“Don’t ask me, when he’s as big and husky as any two of mine!” said she, reassuringly.  “I guess you do jest about right.  But, Shandy, you’ve got to shorten him.”

“Well, what’ll I get?” asked Shandon.

Mrs. Larabee, in her element, considered.

“You’ll want about eight good, strong calico rompers,” she began authoritatively.  Then suddenly she interrupted herself.  “Say, why don’t you come over to the hotel with me now,” she suggested enthusiastically.  “I’m just finishing my wash, and while I wrench out the last few things you can feed the baby; than I’ll show you Thelma’s things, and we can have lunch.  Then him and Thel can take their naps, and you ‘n’ me’ll go over to Miss Bates’s and see what we can git.  You’ll want shoes for him, an’ a good, strong hat—­”

“Oh, honest, Johnnie—­” Shandon began to protest hurriedly, in her hunted manner, and with a miserable glance toward the home road.  “Maybe I’ll come up next week, now I know what you meant—­”

“Shucks!  Next week nobody can talk anything but wedding,” said Johnnie, off guard.

“Whose wedding?” Shandon asked, and Johnnie, who would have preferred to bite her tongue out, had to answer, “Mary Dickey’s.”

“Who to?” said Shandon, her face darkening.  Johnnie’s voice was very low.

“To the doc’, Shandy; to Arnold Lowell.”

“Oh!” said Shandon, quietly.  “Big wedding, I suppose, and white dresses, and all the rest?”

“Sure,” said Johnnie, relieved at her pleasant interest, and warming to the subject.  “There’ll be five generations there.  Parker’s making the cake in Sacramento.  Five of the girls’ll be bridesmaids—­Mary Bell and Carrie and Jane and the two Powell girls.  Poor Mrs. Dickey, she feels real bad.  She—­”

“She don’t want to give Mary up?” said Shandon, in a hard voice.  She began to twist the whip about in its socket.  “Well, some people have everything, it seems.  They’re pretty, and their folks are crazy about ’em, and they can stand up and make a fuss over marrying a man who as good as killed some other woman’s husband,—­a woman who didn’t have any one else either.”

“Shandy,” said Johnnie, sharply, “ain’t you got Danny?”

Something like shame softened the girl’s stern eyes.  She dropped her face until her lips rested upon the little fluffy fringe that marked the dividing line between Danny’s cap and Danny’s forehead.

“Sure I have,” she said huskily.  “But I’ve—­I’ve always sort of had it in for Mary Dickey, Johnnie, I suppose becuz she is so perfect, and so cool, and treats me like I was dirt—­jest barely sees me, that’s all!”

Johnnie answered at random, for she was suddenly horrified to see Dr. Lowell and Mary Dickey themselves come out of the post-office.  Before she could send them a frantic signal of warning, the doctor came toward the cart.

“How do you do, Mrs. Waters?” said he, holding out his hand.