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“Why，it’sKyanPepper！“sheexclaimed。“Hemustbecomingtoseeyou，AuntKeziah。Andhe’sgotonhisverybestSundayclothes。
Gracious！Imustbegoing。Ididn’tknowyouexpectedcallers。“
Keziahdroppedthetackhammerandstoodup。
“Kyan！“sherepeated。“Whatintheworldisthatoldidiotcomin’
herefor？Totalkabouttheminister，Is’pose。HowonearthdidLavinyevercometolethimoutalone？“
Mr。Pepper，Mr。AbishaiPepper，locallycalled“Kyan“(Cayenne)
Pepperbecauseofhisredhairandthinredsidewhiskers，wasoneofTrumet’s“characters，“andinhiscasethecharacterwasweak。
Hewasborninthevillageand，whenayoungster，had，likeeveryotherboyofgoodfamilyinthecommunity，cherishedambitionsforaseafaringlife。Hissister，Lavinia，tenyearsolderthanhe，who，afterthedeathoftheirparents，hadundertakenthejobof“bringingup“herbrother，didnotsympathizewiththeseambitions。
Consequently，whenKyanranawayshefollowedhimtoBoston，stalkedaboardthevesselwherehehadshipped，andcollaredhim，literallyandfiguratively。Oneofthematesventuringtoofferobjection，Laviniaturneduponhimandgavehimapieceofhermind，totheimmensedelightofthecrewandtheloungersonthewharf。ThenshereturnedwiththevagranttoTrumet。OldCaptainHiggins，whoskipperedthepacketinthosedays，sworethatLavinianeverstoppedlecturingherbrotherfromthetimetheyleftBostonuntiltheydroppedanchorbehindthebreakwater。
“Igiveyoumywordthat’twasprettynighastarkcalm，buttherewassuchasteadystreamoflanguagepourin’outofthePepperstateroomthatthedraughtkeptthesailsfilledallthewayhome，“
assertedCaptainHiggins。
ThatwasKyan’ssoleventure，sofarassailoringwasconcerned，butheranawayagainwhenhewastwenty-five。Thistimehereturnedofhisownaccord，bringingawifewithhim，oneEvelynGottofOstable。Evelyncouldtalkabitherself，andherfirstinterviewwithLaviniaendedwiththelatter’sleavingthehouseinarage，swearingnevertosetfootinitagain。Thisoathshebrokethedayofhersister-in-law’sfuneral。Thensheappeared，aftertheceremony，herbaggageonthewagonwithher。Thebereavedone，whowassittingonthefrontstoopofhisdwellingwith，sopeoplesay，amostresignedexpressiononhismeekcountenance，lookedupandsawher。
“Myland！Laviny，“heexclaimed，turningpale。“Where’dyoucomefrom？“
“NevermindWHEREIcomefrom，“observedhissisterpromptly。“YoujustbethankfulI’vecome。Ifeverabodyneededsomeonetotakecareof’em，it’syou。Youcantotemythingsrightin，“sheadded，turningtohergrinningdriver，“andyou，’Bishy，gorightinwith’em。Theideaofyoursettin’outsidetakin’iteasywhenyourpoorwifeain’tbeenburiedmore’nanhour！“
“But——but——Laviny，“protestedpoorKyan，speakingthetruthunwittingly，“Icouldn’ttakeiteasyAFOREshewasburied，couldI？“
“Gorightin，“wastheanswer。“March！“
Abishaimarched，andhadmarchedunderhissister’sorderseversince。Shekepthouseforhim，anddiditwell，butheronefearwasthatsomefemalemightagaincapturehim，andshewatchedhimwithaneagleeye。Hewasthetownassessorandtaxcollector，butwhenhevisiteddwellingscontainingsinglewomenorwidows，Laviniaalwaysaccompaniedhim，“tohelphiminhisfiggerin’，“shesaid。
