Before she answered she came over and stood beside him, slipping her hand through his arm and speaking in tender earnestness. “Judge Burnham, I want you to understand me; I feel that I may have seemed hard, and cold, and selfish. Perhaps I have been selfish in pushing my plan; I think I have been, but I did not intend it for selfishness. I was, and am, led by what seems to be our duty—yours and mine. Those girls of yours have been neglected. I can see how you, being a man, would not know what to do; at the same time I can see how I, being a woman, can at least try to do many things, and I am very eager to try. You may call it an experiment if you will, and if it is, in your estimation in six months from now an utter failure, I will give it up and do exactly as you propose.”
There was a gleam of assurance in her eyes, and he could see that she did not believe he would ever be called upon to follow his plans. But something tender and pleading in her tone touched him, and he said, with feeling:
“I begin to realize forcibly, what has only come upon me in touches heretofore—that I have not done my duty by the girls. I did not know what to do. I used to study the question and try to plan it, but I can not tell you how utterly hopeless it seemed to me. Finally, I gave it up. I determined that nothing could ever be done but to support them and live away from them, and long before I knew you I determined on that as my line of action. So your resolution was a surprise to me—an overwhelming one. But, perhaps, you are right. At least I will help you in whatever way I can to carry out your plans, however wild they are, and I begin to realize that you may possibly have some very wild ones, but I promise allegiance.”
“Good!” said Ruth, with sparkling eyes, “I ask nothing better than that. Then we will proceed at once to business; there is so much to be done that I don’t feel like taking a wedding journey just now. We can enjoy it so much more when we get our house in order. There are certain things that I need to know at once. First, how much or how little is there to be done to this house, and—and to everything? In other words, how much money am I to spend?”
“Oh,” he said looking relieved, “I thought you were going to ask me what ought to be done to make the place habitable, and, really, I hardly know where to commence. I shall be charmed to leave it in your hands. As to money, I think I may safely promise you what you need unless your ideas are on a more magnificent scale than I think. I will give you my check this morning for a thousand dollars, and when that is used you may come to me for as much more. Is that an answer to your question?”
“An entirely satisfactory one.” She answered him with shining eyes, and they went down to breakfast with a sense of satisfaction which, considering the surroundings and the marvelous calicoes in which the daughters of the house appeared, was surprising.
“I don’t see the way clear to results,” Judge Burnham said, perplexedly, as he and his wife walked on the piazza after breakfast and continued the discussion of ways and means. “If the Ferris tribe vacate to-day, as I have just intimated to the head of the family is extremely desirable, what are you to do for help until such time as something competent in that line can be secured, always supposing that there is such a thing in existence? I remember what an experience you have been having in your father’s house in the line of help.”
“Oh, well,” said Ruth, brightly, “we had the small-pox, you know; that makes a difference. They have excellent servants there now, and, indeed, we generally have had. My housekeeping troubles did not lie in that direction. I have a plan; I don’t know what you will think of it. I am afraid you will be very much surprised?”
“No, I shall not,” he interrupted her to say, “I have gotten beyond the condition of surprise at anything which you may do or propose.”
Then she went on with her story.