"Then what," returned her brother, "what is he doin' settin' up in his

office all afternoon with ink on his forehead, while Fisbee goes out

ridin' with her and stays for supper afterwerds?"

Although the problem of Fisbee's attendance remained a mere maze of

hopeless speculation, Mildy had been present at the opening of Miss

Sherwood's trunk, and here was matter for the keen consideration of the

ladies, at least. Thoughtful conversations in regard to hats and linings

took place across fences and on corners of the Square that afternoon; and

many gentlemen wondered (in wise silence) why their spouses were absent-

minded and brooded during the evening meal.

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At half-past seven, the Hon. Kedge Halloway of Amo delivered himself of

his lecture; "The Past and Present. What we may Glean from Them, and Their

Influence on the Future." At seven the court-room was crowded, and Miss

Tibbs, seated on the platform (reserved for prominent citizens), viewed

the expectant throng with rapture. It is possible that she would have

confessed to witnessing a sea of faces, but it is more probable that she

viewed the expectant throng. The thermometer stood at eighty-seven degrees

and there was a rustle of incessantly moving palm-leaf fans as, row by

row, their yellow sides twinkled in the light of eight oil lamps. The

stouter ladies wielded their fans with vigor. There were some very pretty

faces in Mr. Halloway's audience, but it is a peculiarity of Plattville

that most of those females who do not incline to stoutness incline far in

the opposite direction, and the lean ladies naturally suffered less from

the temperature than their sisters. The shorn lamb is cared for, but often

there seems the intention to impart a moral in the refusal of Providence

to temper warm weather to the full-bodied.

Old Tom Martin expressed a strong consciousness of such intention when he

observed to the shocked Miss Selina, as Mr. Bill Snoddy, the stoutest

citizen of the county, waddled abnormally up the aisle: "The Almighty must

be gittin" a heap of fun out of Bill Snoddy to-night."

"Oh, Mr. Martin!" exclaimed Miss Tibbs, fluttering at his irreverence.

"Why, you would yourself. Miss Seliny," returned old Tom. Mr. Martin

always spoke in one key, never altering the pitch of his high, dry,

unctuous drawl, though, when his purpose was more than ordinarily

humorous, his voice assumed a shade of melancholy. Now and then he

meditatively passed his fingers through his gray beard, which followed the

line of his jaw, leaving his upper lip and most of his chin smooth-shaven.

"Did you ever reason out why folks laugh so much at fat people?" he

continued. "No, ma'am. Neither'd anybody else."

"Why is it, Mr. Martin?" asked Miss Selina.

"It's like the Creator's sayin', 'Let there be light.' He says, 'Let

ladies be lovely--'" (Miss Tibbs bowed)--"and 'Let men-folks be honest--

sometimes;' and, 'Let fat people be held up to ridicule till they fall

off.' You can't tell why it is; it was jest ordained that-a-way."




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