"What in the world has come ower the woman now?" exclaimed Miss Crankie, peevishly. "If ye will be a puling, no-weel fuil, ye may keep your ailments to yoursel at least. For guid sake, Tammie, haud your tongue; dinna deave the ladies." "Eh, Miss Ross!--Eh, Johann!" exclaimed the aroused and excited Mrs. Yammer, "if it wasna for the stitch in my side, I wad read it to ye mysel. Look at this." Anne took the paper wonderingly. She glanced down a long paragraph, headed "Romance in real life," with hurried half attention, and little interest. Her eyes were arrested by the concluding words: they seemed to shine out from a mist. Unconsciously, in her sudden excitement, she read them aloud: "This most honorable vindication of Norman Rutherford, of Redheugh--" "Gowan," exclaimed Mrs. Catherine, hastily, taking the paper from her powerless hand, "what is that you say?" "Ye see," said Mrs. Yammer, following up briskly her unwonted independent movement, "we get it atween us. Mr. Currie, the saddler, and Mrs. Clippie, the captain's widow, and Robert Carritch, the session-clerk, and Johann and me; and I was just sitting ower the fire, trying if the heat would do ony guid to my puir head, when I saw that about young Redheugh--and I'll be out o' my wits the morn wi the draft frae that open door." "Gae way to your fireside again, and haud your tongue," said Miss Crankie, bundling her sister unceremoniously out of the door before her. "Wits!--woman, if ye had as muckle judgment as wad lie on a sixpence, ye wad see that the ladies have mair concern in that than either you or me." Anne had been looking at them vacantly with a vague, unconscious smile upon her lip. Now, when the door was shut, she suddenly knelt down at Mrs. Catherine's knees, scarce knowing what she did, and leaning there, burst into tears. She was conscious of Mrs. Catherine's hand laid caressingly upon her hair; she was conscious of an indistinct mist of joy and thankfulness. It overpowered and weakened her; she could not stay these tears. In the meantime, Mrs. Catherine read: