"You began wrong, Letty. You were born a prop and you've been propping
somebody ever since."

"I've done nothing but my plain duty. When my mother died there was my
stepfather to nurse, but I was young and strong; I didn't mind; and he
wasn't a burden long, poor father. Then, after four years came the
shock of David's reckless marriage. When he asked if he might bring
that girl here until her time of trial was over, it seemed to me I
could never endure it! But there were only two of us left, David and
I; I thought of mother and said yes."

"I remember, Letty; I had come to Beulah then."

"Yes, and you know what Eva was. How David, how anybody, could have
loved her, I cannot think! Well, he brought her, and you know how it
turned out. David never saw her alive again, nor ever saw his babies
after they were three days old. Still, what can you expect of a father
who is barely twenty-one?"

"If he's old enough to have children, he's old enough to notice them,"
said Mrs. Larrabee with her accustomed spirit. "Somebody ought to jog
his sense of responsibility. It's wrong for women to assume men's
burdens beyond a certain point; it only makes them more selfish. If
you only knew where David is, you ought to bundle the children up and
express them to his address. Not a word of explanation or apology;
simply tie a tag on them, saying, 'Here's your Twins!'"

"But I love the babies," said Letty smiling through her tears, "and
David may not be in a position to keep them."