rom? Water! Jes' help yourself.
There's the bucket jes' from the spring five minutes since, an' there's
the gourd hanging up on the wall. I can't get up, I'm that busy. Twelve to
dinner to-day, an' only me to do the cookin'. 'Melia she's got to be
upstairs helpin' at the bar."

"Who all you got here?" questioned Miranda as she took a draught from the
old gourd.

"Well, got a gentleman from New York fur one. He's real pretty. Quite a
beau. His clo'es are that nice you'd think he was goin' to court. He's
that particular 'bout his eatin' I feel flustered. Nothin' would do but he
hed to hev a downstairs room. He said he didn't like goin' upstairs. He
don't look sickly, neither."

"Mebbe he's had a accident an' lamed himself," suggested Miranda
cunningly. "Heard o' any accidents? How'd he come? Coach or horseback?"

"Coach," said Mrs. Green. "Why do you ask? Got any friends in New York?"

"Not many," responded Miranda importantly, "but my cousin Hannah Heath
has. You know she's ben up there for a spell visitin' an' they say there
was lots of gentlemen in love with her. There's one in particular used to
come round a good deal. It might be him come round to see ef it's true
Hannah's goin' to get married to Lem Skinner. Know what this fellow's name
is?"

"You don't say! Well now it might be. No, I don't rightly remember his
name. Seems though it was something like Church er Chapel. 'Melia could
tell ye, but she's busy."

"Where's he at? Mebbe I could get a glimpse o' him. I'd jest like to know
ef he was comin' to bother our Hannah."

"Well now. Mebbe you could get a sight o' him. There's a cupboard between
his room an' the room back. It has a door both sides. Mebbe ef you was to
slip in there you might see him through the latch hole. I ain't usin' that
back room fer anythin' but a store-room this spring, so look out you don't
stumble over nothin' when you go in fer it's dark as a pocket. You go
right 'long in. I reckon you'll find the way. Yes, it's on the right hand
side o' the hall. I've got to set here an' finish these potatoes er
dinner'll be late. I'd like to know real well ef he's one o' Hannah
Heath's beaux."

Miranda needed no second bidding. She slipped through the hall and store
room, and in a moment stood before the door of the closet. Softly she
opened it, and stepped in, lifting her feet cautiously, for the closet
floor seemed full of old boots and shoes.

It was dark in there, very dark, and only one s