第4章
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  Onethingatleastwasobvious:shewasnotmadetobelookedatthus。Thereddlemanhadappearedconsciousofasmuch,and,whileMrs。Yeobrightlookedinuponher,hecasthiseyesasidewithadelicacywhichwellbecamehim。

  Thesleeperapparentlythoughtsotoo,forthenextmomentsheopenedherown。

  Thelipsthenpartedwithsomethingofanticipation,somethingmoreofdoubt;andherseveralthoughtsandfractionsofthoughts,assignalledbythechangesonherface,wereexhibitedbythelighttotheutmostnicety。

  Aningenuous,transparentlifewasdisclosed,asiftheflowofherexistencecouldbeseenpassingwithinher。

  Sheunderstoodthesceneinamoment。

  \"Oyes,itisI,Aunt,\"shecried。\"Iknowhowfrightenedyouare,andhowyoucannotbelieveit;butallthesame,itisIwhohavecomehomelikethis!\"

  \"Tamsin,Tamsin!\"saidMrs。Yeobright,stoopingovertheyoungwomanandkissingher。\"Omydeargirl!\"

  Thomasinwasnowonthevergeofasob,butbyanunexpectedself—commandsheutterednosound。Withagentlepantingbreathshesatupright。

  \"Ididnotexpecttoseeyouinthisstate,anymorethanyoume,\"shewentonquickly。\"WhereamI,Aunt?\"

  \"Nearlyhome,mydear。InEgdonBottom。Whatdreadfulthingisit?\"

  \"I’lltellyouinamoment。Sonear,arewe?ThenI

  willgetoutandwalk。Iwanttogohomebythepath。\"

  \"Butthiskindmanwhohasdonesomuchwill,Iamsure,takeyourightontomyhouse?\"saidtheaunt,turningtothereddleman,whohadwithdrawnfromthefrontofthevanontheawakeningofthegirl,andstoodintheroad。

  \"Whyshouldyouthinkitnecessarytoaskme?Iwill,ofcourse,\"saidhe。

  \"Heisindeedkind,\"murmuredThomasin。\"Iwasonceacquaintedwithhim,Aunt,andwhenIsawhimtodayIthoughtIshouldpreferhisvantoanyconveyanceofastranger。

  ButI’llwalknow。Reddleman,stopthehorses,please。\"

  Themanregardedherwithtenderreluctance,butstoppedthemAuntandniecethendescendedfromthevan,Mrs。Yeobrightsayingtoitsowner,\"Iquiterecognizeyounow。

  Whatmadeyouchangefromthenicebusinessyourfatherleftyou?\"

  \"Well,Idid,\"hesaid,andlookedatThomasin,whoblushedalittle。\"Thenyou’llnotbewantingmeanymoretonight,ma’am?\"

  Mrs。Yeobrightglancedaroundatthedarksky,atthehills,attheperishingbonfires,andatthelightedwindowoftheinntheyhadneared。\"Ithinknot,\"shesaid,\"sinceThomasinwishestowalk。Wecansoonrunupthepathandreachhome——weknowitwell。\"

  Andafterafewfurtherwordstheyparted,thereddlemanmovingonwardswithhisvan,andthetwowomenremainingstandingintheroad。Assoonasthevehicleanditsdriverhadwithdrawnsofarastobebeyondallpossiblereachofhervoice,Mrs。Yeobrightturnedtoherniece。

  \"Now,Thomasin,\"shesaidsternly,\"what’sthemeaningofthisdisgracefulperformance?\"

  5—PerplexityamongHonestPeopleThomasinlookedasifquiteovercomebyheraunt’schangeofmanner。\"Itmeansjustwhatitseemstomean:I

  am——notmarried,\"sherepliedfaintly。\"Excuseme——forhumiliatingyou,Aunt,bythismishap——Iamsorryforit。

  ButIcannothelpit。\"

  \"Me?Thinkofyourselffirst。\"

  \"Itwasnobody’sfault。Whenwegottheretheparsonwouldn’tmarryusbecauseofsometriflingirregularityinthelicense。\"

