ed him a
thumpin' price for the land on Main Street, and took it. The deed's all
made out. Cap'n Sol can't move where he was goin' to, and he's left with
his house on the town, as you might say. Ain't it a joke, though? Where
is Sol? I want to be the fust to tell him and see how he acts. Is he to
home?'

"I was shook pretty nigh to pieces, but I had some sense left.

"'No, he ain't,' says I. 'I see him go up street a spell ago.'"

"Why, Simeon!" interrupted Mrs. Phinney once more. "Was that true? How
COULD you see him when--"

"Be still! S'pose I was goin' to tell him where Sol HAD gone? I'd have
lied myself blue fust. However, Cornelius was satisfied.

"'That so?' he grunts. 'By jings! I'm goin' to find him.'

"Off he went, and the next thing I knew the Edwards door opened, and
I heard somebody callin' my name. I went acrost, walkin' in a kind of
daze, and there, in the doorway, with the lamp shinin' on 'em, was Cap'n
Sol and Olive. The tears was wet on her cheeks, but she was smilin' in
a kind of shy, half-believin' sort of way, and as for Sol, he was one
broad, satisfied grin.

"'Cap'n,' I begun, 'I just heard the everlastin'est news that--'

"'Shut up, Sim!' he orders, cheerful. 'You've been a mighty good friend
to both of us, and I want you to be the fust to shake hands.'

"'Shake hands?' I stammers, lookin' at 'em. 'WHAT? You don't mean--'

"'I mean shake hands. Don't you want to?'

"Want to! I give 'em both one more look, and then we shook, up to the
elbows; and my grin had the Cap'n's beat holler.

"'Sim,' he says, after I'd cackled a few minutes, 'I cal'late maybe that
white horse is well by this time. P'r'aps we might move a little faster.
I'm kind of anxious to get to Main Street.'

"Then I remembered. 'Great gosh all fish-hooks!' I sings out. 'Main
Street? Why, there AIN'T no Main Street!'

"And I gives 'em Cornelius's news. The widow's smile faded out.

"'Oh!' says she. 'O Solomon! And I got you into all this trouble!'

"Cap'n Sol didn't stop grinnin', but he scratched his head. 'Huh!' says
he. 'Mark one up for King Williams the Great. Humph!'

"He thought for a minute and then he laughed out loud. 'Olive,' he says,
'if I remember right, you and I always figgered to live on the Shore
Road. It's the best site in town. Sim, I guess if that white horse IS
well, you can move that shanty of mine right to Cross Street, down that,
and back along the Shore Road to the place where it come from. TH