Jed Morrill had
always said that when old Mrs. Buxton, the champion convert of
Jacob Cochrane, was at her worst,--keeping her whole family awake
nights by her hysterical fears for their future,--Dr. Perry had
given her a twelfth of a grain of tartar emetic, five times a day
until she had entire mental relief and her anxiety concerning the
salvation of her husband and children was set completely at rest.
The good doctor noted with secret pleasure his son's growing
fondness for the society of his prime favorite, Miss Patience
Baxter. "He'll begin by trying to save her soul," he thought;
"Phil always begins that way, but when Patty gets him in hand
he'll remember the existence of his heart, an organ he has never
taken into consideration. A love affair with a pretty girl, good
but not too pious, will help Phil considerable, however it turns
out."
There is no doubt but that Phil was taking his chances and that
under Patty's tutelage he was growing mellower. As for Patty, she
was only amusing herself, and frisking, like a young lamb, in
pastures where she had never strayed before. Her fancy flew from
Mark to Phil and from Phil back to Mark again, for at the moment
she was just a vessel of emotion, ready to empty herself on she
knew not what.
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