as I tugged hard to get its owner down into the
garden; but distant and muffled as that voice was, it seemed familiar
when it yelled again:

"Oh I pray let me go this time, sir."

"No," I shouted, as I gave the leg a snatch and hung on, "Come down, you
thieving rascal, come down."

"Why, it's you, is it?" came from the top of the wall, a little plainer
now.

"What! George Day!" I exclaimed, but without relaxing my hold.

"Oh, you sneak!" he cried. "Let go, will you."

"No," I cried stoutly. "Come down."

"Sha'n't. It ain't your place. Let go, you sneak."

"I sha'n't," I cried angrily. "Come down, you thief."

"If you call me a thief I'll come down and half smash you. Let go!"

His courage returned as he found out who was his captor, and he kicked
out savagely, but I held on.

"Do you hear?" he cried. "Here, let go, and I'll give you a fourpenny
piece out of my next pocket-money."

"You come down to Mr Brownsmith," I cried.

"Get out! You know who I am: George Day."

"I know you're a thief, and I shall take you up to Mr Brownsmith," I
said, "and here he comes."

"If you don't let go," he cried with a sudden access of fury, "I'll just
come down and I'll--"

He did not finish his threat. I daresay it would have been something
very dreadful, but I was not in the least frightened as I held on; but
as he clung to the big quaint coping of the wall he suddenly gave two or
three such tremendous kicks that one of them, aided by his getting his
free foot on my shoulder, was given with such force that I was driven
backwards, and after staggering a few steps, caught my heel and came
down in a sitting position upon the path.

I leaped to my feet again, but only just in time to hear a scuffling
noise on the top of the wall, the sound of some one dropping on the
other side, and then _pat, pat, pat_, steps fast repeated, as my
prisoner ran away.

"Ah!" I exclaimed, with a stamp of the foot in my disappointment.

"Chiv-ee! Why, ho! Where are yer?"

"Here, Shock!" I cried in answer to the shout on my right, and the boy
came running up.

"Got him?"

"No," I replied. "He climbed up the wall and kicked me backwards.
Didn't you catch one?"

"No. They skiddled off like rabbuts, and the one I tried to run down
dodged me in the dark, and when I heerd him he was close up to the fence
t'other side, and got away. Didn't I give it some of 'em though!"

"Oh! I do wish we had caught one," I exclaimed