Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: Ill UNDEKCUKKENTS A S Mart and Emmeline were coming home JLA. from Miss Jewett's, about half-past three, after the packing of the missionary box, they met Enos Eeed, who had come from the store for the early afternoon mail, and was continuing down the street on some further errand. " Hullo, Enos," called Emmeline, affably, as he approached. But Enos's pleasant manners seemed, for once, to have forsaken him. "Hullo," he growled, as he passed. He scarcely looked at the girls, and made no pause, as he ordinarily would have done, to chat with them for a minute or two in passing. "Why, what 's the matter with Enos?" queried Emmeline, in genuine astonishment and dismay, as he went brusquely on down the street. Mart had not spoken to him. She had been ready to do so when Emmeline had called out her cheerful salutation, but Enos's gruff replyand quick passing had followed so rapidly that she had been spared a similar rebuff. But her face flushed hotly. "I don't know, and I 'm sure I don't care," she returned. " But, Mart, something must have happened," persisted Emmeline, as they walked on. She glanced suddenly at her sister's perturbed face. " Has —" she began in a scared tone. "No!" ejaculated Mart, so peremptorily and conclusively that Emmeline instinctively knew she was speaking the truth. " I have n't seen Enos Eeed for a week, and nothing special then. I have n't the slightest idea what's the matter with him." " He's been over to Montpelier for two days," remarked Emmeline. "I saw Mr. Reed, this morning in the store, when I came on ahead of you to have that molasses and some oil sent around. Mr. Eeed was telling me how satisfied he was to hear that Charlie 'd got into the post- office. He looked awful stern, though, as he always does. He said Enos... --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.