but what everything on the supper-table is meant to be eaten straight off. I would keep two such men as my husband as soon as I would Philetus." "Philetus!" said Fleda- the person that brought the chicken, and thought he had brought two?” "You've hit it," said Mrs. Douglass. How do you like our new minister ?" 66 Now you know him. "We are all very much pleased with him." "I ha'n't seen him much yet except in church; but those that know, say he is very agreeable in the house." 66 Truly, I dare say,” answered Fleda, for Mrs. Douglass's face looked for her testimony. "But I think he looks as if he was beating his brains out there among his books. I tell him he is getting the blues, living in that big house by himself." "Do you manage to do all your work without help, Mrs. Douglass?" said Fleda, knowing that the question was in order," and that the affirmative answer was not counted a thing to be ashamed of. 66 Well, I guess I'll know good reason," said Mrs. Douglass, complacently, "before I'll have any help to spoil my work. Come along, and I'll let you see whether I want one." Fleda went, very willingly, to be shown all Mrs. Douglass' household arrangements and clever contrivances, of her own or her husband's devising, for lessening or facilitating labour. The lady was proud, and had some reason to be, of the very superb order and neatness of each part and detail. No corner or closet that might not be laid open fearlessly to a visitor's inspection. Miss Catharine was then directed to open her piano, and amuse Fleda with it while her mother performed her promise of getting an early supper-a command grateful to one or two of the party, for Catharine had been carrying on all this while a most stately tête-à-tête with Hugh, which neither had any wish to prolong. So Fleda filled up the time goodnaturedly with thrumming over the two or three bits of her childish music that she could recall, till Mr. Douglass came in, and they were summoned to sit down to supper; which Mrs. Douglass introduced by telling her guests they must take what they could get, for she had made fresh bread and cake and pies for them two or three times, and she wa'n't a-going to do it again." Her table was abundantly spread, however, and with most exquisite neatness; and everything was of excellent quality, saving only certain matters which call for a free hand in the use of material. Fleda thought the pumpkin pies must have been made from that vaunted stock which is said to want no eggs nor sugar, and the cakes, she told Mrs. Rossitur afterwards, would have been good if half the flour had been left out, and the other ingredients doubled. The deficiency in one kind, however, was made up by superabundance in another; the table was stocked with such wealth of crockery that one could not imagine any poverty in what was to go upon it. Fleda hardly knew how to marshall the confusion of plates which grouped themselves around her cup and saucer, and none of them might be dispensed with. There was one set of little glass dishes for one kind of sweetmeat, another set of ditto for another kind; an army of tiny plates to receive and shield the tablecloth from the dislodged cups of tea, saucers being the conventional drinking vessels; and there were the standard bread and butter plates, which, besides their proper charge of bread and butter, and beef, and cheese, were expected, Fleda knew, to receive a portion of every kind of cake that might happen to be on the table. It was a very different thing, however, from Miss Anastasia's tea-table, or that of Miss Flora Quackenboss. Fleda enjoyed the whole time without difficulty. Mr. Douglass readily agreed to the transfer of Philetus's services. "He's a good boy!" said Earl-"he's a good boy; he's as good a kind of a boy as you need to have. He wants tellin'; most boys want tellin'; but he'll do when he is told, and he means to do right." "How long do you expect your uncle will be gone?" said Mrs. Douglass. "I do not know," said Fleda. "Have you heard from him since you left?" "Not since I came home," said Fleda. "Mr. Douglass, what is the first thing to be done about the maple-trees in the sugar season ?" Why, you calculate to try makin' sugar in the spring?" "Perhaps at any rate I should like to know about it." "Well, I should think you would," said Earl," and it's easy done there ain't nothin' easier, when you know the right way to set to work about it; and there's a fine lot of sugar-trees on the old farm-I recollect of them sugar-trees as long ago as when I was a boy-I've helped to work them afore now, but there's a good many years since has made me a leetle older; but the first thing you want is a man and a team, to go about and empty the buckets the buckets must be emptied every day-and then carry it down to the house." "Yes, I know," said Fleda; "but what is the first thing to be done to the trees?" "Why, la! 'tain't much to do to the trees-all you've got to do is to take an axe and chip a bit out, and stick a chip a leetle way into the cut for to dreen the sap, and set a trough under, and then go on to the next one, and so on ;-you may make one or two cuts in the south side of the tree, and one or two cuts in the north side, if the tree's big enough, and if it ain't only make one or two cuts in the south side of tree; and for the sap to run good, it had ought to be that kind o' weather when it freezes in the day and thaws by night; I would say!