essly, his hands closing over hers, while her face
leaned toward him, all lit and trembling, "I am weak, but I love you
so!"

"Ah--h!" she cried, a shaking, joyful cry, "you ought to have said that
long ago, Bruce! Tying my hands all winter! _Now_, it doesn't matter
which of us owns the old hills, does it?"

It was there, under the pale, wild light of the moon, with the
wide-lipped roses, the slender-bowed lilies, the tremulous fragrance,
the delicate unrest, the tortured joy of the garden's life of beauty all
around them, that she crept into his arms shyly and radiantly. The trees
rustled with low glad music, and the night air seemed full of mystic
influences, blessings, happinesses.

From the quiet house beyond, there drifted toward them the sense of
late-come, profound peace.

_Chapter Nineteen_

WHEN DREAMS COME TRUE

There was a vast turmoil in Canaan. For the matter of that, there was a
vast turmoil far out the road toward Poetical, and away across Big Wheat
Valley, and all over We-all Prairie. The very air was a-tremble. In
Canaan all the stores were closed or closing. Court House Square was
full of vehicles that seemed poised at the very moment of departure;
people were laughing or talking excitedly, with foolish good-humour, as
though they did not know what they were saying, but realised that it
made precious little difference whether they knew or not. Children were
being lifted into waggons, surreys, buggies. Great hampers were being
stowed and re-arranged under the seats of the vehicles, sometimes tied
to the single-trees to swing there with solemn, heavy gaiety. Young men,
very alert, in red neckties and unbuttoned kid gloves, wheeled and
turned recklessly through the streets in light road sulkies, drawn by
high-stepping trotters. Dogs trotted about with their tails in the air,
sniffing, quivering; there was a warm, cutting smell of harness,
axle-grease, horse-flesh. The sun beat down upon it all and into it till
the whole scene hung electrified, etched out in light, a supreme moment
on the very top of Canaan's history.

Then a young boy, with a red sash strapped over his right shoulder and
under his left arm, cantered up on a pony, pony and boy both
tremendously important.

"Piney's marshal er the day," said a big man, laughing indulgently.

"D'you know the Steerin's air sendin' that tramp-scamp to Italy?" called
another man with a bewildered, incredulous inflection in his voice.

"Well