Bedad! Let's do it."
Jimmy addressed the quail:
"Quailie, quailie on the fince,
We think your singin's just imminse.
Stay right here, and live with us,
And the fellow that shoots you will strike a fuss."
"We can protect them all richt enough," laughed Dannie. "And
when the snow comes we can feed Cardinals like cheekens. Wish
when we threshed, we'd saved a few sheaves of wheat. They do that
in Germany, ye know. The last sheaf of the harvest they put up on
a long pole at Christmas, as a thank-offering to the birds fra
their care of the crops. My father often told of it."
"That would be great," said Jimmy. "Now look how domn slow you
are! Why didn't you mintion it at harvest? I'd like things comin'
for me to take care of them. Gee! Makes me feel important just to
think about it. Next year we'll do it, sure. They'd be a lot of
company. A man could work in this field to-day, with all the
flowers around him, and the colors of the leaves like a garden,
and a lot of birds talkin' to him, and not feel afraid of being
alone."
"Afraid?" quoted Dannie, in amazement.
For an instant Jimmy looked startled. Then his love of proving
his point arose. "Yes, afraid!" he repeated stubbornly. "Afraid
of being away from the sound of a human voice, because whin you
are, the voices of the black divils of conscience come twistin'
up from the ground in a little wiry whisper, and moanin' among
the trees, and whistlin' in the wind, and rollin' in the thunder,
and above all in the dark they screech, and shout, and
roar,`We're after you, Jimmy Malone! We've almost got you, Jimmy
Malone! You're going to burn in Hell, Jimmy Malone!'"
Jimmy leaned toward Dannie, and began in a low voice, but he grew
so excited as he tried to picture the thing that he ended in a
scream, and even then Dannie's horrified eyes failed to recall
him.
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