inished him. Well, well--I suppose this
means another wedding present?" He looked dubiously at Hepatica.

"It does, of course," she admitted.

"Send her a cut-glass punch-bowl," he suggested, preparing savagely to
carve a plump, young duck. "Anything less adapted to the use of a
preacher's family I can't conceive. And that's the main object in buying
wedding gifts, according to my observation."

The day of Rhodora's wedding arrived, and we went down together to
Grandmother's lovely old country home--a stately house upon the banks of
a wide, frozen river. Our train brought us there two hours before the
one set for the ceremony, and we found not only Grandmother but Rhodora
and the Preacher in the fine old-time drawing-room to greet us. The
wedding was to be a quietly informal one, and such of the other guests
as had already arrived were in the room also, having a cup of tea before
they should go upstairs to dress.

Rhodora herself was pouring the tea, and the Preacher was helping hand
the cups about. It was a beautiful opportunity to observe the pair
before their marriage.

Grandmother gave us the welcome only Grandmother knows how to give. In
her own home she looks like a fair, little, old queen, receiving
everybody's homage, yet giving so much kindness in return that one can
never feel one's self out of debt to her hospitality. Her greeting to
the Philosopher was an especially cordial one.

"I ventured to ask you," she said to him, "because I have always wanted
to see you again--not merely because I have heard of you in the world
where you are making a name for yourself. And I wanted, too, in justice
to my granddaughter, to have you see her again."

Before the Philosopher could formulate an appropriate reply, Rhodora
herself, leaving her tea-table, and crossing the room with a swift and
graceful tread, was giving us welcome.

It was amusing to see our two men look at Rhodora. Hepatica and I had
been, in a way, prepared to see a transformation, having heard sundry
rumours to that effect; but the Skeptic and the Philosopher, having
classified Rhodora once and for all, had since received no impression
sufficient to efface or modify the original one. I can say for them that
to one who did not know them well their surprise would have been
undiscoverable, yet to Hepatica and me it was perfectly evident that
they considered a miracle had been wrought.

As to personal appearance, Rhodora had developed, as she had pro