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Speaker 1: Welcome to sleep tight stories. Blackie finds a friend. Blackie

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Speaker 1: was now out of the vacant house. It is true,

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Speaker 1: but for a time she did not feel much better off.

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Speaker 1: She was up on a high roof, and as she

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Speaker 1: went to the edge to look down, she thought that

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Speaker 1: it was too far for her to jump, even down

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Speaker 1: into a tree. As soon as I get through with

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Speaker 1: one adventure, make sure I find another, sadly, said Blackie.

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Speaker 1: I had an empty house adventure, and now I am

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Speaker 1: having a roof adventure. I wonder how it will end.

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Speaker 1: I must get down some way. I can't stay up

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Speaker 1: here all night, for it might rain, and I don't

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Speaker 1: like to get wet. Cats do dislike getting wet. You know,

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Speaker 1: they are not like dogs in that way. A dog

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Speaker 1: loves to jump in the water and swim, or at

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Speaker 1: least most dogs do. But you never saw a cat

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Speaker 1: in swimming, at least I never did. Blackie walked up

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Speaker 1: and down the roof for a while. She could look

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Speaker 1: down to the street from in front, and she saw

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Speaker 1: people walking along, as well as many wagons, automobiles and trots.

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Speaker 1: Blackie gave two or three loud mewls, but she soon stopped.

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Speaker 1: There is so much noise down there in the street,

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Speaker 1: and I am up here so high that I don't

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Speaker 1: believe they can hear me, thought the black cat. I

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Speaker 1: may as well keep still. Then she went to the

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Speaker 1: other side of the roof to where she could look

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Speaker 1: down in the backyards of the houses. She saw no

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Speaker 1: one there in any of them, and after she had

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Speaker 1: meowed several times, she also gave that up. Oh dear,

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Speaker 1: thought Blackie, I don't know what I shall do. Suppose

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Speaker 1: it rains during the night. Well, of course I could

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Speaker 1: go down in the empty house again, so I would

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Speaker 1: be dry. But I want something to eat, Oh dear.

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Speaker 1: Running away, even to learn how to jump high fences

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Speaker 1: is not half as nice as I thought it would be.

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Speaker 1: Speckel did not tell me I would have bad adventures.

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Speaker 1: I thought they would all be nice. Once Blackie walked

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Speaker 1: over toward one of the end houses in the row,

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Speaker 1: she was wondering what she would do when all at once,

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Speaker 1: another and the same kind of a scuttle cover as

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Speaker 1: the one she had pushed to one side was opened

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Speaker 1: in the roof in front of her, and up popped

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Speaker 1: the head of a gray haired lady who had a kind,

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Speaker 1: pleasant face, and who looked at Blackie through large glasses.

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Speaker 1: Why it's a cat, I do believe, claimed the lady,

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Speaker 1: whose name, as Blackie later learned, was Missus Thompson. I

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Speaker 1: was wondering what was making that noise walking around on

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Speaker 1: the roof. I'm glad I came up to see. It's

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Speaker 1: a cat. Of course, I'm a cat, said Blackie to herself.

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Speaker 1: I hope I don't look like a dog. Of course.

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Speaker 1: Missus Thompson did not hear Blackie say this, for the

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Speaker 1: cat only thought it to herself, just as we often

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Speaker 1: think things without speaking them out loud. What a fine

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Speaker 1: big black cat, went on, Missus Thompson. Come to me, kitty,

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Speaker 1: how did you get up here? Said Blackie out loud.

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Speaker 1: That and meowing was the only way she had of

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Speaker 1: talking to real folks. But to those who understand, cats

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Speaker 1: can say several things in just those two ways. Sometimes

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Speaker 1: you can tell by the way a catyows whether it

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Speaker 1: is hungry or whether it wants to go outdoors. And

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Speaker 1: when it cries in another way, you know it is

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Speaker 1: in pain. And when it goes purr like that sort

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Speaker 1: of softly and slowly and rubs up against you, why

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Speaker 1: then you know the cat is happy. Blackie was beginning

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Speaker 1: to feel happy again, for she saw the lady looking

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Speaker 1: out through the hole in the roof, and the black

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Speaker 1: cat thought the lady would take her down and feed her.

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Speaker 1: Why you're a nice cat, said the lady, speaking to

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Speaker 1: Blackie and away the cat liked. You certainly are a

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Speaker 1: nice kitty. I wonder how you got up on this roof. Then,

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Speaker 1: as she rubbed Blackie under the cat's ears in a

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Speaker 1: way that Blackie liked, the lady looked along the roofs

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Speaker 1: and she saw on the roof the cover or scuttle

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Speaker 1: which Blackie had pushed to one way to get out. Oh,

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Speaker 1: I see that's how you got up here through the

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Speaker 1: hole in the roof, said the lady. Well, I must

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Speaker 1: close it or the rain might come in mister Smith's house.

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Speaker 1: I see how it is. The family there moved out

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Speaker 1: and you were left behind, Blackie. It's too bad they

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Speaker 1: forgot you. But never mind, I'll take care of you.