Consequently，whenheappeared，unchaperoned，onthewalkleadingtothesidedooroftheCoffinhomestead，Keziahandherfriendweresurprised。
“He’sdressedtokill，“whisperedGrace，atthewindow。“Evenhistallhat；andinthisfog！Idobelievehe’scomingcourting，AuntKeziah。“
“Humph！“wastheungraciousanswer。“He’scometosaygood-by，I
s’pose，andtofindoutwhereI’mgoin’andhowmuchpayI’mgoin’
togetandifmyrent’ssettled，andafewotherlittlethingsthatain’tanyofhisbusiness。Lavinyputhimuptoit，yousee。
She’llbealongprettyquick。Well，I’llfixhimsohewon’ttalkmuch。Hecanhelpustakedownthatstovepipe。Isaid’twasajobforaman，andahalfone’sbetterthannone——Why，howd’yedo，’Bishy？Comerightin。Prettythickoutside，isn’tit？“
Mr。Pepperentereddiffidently。
“Er——er——howd’yedo，Keziah？“hestammered。“IthoughtI’djustruninaminuteand——“
“Yes，yes。Gladtoseeyou。Takeoffyourhat。Mysakes！it’sprettywet。HowdidLavinycometoletyou——Imeanhow’dyoucometowearabeaversuchamornin’sthis？“
Kyanremovedthesilkhatandinspecteditslimpgrandeurruefully。
“I——I——“hebegan。“Well，thefactis，Icomeoutbymyself。Yousee，Laviny’sgoneuptoSarahB。’stotalkchurchdoin’s。I——I——
well，Ikindofwantedtospeakwithyouaboutsomethin’，Keziah，so——Oh！Ididn’tseeyou，Gracie。Goodmornin’。“
Hedidn’tseemoverjoyedtoseeMissVanHorne，asitwas。Infact，hereddenedperceptiblyandbackedtowardthedoor。Thegirl，hereyestwinkling，tookupherjacketandhat。
“Oh！I’mnotgoingtostop，Mr。Pepper，“shesaid。“IwasonlyhelpingAuntKeziahalittle，that’sall。Imustrunonnow。“
“Runon——nonsense！“declaredKeziahdecisively。“You’regoin’tostayrighthereandhelpusgetthatstovepipedown。And’Bishy’llhelp，too。Won’tyou，’Bish？“
Thestovepipewasattachedtothe“air-tight“inthediningroom。
It——thepipe——roseperpendicularlyforafewfeetandthenextendedhorizontally，overthehigh-boy，untilitenteredthewall。Kyanlookedatitandthenathis“Sundayclothes。“
“Why，I’dbegladto，ofcourse，“hedeclaredwithdubiousenthusiasm。“ButIdon’tknow’sI’llhavetime。PerhapsI’dbettercomelateranddoit。Laviny，she——“
“Oh，Lavinycanspareyouforafewminutes，Iguess；’speciallyasshedon’tknowyou’reout。Bettertakeyourcoatoff，hadn’tyou？
Grace，fetchoneofthosechairsforKy——for’Bishytostandin。“
Graceobedientlybroughtthechair。Ithappenedtobetheonewitharicketyleg，butitsownerwashelpingthereluctantAbishairemovethelong-tailedbluecoatwhichhadbeenhisweddinggarmentandhadadornedhispersononoccasionsofceremonyeversince。
Shedidnotnoticethechair。
“It’srealgoodofyoutooffertohelp，“shesaid。“GraceandI
didn’thardlydasttotryitalone。Thatpipe’sbeenupsolongthatIwouldn’twonderif’twaschock-fullofsoot。Ifyou’recareful，though，Idon’tbelieveyou’llgetanyonyou。Nevermindthefloor；I’mgoin’towashthatbeforeIleave。“
Reluctantly，slowly，theunwillingMr。Peppersufferedhimselftobeledtothechair。Hemounteditandgingerlytookholdofthepipe。
“Betterloosenitatthestoveholefirst，“advisedKeziah。“Whatwasityouwantedtoseemeabout，’Bish？“
“Oh，nothin’，nothin’，“wasthehastyresponse。“Nothin’ofanyaccount——thatistosay——“
