Page:George Weston--The apple-tree girl.djvu/71

 Mills are three old maids and a half-witted boy." "When I get there there'll he four old maids," said Charlotte shortly.

"Oh, I don't know," laughed Margaret. "There's the half-witted boy, remember."

Charlotte bit the end of her tongue and went upstairs; but the next morning as she rode back to her birthplace in Mr. Briggs' wagon she found herself thinking of what her pretty cousin had told her.

When they first left Penfield the houses they passed had a prosperous appearance, and the people she saw waved their hands at her. But gradually, as they jolted farther and farther into the country, the farms began to look more and more dilapidated, and sharp-faced curiosity was seen more often than smiles.

"Great country for rocks hereabout," said Mr. Briggs, stroking his enormous