“Well, it does beat — “

“Laws alive, I never — “

“So help me, I wouldn’t ’a’ be — “

“House-thieves as well as — “

“Goodnessgracioussakes, I’d ’a’ ben afeard to live in sich a — “

“Fraid to live!

— why, I was that scared I dasn’t hardly go to bed, or get up, or lay down, or set down, Sister Ridgeway. Why, they’d steal the very — why, goodness sakes, you can guess what kind of a fluster I was in by the time midnight come last night. I hope to gracious if I warn’t afraid they’d steal some o’