Heturnedredderthaneverandwrenchedatthepipe。Itloosenedatitslowerendandthewiresholdingitinsuspensionshook。
“Iguess，“observedtheladyofthehouse，“thatyou’dbettermovethatchestofdrawersoutso’syoucangetbehindit。Grace，youhelpme。There！that’sbetter。Nowmoveyourchair。“
Kyansteppedfromthechairandmovedthelattertoapositionbetweenthehigh-boyandthewall。Thenheremountedandgrippedthepipeinthemiddleofitshorizontalsection。
“Seemstostickinthechimneythere，don’tit？“queriedKeziah。
“Wiggleitbackandforth；thatoughttoloosenit。Whatwasityouwantedtosay，’Bish？“
Apparently，Mr。Pepperhadnothingtosay。Thecrimsontidehadreachedhisears，which，alwaysnoticeablebecauseoftheirsizeandspread，werenowlituplikeaschooner’ssailsatsunset。Hishandstrembledonthepipe。
“Nothin’，nothin’，Itellyou，“hefaltered。“I——Ijustrunintosayhowd’yedo，that’sall。“
“Really，IthinkI’dbetterbegoing，“saidGrace，glancingfromKyan’sembarrassedfacetothatoftheunsuspectingMrs。Coffin。
“I’mafraidI’mintheway。“
“No，no！“shoutedtheoccupantofthechair。“No，no，youain’t！“
“ButI’mafraidIam。Andthey’llbeexpectingmeathome。AuntKeziah，I——“
“Don’tbeinsuchahurry，“interruptedKeziah。“Doesstickinthechimney，don’tit？Tellyouwhatyoucando，Grace；youcangointhewoodshedandfetchthehammerthat’sinthetabledrawer。
Hurryup，that’sagoodgirl。“
Kyanprotestedthathedidnotneedthehammer，buthisprotestwasunheeded。Withonemoreglanceatthecouple，Gracedepartedfromthekitchen，bitingherlips。Sheshutthedoorcarefullybehindher。Mr。Pepperlaboredfranticallywiththepipe。
“Nousetoshakeitanymoretillyougetthehammer，“advisedKeziah。“Might’swelltalkwhileyou’rewaitin’。Whatwasityouwantedtotellme？“
Abishaidrewonehandacrosshisforehead，leavingadecorativesmoochofblackingonhisperspiringcountenance。Hechoked，swallowed，andthen，withalookatthecloseddoor，seemedtoreachadesperateresolve。
“Keziah，“hewhisperedhurriedly，“you’veknownmequiteaspell，ain’tyou？“
“Knownyou？Knownyoueversinceyouwereborn，prettynigh。Whatofit？“
“Yes，yes。AndI’veknownyou，youknow。Factis，we’veknowneachother。“
“Heartheman！Landsakes！don’teverybodyinTrumetknoweverybodyelse？WhatAREyoudrivin’at？“
“Keziah，you’reasinglewoman。“
Hiscompanionletgoofthechair，whichshehadbeenholdinginplace，andsteppedback。
“I’masinglewoman？“sherepeatedsharply。“Whatdoyoumeanbythat？Did——didanybodysayIwasn’t？“
“No，no！’Coursenot。Butyou’reawidow，soyouBEsingle，youknow，and——“
“Well？DidyouthinkIwastwins？Getdownofftherethisminute。
You’vegonecrazy。IthoughtsowhenIsawthatbeaver。Eitherthatoryou’vebeendrinkin’。Grace！WhatDOESmakehersolonggettin’thathammer？“
Findingthehammerdidseemtotakealongtime。Therewasnosoundfromthekitchen。Kyan，steadyinghimselfwithonehandonthepipe，wavedtheotherwildly。
“S-s-sh！s-sh-h！“hehissed。“Hush！bestill！Don’tgetherinhere。Keziah，you’resingleandsoamI。Youain’tgotnobodytotakecareofyouandIain’t，neither——thatis，Idon’twanttobetookcareof——Imean，I’vebeentookcareoftoomuch。“
Mrs。Coffintookanotherstepinthedirectionofthekitchen。
“HeISloony！“sheexclaimedunderherbreath。“I——“
