little hands stir in mine; but after a moment he drew a
little sigh and said,--

"Vell, I tink I tell you. My granfader have some lands, some big lands
he have, and he sell zem; and may be he not buy it, but he get von big
house in ze city, mit vindows vay down to ze ground, and in ze vindows
he put--I not know vot you call zem, but zey have vine in zem, and beer
in zem."

"Bottles, Jakey?"

"Yes, dot bees it, bottles mit vine and mit beer in zem; and my fader go
dare, and he give my granfader ze pennies, and he drink ze vine and he
drink ze beer. Much times and all ze time he go dare, and he do dot. And
von day he come home, and he have drunk too much ze beer, and hees head
go von vay and von vay; and he say vicked vords, and my moder ce cry.
Jeem and Fred bees afraid, and zey hide; but I bees not afraid, I bees
mit my moder. And ven my fader tink he sit down on ze chair, he go vay
fall on ze floor; and ven Jeem and Fred hear him, zey run out, and ven
zey see him dare on ze floor, zey laugh; and my fader say dot he vill
kill zem, and he vill trow ze chair at zem, but too quick zey run avay;
and all ze time my moder ce cry and ce cry, and ce not eat ze dinner,
and ce make my fader go lay on ze bed.

"Von time my fader come home and he have drunk too much ze beer, and he
have sold ze piano. And von time he come home and he have drunk too much
ze beer, and he have sold ze harp; and ze man come mit him vot have buy
it; and ven ze harp go avay, my moder ce cry, and my fader strike her
mit hees hand, and he strike Jeem and Fred; and me he vill strike, but
my moder ce not let him.

"Von oder time ze men come dare, and zey take avay all ze tings vot my
moder have,--ze chair, and ze sofa, and all ze tings. Zen my moder ce go
live in von leetle house, and some ze time ce not have ze fire dare, and
some ze time ce not have ze bread. And von time in ze night my fader
come home, and he bring too much men mit him vot have drunk ze beer; and
he tell my moder dot ce give ze men ze supper. And my moder say dot
ce have not ze supper, ce have not ze fire, and ce have not ze bread;
and ven ce tell ze men go avay, zey say bad vords to my moder, and my
fader he strike her dot ce go on ze floor. Zen mit her hair he drag her
to ze door, and mit hees feets he strike her vay out on ze stone, and
her head bleed. And Jeem he see her dare, and he cry, and Fred cry, and
I cry; and my moder ce groan like ce die. And von ze men vot come mit
hi