"Yassum, dat shore am nice!" he went on, talking to himself as he admired the present. "I shore got t' put dat in a good box! An' dish year note, too. Let's see what it done say on de outside."

 

Eradicate held the envelope carefully upside down, and read—or rather pretended to read—the name and address. Eradicate knew well enough where Mary lived, for this was not the first time he had gone there with messages from his young master.

 

"Massa Tom shore am a fine writer," mused³ the negro, as he slowly turned the envelope around. "I cain't read nobody's writin' but hisen, nohow."

 

Had Eradicate been strictly⁴ honest with himself, he would have confessed that he could not read any writing, or printing either. His education had been very limited, but one could show him, say, a printed sign and tell him it read "Danger" or "Five miles to Branchville," or anything like that, and the next time he saw it, Eradicate would know what that sign said. He seemed to fix a picture of it in his mind, though the letters and figures by themselves meant nothing to him. So when Tom told him the envelope contained the name and address of Miss Nestor, Eradicate needed nothing more.

 

He rummaged⁵ about in some odds⁶ and ends in the corner of the laboratory, and brought out a strong, wooden box, which had a cover that screwed down.

 

"Dat'll be de ticket!" Eradicate exclaimed. "De mahogany present will jest fit." Eradicate took some excelsior to pad the box, and then, dropping inside it the gift, already wrapped in tissue paper, he proceeded to screw on the cover.

 

There was something printed in red letters on the outside box, but Eradicate could not read, so it did not trouble him.

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