l will mean both pain
and suffering for him and he must not be worried about it in advance.
He will need all his nerve and courage when the time for action comes.
Moreover, we feel it would be cruel for him to glimpse such a vision
and then find it only a mirage. So we have told him nothing. But I have
told you because you are fond of him and I wanted you to share the
secret."

"It shall remain a secret, Mr. Fernald."

"I feel sure of that," the man replied. "You are a good boy, Ted. It
was a lucky day that brought you to Pine Lea."

"A lucky one for me, sir!"

"For all of us, son! For all of us!" reiterated the old gentleman. "The
year of your coming here will be one we never shall forget. It has been
very eventful."

Certainly the final comment was no idle one. Not only had the year been
a red-letter one but it was destined to prove even more conspicuously
memorable. With the spring the plans for the new village went rapidly
forward and soon pretty little concrete houses with roofs of scarlet
and trimmings of green dotted the slopes on the opposite side of the
river. The laying out and building of this community became Grandfather
Fernald's recreation and delight. Morning, noon, and evening he could
be seen either perusing curling sheets of blue prints, consorting with
his architects, or rolling off in his car to inspect the progress of
the venture. Sometimes he took Ted with him, sometimes his son, and
when Laurie was strong enough, the entire family frequently made the
pilgrimage to the new settlement.

It was very attractive, there was no denying that; and it seemed as if
nothing that could give pleasure to its future residents had been
omitted. The tiny library had been Laurie's pet scheme, and not only
had his grandfather eagerly carried out the boy's own plans but he had
proudly ordered the lad's name to be chiselled across the front of the
building. Ted's plea had been for a playground and this request had
also been granted, since it appeared to be a wise one. It was a
wonderful playground, bordering on the river and having swings and sand
boxes for the children; seats for tired mothers; and a large ball-field
with bleachers for the men and boys. The inhabitants of Freeman's Falls
had never dreamed of such an ideal realm in which to live, and as
tidings of the paradise went forth, strangers began to flock into town
in the hope of securing work in the mills and homes in the new
settlement.

The Fernald