Ada left the room with her betrothed for a few last words.
When she entered the parlor again Aunt Wealthy, making room for her on the sofa by her side, asked, "Are you to be settled near Pleasant Plains, dear?" adding, "I hope so, for it would be very hard for you to go far from father and mother, brothers and sisters, and for them to have you do so."
Ada could not answer for a moment, and when she found her voice it was tremulous with emotion.
"We do not know yet, Aunt Wealthy," she said. "It will be hard to leave home and dear ones, but we are ready and willing to go wherever the Lord may send us."
"Ada, what do you mean?" asked Mildred. "Surely, Frank has no thought of seeking a foreign field?"
"Can't you give me up if the Master calls me away, Milly?" asked Ada, taking her sister's hand and pressing it fondly in hers.
"In that case I would not dare hold you back if I could; His claim is far stronger than mine," Mildred said, with emotion.
Then the whole story came out, and the matter was discussed in a family council.
But they could go no farther than the expression of their opinions and wishes. Frank had already offered himself to the Board of Foreign Missions, and his going depended upon their acceptance or rejection.