YOURS WITH ALL MY HEART 



" Oh, der Lor forgib me, missus, if I'd 

 only 'beyed dem leetle four-footed critturs 

 He sent, I'd cotched dem robbers, dar an' 

 den, an' I'd done bang der life out ob 

 'em!" 



Skippum and I forgave poor Becky, now 

 that she had bravely given us the credit of 

 trying to raise the alarm, and we wished we 

 could tell her she had a better chance to 

 "done bang der robber" just that minute 

 than she had before, but all we could do 

 was to stand near Inez and her deep, deep 

 pocket and give little suspicious growls. 



" Oh, let us hope it isn't so dreadful bad, 

 madam ; maybe we scared them away before 

 they got anything; I thought I heard some 

 one running just as we stepped in," sug- 

 gested Inez, gathering herself up as though 

 to calm and cheer her mistress. 



The mistress started with blanching cheek 

 again at thought of the possible presence 

 still in the house of such dangerous char- 

 acters, and she peered nervously into the 

 parlor and tiptoed to the front hall, for she 

 herself had entered by the veranda door. 



"I'll search the chambers myself," sug- 

 gested Inez, apparently gathering courage. 

 104 



