The Ogress and the Orphans

The Mayor is agitated. Until now, he’s been able to convince the people of Stone-in-the-Glen that they adore him and that they should give him everything they have, but the conversation with the cobbler makes him nervous that his control is waning. He hopes the speech he’s about to give will move the people back to his side, but if not, he can cause another fire to convince them since “it had worked before, after all” (233).

Instead of a crowd of adoring townspeople, the Mayor finds an irritated group that wants to express concerns rather than listen to a speech, and no matter what he says, they aren’t bedazzled by him like usual. The people demand the Mayor chase off the Ogress. They blame her for everything that’s gone wrong in Stone-in-the-Glen, and they are sure she’s dangerous. The Mayor proclaims he needs more money to address the problem of the Ogress, and the people give willingly. The Mayor speaks about the unfairness of having the Ogress nearby without ever promising to do anything about her, and the people get increasingly angry. Finally, he lists things that would be against the law, such as throwing rocks at the Ogress, specifying that “no one should get caught breaking the law” (240).