Lorenzo, however, did not yet suspect that his bowl had been stolen. He presumed that his mother had put it away in some other place, and that, when she came down, it would readily be found again. So he went out into the yard, and sat on a stone step, and went to work to finish a wind-mill he had begun the day before.
Lorenzo’s mother explains the mystery.
By-and-by his mother came down; and as soon as she had heard Lorenzo’s story about the bowl, and learned, too, that the outer door had been found open when Lorenzo first came down stairs, she immediately expressed the opinion that the bowl had been stolen.
“Some thief has been breaking into the house,” said she, “I’ve no doubt, and has stolen it.”
“Stolen it!” exclaimed Lorenzo.
“Yes,” replied his mother; “I’ve no doubt of it.”
So saying, she went into the closet again, to see if she could discover any traces of the thieves there. But she could not. Every thing seemed to have remained undisturbed, just as she had left it the night before, except that the bowl was missing.
“Somebody has been in and stolen it,” said she, “most assuredly.”
Bruno, who had followed Lorenzo and his mother into the room, was standing up at this time upon his hind legs, with his paws upon the edge of the shelf, and he now began to bark loudly, by way of expressing his concurrence in this opinion.
“Seek him, Bruno!”