Henry bore before him— —and behind him
GO TO MOSSES FOR FRUTY BITS MOSSES MAKES HAPOTHS
Solemnly, with expressionless faces and eyes fixed in front of them, they paraded through the crowd. His Grace, who had taken off his spectacles, put them on again. His Grace was a good judge of faces.
“Secure that first boy,” he said.
The vicar, nothing loth, secured William by the collar and brought him before his Grace. His Grace held out his placard.
“Did you—er—attach this to my coat?” he asked sternly.
William shook off the vicar’s hand.
“Yes,” he said, as sternly as his Grace. “You see, we wanted people to go to Mr. Moss’ shop—’cause, you see, Mallards’ is a big company, an’ he’s not, an’ they’ve got—er—capitols behind them and he’s not—see? And we wanted to make people go to Moss’, and we thought we’d fix up notices wot’d make people go to Moss’ like big shops do—an’ we knew no one’d take any notice of our notices if we jus’ put ’em up anywhere, but we thought if we fixed one on to someone important wot everyone’d be lookin’ at all the time—an’ he’s awful kind an’ he takes an’ int’rest an’ he cares wot you get an’ his cokernut lumps is better’n anyone’s, an’ he makes ha’p’oths without makin’ a fuss—an’ he’s awful worried, an’ we wanted to help him——”
“An’ she’s a murderer,” piped Ginger.