ate, and a knife to eat food."

At this Mary's joy was abounding. "Put you up the banns," she said.

"Lots of days there is. Wait until I've bought the place."

Mary tightened her inner garments and loosened her outer garments, and
every evening she came to the shop to prepare food for Evan, to make his
bed, and to minister to him as a woman.

Now the daily custom at the shop was twelve gallons of milk, and the tea
packets and flour bags which were on shelves were empty. Evan's anger
was awful. He upbraided Mary, and he prayed to be shown how to worst
Dai. His prayer was respected: at the end of the second week he gave Dai
two pounds more than he had given him the week before.

"Brisk is trade," said Dai.

"I took into stock flour, tea, and four tins of job biscuits," replied
Evan. "Am I not your servant?"

"Well done, good and faithful servant."

It was so that Evan bought more than he would sell, and each week he
held a little money by fraud; and matches also and bundles of firewood
and soap did he buy in Dai's name.

In the middle of the eighth week Dai came down to the shop.

"How goes it?" he asked in English.

"Fine, man. Fine." Changing his language, Evan said: "Keep her will I,
and give you the money as I pledged. Take you the sum and sign you the
paper bach."

Having acted accordingly, Dai cast his gaze on the shelves and on the
floor, and he walked about judging aloud the value of what he saw: "Tea,
three-pound-ten; biscuits, four-six; flour, four-five; firewood, five
shillings; matches, one-ten; soap, one pound. Bring you these to
Petersham. Put you them with the bed and the dishes I kindly lent you."

"For sure me, fulfil my pledge will I," Evan said.

He assembled Dai's belongings and placed them in a cart which he had
borrowed; and on the back of the cart he hung a Chinese lantern which
had in it a lighted candle. When he arrived at Dai's house, he cried:
"Here is your ownings. Unload you them."

Dai examined the inside of the cart. "Mistake there is, Evan. Where's
the stock?"

"Did I not pay you for your stock and shop? Forgetful you are."

Dai's wrath was such that neither could he blaspheme God nor invoke His
help. Removing the slabber which was gathered in his beard and at his
mouth, he shouted: "Put police on you will I."

"Away must I now," said Evan. "Come, take your bed."

"Not touch anything will I. Rachel, witness his roguery. Steal he does
from the religious."

Evan drov