cried Mr. Bhaer , managing to clasp his hands in spite of the umbrella and the bundles , `` Jo , I haf nothing but much love to gif you . I came to see if you could care for it , and I waited to be sure that I was something more than a friend . Am I ? Can you make a little place in your heart for old Fritz ? '' he added , all in one breath . `` Oh , yes ! '' said Jo , and he was quite satisfied , for she folded both hands over his arm , and looked up at him with an expression that plainly showed how happy she would be to walk through life beside him , even though she had no better shelter than the old umbrella , if he carried it . It was certainly proposing under difficulties , for even if he had desired to do so , Mr. Bhaer could not go down upon his knees , on account of the mud . Neither could he offer Jo his hand , except figuratively , for both were full . Much less could he indulge in tender remonstrations in the open street , though he was near it . So the only way in which he could express his rapture was to look at her , with an expression which glorified his face to such a degree that there actually seemed to be little rainbows in the drops that sparkled on his beard . If he had not loved Jo very much , I do n't think he could have done it then , for she looked far from lovely , with her skirts in a deplorable state , her rubber boots splashed to the ankle , and her bonnet a ruin . Fortunately , Mr. Bhaer considered her the most beautiful woman living , and she found him more `` Jove-like '' than ever , though his hatbrim was quite limp with the little rills trickling thence upon his shoulders -LRB- for he held the umbrella all over Jo -RRB- , and every finger of his gloves needed mending . Passers-by probably thought them a pair of harmless lunatics , for they entirely forgot to hail a bus , and strolled leisurely along , oblivious of deepening dusk and fog . Little they cared what anybody thought , for they were enjoying the happy hour that seldom comes but once in any life , the magical moment which bestows youth on the old , beauty on the plain , wealth on the poor , and gives human hearts a foretaste of heaven . The Professor looked as if he had conquered a kingdom , and the world had nothing more to offer him in the way of bliss . While Jo trudged beside him , feeling as if her place had always been there , and wondering how she ever could have chosen any other lot . Of course , she was the first to speak -- intelligibly , I mean , for the emotional remarks which followed her impetuous `` Oh , yes ! '' were not of a coherent or reportable character . `` Friedrich , why did n't you ... '' `` Ah , heaven , she gifs me the name that no one speaks since Minna died ! ''
cried the XXXXX , pausing in a puddle to regard her with grateful delight .
Friedrich Fritz Minna Professor first foretaste hatbrim lunatics rainbows remonstrations