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He likes me, becuz I don't ever act as if I was above him.

Sometime I've set right down and eat with him.

But you needn't tell that.

A body's got to do things when he's awful hungry he wouldn't want to do as a steady thing."

"Well, if I don't want you in the daytime, I'll let you sleep. I won't come bothering around. Any time you see something's up, in the night, just skip right around and maow."

THE first thing Tom heard on Friday morning was a glad piece of news-Judge Thatcher's family had come back to town the night before.

Both Injun Joe and the treasure sunk into secondary importance for a moment, and Becky took the chief place in the boy's interest.

He saw her and they had an exhausting good time playing "hispy" and "gully-keeper" with a crowd of their schoolmates.

The day was completed and crowned in a peculiarly satisfactory way: Becky teased her mother to appoint the next day for the long-promised and long-delayed picnic, and she consented.

The child's delight was boundless; and Tom's not more moderate.

The invitations were sent out before sunset, and straightway the young folks of the village were thrown into a fever of preparation and pleasurable anticipation.

Tom's excitement enabled him to keep awake until a pretty late hour, and he had good hopes of hearing Huck's "maow," and of having his treasure to astonish Becky and the picnickers with, next day; but he was disappointed.

No signal came that night.

Morning came, eventually, and by ten or eleven o'clock a giddy and rollicking company were gathered at Judge Thatcher's, and everything was ready for a start.

It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.

The children were considered safe enough under the wings of a few young ladies of eighteen and a few young gentlemen of twenty-three or thereabouts.

The old steam ferry-boat was chartered for the occasion; presently the gay throng filed up the main street laden with provision-baskets.

Sid was sick and had to miss the fun; Mary remained at home to entertain him.

The last thing Mrs. Thatcher said to Becky, was:

"You'll not get back till late. Perhaps you'd better stay all night with some of the girls that live near the ferry-landing, child."

"Then I'll stay with Susy Harper, mamma."

"Very well. And mind and behave yourself and don't be any trouble."

CHAPTER XXIX

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