They wuz made, them pure pearls of hern, as pearls always are, by long sufferin' and endurance, and the "constant anguish of patience." Krit give her for his gift a beautiful cross of precious stones, and I mistrusted, from what I see in her face when he gin it to her, that he meant it to be symbolical, and then agin I don't know.

But, anyway, she wore it a-fastenin' the lace at her white throat.
[Illustration: Krit give her a beautiful cross.] But I do know that the girls and I gin her some good linen napkins, and towels, and table-cloths, and the boys a handsome set of books.
And I do know that the supper afterwards wuz, although well I know the impoliteness of my even hintin' at it--I do know, and I should lie if I said that I didn't know it, that that supper wuz a good one--as good a one, so fur as my knowledge goes, as wuz ever put on a table in the town of Lyme, or the village of Jonesville.
And Josiah Allen, he eat too much--fur, fur too much.

And I hunched him three times to that effect at the time, to no avail.
And once I stepped on his toe--a dretful warnin' steppin'-- and he asked me out loud and snappish (I hit a corn, I spoze, onbeknown to me)--and he asked me right out before 'em all, voyalent, "What I wuz a-steppin' on his toe for ?" [Illustration: I stepped on his toe.] And so, of course, that curbed me in, and I had to let him go on, and cut a full swath in the vittles.

But it wuz some comfort for me to think that most likely he wouldn't be tempted by a weddin' supper agin--not for some time, anyway.

For the Babe wuz but young yet, and we wuz gettin' along.
Yes, that hull weddin' went off perfectly beautiful, and there wuzn't but one drawback to my happiness on that golden day that united them two happy lovers.
Yes, onbeknown to me a feelin' of sadness come over me--sadness and regret.
It wuzn't any worriment and concern about the fate of Isabelle and her husband -- no; True Love wuz a-goin' out with 'em on their weddin' tower, and I knew if he went ahead of 'em, and they wuz a-walkin' in the light of his torch, their way wuz a-goin' to be a radiant and a satisfyin' one, whether it led up hill or down or over the deep waters--yea, even over the swellin' of Jordan.
No, it wuzn't that, nor anything relatin' to the children, or my dress, or anything-- No, my dress--a new lilock gray alpaca--sot out noble round my form, and my new head-dress wuz foamin' lookin', but it didn't foam too much.
No, it wuzn't that, nor anything about the neighbors--no; they looked some envious at our noble doin's, and walked by the house considerable, and the wimmen made errents, and borrowed more tea and sugar, durin' the preparations, than it seemed as if they could use in two years; but I pitied 'em, and forgive 'em-- And it wuzn't anything about the children or Krit.
For the children wuz happy in their happy and prosperous hums, and Krit, they say--I don't tell it for certain--but they say that he come back engaged to a sweet young girl of Chicago-- Come back from the great New World of the World's Fair, as his illustrious namesake went home so long ago, in chains-- Only Krit's chains wuz wrought of linked love and blessedness instead of iron--so they say.
I've seen her picter; but good land! how can I tell who or what it is?
It is pretty as a doll, and Krit seems to think his eyes on it; but he's so full of fun, I can't git any straight story out of him.
But Thomas Jefferson says she is a bonny fidy girl--a good one and a pretty one, and has got a father dretful well off; and he sez that she and Krit are engaged.