The Miller Of Old Church

hospitable hearth in the public room. The genius of personality had enabled Betsey Bottom to hold open doors to the traveller long after the wayside tavern in Virginia had passed from the road and

een one to give in to changes

lace, Adam Doolittle's quavering voice floated to him from a seat in the warmest corner. The old man was now turning ninety, and he had had, on the whole, a fortuna

settin' on him, Abel?" he inquired. "Ain't you got yo' hand in yet,

bel, his face flushing. "What in

ell have been flying about on yo' land as on hi

hunting on his land? Why, we shot over those fields for a

an can find a way to prevent it. Archie was down here jest a minute or two arter you we

though the change to the warm room after

ted, "somebody else would have been knock

"Thar ain't many men with sech a hearty stom

small sticks, and placing it in the callous palm of his ha

anded it to Abel, "is that so peaceable lookin' a gentleman as Mr. Jonathan should begin to start a fuss jest as soon as

our backs up agin 'em in time, we'll find presently we don't even dare to walk straight along the turnpike when we see him a comin'. A few birds,

y claim to it," muttered William Ming, a weakly obstinate person,

, suh," retorted his wife, "i

taken a double portion, had waxed argumentative. "An' what I reason is that birds a

n the air, anyhow. If I was you, Abel," she continued in a softer tone, "I wouldn't let 'em make me so riled about Mr. Jonathan till I'd looked deep i

avagely, "that if I ever catch him on my land I'l

mon. "Old Adam there is a born fire eater, too, but h

old Adam indignantly, while he prodded the ashes in his corncob pipe with hi

st be a deal of satisfaction to be able to look back on a sinful past when you've grown old and repented. I've been a pious, God-fearing soul from m

now, to save my life, I can't remember anything about 'em but some small painful mishap that al'ays went along with 'em an' sp'iled the pleasure. Thar was the evening I dressed up in my best clothes an' ran off to Applegate to take a yellow haired circus lady, in pink skirts, out to supper. It ought to have been a fine, glorious bit of wickedness to remembe

tle," remarked William Ming, who had linger

what's mo' than life, it's marriage. When I see the way some men wear themselves out with wantin' little specks of

t another blessed mit

ed secretly again behi

rriage," said Solomon, "an' two weeks arter the woman had taken him, to f

orld that the less men folks have to say for themselves the better case they make of it. When they've spent all thar time sence

lomon, with what hasty gallantry he could summon. "I was thinkin' them very things to myself

, "I saw through 'em early, an' when you've once seen through 'em it's surprisin'

her still comely features. It was a matter of gossip that she had refused half the county, and that her reason for marrying William had been th

ir by the fire, he took up his hat, and made his way slowly throug

anything rash. Well, I must be gittin' along, folks, sad as it seems to me. It's strange to think, now ain't it-that when Nannie was m

arried to Tom Middlesex," quavered old Adam. "'Tis the w

of Abel. "All his wits are in his eyes, as you can tell jest to look at him-an'

" remarked Mrs. Bottom, "but then, when it's b'iled down t

other day?" inquired William Ming, "she's the sort that woul

t the first time I ever seed her," rejoined old Adam. "My taste, eve

t into the dusk, through which Abel

that of the fightin' kind-as the

ist hollows to the crisp crackle in the open places. In the west Venus hung silver white over the new moon, and below

hallooed to him as he approached, and driving nearer he discerne

y horse has got a stone or cast a s

few steps forward to the stationary horse and rider in the dusk ahead. As the light shone on the man an

gruffly, "I shouldn't have been so q

doesn't seem to be a stone, after all," he added. "I'm rather afra

d the horse's foot, and felt for

ast curtly. "I happen to have a

ip of corduroy road, and a minute later the pungen

ose Jimson weeds by the fence and lend me your handkerchief-or a couple of them would be still better. There, n

can you find your way

that matter. You needn't thank me, by the way. I wouldn

at the instant. I say, Revercomb, I'm sorry it wa

ore. We haven't settle

nto his gig. "You've wa

p to the turnpike and a

my pa

tled to his mare and was spinning over the

s mother's first words related to the plight of Archie,

boy," she said. "Thar's Abner settin' over thar so everlastin' mealy mouthed that he

owled Abner; "I did know it would h

rn. "I declar, I believe pa over thar has got mo' sper

ped grandfather, alert as an aged sparrow that

't wo' out with work and with child bearin' befo' he was ninety. He ain't bald, he ain't toothless," she concluded passiona

commanded Sarah sternly, at whi

et, but he can stil

coat and sitting down to his supper. "I passed Jonathan Gay

ng of partridges this morning and jumped on me, blast him, as if he'd caught me in the act of stealing. I

huntin' myself when I was young, with Mr. Jordan, an' brought home any

for him to go huntin',

Abel?" asked Sarah, turning upon him

e answer. She was embroidering a pair of velvet slippers for Mr. Mullen-a task begun with passion and now ending with weariness. While she

essed sigh of relief; "I've just ordered him to keep

ndpa you'd have knocked him down

wn in the road," chimed in the old

asks to borrow your lantern," return

arah. "All you're good for, I reckon

declare, mother, I don't believe you're any bet

u'll find anything in Scripture about not knockin' a man down because he asks you for a lantern.

ow your Bible. I w

pose it's havin' curly hair, an' gittin' up in the pulpit

llen, g

ister," taunted Sarah, "I'd take care to choose one t

din' tar-water. 'Twas different when I was young and in my vigour," he went on eagerly, undisturbed by the fact that nobody paid the slightest attention to what he was saying, "for sech was the power and logic of Parson Claymore's sermons that he could convict you of the unpardonable sin against the Holy Ghost even when yo

had stopped to listen to the concluding words of the anecdote. "Thar

atures, and her shadow resembled in outline the head on some ancient coin that had lain buried for centuries. Intrenched behind an impregnable self-esteem, she had never conceded a point,

, and rising from his seat, he took down his gun and began

ch Blossom had pointed it, and she loo

good a right to his things a

g upon her. "You'll say next, I reckon, that he had

e wanted," persisted Blossom, adhering stubbornly to the point, "she

're tryin' to make me think a grown man can't do anything better than get up in the pulpit and mouth texts so soft that a babe couldn't

erin' Blossom," interposed Abner,

om, and though there was a hot flush in he