rry out my
teachin's. I ain't afraid to say this, if he is my son. I want to
know what he's done. If it's anything wrong, I shall be jest as hard
on him as the Lord for it. I'm his mother, but I can see his faults,
and be just. I want to know what he has done."

Charlotte gave one great cry. "Oh, Mrs. Thayer, he hasn't done
anything wrong; Barney hasn't done anything wrong!"

But Deborah quite ignored her. She kept her eyes fixed upon Cephas.
"What has my son done?" she demanded again. "If he's done anything
wrong I want to know it. I ain't afraid to deal with him. You ordered
him out of your house, and he didn't come home at all last night. I
don't know where he was. He won't speak a word this mornin' to tell
me. I've been out in the field where he's to work ploughin', and I
tried to make him tell me, but he wouldn't say a word. I sat up and
waited all night, but he didn't come home. Now I want to know where
he was, and what he's done, and why you ordered him out of the house.
If he's been swearin', or takin' anything that didn't belong to him,
or drinkin', I want to know it, so I can deal with him as his mother
had ought to deal."

"He hasn't been doing anything wrong!" Charlotte cried out again;
"you ought to be ashamed of yourself talking so about him, when
you're his mother!"

Deborah Thayer never glanced at Charlotte. She kept her eyes fixed
upon Cephas. "What has he done?" she repeated.

"I guess he didn't do much of anything," Mrs. Barnard murmured,
feebly; but Deborah did not seem to hear her.

Cephas opened his mouth as if perforce. "Well," he said, slowly, "we
got to talkin'--"

"Talkin' about what?"

"About the 'lection. I think, accordin' to my reasonin', that what we
eat had a good deal to do with it."

"What?"

"I think if you'd kept your family on less meat, and given 'em more
garden-stuff to eat Barney wouldn't have been so up an' comin'. It's
what he's eat that's made him what he is."

Deborah stared at Cephas in stern amazement. "You're tryin' to make
out, as near as I can tell," said she, "that whatever my son has done
wrong is due to what he's eat, and not to original sin. I knew you
had queer ideas, Cephas Barnard, but I didn't know you wa'n't sound
in your faith. What I want to know is, what has he done?"

Suddenly Charlotte sprang up, and pushed herself in between her
father and Mrs. Thayer; she confronted Deborah, and compelled her to
look at her.

"I'll tell you what he's don