and I pitched the knife after the cloth; and, if Silas hadn't
stopped me, I think it's likely I might have shied John Jago himself
into the lime next. As it was, Silas kept hold of me. Silas shouted out
to him, 'Be off with you! and don't come back again, if you don't want
to be burned in the kiln!' He stood looking at us for a minute,
fetching his breath, and holding his torn coat round him. Then he spoke
with a deadly-quiet voice and a deadly-quiet look: 'Many a true word,
Mr. Silas,' he says, 'is spoken in jest. _I shall not come back
again_.' He turned about, and left us. We stood staring at each other
like a couple of fools. 'You don't think he means it?' I says. 'Bosh!'
says Silas. 'He's too sweet on Naomi not to come back.' What's the
matter now, Naomi?"

I had noticed it too. She started and turned pale, when Ambrose
repeated to her what Silas had said to him.

"Nothing is the matter," Naomi answered. "Your brother has no right to
take liberties with my name. Go on. Did Silas say any more while he was
about it?"

"Yes; he looked into the kiln; and he says, 'What made you throw away
the knife, Ambrose?'--'How does a man know why he does anything,' I
says, 'when he does it in a passion?'--'It's a ripping good knife,'
says Silas; 'in your place, I should have kept it.' I picked up the
stick off the ground. 'Who says I've lost it yet?' I answered him; and
with that I got up on the side of the kiln, and began sounding for the
knife, to bring it, you know, by means of the stick, within easy reach
of a shovel, or some such thing. 'Give us your hand,' I says to Silas.
'Let me stretch out a bit and I'll have it in no time.' Instead of
finding the knife, I came nigh to falling myself into the burning lime.
The vapor overpowered me, I suppose. All I know is, I turned giddy, and
dropped the stick in the kiln. I should have followed the stick to a
dead certainty, but for Silas pulling me back by the hand. 'Let it be,'
says Silas. 'If I hadn't had hold of you, John Jago's knife would have
been the death of you, after all!' He led me away by the arm, and we
went on together on the road to the wood. We stopped where you found
us, and sat down on the felled tree. We had a little more talk about
John Jago. It ended in our agreeing to wait and see what happened, and
to keep our own counsel in the meantime. You and Mr. Lefrank came upon
us, Naomi, while we were still talking; and you guessed right when you
guessed that we had a