ed the day yet, and I'm just
telling you to fix a day that's suitable and convenient."

"You know I always meant to marry you the first week in June."

"And you know as I've told you, that I can't take the time off then."

"The time off! You're not a servant. You can leave Ansdore any day you
choose."

"Not when the shearing's on. You don't understand, Martin--I can't have
all the shearers up and nobody to look after 'em."

"What about your looker?--or Broadhurst? You don't trust anybody but
yourself."

"You're just about right--I don't."

"Don't you trust me?"

"Not to shear sheep."

Martin laughed ruefully.

"You're very sensible, Joanna--unshakably so. But I'm not asking you to
trust me with the sheep, but to trust me with yourself. Don't
misunderstand me, dear. I'm not asking you to marry me at the beginning
of the month just because I haven't the patience to wait till the end.
It isn't that, I swear it. But don't you see that if you fix our
marriage to fit in with the farm-work, it'll simply be beginning things
in the wrong way? As we begin we shall have to go on, and we can't go on
settling and ordering our life according to Ansdore's requirements--it's
a wrong principle. Think, darling," and he drew her close against his
heart, "we shall want to see our children--and will you refuse, just
because that would mean that you would have to lie up and keep quiet and
not go about doing all your own business?"

Joanna shivered.

"Oh, Martin, don't talk of such things."

"Why not?"

She had given him some frank and graphic details about the accouchement
of her favourite cow, and he did not understand that the subject became
different when it was human and personal.

"Because I--because we ain't married yet."

"Joanna, you little prude!"

She saw that he was displeased and drew closer to him, slipping her arms
round his neck, so that he could feel the roughness of her work-worn
hands against it.

"I'm not shocked--only it's so wonderful--I can't abear talking of
it ... Martin, if we had one ... I should just about die of joy ..."

He gripped her to him silently, unable to speak. Somehow it seemed as if
he had just seen deeper into Joanna than during all the rest of his
courtship. He moved his lips over her bright straying hair--her face was
hidden in his sleeve.

"Then we'll stop at Mr. Pratt's on our way home and ask him to put up
the banns at once?"

"Oh no--" lifting herself sharply--"I didn