him. They are writ in
Latin and Greek.

When we got back to the tarven that night we found a hull pile of
letters from Jonesville, and amongst the rest I got a letter from
Elder Minkley, good old man of God, and Arvilly got one too; he sets
store by Arvilly now, he and his wife duz, and they pity her dretfully
for what she has went through, and make allowances for her hashness,
but never shall I forgit the way she talked to him right in my own
settin' room when she first come home from Cuba after her husband had
been murdered by the licensed Canteen.

She come to our house one day, and Elder Minkley, good old soul, come
in just after she did for a all-day's visit, poor creeter! I guess he
wuz sorry enough he come, some of the time; I guess he wished he wuz
back in his study perusin' the book of martyrs or anything else
deprestin', and would have thought 'em fur livelier than what he got
into.

The way on't wuz, Arvilly had met Miss Deacon Sypher at the gate and
she bein' dretful onfaculized with no more tact than a settin' hen,
had tackled Arvilly for a contribution to buy a flag to send to our
boys in Cuba, and talked enthusiastic about the war's holy mission.
And I spoze Sister Sypher wuz skairt almost into fits to hear Arvilly
go on, 'tennyrate she left her sudden and to once, and started home
'cross lots almost on the run, and Arvilly come into the house talkin'
and mutterin'.

"Drusilly Sypher knows a sight about it; our army gone to redress
wrongs and protect innocence! they better look to home and redress
wrongs here; half the citizens of this country in legal bondage, and
the hull country cowering under a crime and danger protected and
legalized; if I didn't want to make myself a mark for demon laughter
I'd quit such talk till I repented my sins in sackcloth and ashes."

"Well, well, Arvilly, set down, set down," sez I, for she wuz
rampagin' round the room back and forth, "set down, and here," sez I,
handin' her a bottle, "smell of the camfire, Arvilly, you look bad,"
and she did look frightful bad, pale and fiery, and burnin' mad at
sunthin' or somebody.

But she waived it off with scorn: "Camfire can't heal the smart, or
sweeten the air of the country; no, it needs fire from on high to burn
it out. And it will come," sez she, "it will come."

Why, she acted real wild and by the side of herself, and I pitied her
like a dog, and wuz at my wit's end what to say to her, and I wuz glad
enough to see Elde