He's been away, too, a good deal; on business, he said."
"Humph! He and--er--Emily haven't been extra thick, then?"
"No. Come to think of it they've hardly seen each other. Emily has acted
sort of--sort of queer about him, too. She didn't seem to want to talk
about him more'n she has about John."
"Humph! That's funny. I can't make it out. You see Heman got on that
same train John got off. He was comin' along the depot platform just as
I got to it. And the depot-master sung out to him."
"The depot-master? Eben Foster, you mean?"
"Yup. He sung out, 'Congratulations, Heman,' says he."
"'What you congratulatin' him for?' says I.
"'Ain't you heard?' says he. 'He's engaged to be married'."
Thankful uttered an exclamation.
"Engaged!" she repeated. "Mr. Daniels engaged--to be married?"
"So Eben said. I wanted to ask a million questions, of course, but John
Kendrick was right alongside me and I couldn't. John must have heard it,
too, and it did seem to me that he looked pretty well shook up, but he
wa'n't any more shook than I was. I thought--Well, you see, I thought--"
Thankful knew what he had thought. She also was "shaken up."
"I don't believe it," she cried. "If--if--it can't he HER. Why, she
would have told me, I'm sure. Obed, you don't think--"
"I don't know what to think. Heman's been writin' her pretty reg'lar,
I know that, 'cause Chris Badger told me so a week after she'd gone. I
don't know, Thankful; one thing's sartin, Heman's kept his engagement
mighty quiet.
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