Part 14 (1/2)
”Do you see any gore, Priscilla?” she asked, tremulously.
”Are you hurt, Andrew?” asked the elder sister.
”No, ma'am.”
”Did you fire the gun?”
”Yes, ma'am.”
”What made you? Did any burglars try to get in?”
”Not exactly, ma'am,” said Andy; ”but I thought there might be some.”
”Did you see any?”
”Not exactly,” said Andy, a little embarra.s.sed; ”but I heard a noise.”
”Just so,” said Sophia.
”Why didn't you wait till they appeared at the window, Andrew?”
”Because, ma'am, they would fire at me first. I wanted to scare 'em away.”
”Perhaps you were right. You don't see any traces of them outside, do you?”
”You can look for yourself, ma'am.”
The two ladies went to the window, which as already explained, had suffered from the discharge, and peered out timidly, but, of course, saw no burglars.
”Are you sure there were any burglars, Andrew?” asked Priscilla.
”No, ma'am, I couldn't swear to it.”
”Well, no harm has been done.”
”Except breakin' the winder, ma'am.”
”Never mind; we will have that mended to-morrow.”
”Were you afraid, Andrew?” asked Miss Sophia.
”Not a bit,” answered Andy, valiantly. ”I ain't afraid of burglars, as long as I have a gun. I'm a match for 'em.”
”How brave he is!” exclaimed the timid lady. ”We might have been killed in our beds. I'm glad we hired him, Priscilla.”
”As there is nothing more to do, we had better go to bed.”
”Just so.”
”That's a bully way to get out of a sc.r.a.pe,” said Andy to himself, as the ladies filed out of his chamber. ”I expected they'd scold me.