Her son chuckled at her incredulity.
"Sure!"
"But it's a fortune," murmured she. "I had no idea there was a dog on earth worth that much."
"All of them are not."
"But five thousand dollars!" she repeated. "Why, Walter, I wouldn't have you responsible for a creature like that for anything in the world. You might as well attempt to be custodian of a lot of gold bonds. I shouldn't have a happy moment or sleep a wink thinking of it. Suppose some of the little wretches were to run away and get lost? Or suppose they were to be stolen? Or they might get sick and die on your hands."
"That is why they want a responsible person to keep an eye on them."
His Highness squared his shoulders and threw out his chest.
"But you are not a responsible person," burst out Mrs. King with unflattering candor.
"Mother!"
"Well—are you?" she insisted.