“Oh, she’s writing letters, is she?”

“Um—­hm.  Writes one about every once in a week.  I don’t know who they’re to, nuther, but I have my suspicions.  You see, we’ve got a cousin out West—­out Pennsylvany way—­and he ain’t very well and has got a turrible lot of money.  I’m sort of surmisin’ that Laviny’s writin’ to him.  We’re about his only relations that’s left alive and—­and so—­”

“I see.”  The minister smiled.

“Yup.  Laviny’s a pretty good navigator, fur’s keepin’ an eye to wind’ard is concerned.  She was awful down on Phineas—­that’s his name—­’cause he married a Philadelphy woman, but he’s a widower man now, so I s’pose she feels better toward him.  She’s talkin’ of goin’ up to Sandwich pretty soon.”

“She is?  Alone?”

“So she says.”

“To leave you here?  Why! well, I’m surprised.”

“Godfreys mighty! so be I. But she says she b’lieves she needs a change and there’s church conference up there, you know, and she figgers that she ain’t been to conference she don’t know when.  I s’pose you’ll go, won’t you, Mr. Ellery?”

“Probably.”

“Um—­hm.  I kind of wisht I was goin’ myself.  ’Twill be kind of lonesome round home without her.”

Considering that that variety of lonesomeness had been Abishai’s dream of paradise for years, Ellery thought his change of heart a good joke and told Keziah of it when he returned to the parsonage.  The housekeeper was greatly surprised.

“Well! well! well!” she exclaimed.  “Miracles’ll never cease.  I don’t wonder so much at Laviny wantin’ to go to conference, but her darin’ to go and leave Kyan at home is past belief.  Why, every time she’s had a cold her one fear was that she’d die and leave ’Bish behind to be kidnaped by some woman.  Kyan himself was sick once, and the story was that his sister set side of the bed night and day and read him over and over again that chapter in the Bible that says there’s no marryin’ or givin’ in marriage in heaven.  Dr. Parker told me that he didn’t believe ’Bish got ha’f the comfort out of that passage that she did.  And now she’s goin’ to Sandwich and leave him.  I can’t think it’s true.”

But it was true, and Lavinia got herself elected a delegate and went, in company with Captain Elkanah, Mrs. Mayo, and others, to the conference.  She was a faithful attendant at the meetings and seemed to be having a very good time.  She introduced the minister to one Caleb Pratt, a resident of Sandwich, whom she said she had known ever since she was a girl.

“Mr. Pratt’s a cousin to Thankful Payne over to home,” volunteered Lavinia.  “You know Thankful, Mr. Ellery.”

Ellery did know Mrs. Payne and said so.  Mr. Pratt, who was dressed in a new suit of black which appeared to hurt him, imparted the information that he’d heard tell consider’ble of Mr. Ellery.

“I enjoyed your sermon to-night fust—­rate,” he added solemnly.  “Fust—­rate, sir—­yes.”