tulling up how they was arl gooin' to be promoted, for kitching of Tom
Faggus.

"'Hope to God,' says I to myzell, 'poor Tom wun't coom here to-day: arl
up with her, if 'a doeth: and who be there to suckzade 'un?' Mark me
now, all these charps was good to shutt 'un, as her coom crass the
watter; the watter be waide enow there and stony, but no deeper than my
knee-place.

"'Thee cas'n goo no vurder,' Bill Blacksmith saith to me: 'nawbody
'lowed to crass the vord, until such time as Faggus coom; plaise God us
may mak sure of 'un.'

"'Amen, zo be it,' says I; 'God knoweth I be never in any hurry, and
would zooner stop nor goo on most taimes.'

"Wi' that I pulled my vittles out, and zat a horsebarck, atin' of 'em,
and oncommon good they was. 'Won't us have 'un this taime just,' saith
Tim Potter, as keepeth the bull there; 'and yet I be zorry for 'un. But
a man must kape the law, her must; zo be her can only learn it. And now
poor Tom will swing as high as the tops of they girt hashes there.'

"'Just thee kitch 'un virst,' says I; 'maisure rope, wi' the body to
maisure by.'

"'Hurrah! here be another now,' saith Bill Blacksmith, grinning;
'another coom to help us. What a grave gentleman! A warship of the pace,
at laste!'

"For a gentleman, on a cue-ball horse, was coming slowly down the hill
on tother zide of watter, looking at us in a friendly way, and with a
long papper standing forth the lining of his coat laike. Horse stapped
to drink in the watter, and gentleman spak to 'un kindly, and then they
coom raight on to ussen, and the gentleman's face wor so long and so
grave, us veared 'a wor gooin' to prache to us.

"'Coort o' King's Bench,' saith one man; 'Checker and Plays,' saith
another; 'Spishal Commission, I doubt,' saith Bill Blacksmith; 'backed
by the Mayor of Taunton.'

"'Any Justice of the King's Peace, good people, to be found near here?'
said the gentleman, lifting his hat to us, and very gracious in his
manner.

"'Your honour,' saith Bill, with his hat off his head; 'there be sax or
zeven warships here: arl on 'em very wise 'uns. Squaire Maunder there be
the zinnyer.'

"So the gentleman rode up to Squire Maunder, and raised his cocked hat
in a manner that took the Squire out of countenance, for he could not do
the like of it.

"'Sir,' said he, 'good and worshipful sir, I am here to claim your
good advice and valour; for purposes of justice. I hold His Majesty's
commission, to make to cease a not