pail of water in which swam a huge sponge; and Fanny sat beside
the center-table that was piled with her husband's wearing apparel,
holding in her lap a coat which she had evidently been passing under
inspection. Her hair had escaped from its fastenings; her collar was
hooked awry; her face was flushed and her whole bearing indicated her
condition.

Hosmer took the frozen spray from Therese's hand, and spoke a little
about the beauty of the trees, especially the young cedars that he had
passed out in the hills on his way home.

"It's all well and good to talk about flowers and things, Mrs.
Laferm--sit down please--but when a person's got the job that I've got
on my hands, she's something else to think about. And David here
smoking one cigar after another. He knows all I've got to do, and goes
and sends those darkies home right after dinner."

Therese was so shocked that for a while she could say nothing; till
for Hosmer's sake she made a quick effort to appear at ease.

"What have you to do, Mrs. Hosmer? Let me help you, I can give you the
whole afternoon," she said with an appearance of being ready for any
thing that was at hand to be done.

Fanny turned the coat over in her lap, and looked down helplessly at a
stain on the collar, that she had been endeavoring to remove; at the
same time pushing aside with patient repetition the wisp of hair that
kept falling over her cheek.

"Belle Worthington'll be here before we know it; her and her husband
and that Lucilla of hers. David knows how Belle Worthington is, just
as well as I do; there's no use saying he don't. If she was to see a
speck of dirt in this house or on David's clothes, or anything, why
we'd never hear the last of it. I got a letter from her," she
continued, letting the coat fall to the floor, whilst she endeavored
to find her pocket.

"Is she coming to visit you?" asked Therese who had taken up a feather
brush, and was dusting and replacing the various ornaments that were
scattered through the room.

"She's going down to Muddy Graw (Mardi-Gras) her and her husband and
Lucilla and she's going to stop here a while. I had that letter--I
guess I must of left it in the other room."

"Never mind," Therese hastened to say, seeing that her whole energies
were centered on finding the letter.

"Let me look," said Hosmer, making a movement towards the bedroom
door, but Fanny had arisen and holding out a hand to detain him she
went into the room herself, sa