omes near, 'cept the
young gals, and breaks windows wi' them too, some on 'em shoots so hard.
Now 'twas just here last June, as we was a driving up the first-day
boys, they was mendin' a quarter-mile of road, and there was a lot of
Irish chaps, reg'lar roughs, a breaking stones. As we comes up, 'Now,
boys' says young gent on the box (smart young fellow and desper't
reckless), 'here's fun! Let the Pats have it about the ears.' 'God's
sake, sir!' says Bob (that's my mate the coachman), 'don't go for to
shoot at 'em, they'll knock us off the coach.' 'Damme, coachee,' says
young my lord, 'you ain't afraid; hoora, boys! let 'em have it.'
'Hoora!' sings out the others, and fill their mouths chock full of peas
to last the whole line. Bob seeing as 'twas to come, knocks his hat over
his eyes, hollers to his 'osses, and shakes 'em up, and away we goes up
to the line on 'em, twenty miles an hour. The Pats begin to hoora too,
thinking it was a runaway, and first lot on 'em stands grinnin' and
wavin' their old hats as we comes abreast on 'em; and then you'd ha'
laughed to see how took aback and choking savage they looked when they
gets the peas a stinging all over 'em. But bless you, the laugh weren't
all of our side, sir, by a long way. We was going so fast, and they was
so took aback, that they didn't take what was up till we was half-way up
the line. Then 'twas 'look out all,' surely. They howls all down the
line fit to frighten you, some on 'em runs arter us and tries to clamber
up behind, only we hits 'em over the fingers and pulls their hands off;
one as had had it very sharp act'ly runs right at the leaders, as though
he'd ketch 'em by the heads, only luck'ly for him he misses his tip, and
comes over a heap o' stones, first. The rest picks up stones, and gives
it us right away till we gets out o' shot, the young gents holding out
werry manful with the pea-shooters and such stones as lodged on us, and
a pretty many there was too. Then Bob picks hisself up again, and looks
at young gent on box werry solemn. Bob'd had a rum un in the ribs,
which'd like to ha' knocked him off the box, or made him drop the reins.
Young gent on box picks hisself up, and so does we all, and looks round
to count damage. Box's head cut open and his hat gone; 'nother young
gent's hat gone: mine knocked in at the side, and not one on us as
wasn't black and blue somewheres or another; most on 'em all over.
Two-pound-ten to pay for damage to paint, which t