?
Be sharp and tell me,' I ordered. 'Nobbut four on us ligging in a
ditch,' says Joe, as quiet as could be. I telled 'em more shame to 'em,
and bid them get up and move on, or I'd lend them a lick of the
gig-whip; for my notion was they were all fresh. 'We'd ha' done that an
hour sin', but we're teed wi' a bit o' band,' says Joe. So in a while I
got down and loosed 'em wi' my penknife; and Scott would ride wi' me, to
tell me all how it happened; and t' others are coming on as fast as
their feet will bring them."

"Well, I am greatly obliged to you, Mr. Yorke."

"Are you, my lad? You know you're not. However, here are the rest
approaching. And here, by the Lord, is another set with lights in their
pitchers, like the army of Gideon; and as we've th' parson wi',
us--good-evening, Mr. Helstone--we'se do."

Mr. Helstone returned the salutation of the individual in the gig very
stiffly indeed. That individual proceeded,--

"We're eleven strong men, and there's both horses and chariots amang us.
If we could only fall in wi' some of these starved ragamuffins of
frame-breakers we could win a grand victory. We could iv'ry one be a
Wellington--that would please ye, Mr. Helstone--and sich paragraphs as
we could contrive for t' papers! Briarfield suld be famous. But we'se
hev a column and a half i' th' _Stilbro' Courier_ ower this job, as it
is, I dare say. I'se expect no less."

"And I'll promise you no less, Mr. Yorke, for I'll write the article
myself," returned the rector.

"To be sure--sartainly! And mind ye recommend weel that them 'at brake
t' bits o' frames, and teed Joe Scott's legs wi' band, suld be hung
without benefit o' clergy. It's a hanging matter, or suld be. No doubt
o' that."

"If I judged them I'd give them short shrift!" cried Moore. "But I mean
to let them quite alone this bout, to give them rope enough, certain
that in the end they will hang themselves."

"Let them alone, will ye, Moore? Do you promise that?"

"Promise! No. All I mean to say is, I shall give myself no particular
trouble to catch them; but if one falls in my way----"

"You'll snap him up, of course. Only you would rather they would do
something worse than merely stop a wagon before you reckon with them.
Well, we'll say no more on the subject at present. Here we are at my
door, gentlemen, and I hope you and the men will step in. You will none
of you be the worse of a little refreshment."

Moore and Helstone opposed this proposition