beast"? As it was now too late to add it to the bill he replied,
grudgingly:

"The hoss you mention belongs to the place, sir. It went with the farm,
'long o' Old Hucks an' Nora."

"I'm glad you reminded me of those people," said Uncle John, seriously.
"Tell me their history."

Louise sauntered from the house, at this juncture, and sank gracefully
upon the grass at her uncle's feet. She carried a book, but did not
open it.

"Ain't much to tell, sir, 'bout them folks," replied the agent. "Cap'n
Wegg brung the Huckses with him when he settled here. Wegg were a
sea-cap'n, ye see, an' when he retired he Wanted to git as far from the
sea's he could."

"That was strange. A sailor usually loves to be near salt water all his
days," observed Uncle John.

"Wall, Wegg he were diff'rent. He come here when I were a boy, bringin'
a sad-faced young woman an' Ol' Hucks an' Nora. I s'pose Hucks were a
sailor, too, though he never says nuthin' 'bout that. The Cap'n bought
this no'count farm an' had this house built on it--a proceedin' that, ef
I do say it, struck ev'rybody as cur'ous."

"It _was_ curious," agreed Mr. Merrick.

"But the cur'ous'est thing was thet he didn't make no 'tempt at farmin'.