第3章

Tradewasnotdriving，butnearoneortwoofthemdirty，ill—

usedlookingwomen，amanorso，andafewchildrenstood。Atacornerwhichledintoablackholeofacourt，acoffee—standwasstationed，inchargeofaburlyruffianincorduroys。

"Comealong，"saidthegirl。

"Thereitis。Itain’tstrong，butit’s’ot。"

Shesidleduptothestand，drawingDartwithher，asifgladofhisprotection。

"’Ello，Barney，"shesaid。"’Ere’sagentwarntsamugo’yerbest。

I’ve’adabito’luck，an’Iwantsonemesself。"

"Garn，"growledBarney。"Youan’yerluck！Gentmaywantamug，buty’dshowyermoneyfust。"

"Strewth！I’vegotit。Y’aintgotthechingeferwotI’aveinme’and’ere。’As’e，mister？"

"Showit，"tauntedtheman，andthenturningtoDart。"Yerwantsamugo’cawfee？"

"Yes。"

Thegirlheldoutherhandcautiously——thepieceofgoldlyinguponitspalm。

"Look’ere，"shesaid。

Thereweretwoorthreemenslouchingaboutthestand。Suddenlyahanddartedfrombetweentwoofthemwhostoodnearest，thesovereignwassnatched，ascreamedoathfromthegirlrentthethickair，andaforlornenoughscarecrowofayoungfellowsprangaway。

ThebloodleapedinAntonyDart’sveinsagainandhesprangafterhiminawhollynormalpassionofindignation。Athousandyearsago——asitseemedtohim——hehadbeenagoodrunner。Thismanwasnotone，andwantoffoodhadweakenedhim。

Dartwentafterhimwithstrideswhichastonishedhimself。Upthestreet，intoanalleyandoutofit，adozenyardsmoreandintoacourt，andthemanwheeledwithahoarse，baffledcurse。Theplacehadnooutlet。

"Hell！"wasallthecreaturesaid。

Darttookhimbyhisgreasycollar。

Eventhebriefrushhadlefthimfeelinglikealivingthing——whichwasanewsensation。

"Giveitup，"heordered。

Thethieflookedathimwithahalf—laughandobeyed，asifhefelttheuselessnessofastruggle。Hewasnotmorethantwenty—fiveyearsold，andhiseyeswerecavernouswithwant。Hehadthefaceofamanwhomighthavebelongedtoabetterclass。Whenhehadutteredtheexclamationinvokingtheinfernalregionshehadnotdroppedtheaspirate。

"I’mashungryassheis，"heraved。

"Hungryenoughtorobachildbeggar？"saidDart。

"Hungryenoughtorobastarvingoldwoman——orababy，"withadefiantsnort。"Wolfhungry——

tigerhungry——hungryenoughtocutthroats。"

Hewhirledhimselflooseandleanedhisbodyagainstthewall，turninghisfacetowardit。Suddenlyhemadeachokingsoundandbegantosob。

"Hell！"hechoked。"I’llgiveitup！I’llgiveitup！"

Whatafigure——whatafigure，asheswungagainsttheblackenedwall，hisscarecrowclotheshangingonhim，theironcedecentmaterialmakingtheirpinningtogetherofbuttonlessplaces，theirloosenessandrentsshowingdirtylinen，moreabjectthananyothersqualorcouldhavemadethem。

AntonyDart’sblood，stillrunningwarmandwell，wasdoingitsnormalworkamongthebrain—cellswhichhadstirredsoevillythroughthenight。

Whenhehadseizedthefellowbythecollar，hishandhadlefthispocket。Hethrustitintoanotherpocketanddrewoutsomesilver。

"Goandgetyourselfsomefood，"

hesaid。"Asmuchasyoucaneat。

ThengoandwaitformeattheplacetheycallAppleBlossomCourt。I

don’tknowwhereitis，butIamgoingthere。Iwanttohearhowyoucametothis。Willyoucome？"

Thethieflurchedawayfromthewallandtowardhim。Hestaredupintohiseyesthroughthefog。Thetearshadsmearedhischeekbones。

"God！"hesaid。"WillIcome？

LookandseeifI’llcome。"Dartlooked。

"Yes，you’llcome，"heanswered，andhegavehimthemoney。"I’mgoingbacktothecoffee—stand。"

