rd made a gesture of impatience. "Mother" he said bitterly, "I am
not in a mood to hear much more to-night. I am sorry that we do not
think alike, but, as we never shall, perhaps the less said about it
the better."

Mrs. Sherman silently kissed her son, and, with a foreboding heart,
withdrew to her own room.

CHAPTER XXVI.

LETTER WRITING--DADDY'S NOCTURNAL LABORS AND EARLY WALK.

There were two letters written by lamp light in the old brown house,
the day Edward left so unceremoniously. One was by Little Wolf to her
confidential friend, Mrs. Tinknor. A few hasty hopeless lines traced
upon the dainty sheet; a long glossy curl folded within and her task
was done.

The other, Daddy addressed to the sweetheart of his youth, Miss
Orrecta Lippincott. He had for some time meditated opening a
correspondence with the object of his early affections on the subject
of matrimony, but the magnitude of the undertaking had hitherto
deterred him; and, at last, he was only brought to the point by the
encouragement of his young mistress.

He had resorted to his regularly organized plan of loitering in her
room under pretext of mending the fire, while he marked with
admiration the easy movements of her pen.

"'Tween you and me, Honey," said he, when she had finished, "I wish I
could write like that. I've been wanting fur to write a letter fur
sometime.

Little Wolf, without the remotest idea of what the subject of the
letter in contemplation was to be, said kindly, "Well, Daddy, you may
sit right down here if you like, and use my pen and ink."

Daddy shuffled along hesitatingly towards the vacant seat. "Tween you
and me I'm afeared I shall make a very sorry job on it," said he, "I
ain't writ none to speak on this forty year."

"Shall I write it for you Daddy?"

"O no, Honey. I'll try myself, fust anyhow."

"O well, I'll go down to the parlor and you shall have the room all to
yourself."

"I couldn't stand it no-how fur ter hev the Honey laugh at the old
man's foolishness," muttered Daddy to himself, as Little Wolf slipped
away, glad to be relieved of all responsibility in the matter, and
feeling less perhaps like laughing at the old man's eccentricities
than ever before in her life; and, indeed, it was a long time
afterwards before she felt like laughing at all.

In the hall leading to the parlor, she met Sorrel Top, who blushingly
begged a private interview, which Little Wolf was too obliging to
deny, alth