g John," my mother said, "your case is a very hard one. A young
and very romantic girl--God send that I be right in my charitable
view of her--has met an equally simple boy, among great dangers and
difficulties, from which my son has saved her, at the risk of his life
at every step. Of course, she became attached to him, and looked up to
him in every way, as a superior being"--

"Come now, mother," I said; "if you only saw Lorna, you would look upon
me as the lowest dirt"--

"No doubt I should," my mother answered; "and the king and queen, and
all the royal family. Well, this poor angel, having made up her mind to
take compassion upon my son, when he had saved her life so many times,
persuades him to marry her out of pure pity, and throw his poor mother
overboard. And the saddest part of it all is this--"

"That my mother will never, never, never understand the truth," said I.

"That is all I wish," she answered; "just to get at the simple truth
from my own perception of it. John, you are very wise in kissing me;
but perhaps you would not be so wise in bringing Lorna for an afternoon,
just to see what she thinks of me. There is a good saddle of mutton now;
and there are some very good sausages left, on the blue dish with the
anchor, Annie, from the last little sow we killed."

"As if Lorna would eat sausages!" said I, with appearance of high
contempt, though rejoicing all the while that mother seemed to have her
name so pat; and she pronounced it in a manner which made my heart leap
to my ears: "Lorna to eat sausages!"

"I don't see why she shouldn't," my mother answered smiling, "if she
means to be a farmer's wife, she must take to farmer's ways, I think.
What do you say, Annie?"

"She will eat whatever John desires, I should hope," said Annie gravely;
"particularly as I made them."

"Oh that I could only get the chance of trying her!" I answered, "if you
could once behold her, mother, you would never let her go again. And she
would love you with all her heart, she is so good and gentle."

"That is a lucky thing for me"; saying this my mother wept, as she had
been doing off and on, when no one seemed to look at her; "otherwise I
suppose, John, she would very soon turn me out of the farm, having you
so completely under her thumb, as she seems to have. I see now that my
time is over. Lizzie and I will seek our fortunes. It is wiser so."

"Now, mother," I cried; "will you have the kindness not to talk any
nonse