'n'
he don't begin to be as spry 's that young feller was. He can't hop
back 'n' forth over the counter like he used to; he's got to go way
back through the calicoes every time or else climb up in the
window-seat over that squirrel 't he keeps there in a cage advertisin'
fur-lined mitts 'n' winter nuts. Mr. Kimball 's forever makin' one o'
them famous jokes of his over him, 'n' sayin' 't he never looks across
the square without he sees Shores tryin' to rise above his troubles
'n' his squirrel together, but I don't see nothin' funny in any of it
myself. I think it's no more 'n' what he might of 'xpected. He got the
squirrel himself 'n' his wife too, 'n' she never did suit him. He was
all put out at first over her takin' it so to heart 't he wore a wig,
'n' then he was clean disgusted over the baby 'cause he wanted a boy
't he could name after himself. They said he all but cried, 'n' she
cried dreadful, f'r she didn't know nothin' about babies 'n' thought
it was goin' to be bald always, jus' like him. But what did he marry
for if he did n't want trouble?--That was what I said to the
minister's wife. She come to call right in the first of it, 'n' I must
say 't if she hadn't come mebbe a good many things might o' been
different, for my mind was about made up then, an' I was thinkin' very
serious o' mebbe sayin' suthin' to you that very night. But she put me
at outs with the whole thing--not as I won't admit 't there ain't a
difference between one 'n' nine, f'r any one c'n work _that_ out on
their fingers fast enough."

Mrs. Lathrop assented to this statement by moving her head in a slow
acquiescent rhythm as she rocked.

"But her talk was certainly awful discouragin'. She was tryin' to
speak o' Mr. Shores, but she kep' trailin' back to herself, 'n' when
she said 't she'd never had time to crimp her hair since her weddin'
day she jus' broke right down. I cheered her up all I could. I told
her she couldn't with a clear conscience blame any one but herself 'n'
she'd ought to say her prayers of gratitude 't she hadn't got eight
herself, same 's him. She sort o' choked 'n' said she couldn't have
eight 'cause she had n't been married but one year. 'Well,' I says, 'I
don't see no great sense in that; he had eight the day he was married
's far 's that goes, did n't he?' She jus' rocked back 'n' forth 'n'
said 't no one in the whole wide world had any notion how many eight
children was till they turned aroun' from the altar 'n' s