to count upon what a woman will do; and I think that I must have vexed
her, almost as much as she vexed me. And now to see what comes of
it." So I put my horse across the moorland; and he threw his chest out
bravely.

Now if I tried to set down at length all the things that happened to me,
upon this adventure, every in and out, and up and down, and to and fro,
that occupied me, together with the things I saw, and the things I heard
of, however much the wiser people might applaud my narrative, it is
likely enough that idle readers might exclaim, "What ails this man?
Knows he not that men of parts and of real understanding, have told
us all we care to hear of that miserable business. Let him keep to his
farm, and his bacon, and his wrestling, and constant feeding."

Fearing to meet with such rebuffs (which after my death would vex me), I
will try to set down only what is needful for my story, and the clearing
of my character, and the good name of our parish. But the manner in
which I was bandied about, by false information, from pillar to post, or
at other times driven quite out of my way by the presence of the King's
soldiers, may be known by the names of the following towns, to which
I was sent in succession, Bath, Frome, Wells, Wincanton, Glastonbury,
Shepton, Bradford, Axbridge, Somerton, and Bridgwater.

This last place I reached on a Sunday night, the fourth or fifth of
July, I think--or it might be the sixth, for that matter; inasmuch as I
had been too much worried to get the day of the month at church. Only I
know that my horse and myself were glad to come to a decent place, where
meat and corn could be had for money; and being quite weary of wandering
about, we hoped to rest there a little.

Of this, however, we found no chance, for the town was full of the good
Duke's soldiers; if men may be called so, the half of whom had never
been drilled, nor had fired a gun. And it was rumoured among them,
that the "popish army," as they called it, was to be attacked that very
night, and with God's assistance beaten. However, by this time I had
been taught to pay little attention to rumours; and having sought vainly
for Tom Faggus among these poor rustic warriors, I took to my hostel;
and went to bed, being as weary as weary can be.

Falling asleep immediately, I took heed of nothing; although the town
was all alive, and lights had come glancing, as I lay down, and shouts
making echo all round my room. But all I did w