ifficulty to insert a straw in the small
opening. He had thus already added materially to his maudlin condition,
before Swallow discovered, with consternation and anger, the temporary
advantage which the newly appointed _posse_ had secured.

The cunning constable held carefully on to his tongue, however. He
quietly produced a knife and staggered in his turn to the cask,
unobserved by the unsuspecting Buzzard, whose eyes were tightly closed
in the realization of a dream of his highest earthly bliss.

In an instant, the straw was clipped mid-way and the constable was
enjoying the contents of the cask through the lower half, while Buzzard
slowly awakened to the fact that his dream of bliss had vanished and
that he was sucking a bit of straw which yielded naught.

"Here, knave," commanded Swallow, between breaths, pushing the other
roughly aside, "thou hast had enough for a _posse_. Fill my mug,
thou ignoranshibus."

Buzzard staggered toward the table to perform the bidding. "The flagon's
empty, Master Constable," he replied, and forthwith loudly called out,
"Landlord! Landlord!"

The constable dropped his straw and raised himself with difficulty to
his full height, one hand firmly resting on the cask.

"Silence, fool of a _posse_" he commanded, when he had poised
himself; "look ye, I have other eggs on the spit. To thy knee, sirrah;
to thy knee, knave!"

Buzzard with difficulty and with many groans unsuspectingly obeyed the
command. Swallow lifted the cask which not long since he had been riding
and which had not as yet been tapped upon the shoulder of his kneeling
companion. There was another groan.

"'Tis too heavy, good Master Constable," cried Buzzard, in sore
distress.

"Thou clodhopper'" yelled Swallow, unsympathetically. "An thou cannot
master a cask of wine, thou wilt never master the King's law. To the
kitchen with thee; and keep thy eyes shut, thou knave of a
_posse_." The constable made a dive for his pike and lantern, and
enforced his authority by punctuating his remarks with jabs of the pike
from behind at his powerless friend, who could scarce keep his legs
under the weight of the cask.

As Buzzard tottered through the kitchen-door and made his exit, the
constable, finding his orders faithfully obeyed, steadied himself with
the pike to secure a good start; and then, with long staggering strides,
he himself made his way after the _posse_, singing loudly to his
heart's content:

_"Good store