to
a family of wealth, proved disturbing to Humpy's late protestations of
virtue.

"They'd be a heap o' kale in ut, Hop. His folks is rich, I reckon. Ef we
wuzn't playin' the white card--"

Ignoring this shocking evidence of Humpy's moral instability, The Hopper
became lost in reverie, meditatively drawing at his pipe.

"We ain't never goin' to quit playin' ut square," he announced, to Mary's
manifest relief. "I hadn't ought t' 'a' done th' dippin'. It were a
mistake. My ole head wuzn't workin' right er I wouldn't 'a' slipped. But
ye needn't jump on me no more."

"Wot ye goin' to do with that kid? Ye tell me that!" demanded Mary,
unwilling too readily to accept The Hopper's repentance at face value.

"I'm goin' to take 'im to 'is folks, that's wot I'm goin' to do with 'im,"
announced The Hopper.

"Yer crazy--yer plum' crazy!" cried Humpy, slapping his knees excitedly.
"Ye kin take 'im to an orphant asylum an' tell um ye found 'im in that
machine ye lifted. And mebbe ye'll git by with ut an' mebbe ye won't, but
ye gotta keep me out of ut!"

"I found the machine in th' road, right here by th' house; an' th' kid
was in ut all by hisself. An' bein' humin an' respectible I brought 'im in
to keep 'im from freezin' t' death," said The Hopper, as though repeating
lines he was committing to memory. "They ain't nobody can say as I didn't.
Ef I git pinched, that's my spiel to th' cops. It ain't kidnapin'; it's
life-savin', that's wot ut is! I'm a-goin' back an' have a look at that
place where I got 'im. Kind o' queer they left the kid out there in the
buzz-wagon; _mighty_ queer, now's I think of ut. Little house back from
the road; lots o' trees an' bushes in front. Didn't seem to be no lights.
He keeps talkin' about Chris'mas at his grandpa's. Folks must 'a' been
goin' to take th' kid somewheres fer Chris'mas. I guess it'll throw a
skeer into 'em to find him up an' gone."

"They's rich, an' all the big bulls'll be lookin' fer 'im; ye'd better
'phone the New Haven cops ye've picked 'im up. Then they'll come out, an'
yer spiel about findin' 'im'll sound easy an' sensible like."

The Hopper, puffing his pipe philosophically, paid no heed to Humpy's
suggestion even when supported warmly by Mary.

"I gotta find some way o' puttin' th' kid back without seein' no cops.
I'll jes' take a sneak back an' have a look at th' place," said The
Hopper. "I ain't goin' to turn Shaver over to no cops. Ye can't take no
chances with 'em.