"Why，Colton。Hewasinhereyesterday。Openedwhathecalledahouseholdaccount；thatwashismainbusiness。Butheaskedaboutyou，alongwithit。"
　　Thisexplainedsomethings。ItwasclearnowwhySmallhadappearedsointerested。"Oh！"Isaid。
　　"Youbethedid。WantedtoknowifIknewyou，andwhatyouwere，andsoon。ItoldhimIknewyouprettywell。’Whatsortofafellowishe？Adamnfool？’heasked。Istrainedthetruthenoughtosayyouwereaprettygoodfellowandalongwaysfromthatkindofafool，accordingtomyreckoning。’Umph！’sayshe。’Isherich？’ItoldhimIguessedyouwan’tsorichthatyougotround—
　　shoulderedluggingyourmoney。’Why？’saysI，gettingcurious。
　　’Haveyoumethim，Mr。Colton？Ifyouhaveyououghttohavesizedhimupyourself。Ialwaysheardyouwereaprettyfairjudge。’Helookedatmekindoffunny。’IthoughtIwas，’sayshe，’butyouseemtoraiseanewvarietydownhere。’ThenIguesshethoughthe’dsaidenough。Atanyrate，hewalkedoff。Whatdidyouandhesaytoeachother，Ros？"
　　Ididnotanswerimmediately。WhenIdidtheanswerwasnon—
　　committal。"Oh，wehadabusinessinterview，"Isaid。
　　Henodded。"Well，"heobserved，"Isupposeit’syouraffairandnotmine。But，Itellyouthis，Ros：ifit’swhatIsupposeitis，it’llbeeverybody’saffairprettysoon。"
　　"Youthinkso，doyou？"
　　"Iknowso。Cap’nJed’safighterandheisonthewarpath。Thetwosidesareliningupalready。Whicheverwayyoudecideyou’llmakeenemies，ofcourse。"
　　Ishruggedmyshoulders。Theprospectofenemies，moreorless，inDenboro，didnottroubleme。
　　"Butyou’llhavetodecide，"hewenton，"whoyou’llsellto。"
　　"Ornotsellatall，"Isuggested。
　　"Canyouaffordtodothat？There’llbemoney——awholelotofmoney——inthisbeforeit’sover，ifIknowtheleadersonbothsides。You’vegotthewhip—hand。There’llbemoneyinit。Canyouaffordtoletitslip？"
　　Ididnotanswer。Suddenlyhisexpressionchanged。Helookedhaggardandcare—worn。
　　"BytheAlmighty，"hesaid，betweenhisteeth，andwithoutlookingatme，"IwishIhadyourchance。"
　　"Why？"
　　"Oh，nothing，nothing……How’syourmothernowadays？"
　　Itoldhimthatmymotherwasmuchasusual，andwetalkedofvariousthings。
　　"Bytheway，"hesaid，"I’vegotsomenewsforyou。Nothingsurprising。Iguessallhandshaveseenitcoming。I’mengagedtobemarried。"
　　"Good！"saidI，withasmuchheartinessasIcouldanswer；marriagedidnotinterestme。"Congratulations，George。NellieDean，ofcourse。"
　　"Yes。"
　　"I’mgladforyou。Andforher。She’llmakeyouagoodwife，I’msure。"
　　Hedrewalongbreath。"Yes，"hesaidslowly，"Nellie’sagoodgirl。"
　　"Whenisthe——whatdotheycallit？thehappyeventtotakeplace？"
　　"Inthefallsometime，ifallgoeswell。Ihopeitwill。"
　　"Humph！Yes，Ishouldthinkyoumighthopeasmuchasthat。Whyshouldn’titgowell？"
　　"Hey？Oh，ofcourseitwill！"Helaughedandrosefromhischairasseveralmencameintothebank。"I’llhavetoleaveyou，Ros，"
　　hesaid。"There’sadirectors’meetingthismorning。They’recomingnow。"
　　AsIpassedoutofthegateandthroughthegroupofdirectorsI
　　noticedthattheyalsoregardedmewithinterest。Two，menfromneighboringtownswhomIscarcelyknew，whisperedtoeachother。
　　CaptainElishaWarrenshookhandswithmeandinquiredconcerningMother。ThelastofthegroupwasCaptainJedediahDean，andhetouchedmeontheshoulder。
　　"Ros，"hewhispered，"you’reallright。Understand？Isayyou’reallright。"
　　"Thanks，"Ianswered，briefly。
　　"Iheardaboutit，"hewhispered。"AsePeterssaidtheGrandPanjandrumwascrankyasasharkwiththetoothachealldayyesterday。Youmusttellmetheyarnwhenwegettogether。I
