nued, waving his arm, as if to include the entire island,
"that ye both desarve it, an' we ain't goin' to 'low ye two ter jist git
hitched an' sneak off quietly. My boat's at yer sarvice, an' we feel the
best's none too good fer ye both, and we hev come to ask ye to let us
all jine in and gin ye the right sort o' a send-off. I might as well
tell ye now, Jess," he added, looking at that worthy, "jist how ye stand
'mong us and how 'tarnally grateful we all feel fer all yer good deeds
toward young and old. We hain't forgot nothin' from the day ye first
come back to be one on us, up till last summer when ye saved us our
money on that stock bizness. We don't blame the young feller neither,
and if ever he cums back, we'll all jine in givin' him a welcome as
well. But now we absolutely insist we be 'lowed to start ye fair, and in
style, in the new step ye two air takin'."

And "start them fair" they did; for although the snow lay thick on the
granite ledges of Rockhaven, when the day came, and cheerless winter
reigned, there was no lack of cheer in all that was said and done.
First, a hundred pairs of willing hands transformed the church into a
bower of green, and since flowers were not to be had, wreaths of spruce
twigs, tied with white ribbon and ropes of ground pine, were used. Then
an arch of green, wound with strips of white silk, was erected over the
gate, and the walk up to the church was carpeted with spruce boughs. The
only pleasure vehicle on the island, an ancient carryall, also decked
with green and white, was pressed with service to convey the honored
couple and Mona to church, now heated to suffocation and packed solid
with the island population, while some unable to get in waited outside.
Then, while the Rev. Jason Bush was uniting the happy pair, a dozen
young men, unable to curb their enthusiasm, unhitched the horse from the
carryall, and when they came out drew them back to the house. And then,
after the two hours of reception and hand-shaking had expired, full
fifty men were in line to draw that unique chariot to the boat.

"It is a wonder ye didn't set out to take us on yer backs," asserted
Jess to the crowd on the wharf, when he alighted; "but all this fuss has
warmed our feelings toward ye all more'n words'll tell."

And when three times three cheers had echoed back from the now deserted
quarry, the little steamer sailed away into the mist-hidden winter sea
and the crowd dispersed; for weeks after the so