out half cleared, Faith withdrew
a little from the busy rush and bustle, left the chestnuts and chestnut
burrs, and sat down on the bank to rest and look. Her eye wandered to
the further woodland, softest of all in hazy veils; to the nearer
brilliant vegetation; the open fallow; the wood behind her, where the
trees closed in upon each other; oftenest of all, at the 'whapper' of a
tree in which Mr. Linden still kept his place, and at the happy busy
sight and sound of all under that tree.

And so it happened, that when in time Mr. Linden came down out of Mr.
Simlins' chestnut, besides the boys he found nobody there but Mr.
Simlins himself.

"Well!"--said that gentleman after a cordial grasp of the hand,--"I
reckon, in the matter of nuts you're going to reduce me to
penur'ousness! How you like Neanticut?"

"It's a fine place," said Mr. Linden.--"And for the matter of nuts, you
need not take the benefit of the bankrupt act yet, Mr. Simlins."

"Over here to see a man on business," Mr. Simlins went on in
explanation,--"and thought I'd look at you by the way. Don't you want
to take this farm of me?"

"I might want to do it--and yet not be able," was the smiling reply;
while one of the smallest boys, pulling the tail of the grey coat which
Mr. Simlins wore 'on business,' and pointing to the heap of nuts, said
succinctly,

"Them's yourn!"

"Mine!" said Mr. Simlins. "Well where's yourn? What have you done with
Miss Faith Derrick?"

"Why we hain't done nothin' to her," said the boy--"she's done a heap
to us."

"What has she done to you, you green hickory?"

"Why--she's run round, firstrate," said little Rob,--"and she's helped
me shuck."

"So some o' you's thanked her. 'Twan't _you_. Here, you sir," said Mr.
Simlins, addressing this time Joe Deacon,--"what have you been doing
with Miss Faith Derrick?"

"I bain't Sam," was Joe's rather cool rejoinder, with a slight
relapsing into Yankee Doodle.

"Hollo!" said Mr. Simlins--"I thought you'd learned all school could
teach you, and give up to come?"

"Only the last part is true, Mr. Simlins," said Mr. Linden, who while
Joe spoke had been himself speaking to one of the other boys.

Mr. Simlins grunted. "School ain't all 'nuts to him,'" he said with a
grim smile. "Well which of you was it?--'twas a fellow about as big as
you here, you sir!"--addressing in a more assured tone another boy who
was swaggering near,--"_you!_ what have you been doing to Miss Faith?
It was