A Daughter of the Land

Nancy Ellen was worried, until she was pale.

"Kate," she said, "I never have seen Father so angry in all my

life. I thought last night that in a day or two I could switch

the school over to Serena Woodruff, and go on with my plans, but

Father said at breakfast if the Bates name was to stand for

anything approaching honour, a Bates would teach that school this

winter or he'd know the reason why. And you know how easy it is

to change him. Oh, Kate, won't you see if that Walden trustee

can't possibly find another teacher, and let you off? I know

Robert will be disappointed, for he's rented his office and bought

a house and he said last night to get ready as soon after

Christmas as I could. Oh, Kate, won't you see if you can't

possibly get that man to hire another teacher?"

"Why, Nancy Ellen --" said Kate.

Nancy Ellen, with a twitching face, looked at Kate.

"If Robert has to wait months, there in Hartley, handsome as he

is, and he has to be nice to everybody to get practice, and you

know how those Hartley girls are --"

"Yes, Nancy Ellen, I know," said Kate. "I'll see what I can do.

Is it understood that if I give up the school and come back and

take ours, Father will let me come home?"

"Yes, oh, yes!" cried Nancy Ellen.

"Well, nothing goes on guess-work. I'll hear him say it, myself,"

said Kate.

She climbed from the buggy. Nancy Ellen caught her arm.

"Don't go in there! Don't you go there," she cried. "He'll throw

the first thing he can pick up at you. Mother says he hasn't been

asleep all night."

"Pooh!" said Kate. "How childish! I want to hear him say that,

and he'll scarcely kill me."

She walked swiftly to the side door.

"Father," she said, "Nancy Ellen is afraid she will lose Robert

Gray if she has to put off her marriage for months --"

Kate stepped back quickly as a chair crashed against the door

facing. She again came into view and continued -- "so she asked

me if I would get out of my school and come back if I could" --

Kate dodged another chair; when she appeared again -- "To save the

furniture, of which we have none too much, I'll just step inside,"

she said. When her father started toward her, she started around

the dining table, talking as fast as she could, he lunging after

her like a furious bull. "She asked me to come back and teach the

school -- to keep her from putting off her wedding -- because she

is afraid to -- If I can break my contract there -- may I come

back and help her out here?"