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month had passed, and it was the day after Thanksgiving. The feast day had been a merry one, for Mrs. Atkinson had  invited the Carter household. Fuzz and all, to dine with her, and the fun had been prolonged  until late in the evening. The next day, as was usually the case after any unwonted dissipation, Fred was ill with a severe nervous headache, the only trace left of his illness of the  year before. By carefully regulating his habits, Bess had generally succeeded in avoiding them,  but the excitement of the day before had been  too much for him; and soon after breakfast, he  had gone up to the sofa in his room, where  Bess had been busy with him all the morning.

In the early afternoon, Rob had strolled into the house. He found no one in the parlor or