This epigram you may also use for his epitaph.” Then I straightened up and I gazed at the prostrate forms stretched out on the floor before me. The Christian side of my nature suddenly gave me a twinge. What if they did eat up all I had? We were put on this earth to live, eat and die. It was all in God’s hands. At the end of life, the world’s goods were nothing, no pockets in our shrouds at the end. As I stood there, my old tom cat was making an inspection as he walked about among the members of the sleeping family on the floor. I remembered that I had forgotten to mention Tab in my will. Well, he was a transient anyhow, so it did not matter. He looked up at me as if to ask, “Is all this property yours?” I paid no attention to the cat but went over where the baby was sleeping, apart from the rest. I stooped over and laid the cat close to the baby, where he cuddled down and seemed quite content. I guess all living things crave friendship at times.
    After placing the document in a conspicuous place, where the Watsons would see it when they awoke, I extinguished the greaser and walked out the door. I wanted nothing to remind me of that six acres. I closed the door softly, so as not to awaken the sleepers. It was pitch dark out of doors and there was a drizzle of rain. As I stood there, outside the door, water dripped from the eaves, striking me in the neck. That reminded me that if Bill Watson did not get out early in the morning and bail out his ox, he might find the animal crushed by the weight of the water.
    “Nature was all wrong,” I thought. “If Balaam had any brains, he would know enough to lie down and roll over once in a while to dump the water out of that hollow in his back. It did not make any difference to me, now that I had cleaned up. I struck out on foot, having no difficulty in finding my way as I knew, almost by touch every inch of the way.
    After a time, my eyes became accustomed to the dark and I could dimly make out the road. It was six miles to the freight yards and I had decided to catch the first freight train west to seek my fortune in new regions. I was usually a fast walker but the rain had made the road muddy and I was glad when I saw the switch lights in the railroad yards. A short time later, I arrived at the yard and walked along between two strings of cars, looking for an empty one.