“Humph! that includes Laviny Pepper, of course.  I cal’late Laviny’s delight won’t keep her up nights.  But I guess I can stand it if she can.  Now, Grace, what is it?  You ain’t real pleased?  Why not?”

The girl hesitated.

“Auntie,” she said, “I’m selfish, I guess.  I’m glad for your sake; you mustn’t think I’m not.  But I almost wish you were going to do something else.  You are going to live in the Regular parsonage and keep house for, of all persons, a Regular minister.  Why, so far as my seeing you is concerned, you might as well be in China.  You know Uncle Eben.”

Keziah nodded understandingly.

“Yes,” she said, “I know him.  Eben Hammond thinks that parsonage is the presence chamber of the Evil One, I presume likely.  But, Grace, you mustn’t blame me, and if you don’t call I’ll know why and I shan’t blame you.  We’ll see each other once in a while; I’ll take care of that.  And, deary, I had to do it—­I just had to.  If you knew what a load had been took off my mind by this, you’d sympathize with me and understand.  I’ve been happier in Trumet than I ever was anywhere else, though I’ve seen some dark times here, too.  I was born here; my folks used to live here.  My brother Sol lived and died here.  His death was a heavy trouble to me, but the heaviest came to me when I was somewheres else and—­well, somehow I’ve had a feelin’ that, if there was any real joys ever planned out for me while I’m on this earth, they’d come to me here.  I don’t know when they’ll come.  There’s times when I can’t believe they ever will come, but—­There! there! everybody has to bear burdens in this life, I cal’late.  It’s a vale of tears, ‘cordin’ to you Come-Outer folks, though I’ve never seen much good in wearin’ a long face and a crape bathin’ suit on that account.  Hey?  What are you listenin’ to?”

“I thought I heard a carriage stop, that was all.”

Mrs. Coffin went to the window and peered into the fog.

“Can’t see anything,” she said. “’Tain’t anybody for here, that’s sure.  I guess likely ‘twas Cap’n Elkanah.  He and Annabel were goin’ to drive over to Denboro this afternoon.  She had some trimmin’ to buy.  Takes more than fog to separate Annabel Daniels from dressmakin’.  Well, there’s a little more packin’ to do; then I thought I’d go down to that parsonage and take a whack at the cobwebs.  I never saw so many in my born days.  You’d think all the spiders from here to Ostable had been holdin’ camp meetin’ in that shut-up house.”

The packing took about an hour.  When it was finished, the carpet rolled up, and the last piece of linen placed in the old trunk, Keziah turned to her guest.

“Now, Gracie,” she said, “I feel as though I ought to go to the parsonage.  I can’t do much more’n look at the cobwebs to-night, but to-morrow those spiders had better put on their ascension robes.  The end of the world’s comin’ for them, even though it missed fire for the Millerites when they had their doin’s a few years ago.  You can stay here and wait, if ’twon’t be too lonesome.  We’ll have supper when I get back.”