Page:Gissing - The Nether World, vol. III, 1889.djvu/198

188 scream the child set up a shrill cry, and this increased his rage. With his clenched fist he dealt blow after blow at the half-prostrate woman, speaking no word, but uttering a strange sound, such as might come from some infuriate animal Pennyloaf still screamed, till at length the door was thrown open and their neighbour, Mrs, Griffin, showed herself.

“Well, I never!” she cried, wrathfully, rushing upon Bob. “Now you just stop that, young man! I thought it ’ud be comin’ to this before long. I saw you was goin’ that way.”

The mildness of her expressions was partly a personal characteristic, partly due to Mrs. Griffin’s very large experience of such scenes as this. Indignant she might be, but the situation could not move her to any unwonted force of utterance. Enough that Bob drew back as soon as he was bidden, and seemed from his silence to be half-ashamed of himself.

Pennyloaf let herself lie at full length on the floor, her hands clutched protectingly about her head; she sobbed in a quick, terrified way, and appeared powerless to stop, even when Mrs. Griffin tried to raise her.

“What’s he been a-usin’ you like this for?”