Her uncle and aunt, and the two big boys as well, were as kind to
her as they knew how to be. Nan could not escape some of the
depression of homesickness during the first day or two of her
visit to the woods settlement; but the family did everything
possible to help her occupy her mind.
The long evenings were rather amusing, although the family knew
little about any game save checkers, "fox and geese," and
"hickory, dickory, dock." Nan played draughts with her uncle and
fox and geese and the other kindergarten game with her big
cousins. To see Tom, with his eyes screwed up tight and the
pencil poised in his blunt, frost-cracked fingers over the slate,
while he recited in a base sing-song:
"Hick'ry, dick'ry, dock
The mouse ran up the clock,
The clock struck one,
An' down he come
Hick'ry, dick'ry, dock,"
was side-splitting. Nan laughed till she cried. Poor, simple
Tom did know just what amused his little cousin so.
Rafe was by no means so slow, or so simple. Nan caught him
cheating more than once at fox and geese. Rafe was a little sly,
and he was continually making fun of his slow brother, and
baiting him. Uncle Henry warned him:
"Now, Rafe, you're too big for your Marm or me to shingle your
pants; but Tom's likely to lick you some day for your cutting up
and I sha'n't blame him.
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