"Well!" returned Farnham, with an easy, rising accent; and then both of
them relieved the strained situation with a laugh.
"Come, now," said the good-natured woman, "I am a sort of guardian of
yours. Give an account of yourself."
"That is easily given," said Farnham. "A young woman, whose name I
hardly know, came to me in the garden this morning to ask for help to
get some lady-like work to do. After discussing that subject
threadbare, she came in here for a rose, and, apropos of nothing, made
me a declaration and a proposal of honorable wedlock, _dans toutes les
formes_."
"The forms were evident as I entered," said Mrs. Belding, dryly.
"I could not let her drop on the damp floor," said Farnham, who was
astonished to find himself positively blushing under the amused
scrutiny of his mother-confessor. "Consider, if you please, my dear
madam, that this is the first offer I have ever received, and I was
naturally somewhat awkward about declining it. We shall learn better
manners as we go along."
"You did decline, then?" said Mrs. Belding, easily persuaded of the
substantial truth of the story, and naturally inclined, as is the way
of woman, to the man's side.
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