"Eh? Oh, that"s just his to-day"s name. I called him Isaiah just now "cause that was the first of the prophet names I could think of. Next time he"s just as liable to be Hosea or Ezekiel or Samuel or Jeremiah. He prophesies just as well under any one of "em, don"t seem to be particular."
Charles smiled slightly--he did not appear to be in a laughing mood--and then asked: "You say he settles questions for you? How?"
"How? . . . Oh. . . Well, you notice one end of that whirligig arm he"s got is smudged with black?"
"Yes."
"That"s Hosea"s indicator. Suppose I"ve got somethin" on--on what complimentary folks like you would call my mind. Suppose, same as "twas yesterday mornin", I was tryin" to decide whether or not I"d have a piece of steak for supper. I gave--er--Elisha"s whirlagig here a spin and when the black end stopped "twas p"intin" straight up. That meant yes. If it had p"inted down, "twould have meant no."
"Suppose it had pointed across--half way between yes and no?"
"That would have meant that--er--what"s-his-name--er--Deuteronomy there didn"t know any more than I did about it."
This time Phillips did laugh. "So you had the steak," he observed.
Jed"s lip twitched. "I bought it," he drawled. "I got so far all accordin" to prophecy. And I put it on a plate out in the back room where "twas cold, intendin" to cook it when supper time came."
"Well, didn"t you?"
"No-o; you see, "twas otherwise provided. That everlastin" Cherub tomcat of Taylor"s must have sneaked in with the boy when he brought the order from the store. When I shut the steak up in the back room I--er--er--hum. . . ."
"You did what?"
"Eh? . . . Oh, I shut the cat up with it. I guess likely that"s the end of the yarn, ain"t it?"
"Pretty nearly, I should say. What did you do to the cat?"
"Hum. . . . Why, I let him go. He"s a good enough cat, "cordin" to his lights, I guess. It must have been a treat to him; I doubt if he gets much steak at home. . . . Well, do you want to give Isaiah a whirl on that decision you say you"ve got to make?"
Charles gave him a quick glance. "I didn"t say I had one to make,"
he replied. "I asked how you settled such a question, that"s all."
"Um. . . . I see. . . . I see. Well, the prophet"s at your disposal. Help yourself."
The young fellow shook his head. "I"m afraid it wouldn"t be very satisfactory," he said. "He might say no when I wanted him to say yes, you see."
"Um-hm. . . . He"s liable to do that. When he does it to me I keep on spinnin" him till we agree, that"s all."
Phillips made no comment on this illuminating statement and there was another interval of silence, broken only by the hum and rasp of the turning lathe. Then he spoke again.
"Jed," he said, "seriously now, when a big question comes up to you, and you"ve got to answer it one way or the other, how do you settle with yourself which way to answer?"
Jed sighed. "That"s easy, Charlie," he declared. "There don"t any big questions ever come up to me. I ain"t the kind of feller the big things come to."
Charles grunted, impatiently. "Oh, well, admitting all that," he said, "you must have to face questions that are big to you, that seem big, anyhow."
Jed could not help wincing, just a little. The matter-of-fact way in which his companion accepted the estimate of his insignificance was humiliating. Jed did not blame him, it was true, of course, but the truth hurt--a little. He was ashamed of himself for feeling the hurt.
"Oh," he drawled, "I do have some things--little no-account things-- to decide every once in a while. Sometimes they bother me, too-- although they probably wouldn"t anybody with a head instead of a Hubbard squash on his shoulders. The only way I can decide "em is to set down and open court, put "em on trial, as you might say."
"What do you mean?"
"Why, I call in witnesses for both sides, seems so. Here"s the reasons why I ought to tell; here"s the reasons why I shouldn"t.
I--"
"Tell? Ought to TELL? What makes you say that? What have YOU got to tell?"
He was glaring at the windmill maker with frightened eyes. Jed knew as well as if it had been painted on the shop wall before him the question in the boy"s mind, the momentous decision he was trying to make. And he pitied him from the bottom of his heart.
"Tell?" he repeated. "Did I say tell? Well, if I did "twas just a--er--figger of speech, as the book fellers talk about. But the only way to decide a thing, as it seems to me, is to try and figger out what"s the RIGHT of it, and then do that."
Phillips looked gloomily at the floor. "And that"s such an easy job," he observed, with sarcasm.
"The figgerin" or the doin"?"
"Oh, the doing; the figuring is usually easy enough--too easy. But the doing is different. The average fellow is afraid. I don"t suppose you would be, Jed. I can imagine you doing almost anything if you thought it was right, and hang the consequences."
Jed looked aghast. "Who? Me?" he queried. "Good land of love, don"t talk that way, Charlie! I"m the scarest critter that lives and the weakest-kneed, too, "most generally. But--but, all the same, I do believe the best thing, and the easiest in the end, not only for you--or me--but for all hands, is to take the bull by the horns and heave the critter, if you can. There may be an awful big trouble, but big or little it"ll be over and done with. THAT bull won"t be hangin" around all your life and sneakin" up astern to get you--and those you--er--care for. . . . Mercy me, how I do preach!
They"ll be callin" me to the Baptist pulpit, if I don"t look out.
I understand they"re candidatin"."
His friend drew a long breath. "There is a poem that I used to read, or hear some one read," he observed, "that fills the bill for any one with your point of view, I should say. Something about a fellow"s not being afraid to put all his money on one horse, or the last card--about his not deserving anything if he isn"t afraid to risk everything. Wish I could remember it."
Jed looked up from the lathe.
""He either fears his fate too much, Or his deserts are small, Who dares not put it to the touch To win or lose it all."
That"s somethin" like it, ain"t it, Charlie?" he asked.
Phillips was amazed. "Well, I declare, Winslow," he exclaimed, "you beat me! I can"t place you at all. Whoever would have accused you of reading poetry--and quoting it."
Jed rubbed his chin. "I don"t know much, of course," he said, "but there"s consider"ble many poetry books up to the library and I like to read "em sometimes. You"re liable to run across a--er--poem-- well, like this one, for instance--that kind of gets hold of you.
It fills the bill, you might say, as nothin" else does. There"s another one that"s better still. About--
"Once to every man and nation Comes the moment to decide.
Do you know that one?"
His visitor did not answer. After a moment he swung himself from the workbench and turned toward the door.
""He either fears his fate too much,"" he quoted, gloomily.
"Humph! I wonder if it ever occurred to that chap that there might be certain kinds of fate that COULDN"T be feared too much? . . .
Well, so long, Jed. Ah hum, you don"t know where I can get hold of some money, do you?"