ir house after Oscar's
trouble, to raise money for his defense; and they had all moved away,
she believed, to Dakota, but she didn't know where. She said Nannie
avoided everybody."

"And what _was_ Oscar's trouble?" demanded Mrs. Waite. "I know there was
some iniquitous blunder of the law, but what exactly was it?"

Mrs. Clymer, who had been watching Mrs. Curtis attentively, explained
while the other woman seemed searching for the right words. "Oscar was
convicted of burning the store of a rival merchant who had treated him
very treacherously. He had lost his temper, and threatened the man. What
he meant, he explained, was to give him a good hiding. But he was
overheard; and when, that night, the store burned, and Oscar was
discovered to have gone there, suspicion lighted on him. Of course, all
his former wild actions were brought up against him, although he had
quite reformed. There had been a number of incendiary fires, and you
know how people always want _somebody_ punished; poor Oscar Marsh was
sent to the penitentiary, after his people had spent almost their last
dollar to defend him. They moved away, and all trace of them was lost.
It is a wretched story. And really, Oscar was innocent. A year afterward
(I always credited it mostly to Nannie) it was discovered that the man
had set fire to the store himself. Nannie got the insurance company on
his trail. He fled. The governor pardoned Oscar. And that is all any of
us know."

"It is a sad story," sighed Mrs. Waite. "I think she did wrong not to
educate herself."

"I think she did quite right," said Mrs. Curtis.

"But as it was, the sacrifice was so useless," urged the youngest
member. "She didn't lift them; they only all went under the waves
together."

"Not necessarily," objected the Southerner. "Why be so dismal? Why not
be cheerful? They had their good trade and their good sense and their
love for each other. I am going to suppose that those things are more
than money, and that they went to work in a new place, rose little by
little, and then more and more, and are all prosperous and respected,
and Miss Nannie has married the young superintendent of her new factory,
who has now risen to be the main partner; he is of an old though
impoverished family--"

"You think so much of family in the South, don't you?" interjected Mrs.
Waite.

"Well, we have so many old and good but impoverished families there, you
see. I think the chances are she married such a b