The woman stormed and blustered, but finding that this made no
impression she changed her tactics and began in a wheedling tone,
"Now, dearie, you'll help an ol' woman find her baby, won't ye? It's
heartbroke I am for my pretty darlin' an' that girl has carried him
off. Tell me, dearie, did they go this way?"
"I d' know nothin' 'bout yer gal," exclaimed Tode. "Why don't ye scoot
'round an' find her 'f she's cleared out?"
"An' ain't I huntin' her this blessed minute?" shrieked the woman,
angrily. "I b'lieve ye _have_ seen her. Like's not ye've hid her
away somewheres."
Tode turned away from her and resumed his drumming while the woman
cast a suspicious glance at the unfinished building.
"She may be there," she muttered and began searching through the piles
of building material on the ground floor.
"Hope she'll break her ol' neck!" thought Tode, vengefully, as he
whistled with fresh vigor.
The woman reappeared presently, and casting a threatening glance and a
torrent of bad language at the boy, went lumbering heavily down the
street with the crowd of noisy, curious children straggling along
behind her.
When they had all disappeared around the corner of the street, Tode
sprang down and putting his mouth to the opening at the bottom of the
barrel whispered hastily,
"Keep still 'til I see if she's gone sure," and he raced up to the
corner where he watched until the woman was out of sight.
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