There was an Old Woman by Howard Engel

We’ll teach you a lesson, won’t we friends?” His appeal to the guild members was less than overwhelming. Shock was written on most of the faces,but, at the same time, they pushed themselves forward so as not to miss a moment of the show.
    Suddenly Maureen was back at the top of the stairs. She was alone. But her eyes were as big as platters. “There’s a man out there in the street without any clothes on!” For a moment no one moved. Then, in a rush, everybody moved past Ramsden and me and down the stairs to see this marvel. Ramsden had to hitch himself out of the way in order not to be trampled. He was on his hands and knees before the room was half empty and fully upright by the time the room was cleared. As I looked him over, he sneered at me, like a heavy in a Chaplin two-reeler. I looked him up and down as though I was witnessing a miracle.
    â€œHallelujah!” I said, bursting out laughing. “Hallelujah! The Lord be praised!”
    â€œGo to hell, you dirty bastard!” he said, spitting out the venom. I turned to see what was going on downstairs in the street.

TWELVE
    Except for Ramsden, I was the last down the steps and out into the street. I don’t know what I expected to see. I don’t even recall whether any picture formed in my mind as I came out to see what was going on. Now, when I think back, I can’t see how I could have failed to guess what I would find.
    Coming from the warm hall and the activity at the top of the stairs, I found the night air sharp against my face, a cold reminder of winters past and the winter that was just beginning. As soon as my eyes adjusted to the dark, I could see him: Kogan, in the middle of Ontario Street, naked as a jay-bird and carrying a placard that read: “Ramsden Killed Lizzy Oldridge.” The Bede Bunch was gathered on both sides of the street, taking in Kogan from every angle. There were still no signs of the Niagara Regional Police, but I thought I could hear a siren in the distance. Kogan was drunk, of course, but not drunk enough to miss the effect he was having on the blue-rinsed women on the sidewalk. Even the old gentleman in the wine-coloured cardigan looked shocked.
    Kogan did a sort of pirouette on a manhole cover and shared his smile with all of us. His face altered, however,when he saw Thurleigh Ramsden come out into the street. “There he is!” he shouted, pointing at Ramsden framed under the lighted pediment of the doorway. “Look at the bastard!” The crowd turned to stare at Ramsden, who was now red above the collar. The noise of the siren was growing louder. Kogan didn’t seem to hear it, or, if he did, he didn’t care. I thought that I’d better try to get him out of there.
    While the crowd was still surrounding Kogan, perhaps even protecting him from being seen from a few points of the compass, I took off my coat and went over to him in the middle of the street. “Here!” I said. “Put this on!” I threw the coat over his shoulders and tried to get at least one button through a buttonhole. I’d never thought of Kogan as a big man, but I never thought he was so little either. My coat was dragging on the pavement as I pulled one of the armless sleeves towards the far sidewalk.
    Even Kogan realized that the time for action had arrived. The arrival of the police was announced in flashing red and yellow lights. Kogan grabbed at a plastic shopping bag with a shirt-tail hanging out and dropped his placard. I pushed him into the convenience store across the street from the Kingsway Hall and hurried him down the middle aisle. When I turned around, two policemen had just come to the entrance, their breath making white patches on the glass door as they opened it. Just then, Kogan pulled away from me and ran in the direction of the cops.
    â€œKogan!” I shouted, but he ignored me. What he was doing was a flash of genius in a hunted man. He opened up all of the