-when it friz in the night and thaws in the day; the sap runs more bountifully in that kind o' weather." It needed little from Fleda to keep Mr. Douglass at the maple-trees till supper was ended; and then, as it was already sundown, he went to harness the sleigh. It was a comfortable one, and the horses, if not very handsome nor bright-curried, were well fed and had good heart to their work. A two-mile drive was before them, and with no troublesome tongues or eyes to claim her attention, Fleda enjoyed it fully. In the soft clear winter twilight, when heaven and earth mingle so gently, and the stars look forth brighter and cheerfuller than ever at another time, they slid along over the fine roads, too swiftly, towards home; and Fleda's thoughts as easily and swiftly slipped away from Mr. Douglass, and maplesugar, and Philetus, and an unfilled wood-yard, and an empty flour-barrel, and revelled in the pure ether. A dark rising ground covered with wood sometimes rose between her and the western horizon; and then a long stretch of snow, only less pure, would leave free view of its unearthly white light, dimmed by no exhalation, a gentle, mute, but not the less eloquent, witness to earth of what heaven must be. But the sleigh stopped at the gate, and Fleda's musings came home. "Good night!" said Earl, in reply to their thanks and adieus;—" 'tain't anything to thank a body for let me know when you're a-goin' into the sugar-making, and I'll come and help you." "How sweet a pleasant message may make an unmusical tongue!" said Fleda, as she and Hugh made their way up to the house. "We had a stupid enough afternoon," said Hugh. "But the ride home was worth it all." CHAPTER XXVI. "'Tis merry, 'tis merry, in good green wood, On the beech's pride, and the oak's brown side, LADY OF THE LAKE. PHILETUS came, and was inducted into office and the little room immediately; and Fleda felt herself eased of a burden. Barby reported him stout and willing, and he proved it by what seemed a perverted inclination for bearing the most enormous logs of wood he could find into the kitchen. 66 He will hurt himself!" said Fleda. "I'll protect him!-against anything but buckwheat batter," said Barby, with a grave shake of her head. "Lazy folks takes the most pains, I tell him. But it would be good to have some more ground, Fleda, for Philetus says he don't care for no dinner when he has griddles to breakfast, and there ain't anything much cheaper than that." "Aunt Lucy, have you any change in the house?" said Fleda, that same day. "There isn't but three and sixpence," said Mrs. Rossitur, with a pained, conscious look. "What is wanting, dear?" Only candles-Barby has suddenly found we are out, and she won't have any more made before to-morrow. Never mind." "There is only that," repeated Mrs. Rossitur. "Hugh has a little money due to him from last summer, but he hasn't been able to get it yet. You may take that, dear." 66 No," said Fleda, "we mustn't. We might want it more." "We can sit in the dark for once," said Hugh, and try to make an uncommon display of what Dr. Quackenboss calls 'sociality !"" "No," said Fleda, who had stood busily thinking, “I am going to send Philetus down to the post-office for the paper, and when it comes, I am not to be balked of reading it; I've made up my mind. We'll go right off into the woods and get some pine knots, Hugh-come! They make a lovely light. You get us a couple of baskets and the hatchet; I wish we had two; and I'll be ready in no time. That'll do !" It is to be noticed, that Charlton had provided against any future deficiency of news in his family. Fleda skipped away, and in five minutes returned arrayed for the expedition, in her usual out-of-door working trim, namely, an old dark merino cloak, almost. black, the effect of which was continued by the edge of an old dark mousseline below, and rendered decidedly striking by the contrast of a large whitish yarn shawl worn over it; the whole crowned with a little close-fitting hood made of some old silver-grey silk, shaped tight to the head, without any bow or furbelow to break the outline. But such a face within side of it! She came almost dancing into the room. "This is Miss Ringgan! as she appeared when she was going to see the pine-trees. Hugh, don't you wish you had a picture of me ?" "I have got a tolerable picture of you, somewhere,” said Hugh. "This is somebody very different from the Miss Ringgan that went to see Mrs. Evelyn, I can tell you," Fleda went on, gaily. "Do you know, aunt Lucy, I have made up my mind that my visit to New York was a dream, and the dream is nicely folded away with my silk dresses. Now, I must go tell that precious Philetus about the post-office; I am so comforted, aunt Lucy, whenever I see that fellow staggering into the house under a great log of wood, I have not heard anything in a long time so pleasant as the ringing strokes of his axe in the yard. Isn't life made up of little things?" 66 Why don't you put a better pair of shoes on ?” "Can't afford it, Mrs. Rossitur. You are extravagant." "Go and put on my India-rubbers." No, ma'am—the rocks would cut them to pieces. I have brought my mind down to my shoes." 'It isn't safe, Fleda; you might see somebody." "Well, ma'am ! But I tell you I am not going to see anybody but the chick-a-dees and the snow-birds, and there is great simplicity of manners prevailing among them." The shoes were changed, and Hugh and Fleda set forth, lingering a while, however, to give a new edge to their hatchet -Fleda turning the grindstone. They mounted then the appleorchard hill, and went a little distance along the edge of the table-land, before striking off into the woods. They had stood still a minute to look over the little white valley to the snowdressed woodland beyond. "This is better than New York, Hugh," said Fleda. "I am very glad to hear you say that," said another voice. Fleda turned, and started a little to see Mr. Olmney at her side, and congratulated herself instantly on her shoes. "Mrs. Rossitur told me where you had gone, and gave me permission to follow you, but I hardly hoped to overtake you so soon." |