What Might Have Been Expected

What Might Have Been Expected

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Title: What Might Have Been Expected
Author: Frank R. Stockton
Release Date: June 22, 2006 [EBook #18654]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
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[Illustration]
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WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN EXPECTED

By Frank R. Stockton
New York Dodd, Mead and Company
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Copyright, 1874, by Dodd & Mead Copyright, 1902, by Marian E.
Stockton
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CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
I. Harry Loudon Makes Up His Mind. 9 II. The Adoption. 15 III.
Commencing Business. 21 IV. Kate, very naturally, is Anxious. 30 V.
The Turkey-Hunter. 38 VI. Tony Strikes Out. 47 VII. Aunt Matilda's
Christmas. 58 VIII. A Lively Team. 71 IX. Business in Earnest. 85 X.
A Meeting on the Road. 97 XI. Rob. 103 XII. Tony on the War-path.
112 XIII. Cousin Maria. 118 XIV. Harry's Grand Scheme. 124 XV. The
Council. 135 XVI. Company Business. 143 XVII. Principally
Concerning Kate. 154 XVIII. The Arrival. 164 XIX. Constructing the
Line. 172 XX. An Important Meeting of the Board. 181 XXI. A Last
Resort. 189 XXII. A Quandary. 194 XXIII. Crossing the Creek. 202
XXIV. The First Business Telegrams. 210 XXV. Profits and Projects.
225 XXVI. A Grand Proposition. 237 XXVII. How Something Came
to an End. 246 XXVIII. A Meeting. 253 XXIX. Once more in the
Woods. 257 XXX. A Girl and a Gun. 264 XXXI. A Man in a Boat. 271
XXXII. Aunt Matilda's Letter. 277 XXXIII. Time to Stop. 286
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WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN EXPECTED.
CHAPTER I.

HARRY LOUDON MAKES UP HIS MIND.
On a wooden bench under a great catalpa-tree, in the front yard of a
comfortable country-house in Virginia, sat Harry and Kate Loudon
worrying their minds. It was all about old Aunt Matilda.
Aunt Matilda was no relation of these children. She was an old colored
woman, who lived in a cabin about a quarter of a mile from their house,
but they considered her one of their best friends. Her old log cabin was
their favorite resort, and many a fine time they had there. When they
caught some fish, or Harry shot a bird or two, or when they could get
some sweet potatoes or apples to roast, and some corn-meal for
ash-cakes, they would take their provisions to Aunt Matilda and she
would cook them. Sometimes an ash-cake would be baked rather harder
than it was convenient to bite, and it had happened that a fish or two
had been cooked entirely away, but such mishaps were not common.
Aunt Matilda was indeed a most wonderful cook--and a cook, too, who
liked to have a boy and a girl by her while she was at work; and who
would tell them stories--as queer old stories as ever were told--while
the things were cooking. The stories were really the cause of the
ash-cakes and fish sometimes being forgotten.
And it is no wonder that these children were troubled in their minds.
They had just heard that Aunt Matilda was to go to the alms-house.
Harry and Kate were silent. They had mourned over the news, and Kate
had cried. There was nothing more to be done about it, so far as she
could see.
But all of a sudden Harry jumped up. "I tell you what it is Kate," he
exclaimed; "I've made up my mind! Aunt Matilda is not going to the
alms-house. I will support her myself!"
"Oh, that will be splendid!" cried Kate; "but you can never do it!"
"Yes, I can," said Harry. "There are ever so many ways in which I can
earn money."

"What are you going to do?" said Kate; "will you let me help?"
"Yes," said her brother; "you may help if you can, but I don't think you
will be of much use. As for me, I shall do plenty of things. I shall go
out with my gun--"
"But there is nothing to shoot, now in the summer-time," said Kate.
"No, there isn't much yet, to be sure," said her brother, "but before very
long there will be partridges and hares, plenty of them; and father and
Captain Caseby will buy all I shoot. And you see, until it is time for
game I'm going to gather sumac."
"Oh! I can help you in that," cried Kate.
"Yes, I believe you can," said her brother. "And