Thethiefstoodstaringafterhimashewentoutofthecourt。Dartwasspeakingtohimself。

"Idon’tknowwhyIdidit，"hesaid。"Butthethinghadtobedone。"

Inthestreetheturnedintohecameupontherobbedgirl，running，panting，andcrying。Sheutteredashoutandflungherselfuponhim，clutchinghiscoat。

"Gawd！"shesobbedhysterically，"IthortI’dlostyer！IthortI’dlostallofit，Idid！Strewth！I’mgladI’vefoundyer——"andshestopped，chokingwithhersobsandsniffs，rubbingherfaceinhersack。

"Hereisyoursovereign，"Dartsaid，handingittoher。

Shedroppedthecornerofthesackandlookedupwithaqueerlaugh。

"Didyerfindacopper？Didyergivehimincharge？"

"No，"answeredDart。"Hewasworseoffthanyou。Hewasstarving。

Itookthisfromhim;butIgavehimsomemoneyandtoldhimtomeetusatAppleBlossomCourt。"

Shestoppedshortanddrewbackapacetostareupathim。

"Well，"shegaveforth，"y’AREaqueerone！"

Andyetintheamazementonherfaceheperceivedaremotedawningofanunderstandingofthemeaningofthethinghehaddone。

Hehadspokenlikeamaninadream。Hefeltlikeamaninadream，beingledinthethickmistfromplacetoplace。Hewasledbacktothecoffee—stand，wherenowBarney，theproprietor，waspouringoutcoffeeforahoarse—voicedcostergirlwithadraggledfeatherinherhat，whogreetedtheirarrivalhilariously。

"Hello，Glad！"shecriedout。

"Gotyersuvrinkback？"

Glad——itseemedtobethecreature’swildname——nodded，butheldclosetohercompanion’sside，clutchinghiscoat。

"Let’sgointherean’changeit，"

shesaid，noddingtowardasmallporkandhamshopnearby。"An’thenyercantakecareofitforme。"

"Whatdidshecallyou？"AntonyDartaskedherastheywent。

"Glad。Don’tknowasIever’adanimeo’meown，butalittlecoveaswentoncetothepanterminetoldmeaboutayoungladyaswasFairyQueenan’’ernamewasGladysBeverlySt。John，soIcalledmesselfthat。

Nooneneversaiditallatonct——

theydon’tneversaynothin’butGlad。I’mgladenoughthismornin’，"

chucklingagain，"’avin’thelucktocomeupwithyou，mister。

Neverhadlucklikeit’afore。"

Theywentintotheporkandhamshopandchangedthesovereign。

Therewascookedfoodinthewindows——

roastporkandboiledhamandcornedbeef。Sheboughtslicesofporkandbeef，andofsuet—puddingwithafewcurrantssprinkledthroughit。

"Willyer’elpmetocarryit？"

sheinquired。"I’ll’avetogetafewpen’wortho’coalan’woodan’

ascrewo’teaan’sugar。Mywig，wotafeedmean’Polly’ll’ave！"

Astheyreturnedtothecoffee—

standshebrokemorethanonceintoahopofglee。Barneyhadchangedhismindconcerningher。Asolidsovereignwhichmustbechangedandacompanionwhoseshabbygentilitywasabsolutegrandeurwhencomparedwithhispresentsurroundingsmadeadifference。

Shereceivedhermugofcoffeeandthicksliceofbreadanddrippingwithagrin，andswallowedthehotsweetliquiddowninecstaticgulps。

"Ain’tIinluck？"shesaid，handinghermugbackwhenitwasempty。

"Gi’meanother，Barney。"

AntonyDartdrankcoffeealsoandatebreadanddripping。Thecoffeewashotandthebreadanddripping，dashedwithsalt，quiteeatable。Hehadneededfoodandfeltthebetterforit。

"Comeon，mister，"saidGlad，whentheirmealwasended。"IwanttogetbacktoPolly，an’there’scoalandbreadandthingstobuy。"

Shehurriedhimalong，breakingherpacewithhopsatintervals。Shedartedintodirtyshopsandbroughtoutthingsscrewedupinpaper。Shewentlastintoacellarandreturnedcarryingasmallsackofcoaloverhershoulders。

"Boughtsackan’all，"shesaidelatedly。"Asack’sagoodthingto’ave。"

"Letmecarryitforyou，"saidAntonyDart"Spileyercoat，"withhersidelongupwardglance。

"Idon’tcare，"heanswered。"I

don’tcareadamn。"