　　missedyouwhenIcalledjustnow，butI’llbedownagainprettysoon。Youwon’tlosenothin’bythis。Solong。"
　　AsIcamedownthebankstepsSimEldredgecalledacrosstheroad。
　　"Good—by，Ros，"heshouted。"Comeinagainnexttimeyou’reupstreet。"
　　InallmyperiodofresidenceinDenboroIhadneverbeforebeentreatedlikethis。Peoplehadneverbeforegoneoutoftheirwaytoshakehandswithme。Noonehadconsidereditworthwhiletoaskfavorsofme。SimandAlvinwerenottobetakenseriously，ofcourse，andbothwerelookingaftertheirownpocketbooks，buttheiractionswerestrawsprovingthewindtobeblowinginmydirection。Ithought，andsmiledscornfully，thatI，allatonce，seemedtohavebecomeapersonofsomeimportance。
　　Butmyscornwasnotentirelysincere。Therewasacertaingratificationinthethought。Imightpretend——Ihadpretended——
　　thatDenboroopinion，goodorbad，wasamatterofcompleteindifferencetome。Ihadassumedmyselfaphilosopher，towhom，intheconsciousnessofright，suchtrifleswereofnoconsequence。
　　But，philosophyornot，thefactremainedthatIwaspleased。
　　Peoplemightdislikeme——asthatloftyColtongirlandherfatherdislikedme，thoughtheycoulddislikemenomorethanIdidthem——
　　butIcouldcompelthemtorespectme。Theyalreadymustthinkofmeasaman。Andsoon——asIwalkedhomethroughthewetgrass。
　　Itwasallasfoolishandchildishandridiculousasitwellcouldbe。Ideservedwhatwascomingtome——andIgotit。
　　For，asIcamedowntheLane，ImetOscar，thechauffeur，andacompanion，whomIjudgedtobeafellowservant——thecoachman，I
　　learnedafterwards——walkinginthedirectionofthevillage。Therainhadceased，buttheyworenattyraincoatsandcapsandhadthecityairofsmartnesswhichIrecognizedandenvied，eveninthem。
　　Thefootpathwasnarrow，buttheyapparentlyhadnointentionofsteppingtooneside，soImadewayforthem。Theywhisperedtogetherastheyapproachedandlookedatmecuriouslyaswepassed。AfewstepsfurtheronIheardthembothburstoutlaughing。Icaughtthewords，fromOscar，"foolRube"and"theoldman’llmakehimlook——"Iheardnomore，butasIturnedintothegroveIsawthembothlookingaftermewithbroadgrinsontheirfaces。
　　Somebodyhassaidthatthereisnothinghardertobearthanthecontemptandridiculeofservants。Foronething，youcannotresentitwithoutalossofdignity，and，foranother，youmaybeperfectlysurethattheirsisbutthereflectionoftheiremployers’frameofmind。Thisencountershookmyself—satisfactionmorethanalittle。Itangeredme，butitdidmorethanthat；itbroughtbackthefeelingIhadwhenIlefttheColtonlibrary，thatmydefiancewasnot，afterall，takenseriously。ThatIwasregardedbyColtonasjustwhatOscarhadtermedme，a"foolRube。"WhenGeorgeTaylortoldmeofthegreatman’squestionsconcerningmyfoolishness，I
　　acceptedthequestionasatributetomyindependence。NowIwasnotsosure。
　　Dorindametmeatthedoor。
　　"You’vehadtwocallers，"shesaid。
　　"So？Whowerethey？"
　　"Oneof’emwasCap’nJed。Hedrovedownjustafteryouleft。Hecometoseeyouaboutthatland，Ical’late。"
　　"Oh，yes。Irememberhetoldmehemissedmethismorning。Sohecamehere？"
　　"Um—hm。Himandmehadalittletalk。Heseemedtoknowconsider’bleaboutyourrumpuswithMr。Colton。"
　　"Howdidheknow？"
　　"Hewouldn’tsay，butIwouldn’twonderifhegotalotfromAsePeters。Aseandheareprettythick；he’sgotamortgageonAse’shouse，youknow。AndAse，bein’ashe’sdoin’thecarpenterin’
