s Tony. What makes you ask?"

"Because I want to know."

'When they had reached the top of the hill, at "Sour-Water Bat's"
house, the three girls stood still and laid their heads together.
Suddenly, like frightened pigeons, they ran in different directions,
and left the gamekeeper all alone on the road. He whistled to his dog,
who had started in pursuit, put his left arm in his gun-strap, and went
on his way.

At the stone-quarry the girls met again and stood still.

"You are too rough, you are," said Tony to Babbett.

"Yes, you are so," Bridget chimed in.

"He didn't hurt you," continued Tony, "and you went at him like a
bull-dog."

"I didn't hurt him either," answered Babbett; "I only fooled him. Why
didn't the jackanapes answer me? And, another thing, I don't like the
green-coat, anyhow. What does he mean by running through the whole
village with us and making people think we want something of him? And
what will Sepper[6] and Caspar think of it? I'm not such a good-natured
little puss as you are; I don't take things from counts or barons, nor
barons' gamekeepers either."

Here the conversation was interrupted by the appearance of Sepper and
Caspar, who had looked for their sweethearts at the cherry-bush in
vain. Babbett now told the whole story so glibly that no one else could
get a word in edgewise. As a good many smart things occurred to her
while she was speaking, she put them into her own mouth, without being
unnecessarily precise. People have a way of embellishing the recital of
their own doings and sayings in this manner: it requires so much less
readiness and courage to invent these things when the person at whom
they are levelled is gone than when he is by.

Sepper expressed his hearty approval of Babbett's proceedings, and
said, "These gentry-folk must be stumped short the minute you begin
with them."

The gamekeeper certainly did not belong to the "gentry-folk;" but it
was convenient to class him so, for the purpose of scolding the more
freely about him.

Sepper gave an arm to Tony, his sweetheart, while Bridget hung herself
upon the other. Caspar and Barbara walked beside them; and so they
passed out through the hollow to take a walk.

Sepper and Tony were a splendid pair, both tall and slender, and both
doubly handsome when seen together: among a thousand you would have
picked them out and said, "These two belong together." Sepper wore a
style of dress half-way between that of a peasant an