greatly changed in these two years between boyhood and manhood.

"Aye, Jephthah 'tis," he said, taking her hand, and letting her kiss
him. "My spirit was moved to come and see how it was with you all,
and to shew how Heaven had prospered me, so I asked leave of absence
after roll-call, and could better be spared, as that faithful man,
Hold-the-Faith Jenkins, will exhort the men this night. I came up by
Elmwood to learn tidings of you. Ha, Stead! Thou art grown, my lad.
May you be as much grown in grace."

"You are grown, too," said Patience, almost timidly. "What a man you
are, Jeph! Here, Rusha, you mind Jeph, and here is little Benoni."

"You have reared that child, then," said Jeph, as the boy clung to
his sister's skirts, "and you have kept things together, Stead, as I
hardly deemed you would do, when I had the call to the higher
service." It was an odd sort of call, but there was no need to go
into that matter, and Stead answered gravely, "Yes, I thank God. He
has been very good to us, and we have fared well. Come in, Jeph, and
see, and have something to eat! I am glad you are come home at
last."

Jephthah graciously consented to enter the low hut. He had to bend
his tall figure and take off his steeple-crowned hat before he could
enter at the low doorway, and then they saw his closely cropped head.

Patience tarried a moment to ask Rusha what had become of Emlyn.

"She is hiding in the cow shed," was the answer. "She ran off as
soon as she saw Jeph coming, and said he was a crop-eared villain."