Jeph would never put a hand to what he
called maids' work, but Stead would sweep, or beat the butter, or
draw the water, or chop wood, or hold the baby, and was always ready
to help her, even though it hindered him from ever going out to fish,
or play at base ball, or any of the other sports the village boys
loved.
His quiet, thoughtful ways had earned his father's trust, though he
was much slower of speech and less ready than his elder brother, and
looked heavy both in countenance and figure beside Jeph, who was
tall, slim, and full of activity and animation. He had often made
his mother uneasy by wild talk about going to sea, and by consorting
with the sailors at Bristol, which was their nearest town, though on
the other side of the Avon, and in a different county.
It was there that the Elmwood people did their marketing, often
leaving their donkeys hobbled on their own side of the river, being
ferried over and carrying the goods themselves the latter part of the
way.
CHAPTER III.
KIRK RAPINE.
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