“Oh, yes, I suppose so.”
“I suppose you feel lonely without him?”
“Yes, mother.”
“Have you seen anything of Uncle Obed lately?” asked Mrs. Ross, making a wry face as she pronounced the word admitting the relationship.
“Yes; I saw him walking with the Gilbert boy the other evening.”
“Did you speak to him?”
“No; I just nodded. I don’t care about getting intimate with him. I wish he’d leave town.”
“As likely as not, he’ll use up all his money, and then come on your father for help.”
“I hope father won’t give him anything, then,” said Philip.
“I am willing that he should give him enough to get him back to Illinois. He ought never to have left there. If he thinks we are going to pay his board here, all I can say is that he is very much mistaken,” said Mrs. Ross, pressing her thin lips together with emphasis.