Even the necessary marriage ceremony was to take place before St.
Olaf's Day and harvest; they had no need to hide things, and Barbro
was now herself most eager to get it done at once. Axel was not any
put out at her eagerness, and it did not make him any way suspicious;
far from it, he was flattered and encouraged to find her so. Ay, he
was a worker in the fields, no doubt, a thick-skinned fellow, not used
to looking over fine at things, nothing delicate beyond measure; there
were things he was obliged to do, and he looked to what was useful
first of all. Moreover, here was Barbro all new and pretty again, and
nice to him, almost sweeter than before. Like an apple she was, and he
bit at it. The banns were already put up.
As to the dead child and the trial, neither said a word of that.
But they did speak of Oline, of how they were to get rid of her. "Ay,
she must go," said Barbro. "We've nothing to thank her for, anyway.
She's naught but tale-bearing and malice."
But it proved no easy matter to get Oline to go.
The very first morning, when Barbro appeared, Oline was clear, no
doubt, as to her fate.
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