"I heard de engines puffin' past early dis
mawnin', an' I gits up an' goes out. Dere was a toy store on fire, an'
dey frowed a lot ob toys out in de street. Dere was Jumpin' Jacks, an'
Dolls, an' Steamboats, an'--an'--"
Two of the older colored boys started on a rush for the door, one of
them crying:
"I'se gwine to git a steamboat!"
"Yo' can't git none now, Sim!" shouted Jeff. "De p'licemans is all
aroun' de place. Dey won't let you take nuffin. But I done fooled 'em.
Anyhow, de fire's out now, an' dey'll be puttin' de toys back. But I
done got a white cat!"
So he had, but the China Cat was not so very white now. Besides the dirt
from the fire and the grime from Jeff's hands, she was sticky with
molasses, and every bit of dust flying about the basement room seemed to
settle on the poor toy pussy.
"Lemme hab her, Jeff!" pleaded one of his sisters.
"Well, I done let yo' hold her for a minute," said Jeff, and he gave
the China Cat into the hands of the little black girl. But as this girl
had been eating bread and sugar, she got the poor China Cat stickier
than ever.
"Lemme hold her now, Jeff!" pleaded another black tot.
"Nope, I ain't held her long 'nuff!" declared the first.
"Heah! Gib her to me!" ordered the second.
"No! No! Jeff said I could hab her!" cried the first.
One tried to take the China Cat away from the other, and in the scramble
a chair was upset and the toy nearly fell to the floor.
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