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Speaker 1: Of course, missus Thompson was not right in thinking Blackie

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Speaker 1: had been left behind by the family that had moved away,

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Speaker 1: But Missus Thompson did not know that Blackie had run

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Speaker 1: away and had wandered into the vacant house by herself,

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Speaker 1: and Blackie could not tell. Now, I'll just close that

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Speaker 1: scuttle over the roof for mister Smith, went on Missus Thompson.

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Speaker 1: He doesn't know it is open. I dare say. Then

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Speaker 1: after that, I'll take you down in my house, Blackie.

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Speaker 1: You might wonder how the lady knew Blackie's name, never

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Speaker 1: having seen her before. But when a cat is all black,

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Speaker 1: as this one was, it seems natural for every one

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Speaker 1: who meets her for the first time to call her Blackie.

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Speaker 1: Just a minute now, Blackie, said Missus Thompson. Then I

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Speaker 1: will give you something to eat. I know you're hungry.

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Speaker 1: Blackie was meowing her hungry cry, and the lady knew

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Speaker 1: enough about cats to know it. I'll give you some

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Speaker 1: nice milk and a bit of meat in a minute,

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Speaker 1: the lady went on, Just wait until I close mister

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Speaker 1: Smith's scuttle. She climbed out on the roof to do this,

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Speaker 1: and Blackie rubbed against her skirts and purred. Blackie had

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Speaker 1: found a new friend. Go On down my stairs now,

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Speaker 1: said Missus Thompson, as she walked back to the hole

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Speaker 1: in her roof, followed by Blackie. Go on, down, and

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Speaker 1: then I'll close my scuttle and get your supper and

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Speaker 1: my own too. Blackie knew enough to run down. She

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Speaker 1: waited at the foot of the stairs while Missus Thompson

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Speaker 1: fastened her scuttle with hooks, and then Blackie waited for

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Speaker 1: the lady to go ahead and show the way. Blackie

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Speaker 1: found herself in a house just like the empty one

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Speaker 1: she had first entered, but someone lived here, for there

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Speaker 1: was furniture in all the rooms and carpet on the floors.

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Speaker 1: In the other house, the floors were bare boards. Come

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Speaker 1: on down to the kitchen, invited Missus Thompson. I'll feed

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Speaker 1: you there. Blackie understood this talk, and how she did

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Speaker 1: hurry to that kitchen, for she was very hungry. The

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Speaker 1: lady poured out a saucer of nice milk, and you

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Speaker 1: can just imagine how fast Blackie put her red tongue

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Speaker 1: in it to lap it up, for she was thirsty

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Speaker 1: as well as hungry, and milk to a cat is

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Speaker 1: both food and drink. When the saucer was empty, the

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Speaker 1: lady brought Blackie some bits of chicken left over from dinner. Now,

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Speaker 1: then let me see you eat beat that, said Missus Thompson.

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Speaker 1: She talked to Blackie, almost as if the black cat

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Speaker 1: were a real person and could understand. I know many

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Speaker 1: men and women who do that. I do it myself

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Speaker 1: to my pets. I know they don't understand all I say,

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Speaker 1: but I like to think that they do. Missus Thompson

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Speaker 1: lived all alone in her house, and when a lady

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Speaker 1: lives alone and has a cat, a dog, a bird,

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Speaker 1: or a parrot, she gets in the habit of talking

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Speaker 1: to her pets. Yes, you are a nice cat, went

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Speaker 1: on Missus Thompson, as she once more stroked Blackie. Smooth fur.

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Speaker 1: Came from a good home. I can tell that. And

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Speaker 1: why the folks moved away and left you behind, I

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Speaker 1: can't see. I'll keep you for a while and perhaps

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Speaker 1: they may remember about you and come to get you.

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Speaker 1: If they don't come, I'll take you to the country

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Speaker 1: with me, for I will soon be going there. After

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Speaker 1: her meal, Blackie washed herself carefully, as her mother had

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Speaker 1: taught her to do. Then she curled up in a

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Speaker 1: black ball at the feet of the kind lady. It

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Speaker 1: was now dark, and the lady lit the light. I'm

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Speaker 1: glad I didn't have to stay up on the roof

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Speaker 1: or in that empty house all night, thought Blackie, purring

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Speaker 1: away and beginning to feel a bit sleepy. My running

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Speaker 1: away is turning out all right. After all, I am

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Speaker 1: in a nice house, though I may not stay. I

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Speaker 1: have not run far away enough yet. I might go

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Speaker 1: a bit further before I go back to Arthur and Mabel.

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Speaker 1: The old lady sat reading now and then speaking to Blackie,

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Speaker 1: who answered with a purr. I once had a white cat,

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Speaker 1: said the lady. But you are just as nice though

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Speaker 1: you are black. I shall keep you a long time,

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Speaker 1: I hope. Presently the doorbell rang up, jumped the nice

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Speaker 1: old lady. Someone to see me, she exclaimed, Perhaps it

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Speaker 1: is someone who has come after Blackie. She went to

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Speaker 1: the front door, and Blackie waited. I wonder if that

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Speaker 1: can be Arthur or Mabel after me, thought the black cat.

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Speaker 1: Eight