Thefinalexpletivewastotallyunnecessary，butitmeantathinghedidnotsay。Whatsoeverwasthrustinghimthiswayandthat，speakingthroughhisspeech，leadinghimtodothingshehadnotdreamedofdoing，shouldhaveitswillwithhim。

Hehadbeenfastenedtotheskirtsofthisbeggarimpandhewouldgoontotheendanddowhatwastobedonethisday。Itwaspartofthedream。

ThesackofcoalwasoverhisshoulderwhentheyturnedintoAppleBlossomCourt。Itwouldhavebeenablackholeonasunnyday，andnowitwaslikeHades，litgrimlybyagas—jetortwo，smallandflickering，withtheorangehazeaboutthem。Filthy，flagging，murkydoorways，brokenstepsandbrokenwindowsstuffedwithrags，andthesmellofthesewersletloosehadAppleBlossomCourt。

Glad，withthewealthoftheporkandhamshopandotherrichesinherarms，enteredarepellentdoorwayinaspiritofgreatgoodcheerandDartfollowedher。Pastaroomwhereadrunkenwomanlaysleepingwithherheadonatable，achildpullingatherdressandcrying，upastairwaywithbrokenbalustersandbreakingsteps，throughalanding，upstairsagain，andupstillfartheruntiltheyreachedthetop。Gladstoppedbeforeadoorandshookthehandle，cryingout:

"’Sonlyme，Polly。Youcanopenit。"SheaddedtoDartinanundertone:"She’astokeepitlocked。

Noknowin’who’dwanttogetin。

Polly，"shakingthedoor—handleagain，"Polly’sonlyme。"

Thedooropenedslowly。Ontheothersideofitstoodagirlwithadimpledroundfacewhichwasquitepale;underoneofherchildishlyvacantblueeyeswasadiscoloration，andhercurlyfairhairwastuckeduponthetopofherheadinaknot。

AsshetookinthefactofAntonyDart’spresenceherchinbegantoquiver。

"Iain’tfitto——toseenoone，"

shestammeredpitifully。"Whydidyou，Glad——whydidyou？"

"Ain’tno’armin’IM，"saidGlad。

"’E’soneo’thefriendlyones。’E

givemeasuvrink。LookwotI’vegot，"hoppingaboutassheshowedherparcels。

"Youneednotbeafraidofme，"

AntonyDartsaid。Hepausedasecond，staringather，andsuddenlyadded，"Poorlittlewretch！"

Herlookwassoscaredanduncertainathingthathewalkedawayfromherandthrewthesackofcoalonthehearth。Asmallgratewithbrokenbarshunglooselyinthefireplace，abatteredtinkettletilteddrunkenlynearit。Amattress，fromtheholesinwhosetickingstrawbulged，layonthefloorinacorner，withsomeoldsacksthrownoverit。

Gladhad，withoutdoubt，borrowedhershouldercoveringfromthecollection。Thegarretwasascoldasthegrave，andalmostasdark;thefoghunginitthickly。Therewerecrevicesenoughthroughwhichitcouldpenetrate。

AntonyDartkneltdownonthehearthanddrewmatchesfromhispocket。

"Weoughttohavebroughtsomepaper，"hesaid。

Gladranforward。

"Wotagentyeare！"shecried。

"Y’ain’tnevergoin’tolightit？"

"Yes。"

Sheranbacktothericketytableandcollectedthescrapsofpaperwhichhadheldherpurchases。

Theyweresmall，butuseful。

"Thatwotwasroundthesausagean’thepuddin’sgreasy，"sheexulted。

Pollyhungoverthetableandtrembledatthesightofmeatandbread。Plainly，shedidnotunderstandwhatwashappening。Thegreasedpapersetlighttothewood，andthewoodtothecoal。Allthreeflaredandblazedwithasoundofcheerfulcrackling。Theblazethrewoutitsglowasfinelyasifithadbeensetalighttowarmabetterplace。

Thewonderofafireislikethewonderofasoul。Thisonechangedthemurkandgloomtobrightness，andthedeadlydampandcoldtowarmth。ItdrewthegirlPollyfromthetabledespiteherfears。

Sheturnedinvoluntarily，madetwostepstowardit，andstoodgazingwhileitslightplayedonherface。

Gladwhirledandrantothehearth。

"Ye’veputonalot，"shecried;

