liceman, if you please? I be catched in
thicky sloan tree."

So Borlase went to her aid and he found a basket half full of amazing
sloes and a maiden the like of which he never had found afore. A tall
piece with flaxen hair and a face so lovely as a picture. Her eyes were
bluer than Samuel's and twice so large, and she had a nose a bit
tip-tilted and a wonderful mouth, red as a rose and drawn down to the
corners in a very fascinating manner. She was sturdy and well rounded, and
looked to be a tidy strong girl, and her voice struck the policeman as
about the most beautiful sound as he'd heard out of human lips. He saw in
half a shake as she weren't in no trouble really, but had just challenged
to take the wind out of his sails; and when she'd got free of the thorns,
she thanked him with such a lot of gratitude for rescuing of her that
'twas all he could do to keep his face. A lovely thing sure enough; and
such is the power of beauty that Samuel felt a caution might be
sufficient. He was out to fright her, however, and he was terrible
interested also, because he'd never seen the maid before and felt a good
bit thunderstruck by such a wonder. She disarmed his curiosity without
much trouble, and the truth decided him to do no more; because he found
she had a way to her that made him powerless as a goose-chick.

"Didn't you see the board?" he asked; and she assured him that she had
not.

"I'm a stranger in these parts as yet," she said, "and I was by here
yesterday and marked these wonderful sloan, so I came to-day with a basket,
because my father's very fond of sloe gin, you understand, and I'm going
to make him some, if you'll be so kind as to let me keep the berries. I
much hope you'll do so, please young man, and I give you my word solemn
and faithful never to come here no more."

Their blue eyes met and 'twas Samuel's that looked down first.

"Who might your father be?" he asked.

"Mr. Chawner Green," she answered. "'Tis this way with us, you see. My
sister, that kept house for him, have just married, and so now I be come
to take care of father."

"He can take care of himself by all accounts," answered Samuel, but in
quite an amiable tone of voice, because the girl's magic was already
working upon him.

"Can he?" she said. "I never heard of no man that can take care of
himself. Can you? Anyway, my father can't. He's as helpless as most other
men be without a woman to mind 'em. And I love to be here. I was in
s