tramp of horses,
their brisk neigh, and the flourish of their long tails added to the
general attraction. The coats of the Yeomen, too, were of the most
sanguinary red. And there were other charms. The calling out of the
troop for ten days involved a muster from all the county for twelve or
fifteen miles round. There was thus an inroad of country friends. The
genial system of billeting was in vogue, too, so that every bed was
full. And allies and satellites called in, in happy succession, to share
the bustle and glee. A company of respectable theatrical stars,
patronized both by officers and privates, visited the town; and a
wonderfully brilliant yeomanry ball, attended alike by gentle and
simple, wound up the successful interlude in ordinary life.

The little town of Priorton spruced itself up for its yeomanry weeks,
and was all agog, as it never was at any other time. The campaign
commenced by the arrival on horseback of a host of country gentlemen and
farmers, in plain clothes as yet. But they carried at their saddle-bows,
packages containing their cherished ensigns and symbols--in their case
the very glory of the affair. Along with these in many cases came
judicious presents of poultry and game.

There were such hand-shakings in the usually quiet streets, such
groomings of horses at stables behind old-fashioned little taverns, such
pipe-claying of belts and polishing of helmets, and, above all, such
joyous anticipatory parties in private houses!

The season was always the height of the summer, not perhaps in every
respect the best for such a muster. Stout Yeomen had even been known to
faint while at drill; the combined influences of the fatigue, the heat,
and last night's hilarity being too much for them. But farmers and
farming lairds could well quit their lands unless in the beginning of
July, when the June hoeing of turnips and beans had been got through,
the first grass cut, and while there was still a good three weeks before
barley-harvest. Trees were then dusky in their green, and gooseberries
and currants tinted the Priorton gardens with rich amber and crimson.
Roses redder than the yeomen's coats were in full flower for every
waistcoat and waistband. The streets and roads were dusty, under blue
skies or black thunderclouds; but the meadows were comparatively cool
and fresh, and now white with the summer snow of daisies. The bustle of
the Yeomen, like the trillings of wandering musicians, was heard only in