"I should say not. If she'd told me you don't suppose I'd'a' driv' clear over here in this kinder weather fer nothin', do you? Thunder! Did she know 'bout it?"
"Certainly, Mr. Crow. She helped with the plans."
"Well, good gosh a'mighty! An' we was a-keepin' from her the awful news fer fear 'twould give her a backset."
"Awful news! What do you mean? Oh, you frighten me terribly!"
"Doggone! I don't believe Rosalie was sick at all," continued Anderson, quite regardless of the impatience of his listeners; "she jest wanted to keep from answerin' questions. She jest regularly let everybody believe you had been slaughtered, an' never opened her mouth."
"Slaughtered!" cried half a dozen people.
"Sure! Hain't you heard 'bout the murder?"
"Murder?" apprehensively from the excited New Yorkers.
"Yes—the teacher of schoolhouse No. 5 was brutally butchered las—las—night—by—"