eir escape.

"I told you, Mynheers and lovely Vrouws, that I should astonish you,"
exclaimed the stout individual on the cask. "Each of you shall be
welcome to the cats you can catch." A few boys and girls, who seemed to
consider it great fun, made chase after the cats. The Count and the
Baron, and not a few other persons, being considerably irate at the hoax
that had been practised upon them, turned furiously towards the burly
individual, who still kept his seat on the cask.

"How dare you sit there laughing at us!" exclaimed one.

"You impudent fellow! you deserve to be ducked in the canal," cried
another.

"You will only receive your due if we kick you out of the village,"
cried a third.

"A very proper way to treat him," exclaimed a fourth.

"Then let us begin!" exclaimed a fifth.

The stout individual, finding the tide of public favour had decidedly
turned against him, leaped off his cask, and fought his way through the
angry crowd, who had, fortunately for him, been somewhat dispersed by
the cats. Some tried to catch him, others tried to trip him up; but he
was a stout fellow, and was not to be easily caught. Dodging in and out
among them, till seeing a narrow lane which no one at the moment was
guarding, he dashed down it, hoping to make his escape from the village;
but instead of leading him to the outside, as he had hoped, it conducted
him to the very centre. On he ran, followed by the whole crowd, the
Count and Baron joining in the hue and cry. The village resounded with
shouts of "Stop thief! stop thief!" but these only made the burly
individual run the faster. A few of the inhabitants had made a short
cut, hoping to meet him in front; but they only arrived in time to catch
him by the skirts of his coat, which gave way as he sprang by them;
several others made a grab at him, some at the collar, some on one side,
some on the other, till the coat was reduced to shreds, when slipping
his arms out of it he again sprang forward. The Count and the Baron,
who had been rushing on with the crowd, were by some means or other
separated. The Count having lost sight of the chase, thinking after all
that it was no business of his, returned to his inn. It would have been
well for the Baron if he had done the same; but as he was running on at
a more rapid rate than he was wont to move, he tripped and fell; the
rest of those engaged in the pursuit, in their eagerness scarcely
perceiving what had happened, p