ll master of
the situation. Thank heaven for the beneficence which surrounds the
birth of love with the supervisory ministration of no meddling old
woman! Were it otherwise, the ancient and honorable profession of which
Mrs. Sairy Gamp is the faithful exponent would never have been called
into being. Ray and Mrs. Stannard were exchanging rapturous "so glad to
see you's" and shaking hands, and giving and receiving news about all
manner of people, while Marion Sanford was still some distance "down the
row" with the romping group of youngsters, and chatting briskly with
Mrs. Wilkins and some of the infantry ladies for all the world as though
Ray were nowhere within a thousand miles. She wanted to keep faith with
the children, she said, and they made too much noise for Baby's slumbers
when playing about the house. Of course she looked, as did the other
ladies, all eagerness to see the returning officers, and was quite
prepared to parry all thrusts which were certain to come,--all the deft
insinuations which people are so practised in giving under certain
suspected circumstances. Of course that moonlit interview the night of
the hop had been seen by more than one, and told to more than a dozen,
though Ray had kept between her and the couples that happened to be on
the gallery, and so concealed the sweet _denouement_, and his subsequent
devotions that night to Mrs. Turner and to Miss Whaling had completely
bewildered them. For her sake, he had written, the matter should be so
managed as to subject her to as little questioning as possible. It was
already arranged that she would be returning Eastward about the time the
regiment got fairly settled in winter quarters. Already the infantry
were packing up and shipping their goods and chattels to their new
posts, and it was just barely possible that, with a little dissembling
and apparent indifference, the train of talk might be thrown from the
track. Mrs. Stannard's blue eyes danced merrily as she welcomed Ray, and
they gave one quick glance towards her that he might know where "she"
was, and it was then arranged that he was to return to the house with
certain letters as soon as he could unpack his valise and change his
dress. By that time, too, Miss Sanford was recalled by a message from
Grace, and so when Ray reappeared and the servant ushered him into the
cool, darkened little parlor, and scurried away to the kitchen to
exchange confidences with cook, he had seen and spoken to al