"All right, then! They wuz tuk yisterday at noon. There's a man, a
woman, four children!" [He tapped the tip of each finger of his left
hand once with the back of the book, and the thumb twice, looking
Agnes very convincingly in the face all the while, as though to make
her thoroughly understand, without putting him to the bother of a
second statement.] "Six--they wuz tuk at noon yisterday. Two dead this
mornin'. Four more oughten be dead by--let's see--why, time's up now!
t'houten be dead now! By--how's that? You aint foolin', hey? Big
fine fur foolin' the wagon man, you know. Now say, if any on 'em's
near gone it'll do, you know. Save me bother, an' you too, don't you
see? Ef they're near gone, 'nuff not ter kick nor holler wen we puts
'em in, it'll do, 'cause then they can't git better, you know, an'
they're outen their misery sooner."

The insinuating leer with which the wretch ended this speech caused
Miss Arnold's blood to run cold.

"You brute! you fiend! ghoul! or whatever kind of demon you call
yourself, begone! in the name of Heaven, begone!" exclaimed the heroic
girl, her eyes flashing fire, and her whole frame trembling with
disgust and horror.

Her demeanor cowed the fellow, and he actually cringed as he backed
out at the door. But on the sidewalk he seemed to recover his
coolness, or at least he assumed to, for stepping in again, he
exclaimed:

"Mind, I'll be round in the mornin', and I don't want no gum games!
I've got too much to do on my hands now."