I'll
tell her what I think of her. And she was cal'latin' to sue YOU for
breaches of promise, was she? Humph! Two can play at that game. I don't
know's I shan't have you sue her."
"I don't want to. I told you this mornin' I didn't care nothin' about
marryin' her. And you didn't want me to yourself. Now that it's all over
you ought to be happy, I should think. I don't see what you're growlin'
about."
"No, I suppose you don't. You--you," with withering contempt, "you
haven't got the self-respect of--of a woodtick. I'm--I declare I'm
perfectly prospected with shame at havin' such a brother in my family.
And after cruisin' around with her and takin' her to the Cattle Show--"
"You went to the Cattle Show yourself."
"I don't care if I did. Now you march yourself upstairs and change your
clothes."
"Aw, now, Hannah. These clothes are good enough."
"Good enough! For Christmas Day! I should think you'd be ashamed. Oh,
you make me so provoked! If folks knew what I know about you--"
Kenelm interrupted, a most unusual thing for him.
"S'posin' they knew what I know about you," he observed.
"What? What do you mean by that? What have I done to be ashamed of?"
"I don't know. I don't know what you did. I don't even know where you
went. But when a person crawls down a ladder in the middle of the night
and goes off somewhere with--with somebody else and don't get home until
'most mornin', then--well, then I cal'late folks might be interested if
they knew, that's all.
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