"Who be ye?" cried one of the boys peering into their faces.
"What ye doin' dressed up this here way?" said another. The paint upon their faces so disguised them that they were not recognized by any of the boys, if, indeed, any knew them.
"They ain't none o' our folks," said another boy, trying to jerk off Polly's head covering.
She turned on him fiercely. "You ought to be ashamed of yourselves," she cried. "How would you like any one to treat your sisters so?"
"How'd you like any one to treat your sisters so?" mimicked the boy in a piping voice. "I ain't got no sister, and if I had she wouldn't be traipsin' 'round the P'int in circus clothes."
Wrenching herself from the boy's grasp, Polly started to run, the other girls following. One boy thrust out his foot tripping Grace who fell sprawling in the dusty road. Her companions stopped in their flight to come to her rescue. "Oh, you bad, bad boys," cried Molly indignantly. "If I don't tell Cap'n Dave on you."
"We ain't feared o' Cap'n Dave," was the scoffing reply.
The girls picked up the weeping Grace. "Are you hurt?" they whispered.
"I don't know," whimpered Grace. "Oh, how can we get home? I want to go home."
Her weeping caused cessation in hostilities for a moment, but as soon as the four figures started forward they were again surrounded and the teasing recommenced.