soom'at to stay their unfort'nate stomachs
wi', if I spent the last penny I had!'

Squeers scowled at him with the worst and most malicious expression of
which his face was capable--it was a face of remarkable capability, too,
in that way--and shook his fist stealthily.

'Coom, coom, schoolmeasther,' said John, 'dinnot make a fool o' thyself;
for if I was to sheake mine--only once--thou'd fa' doon wi' the wind o'
it.'

'It was you, was it,' returned Squeers, 'that helped off my runaway boy?
It was you, was it?'

'Me!' returned John, in a loud tone. 'Yes, it wa' me, coom; wa'at o'
that? It wa' me. Noo then!'

'You hear him say he did it, my child!' said Squeers, appealing to his
daughter. 'You hear him say he did it!'

'Did it!' cried John. 'I'll tell 'ee more; hear this, too. If thou'd
got another roonaway boy, I'd do it agean. If thou'd got twonty roonaway
boys, I'd do it twonty times ower, and twonty more to thot; and I
tell thee more,' said John, 'noo my blood is oop, that thou'rt an old
ra'ascal; and that it's weel for thou, thou be'est an old 'un, or I'd
ha' poonded thee to flour when thou told an honest mun hoo thou'd licked
that poor chap in t' coorch.'

'An honest man!' cried Squeers, with a sneer.

'Ah! an honest man,' replied John; 'honest in ought but ever putting
legs under seame table wi' such as thou.'

'Scandal!' said Squeers, exultingly. 'Two witnesses to it; Wackford
knows the nature of an oath, he does; we shall have you there, sir.
Rascal, eh?' Mr Squeers took out his pocketbook and made a note of it.
'Very good. I should say that was worth full twenty pound at the next
assizes, without the honesty, sir.'

''Soizes,' cried John, 'thou'd betther not talk to me o' 'Soizes.
Yorkshire schools have been shown up at 'Soizes afore noo, mun, and it's
a ticklish soobjact to revive, I can tell ye.'

Mr Squeers shook his head in a threatening manner, looking very white
with passion; and taking his daughter's arm, and dragging little
Wackford by the hand, retreated towards the door.

'As for you,' said Squeers, turning round and addressing Nicholas,
who, as he had caused him to smart pretty soundly on a former occasion,
purposely abstained from taking any part in the discussion, 'see if I
ain't down upon you before long. You'll go a kidnapping of boys, will
you? Take care their fathers don't turn up--mark that--take care their
fathers don't turn up, and send 'em back to me to do as I like with, in