This new tear seemed to fall right on Terpin's heart I know it he agreed with a sigh of his own Have you ever heard of Lake Queechee Sure up by North Haven My parents were canoeing there one day Terpin said sadly when a storm came up The canoe went over and they drowned The man turned and stared at him aghast Both They both drowned Terpin put on a long face They never found the bodies In the paper they said it might be on account of the snapping turtles There're some big ones in the lake over a hundred years old Snapping turtles the man said growing paler By the next stop the man in the black great coat was no longer sighing He was far too busy trying to comfort Terpin to worry about him self As the train neared North Haven the man brought an old rough edged coin out of his pocket and handed it to Terpin
Here boy What is it Terpin asked Have you ever studied ancient Greece I just did a paper on Socrates said Terpin making up to himself for his ignorance of the operation For ancient and medieval history class Well it's an ancient Greek coin It's supposed to be good luck The man shook his head sadly I only wish I'd given it to my wife before she went into the hospital Oh no it's much too valuable Terpin said handing it back The man tried again to give him the ancient coin but Terpin had been brought up well enough to know not to accept such a gift from a stranger And as the train pulled into North Haven he slipped out past the man and shook his hand good bye On the platform he quickly caught sight of his best friend Charles Ackley a tall gangly boy whose head loomed above all the others Charles was holding a football tucked under his arm
exactly as the legendary Raw Runyan in the bronze statue in the display case at their high school held the bronze football under his Hiya Taft Charles said smacking him on the back Let's get a move on Terpin glanced a little longingly at the snowy hills where he would have liked to go cross country skiing But the football season was not quite over and although the day after Thanksgiving was a school holiday they still had football prac tice for the South Haven game was next week I've got to drop this off at home Terpin said indicating his suitcase The way to his house led them through the middle of North Haven North Haven was a lovely town small and quaint and sleepy so sleepy that even the Union soldier on the town green who was made of bronze looked as if he would have fallen asleep on his granite pedestal had his long rifle not held him up After crossing the green they walked out a road called the Pepper Pike so named because it ran through a dreamlike birch wood the little black spots on the white
bark looked like pepper Since Terpin was carry ing his suitcase Charles had to toss the football with himself Soon the ball was covered with slush for Charles had very long feet which he was forever tripping over You practice the piano yesterday Terpin asked Like his feet Charles's fingers were long long and supple Nah Charles said I keep telling you not during the season Soon they came to a large white clapboard house with green shutters Charles waited on the front porch practicing hand offs to an invisible running back while Terpin wiped his feet on the mat and slipped in the door He tried to set his suitcase quietly by the umbrella stand but as he turned to slip back out the dog bounded up to him with a joyful bark Terpin is that you came a sweet voice from the card room He had no choice but to show his face in the card room and undergo an examination about
