"Discovered!" exclaimed William. "What do you mean?"

"You understand me," said the sexton; "your manners, your language,
your figure, contradict the story you have fabricated. Margaret shall
never be your victim. With her your boasted arts are valueless!"

"If you were a gentleman----" said William.

"Ha, ha!" laughed the sexton of St. Hubert's. "Is this the resentment
of a rustic? Go, young man; you have exposed yourself."

"Remove your hand!" said the young man; "and think it unusual
forbearance on my part, that I do not chastise you as you deserve. We
shall meet again, and with a sterner greeting." So they parted.

CHAPTER II.

THE GYPSY CAMP.

The clear, unshadowed sun, as it declined towards the western verge of
the horizon, shone brightly upon the gypsy encampment, a few miles
from Redwood. The wandering tribe had displayed their proverbial
taste, in their selection of a spot wherein to pitch their tents. A
green and glossy pasture was partly surrounded by a luxuriant forest
of ancient oaks, which supplied the crew with firewood; while a
beautiful and clear stream, the pride and boast of the county, curved
into the waving grass land, and kept it ever fresh and verdant. Here
and there its silvery bosom reflected a small tent, or the figure of
an idler, bending over the bank, with fishing rod in hand, a perfect
picture of patience and philosophy. Half a dozen tents served to
accommodate the gregarious fraternity; and though the sail cloths
which composed them were worn and weather-beaten, yet their brown hues
harmonized well with the rich tints of the landscape, and showed
distinct enough against the dark background of the forest. As the
shades of the evening darkened the ancestral trees, a line of fire was
lit up, the flames of which glared ruddily against the huge trunks of
the woodland, and played and flickered in the rippling stream. Huge
kettles, suspended on forked sticks, were beginning to send up a
savory steam; and several swarthy beings, lounging round the fires,
occasionally fed them, or basking in the blaze, watched the bubbling
of the caldrons with intense anxiety. Even the king of the gypsies
observed the preparations for supper with an eager air, which ill
assorted with his lofty forehead and reverend white beard. Every
moment some stroller would come in with a pilfered fowl, or a basket
of eggs; and each addition to the feast was hailed with shouts of
applause by the swarthy crew.