Winship," I said, "Nelly has told you the truth; she doesn't need
money; she--"
"Three thousand will save me!" Helen cried. "I can pay a little to
everybody. I can hold out, I can--"
"Please, Miss--the furniture--"
Behind Clesta appeared two men who gaped at Helen in momentary
forgetfulness of their errand.
Helen's creditors have proved more than reasonable, with the exception of
the furniture people; their demands were such that there seemed no
alternative but to surrender the goods. As the men who came for them
advanced into the room, stammering questions about the articles they were
to remove, Helen struggled to her feet and started to meet them, then
stopped, clutching at a table for support. Their eyes never left her face.
"Are they takin' your things, Sis?" asked Mr. Winship.
Her feverish glance answered him.
"What's to pay?" he inquired.
"Want to keep the stuff, Boss?" asked the head packer.
"Yes," I said, seeing her distress, and resolving desperately to find the
means, somehow.
"It ain't none o' your look-out," interposed Mr. Winship. "Sis ain't a-
goin' to be beholden to her husband, not till she's married.
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