"Sympathy isn't in your line, an' you
wouldn't be the big man you are in the service if you had it. But I'd
like to know what YOU would have done. We were up there six months, and
we'd both grown to love the big woods, and she was growing prettier and
happier every day--when Thorne, the new superintendent, came up. One day
she told me that she didn't like Thorne, but I didn't pay much attention
to that, and laughed at her, and said he was a good fellow. After that I
could see that something was worrying her, and pretty soon I couldn't
help from seeing what it was, and everything came out. It was Thorne. He
was persecuting her. She hadn't told me, because she knew it would make
trouble and I'd lose my job. One afternoon I came home earlier than
usual, and found her crying. She put her arms round my neck, and just
cried it all out, with her face snuggled in my neck, and kissin' me--"
Brokaw could see the cords in Billy's neck. His manacled hands were
clenched.
"What would you have done, Brokaw?" he asked huskily. "What if you had a
wife, an' she told you that another man had insulted her, and was forcing
his attentions on her, and she asked you to give up your job and take her
away? Would you have done it, Brokaw? No, you wouldn't. You'd have hunted
up the man. That's what I did. He had been drinking--just enough to make
him devilish, and he laughed at me--I didn't mean to strike so hard.
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