“Oh, no, folks don’t buy matches so early in the mornin’. Plenty of time for me at ten o’clock,” Sadie replied; and then, seeing a small boy on the opposite side of the street, she called loudly, “Hi! you Sim! Sim!”
The boy turned in answer to her summons.
“Say, do you know the newsboys this feller’s huntin’ for?”
“What’s their names?”
“Tom Bartlett an’ Bob Green,” Josiah replied.
“Know ’em? Course I do. Why, they went down town not more’n half an hour ago, an’ I reckon you’ll find ’em ’round the Astor House. Who is that feller, anyhow?” he added, pointing to Josiah.
“He’s a boy from the country, an’ is goin’ to stay at Baker’s Court, so we wanter find Tom an’ Bob as soon as we can;” and Sadie hurried away as if time was too precious to admit of her spending many moments in conversation, while Sim muttered as he was left alone on the sidewalk:—
“Well, it kinder strikes me Sadie Mitchell’s puttin’ on a good many airs this mornin’, jest ’cause she’s got that country Jake in tow,” and the young gentleman appeared aggrieved that more information had not been given him.
“I didn’t want to stop an’ have a long talk,” Sadie said in a low tone, when they were a short distance from Sim. “He’s terrible rough. Seems as if he didn’t want to do anything but jest fight. First time he sees another feller he always puts up his ‘props’ as he calls it, an’ I was ’fraid he might try it on you.”
“I don’t want to get into any row, ’cause this valise is as much as I can take care of; but I tell you what it is, these city chaps mustn’t try to pick on me jest on account of my comin’ from the country, for I won’t stand it;” and the young gentleman from Berry’s Corner looked very fierce, as if wishing his companion to believe him a dangerous character.