  \"Whatirregularity?\"

  \"Idon’tknow。Mr。Wildevecanexplain。IdidnotthinkwhenIwentawaythismorningthatIshouldcomebacklikethis。\"Itbeingdark,Thomasinallowedheremotiontoescapeherbythesilentwayoftears,whichcouldrolldownhercheekunseen。

  \"Icouldalmostsaythatitservesyouright——ifIdidnotfeelthatyoudon’tdeserveit,\"continuedMrs。Yeobright,who,possessingtwodistinctmoodsinclosecontiguity,agentlemoodandanangry,flewfromonetotheotherwithouttheleastwarning。\"Remember,Thomasin,thisbusinesswasnoneofmyseeking;fromtheveryfirst,whenyoubegantofeelfoolishaboutthatman,Iwarnedyouhewouldnotmakeyouhappy。IfeltitsostronglythatIdidwhatIwouldneverhavebelievedmyselfcapableofdoing——stoodupinthechurch,andmademyselfthepublictalkforweeks。Buthavingonceconsented,Idon’tsubmittothesefancieswithoutgoodreason。

  Marryhimyoumustafterthis。\"

  \"DoyouthinkIwishtodootherwiseforonemoment?\"

  saidThomasin,withaheavysigh。\"Iknowhowwrongitwasofmetolovehim,butdon’tpainmebytalkinglikethat,Aunt!Youwouldnothavehadmestaytherewithhim,wouldyou?——andyourhouseistheonlyhomeI

  havetoreturnto。Hesayswecanbemarriedinadayortwo。\"

  \"Iwishhehadneverseenyou。\"

  \"Verywell;thenIwillbethemiserablestwomanintheworld,andnotlethimseemeagain。No,Iwon’thavehim!\"

  \"Itistoolatetospeakso。Comewithme。Iamgoingtotheinntoseeifhehasreturned。OfcourseIshallgettothebottomofthisstoryatonce。

  Mr。Wildevemustnotsupposehecanplaytricksuponme,oranybelongingtome。\"

  \"Itwasnotthat。Thelicensewaswrong,andhecouldn’tgetanotherthesameday。Hewilltellyouinamomenthowitwas,ifhecomes。\"

  \"Whydidn’thebringyouback?\"

  \"Thatwasme!\"againsobbedThomasin。\"WhenIfoundwecouldnotbemarriedIdidn’tliketocomebackwithhim,andIwasveryill。ThenIsawDiggoryVenn,andwasgladtogethimtotakemehome。Icannotexplainitanybetter,andyoumustbeangrywithmeifyouwill。\"

  \"Ishallseeaboutthat,\"saidMrs。Yeobright;andtheyturnedtowardstheinn,knownintheneighbourhoodastheQuietWoman,thesignofwhichrepresentedthefigureofamatroncarryingherheadunderherarm,beneathwhichgruesomedesignwaswrittenthecoupletsowellknowntofrequentersoftheinn:——

  SINCETHEWOMAN’SQUIET

  LETNOMANBREEDARIOT。[1]

  [1]Theinnwhichreallyborethissignandlegendstoodsomemilestothenorthwestofthepresentscene,whereinthehousemoreimmediatelyreferredtoisnownolongeraninn;andthesurroundingsaremuchchanged。

  Butanotherinn,someofwhosefeaturesarealsoembodiedinthisdescription,theREDLIONatWinfrith,stillremainsasahavenforthewayfarer(1912)。

  ThefrontofthehousewastowardstheheathandRainbarrow,whosedarkshapeseemedtothreatenitfromthesky。

  Uponthedoorwasaneglectedbrassplate,bearingtheunexpectedinscription,\"Mr。Wildeve,Engineer\"——auselessyetcherishedrelicfromthetimewhenhehadbeenstartedinthatprofessioninanofficeatBudmouthbythosewhohadhopedmuchfromhim,andhadbeendisappointed。

  Thegardenwasattheback,andbehindthisranastilldeepstream,formingthemarginoftheheathinthatdirection,meadow—landappearingbeyondthestream。

