besides I may in
confidence state as when I really felt to speak I sailed right in anyhow
'n' spoke what I wanted to. For I never was one to sit by 'n' have my
tail calmly trod on, as you 'n' a great many others knows to your cost,
Mrs. Lathrop, 'n' then, too, each time when I see as he was nigh to
tippin' into the cistern it was really nothin' but a joy to him to know
it in time to hitch away."

"Did--" said Mrs. Lathrop.

"In the first place," said Susan, "he asked me if I 'd mind his smokin'
his pipe, 'n' I told him I most certainly would, so that ended that
subjeck right up square at the beginnin'. Then he said he 'd been
married nigh on to forty years 'n' I told him to look out for the
cistern 'n' he hitched along a piece 'n' begin again. 'N' then he seemed
set a-goin' for keeps.

"Seems, Mrs. Lathrop, as he never had no family, but he says he was a
very handsome young fellow for all that. I looked pretty hard at him,
but he stuck to it 'n' I let it go. He went on to say as he growed up
anyhow 'n' drifted to Meadville when he was long about twenty-four, 'n'
went on to the Pearson farm. Oh, my, but he says that was a stony farm!
I tell you but he rubbed his chin with his hand a long while afore he
said all over again, 'but that _was_ a stony farm!' An' the
gophers!--Well, he says whatever the Recordin' Angel has got down he
bets he's skipped some o' them gophers. He says the hairs on your head
is a mere joy to reckon up, 'n' fallin' sparrows too, beside them
gophers. He says savin' a cent in the time o' Egypt 'n' seein' what you
'd have now if you 'd only done it, is nothin' to the way them gophers
on the Pearson farm was give to givin' in marriage. He says as it was a
very stony farm, 'n' in between every two stones was one hole 'n' half a
dozen gophers to a hole, in the _single_ season. He says ploughin' was
like churnin' with nothin' but stones 'n' gophers in the churn. He says
they was that tame they'd run up your legs 'n' up the horses' legs; he
said maybe I would n't believe it, 'n' I told him I certainly would n't,
so then he went on to another subjeck.

"He says he used to plough through them gophers all day 'n' court Tilly
all night. Tilly was old Mrs. Ely. He says she 'd never been courted on
a'count of her nose, but he said he wanted a farm bad enough to be
willin' to never forget to tip his face pretty well crossways. He says
she was so happy bein' courted that at first it made the gophers just
see