[Illustration]




IX


When The Hopper rolled away from Happy Hill Farm in the stolen machine,
accompanied by one stolen child and forty thousand dollars' worth of
stolen pottery, Mary wept, whether because of the parting with Shaver, or
because she feared that The Hopper would never return, was not clear.

Humpy, too, showed signs of tears, but concealed his weakness by
performing a grotesque dance, dancing grotesquely by the side of the car,
much to Shaver's joy--a joy enhanced just as the car reached the gate,
where, as a farewell attention, Humpy fell down and rolled over and over
in the snow.

The Hopper's wits were alert as he bore Shaver homeward. By this time it
was likely that the confiding young Talbots had conferred over the
telephone and knew that their offspring had disappeared. Doubtless the New
Haven police had been notified, and he chose his route with discretion to
avoid unpleasant encounters. Shaver, his spirits keyed to holiday pitch,
babbled ceaselessly, and The Hopper, highly elated, babbled back at him.

They arrived presently at the rear of the young Talbots' premises, and The
Hopper, with Shaver trotting at his side, advanced cautiously upon the
house bearing the two baskets, one containing Shaver's chicks, the other