"But her talk was certainly awful discouragin'. She was tryin' to
speak o' Mr. Shores, but she kep' trailin' back to herself, 'n' when
she said 't she'd never had time to crimp her hair since her weddin'
day she jus' broke right down. I cheered her up all I could. I told
her she couldn't with a clear conscience blame any one but herself 'n'
she'd ought to say her prayers of gratitude 't she hadn't got eight
herself, same 's him. She sort o' choked 'n' said she couldn't have
eight 'cause she had n't been married but one year. 'Well,' I says, 'I
don't see no great sense in that; he had eight the day he was married
's far 's that goes, did n't he?' She jus' rocked back 'n' forth 'n'
said 't no one in the whole wide world had any notion how many eight
children was till they turned aroun' from the altar 'n' see 'em strung
out in the pew 's is saved for the family. I told her 't as far 's my
observation 'd 'xtended quite a number o' things looked different
comin' down from the altar, 'n' it was in my heart to tell her 't if
I'd let any man get so much the better o' me 's to marry me, my
self-respeck would certainly shut my mouth up tight afterwards. As
long 's a woman 's single she's top-dog in the fight 'n' can say what
she pleases, but after she's married a man she'll keep still 'f she's
wise, 'n' the wiser she is the stiller she'll keep, for there's no
sense in ever lettin'folks know how badly you've been fooled.--But I
didn't say all that to the minister's wife, for she didn't look like
she had strength to listen, 'n' so I made her some tea instead.--'N'
_then_ it come out 't after all what she come for was to borrow my
clo'es-wringer! Well, Mrs. Lathrop, I certainly didn't have no blame
f'r myself at feelin' some tempered under them circumstances,--me _so_
sympathetic--'n' the tea--'n' all."

Mrs. Lathrop shook her head in calm and appreciative understanding.