And the Agent, havin' jest seen the tenth funeral a-wendin' out of that very house that week, and bein' a man of some sense, though hampered, wrote back and said--"Carriages wouldn't be the next thing that they would all want, but coffins." He said sence he had wrote to Elnathan more than a dozen had been wanted there in that very house, and the tenants had been borne out in 'em. (And laid in fur cleaner dirt than they wuz accustomed to there;) he didn't write this last--that is my own eppisodin'. And agin the Agent mentioned the stairs, and agin he mentioned the plumbin'. But Elnathan wuz so interested then and took up in tryin' to decide whether he would have a stained-glass angel or some stained-glass cherubs a-hoverin' over the gallery in front of The Little Maid's room, that he hadn't a mite of time to argue any further on the subject--so he telegrafted-- "No repairs allowed. Elnathan Allen." [Illustration: "No repairs allowed."] Wall, Elnathan had got the repairs all made, and the place looked magnificent. Good land! it ort to; the hull place cost more than a million dollars, so I have hearn; I don't say that I am postive knowin' to it. But Barzelia gits things pretty straight; it come to me through her. The Little Maid enjoyed it all, and Elnathan enjoyed it twice over, once and first in her, and then of course in his own self. But The Little Maid looked sort o' pimpin, and her little appetite didn't seem to be very good, and the doctor said that a journey East would do her good. And jest at this time the dowery in Loontown fell onto Elnathan, so that they all come East. Elnathan had forgot all about Jean havin' any relation in the big Eastern city where they stopped first--good land! their little idees and images had got all overlaid and covered up with glass angels, orchids, bank stock, some mines, palm-houses, political yearnin's, social distinction, carved lattice-work, some religious idees, and yots, and club-houses, etc., etc., etc. But when he decided to leave The Little Maid in the city and not bring her to Jonesville--(and I believe in my soul, and I always shall believe it, that he wuz in doubt whether we had things good enough for her. The idee! He said he thought it would be too much for her to go round to all the relatives--wall, mebby it wuz that! But I shall always have my thoughts.) But anyway, when he made up his mind to leave her, he gin the nurse strict orders to not go down into the city below a certain street, which wuz a good high one, and not let The Little Maid out of her sight night or day. [Illustration: He gin the nurse strict orders.] Wall, the nurse knew it wuz wrong--she knew it, but she did it. Jest as Cain did, and jest as David did, when he killed Ury, and Joseph's brother and Pharo, and you and I, and the relations on his side and on yourn.