"'I'm a-going to see; and, if Harnah'll come too, all the better,'
says I, as pleasant as a bear with a sore head.
"'Two's company, and three's a crowd; so you'd better stop to home,
Seth,' says Sam.
"'Two's company, that's Harnah and me; and three's a crowd, that's
you: so, ef you don't like crowding nor being crowded, you'd better
stop to home yourself,' says I.
"'I believe I spoke first, Seth Ross,' says Sam, pretty savage at
last.
"'That don't make no difference, as I know on. Harnah was my cousin
long afore you was her father's hired man; and that puts me in mind
you hain't asked leave yet. Maybe the old man won't let you go. What
you going to do then?' asked I, dreadful kind of sneering; for I
felt mad.
"Sam he didn't say nothing; but he drew back, and doubled up his
fists. I caught the glint of his eye in the moonlight, and my
darnder riz.
"'Come on,' says I; 'I'm ready for you; and we'll fight it out like
men. The feller that's licked shall give up once for all.'
"But 'fore Sam could speak, or I could hit out as I wanted ter,
Harnah come right in between us. I swow ef that gal didn't look
harnsome! Her eyes was wide open, and shining just like blue steel
in the moonlight. Her cheeks and lips was white; and seemed to me
the very curls of her hair shot out sparks, she was so mad.
"'You'd better stop while there's time,' says she, still and cold.
'If you strike one another, or if you ever fight, and I the cause, I
swear to God I never will speak a civil word to either one of you
again as long as I live. So now you know.
"'As for the harebells, you sha'n't neither one of you go for 'em.
Ef I want harebells, there's them that can get 'em for me, and not
make so much fuss about it neither.'
"She turned, and stepped off toward the house as if she'd got steel
springs in the soles of her feet.
"Sam and I eyed each other. It seemed as if Harnah felt that look;
for she turned all of a sudden, and come back.
"'Sam,' says she, p'inting up to the house, 'go home; and don't you
speak to me again to-night. Seth, get into your boat, and push her
off. You needn't come up to-morrow night.'
"We sort o' looked at one another and at her, and then meeched off
the way she told us, for all the world like two dogs that's got a
licking, and been sent home 'fore the hunt was done.
"I didn't sleep a great deal that night. Fact is, I was turning over
in my own mind what Harnah had said about them as would git
harebells for her, and not make so much fuss about it neither.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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