t now, from his act, she must lead
the life of a wild fox for ever, and must undergo all the rigours and
hardships of the climate, and all the hazards of a hunted creature. When
Mr. Tebrick got back to the cottage he found Mrs. Cork was sitting up
for him. It was already late.

"What have you done with Mrs. Tebrick, sir? I missed her, and I missed
you, and I have not known what to do, expecting something dreadful had
happened. I have been sitting up for you half the night. And where is
she now, sir?" She accosted him so vigorously that Mr. Tebrick stood
silent. At length he said: "I have let her go. She has run away."

"Poor Miss Silvia!" cried the old woman, "Poor creature! You ought to be
ashamed, sir! Let her go indeed! Poor lady, is that the way for her
husband to talk! It is a disgrace. But I saw it coming from the first."

The old woman was white with fury, she did not mind what she said, but
Mr. Tebrick was not listening to her. At last he looked at her and saw
that she had just begun to cry, so he went out of the room and up to
bed, and lay down as he was, in his clothes, utterly exhausted, and fell
into a dog's sleep, starting up every now and then with horror, and then
falling back with fatigue. It was late when he woke up, but cold and
raw, and he felt cramped in all his limbs. As he lay he heard again the
noise which had woken him--the trotting of several horses, and the
voices of men riding by the house. Mr. Tebrick jumped up and ran to the
window and then looked out, and the first thing that he saw was a
gentleman in a pink coat riding at a walk down the lane. At this sight
Mr. Tebrick waited no longer, but pulling on his boots in mad haste, ran
out instantly, meaning to say that they must not hunt, and how his wife
was escaped and they might kill her.

But when he found himself outside the cottage words failed him and fury
took possession of him, so that he could only cry out:

"How dare you, you damned blackguard?" And so, with a stick in his hand,
he threw himself on the gentleman in the pink coat and seized his
horse's rein, and catching the gentleman by the leg was trying to throw
him. But really it is impossible to say what Mr. Tebrick intended by his
behaviour or what he would have done, for the gentleman finding himself
suddenly assaulted in so unexpected a fashion by so strange a touzled
and dishevelled figure, clubbed his hunting crop and dealt him a blow on
the temple so that he fell insensi