"Don't mumble your words,
speak plainly, if you please."
"He wouldn't tell me, mum; I axed him, but he wouldn't say. A letter came
last night, and this morning at sunup they were off--Mr. Dan in front, and
Big Abel behind with the bundle on his shoulder. They walked to
Leicestersburg, that's all I know, mum."
"Let me get inside," said Betty, quickly. Her face had gone white, but she
thanked Jack when he picked up the shawl she dropped, and went steadily
into the coach. "We may as well go back," she added with a little laugh.
Mrs. Lightfoot threw an anxious look into her face.
"We must consider the horses, my dear," she responded. "Mr. Hicks, will you
see that the horses are well fed and watered. Let them take their time."
"Oh, I forgot the horses," returned Betty apologetically, and patiently sat
down with her arm leaning in the window. There was a smile on her lips, and
she stared with bright eyes at the oak trees and the children playing among
the acorns.
XIV
THE HUSH BEFORE THE STORM
The autumn crept into winter; the winter went by, short and fitful, and the
spring unfolded slowly. With the milder weather the mud dried in the roads,
and the Major and the Governor went daily into Leicesterburg. The younger
man had carried his oratory and his influence into the larger cities of the
state, and he had come home, at the end of a month of speech-making, in a
fervour of almost boyish enthusiasm.
Pages:
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260