ever I was, Miss Lavendar."

Miss Lavendar shook her head.

"I see something's gone wrong, Anne. I'm going to be impertinent and ask
what. Have you quarrelled?"

"No; it's only that Gilbert wants more than friendship and I can't give
him more."

"Are you sure of that, Anne?"

"Perfectly sure."

"I'm very, very sorry."

"I wonder why everybody seems to think I ought to marry Gilbert Blythe,"
said Anne petulantly.

"Because you were made and meant for each other, Anne--that is why. You
needn't toss that young head of yours. It's a fact."

Chapter XXIV

Enter Jonas

"PROSPECT POINT, "August 20th.

"Dear Anne--spelled--with--an--E," wrote Phil, "I must prop my eyelids
open long enough to write you. I've neglected you shamefully this
summer, honey, but all my other correspondents have been neglected, too.
I have a huge pile of letters to answer, so I must gird up the loins
of my mind and hoe in. Excuse my mixed metaphors. I'm fearfully sleepy.
Last night Cousin Emily and I were calling at a neighbor's. There were
several other callers there, and as soon as those unfortunate creatures
left, our hostess and her three daughters picked them all to pieces. I
knew they would begin on Cousin Emily and me as soon as the door shut
behind us. When we came home Mrs. Lilly informed us that the aforesaid
neighbor's hired boy was supposed to be down with scarlet fever. You can
always trust Mrs. Lilly to tell you cheerful things like that. I have
a horror of scarlet fever. I couldn't sleep when I went to bed for
thinking of it. I tossed and tumbled about, dreaming fearful dreams when
I did snooze for a minute; and at three I wakened up with a high fever,
a sore throat, and a raging headache. I knew I had scarlet fever; I got
up in a panic and hunted up Cousin Emily's 'doctor book' to read up the
symptoms. Anne, I had them all. So I went back to bed, and knowing the
worst, slept like a top the rest of the night. Though why a top should
sleep sounder than anything else I never could understand. But this
morning I was quite well, so it couldn't have been the fever. I suppose
if I did catch it last night it couldn't have developed so soon. I can
remember that in daytime, but at three o'clock at night I never can be
logical.

"I suppose you wonder what I'm doing at Prospect Point. Well, I always
like to spend a month of summer at the shore, and father insists that
I come to his second-cousin Emily's 'select boardingho