ss,
and putting his hand into his pocket, pulled out a shilling, which he
desired her to accept. "No, God bless you, my little dear!" said the
woman, "I will not take a farthing off you for the world. What though my
husband and I are poor, yet we are able to get a living by our labour,
and give a mess of milk to a traveller without hurting ourselves."

Tommy thanked her again, and was just going away when a couple of
surly-looking men came in and asked the woman if her name was _Tosset_.
"Yes, it is," said the woman: "I have never been ashamed of it." "Why
then," said one of the men, pulling a paper out of his pocket, "here is
an execution against you, on the part of Mr Richard Gruff; and if your
husband does not instantly discharge the debt, with interest and all
costs, amounting altogether to the sum of thirty-nine pounds ten
shillings, we shall take an inventory of all you have, and proceed to
sell it by auction for the discharge of the debt."

"Indeed," said the poor woman, looking a little confused, "this must
certainly be a mistake, for I never heard of Mr Richard Gruff in all my
life, nor do I believe that my husband owes a farthing in the world,
unless to his landlord; and I know that he has almost made up
half-a-year's rent for him: so that I do not think he would go to
trouble a poor man." "No, no, mistress," said the man, shaking his head,
"we know our business too well to make these kind of mistakes; but when
your husband comes in we'll talk with him; in the meantime we must go on
with our inventory."

The two men then went into the next room, and immediately after, a
stout, comely-looking man, of about the age of forty, came in, with a
good-humoured countenance, and asked if his breakfast was ready. "Oh, my
poor dear William," said the woman, "here is a sad breakfast for you!
but I think it cannot be true that you owe anything; so what the fellows
told me must be false about Richard Gruff." At this name the man
instantly started, and his countenance, which was before ruddy, became
pale as a sheet. "Surely," said the woman, "it cannot be true, that you
owe forty pounds to Richard Gruff?" "Alas!" answered the man, "I do not
know the exact sum; but when your brother Peter failed, and his
creditors seized all that he had, this Richard Gruff was going to send
him to jail, had not I agreed to be bound for him, which enabled him to
go to sea. He indeed promised to remit his wages to me, to prevent my
getting in