"Well may ye ask what's up!" said the woman. "Shouting and brangling
there, ye sots!"
"What's up?" Jos demanded again, loosing Charlie's arm.
"Her's gone!" the woman feebly whimpered. "Like that!" with a vague
movement of the hand indicating suddenness. Then she burst into wild
sobs and rushed madly back whence she had come, and the sound of her
sobs diminished as she ascended the stairs, and expired altogether in
the distant shutting of a door.
The men looked at each other.
Charlie restored the crown-pieces to the counter and pushed them towards
Jos.
"Here!" he murmured faintly.
Jos flung them savagely to the ground. Another pause followed.
"As God is my witness," he exclaimed solemnly, his voice saturated with
feeling, "as God is my witness," he repeated, "I'll ne'er touch a
footba' again!"
Little Charlie gazed up at him sadly, plaintively, for what seemed a
long while.
"It's good-bye to th' First League, then, for Knype!" he tragically
muttered, at length.
VIII
Dr Stirling drove the car very slowly back to Bursley. We glided gently
down into the populous valleys. All the stunted trees were coated with
rime, which made the sharpest contrast with their black branches and the
black mud under us.
Pages:
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67