　　overtoColton’s，hearsalotfromtheservants，Is’poselikely。
　　Leastways，iftheydon’ttellalltheirbosses’affairsthey’reanewbreedofhiredhelp，that’sallI’vegottosay。Cap’nJedsaysMr。Coltoncal’latesyou’reafool。"
　　"Yes。SoI’veheard。WhatdidtheCaptainsaytothat？"
　　"Seemedtothink’twasaprettygoodjoke。Hesaidhedidn’tcarehowbigafoolyouwassolong’syouwasfeeble—mindedontherightside。"
　　Sothereitwasagain。Myimaginedimportanceintheeyesofthetownspeoplesimmereddowntoaboutthat。Iwasanimbecile，buttheymustpretendtobelievemesomethingelsebecauseIownedsomethingtheywanted。Well，Istillownedit。
　　"Ofcourse，"continuedDorinda，"Ididn’ttellhimyouwasfiggerin’nottosellthelandatall。IfIhad，Is’posehe’dhavethought——"
　　Shestoppedshort。
　　"Yousupposewhat？"Iasked。
　　"Oh，nothin’。"
　　Shehadsaidenough。Icouldguesstherest。Iwalkedtothewindowandstood，lookingout。Thecloudswerebreakingand，asI
　　stoodthere，arayofsunlightstreamedthroughariftandstruckthebayjustatthespotwherethedingyhadgrounded。Theshallowwaterabovetheflatflashedintofire。Iamnotsuperstitious，asageneralthing，butthesightcomfortedme。Itseemedlikeanomen。Therewastheonebrightspotintheoutlook。There，atleast，Ihadnotbehavedlikea"foolRube。"ThereIhadcompelledrespectandbeentakenseriously。
　　Dorindaspokeagain。
　　"Youain’taskedwhoyourothercallerwas，"sheobserved。
　　"Wasthereanother？"
　　"Um—hm。Itoldyoutherewastwo。AfterCap’nJedleftthatchauffeurfellerfromthebighousecomehere。Hefetchedanoteforyou。Here’tis。"
　　Itookthenote。Itwasaddressedtomeinaman’shandwriting，notthatof"BigJim"Colton。Iopenedtheenvelopeandread：
　　RoscoePaine。
　　Sir：Theenclosedisinpaymentforyourwork。Noreceiptisnecessary。
　　Yourstruly，B。VICTORCARVER。
　　The"enclosed"wasafive—dollarbill。
　　Istoodstaringatthenote。ThenIbegantolaugh。
　　"What’sthejoke？"askedDorinda，whohadnottakenhereyesfrommyface。
　　"This，"saidI，handingherthemoney。Shelookedatitinastonishment。
　　"Um—hm，"shesaid，drily。"Well，I——well，afive—dollarbillmaybeajoketoyou，but_I_ain’tfamiliarenoughwithonetolaughatit。Youdon’tlaughasif’twasawfulfunny，either。Who’sthejokeon？"
　　"It’sonme，justnow。
　　"Um—hm。I’dbewillin’tobejokedtentimesaday，atthatprice。
　　AndI’dundertaketolaughheartierthanyou’redoin’，too。What’sitfor？themoney，Imean。"
　　"It’sforsome’work’Ididyesterday。"
　　Shewasmoreastonishedthanever。
　　"Work！You？"sheexclaimed。
　　"Yes。Butdon’tworry；Ishan’tdoitagain。"
　　"Land！THATwouldn’tworryme。Whatsortofworkwasit？"
　　"Oh，I——Ipickedupsomethingadriftinthebay。"
　　"Um—hm。Isee。Somethin’belongin’totheColtons，Is’poselikely。Whywon’tyoudoitagain？Ain’ttheypaidyouenough？"
　　AgainIlaughed。"Theyhavepaidmetoomuch，"Isaid，bitterly。
　　"WhatIpickedupwasn’tworththemoney。"
　　CHAPTERVII
　　Andthat，intheend，wastheanswerIsenttoCarverwithhisfivedollars。Ispentanhourinmyroomtryingtocomposeandwriteasarcasticreplytohisnote，butIfinallygaveitup。ThenIputthemoneyinanenvelope，addressedthelatter，andsentittothebighousebyLute。Lutewasdelightedwiththeerrand。
　　"You’llexplaintoDorindy，willyou？"heasked。"Shecal’latesI’mgoin’tocleanthehenhouse。ButIcandothatsomeothertime。"
　　"Youcan——yes。"
　　"Doyouknow——"Luteleanedagainsttheclothespostandpreparedtophilosophize。"Doyouknow，"heobserved，"thatIdon’ttakenostockincleanin’henhousesandsuch？"
