"Just so. Isn"t a mast made out of a tree?"
"Certainly."
"And isn"t the tree dead before it can be made into a mast?"
"Why, yes," says he, and now it was his turn to be down in the mouth.
"Well, then, isn"t the edge of the water there chuck full of dead trees?"
At first the captain sort of choked a little; but the next minute he burst out a laughing.
"Do you want to know my opinion?" says he.
"Well, rather," says I.
"Well, it"s this: Green Mountain or not, if anybody buys a certain lady I know of for a fool, he"ll get awfully taken in."
"Shouldn"t wonder," says I.
With that, I picked up my umbrella, tied my bonnet a little tighter, took my bandbox in one hand, and followed the crowd across a plank bridge, and got into about the dirtiest road that my foot ever trod on.
"Want a carriage? Want a carriage?" I never saw men more polite than the drivers with whips were. It seemed as if they couldn"t do enough for me.
It really was a strife which should take me in his carriage. Their attentions really were flattering. It was like a welcome in this strange place.
It was like being in a little room all cushioned seats and windows when I got into the great double carriage so kindly offered me.
The cushions were soft as down, and gave so, when I seated myself, that I couldn"t help catching my breath. "Where to," says the driver, a-leaning through the window.
"First," says I, "if it won"t be too much trouble, I will go somewhere and buy a new satchel; I really don"t feel at home without one. Then you may take me to a boarding-house in Bleecker Street. You"ll know where it is by inquiring about a little. The name is Smith, and they come from Vermont. Their daughter married and settled on Sprucehill. Smith. You can"t help but find them."
"Have you got a number?" says the man.
"No," answers I, "only one family."
"But the house."
"No," says I again. "I haven"t got any house, but the old homestead on Sprucehill."
"But Bleecker is a long street."
"Is it?"
"And I must have a number."
"Why, isn"t one street of a name enough?" says I, getting out of patience. "What on earth do you want?"
"I want the name of the people."
"Smith."
"And the number of the house they live in."
"Oh, then, houses go by numbers, not names, here in York, do they? Stop a minute!"
Here I took a slip of paper from my pocket-book which Smith"s daughter had written, and gave it to him.
"All right," says he, hopping up the wheel, and going to his seat. Then away we rolled, genteel as could be.
I bought the satchel at a store we drove by, and then we went on and on and on, till at last he stopped before a brick house with a good deal of iron about it.
The driver jumped down, ran up the steps, pulled a rusty k.n.o.b fastened to the door stone, and faced round towards his horses.
A girl I should consider as hired help opened the door.
"Is Mrs. Smith at home?" says I, a-putting my head out of the window.
"Yes," says she.
"I"ll get out," says I.
The driver unfolded a lot of steps that had been hid away under the windows. I went down them with a genteel trip. The man had been so polite, I stopped to thank him.
"Three dollars," says he, a holding out his hand.
"Three dollars? What for?" says I, all in a flutter.
"For bringing you here," says he. "Stopping on the way, and so on."
"But you invited me."
The fellow grinned, and held out his hand harder than ever. The help on top of the steps giggled.
"Come, look sharp, I can"t wait all day," says he, as pert as a fox.
"Well," says I; "being an unprotected female in a strange place, I can"t help myself, I guess; but they do sell politeness awful dear in York. It must be scarce."
I gave him three dollars without another word, feeling like a robbed princess as I did it. Then I took the bandbox and new satchel in my hand, and walked into Smith"s boarding-house, about the homesickest creature that ever bore a cross.
II.
PHMIE"S FIRST VISIT.
Sisters:--Some of you must remember my cousin Emily Elizabeth Frost, that married a Dempster ten years ago when most of us were little mites of things sewing our over-and-over seams. She was a smart creature enough, and as her mother was a proper, nice woman, it was reasonable to hope that she could be depended on to bring up her children; for her father was a deacon in the church, and her mother just the salt of the earth. Well, as soon as I got settled in my boarding-house, I took it into my head to go and see Cousin Elizabeth. She hadn"t been to Vermont lately, and I"d rather lost track of her; so I gave one morning to hunting her up.