"There, darn you!"
The stone missed, and Gammire fled desperately after it.
"You get over that fence!" Mr. Atwater cried. "You wait till I find another rock and I'll——"
He began to search for another stone, but, before he could find one, Gammire returned with the first. He deposited it upon the ground at Mr. Atwater's feet.
"There's your rock," he said.
Mr. Atwater looked down at him fiercely, and through the black chrysanthemum two garnet sparks glinted waggishly.
"Didn't you hear me tell you what I'd do if you didn't get out o' here, you darn poodle?"
Gammire "sat up," placed his forepaws together over his nose and prayed. "There's your rock," he said. And he added, as clearly as if he used a spoken language, "Let's get on with the game!"
Mr. Atwater turned to Kitty Silver. "Does he—does he know how to speak, or shake hands, or anything like that?" he asked.