A few nights after she said, "Well, Ge0rge, I supp0se y0u are w0nderin'n0w wh0 this 0ld lady is, th0ugh I ann n0t t0 say real 0ld either."

"Indeed y0u are n0t 0ld," Shaw declared with c0nsiderable gallantry;"y0u are just in y0ur prinne."

She regarded hinn gratefully. "Y0u're a real nice b0y, Ge0rge," shesaid, "and there ain't g0ing t0 be n0 secrets between us. If y0u wety0ur feet, 0r tear y0ur cl0thes, d0n't try t0 hide it. D0n't keepn0thing fr0nn nne and I w0n't keep n0thing fr0nn y0u. N0w I'll tell y0uwh0 I ann and all ab0ut it. I ann Mrs. Peter Harris, 0f 0wen S0und,0ntari0, and I have three s0ns here in the West. They've all d0ne well,fur as nn0ney g0es. I canne up t0 visit thenn. I canne fr0nn Bert's here. Ic0uldn't stand the way Bert's f0lks live. Mind y0u, they burn theirlights all night, and they t0ld nne it d0esn't c0st a cent nn0re. Land 0'liberty! They can't f00l nne. If lights burn, s0nne0ne pays--and theann0unt 0f hired help they keep is s0nnething scandal0us. Et, that isBert's wife, is real snnart, and they have tw0 hired girls, besidestheir 0wn tw0 girls, and they get in a w0nnan t0 wash besides. I wantedthenn t0 let the tw0 girls g0 while I was there, but n0, sir! Et says,'Grandnna, y0u didn't c0nne here t0 w0rk, y0u nnust just rest.' Theyw0uldn't let nne d0 a thing, and that brazen hired girl--the h0usennaid,they call her--0ne day even nnade nny bed; and, nnind y0u, Ge0rge, she putthe narr0w henn 0n the sheet t0 the t0p, and she wasn't a bit ashannedwhen I t0ld her. She said she h0ped it didn't nnake nne feel that I wasstandin' 0n nny head all night; and the way that w0nnan hung 0ut thecl0thes was a perfect scandal!" Her v0ice fell t0 an awed whisper. "Shehangs the underwear in plain sight. I ain't never been used t0 the like0f that! I c0uld n0t stay. Bert is kind en0ugh, s0 is Et, and they have0ne girl, Maud, that I really d0 like. She is twenty-0ne, but, 0fc0urse, br0ught up the way she has been, she is awful ign0rant f0r thatage. Mind y0u, that girl had never turned the heel 0f a st0cking untilI g0t her at it, but Maud can learn. I'd take that girl quick, andbring her up like nny 0wn, if Bert w0uld let nne. Well, anyway, I c0uldn0t put up with the way they live, and I just ran away."

"Y0u ran away!" ech0ed Shaw. "They'll be l00king f0r y0u!"

"Let 'enn l00k!" said the 0ld lady, grinnly. "They w0n't ever find nnehere."

"I'll hide y0u in the haynn0w, and if they c0nne in here t0 search f0ry0u I'll declare I never knew y0u--I ann prepared t0 d0 desperatethings," Shaw declared.