It was longer in coming than they expected.  For a week they saw the postman pass their door with an indifference that seemed cruel; for a week Jean made new excuses and tried to hold up her mother’s heart, while her own was sinking lower and lower.  Then one morning the looked-for answer came.  Jean fled to a room apart to read it alone; Mrs. Anderson sat down and waited, with dropped eyes and hands tightly clasped.  She knew, before Jean said a word, that the letter had disappointed her.  She had remained alone too long.  If all had been as they hoped the mother was certain Jean would not have deferred the good tidings a moment.  But a quarter of an hour had passed before Jean came to her side, and then when she lifted her eyes she saw that her daughter had been weeping.

“It is a disappointment, Jean, I see,” she said sadly.  “Never mind, dearie.”

“Yes, mother; Gavin has failed us.”

“We have been two foolish women, Jean.  Oh, my dear lassie, we should have lippened to God, and He would not have disappointed us!  What does Gavin Burns say?”

“It is what he does not say, that hurts me, mother.  I may as well tell you the whole truth.  When he heard how ill father was, he wrote to me, as if he had foreseen what was to happen.  He said, ’there will be a new minister and a break-up of the old home, and you must come at once to your new home here.  I am the one to care for you when your father is gone away; and what does it matter under what sun or sky if we are but together?’ So, then, mother, when the worst had come to us I wrote with a free heart to Gavin.  I said, ’I will come to you gladly, Gavin, but you know well that my mother is very dear to me, and where I am there she also must be.’  And he says, in this letter, that it is me he is wanting, and that you have a brother in Glasgow that is unmarried and who will be willing, no doubt, to have you keep his house for him.  There is a wale of fine words about it, mother, but they come to just this, and no more—­Gavin is willing to care for me, but not for you and I will not trust myself with a man that cannot love you for my sake.  We will stay together, mammy darling!  Whatever comes or goes we will stay together.  The man isna born that can part us two!”

“He is your lover, Jean.  A girl must stick to her lover.”

“You are my mother.  I am bone of your bone, and flesh of your flesh and love of your love.  May God forsake me when I forsake you!”

She had thrown herself at her mother’s knees and was clasping and kissing the sad face so dear to her, as she fervently uttered the last words.  And the mother was profoundly touched by her child’s devotion.  She drew her close to her heart, and said firmly: 

“No!  No, my dearie!  What could we two do for ourselves?  And I’m loth to part you and Gavin.  I simply cannot take the sacrifice, you so lovingly offer me.  I will write to my brother David.  Gavin isna far wrong there; David is a very close man, but he willna see his sister suffer, there is no fear of that.”