thought the mare could draw, would make her haul them home. Here he
sawed the poles to stove lengths in preparation for the winter.
This work Mrs. Butler had always been obliged to hire done, and the
saving now was of no small moment to her.

One hot afternoon, however, Tad had left Jinny in the shade of the
trees to rest, while he wandered out to the highway and sat down to
think.

He had been there not more than fifteen minutes when the faint chug,
chug of a motor car was borne to his ears. It was still some distance
away, but from the sound he knew the car was approaching rapidly.

"If they keep on at that gait, something surely will happen," decided
Tad, being fully aware of the dangers that lay in the stretch of road
between himself and the oncoming car.

A few moments later he saw the car round the bend in the road just
beyoud him. It came tearing along, swerved unsteadily from one side of
the road to the other, then was brought to a sudden, grinding stop,
narrowly missing a plunge into the roadside ditch.

"The steering gear has gone wrong. I think the ball has been wrenched
from the socket," announced the driver of the car, disgustedly. "I
wish I could see a horse."

Tad grinned.

"What are you grinning at, you young ape?" snapped the driver,
voicing his increasing irritation. "You seem to think this is some