ave?"

"Yorce," said Dave, aloud and emphatically. "_This_ time!" Which seemed
to imply that the speaker had refrained from doing so, to his credit, on
some previous occasion. Dave laid great stress on this point.

Aunt M'riar seemed rather panic struck at the nature of this revelation.
"Well now, Mo," said she, "I do wonder at you, letting the child tell
such words! And before Mr. Alibone, too!"

Mr. Jerry's expression twinkled, as though he protested against being
credited with a Pharisaical purity, susceptible to shocks. Uncle Mo
said, with less than usual of his easy-going manner:--"I'm a going,
M'riar, to get to the bottom of this here start. So you keep outside o'
the ropes!" and then after a little by-play with Dave and Dolly, which
made the hair of both rougher than ever, he said suddenly to
Dave:--"Well, and wasn't you frightened?"

"Micky wasn't frightened," said Dave, discreetly evasive. He objected to
pursuing the subject, and raised a new issue. The sketch that followed
of the interview between Micky and the Man was a good deal blurred by
constant India-rubber, but its original could be inferred from
it--probably as follows, any omissions to conciliate public censorship
being indicated by stars. Micky speaks first:

"Who'll you rip up? You lay 'ands upon me, that's all! You do, and I'll
blind your eyesight, s'elp me! Why, I'd summing a Police Orficer, and
have you took to the Station, just as soon as look at you...." It may be
imagined here that Michael's voice rose to a half-shriek, following some
movement of the Man towards him. "I would, by Goard! You try it on,
that's all!"

"Shut up with your * * row, you * * young * * ... No, master, I ain't
molestin' of the boy; only just frightening him for a bit of a spree!
_I_ don't look like the sort to hurt boys, do I, guv'nor?" This was
addressed to a bystander, named in Dave's report as "the gentleman." Who
was accompanied by another, described as "the lady." The latter may have
said to the former:--"I think he looks a very kind-hearted man, my dear,
and you are making a fuss about nothing." The latter certainly said
"Hggrromph!" or something like it, which the reporter found difficult to
render. Then the man assumed a hypocritical and plausible manner, saying
to Michael:--"I'm your friend, my boy, and there's a new shilling for
you, good for two * * tanners any day of the week." Micky seemed to have
been softened by this, and entered into a colloquy wit