CHAPTER XVIII
THE DRUNKEN CABMAN
A FEW nights after this, Diamond woke up suddenly, believing he
heard North Wind thundering along. But it was something quite
different. South Wind was moaning round the chimneys, to be
sure, for she was not very happy that night, but it was not her
voice that had wakened Diamond. Her voice would only have lulled
him the deeper asleep. It was a loud, angry voice, now growling
like that of a beast, now raving like that of a madman; and when
Diamond came a little wider awake, he knew that it was the voice
of the drunken cabman, the wall of whose room was at the head of
his bed. It was anything but pleasant to hear, but he could not
help hearing it. At length there came a cry from the woman, and
then a scream from the baby. Thereupon Diamond thought it time
that somebody did something, and as himself was the only
somebody at hand, he must go and see whether he could not do
something. So he got up and put on part of his clothes, and went
down the stair, for the cabman's room did not open upon their
stair, and he had to go out into the yard, and in at the next
door. This, fortunately, the cabman, being drunk, had left open.
By the time he reached their stair, all was still except
the voice of the crying baby, which guided him to the right
door.
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