"
"Hope so. It didn't do ME any harm," with a chuckle. "I wouldn't have
missed that little beat up the bay with Marm Dunn for a good deal. For
a spell there we was bows abreast, and 'twas hard to tell who'd turn the
mark first. Heard from the Dunns lately?"
"No. Why, yes, I did hear that they were in a tighter box than ever,
financially. The smash will come pretty soon."
"I'm sorry. The old lady'll go down with colors nailed to the mast, I'll
bet; and she'll leave a lot of suds where she sank. Do you know, I never
blamed her so much. She was built that way. She's consider'ble like
old Mrs. Patience Blodgett, who used to live up here to the Neck; like
her--only there never was two people more different. Pashy was the
craziest blue-ribboner you ever saw. Her one idea in life was gettin'
folks to sign the pledge. She married Tim Blodgett, who was the wust
soak in the county--he'd have figgered out, if you analyzed him, about
like a bottle of patent medicine, seventy-two per cent alcohol. Well,
Pashy married him to reform him, and she made her brags that she'd get
him to sign the pledge. And she did, but only by puttin' it in front of
him when he was too drunk to read it."
The lawyer laughed heartily. "So you think Mrs. Corcoran Dunn resembles
her, do you," he observed.
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