The little girl fled, screaming, to the shelter of the
pines, but the woman calmly went on picking. She took not the least
notice. I had expected her to run at sight of me, and it was
embarrassing. There was I, charging down the field like a wild bull
upon a woman who would not get out of the way. I could only slow
down, supremely conscious of how ridiculous it all was. At a
distance of ten feet she straightened up and deigned to look at me.
I came to a halt and blushed to the roots of my hair. Perhaps I
really did frighten her (I sometimes try to persuade myself that this
is so), or perhaps she took pity on me; but, at any rate, she stalked
out of my field with great composure, nay, majesty, her arms brimming
with orange and gold.
Nevertheless, thenceforward I saved my lungs and flourished my rifle.
Also, I made fresh generalizations. To commit robbery women take
advantage of their sex. Men have more respect for property than
women. Men are less insistent in crime than women.
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