The Argosy — page 214: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

The Village Blacksmuth. 197 kind to my children, and gives them many of her old things.” And so saying Norah brought the hat into the kitchen, and Mark’s - suspicions were once more laid to rest. ‘‘ What train did you think of going back by?” ‘ There is one at four; I'll go by that,” said Mark. | Well, if you like, Pll go for a walk with you as soon as I have packed the children off to school; Monday is a lost day with me here,” said Mrs, Canter, Ts business slack, then?” asked Mark. “ Bless you, no; I have double the work here I had at Woodford. | I shall have two washerwomen at work all to-morrow, and the two together won’t get through as much as I shall; but the folks here have town ways—dirty ways, too, I call them. I never get the linen | till Monday evening, here.” | Once on this topic, Mrs. Canter never knew when to stop; she , interrupted herself to send the children to school, Mary Jane in _ Janet’s hat, and she resumed the subject again as she showed Mark | the lions of Marling, which consisted of the church, some ruins and ) the village street. Her sole object in imposing this uncongenial work of lionising Mark upon herself was to prevent him from holding | any conversation with the villagers, and so discovering she had a | beautiful young married woman, whose husband was in Australia, living with her, whom, in spite of Janet’s assumed name, Mark would ) no doubt recognise as Janet. | The afternoon seemed interminable to Mrs. Canter, who was longing to get Mark safely out of Marling, and glad indeed was she when it | was time to go to the station. She waited to see Mark into a carriage, and then took leave of him and hurried home. On her way back ‘she met Mary Jane and the boys coming out of school, and feeling ) she had been unduly severe in the morning making them suffer for ) Mark’s persistence, she took them into the baker’s and bought some ) scones for tea, laden with which they all returned rejoicing to Janet : | Norah rejoicing because she had, as she flattered herself, so suc- | cessfully baffled Mark Brown, the children because they were once | more restored to favour. Mrs. Canter’s temper had this recom- . mendation : though alarming while it lasted, it always left her gentle ,and happy; like a thunderstorm, it cleared the air. ; a ' | “He is gone, Janet, and a harder day’s work I have seldom done | —washing is play to it; what with walking and talking, I am tired }out. Come down and let us have tea,” said Norah on her return. +» “Mother,” cried Mary Jane from the kitchen, ‘‘ they have only | given us six scones for sixpence ; shall I run back and tell them we . always have seven ?” | “Yes, if you like, but make haste back and don’t stop to speak to anyone ; be quick now.” | “Does Mark suspect Iam here?” asked Janet as she followed her aunt downstairs. SS | COMIC OOO