He knew Lucas Beauchamp—as well as any white person knew him. Better than any maybe unless it was Carothers Edmonds on whose place Lucas lived seventeen miles from town, because he had eaten a meal in Lucas's house. It was in the early winter four years ago; he had been only twelve then, and it had happened this way: Edmonds was a friend of his uncle; they had been in school at the same time at the State University, where his uncle had gone after he came back from Harvard and Heidelberg to learn enough law to get himself chosen county attorney, and the day before Edmonds had come in to town to see his uncle on some county business and had stayed the night with them and at supper that evening Edmonds had said to him:

"Come out home with me tomorrow and go rabbit hunting:" and then to his mother: "I'll send him back in tomorrow afternoon. I'll send a boy along with him while he's out with his gun:" and then to him again: "He's got a good dog."

"He's got a boy," his uncle said and Edmonds said: