They say here in the village, but I do not believe it, that one day the judge was upon his roof fixing a shingle, when a tornado struck him, lifted him off, carried him a quarter of a mile, and dashed him with such terrible force against a fence that his leg was broken. As they carried him home, he opened his eyes languidly and said, "Immortal Moses! what a storm that was! When it does blow, it suits me if it blows hard. I'd give both legs if we could have a squall like that every day. I—I—" Then he fainted.
If contentment is happiness, then the life of Pitman is one uninterrupted condition of bliss.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Trouble for the Hero and Heroine—A Broken Engagement and a Forlorn Damsel—Bob Parker's Suffering—A Formidable Encounter—The Peculiar Conduct of a Dumb Animal—Cooley's Boy and his Home Discipline—A Story of an Echo.
We had been talking of asking the Magruders to come to take tea with us, so that the two families, which were now to be brought into close relations, might become better acquainted. But one evening, just as I had settled myself for a comfortable perusal of the paper, Miss Magruder was ushered into the room by the servant. It was plainly evident from her appearance that she was in distress from some cause. We should have guessed from her visit at such an hour unaccompanied by any one that all was not right, even if her countenance had not manifested extreme agitation. After the usual salutation she asked,
"Is Mr. Parker not at home?"