“No，no！Iain’tloony。Iwanttomakeaproposaltoyou。Iwanttoseeifyouwon’tmarryme。I’msickofLaviny。Let’syouandmesettledowntogether。Icouldhavesomepeacethen。AndI
thinkawholelotofyou，too，“headded，apparentlyasanafterthought。
Keziah’sfacewasrednow，andgrowingreddereveryinstant。
“KyanPepper！“shecriedinamazedincredulity。“KyanPepper，doyou——“
“Hurryup！“pleadedAbishai，inagitatedimpatience。“Sayyesquick。She’llbebackinaminute。“
“SayYES！Why，you——“
“Don’tstoptoargue，Keziah。I’vegot’mostfifteenhundreddollarsinthebank。Lavinykeepsthepassbookinherbureau，butyoucouldgetitfromher。Iownmyhouse。I’mamanofgoodcharacter。You’repoor，butIdon’tletthatstandintheway。
Anyhow，you’reafirst-ratehousekeeper。AndIreallydothinkanawfullotofyou。“
Mrs。Coffinsteppednofartherinthedirectionofthekitchen。
Instead，shestrodetowardthericketychairanditsoccupant。
Kyangraspedthepipewithbothhands。
“Youpoor——miserable——impudent——“beganthelady。
“Why，Keziah，don’tyouWANTto？“Hespokeasifthepossibilityofarefusalhadneverenteredhismind。“Ical’latedyou’dbeglad。Youwouldn’thavetogoawaythen，nor——Mysoulandbody！
someone’sknockin’atthedoor！ANDTHISDUMMEDPIPE’SFETCHED
LOOSE！“
Thelastsentencewasasmotheredshriek。Keziahheedednot。
Neitherdidsheheedtheknockatthedoor。Herhandswereopeningandclosingconvulsively。
“Beglad！“sherepeated。“Gladtomarryagood-for-nothin’sand-
peeplikeyou！Yousassy——GETdownoffthatchairandoutofthishouse！Getdownthisminute！“
“Ican’t！Thisstovepipe’sloose，Itellyou！Bereason’ble，Keziah。Do——don’tyoutouchme！I’llfallifyoudo。Pl-e-ase，Keziah！——OLordy！Iknewit。LAVINY！“
Thedooropened。Onthethreshold，armsakimboandlipssettight，stoodLaviniaPepper。Herbrother’skneesgaveway；intheircollapsetheystruckthechairback；thericketylegwabbled。Kyangraspedatthepipetosavehimselfand，thenextmoment，chair，sectionsofstovepipe，andMr。Pepperdisappearedwithamightycrashbehindthehigh-boy。Acloudofsootaroseandobscuredtheview。
Keziah，tooindignanteventolaugh，glaredatthewreck。InthedoorwayofthekitchenGraceVanHorne，hammerinhand，leanedagainstthejamb，herhandkerchiefathermouthandtearsinhereyes。Lavinia，majesticandrigid，dominatedthescene。Frombehindthehigh-boycamecoughs，sneezes，andemphaticejaculations。
MissPepperwasthefirsttospeak。
“AbishaiPepper，“shecommanded，“comeoutofthatthisminute。“
Heranswerwasatremendoussneeze。Thenfromtheduskycloudbythewallsoundedavoicefeeblyprotesting。
“Now，Laviny，“beganpoorKyan，“Ineverinmylife——“
“Doyouhearme？Comeoutofthat！“
Therewasasoundofscrambling。Moresootfloatedintheair。
Thenaroundthecornerofthehigh-boyappearedMr。Pepper，crawlingonhishandsandknees。Hishairwasstreakedwithblack；
hisshirtfrontandcollarandshirtsleeveswerespottedandsmearedwithblack；andfromhisblackenedcheekshisredwhiskersflamedlikethelastglowingembersinafire-scarredruin。
“Laviny，“hepanted，“Ineverwassosurprisedandupsotinallmylifeafore。“
ThiswastoomuchforGrace。Shecollapsedinachairandlaughedhysterically。EventhewrathfulKeziahsmiled。ButLaviniadidnotsmile。Forthatmatter，neitherdidherbrother。
