"Welcome, ma'am," she said. "Just hand me that there baby and then ye
can get out handy. Look out for that dust on the buggy wheels. That's
right! Howdy, Mr. Cole, I'm glad to see ye. I can see you favor your
sister some, not but what she's a good lookin' woman. When she wrote as
'twas her brother wanted to come I knew ye'd be all right. Walk in."

We trooped into the kitchen, neat as a pin, whereat Eulalie smiled in
approval, and were shown upstairs. A large room facing the north was
papered with a design of roses about the size of prize cabbages. The
windows were shaded by a couple of the big cherry trees.

"In a few days you will be able to pick ripe fruit by merely putting
your hand out," I told Frances.

"Yes," Mrs. Gobbins informed us. "Your sister's two boys was always at
them and filled theirselves so full they couldn't hardly eat no decent
victuals, let alone havin' stomach ache. This here small room will do
for the other lady and yours is over on the other side of the house,
sir."

My own residence was also spick and span, and I decided that we had
fallen into an oasis of delight. A few minutes sufficed me to repair the
damage done by the journey, and I went downstairs. The front door was
now open. To one side of it there was a dining-room adorned with chromos
advertising gigantic vegetables and fruit, apparently imported from the
Promised Land. Opposite this was a parlor where bottle-green plush
reigned in unsunned violence of hue and aggressive gilt frames
surrounded works of art of impetuous tints. On going out I was met by
the dog, who accepted my advances with the greatest urbanity. Towser had
still a touching faith in human nature and deemed me inoffensive and
fully competent to scratch the back of his head.

Presently, arrived an elderly gentleman in blue jeans, his chin
ornamented with whisker and his mouth with a corncob pipe.

"How be ye?" he asked. "Gettin' real hot and the corn's comin' up fine.
Wonderful year for strawberries an' sparrer-grass. How's things in the
city?"

He sat down on the steps of the veranda, inviting me to do the same,
with a civil wave of his pipestem, and we entered into pleasant
converse, until the voice of his mate shrilly commanded him to arise and
wash his hands and shed the overalls, whereat he hastily deserted me.

Came a supper at which I was able to comment agreeably on the cream
served with the berries, whereat Mr. Gobbins gave out dark hints of
watery ma