About midnight
And what a supper they ate , sitting round the table eating scones and butter , with delicious raspberry jam . Amy , the stylish sister , made a fresh batch of scones , and cooked them in the oven , while the rosy-cheeked Bella went walking with her friend , who proved to be a good-looking young farmer , living farther up the valley . The girls slept in the wagon that night , but the boys carried their mattresses into the big hay barn , because it threatened rain , and , as Mrs. Warner said , it was much easier to keep dry than to dry up after getting wet . About midnight the rain came down at a pour ; it rained until morning , when it came down faster than ever , and Mrs. Warner would not hear of their moving on . She said that Rockefeller certainly could not drag the wagon through the loose mud of the track , and if they got out to walk they would all catch bad colds , entailing no end of misery and discomfort on them all , and the only sensible thing to do was to stay in the Holderness Valley for another day , and the weather would be sure to be better to-morrow . This was such common-sense advice that Nealie was very glad to take it , although she felt rather embarrassed , because it looked so much like sponging on the generosity of their kind hostess . The younger ones were all delighted to stay , and Sylvia entered herself at once as an apprentice to the dairy business by taking a lesson in milking , and Mrs. Warner declared that when Bella was married to her friend who lived higher up the valley , Sylvia could come to the farm and fill the vacant place , earning her keep , and a good deal more besides .