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The Elder was conscious that impulses which he feared were unchristian were rising rapidly in his breast. He had wished a few times before in his life that he was not a minister. He wished it now. He would have liked to open his conversation with Ganew after the manner of the world's people when they deal with thieves.
"Suppose the desperate critter sh'd have a knife," thought the Elder. He need not have feared. A more crestfallen, subdued, wretched being than Paul Ganew, as he crawled out of that cart, was never seen. He had his own secret terror, and it had conquered him. "It's more'n me he's afraid of," said the Elder to himself. "This is the Lord's doin', I reckon. Now, Mr.
He rose to his feet, picked up the heavy ox-goad, struck the near ox sharply on the side, and walking on a little ahead of the team, said: "I'll just take ye down a piece, Mr. Ganew, till we're in sight of Jim Blair's, before I undo ye. I reckon the presence o' a few folks'll strengthen your good resolutions."
Yes, sir, the hull lot it's nigh on ter three hundred acres, such's 'tis; a good part on't 's swamp though, that ain't wuth a copper the hull lot went to a man down in York State, when the Iron Company bust up here, and for two or three year the chap he jest sent up his note for the taxes, and they've a drefful shiftless way o' lettin' things go in this ere town, 's you know, sir; there wan't nobody that knowed what a sugar orchard was a lyin' in there, or there'd been plenty to grab for it; but I don't s'pose there's three men in the town'd ever been over back o' Birch Hill till this Ganew he come and cut a road in, and had his sugar-camp agoin' one spring, afore anybody knew what he was arter.
Ganew assented with a half-surly civility to Elder Kinney's proposition to ride down with him. "I've got a matter of business to talk over with you, Mr. Ganew," said the Elder, "and I came up here on purpose to find you." The man turned his stolid black eyes full on the Elder, but made no reply. It was indeed an evil face.
When they were in sight of the house, he stopped the oxen, and leaning again on the wheel, and looking down on Ganew, had one more talk with him, at the end of which he began cautiously to untie the rope. He held the ox-goad, however, firmly grasped in his right hand, and it was not without a little tremor that he loosed the last knots.
And again he thought involuntarily of "little Draxy," and her touching "we are very poor." But when he spoke, he spoke gently and slowly. "I have some news for you which will be very disagreeable, Mr. Ganew." Here the Frenchman started, with such a terrified, guilty, malignant look on his face, that the Elder said to himself: "Good God, I believe the man knows he's in danger of his life.
Ye won't forget to send me a writing for Bill Sims that the rest of the buckets in the camp belong to me?" Ganew nodded sullenly and went on, and the Elder walked slowly into the house. After dark, a package was left at the Elder's door. It contained the order on Bill Sims, and a letter.
Ganew; but I'm inclined to think it's the Lord's way o' smoothin' things for some o' his children, to let you kind o' slink off," and somehow Elder Kinney fancied he heard little Draxy say, "Oh, sir, let the poor man go." There was something marvelous in his under-current of consciousness of "little Draxy."
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