280 TENAWTR OF AN OLD FARM. 



tlie matter ! I can't abide it. 'T seemed to me that 

 ther wus a dozen uv 'em in my room last night, an' I 

 never closed my eyes a blessed minit fer the noise they 

 made. Tho', fer thet matter, I reckon ther' wan't 

 more'n one atter all. But, lawsamassy ! w'at a cree- 

 crcc-cree-in'' it did keep up !" 



The cook bent forward, and made such an odd, em- 

 phatic, and indignant imitation of the cricket's chirrup 

 that the men laughed aloud. 



" Oh, yes ; it's mighty nice fer folks as sleeps like 

 posts 'n pillars to laugh at others, but if you wus as 

 restless o' nights as I am, an' 'ad been robbed uv a 

 whole blessed night's sleep, ye'd laugh on t'other side 

 uv your mouths, I kin tell you.'' 



Sarah was notoriously a sound sleeper, but that fact 

 did not prevent her from indulging an infatuation 

 which has fallen upon many wiser people, of lengthen- 

 ing a few wakeful moments into as many hours. It is 

 curious how people lose the power of computing time 

 in the dark ! 



"But that isn't the wust o' crickets — ther noise 

 ain't," continued Sarah. " I'd most as lief hear a hoot- 

 owl ur a whip-poor-will under my windy a-nights as 

 liev a cricket a-crcak-creakin' in my room. It's an 

 omen uv death to some one uv the family, ur some near 

 relation, and it jest sets me all uv a chill to hear 'em. 

 I'd like to kill tho who> nasty, coftln-creakin' brood ! 

 Thet's my opinion about crickets !" 



" Well, Sarah !'" s:iid Hugh, putting a cloud of smoke 

 into the air, " if that is so, I guess there mus' be an 



