gh, suddenly, as she looked from the
empty purse in my outstretched hand to me, and took me in.

Oh, I know that pause intimately. It says: "Wait a minute, till I get
my breath, and I'll know how much you know and just what lie to tell
you."

But she changed her mind when she saw my face. You know, Mag, if
there's a thing that's fixed in your memory it's the face of the body
you've done up. The respectables have their rogues' gallery, but we,
that is, the light-fingered brigade, have got a fools' gallery to
correspond to it.

In which of 'em is my picture? Now, Margaret, that's mean. You know
my portrait hangs in both.

I looked down on the little beggar that had painted me for the second
salon, and lo, in a flash she was on her feet, the lapful of good
things tumbled to the ground, and Kitty was off.

I was bitterly disappointed in that girl, Mag! I was altogether
mistaken in my diagnosis of her. Hers is only a physical cleverness, a
talented dexterity. She had no resource in time of danger but her
legs. And legs will not carry a grafter half so far as a good, quick
tongue and a steady head.

She halted at a safe distance and glared back at me. Her hostility
excited the crowd of children--her push--against me, and the braver
ones jeered the things Kitty only looked, while the thrifty ones
stooped and gathered up the spoil.

"Tell her I wouldn't harm her," I said to one of her lieutenants.

"She says she won't hurt ye, Kit," the child screamed.

"She dassent," yelled back Kitty, the valiant. "She knows I'd peach on
her about the kid."

"Kid! What kid?" I cried, all a-fire.

"The kid ye swiped this mornin'. Yah! I told the cop what brought her
back how ye took her jest as I--"

"Kitty!" I cried. "You treasure!" And with all my might I ran after
her.

Silly? Of course it was. I might have known what the short skirts
above those thin legs meant. I couldn't come within fifty feet of her.
I halted, panting, and she paused, too, dancing tantalizingly half a
block away.

What to do? I wished I had another purse to bestow on that sad Kitty,
but I had nothing, absolutely nothing, except--all at once I remembered
it--that little pin you gave me for Christmas, Mag. I took it off and
turned to appeal to the nearest one of the flying body-guard that had
accompanied us.

"You run on to her and tell her that if she'll show me the house where
that baby lives I'll give her this pin."

He sped o