“Of course I didn’t. What does he want with me?”
“A mighty sight, you’ll find out! I kinder thought Sadie Mitchell wouldn’t know enough to tell you, so I went ’round to the City Hall an’ asked the folks if they’d seen a feller from Berry’s Corner. They said ‘no,’ an’ that the Mayor was pretty nigh wild ’cause you didn’t come to him the minute you struck town.”
“What does he want me for?”
“Why ’cordin’ to the law he has to give every feller from the country a dollar’n a half jest as soon as they get here, an’ if you don’t skin over there mighty quick it’ll be too late.”
“Tom an’ Bob didn’t say anything about it when they was up to my house.”
“I s’pose they thought you knowed, or else was countin’ on takin’ you there as soon as you got in; but of course it couldn’t be done when they didn’t meet you. How would it do to run over with me? It won’t take more’n a minute, an’ you’ll get back before Sadie Mitchell comes down.”
Josiah hesitated an instant, and then decided there would be no harm in accompanying this very friendly-disposed boy, more particularly since he seemed certain they would be back in time to meet the match-girl, therefore he replied:—
“All right; go ahead, only we mustn’t keep Sadie waitin’, ’cause it won’t do for me to lose her before I find Tom an’ Bob.”
“Oh, I’ll look out for that part of it. Of course we sha’n’t miss her; an’ if we should, I could find the fellers for you quicker’n she can. It kinder makes a boy look green to be taggin’ a girl ’round the city, an’ I’m certain Tom Bartlett wouldn’t like it if he found out what you’re doin’.”
“It’s a good deal better’n not knowin’ where to go, ’cause if it hadn’t been for her I’d had a pretty hard time last night, ’less I’d found Baker’s Court.”