aid good-by to him at the place
where the path to Wully Johnstone's branched off, and away she ran
after the boys, dancing with joy.

When the weary and hungry berry-pickers reached home they had an
exciting tale to tell and many questions to ask. Tom Teeter came over
after tea to give his opinion upon poor old Sandy's case. Jake Martin
across from him was trying to buy Sandy's land, folk said, and if
Martin did such a thing, then he, Tom Teeter, considered him a more
penurious and niggardly miser, that would skin his neighbor's
grasshoppers for their hide and tallow, than he had already proven
himself to be.

Mr. MacAllister had dropped in, too, as he very often did of an
evening, and suspended his work to discuss the question of the moment.
Mr. MacAllister's double business of farmer and mill-owner, while not
at all taxing his physique, was too much for his mental powers, and he
was frequently compelled to have recourse to Mr. Gordon for help. Mr.
MacAllister had a peculiar method of calculating the selling price of
lumber, which he very appropriately termed "the long way of figgerin'."
It was so long that it frequently covered boards and shingles, and even
the walls of the mill, before the final number of dollars and cents
appeared, the result being that the lumber sawn was all out of
proportion to the number of figures required to compute its value.

So Mr. Gordon was frequently appealed to, and with a few magic strokes
he would reduce the Long Way to its proper size. On this evening the
problem was put aside for the discussion of poor Sandy's affairs. Mr.
Martin was known as a hard man throughout the countryside, and Mr.
MacAllister gave it as his opinion that if Sandy had Jake Martin and
the lawyers after him, he might as well get out of the country. There
was no hope for a man when the law got him. For the law was a scheme
used by smart folks in town to cheat people out of their earnings.

Mr. Gordon said, "Well, well, well," and, "Indeed and indeed," and
hoped things would not be quite so bad. But his sister looked worried
in her stately, reserved fashion. To be sure, this business might
bring Mrs. Jarvis to her door, who could tell, especially as Mr. Oliver
and Mr. Huntley had both seen Elizabeth. But what an Elizabeth to be
described to that lady! On the whole, she was worried, and when the
visitors were gone she followed her brother into his study and asked to
see the paper signed by the late M