an't find.
His face has lost its perpetual smile--or smirk--and betrays the fact
that he is an old man and a most unhappy one."

"Huh! I've no great sympathy for Oliver Sands. He has wronged too many
people," said Mrs. Calvert, coldly. "But if those children are his
grandchildren, what are they doing here?"

"I'm coming to that. His daughter, Rose, 'married out of meeting,' and
against her father's will. He turned her out of doors, forbade her
mother ever to see or speak to her again, and though--being a
Friend--he took no oath, his resolution to cast her off was equivalent
to one. That part of my tale is common neighborhood gossip."

"I never heard it," said Mrs. Betty.

"No; such would scarcely be retailed to you. Well, Rose took refuge
with her husband's people, and all misfortune followed her flight from
her father's house. Her mother-in-law, her consumptive husband, and
herself are dead; she passing away as the twins came into the world.
The father-in-law, who was only a country-cobbler, but a profoundly
religious man, became half-crazed by his troubles, and though I
believe he honestly did his best by the babies left on his hands, they
must have suffered much. They have never been so happy as now and I
hope----"

"Please, Mr. Seth, let me tell! Aunt Betty, if you'll let me, I want
to adopt Sapphira!"

"Adopt--Sapphira! You? A child yourself?"

"Yes, please. I'll go without everything myself and I'd work, if I
could, to earn money to do it. Molly is going to adopt Ananias. It
will be lovely to have some object in life, and some the Seniors at
the Rhinelander adopted some Chinese babies. True. They pay money each
month, part of their allowance, to do it; so we thought----"

But Aunt Betty was leaning back in her chair and laughing in a most
disconcerting manner. It's not easy to be enthusiastic on a subject
that is ridiculed and Dorothy said no more. But if she were hurt by
having her unselfish project thus lightly treated, she was made
instantly glad by the tender way her guardian drew her close, and the
gentle pat of the soft old hand on her own cheek.

"Oh! you child, you children! And I made the mistake of thinking you
were as wise as a grown-up! We'll attend to the 'adoption' case, by
and by. Let Cousin Seth say his say now."

"Well, finally, the old man, Hiram Bowen, forsook his old home, sold
his few belongings and came here to our mountain. He must have had
some sense left, and realized that he