Baxter till you're through, and then p'raps, if one of you'll take my
place, I'll eat my supper and wash the dishes. You needn't come up now.
I'll introduce myself."

Some few minutes passed before Miss Preston came down. When she did so
her eyes were wet, but her manner was cheerful, and the unaffected way
in which she greeted Captain Perez and Captain Jerry, when these two
rather bashful mariners were introduced by Eri, won them at once.

The supper was a great success. It was Saturday night, and a Saturday
night supper to the average New Englander means baked beans. The
captains had long ago given up this beloved dish, because, although each
had tried his hand at preparing it, none had wholly succeeded, and the
caustic criticisms of the other two had prevented further trials. But
Mrs. Snow's baked beans were a triumph. So, also, was the brown bread.

"I snum," exclaimed Captain Perez, "if I don't b'lieve I'd sooner have
these beans than turkey. What do you say, Jerry?"

"I don't know but I had," assented the sacrifice, upon whose countenance
sat a placidity that had not been there since the night of the
"matching." "'Specially if the turkey was like the one we tried to cook
last Thanksgivin'. 'Member that, Eri?"

Captain Eri, his mouth full, grunted an emphatic assent.

"Tell me," said Miss Preston, who had eaten but little, but was
apparently getting more satisfaction from watching her companions, "did
you three men try to keep house here alone?"