guess he was up against it.

"Lucky 'twas you," he said. "If it had been your mate, I'd have met with a
difficulty. Very smart, Joseph! You've bowled me out all right, so we'll
cry quits and least said soonest mended."

But the policeman wasn't in no mood like that.

"Come, Pegram," he answered. "I'd sooner have took any man on earth but
you, and you've put me in a cruel fix, and that's all there is to it. Give
me that air-gun and get in the car and say nought if you please."

T'other had a lot to say, however. They talked for ten minutes, but the
poacher couldn't move the policeman, though he appealed to his friendship
and so on. Then Joseph saw a look that he never had seen afore in the
little man's eyes and was startled, but not afeared. For a minute Teddy
glared like a devil in the moonlight, and an awful evil expression fairly
flooded his face.

"Think twice," he said. "For God's sake think twice, Ford, afore you do
this. There's a lot more to me than you know--a lot I've thought to
overcome--suffering, misery, curses, disgrace. But if you take me to the
'cooler' to-night--hear me on my oath: you'll be sorry as long as you
live, for I'm built that way."

"I am sorry already," answered Joseph, "I'm as sorry as any living man can
be, and 'tis a bitter cruel thing for me that you've forced this upon me.
I warned you--most serious I done so--and what more could I do? You've
none to thank for this but yourself and you well know it. But my duty's my
duty, and I don't break my policeman's oath for you, or any man living."

"You ain't on duty to-night, however," replied Teddy.

"A policeman's always on duty," said Ford, "and 'tis vain to threat or
argue. I've got no choice."

But the other did argue still, and when he saw he was done, he threatened
also and said hard, terrible words. They went in one of Joseph's ears and
out of the other, of course, and he only wanted to get a painful job out
of hand by now. So he cut it short, and in another minute pretty well
lifted Teddy into the car and bade the driver carry 'em to Little Silver.

Pegram said no more after that, but a fiend glared out of his eyes as he
stared on the other, and Joseph, though he'd seen some hard cases, said
afterwards that he never wanted to look on such a wicked face again.

But the look was dead when they got to the police-station, and Ford
tumbled his man into a cell, then handed the pheasants over to the
Inspector and made his report.