"Can you read futures in the fire, Captain Jim?" asked
Owen.
Captain Jim looked at them all affectionately and then
back again at Leslie's vivid face and glowing eyes.
"I don't need the fire to read your futures," he said.
"I see happiness for all of you--all of you--for Leslie
and Mr. Ford--and the doctor here and Mistress
Blythe--and Little Jem--and children that ain't born
yet but will be. Happiness for you all--though, mind
you, I reckon you'll have your troubles and worries and
sorrows, too. They're bound to come--and no house,
whether it's a palace or a little house of dreams, can
bar 'em out. But they won't get the better of you if
you face 'em TOGETHER with love and trust. You can
weather any storm with them two for compass and
pilot."
The old man rose suddenly and placed one hand on
Leslie's head and one on Anne's.
"Two good, sweet women," he said. "True and faithful
and to be depended on. Your husbands will have honor
in the gates because of you--your children will rise up
and call you blessed in the years to come."
There was a strange solemnity about the little scene.
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