and when our Ada was old enough to be trusted to drive, the whole lot of them would pile into the carryall, and away we would go for a long ride, through the lanes and the shady woods that border the pond, stopping a dozen times for the girls to clamber out and pick the wild posies and for the boys to skip stones or wade in the water.  For I was in no hurry to go on.  There was plenty of tender grass to be cropped by the roadside, and the young leaves of the maples and white birch were sweet and juicy.

“‘Take good care of them, Star,’ mistress used to say, standing in the door-way to see us off; ’you have a precious load, but we trust you, kind, faithful old friend,’

“And so she might.  I knew I must just creep down the hills with those children behind me, and never stop for a drink at Rocky Brook, though I were ever so thirsty, because of the sharp pitch down to the watering-trough.  And though from having been scared nearly to death, when I was a colt, by a wheelbarrow in the road, I always have to shy a little when I see one, our Ada will tell you, if you ask her, that in the circumstances, I behaved very well.

“She behaved well.  She always chose the well-traveled roads, and gave me plenty of room to turn.  Once, I remember, they all wanted to take a short cut by way of an old corduroy road; and though, if master had been driving, I should have made no objection, and, as like as not, with a little jolting and pitching, we should have got safe over, I didn’t feel like taking the responsibility, with all those young ones along, of going that way; so I tried to make our Ada understand the state of my mind, and after a while she did; for she said:  ’Well, Star, if you don’t want to draw us over those logs, I’m not going to make you,’ Now, wasn’t that sensible?

“Well, if I was proud and happy to be trusted with master’s family on week-days, think how I must have felt of a Sunday morning in the summer time, with mistress dressed in her silk gown, and our Ada in muslin and pink ribbons, and the boys in their best clothes, and master riding along-side on Tom or Jerry, all going to meeting together.  I liked hearing the bells ring, and I liked being hitched under the maple-trees, with all the neighbors’ horses to keep me company.  We generally dozed while the folks were indoors, and woke up brisk and lively, and started for home in procession.

“But, dear! dear! there came a time when, with five horses on the farm, not one could be had to give the children a ride or to do a stroke of work, when master had to foot it to the Corners, and the two steers, Old Poke and Eyebright, dragged mistress and the children to meeting in the ox-cart.