boys of about his own age. And presently, as he watched the lumbering
team curiously, he recognized the very woman who had given him the
silver piece an hour before. These, too, were the little boys who had
faced him in the crowd. A sudden hope sprang into Gigi's heart.
Perhaps she would help him to escape. Perhaps she would at least give
him a lift on his way. He decided to risk it.




IV

THE OX-CART

Gigi waited until the cart was nearly opposite, and he could hear the
voices of the woman and the children talking and laughing together.
Then he crept out from behind the stack and stepped to the side of the
road.

The great, lumbering oxen eyed him curiously, but did not pause. The
children stopped talking, and one of them pointed Gigi out to his
mother.

"Look, Mama! A little boy!"

"Hello!" cried the woman in her hearty, kind voice, stopping the team.
"What are you doing here, little lad?"

She did not recognize Gigi at once in his long traveling cloak. But
suddenly he threw back the folds of it and showed the green tights