ws together in the back of
the wagon, and Georgie sometimes looked over at them to be sure they
were all right. Of course I had given him the reins when we first
started, and he was delighted because we saw some squirrels, and even
a rabbit, which scurried across the road as if I had been a fiery
dragon, and Georgie something worse.

We presently came in sight of a house close by the road,--an
old-looking place, with a ledgy, forlorn field stretching out behind
it toward some low woods. There were high white-birch poles holding up
thick tangles of hop-vines, and at the side there were sunflowers
straggling about as if they had come up from seed scattered by the
wind. Some of them were close together, as if they were whispering to
each other; and their big, yellow faces were all turned toward the
front of the house, where people were already collected as if there
were a funeral.

"It's the auction," said Georgie with great satisfaction. "I heard 'em
talking about it down at the shore this morning. There's 'Lisha Downs
now. He started off just before we did. That's his fish-cart over by
the well."

"What is going to be sold?" said I.

"All the stuff," said Georgie, as if he were much pleased. "She's
going off up to Boston with her son."

"I think we had better stop," said I, for I saw Mrs. 'Lisha Downs, who
was one of my acquaintances at the shore, and I wished to see what was
going on, besides giving Georgie a chance at the festivities. So we
tied the horse, and went toward the house, and I found several people
whom I knew a little. Mrs. Downs shook hands with me as formally as if
we had not talked for some time as I went by her house to the shore,
just after breakfast. She presented me to several of her friends with
whom she had been talking as I came up. "Let me make you acquainted,"
she said; and every time I bowed she bowed too, unconsciously, and
seemed a little ill at ease and embarrassed, but luckily the ceremony
was soon over. "I thought I would stop for a few minutes," said I by
way of apology. "I didn't know why the people were here until Georgie
told me."

"She's going to move up to Boston 'long of her son," said one of the
women, who looked very pleasant and very tired. "I think myself it's a
bad plan to pull old folks up by the roots. There's a niece o' hers
that would have been glad to stop with her, and do for the old lady.
But John, he's very high-handed, and wants it his way, and he says his
mot