　　"Don’tyou？I’msurprised。"
　　"You’resurprised’causeyouain’tthoughtitout。That’smyway；
　　Ialwaysthinkthingsout。Mostfolksareselfish。Theywanttodowhattheywanttodo，andtheywantotherstowantthesamething。Iftheothersdon’twantit，thentheyliketomake’emhaveit；anyhow。Dorindyiscrazyoncleanin’。Shewouldn’tliveinadirtyhousenomore’nshe’dliveinalobsterpot。It’sthewayshe’smade。Butahenain’tmadethatway。AhenLIKESdirt；
　　shescratchesinitanddigsholesinittowallerin，andheavesitoverherselfalldaylong。IfyouleftittothehenswouldTHEYcleantheirhouse？Iguessnot！So，Isaywhat’stheuseofcruelizin’’embymakin’’emlivecleanwhentheydon’twantto？
　　I——"
　　"Waitaminute，"Iinterrupted。"Lute，you’rewastingyourbreath。
　　ItisDorindayoushouldexplainallthisto，nottome。Andyou’rewastingmytime。IwantyoutotakethatenvelopetoMr。
　　Carver；andIwantyoutogonow。"
　　"Well，I’mgoin’，ain’tI？Iwasonlyjustsayin’——"
　　"Sayitwhenyoucomeback。AndifMr。CarverasksyouwhyIsentthatenvelopetohimbesureandgivehimthemessageIgaveyou。
　　Doyourememberit？"
　　"Sartin。Thatwhatyoudonewan’twuthsomuch。"
　　"Notexactly。ThatwhatIsavedwasn’tworthit。"
　　"Allright。I’llremember。Butwhatdidyousave，Ros？Dorindysays’twassomethin’youfoundafloatinthebay。Ifitwassomethin’belongin’tothemColtonsI’dhavetookthemoney，nomatterwhatthethingwaswuth。Theycanaffordtopayand，ifI
　　wasyou，I’dtakethereward。"
　　"Ihavemyreward。Nowgo。"
　　IhadmyrewardandIbelieveditworthmuchmorethanfivedollars。Ihadlearnedmylesson。IknewnowexactlyhowIwasregardedbytheoccupantsofthebighouseandbythetownspeopleaswell。Ishouldcherishnomoreillusionsastomyimportanceintheireyes。Imeanttobereallyindependentfromthattimeon。I
　　didnotcare——reallydidnotcare——foranythingoranybodyoutsidemyimmediatehousehold。IwasbackinthepositionIhadoccupiedforyears，butwithonedifference：Ihadanambitionnow。ItwastomakebothsidesintheShoreLanecontroversyrealizethatGeorgeTaylorwasrightwhenhesaidIhadthewhip—hand。BytheAlmighty，theyshoulddancewhenIcrackedthatwhip！
　　Myfirstopportunitytocrackitcameadayortwolater，whenCaptainDeancalleduponme。Hehadadefinitepropositiontomake，althoughhisYankeeshrewdnessandcautionpreventedhismakingituntilhehaddiscussedtheweatherandotherunimportanttrifles。Thenheleanedagainsttheedgeofmywork—bench——wewereintheboathouse——andbegantobeatuptowindwardofhisproposal。
　　"Ros，"hesaid，"yourememberItoldyouyouwasallright，whenI
　　metyouatthebankt’otherday。"
　　"Iremember，"Ianswered。
　　"Yes。Well，Ical’lateyouknowwhatImeantbythat。"
　　Ididnotpretendignoranceofhismeaning。
　　"Ipresume，"Ireplied，"thatyoumeantIwasrightinnotsellingthatstripoflandtoMr。Colton。"
　　"That’swhatImeant。YoukeptyourpromisetomeandIshan’tforgetit。Northetownwon’tforgetit，neither。Wouldyoumindtellin’mejustwhathappenedbetweenyouandHisMajesty？"
　　"Notatall。HesaidhewantedtobuytheShoreLanestripandI
　　refusedtosellittohim。HesaidIwascrazyandaninfernalrobberandItoldhimtogotothedevil。"
　　"WHAT！youdidn’t！"
　　"Idid。"
　　CaptainJedslappedhiskneeandshoutedindelight。Heinsistedonshakinghandswithme。
　　"Bythegreatandeverlastin’！"hedeclared，betweenlaughs，"you’reallright，RosPaine！IsaidyouwasandnowI’llsweartoit。ToldoldColtontogotothedevil！Ifthatain’t——oh，IwishI’dbeenthere！"
