"I'll bet them men wuz a-practisen' their new parts of men superentendents, and look on us as a lot of deaconesses." [Illustration: "JOSIAH ADDED TO HIS REMARKS."] "Wall," sez Sister Gowdy--she loves to put on Arvilly--"wall, you have got one qualificatin', Arvilly!" "Yes, thank the Lord," sez she. And I never asked what she meant, but knew well enough that she spoke of her single state. But Arvilly has had chances, _I_ think. CHAPTER XXII. I got home in time to get a good supper, though mebbe I ortn't to say it. Sure enough, Josiah Allen had killed a hen, and dressed it ready for me to brile, but it wuz young and tender, and I knew it wouldn't take long, so I didn't care. Good land! I love to humor him, and he knows it. Casper Keeler come in jest as I wuz a-gettin' supper and I thought like as not he would stay to supper; I laid out to ask him. But I didn't take no more pains on his account. No, I do jest as well by Josiah Allen from day to day, as if he wuz company, or lay out to. Casper came over on a errent about that buzz saw mill. He wuz in dretful good spirits, though he looked kinder peaked. He had jest got home from the city. It happened dretful curius, but jest at this time Casper Keeler had had to go to New York on business. He had to sign some papers that nobody else couldn't sign. [Illustration: CASPER KEELER.] His mother had hearn of a investment there that promised to pay dretful well, so she had took a lot of stock in it, and it had riz right up powerful. Why the money had increased fourfold, and more too, and Casper bein' jest come of age, had to go and sign suthin' or other. Wall, he went round and see lots of sights in New York. His ma's money that she had left him made him fairly luxurius as to comfort, and he had plenty of money to go sight seein' as much as he wanted to. He went to all the theatres, and operas, and shows of all kinds, and museums, and the Brooklyn Bridge, and circuses, and receptions, and et cetery, et cetery. He wuz a-tellin' me how much money he spent while he wuz there, kinder boastin' on it; he had went to one of the biggest, highest taverns in the hull village of New York, where the price wuz higher than the very highest pinakle on the top of it, fur higher. And I sez, "Did you go to the Wimmen's Exchange and the Workin' Wimmen's Association, that wuz held there while you wuz there?" And he acted real scorfin'. "Wimmen's work!" sez he. "No, indeed! I had too much on my hands, and too much comfort to take in higher circles, than to take in any such little trifles as wimmen's work." Sez I, "Young man, it is a precious little you would take in in life if it hadn't been for wimmen's work. Who earned and left you the money you are a-usin'?" sez I, "who educated you and made your life easy before you?" And then bein' fairly drove into a corner, he owned up that his mother wuz a good woman.