Though Faith had betrayed no marked uneasiness during the absence of the
travellers, her quick eye was the first to discover the form of her
husband, as he came with a tired step across the fields, in the direction
of the dwellings. Long ere Dudley reached the house, every one of its
inmates had assembled in the piazza. This was no meeting of turbulent
delight, or of clamorous greetings. The adventurer drew near amid a
silence so oppressive, that it utterly disconcerted a studied project, by
which he had hoped to announce his tidings in a manner suited to the
occasion. His hand was on the gate of the little court, and still none
spoke; his foot was on the low step, and yet no voice bade him welcome.
The looks of the little group were rather fixed on the features of Ruth,
than on the person of him who approached. Her face was pallid as death,
her eye contracted, but filled with the mental effort that sustained her;
and her lip scarce trembled, as, in obedience to a feeling still stronger
than the one which had so long oppressed her, she exclaimed--
"Eben Dudley, where hast thou left my husband?"
"The young Captain was a-foot weary, and he tarried in the second growth
of the hill; but so brave a walker cannot be far behind.
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