The Cuckoo Tree by Joan Aiken

a mortification. And as for you—you puny little wind-shaken emmet—I could make you wish you'd never been borned."
    Dido was silent. Mrs. Lubbage evidently took her silence for defiance; she went on,
    "And I hear you bin upalong to Tegleaze, where you've no right nor business, making a sossabout, upsiding Mas'r Tobit. You leave that boy be! Do he land hisself in trouble before he come of age, then he won't noways inherit his grandpa's luck-piece."
    Mrs. Lubbage might have said more, but she was interrupted at this moment by Gusset, in the trap, who came to a halt by them.
    "Evening, Missis Lubbage," be greeted the wise woman politely. "Evening, Missie Twido Dight. I brought ye some more stuff for the sick navy gennleman."
    With a surly jerk of her head, Mrs. Lubbage retired to her own house.
    Dido would have taken the heavy basket from Gusset, but he insisted on carrying it in. As he did so, Dido's quick eye caught sight of Sannie, as on the previous occasion, slipping from the back of the trap and darting off to visit her friend.
    "Don't I just wish I was that flea-bitten rat for five minutes to hear what the old crows is a-talking about in there," Dido thought. "I bet it's nothing good."
    Gusset, it turned out, was dying to have a word with Captain Hughes.
    "I did hear, Cap'n, sir," he quavered politely, "as how your ship was the
Thrush?
"
    "You heard right," answered the Captain who, propped against rolled-up sheeps' fleeces, was drinking barley soup.
    "I've a nevvy on that vessel," explained Gusset. "Able seaman Noah Gusset. Did ee e'er come across the boy, Cap'n, sir? Do 'e still be live and kicking?"
    "Why, certainly! He is a fine fellow—will probably end up as Master Gunner. I have often spoken to him," the Captain said cordially. Old Gusset's face lit up at this news.
    "My brother Ed'ard'll be in a rare proud scarrifunge when I tell him!" he said, and could not do too much for the Captain; he bustled about, toasting bits of bread and warming up a mixture of wine and spices which he said would make the Captain "sleep like a juggy."
    Dido, seeing that she was not needed for a few moments, said quietly to Gusset, "I'm jist going aloft a minute, mister, to see arter summat; shan't be long," and nipped up into the roof. Using the utmost caution she crept along to the loft over Mrs. Lubbage's kitchen. The moon had risen by now and slivers of light, finding their way through cracks between the tiles, showed that Cris was not there; most likely, Dido guessed, having had his hunger stayed with bread and cheese, he had gone back to sleep, and would not return all night in case Mrs. Lubbage should listen to his dreams.
    "Blest if I'd want her a-listening to mine. Though I dessay it's all rubbish," Dido thought.
    Mrs. Lubbage's trap door was closed, but Dido lay with her ear pressed against the crack, through which came a faint gleam of candlelight.
    "Tell me about it again," she heard Mrs. Lubbage say.
    "I done tell you many, many time!"
    "Aye, but I had dunnamany things go caterwise on me today. The cow died, and my Tib-rat got hurted, and yon flarksy little madam nabbling at me—I could do wi' hearing summat brightsome."
    "Is all green and warm," Sannie said. "Green and warm from east to west, from north to south. Orange trees, mango trees, love apples, sweet grass and honey flowers, all a-blowing and a-blooming. The sea she do sing by day and by night, white sea a-breaking on the black rocks. Old Fire Mountain, he up above, a-muttering in he sleep but never
waking. And in that island, isn't no rudeness, isn't no mocking of old people; old people paid proper respect, is loved, is given the callum drink and bonita bread, quilt stuffed with happiness feathers, wherever they do fancy to warm they bones."
    "That's the place for me," Mrs. Lubbage said. "Round hereaways they treats you like dirt, even if they
is
scairt of you. Treats you like dirt and owes you money. If they gets to owe you too much, then they takes and drowns