s him right, too

never seen Asaph, and it would have been a great shock to
Marietta's self-respect to have him see her brother in his present
aspect. Through a crack in the blind of the front window she had seen
Asaph come in and sit down, and she had seen Mr. Rooper arrive and had
noticed
his departure. And now, with an anxiety which made her chin tremble, she
sat and hoped that Asaph would get up

and go away. For she knew that if she should say to the doctor what she
was perfectly
willing to say then and there, he would very soon depart, being a man of
practical mind and pressing business; and that, going to the front door
with him, she would be obliged

to introduce him to a prospective brother-in-law whose appearance, she
truly believed, would make him sick. For the doctor was
a man, she well knew, who was quite as nice and particular about

dress and personal appearance as the late Mr. Himes had been. Doctor
Wicker, aware that the lady's perturbation was increasing instead of
diminishing, thought it wise not to press the matter at this moment. He
felt that he
had been, perhaps, a little over-prompt in making his proposition.
"Madam," said he, rising, "I will not ask you to give me an answer now.
I will go away and
let you think about it, and will come again to-morrow." Through the
crack in the window-blind Marietta saw that Asaph was still under the
tree. What could she do to delay the doctor? She did not offer to take
le