, dearest, this is the strangest of all strange things. The driver
here says he lives at Dorringtons', and the Gaither house is not so very
far from Dorringtons'."

"Everybody knows," said Gabriel, "that Miss Polly Gaither lives in the
Gaither house." He spoke before he was aware, and began to blush.
Whereupon the young lady gave him a very bright smile.

"Humph!" grunted Mr. Goodlett, giving the lad a severe look. He started
to climb into his seat, but turned to Gabriel. "Is she got a wen?" he
asked, with something like a scowl.

"Yes, she has a wen," replied the lad, blushing again, but this time for
Mr. Goodlett.

"Well, then, ef she's got a wen, ef Polly Gaithers is got a wen, she's
livin' in that house, bekaze, no longer'n last Sat'day, she come roun'
for to borry some meal; an' whatsomever she use to have, an' whatsomever
she mought have herearter, she's got a wen now, an' I'll tell you so on
a stack of Bibles as high as the court-house."

The young lady laughed, but immediately controlled herself with a
half-petulant "Oh dear!" Laughter became her well, for it smoothed away
a little frown of perplexity that had established itself between her
eyebrows.

"Oh, we'll take the young man's word for it," said the invalid, "and we
are very much obliged to him. What is your name?" When Gabriel had told
her, she repeated the name over again. "I used to know your grandmother
very well," she said. "Tell her Margaret Bridalbin has returned home,
and would be delighted to see her."

"Then, ma'am, you must be Margaret Gaither," remarked Mr. Sanders.

"Yes, I was Margaret Gaither," replied the invalid. "I used to know you
very well, Mr. Sanders, and if I had changed as little as you have, I
could still boast of my beauty."

"Yet nobody hears me braggin' of mine, Margaret," said Mr. Sanders with
a smile that found its reflection in the daughter's face; "but I hope
from my heart that home an' old friends will be a good physic for you,
an' git you to braggin' ag'in. Anyhow, ef you don't brag on yourself,
you can take up a good part of the time braggin' on your daughter."

"Oh, thank you, sir, for the clever joke. My mother has told me long ago
how full of fun you are," said the young lady, blushing sufficiently to
show that she did not regard the compliment as altogether a joke. "You
may drive on now," she remarked to Mr. Goodlett. Whereupon that
surly-looking veteran slapped his mismatched team with the loose ends of
t