"No, I won't stand that, no one ever was so good as Joseph," persisted
Isabel; "besides, Fred is a Farnham, he's got his father's name, and
his father's blood too; I don't see how you can speak of Fred and
Joseph in the same day."
"At any rate," answered Mary, "we ought to be very grateful to young Mr. Farnham, for he was good to us; only think how kind he was to bring Joseph over to see us so often, after we came from the hospital, and all without giving Mrs. Farnham a chance to scold!"
"Scold!" said Isabel, "I sometimes thought she liked Joseph better than her own son—she always was glad to see him."
"That was because Frederick persuaded her."
"I don't believe that; she was always so hateful to Fred it was not to please him that she took to Joseph, I am sure."
"Well, at any rate, she was very good to let him visit us so often."
"I don't know," said Isabel, determined not to give any credit to Mrs.
Farnham; "at any rate I don't like her and I won't try."
"This is wrong, Isabel—at first I thought I never could like aunt Hannah she was so queer, but now I love her dearly, almost as well as uncle Nathan, for all her hard way of speaking, she's as kind as kind can be."
"Oh, aunt Hannah, I like her myself, anybody couldn't help liking her, and there's Salina Bowles, she's just the best creature you ever knew, both of 'em have got feelings, but I don't believe Mrs. Farnham has got one bit."
"Don't let us talk of her faults," said Mary.