"I am sure it will. To-morrow will be sure to be better than to-day."
She left him, and went away with a slow step that did not echo the promise of her words.
Joel, meanwhile, consulted apart with his mistress.
"Of course," she said, emphatically.—"You must stay until morning,
Lois. It is too late. Joel will toss you up a bed in the loft."
The queer little body hesitated.
"I can stay," she said, at last. "It's his watch at the mill to-night."
"Whose watch?" demanded Joel.
Her face brightened.
"Father's. He's back, mum."
Joel caught himself in a whistle.