e sagaciously observed, "if that were true, they
would have invited him, instead of Mr. Fisbee, and I wish they had.
He isn't troubled with malaria, and yet the longer he lives here the
sallower-looking and sadder-looking he gets. I think the company of a
lovely stranger might be of great cheer to his heart, and it will be
interesting to witness the meeting between them. It may be," added the
poetess, "that they _have_ already met, on his travels before he settled
here. It may be that they are old friends--or even more."

"Then what," returned her brother, "what is he doin' settin' up in his
office all afternoon with ink on his forehead, while Fisbee goes out
ridin' with her and stays for supper after_werds_?"

Although the problem of Fisbee's attendance remained a mere maze of
hopeless speculation, Mildy had been present at the opening of Miss
Sherwood's trunk, and here was matter for the keen consideration of the
ladies, at least. Thoughtful conversations in regard to hats and linings
took place across fences and on corners of the Square that afternoon;
and many gentlemen wondered (in wise silence) why their spouses were
absent-minded and brooded during the evening meal.

At half-past seven, the Hon. Kedge Halloway of Amo delivered himself
of his lecture; "The Past and Present. What we may Glean from Them, and
Their Influence on the Future." At seven the court-room was crowded, and
Miss Tibbs, seated on the platform (reserved for prominent citizens),
viewed the expectant throng with rapture. It is possible that she would
have confessed to witnessing a sea of faces, but it is more probable
that she viewed the expectant throng. The thermometer stood at
eighty-seven degrees and there was a rustle of incessantly moving
palm-leaf fans as, row by row, their yellow sides twinkled in the light
of eight oil lamps. The stouter ladies wielded their fans with vigor.
There were some very pretty faces in Mr. Halloway's audience, but it
is a peculiarity of Plattville that most of those females who do not
incline to stoutness incline far in the opposite direction, and the lean
ladies naturally suffered less from the temperature than their sisters.
The shorn lamb is cared for, but often there seems the intention to
impart a moral in the refusal of Providence to temper warm weather to
the full-bodied.

Old Tom Martin expressed a strong consciousness of such intention when
he observed to the shocked Miss Selina, as Mr. Bill Snoddy, t