ee you in the court."

"Oh!" said she, with a contemptuous laugh, "that fool!"

"Some one was striking him, and Billy put himself between them, and was
badly hurt."

"Well, what's come to him? Is he dead, or what?" demanded the woman.

"No, he's not, mercifully," said I. "He's getting better, we hope."

"And you mean to say," said the woman, with her wrath rising, "you've
got that child among you, and you're not content with robbing him and
keeping him away from me, but here you've half-murdered him into the
bargain, you-- Where is he, mister? I'll take him back along with me;
I've had enough of this tomfoolery, I tell you."

"Oh!" I exclaimed, "it would kill him to move him! You mustn't think
of it."

"Get out of the way!" she exclaimed, fiercely, trying to push past me.
"I'll take him out of this. I'll teach you all whose child the boy is!
Get out of my way! Let me go to him."

What could I do? I had no right to keep a mother from her son; and yet,
were she to carry out her threat, no one could say what the result to
the boy might not be.

In my dilemma I thought of Mr Smith, and conducted my intractable
visitor to his room, in the hopes that he might be able to dissuade her
from carrying out her threat.

But nothing he could do or say could bring her to reason. She appeared
to be persuaded in her own mind that the whole affair was a conspiracy
to do her some wrong, and that being so, entreaties, threats, and even
bribes would not put her off her idea of taking Billy away with her.

"Come now," said she, after this ineffectual parley had gone on for some
time, "I'm not going to be made a fool of by you two any more. Where's
Billy? where are you hiding him? It's no use you trying to impose on me
with your gammon!"

"He's upstairs," said I, feeling that further resistance was worse than
useless. "I'll run up and tell Jack you're coming. Billy may be
asleep."

But the woman caught me roughly by the arm. "No, no!" said she, "I
don't want none of your schemes and plots; I can go up without your
help, mister."

So saying, she broke away from us and went up the stairs.

"Don't follow her," said Mr Smith; "the fewer up there the better.
Jack will manage."

So we spent an anxious half-hour, listening to the voices and sound of
feet above, and wondering how the interview was going on. Evidently it
began with an altercation, and once Billy's shrill treble joined in in a
way which sounded very