It
relieved him to know that after all his uncle had not purposely neglected
him.
And that dinner! Was there ever another feast as good as this one? It was
indeed a table to tempt an appetite under any circumstances, and to Austin,
who had absolute peace of mind for the first time in weeks, it seemed more
delicious than could be expressed.
But before he had finished his dinner, thoughts of the little ones at home
and the Christmas dinner cooked by inexperienced hands came into his view,
and his own good fortune almost choked him. If only they, too, could have
eaten with Aunt Tillie! And he remembered, also, that only last Christmas
Mother was with them, and tears sprang to his eyes. How much had happened
in that year!
When the others had gone about their own affairs, John Moore took his young
nephew and had a long talk with him. Austin was free to tell him all that
had happened and why he had left home. Mr. Moore could understand how Henry
Hill had treated the boy, for he too had received evil for good at his
hands. He was sorry for the little ones, but hoped the sight of their needs
would waken the chords of real manhood which once stirred the heart of his
brother-in-law.
"Austin, I am pained at all you tell me and am sorry that it is going so
ill with dear Elizabeth's children, but I can not see it our duty to bear
your father's burdens. You are welcome here with us. To me you are like one
of my own sons, and I want you to feel as the weeks go by that you are at
home.
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