“did it come from our house? Was it a bone from our table? Our meat, you know?”
“Well, no, I don’t suppose it was,” grudged Harriet. “What difference does that make?”
“Not much, and yet—if it was brought here for that purpose—”
“Well, no, it wasn’t brought here for that purpose. If you’ve got to know the exact ins and outs of it, it was a bone a dog brought here, and I threw a stone at him and took his bone away and put it in the garbage pail.”
“Oh, I see.” Emily ate another bit of fried potato.
“Well, what do you see?” snapped Harriet. But Emily remained silent.
“I gave that dog a lesson he won’t forget soon,” crowed Harriet. “He went off yelping up the street with one foot in the air. It’s ridiculous keeping dogs in a town. They’ve no business doing it. If I had my way, all the dogs would be shot!”
“Oh, poor fellow!” said Emily involuntarily, stopping to sip her coffee.
“Yes, poor fellow! That’s you! I suppose you’ll be wanting to bring a dog home yourself next! But nobody need try to keep a dog around me! If you’d seen that back porch I had to scrub! But you never think of saying poor Harriet. Yes, I suppose that’ll be the next thing I’ll have to be called upon to endure. A nasty little mangy dog!”
“Oh no!” said Emily. “I wouldn’t think of it!”
“Well, I’m going to see that boy’s mother this morning, and believe me, she’ll learn a few things about how to bring up children. And if she doesn’t do something about making that boy apologize, I’ll report it to the police. He
ought
to have been made to clean up the mess. I’d have liked to rub his dirty little freckled nose in the garbage, only I didn’t want the baker to see it when he came.”
“Oh,” said Emily, aghast, “please! I wouldn’t go to the neighbors about a thing like that! Just let it pass! It won’t likely happen again!”
“Yes, let it pass! Let it pass! That’s you all over, Emily! No, indeed, I won’t let it pass. This is part my house, isn’t it? I do the morning work, don’t I? Well, I’m
going
!”
With that she gathered her cup and plate and silver and sailed out to the sink with them, and Emily beat a hasty retreat to her room to reflect on what she could do to prevent trouble with her neighbors. She was very fond of Dick Smalley’s little dog Stubby. She often slipped Stubby a peppermint between the hedge when Harriet was out. She could read a great deal between Harriet’s lines, and she decided to slip up to Mrs. Smalley’s that morning while Harriet went to market and forestall her. Emily was fond of freckle-faced Dick Smalley. She sometimes gave him smiles when she gave Stubby peppermints.
So Emily put on her neat black hat and coat and slipped away while Harriet went to market.
Chapter 6
E mily stopped at the little candy shop on the corner and bought a few peppermints for Stubby.
She had decided to say she had come to buy three extra copies of the
Ledger
if Dick had any left. This would be a good excuse, and then she could gradually find out if Stubby was hurt, and perhaps get it in to apologize for Harriet’s dislike for dogs. She felt she might perhaps be able to extract the sting as it were from anything that Harriet might say about Dick or the dog, supposing Harriet really meant to carry out her threat. She did not really believe that Harriet meant to do what she had threatened.
But when the door was opened to her knock, she found a very small little Smalley sister of Dick’s at the doorknob, and an angry Mrs. Smalley inside talking loudly over the telephone to the chief of police. She discovered to her dismay while she waited that Harriet had preceded her and had done all and more than she had promised to do at the breakfast table and that Mrs. Smalley was now planning her revenge.
Mrs. Smalley turned to her caller with fire in her eye, but Emily Dillon’s smile was disarming: “I’m so sorry, Mrs. Smalley,” she
“Well, no, I don’t suppose it was,” grudged Harriet. “What difference does that make?”
“Not much, and yet—if it was brought here for that purpose—”
“Well, no, it wasn’t brought here for that purpose. If you’ve got to know the exact ins and outs of it, it was a bone a dog brought here, and I threw a stone at him and took his bone away and put it in the garbage pail.”
“Oh, I see.” Emily ate another bit of fried potato.
“Well, what do you see?” snapped Harriet. But Emily remained silent.
“I gave that dog a lesson he won’t forget soon,” crowed Harriet. “He went off yelping up the street with one foot in the air. It’s ridiculous keeping dogs in a town. They’ve no business doing it. If I had my way, all the dogs would be shot!”
“Oh, poor fellow!” said Emily involuntarily, stopping to sip her coffee.
“Yes, poor fellow! That’s you! I suppose you’ll be wanting to bring a dog home yourself next! But nobody need try to keep a dog around me! If you’d seen that back porch I had to scrub! But you never think of saying poor Harriet. Yes, I suppose that’ll be the next thing I’ll have to be called upon to endure. A nasty little mangy dog!”
“Oh no!” said Emily. “I wouldn’t think of it!”
“Well, I’m going to see that boy’s mother this morning, and believe me, she’ll learn a few things about how to bring up children. And if she doesn’t do something about making that boy apologize, I’ll report it to the police. He
ought
to have been made to clean up the mess. I’d have liked to rub his dirty little freckled nose in the garbage, only I didn’t want the baker to see it when he came.”
“Oh,” said Emily, aghast, “please! I wouldn’t go to the neighbors about a thing like that! Just let it pass! It won’t likely happen again!”
“Yes, let it pass! Let it pass! That’s you all over, Emily! No, indeed, I won’t let it pass. This is part my house, isn’t it? I do the morning work, don’t I? Well, I’m
going
!”
With that she gathered her cup and plate and silver and sailed out to the sink with them, and Emily beat a hasty retreat to her room to reflect on what she could do to prevent trouble with her neighbors. She was very fond of Dick Smalley’s little dog Stubby. She often slipped Stubby a peppermint between the hedge when Harriet was out. She could read a great deal between Harriet’s lines, and she decided to slip up to Mrs. Smalley’s that morning while Harriet went to market and forestall her. Emily was fond of freckle-faced Dick Smalley. She sometimes gave him smiles when she gave Stubby peppermints.
So Emily put on her neat black hat and coat and slipped away while Harriet went to market.
Chapter 6
E mily stopped at the little candy shop on the corner and bought a few peppermints for Stubby.
She had decided to say she had come to buy three extra copies of the
Ledger
if Dick had any left. This would be a good excuse, and then she could gradually find out if Stubby was hurt, and perhaps get it in to apologize for Harriet’s dislike for dogs. She felt she might perhaps be able to extract the sting as it were from anything that Harriet might say about Dick or the dog, supposing Harriet really meant to carry out her threat. She did not really believe that Harriet meant to do what she had threatened.
But when the door was opened to her knock, she found a very small little Smalley sister of Dick’s at the doorknob, and an angry Mrs. Smalley inside talking loudly over the telephone to the chief of police. She discovered to her dismay while she waited that Harriet had preceded her and had done all and more than she had promised to do at the breakfast table and that Mrs. Smalley was now planning her revenge.
Mrs. Smalley turned to her caller with fire in her eye, but Emily Dillon’s smile was disarming: “I’m so sorry, Mrs. Smalley,” she
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