"
The strange woman turned upon him instantly. "_You_ drowed the stone,"
she said, quivering with rage. "_You_ dare to call mun thafe. You
don't spake again till I tell 'ee--mind that. I'll tache 'ee to call
my boy names." And Tommy Fry shrank back with staring eyes, appalled
at her fury, while she put her arm again tighter round that of the
ragged man and began to lead him away.
"No, no, no," broke in a village woman who came up breathless at this
moment: "You'm too fast by half. 'Tis the like of he that we want to
catch, taking our linen off the hedges. I lost some but two months
agone, and I'll be bound 'twas he that did it. What was it was taked
away, Mary?" she asked, turning to one of the little girls. "Two pair
of stockings and a chimase or one pair of stockings and two chimases?
No, no, no; run, my dear, and fetch father home quick. No, stop! Here
comes Mr. Brimacott."
And as she spoke there was a sound of hoofs and the Corporal appeared
leading a brown horse with a little wreath of laurel hung round his
ears and the white rubber spread over his back, on which were seated
Dick and Elsie, Dick riding in front brandishing his toffee, while
Elsie with her arm round his waist sat quietly behind him.
"What's all this?" said the Corporal, as the horse pricked up his ears
over the hubbub before him; and without waiting for a moment he lifted
the two children to the ground.
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