I told you." There was a gleam in Rosie's eye
which declared very emphatically that the sequel to that story would
never again be related. "Listen here, Danny Agin! Now I understand--if
my mother made up something about that scar, it was just to hide
something else that was worse!"

"Why, Rosie! Ye don't say so!" For a moment Danny looked at her in
astonishment. Then he lay back with a wheezy guffaw. "Rosie, ye'll be
the death o' me yet! I suppose if the truth was known, Jamie beats yir
ma every night of her life to a black-and-blue jelly! Don't he now?"

Rosie covered herself with an air of distant reserve. "I'm not going to
tell you what he does. That's a family matter. But I will say one thing:
You think Terry's awful nice, don't you? Everybody does. But do you know
what he'd do to me if I was to lose one of his paper customers? He'd
just beat the puddin' out o' me--yes, he would!"

"Why, Rosie!" Danny looked shocked. "What's this ye're sayin'? I
thought you and Terry were great friends."

"Great friends? Oh, yes, we're great friends all right. You can always
be great friends with a fellow like Terry as long as you run your legs
off for him. But just let something happen, and then----"

Rosie ended with a "Huh!" and shook her head gloomily.

Danny gasped. "You don't say so, Rosie!"

There was the sound of an opening screen, and Danny, knowing that his
wife must be coming, with a wheezy chuckle called out:

"Mary, Mary, do ye know who's here? It's Rosie O'Brien, and she's one of
ye! She's fallen into line!"

Mrs. Agin came out on the porch, and stood for a moment looking from
Danny to Rosie. She was a tall, gaunt old woman with thick white hair
and thick eyebrows, which were still dark. She gave one the impression
of great tidiness and cleanliness, together with the possibility of that
caustic speech which so often characterizes the good housekeeper.

Rosie appealed to her eagerly: "Mis' Agin, I think Danny's just awful!"

Mrs. Agin glanced sharply at Danny, and then, with a seemingly
clairvoyant understanding that the subject under discussion related
somehow to the eternal war of the sexes, she went over to Rosie's side
at once.

"What's he been sayin' to you, dear?"

"He's making fun of me because I told him if I was to lose one of my
paper customers, Terry would beat me. And he would, too!"

Mrs. Agin turned on Danny severely. "Take shame to yourself, Dan Agin,
to be teasin' Rosie O'Brien!"

"And