Sawyer knitted a blanket and some shirts; Thirza Meserve, though
too young for an aunt, coaxed from her mother some dresses and
nightgowns, and was presented with a green paper certificate
allowing her to wheel Jacky up and down the road for an hour
under the superintendence of a full Aunt. Each girl, under the
constitution of the association, could call Jacky "hers" for two
days in the week, and great, though friendly, was the rivalry
between them, as they washed, ironed, and sewed for their adored
nephew.

If Mrs. Cobb had not been the most amiable woman in the world she
might have had difficulty in managing the aunts, but she always
had Jacky to herself the earlier part of the day and after dusk
at night.

Meanwhile Jack-o'-lantern grew healthier and heartier and jollier
as the weeks slipped away. Uncle Jerry joined the little company
of worshipers and slaves, and one fear alone stirred in all their
hearts; not, as a sensible and practical person might imagine,
the fear that the recreant father might never return to claim his
child, but, on the contrary, that he MIGHT do so!

October came at length with its cheery days and frosty nights,
its glory of crimson leaves and its golden harvest of pumpkins
and ripened corn. Rebecca had been down by the Edgewood side of
the river and had come up across the pastures for a good-night
play with Jacky. Her literary labors had been somewhat
interrupted by the joys and responsibilities of vice-motherhood,
and the thought book was less frequently drawn from its hiding
place under the old haymow in the barn chamber.