as my knowledge goes, as wuz ever put on a table in the
town of Lyme, or the village of Jonesville.

And Josiah Allen, he eat too much--fur, fur too much. And I hunched him
three times to that effect at the time, to no avail.

And once I stepped on his toe--a dretful warnin' steppin'--and he asked
me out loud and snappish (I hit a corn, I spoze, onbeknown to me)--and
he asked me right out before 'em all, voyalent, "What I wuz a-steppin'
on his toe for?"

[Illustration: I stepped on his toe.]

And so, of course, that curbed me in, and I had to let him go on, and
cut a full swath in the vittles. But it wuz some comfort for me to think
that most likely he wouldn't be tempted by a weddin' supper agin--not
for some time, anyway. For the Babe wuz but young yet, and we wuz
gettin' along.

Yes, that hull weddin' went off perfectly beautiful, and there wuzn't
but one drawback to my happiness on that golden day that united them two
happy lovers.

Yes, onbeknown to me a feelin' of sadness come over me--sadness and
regret.

It wuzn't any worriment and concern about the fate of Isabelle and her
husband --no; True Love wuz a-goin' out with 'em on their weddin'
tower, and I knew if he went ahead of 'em, and they wuz a-walkin' in the
light of his torch, their way wuz a-goin' to be a radiant and a
satisfyin' one, whether it led up hill or down or over the deep
waters--yea, even over the swellin' of Jordan.

No, it wuzn't that, nor anything relatin' to the children, or my dress,
or anything--

No, my dress--a new lilock gray alpaca--sot out noble round my form, and
my new head-dress wuz foamin' lookin', but it didn't foam too much.

No, it wuzn't that, nor anything about the neighbors--no; they looked
some envious at our noble doin's, and walked by the house considerable,
and the wimmen made errents, and borrowed more tea and sugar, durin' the
preparations, than it seemed as if they could use in two years; but I
pitied 'em, and forgive 'em--

And it wuzn't anything about the children or Krit.

For the children wuz happy in their happy and prosperous hums, and Krit,
they say--I don't tell it for certain--but they say that he come back
engaged to a sweet young girl of Chicago--

Come back from the great New World of the World's Fair, as his
illustrious namesake went home so long ago, in chains--

Only Krit's chains wuz wrought of linked love and blessedness instead of
iron--so they say.

I've seen her picter; but good l