fat cattle and a great barn. There dwelt one of the lords of the Bluegrass
land, and again Chad looked to the school-master and, this time, the
school-master smiled and nodded as though to say:

"We're getting close now, Chad." So Chad rose to his feet thrilled, and
watched the scene until the hills shut it off again. One more night and one
more dawn, and, before the sun rose, the hills had grown smaller and smaller
and the glimpses between them more frequent and, at last, far down the river,
Chad saw a column of smoke and all the men on the raft took off their hats and
shouted. The end of the trip was near, for that black column meant the
capital!

Chad trembled on his feet and his heart rose into his throat, while Caleb
Hazel seemed hardly less moved. His hat was off and he stood motionless, with
his face uplifted, and his grave eyes fastened on that dark column as though
it rose from the pillar of fire that was leading him to some promised land.

As they rounded the next curve, some monster swept out of the low hills on the
right, with a shriek that startled the boy almost into terror and, with a
mighty puffing and rumbling, shot out of sight again. The school-master
shouted to Chad, and the Turner brothers grinned at him delightedly:

"Steam-cars!" they cried, and Chad nodded back gravely, trying to hold in his
wonder.

Sweeping around the next curve, another monster hove in sight with the same
puffing and a long "h-o-o-ot!" A monster on the river and moving up stream
steadily, with no oar and no man in sight, and the Turners and the
school-master shouted again. Chad's eyes grew big with wonder and he ran
forward to see the rickety little steamboat approach and, with wide eyes,