“Well, I do, and so do you, and you know it. We agreed to the housekeepin' bus'ness jest as a sort of put off. Now we can't put off no longer. Mrs. Snow come down here 'cause we advertised for a wife, and she's been so everlastin' good that I feel 'most ashamed every time I think of it. No use, you've got to ask her to marry you. He has, hasn't he, Eri?”
“Yes,” answered Captain Eri laconically.
The sacrifice squirmed. “I hate to ask,” he said. “Why don't we wait a spell, and let her say somethin' fust?”
“That WOULD be nice, wouldn't it? She's that kind of a woman, ain't she?” sputtered Perez. “No, you bet she ain't! What she'd say would be to give her opinion of us and our manners, and walk out of the house bag and baggage, and I wouldn't blame her for doin' it.”
“P'raps she wouldn't have me. She never said she would.”
“Never said she would! Have you ever asked her? She's had all this time to l'arn to know you in, and I cal'late if she was willin' to think 'bout it 'fore she ever see you, she'd be more willin' now. Ain't that so, Eri?”
And again Captain Eri said shortly, “Yes.”
“I wish you'd mind your own consarns, and give me time,” protested Captain Jerry.
“Time! How much time do you want? Land of Goshen! I should think you'd had time enough. Why—”
“Oh, let up!” snorted the persecuted. “Why don't you git married yourself, and bring Pashy over to keep house? What we started to git in the fust place was jest a wife for one of us that would keep things shipshape, and now—”