At this juncture the boy stepped up to his mother's side, and nestled against her skirt. She clasped his head with both her hands, as though gratefully accepting an offer of succour against an assailant. And then, for the vague purpose of wounding Jake's feelings, she took the child in her arms, and huddling him close to her bosom, she half turned from her husband, as much as to say, "We two are making common cause against you." Jake was cut to the quick. He kept his glance fixed on the reddened, tear-stained profile of her nose, and, choking with hate, he was going to say, "For my part, hang yourself together with him!" But he had self-mastery enough to repress the exclamation, confining himself to a disdainful smile. "Children, children! Woe, how you do sin!" Mrs. Kavarsky sermonized. "Come now, obey an older person. Whoever takes notice of such trifles? You have had a quarrel? _ull right!_ And now make peace. Have an embrace and a good kiss and _dot's ull_! _Hurry yup_, Mr. Podkovnik! Don't be ashamed!" she beckoned to him, her countenance wreathed in voluptuous smiles in anticipation of the love scene about to enact itself before her eyes. Mr. Podkovnik failing to hurry up, however, she went on disappointedly: "Why, Mr. Podkovnik! Look at the boy the Uppermost has given you. Would he might send me one like him. Really, you ought to be ashamed of yourself." "Vot you kickin' aboyt, anyhoy?" Jake suddenly fired out, in English. "Min' jou on businesh an' dot'sh ull," he added indignantly, averting his head. Mrs. Kavarsky grew as red as a boiled lobster. "Vo--vo--vot _you_ keeck aboyt?" she panted, drawing herself up and putting her arms akimbo. "He must think I, too, can be scared by his English. I declare my shirt has turned linen for fright! I was in America while you were hauling away at the bellows in Povodye; do you know it?" "Are you going out of my house or not?" roared Jake, jumping to his feet. "And if I am not, what will you do? Will you call a _politzman_? _Ull right_, do. That is just what I want. I shall tell him I can not leave her alone with a murderer like you, for fear you might kill her and the boy, so that you might dawdle around with that Polish wench of yours. Here you have it!" Saying which, she put her thumb between her index and third finger--the Russian version of the well-known gesture of contempt--presenting it to her adversary together with a generous portion of her tongue. Jake's first impulse was to strike the meddlesome woman. As he started toward her, however, he changed his mind. "_Alla right_, you may remain with her!" he said, rushing up to the clothes rack, and slipping on his coat and hat. "_Alla right_," he repeated with broken breath, "we shall see!" And with a frantic bang of the door he disappeared. * * * * *