Stop, you young thief!" I panted as I made a snatch at the rope and
his arm.

It was like catching at an eel. Just as I thought I had him he dodged
aside, dived under a horse, and as I ran round the back of the cart, not
caring to imitate his example, he was a dozen yards away, going in and
out of stalls and piles of vegetables.

I lost sight of him then, and the next minute saw him watching me round
a corner, when I again gave chase, hot, panting, and with a curious
aching pain in my legs; but when I reached the corner he had gone, and I
felt that I had lost him, and, thoroughly disheartened, did not know
which way to turn. I was about to go despondently back to the cart,
when, giving a final glance round, I saw him stealing away beyond some
columns.

He had not seen me, and he was walking; so, keeping as much out of sight
as I could, and rejoicing in the fact that I had recovered my breath, I
hurried on.

All at once I heard a shrill warning cry, and looking to my right saw
the two young ruffians who had been the most obnoxious, while at the
same moment I saw that the warning had taken effect, the boy I chased
having started off afresh.

"I will catch you," I muttered through my teeth; and, determined not to
lose sight of him again, I ran on, in and out among carts and vans,
jostling and being jostled, running blindly now, for my sole thought was
to keep that boy in view, and this I did the more easily now, that
feeling at last that he could not escape me in the market, he suddenly
crossed the road, ran in and out for a minute in what seemed like an
archway, and then ran as hard as he could along a wide street and I
after him.

Suddenly he turned to the right into a narrow street, and along by a
great building. At the end of this he turned to the right again, past
the front and nearly to the bottom of the street, when he turned to the
left and followed a wide street till it became suddenly narrow, and
instead of being full of people it was quite empty.

Here he darted into a covered way with columns all along the side,
running very fast still, and I suppose I was too, and gradually
overtaking him, but he reached the end of the street before I could come
up with him, and as he turned the corner I felt quite despairing once
more at seeing him pass out of sight.

It was only a matter of moments before I too turned the corner, and
found myself in the dirtiest busiest street I had ever seen, with
unpleasant-