nor inconvenience. Hikes
his house--the house he lives in--right out into the road, moves it to a
place where he don't want to go, and--'

"'Mr. Phinney,' she sighs out, 'what do you mean?'

"And then I told her. She listened without sayin' a word, but her eyes
kept gettin' brighter and brighter and she breathed short.

"'Oh!' she says, when I'd finished. 'Did he--did he--do that for ME?'

"'You bet!' says I. 'He didn't tell me what he was doin' it for--that
ain't Sol's style; but I'm arithmetiker enough to put two and two
together and make four. He did it for you, you can bet your last red on
that.'

"She stood up. 'Oh!' she breathes. 'I--I must go and thank him. I--'

"But, knowin' Sol, I was afraid. Fust place, there was no tellin' how
he'd act, and, besides, he might not take it kindly that I'd told her.

"'Wait a jiffy,' I says. 'I'll go out and see if he's home. You stay
here. I'll be back right off.'

"Out I put, and over to the Berry house, standin' on its rollers in the
middle of the Boulevard. And, just as I got to it, somebody says:

"'Ahoy, Sim! What's the hurry? Anybody on fire?'

"'Twas the Cap'n himself, settin' on a pile of movin' joist and smokin'
as usual. I didn't waste no time.

"'Sol,' says I, 'I've just come from Olive's. She's got that letter from
the Omaha man. Poor thing! all alone there--'

"He interrupted me sharp. 'Well?' he snaps. 'What's it say? Will the
cousin help her?'

"'No,' I says, 'drat him, he won't!'

"The answer I got surprised me more'n anything I ever heard or ever will
hear.

"'Thank God!' says Sol Berry. 'That settles it.'

"And I swan to man if he didn't climb down off them timbers and march
straight across the street, over to the door of Olive Edwards's home,
open it, and go in! I leaned against the joist he'd left, and swabbed my
forehead with my sleeve."

"He went to HER!" gasped Mrs. Phinney.

"Wait," continued her husband. "I must have stood there twenty minutes
when I heard somebody hurryin' down the Boulevard. 'Twas Cornelius Rowe,
all red-faced and het up, but bu'stin' with news.

"''Lo, Sim!' says he to me. 'Is Cap'n Sol home? Does he know?'

"'Know? Know what?" says I.

"'Why, the trick Mr. Williams put up on him? Hey? You ain't heard? Well,
Mr. Williams's fixed him nice, HE has! Seems Abner Payne hadn't answered
Sol's letter tellin' him he'd accept the offer to swap lots, and
Williams went up to Wareham where Payne's been stayin' and offer