glancing round the room saw that Susan was not there. He walked
straight up to the widow, and offered her his hand, which she took.
It might be that Susan had not thought fit to tell, and in such case
it would not be right for him to compromise her; so he said never a
word.

But the subject was too important to the mother to allow of her
being silent when the young man stood before her. "Oh, Mr. Dunn,"
said she, "what is this you have been saying to Susan?"

"I have asked her to be my wife," said he, drawing himself up and
looking her full in the face. Mrs. Bell's heart was almost as soft
as her daughter's, and it was nearly gone; but at the moment she had
nothing to say but, "Oh dear, oh dear!"

"May I not call you mother?" said he, taking both her hands in his.

"Oh dear--oh dear! But will you be good to her? Oh, Aaron Dunn, if
you deceive my child!"

In another quarter of an hour, Susan was kneeling at her mother's
knee, with her face on her mother's lap; the mother was wiping tears
out of her eyes; and Aaron was standing by holding one of the
widow's hands.

"You are my mother too, now," said he. What would Hetta and Mr.
Beckard say, when they came back? But then he surely was not a
wolf!

There were four or five days left for courtship before Hetta and Mr.