I was getting dinner on this
minute."

It continued to rain on the picnic day; no uncertain showers, to keep
up a chill and fever of fear and hope among the young people, but a
good, honest downpour, which everybody past twenty must recognize as
being just the thing the country needed. Jenny Miller came in, smiling
all over, though she professed herself "real sorry for them as was
disappointed." "Tudie Peaslee sat down and cried, when she saw 'twas
rainin'," she said, as she prepared to give her dress the final
trying-on. "There, Miss Peace. I did try to feel for her, but I just
couldn't, seems though. Oh, ain't that handsome? that little puff is
too cute for anything! I do think you've been smart, Miss Peace. Not
that you ever was anything else."

"You've a real easy figure to fit, Jenny," Miss Peace replied,
modestly. "I guess that's half the smartness of it. It doos set good,
though, I'm free to think. The styles is real pretty this summer,
anyhow. Don't that set good, Delia?"

She turned to Mrs. Means, who was lying on the sofa (they call it a
l'unge in Cyrus), watching the trying-on with keenly critical eyes.

"Ye-es," she said. "The back sets good enough, but 'pears to me
there's a wrinkle about the neck that I shouldn't like to see in any
work of mine. I've always ben too particklar, though; it's time thrown
away, but I can't bear to send a thing out 'cept jest as it should
be."

"It _don't_ wrinkle, Mis' Means!" cried Jenny, indignantly. "Not a
mite. I was turning round to look at the back of the skirt, and that
pulled it; there ain't a sign of a wrinkle, Miss Peace, so don't you
think there is."

Mrs. Means sniffed, and said something about the change in young
folks' manners since she was a girl. "If I'd ha' spoke so to my
elders--I won't say betters, for folks ain't thought much of when they
have to sew for a livin', with a husband and four children to keer
for--I guess I should ha' found it out in pretty quick time."

"Hi-hi!" said Miss Peace, soothingly. "There, Delia, Jenny didn't mean
anything. Jenny, I guess I'll have to take you into the bedroom, so's
I can pull this skirt out a little further. This room doos get so
cluttered with all my things round." She hustled Jenny, swelling like
an angry partridge, into the next room, and closed the door carefully.

"You don't want to anger Mis' Means, dear," she said gently, taking
the pins out of her mouth for freer speech. "She may be jest a scrap
pu