CHAPTER IV.
THE MAJOR The depot master and his friend, Mr.Phinney, were not the only ones whose souls were troubled that evening.

Obed Gott, as he stood at the foot of the stairs leading to the meeting place of the "club," was vexed and worried.

His cousin, Captain Stitt, had gone into the house and up to his room, and Obed, after seeing him safely on his way, had returned to the club.

But, instead of entering immediately, he stood in the Higgins doorway, thinking, and frowning as he thought.

And the subject of his thought was the idol of feminine East Harniss, the "old-school gentleman," Major Cuthbertson Scott Hardee.
The Major first came to East Harniss one balmy morning in March--came, and created an immediate sensation.