mrades afterwards in barracks, the bull said:

"Why danged if it bean't our Joe!"

I must confess I did not hear this observation in my dream, but I was
some distance off, and if Mr. Ricochet, Q.C., in cross-examination had
said, "Will you swear, sir, upon your oath that the bull did not use
those words?" I must have been bound to answer, "I will not."

But presently they met old Tim, the Collie, and there was no need for Joe
to speak to him. Up he came with a bound and caressed his old mate in
the most loving manner.

The Queen's uniform was no disguise to him.

The next day it was quite a treat to see Joe go through the village.
Such a swagger he put on that you would have thought he was the whole
regiment. And when he went by the Vicarage, where Polly was housemaid,
it was remarkable to see the air of indifference which he assumed. Whack
went his riding-whip on his leg: you could hear it a hundred yards off.
He didn't seem to care a bit whether she was staring at him out of the
study window as hard as she could stare or not. Two or three times he
struck the same leg, and marched on perfectly indifferent to all around.

At length came Sunday, as Sunday only comes in a country village. No
such peace, no such Sabbath anywhere. You have only got to look at
anything you like to know that it is Sunday. Bill's shirt collar; the
milkman; even his bright milk-can has a Sunday shine about it. The cows
standing in the shallow brook have a reverent air about them. They never
look like that on any other day. Why the very sunshine is Sabbath
sunshine, and seems to bring more peace and more pleasantness than on any
other day of the week. And all the trees seem to whisper together, "It's
Sunday morning."

Presently you see the people straggling up to the little church, whose
donging bell keeps on as much as to say, "I know I'm not much of a peal,
but in my humble way I do my duty to the best of my ability; it's not the
sound but the spirit of the thing that is required; and if I'm not very
musical, and can't give you many changes, I'm sincere in what I say."
And this was an emblem of the sincerity and the simplicity of the
clergyman inside. He kept on hammering away at the old truths and
performing his part in God's great work to the best of his ability; and I
know with very great success. So in they all came to church; and Joe,
who had been a very good Sunday-school pupil (notwithstanding his love of
poaching) a