McGraw," said Mrs. Kelly.
"Bring the tea, Louisa," said Miss Anderson, "and then I want to show
you how pleasant my home is here."
Mrs. Kelly gave a sniff. "Hum, yessum, it's sunny, but I've seen your
home up town, and it's beyond the likes of me to see why you're down
here at all, at all."
"Yes," said Mrs. McGinniss, "an' I've come to say that you'd better stay
up there an' stop teachin' my childer about their insides. I'm tired of
hearin' 'I can't eat this an' I can't eat that, cause teacher says there
ain't no food walue.' An' there's Mrs. Polinski, down the street, says
she'll have no more foolishness."
Mrs. Kelly had caught her breath again. "Her Rebecca come home only
yestidy an' cut all the stitches in Ikey's clo'es, an' him sewed up for
the winter."
Just then a woman with a shawl over her head came in without knocking.
With a nod to the three women, she faced the teacher. "Now, I'd like to
know one thing," she said; "you sent my Josie home this morning to wash
the patchouly offen her hair; now, I want to know just one thing--does
she come here to be smelt or to be learnt?"
"There's another thing, too," said Mrs. Kelly; "I want that physical
torture business stopped. The young ones are tearin' all their clo'es
off, an' it's _got to be stopped_!"
Katherine looked a little dazed and her voice trembled a bit as she
said: "Wouldn't you like to look at the flat?"
"No, Miss, we wouldn't," said Mrs.
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