ful blow thereby. I wouldn't 'tempt
to take up a man without my staff--no, not I. If I hadn't the law to gie
me courage, why, instead o' my taking up him he might take up me!'

'Now, I'm a king's man myself; and can give you authority enough for
this,' said the formidable officer in gray. 'Now then, all of ye, be
ready. Have ye any lanterns?'

'Yes--have ye any lanterns?--I demand it!' said the constable.

'And the rest of you able-bodied--'

'Able-bodied men--yes--the rest of ye!' said the constable.

'Have you some good stout staves and pitch-forks--'

'Staves and pitchforks--in the name o' the law! And take 'em in yer
hands and go in quest, and do as we in authority tell ye!'

Thus aroused, the men prepared to give chase. The evidence was, indeed,
though circumstantial, so convincing, that but little argument was needed
to show the shepherd's guests that after what they had seen it would look
very much like connivance if they did not instantly pursue the unhappy
third stranger, who could not as yet have gone more than a few hundred
yards over such uneven country.

A shepherd is always well provided with lanterns; and, lighting these
hastily, and with hurdle-staves in their hands, they poured out of the
door, taking a direction along the crest of the hill, away from the town,
the rain having fortunately a little abated.

Disturbed by the noise, or possibly by unpleasant dreams of her baptism,
the child who had been christened began to cry heart-brokenly in the room
overhead. These notes of grief came down through the chinks of the floor
to the ears of the women below, who jumped up one by one, and seemed glad
of the excuse to ascend and comfort the baby, for the incidents of the
last half-hour greatly oppressed them. Thus in the space of two or three
minutes the room on the ground-floor was deserted quite.

But it was not for long. Hardly had the sound of footsteps died away
when a man returned round the corner of the house from the direction the
pursuers had taken. Peeping in at the door, and seeing nobody there, he
entered leisurely. It was the stranger of the chimney-corner, who had
gone out with the rest. The motive of his return was shown by his
helping himself to a cut piece of skimmer-cake that lay on a ledge beside
where he had sat, and which he had apparently forgotten to take with him.
He also poured out half a cup more mead from the quantity that remained,
ravenously eating and drinkin