ll
into the pit that he had dug for me, and then went on:

"He said nowt o' t' sort. That's what t' blue-bottles had bin sayin' to
her all t' time, an' all for nowt. Nay, t'owd devil were a sly 'un, an'
knew more about Throp's wife nor all t' blue-bottles i' t' world. So he
says to her: 'Keziah'--they called her Keziah after her
grandmother--'thou's t' idlest dawkin' i' Cohen-eead. When arta baan to
get agate o' workin'?'"

"But surely," I interrupted, "there was no temptation in telling her to
work harder."

Timothy paused, and then, in a reproving voice, asked: "Who's tellin' t'
tale, I'd like to know? Thou or me?"

I stood rebuked, and urged him to go on with his story, promising that I
would not break in on the narrative again.

"Well, as I were sayin'," he continued, "t' devil kept tellin' her that
shoo mun be reight thrang, an' not waste time clashin' with her
neighbours; an' when he thowt he'd said enough he crawled down off t'
bed an out o' house and away back to wheer he com frae.

"Next mornin' Throp's wife wakkened up at t' usual time an' crept out o'
bed. There was nowt wrang wi' her, and o' course shoo knew nowt about t'
royal visit that shoo'd bin honoured wi'. Shoo gat all t' housewark
done, fed t' hens and t' cauves, an' was set down to her wheel afore ten
o'clock. There shoo sat an' tewed harder nor iver. It were Setterday,
an' shoo looked at t' bag o' wool and said to hersen that shoo'd have it
all carded an' spun an' sided away afore shoo went to bed that neet.
Shoo wouldn't give ower when t' time com for dinner or drinkins or
supper, but shoo made Throp bring her a sup o' tea and summat to eat
when he com in through his wark. An' all t' time shoo called hersen an
idle dollops 'cause shoo weren't workin' hard enough. That were t'
devil's game. But for all shoo tewed so hard, there was a gey bit o'
wool left i' t' bag when ten o'clock com and 'twere time to get to bed.
You see, 'twere bad wool; 'twere all feltered an' teed i' knots. But
Throp's wife were noan baan to bed while shoo'd finished t' bag. So
Throp said, if that were so, he mun set hissen down an' help wi' t'
wark. So Throp carded an' Throp's wife spun, an' that set things forrad
a bit. But t' hands o' t' clock went round as they'd niver done afore;
eleven o'clock com and hauf-past eleven, and then a quairter to twelve.
Throp's wife looked at t' clock, an' then at bag, an' then at Throp.

"'Throp,' shoo said, 'we'll noan be through w