away they went, bumping and thumping down the hill.

And then stick after stick, two sticks, six sticks, a dozen sticks at a
time, slipped out behind.

It was of no use to catch at them to hold them on. They were not
fastened down in any way, and Harry and Tom and the men on the sled had
as much as they could do to hold themselves on.

When they reached the bottom of the hill the pulling became harder; but
Grits had no idea of stopping for that. He was bound for home. And so he
plunged on at the top of his speed. But the rest of the team did not
fancy going so fast on level ground, and they slackened their pace.

This did not suit Grits. He gave one tremendous bound, burst loose from
his harness and dashed ahead. Up went his hind legs in the air; off shot
Gregory Montague into the mud, and then away went Grits, clipperty-clap!
home to his stable.

When Harry and Tom, the two horses, the little mule, the eight colored
men, the sled, John William Webster and eleven logs of wood reached the
village it was considerably after dinner-time.

When the horse-hire was paid, and something was expended for mending
borrowed harness, and the negroes had received a little present for
their labor, the Aunt Matilda Fund was diminished by the sum of three
dollars and eighty cents.

Mr. Truly Matthews agreed to say nothing about the loss of his wood that
was scattered along the road.