"Where's Mr. Sawyer?" asked 'Zekiel.

"Oh, he's goin' along with the crowd," said Hiram; "he's got a seat in
between Miss Putnam and Miss Mason, and looks as snug as a bug in a rug.
There's a place for you, Mr. Pettengill, between Miss Mason and Mandy,
and I comes in between Mandy and Mrs. Hawkins. Mandy wanted her mother
to go cuz she works so confounded hard and gits out of doors so seldom,
and there's a seat 'tween Mrs. Hawkins and Tilly James for the
Professor, and Sam Hill's t'other side of Tilly and nex' to S'frina
Cotton."

"I guess I can't go," said 'Zekiel. "The house is all alone, and I'm
kind of 'fraid thet thet last hoss I bought may get into trouble again
as he did last night. So I guess I'd better go home and look arter
things." Leaning over he whispered in Hiram's ear, "I reckon you'd
better take the seat between Huldy and Mandy, you don't want ter
separate a mother from her daughter, you know."

"All right," said Hiram, with a knowing wink, "I'm satisfied to
obleege."

Hiram then turned to the Professor: "Ain't yer goin', Mr. Strout?"

"When this sleigh ride was projected," said the Professor with dignity,
"I s'posed it was to be for the members of the singin' class and not for
boardin' mistresses and city loafers."

"I guess it don't make much difference who goes," replied Hiram, "as
long as we git a free ride and a free supper for nothing."