d to me and make me so happy that I'm not
afraid any more. You give me faith to hope--as well as to mix
biscuits." And a pearly tear splashed on the rolling-pin.

"Yes, put your trust in the Heavenly Father, child, and some in Tom
Mayberry. Before you know it you'll be singing like the birds out in
the trees; but I can't let myself think about the time's a-coming for
you to fly away to the other people's trees to sing. When Tom told me
about Doctor Stein's wanting to send a great big singer lady, what had
lost her voice, down here to see if he couldn't cure her like he did
that preacher man and the politics speaker, I was skeered for both him
and me, for I knew things was kinder simple with us here and I was
afraid I couldn't make you happy and comfortable. But then I remembered
Doctor Stein had stayed 'most two weeks when he came South with Tom for
a visit and said he had tacked ten years on to the end of his life by
just them few days of Providence junketings and company feedings, so I
made up my mind not to be proud none and to say for you to come on.
I've got faith in my boy's doctoring same as them New York folks has,
and I wanted him to try to cure you. Then I knew you didn't have no
mother to pet up the sick throat none. A little consoling comfort is a
good dose to start healing any kind of trouble with. I knew I had
plenty of that in my heart to prescribe out to help along with your
case; so here you are not three weeks with us, a-mixing riz biscuits
for Tom's supper and like to coax the heart outen both of us. I told
him--Dearie me, somebody's calling at the front gate!"

"Mis' Mayberry! Oh, Mis' Mayberry!" came a high, quavering old voice
from around the corner of the house, and Squire Tutt hove in sight. He
was panting for breath and trembling with rage as he ascended the steps
and stood in the kitchen door.

Mother hastened to bring him a chair into which he wheezingly subsided.

"Why, Squire," she questioned anxiously, "have anything happened? Is
Mis' Tutt tooken with lumbago again?"

"No!" exploded the Squire, "she's well--always is! I'm the only really
sick folks in Providence, though I don't git no respect for it. In pain
all the time and no respect--no respect!"

"Now, Squire, everybody in Providence have got sympathy for your tisic,
and just yesterday Mis' Pike was a-asking me--"

"Tisic! I ain't talking about tisic now! It's this pain in my stomick
that that young limb of satan of your'n insult