“I do!” thundered the sheriff, and Mrs. Little retreated before his terrific appearance.
How Little Hickory chafed at his own helplessness, and catching sight of his mother at that moment, he cried to her:
“Do not let them frighten you, mother. They cannot harm you.”
“What do you accuse my husband of now?” she demanded of the officer, bravely facing the other.
“Of breaking and entering the store and post office of Basinburg.”
“He is innocent, sir!”
“Bah! who heeds the words of such as you? It will prove a sweet job for him when we catch him. Where is he?”
“That remains for you to say, and not me, sir. I am only a defenceless woman, but it will be a sorry hour if you harm me.”
With these spirited words, she stepped aside, allowing the officer and his followers to enter.
A furious search followed, when the old house was ransacked from cellar to garret. Every corner and niche imaginable was searched, the sheriff sparing neither time nor the building, but, look where and how he would, he could find no trace of the fugitive.