et Vander Walt?"

"Just gone," said Tant Sannie; "and I am going to marry him this day
four weeks. I am dead sleepy," she added; "the stupid thing doesn't know
how to talk love-talk at all," and she climbed into the four-poster,
clothes and all, and drew the quilt up to her chin.

*****

On the day preceding Tant Sannie's wedding, Gregory Rose sat in the
blazing sun on the stone wall behind his daub-and-wattle house. It
was warm, but he was intently watching a small buggy that was being
recklessly driven over the bushes in the direction of the farmhouse.
Gregory never stirred till it had vanished; then, finding the stones
hot, he slipped down and walked into the house. He kicked the little
pail that lay in the doorway, and sent it into one corner; that did him
good. Then he sat down on the box, and began cutting letters out of a
piece of newspaper. Finding that the snippings littered the floor, he
picked them up and began scribbling on his blotting-paper. He tried the
effect of different initials before the name Rose: G. Rose, E. Rose, L.
Rose, Rose, L.L., L.L. Rose. When he had covered the sheet, he looked at
it discontentedly a little while, then suddenly began to write a letter:

"Beloved Sister,

"It is a long while since I last wrote to you, but I have had no time.
This is the first morning I have been at home since I don't know when.
Em always expects me to go down to the farmhouse in the morning; but I
didn't feel as though I could stand the ride today.

"I have much news for you.

"Tant Sannie, Em's Boer stepmother, is to be married tomorrow. She is
gone to town today, and the wedding feast is to be at her brother's
farm. Em and I are going to ride over on horseback, but her cousin is
going to ride in the buggy with that German. I don't think I've written
to you since she came back from school. I don't think you would like her
at all, Jemima; there's something so proud about her. She thinks just
because she's handsome there's nobody good enough to talk to her, and
just as if there had nobody else but her been to boarding-school before.

"They are going to have a grand affair tomorrow; all the Boers about are
coming, and they are going to dance all night; but I don't think I
shall dance at all; for, as Em's cousin says, these Boer dances are low
things. I am sure I only danced at the last to please Em. I don't know
why she is fond of dancing. Em talked of our being married on the same
day as Tant Sannie;