All the way home his heart felt as heavy as lead, and, when he came in
sight of the little tumble-down cottage, his eyes were blurred with
tears for a moment.

"Todd, dear," called his mother, running out to meet him, "guess who
has been here. It was Judge Parker's wife. Yes, I know all about your
secret now. She told me the men have finally decided that Luke Wiggins
has won the wheel. But she is so disappointed on your account, and
told me so many nice things that people have said about you that I
just sat down and cried. I was so proud and happy. And, Todd, what do
you think she left here for you to take care of? She'll pay you well
for doing it, and it will be yours to use just as if it were your
own,--a pony! A beautiful little Shetland pony. It was her little
grandson's, and they have kept it since he died, because they could
not bear to part with anything he had been so fond of. Now they are
going away from Bardstown for a long, long time. They have been
looking around for somebody to take care of it, and they say they
would rather trust it to you than any one they know. You can have it
to pet and love and use just as long as you want it."

"Oh, it's too good to be true!" cried Todd, giving his mother a hug of
frantic joy before he rushed off to the stable. There she found him a
little later with his arms around the pony's neck, saying over and
over: "Oh, you dear, beautiful old thing! You're better than a
thousand wheels!"

"It's all because of your living up to your motto, sonny boy," she
said, as she held out a lump of sugar for the pretty creature to
nibble. "It was your 'good name' that brought you into Mrs. Parker's