“You hateful boy!” she cried. “I’m going straight home to tell father!”
She turned on her heel and went off without looking back.
Meanwhile Mr. March was scrambling up the bank, spitting out water and river weeds and (fortunately) inarticulate expletives.
“I’ll have damages off someone for this!” he said as he emerged on to the bank. “I’ll make someone pay for this! I’ll have the law on them! I’ll....”
He went off dripping and muttering and shaking his fist vaguely in all directions....
Slowly the Outlaws climbed down from their tree.
“Well, you’ve made a nice mess of everything!” said Ginger dispassionately.
“I’ve took a lot of trouble tryin’ to get her married,” said William, “and this is how she pays me! Well, she needn’t blame me.” He looked at the indignant figure of his pretty nineteen-year-old sister which was still visible in the distance and added gloomily, “She’s turnin’ out an old maid an’ it’s not my fault. I’ve done my best. Seems to me she’s goin’ to go on livin’ in our house all her life till she dies, an’ that’s a nice look out for me, isn’t it? Seems to me that if she won’t even get married when you practically fix it all up for her an’ save her all the trouble like this, she won’t ever marry an’ she needn’t blame me ’cause she’s an old maid. I’ve done everythin’ I can. An’ you,” he transferred his stern eye to Joan. “Why don’ you read books with a bit of sense in them? This Shake man simply doesn’t know what he’s talkin’ about. It’s a good thing for him he is dead, gettin’ us all into a mess like this!”
“What are you goin’ to do now?” said Douglas with interest.
“I’m goin’ fishin’,” said William, “an’ I don’ care if I don’t get home till bed time.”