"but，oh，myGawd，don’titwarmyer！Comeon，Polly——comeon。"

Shedraggedoutawoodenstool，anemptysoap—box，andbundledthesacksintoaheaptobesatupon。Shesweptthethingsfromthetableandsetthemintheirpaperwrappingsonthefloor。

"Let’sallsitdownclosetoit——

close，"shesaid，"an’getwarman’

eat，an’eat。"

Shewastheleavenwhichleavenedthelumpoftheirhumanity。Whatthisleavenis——whohasfoundout？

Butshe——littleratofthegutter——

wasformedofit，andhermerepureanimaljoyinthetemporaryanimalcomfortofthemomentstirredandupliftedthemfromtheirdepths。

III

Theydrewnearandsatuponthesubstitutesforseatsinacircle——andthefirethrewupflameandmadeaglowinthefoghangingintheblackholeofaroom。

ItwasGladwhosetthebatteredkettleonandwhenitboiledmadetea。Theothertwowatchedher，beingunderherspell。Shehandedoutslicesofbreadandsausageandpuddingonbitsofpaper。Pollyfedwithtremuloushaste;Gladherselfwithrejoicingandexultinginflavors。

AntonyDartatebreadandmeatashehadeatenthebreadanddrippingatthestall——acceptinghisnormalhungeraspartofthedream。

SuddenlyGladpausedinthemidstofahugebite。

"Mister，"shesaid，"p’rapsthatcove’swaitin’feryer。Let’s’ave’imin。I’llgoandfetch’im。"

Shewasgettingup，butDartwasonhisfeetfirst。

"Imustgo，"hesaid。"Heisexpectingmeand——"

"Aw，"saidGlad，"lemmegoalongo’yer，mister——jesttoshowthere’snoillfeelin’。"

"Verywell，"heanswered。

Itwasshewholed，andhewhofollowed。Atthedoorshestoppedandlookedroundwithagrin。

"Keepupthefire，Polly，"shethrewback。"Ain’titwarmandcheerful？It’lldothecovegoodtoseeit。"

Sheledthewaydowntheblack，unsafestairway。Shealwaysled。

Outsidethefoghadthickenedagain，butshewentthroughitasifshecouldseeherway。

Attheentrancetothecourtthethiefwasstanding，leaningagainstthewallwithfevered，unhopefulwaitinginhiseyes。Hemovedmiserablywhenhesawthegirl，andshecalledouttoreassurehim。

"Iain’tuptono’arm，"shesaid;"Ion’ycomewiththegent。"

AntonyDartspoketohim。

"Didyougetfood？"

Themanshookhishead。

"Iturnedfaintafteryouleftme，andwhenIcametoIwasafraidI

mightmissyou，"heanswered。"I

daren’tlosemychance。Iboughtsomebreadandstuffeditinmypocket。I’vebeeneatingitwhileI’vestoodhere。"

"Comebackwithus，"saidDart。

"Weareinaplacewherewehavesomefood。"

Hespokemechanically，andwasawarethathedidso。Hewasapawnpushedaboutupontheboardofthisday’slife。

"Comeon，"saidthegirl。"Yercangetenoughtolastferthreedays。"

Sheguidedthembackthroughthefoguntiltheyenteredthemurkydoorwayagain。Thenshealmostranupthestaircasetotheroomtheyhadleft。

Whenthedooropenedthethieffellbackapaceasbeforeanunex—

pectedthing。Itwastheflareoffirelightwhichstruckuponhiseyes。

Hepassedhishandoverthem。

"Afire！"hesaid。"Ihaven’tseenoneforaweek。Comingoutoftheblacknessitgivesamanastart。"

ImprovidentjoygleamedinGlad’seyes。

"We’llbewarmonct，"shechuckled，"ifweain’tneverwarmagaen。"

Shedrewhercircleaboutthehearthagain。Thethieftooktheplacenexttoherandshehandedoutfoodtohim——abigsliceofmeat，bread，athicksliceofpudding。

"Fillyerselfup，"shesaid。"Thenye’llfeellikeyercantalk。"

Themantriedtoeathisfoodwithdecorum，somerecollectionofthehabitsofbetterdaysrestraininghim，butstarvednaturewastoomuchforhim。Hishandsshook，hiseyesfilled，histeethtore。Therestofthecircletriednottolookathim。