comes to pass," retorted Miss Cornelia. "I shall never have
truck or trade with Methodists, and Mr. Meredith will find that
he'd better steer clear of them, too. He is entirely too
sociable with them, believe ME. Why, he went to the Jacob Drews'
silver-wedding supper and got into a nice scrape as a result."

"What was it?"

"Mrs. Drew asked him to carve the roast goose--for Jacob Drew
never did or could carve. Well, Mr. Meredith tackled it, and in
the process he knocked it clean off the platter into Mrs. Reese's
lap, who was sitting next him. And he just said dreamily. 'Mrs.
Reese, will you kindly return me that goose?' Mrs. Reese
'returned' it, as meek as Moses, but she must have been furious,
for she had on her new silk dress. The worst of it is, she was a
Methodist."

"But I think that is better than if she was a Presbyterian,"
interjected Susan. "If she had been a Presbyterian she would
mostly likely have left the church and we cannot afford to lose
our members. And Mrs. Reese is not liked in her own church,
because she gives herself such great airs, so that the Methodists
would be rather pleased that Mr. Meredith spoiled her dress."

"The point is, he made himself ridiculous, and _I_, for one, do
not like to see my minister made ridiculous in the eyes of the
Methodists," said Miss Cornelia stiffly. "If he had had a wife
it would not have happened."

"I do not see if he had a dozen wives how they could have