"What was that now?"
"Jus' now, Billy—about——"
"I heard no boast. An I was you, Teddy, I wouldn't boast too much. I'd cling t' modesty."
"I takes it back," said Teddy. He sighed. "An' I'll stand by."
It did not appear to Billy Topsail how this guardianship of the boy was to be accomplished. Being prolonged, it was a battle, of course, no man could win. The dogs were beaten off for the time. They would return—not that night, perhaps, or in the broad light of the next day; but in the dark of the night to come they would return, and, failing success then, in the dark of the night after.
That was the way of it.
[CHAPTER VIII]
In Which Teddy Brisk Escapes From the Wolfskin Bag and Determines to Use His Crutch and Billy Topsail Comes to the Conclusion that "It Looks Bad"