Page:Flute and Violin and Other Kentucky Tales and Romances.djvu/45

 the scene only in time to lay his old playfellow's head on his bosom, and hear his last words:

"Be kind to my boy! . . . Be a better father to him than I have been! . . . Watch over him and help him! . . . Guard him from temptation! . . . Be kind to him in his little weaknesses! . . . Win his heart, and you can do everything with him! . . . Promise me this!"

"So help me Heaven, all that I can do for him I will do!"



From that moment he had taken upon his conscience, already toiling beneath its load of cares, the burden of this sacred responsibility. During the three years of his guardianship that had elapsed, this burden had not grown lighter; for apparently he had failed to acquire