Catty slid down off the counter. “Then,” says he, “he aims to cheat the folks of this town out of their money.”
“And serve ’em right,” says Mr. Atkins.
“That hain’t no way to talk, Dad, and you’d know it if you was respectable. But you’re gettin’ respectabler every day. It ’ll come if you jest have patience.”
“Don’t want it to come too hard,” says Mr. Atkins.
“We got to stop it,” says Catty.
“Codfish!” says Mr. Atkins. “Wouldn’t lift my hand for folks that’s acted like these.”
“Dunno’s I care so much about the folks,” says Catty, “but the idea of anybody gettin’ cheated sort of riles me. I’m goin’ to tell folks who Kinderhook is.”
“Think they’ll b’lieve you?” says Mr. Atkins. “Not much. Who be you? You’re a young tramp that folks wants to run out of town, and I’m an old tramp that they’re tryin’ to put out of business. If we was to step in and interfere, what you s’pose would happen? They’d put us in jail, most like. They wouldn’t b’lieve our word ag’in’ Kinderhook’s. Better keep your mouth shut, Catty.”
Catty stood and thought a few minutes, and then he shook his head and said he guessed his father was right. “But we know what’s true,” he says, “and it’s our duty as respectable folks to put a stop to it.... And I’m a-goin’ to.”
“How?” says I.