"Mary Ann Pease and Arabella Mann are both in the settin'-room with
your mother. I thought I'd tell ye, in case ye didn't want to see
'em, and wanted to go to work on your sermon."

Thomas made an impatient ejaculation as he strode off. When he
reached the large white house where he lived he skirted it carefully.
The chirping treble of girlish voices came from the open sitting-room
window, and he caught a glimpse of a smooth brown head and a high
shell comb in front of the candle-light. The young minister tiptoed
in the back door and across the kitchen to the back stairs. The
sitting-room door was open, and the candle-light streamed out, and
the treble voices rose high. Thomas, advancing through the dusky
kitchen with cautious steps, encountered suddenly a chair in the dark
corner by the stairs, and just saved himself from falling. There was
a startled outcry from the sitting-room, and his mother came running
into the kitchen with a candle.

"Who is it?" she demanded, valiantly. Then she started and gasped as
her son confronted her. He shook a furious warning fist at the
sitting-room door and his mother, and edged towards the stairs. She
followed him close. "Hadn't you better jest step in a minute?" she
whispered. "Them girls have been here an hour, and I know they're
waitin' to see you." Thomas shook his head fiercely, and swung
himself around the corner into the dark crook of the back stairs. His
mother thrust the candle into his hand. "Take this, or you'll break
your neck on them stairs," she whispered.

Thomas, stealing up the stairs like a cat, heard one of the girls
call to his mother--"Is it robbers, Mis' Merriam? Want us to come an'
help tackle 'em?"--and he fairly shuddered; for Evelina's gentle-lady