ucklow inquired.

"Reuben has come home!" The words were spoken triumphantly, and the keen
gray eyes of the elderly maiden twinkled.

"Come home! home!" echoed both Ducklows at once, in great astonishment.

Miss Beswick assured them of the fact.

"My! how you talk!" exclaimed Mrs. Ducklow. "I never dreamed of such
a----When did he come?"

"About an hour 'n' a half ago. I happened to be in to Sophrony's. I had
jest gone over to set a little while with her and keep her company,--as
I've often done, she seemed so lonely, livin' there with her two
children alone in the house, her husband away so. Her friends ha'n't
been none too attentive to her in his absence, she thinks,--and so I
think."

"I--I hope you don't mean that as a hint to us, Miss Beswick," said Mrs.
Ducklow.

"You can take it as such, or not, jest as you please! I leave it to your
own consciences. You know best whether you have done your duty to
Sophrony and her family, whilst her husband has been off to the war; and
I sha'n't set myself up for a judge. You never had any boys of your own,
and so you adopted Reuben, jest as you have lately adopted Thaddeus; and
I s'pose you think you've done well by him, jest as you think you will
do by Thaddeus, if he's a good boy, and stays with you till he's
twenty-one."

"I hope no one thinks or says the contrary, Miss Beswick!" said Mr.
Ducklow, gravely, with flushed face.

"There may be two opinions on that subject!" said Miss Beswick, with a
slight toss of the head, setting that small and irregular spheroid at a
still loftier and more imposing altitude. "Reuben came to you when he
was jest old enough to be of use about the house and on the farm; and if
I recollect right, you didn't encourage idleness in him long. You didn't
give his hands much chance to do 'some mischief still'! No, indeed!
nobody can accuse you of that weakness!" And the skin of the wrinkled
features tightened with a terrible grin.

"Nobody can say we ever overworked the boy, or ill used him in any way!"
exclaimed Mrs. Ducklow, excitedly.

"No! _I_ don't say it! But this I'll say, for I've had it in my mind
ever since Sophrony was left alone,--I couldn't help seein' and feelin',
and, now you've set me a-talkin', I may as well speak out. Reuben was
always a good boy, and a willin' boy, as you yourselves must allow; and
he paid his way from the first."

"I don't know about that!" interposed Mr. Ducklow, taking up his knife
and fork, and dr