they did," Eph interrupted mother to say, indulging in perhaps his first
speech while waiting on the table during the long and honorable life as
a butler which that grandmother had started at his sixth year. He then
retired in the blackest consternation, and his yellow granddaughter, the
house-girl, brought in the wine-jelly.

One thing is certain--I must contrive some way to get Sam back and forth
to me from The Briers in less time than it takes him to walk five miles.
He has got just one old roan plow mare and he won't ride her after he
has worked her all day, and I am afraid it won't do for me to go after
him with Redwheels every time I want him. I can go about two-thirds of
the time, but he must be allowed some liberty about expressing his
desire for my company. Of course a tactful woman can go nine-tenths of
the way in all things to meet a man she likes, and he'll think she
hasn't even started from home; but she ought to be honorable enough not
to do it at that rate. I believe in liberty for men as well as women.

Still, I can't express the strain it was on me to wait until after eight
o'clock for Sam with Grandmother Nelson's farm-book on my knee, and I
don't want to do it ever again, especially if the Byrd or Mammy or the
cows or any of the other live stock might be sick. I felt that it must
be midnight before I got Sam seated by me on the deep old mahogany sofa
in front of one nice April blaze in behind the brass fender, and under
another from Tolly's power-house. He was pretty tired, as he had been up
since daylight, but the cows were all right and on feed again, Mammy
wasn't any stiffer than usual, and he had promised the Byrd the first
chicken that the old Dominicker hatched out to stay at home and let him
come to see me. Mammy had sent me five fresh eggs, and Sam presented
them with a queer pod of little round black seeds, and a smile that
wouldn't look me in the face.