ind out!
For the first time in their married life the old man deliberately
plotted to deceive his old wife. He must see his girl Josie just once;
it was a terrible thing that she was an actress, but she was a
successful one, nobody could deny that, except fools who yapped in the
_National Gazette_.

The curtain went up and Cyrus rubbed his eyes. He had certainly braced
his nerves to behold some mystery of iniquity; instead he saw an old
kitchen so like his own at home that it bewildered him; and there,
sitting by the cheery wood stove, in homespun gown, with primly
braided hair, was Joscelyn--his girl Josie, as he had seen her a
thousand times by his own ingle-side. The building rang with applause;
one old man pulled out a red bandanna and wiped tears of joy and pride
from his eyes. She hadn't changed--Josie hadn't changed. Play-acting
hadn't spoiled her--couldn't spoil her. Wasn't she Paul's daughter!
And all this applause was for her--for Josie.

Joscelyn's new play was a homely, pleasant production with rollicking
comedy and heart-moving pathos skilfully commingled. Joscelyn pervaded
it all with a convincing simplicity that was really the triumph of
art. Cyrus Morgan listened and exulted in her; at every burst of
applause his eyes gleamed with pride. He wanted to go on the stage and
box the ears of the villain who plotted against her; he wanted to
shake hands with the good woman who stood by her; he wanted to pay off
the mortgage and make Josie happy. He wiped tears from his eyes in the
third act when Josie was turned out of doors and, when the fourth left
her a happy, blushing bride, hand in hand with her farmer lover, he
could have wept again for joy.

Cyrus Morgan went out into the daylight feeling as if he had awakened
from a dream. At the outer door he came upon Mrs. Hiram and Deborah.
Deborah's face was stained with tears, and she caught at his hand.

"Oh, Pa, wasn't it splendid--wasn't our girl Josie splendid! I'm so
proud of her. Oh, I was bound to hear her. I was afraid you'd be mad,
so I didn't let on and when I saw you in the seat down there I
couldn't believe my eyes. Oh, I've just been crying the whole time.
Wasn't it splendid! Wasn't our girl Josie splendid?"

The crowd around looked at the old pair with amused, indulgent
curiosity, but they were quite oblivious to their surroundings, even
to Mrs. Hiram's anxiety to decoy them away. Cyrus Morgan cleared his
throat and said, "It was great, Mother,