It warn't no slouch of an idea; and it warn't no slouch of a grindstone nuther; but we allowed we'd tackle it.  It warn't quite midnight yet, so we cleared out for the mill, leaving Jim at work.  We smouched the grindstone, and set out to roll her home, but it was a most nation tough job. Sometimes, do what we could, we couldn't keep her from falling over, and she come mighty near mashing us every time.  Tom said she was going to get one of us, sure, before we got through.  We got her half way; and then we was plumb played out, and most drownded with sweat.  We see it warn't no use; we got to go and fetch Jim. So he raised up his bed and slid the chain off of the bed-leg, and wrapt it round and round his neck, and we crawled out through our hole and down there, and Jim and me laid into that grindstone and walked her along like nothing; and Tom superintended.  He could out-superintend any boy I ever see.  He knowed how to do everything.

Our hole was pretty big, but it warn't big enough to get the grindstone through; but Jim he took the pick and soon made it big enough.  Then Tom marked out them things on it with the nail, and set Jim to work on them, with the nail for a chisel and an iron bolt from the rubbage in the lean-to for a hammer, and told him to work till the rest of his candle quit on him, and then he could go to bed, and hide the grindstone under his straw tick and sleep on it.  Then we helped him fix his chain back on the bed-leg, and was ready for bed ourselves.  But Tom thought of something, and says:

"You got any spiders in here, Jim?"

"No, sah, thanks to goodness I hain't, Mars Tom."

"All right, we'll get you some."

"But bless you, honey, I doan' _want_ none.  I's afeard un um.  I jis' 's soon have rattlesnakes aroun'."

Tom thought a minute or two, and says:

"It's a good idea.  And I reckon it's been done.  It _must_ a been done; it stands to reason.  Yes, it's a prime good idea.  Where could you keep it?"

"Keep what, Mars Tom?"

"Why, a rattlesnake."

"De goodness gracious alive, Mars Tom!  Why, if dey was a rattlesnake to come in heah I'd take en bust right out thoo dat log wall, I would, wid my head."

"Why, Jim, you wouldn't be afraid of it after a little.  You could tame it."

"_Tame_ it!"

"Yes—easy enough.  Every animal is grateful for kindness and petting, and they wouldn't _think_ of hurting a person that pets them.  Any book will tell you that.  You try—that's all I ask; just try for two or three days. Why, you can get him so, in a little while, that he'll love you; and sleep with you; and won't stay away from you a minute; and will let you wrap him round your neck and put his head in your mouth."

"_Please_, Mars Tom—_doan_' talk so!  I can't _stan_' it!  He'd _let_ me shove his head in my mouf—fer a favor, hain't it?  I lay he'd wait a pow'ful long time 'fo' I _ast_ him.  En mo' en dat, I doan' _want_ him to sleep wid me."

"Jim, don't act so foolish.  A prisoner's _got_ to have some kind of a dumb pet, and if a rattlesnake hain't ever been tried, why, there's more glory to be gained in your being the first to ever try it than any other way you could ever think of to save your life."