She could see no special reason
for any interest in her own movements. She took advantage of the
parting of the crowd, however, and as she made her way she heard, as
in a waking dream, disjointed sentences that had no meaning at first,
but being pieced together grew finally into an awful whole.
'Why didn't the factory girls bring 'em out? Didn't know they was
there?'
'Say, one of 'em was saved, warn't it?'
'Which one of 'em did she get down before the roof caught?'
'No, 'tain't no such thing; the manager's across the bay; she gave
the alarm herself.'
'She didn't know they was in there; I bet yer they'd run and hid, and
she was hunting 'em when she seen the smoke.'
'Yes, she did; she dropped the girl twin out of the second-story
window into Abe Isaac's arms, but she didn't know the boy was in the
building till just now, and they can't hardly hold her.'
'She's foolish, anyhow, ain't she?'
Mary staggered beyond Rhoda to the front of the crowd.
'Let me under the rope!' she cried, with a mother's very wail in her
tone--'let me under the rope, for God's sake! They're my children!'
At this moment she heard a stentorian voice call to some one, 'Wait a
minute till the firemen get here, and they'll go for him! Come back,
girl, d-n you! you shan't go!'
'Wait? No! NOT wait!' cried Lisa, tearing herself dexterously from
the policeman's clutches, and dashing like a whirlwind up the
tottering stairway before any one else could gather presence of mind
to seize and detain her.
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