catching pigeons.

Just that second, Tom's mother coughed, a kinda saddish, sickish
cough, that sounded like maybe she was a lot sicker than she ought to
be, and I knew that if my mom was as sick as that Pop would have a
doctor out to see her right away, so I said, "Has the doctor been
here?"

Little Tom frowned and said, "Nope, we can't--Nope, I guess Mom will
get well. She always does."

Just that second our car honked, and I knew the folks were wondering
what on earth was keeping us so long. There didn't seem to be anything
we could do, but I knew somebody ought to do something for Tom's mom,
'cause that cough sounded dangerous. Why, she might even get
pneumonia, I thought; she might even have it now.

As quick as Little Jim and I reached the car, and had climbed into the
back seat, we told Mom and Pop. While I was excitedly telling them, I
noticed that the muscles in Pop's jaws were working and I knew he was
thinking, and also was half angry inside because anybody had to have
such a mean husband as Old Hook-nosed John Till.

"He's a slave," Pop said, thinking of Tom's pop, and Mom said, with a
very determined voice, "Theodore, you take the boys on to Sunday
School. Be sure to stop for Mrs. Long. Here, Bill, you hold Charlotte
Ann. If Mrs. Till has the flu, I can't keep Charlotte Ann here with
me."

Pop started to say something, but Mom had already made up her mind,
and it was too late. Mom was already half way out of the car when she
said, "You can come on back and get me in time for church,--no, wait a
minute. I want Tom to go to Sunday School too--I'll send him right
out." Mom was out of the car and going up the snow path toward the
oldish house, when Little Jim piped up and said, "The doctor's going
to stop at our house at ten o'clock to see Mother. I'll bet he'd stop
to see Tom's mother too if anybody asked him to."

"They can't afford a doctor," I said, remembering what Tom had tried
to say a few minutes ago, but I hadn't any more than got the words out
of my mouth than Pop spoke up almost fiercely, like he was angry at
somebody or something, and this is what he said, "But _I_ can. If
Tom's mother needs a doctor, she's going to have one," and with that
Pop shoved open the car door at his left side, saying, "You boys wait
here a minute. I'll be right back." He slammed the door and circled
the car and went swishing with very determined steps through that snow
path to Tom's side door, and disappeared insi