boys sat on the right, while Grove and two little girls occupied
the left side. ' Mrs. Stone was very gay as she hurried to and from
the kitchen. The eldest daughter wore a pleasant smile, but said
nothing unless spoken to. The old boy, Charley, was defiant,
and evidently did not believe in students. Reams and Tedder
saw this, and had also noticed that the little girls were very shy
at first. But the youngster next to Charley did not hesitate to ask
embarrassing questions of the students in a very uni estrained and
unconventional way. His mother spoke to him often, but he was
not very tame. Grove was not at all reticent, and being an easy
man to get acquainted with, and a great talker, especially at the
table, he and the students and Stone were soon engaged in familiar
conversation.
■ The talk had one queer jolt during the meal. Grove was a man
with a pin under his tongue, and he sometimes spoke before he
thought of the malice in his words.
Tedder had complimented Mrs. Stone on some baked cabbage
which he liked, saying that he thought it was educated cabbage,
indeed. Grove saw an opportunity. His merry gray eyes twink
led at the students while he exclaimed: /
“But I wish they wouldn’t raise such a smell in the course of
their' education.”
Stone was ruffled, but did not look up. The students looked at
Grove and smiled an acknowledgment. Mrs. Stone gazed over the
others toward her daughter and said simply:
“It may not be just the dish to set before company, but I am
glad you like it. Mr. Grove, is tomorrow the Sunday for preach
ing at our church ?”
The weather had cleared before dinner. At one o’clock Stone
had his team at the door, and Tedder and Reams were ready to
depart. They were ready to go, but it was like leaving an old
home. The scenes and life of the college seemed to be of another
world in which they did not belong any more.
Mrs. Stone asked them to come often, and they felt that they
could come again as honest guests with the greatest and truest