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"To stay on a farm for a sort of vacation." Her face brightened. "Goin' to take a real vacation, be you?" He laughed. "Oh, I don't have to work very hard, Phrasie. You know I get out a good deal. I just thought I just thought I'd like to sleep in the country for a while." "Well," answered Euphrasia, "I guess if you've took the notion, you've got to go. It was that way with your mother before you.
"Phrasie, one of your persistent fallacies is, that I'm still a boy." "You ain't yourself," said Euphrasia, ignoring this pleasantry, "and you ain't been yourself for some months. I've seen it. I haven't brought you up for nothing. If he's troubling you, don't you worry a mite. He ain't worth it. He eats better than you do." "I'm not worrying much about that," Austen answered, smiling.
I'd like to tell you, but I can't I can't. It was only because you guessed that I said anything about it." He disengaged his hand, and rose, and patted her on the cheek. "I suppose I had to tell somebody," he said, "and you seemed, somehow, to be the right person, Phrasie." Euphrasia rose abruptly and looked up intently into his face.
"I don't know about that," said Euphrasia; "she hadn't put up with Hilary for forty years, as I had, and seen what he'd done to your mother and you. But that's what she said. And she went for you herself, when she found the doctor couldn't go. Austen, ain't you going to see her?" Austen shook his head gently, and smiled at her. "I'm afraid it's no use, Phrasie," he said.
It washes some of the wickedness out of us. It was the unnatural things that hurt her the unkind words and makin' her act against her nature. 'Phrasie, she said once, 'I can't pray in the meeting-house with my eyes shut I can't, I can't. I seem to know what they're all wishing for when they pray, for more riches, and more comfort, and more security, and more importance.
"Now, Phrasie," he said, lifting her chin a little, "you know you don't care any more about money than I do." "Lord help me," she exclaimed, "Lord help me if I didn't! And as long as you don't care for it, and no sense can be knocked into your head about it, I hope you'll marry somebody that does know the value of it.
Victoria caught her breath. "Yes," continued Euphrasia, "the mountain was alive for her. 'He's angry to-day, Phrasie. That's because, you lost your temper and scolded Hilary. It's a queer thing, but there have been hundreds of times since when he needed scoldin' bad, and I've looked at the mountain and held my tongue.
"He only thinks of himself and that railroad." But Austen read between the lines. "Poor old Judge," he would answer; "it's because he's made that way, Phrasie. He can't help it, any more than I can help flinging law-books on the floor and running off to the country to have a good time.
There wasn't a living, creeping thing that wasn't her friend. I've seen birds eat out of her hand in that window where you're settin', and she'd say to me, 'Phrasie, keep still! They'd love you, too, if they only knew you, but they're afraid you'll scrub 'em if you get hold of them, the way you used to scrub me." Victoria smiled but it was a smile that had tears in it.
I know that; but it is not the worst. You can't feel as I do that if my desertion led to her overworking herself, Aunt Phrasie and Lucius say that what really broke her down was the opinions I cannot help having. Say it was not, grandpapa.
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