"You'd better take him, dear," he said.
To the young husband's astonishment, Zoie waved him from her in
terror, and called loudly for Aggie. But no sooner had Aggie
appeared on the scene, than a sharp whistle was heard from the
pavement below.
"Pull down the shade!" cried Zoie frantically.
Aggie hastened toward the window.
Attributing Zoie's uneasiness to a caprice of modesty, Alfred
turned from the cradle to reassure her.
"No one can see in way up here," he said.
To Zoie's distress, the lowering of the shade was answered by a
yet shriller whistle from the street below.
"Was it 'up' or 'down'?" cried Zoie to Aggie in an agony of
doubt, as she tried to recall her instructions to Jimmy.
"I don't know," answered Aggie. "I've forgotten."
Another impatient whistle did not improve their memory. Alarmed
by Zoie's increasing excitement, and thinking she was troubled
merely by a sick woman's fancy that someone might see through the
window, Alfred placed the babe quickly in its cradle and crossed
to the young wife's bed.
"It was up, dear," he said. "You had Aggie put it down."
"Then I want it up," declared the seemingly perverse Zoie.
"But it was up," argued Alfred.
A succession of emotional whistles set Zoie to pounding the
pillows.
"Put it down!" she commanded.
"But Zoie----" protested Alfred.
"Did I say 'up' or did I say 'down'?" moaned the half-demented
Zoie, while long whistles and short whistles, appealing whistles
and impatient whistles followed each other in quick succession.
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