"Where is he, then?" asked Mrs. Aleshine.
"He's at your house, ma'am," replied the coxswain.
"An' what in the name of common sense is he doin' at my house!" exclaimed Mrs. Aleshine, her eyes sparkling with amazement and indignation.
"Well, ma'am, for one thing," said the coxswain, "he's had the front door painted."
"What!" cried Mrs. Lecks and Mrs. Aleshine in one breath.
"Yes," continued the coxswain; "the parson said he hated to see men hangin' around doin' nothin'. An' then he looked about, an' said the paint was all wore off the front door, an' we might as well go to work an' paint that, an' he sent Jim to a shop to git the paint an' brushes——"
"An' have 'em charged to me?" cried Mrs. Aleshine.
"Yes, ma'am," continued the coxswain. "An' Jim an' Bill holy-stoned all the old paint off the door an' I painted it, havin' done lots of that sort of thing on shipboard; an' I think it's a pretty good job, ma'am—red at top and bottom an' white in the middle, like a steamer's smoke-stack."
Mrs. Lecks and Mrs. Aleshine looked at each other. "An' he told you to do that?" said Mrs. Lecks.
"Yes, ma'am," answered the coxswain. "The parson said he never liked to be nowhere without doin' what good he could. An' there was some other paintin' he talked of havin' done, but we ain't got at it yit. I s'posed he was actin' under your orders, an' I hope I haven't done no wrong, ma'am."