ttle farther they came,
Bold Robin he chanced to spy
An hundred head of good fat deer
Come tripping the Sheriff full nigh."

"Look there," he cried, "look! What do you think of my horned beasts?"

"I think," said the Sheriff, in a trembling voice, "I think I should
like to go back to Nottingham."

"What! and not buy any horned cattle? What is the matter with them?
Are they not fine and fat? Are they not a beautiful color? Come, come,
Sheriff, when you have brought the money for them too."

At the mention of money the Sheriff turned quite pale and clutched
hold of his bags. "Young man," he said, "I don't like you at all. I
tell you I want to go back to Nottingham. This isn't money I have in
my bags, it is only pebble-stones."

"Then Robin put his horn to his mouth,
And blew out blasts three;
Then quickly and anon there came Little John,
And all his company."

"Good morning, Little John," said Robin.

"Good morning, Master Robin," he replied. "What orders have you for
to-day?"

"Well, in the first place I hope you have something nice for dinner,
because I have brought the Sheriff of Nottingham to dine with us,"
answered Robin.

"Yes," said Little John, "the cooks are busy already as we thought you
might bring some one back with you. But we hardly expected so fine
a guest as the Sheriff of Nottingham," he added, making a low bow to
him. "I hope he intends to pay honestly."

For that was Robin Hood's way. He always gave a very fine dinner to
these naughty men who had stolen money from poor people, and then he
made them pay a great deal of money for it.

The Sheriff was very much afraid when he knew that he had really
fallen into the hands of Robin Hood. He was angry too when he thought
that he had actually had Robin in his own house the day before, and
could so easily have caught and put him in prison, if he had only
known.

They had a very fine dinner, and the Sheriff began to feel quite
comfortable and to think he was going to get off easily, when Robin
said, "Now, Master Sheriff, you must pay for your dinner."

"Oh! indeed I am a poor man," said the Sheriff, "I have no money."

"No money! What have you in your saddle-bags, then?" asked Robin.

"Only pebbles, nothing but pebbles, as I told you before," replied the
frightened Sheriff.

"Little John, go and search the Sheriff's saddle-bags," said Robin.

Little John did as he was told, and counted out three hundred pounds