come on down," I said. "You ain't got any trousers for him." "Have,
too," he said; "I'm making them spare minutes out of Turkey red. And
when I adds brass buttons and pockets I'll put 'em on, the next time he
passes your house."

I began to laugh again, and then he jumped down, and before I knew it
hit me a punch on the nose. That made me so mad that I hit at him and it
struck his leg, and he said, "Ouch," and jumped so that I looked at his
leg, and saw it was black and blue already.

"Who did that?" I said.

"Never you mind, baby dear," he said: "come on. If my leg did get
catched between the boat and the bank and ground agin a stone this
morning, I can still fight an eel-catcher."

[Illustration: "Never you mind, baby dear, come on"]

And he hopped up to me on one foot, and I saw he wasn't much bigger than
me, maybe eleven or twelve, and he had all he could do to keep from
crying because his leg hurt him so; but he was so quick that I just had
to dodge to get out of the way.

"Say," I said, after I'd gotten out of his reach, "I don't want to hit
you when you're hurt. And anyway," I said, "I don't know that I care
about fighting with anybody who can make eels wear caps and mules red
trousers. Wait a minute and I'll get a clean rag and some witch-hazel
for your leg."

"No, you don't," he says; "I ain't going to be fussed over, but if you