　　Iwentonsand—paperingavalveplug。Hewalkedupanddownthefloor，chuckling。
　　"Well，"hesaid，atlast，"you’vemadeyourselfsolidinDenboro，anyhow。AndItoldyouyoushouldn’tlosenothin’byit。TheSelectmenheldameetin’lastnightandtheyfeel，sameasme，thatthatShoreLaneshan’tbeshutoff。Youunderstandwhatthatmeanstoyou，don’tyou？"
　　Ilookedathim，coolly。
　　"No，"Ianswered。
　　"Youdon’t！Itmeansthetown’sdecidedtobuythatstripoflandofyours。Definitelydecided，practicallyspeakin’。Nowwhat’llyousellittousfor？"
　　Iputdownthevalveplug。"Captain，"saidI，"thatlandisnotforsale。"
　　"NotforSALE？Whatdoyoumeanbythat？"
　　"ImeanthatIhavedecidednottosellit，forthepresent，atleast。NeithertoColtonnoranyoneelse。"
　　Hecouldnotbelieveit。OfcourseIwouldnotsellittoColton。
　　Coltonwasastuck—up，selfishcityaristocratwhothoughtallcreationoughttobelongtohim。Butthetownwasdifferent。DidIrealizethatitwasthetownIlivedinthatwasaskingtobuynow？ThetownofwhichIwasacitizen？Thinkofwhatthetownhaddoneforme。
　　"Verywell，"Ianswered。"I’mwillingtothink。Whathasitdoneforme？"
　　Ithad——ithad——well，ithaddoneawholelot。AsacitizenofthattownIowedita——a——
　　"Lookhere，CaptainDean，"Iinterrupted，"there’snouseinourarguingthematter。Ihavedecidednottosell。"
　　"Don’ttalksofoolish。Courseyou’llsellifyougetmoneyenough。"
　　"SoColtonsaid，butIshan’t。"
　　"Ros，Iain’tgotanyauthoritytodoit，butIshouldn’twonderifIcouldgetyouthreehundreddollarsforthatstrip。"
　　"Itisn’taquestionofprice。"
　　"Rubbish！Anything’saquestionofprice。"
　　"Thisisn’t。IfitwasIprobablyshouldhaveacceptedMr。Colton’sofferofsixhundredandfifty。"
　　"Sixhun——！Doyoumeantosayheofferedyousixhundredandfiftydollarsforthatlittlemiteofland，andyounevertookhimup？"
　　"Yes。"
　　"Well，youmustbea……Humph！Sixhundredandfifty！Thetowncan’tmeetnosuchbidasthat，ofcourse。"
　　"Idon’texpectitto。"
　　Heregardedmeinsilence。Hewaschagrinedandangry；hisfloridfacewasredderthanever；but，morethanall，hewaspuzzled。
　　"Well，"heobserved，afteramoment，"thisbeatsme，thisdoes！
　　Lasttimewetalkedyouwaswillin’toconsidersellin’。What’schangedyou？What’sthereasonyouwon’tsell？Whatbusinessreasonhaveyougotfornotdoin’it？"
　　Ihadnobusinessreasonatall。ExceptforMother’scounselnottosell，whichwasbaseduponsentimentandnothingelse，andmyownstubbornness，Ihadnoreasonatall。YetIwas，ifanything，morefirminmyresolve。
　　"HowabouttheLane？"hedemanded。"YouknowwhatthatLanemeanstoDenboro？"
　　"Iknowwhatyousayitmeans。ThetownspeoplecancontinuetousetheLane，justastheyalwayshave，solongastheybehavethemselves。Thereisnouseofourtalkingfurther，Captain。I’vemadeupmymind。"
　　Hewentaway，soonafter，butheaskedanotherquestion。
　　"Willyoudothismuchforme？"heasked。"WillyoupromisemenottosellthelandtoColton？"
　　"No，"Isaid，"Iwillmakenopromiseofanykind，toanybody。"
　　"Oh，"withascornfulsniff，"Isee。I’montoyou。You’rejusthangin’outforabigprice。Imighthaveknownit。You’reonColton’sside，afterall。"
　　Irose。Iwasangrynow。
　　"Itoldyoupricehadnothingtodowithit，"Isaid，sharply。"I
　　amonnoone’sside。ThetowniswelcometousetheLane；thatI
　　havetoldyoualready。Thereisnothingmoretobesaid。"
　　Heshookhishead。
　　"Idon’tmakemanymistakes，"heobserved，slowly；"butIguessI’vemadeone。You’reawholelotdeeper’nIthoughtyouwas。"
