his trial for the murder of dog Cuff". Cuff was a canine of the bull terrier variety, and had been, in his day, an exceedingly well-favored cur. In the whole country around no dog was quicker on the coon's track or more persevering in his efforts to keep old bruin at bait than dog Cuff. But in an unfortunate hour, most unfortunate in deed for himself, poor Cuff took the mange and became at once an object of pity and aversion. Getting out of patience with him and doubtless, desiring to put him out of misery, Alexander hung the poor brute from the limb of an apple tree.
