



Produced by Prepared by Al Haines.




THREE YOUNG KNIGHTS

By Annie Hamilton Donnell




CHAPTER I.

The last wisp of hay was in the Eddy mows.  "Come on!" shouted Jot.
"Here she goes--hip, hip, hoo-ray!"

"Hoor-a-ay!" echoed Kent.  But of course Old Tilly took it calmly.  He
planted his brown hands pocket-deep and his bare, brown legs wide apart,
and surveyed the splendid, bursting mows with honest pride.

"Yes, sir, that's the finest lot o' hay in Hexham county; beat it if you
can, sir!" he said approvingly.  Then, being ready, he caught off his
own hat and cheered, too.

"Hold on, you chaps; give the old man a chance to holler with you!"
Father Eddy's big, hearty voice cried above the din, and there was the
flaring, sun-browned "wide-awake" swinging with the other hats.

"Hooray for the best hay in town!  Hooray for the smartest team o' boys!
Hooray for lib-er-tee!"

"Hooray!  Hooray!"

They were all of them out of breath and red in the face, but how they
cheered!  Liberty--that was something to cheer for! After planting-time
and haying, hurrah for liberty!

The din softened gradually.  With a sweep of his arm, father gathered
all the boys in a laughing heap before him.

"Well," he said, "what next?  Who's going to celebrate? I'm done with
you for a fortnight.  I'm going to hire Esau Whalley to milk and do the
chores, and send you small chaps about your business.  You've earned
your holiday.  And I don't know but it's as good a time as any to settle
up. Pay day's as good one day as another."

He drew out a little tight roll of bills and sorted out three
five-dollar notes gravely.  The boys' eyes began to shine.  Father'most
always paid them, after haying, but--five dollars apiece!  Old Tilly
pursed his lips and whistled softly.  Kent nudged Jot.

[Illustration: He sorted out three five-dollar notes gravely.]

"There you are!  You needn't mind about giving receipts!" Father Eddy
said matter-of-factly, but his gray eyes were a-twinkle under their
cliffs of gray brows.  He was exulting quietly in the delight he could
read in the three round, brown faces.  Good boys--yes, sir--all of them!
Wasn't their beat in Hexham county--no, sir!  Nor yet in Marylebone
county or Winnipeg!

"Now, on with you--scatter!" he laughed.  "Mother and I are going to
mill to celebrate!  When you've decided what you're going to do, send a
committee o' three to let us know. Mind, you can celebrate any way you
want to that's sensible."

The boys waited till the tall, stoop-shouldered figure had gone back
into the dim, hay-scented barn, then with one accord the din began
again.

"Hoo-ray!  Hoo-ray for father!"

"Father! father! hoo-ray!"

"Hoor-a-ay!"

It died away, began again, then trailed out to a faint wail as the boys
scuttled off round the barn to the orchard. Father smiled to himself
unsteadily.

"Good boys! good boys! good boys!" he muttered.

"Come on up in the consultery!" cried Kent excitedly.

"Yes, come on, Old Till; that's the place!" Jot echoed.

The "consultery" was a platform up in the great horse-chestnut tree.
When there was time, it could be reached comfortably by a short ladder,
but, in times of hurry, it was the custom to swing up to it by a
low-hanging bough, with a long running jump as a starter.  To-day
they all swung up.

"Oh, I say, won't there be times!" cried Kent.  "Five apiece is fifteen,
lumped.  You can celebrate like everything with fifteen dollars!"

"Sure--but how?" Old Tilly asked in his gentle, moderate way.  "We don't
want any old, common celebration!"

"You better believe we don't!"

"No, sir, we want to do something new!  Camping out's old!"

"Camping's no good!  Go on!" Jot said briefly.  It was always Old Tilly
they looked to for suggestions.  If you waited long enough, they were
sure to come.

"Well, that's the trouble.  I can't 'go on'--yet.  You don't give a chap
time to wink!  What we want is to settle right down to it and think out
a fine way to celebrate.  It's got to take time."

For the space of a minute it was still in the consultery, save for the
soft swish of the leaves overhead and roundabout.  Then Jot broke out--a
minute was Jot's utmost limit of silence.

"We could go up through the Notch and back, you know," he reflected.
"That's no end of fun.  Wouldn't cost us all more'n a fiver for the
round trip, and we'd have the other ten to--to--"

"Buy popcorn and 'Twin Mountain Views' with!" finished Kent in scorn.
"Well, if you want to dress up in your best fixin's and stew all day in
a railroad train--"

"I don't!" rejoined Jot, hastily.  "I was thinking of Old Till!"

Tilly's other name was Nathan, but it had grown musty with disuse.  He
was the oldest of the Eddy trio, and "ballasted" the other two, Father
Eddy said.  Old Tilly was fourteen and the Eddy twins--Jotham and
Kennet