　　Somuchfortheproletariat。Iheardfromtheplutocratsnextday。
　　SimEldredgedroppedinonme。AftermuchwrigglingaboutthebushheintimatedthatheknewofCaptainJedediah’scallandwhathadtakenplace。
　　"Youdonejustright，Ros，"hewhispered。HehadahabitofwhisperingastheCaptainhadofshouting。"Youdonejustright。
　　Keep’emguessin’；keepemguessin’。Jed’sallupsot。Hedon’tknowwhetherhe’skeeldownoronhisbeamends。He’llbemakin’ahigherbidprettysoon。Say，"withawink，"IseeColtonlastnight。"
　　"Didyou？"
　　"Yup。Oh，Igivehimajolt。Ihintedthatthetownhadmadeyouafineofferandyouwasconsiderin’it。"
　　"Whatdidyoudothatfor？Whogaveyoutherightto——"
　　"Sshh！Don’tholler。Somebodymightbelistenin’。Icomethroughthewoodsandroundthebeachso’sIwouldn’tbeseen。Whatdoyous’poseColtonsaid？"
　　"Idon’tcarewhathesaid。"
　　"YouwillwhenItellyou。Heasmuchasofferedathousanddollarsforthatland。Mycrimps！athousand！thinkofthat！I
　　presumelikelyyouwouldn’ttakethat，wouldyou，Ros？"
　　"Sim，I’lltellyou，asItoldCaptainJed，thatlandisnotforsale。"
　　Itriedtomakethatstatementfirmandsharpenoughtopenetrateevenhiswoodenhead；buthemerelywinkedagain。
　　"Allright，"hewhispered，hastily，"allright。Iguessperhapsyou’recorrectinhangin’on。Still，athousandisalotofmoney，evenafteryoutakeoutmylittlecommission。Butyouknowbest。
　　Youputyourtrustinme。I’llkeepherjumpin’。Iunderstand。
　　Good—by。"
　　Hewentouthurriedly，and，thoughIshoutedafterhim，heonlywavedandduckedbehindabeach—plumbush。Hedidnotbelievemeseriousinmyrefusaltosell；neitherdidDean，orColton，or，apparently，anyoneelse。Theyallthoughtmemerelyshrewd，asharptraderdrivingahardbargain，astheywouldhavedoneinmyplace。Theymightthinkso，iftheywished；Ishouldnotexplain。
　　Asamatteroffact，Icouldnothaveexplainedmyattitude，eventomyself。
　　Yetthisveryattitudemadeadifference，aperceptibledifference，inmypositioninDenboro。InoticediteachtimeIwentuptothevillage。Isawthegroupsatthepost—officeandatthedepotturntowatchmeasIapproachedandasIwentaway。CaptainJedediahdidnotmentiontheLaneagain——atleastforsometime——buthealwayshailedmecordiallywhenwemetandseemedanxioustobeseeninmycompany。Eldredge，ofcourse，waseffusive；sowasAlvinBaker。Andotherpeople，citizensofconsequenceinthetown，whohadheretoforemerelybowed，nowstoppedtospeakwithmeonthestreet。MembersofthesewingcirclecalledonMothermorefrequently，andMatildaDean，CaptainJed’swife，cameregularlyonceaweek。SometimesshesawMotherandsometimesshedidnot，dependinguponDorinda’sstateofmindatthetime。
　　Lute，alwaysasortofsocialbarometer，noticedthechangeintheweather。
　　"Everybody’stalkin’aboutyou，Ros，"hedeclared。"Theycal’lateyou’reaprettysmartfeller。Theydon’tjustunderstandwhatyou’reupto，buttheythinkyou’reprettysmart。"
　　"No？"Icommented，ironically。"Lute，youastonishme。WhyamI
　　smart？"
　　"Well，theydon’tknowexactly，buttheycal’lateyoumustbe。Oh，Ihearthings。Cap’nJedsaidt’othernightyou’dmakeaprettygoodSelectman。"
　　"_I_would？ASelectman？"
　　"Yup。Heasmuchashintedthattome；wonderedifyou’dtakethenominationprovidedhecouldfixitforyou。SimEldredgeandAlvinandsomemoreallsaidthey’dvoteforyouiftheygotachance。AREyoufiggerin’tochargetollontheLane？"
　　"Toll？Whatputthatideainyourhead？"
　　"Nothin’，onlysomeofthefellerswonderedifyouwas。Yousee，youwon’tsell，andso——"