Howsomedever, when all's said and done, I shall finish with the same I
began with--that you'd no right to send that letter."

"Well, you've told me that afore," said Jerrem sullenly.

"Iss, and now I tells 'ee behind," retorted Joan, "and to front and to
back, and round all the sides--so there!"

"Oh, all right!" said Jerrem: "have your talk out: it don't matter to
me;" and he threw himself down on the settle with apparent unconcern,
taking from his breast-pocket a letter which he carefully
unfolded.--"Did you know that I'd got a letter gived me to Guernsey,
Eve," he said--"one they'd ha' kept waitin' there for months for me?"

Eve looked up, and, to her vexation, saw Jerrem reading the letter
which on her first arrival she had written: the back of it was turned
toward her, so as to ostentatiously display the two splotches of red
sealing-wax.

"Why, you doan't mane to say you've a-got _he?_" exclaimed Joan, her
anger completely giving way to her amazement. "Well, I never! after all
this long whiles, and us a-tryin' to stop un, too!--Eve, do 'ee see
he's got the letter you writ, kisses and all?"

"Joan!" exclaimed Eve in a tone of mingled reproof and annoyance, while
Jerrem made a feint of pressing the impressions to his lips, casting
the while a look in Eve's direction, which Joan intercepting, she said,
"Awh! iss I would, seeing they'm so much mine as Eve's, and you doan't
know t'other from which."