"Lord bless you, yes, sir," Toby answered, turning upon him
eagerly. "Me an' Jim has been father an' mother and jes' about
everythin' to that little one. She wan't much bigger'n a handful
of peanuts when we begun a-worryin' about her."
"Well, Mandy will do the worrying now," Douglas laughed. "She's
been dying for a chance to mother somebody all along. Why, she
even tried it on me."
"I noticed as how some of those church people seemed to look
kinder queer at me," said Toby, "and I been a-wonderin' if mebbe
they might feel the same about her."
"Oh, they're all right," Douglas assured him; "they'll be her
friends in no time."
"She's fit for 'em, sir," Toby pleaded. "She's good, clean into
the middle of her heart."
"I'm sure of it," Douglas answered.
"I've heard how some church folks feels towards us circus people,
sir, and I jes' wanted ye to know that there ain't finer
families, or better mothers or fathers or grandfathers or
grandmothers anywhere than we got among us. Why, that girl's
mother rode the horses afore her, and her mother afore that, and
her grandmother and grandfather afore that, an' there ain't
nobody what's cared more for their good name and their children's
good name an' her people has. You see, sir, circus folks is all
like that; they's jes' like one big family; they tends to their
business and takes good care o' theirselves--they has to --or
they couldn't do their work.
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