"They grows better," said Mr. Peverell. "Young and young. It comes that way."
So she stilled her heart from painful beating. But one day Mrs. Peverell pointed out those two together in the fields and said--
"A love child they say takes easy to love. If that doant please 'ee, 'ee must stop it soon."
"Why shouldn't it please me?" she asked and her heart was trembling in swift flutterings that were not pulses in her breast, but were like wings beating, disturbing the air she breathed.
"Well, she be just an ordinary child, like one of us, and if John stays on the farm and one day takes it after Mr. Peverell, as I doant mind tellin' 'ee Mr. Peverell means 'en to take it if he likes the work, then he'll wed wi' her, you mark my words for it."
Mary took the hand with its knuckles far more knotted now and held it for comfort against her breast.
"You have been good to me," she muttered thickly. "I have never thought till now he could mean to leave the farm to John."
"His name's in the Bible," said Mrs. Peverell.
"Yes, yes, my dear, I know what that means to you. But I never thought you meant it so practically as that. If John does take on the farm, why shouldn't he marry Lucy? Wouldn't that be right? Wouldn't that be the very best?"
"I thought by the way 'ee looked at them 'ee mind was all against it. I thought 'ee'd got greater prospects for him than that. She's only an ordinary child, I says, and that's all she is. I thought it 'ud upset 'ee plans for 'en."