  Butthethickobscuritypermittedonlyskylinestobevisibleofanysceneatpresent。Thewateratthebackofthehousecouldbeheard,idlyspinningwhirpoolsinitscreepbetweentherowsofdryfeather—headedreedswhichformedastockadealongeachbank。Theirpresencewasdenotedbysoundsasofacongregationprayinghumbly,producedbytheirrubbingagainsteachotherintheslowwind。

  Thewindow,whencethecandlelighthadshoneupthevaletotheeyesofthebonfiregroup,wasuncurtained,butthesilllaytoohighforapedestrianontheoutsidetolookoveritintotheroom。Avastshadow,inwhichcouldbedimlytracedportionsofamasculinecontour,blottedhalftheceiling。

  \"Heseemstobeathome,\"saidMrs。Yeobright。

  \"MustIcomein,too,Aunt?\"askedThomasinfaintly。

  \"Isupposenot;itwouldbewrong。\"

  \"Youmustcome,certainly——toconfronthim,sothathemaymakenofalserepresentationstome。Weshallnotbefiveminutesinthehouse,andthenwe’llwalkhome。\"

  Enteringtheopenpassage,shetappedatthedooroftheprivateparlour,unfastenedit,andlookedin。

  ThebackandshouldersofamancamebetweenMrs。Yeobright’seyesandthefire。Wildeve,whoseformitwas,immediatelyturned,arose,andadvancedtomeethisvisitors。

  Hewasquiteayoungman,andofthetwoproperties,formandmotion,thelatterfirstattractedtheeyeinhim。Thegraceofhismovementwassingular——itwasthepantomimicexpressionofalady—killingcareer。

  Nextcameintonoticethemorematerialqualities,amongwhichwasaprofusecropofhairimpendingoverthetopofhisface,lendingtohisforeheadthehigh—corneredoutlineofanearlyGothicshield;

  andaneckwhichwassmoothandroundasacylinder。

  Thelowerhalfofhisfigurewasoflightbuild。

  Altogetherhewasoneinwhomnomanwouldhaveseenanythingtoadmire,andinwhomnowomanwouldhaveseenanythingtodislike。

  Hediscernedtheyounggirl’sforminthepassage,andsaid,\"Thomasin,then,hasreachedhome。

  Howcouldyouleavemeinthatway,darling?\"AndturningtoMrs。Yeobright——\"Itwasuselesstoarguewithher。

  Shewouldgo,andgoalone。\"

  \"Butwhat’sthemeaningofitall?\"demandedMrs。Yeobrighthaughtily。

  \"Takeaseat,\"saidWildeve,placingchairsforthetwowomen。

  \"Well,itwasaverystupidmistake,butsuchmistakeswillhappen。ThelicensewasuselessatAnglebury。

  ItwasmadeoutforBudmouth,butasIdidn’treaditI

  wasn’tawareofthat。\"

  \"ButyouhadbeenstayingatAnglebury?\"

  \"No。IhadbeenatBudmouth——tilltwodaysago——andthatwaswhereIhadintendedtotakeher;butwhenIcametofetchherwedecideduponAnglebury,forgettingthatanewlicensewouldbenecessary。

  TherewasnottimetogettoBudmouthafterwards。\"

  \"Ithinkyouareverymuchtoblame,\"saidMrs。Yeobright。

  \"ItwasquitemyfaultwechoseAnglebury,\"Thomasinpleaded。

  \"IproposeditbecauseIwasnotknownthere。\"

  \"IknowsowellthatIamtoblamethatyouneednotremindmeofit,\"repliedWildeveshortly。

  \"Suchthingsdon’thappenfornothing,\"saidtheaunt。

  \"Itisagreatslighttomeandmyfamily;andwhenitgetsknowntherewillbeaveryunpleasanttimeforus。

  Howcanshelookherfriendsinthefacetomorrow?Itisaverygreatinjury,andoneIcannoteasilyforgive。

  Itmayevenreflectonhercharacter。\"

  \"Nonsense,\"saidWildeve。

  Thomasin’slargeeyeshadflownfromthefaceofonetothefaceoftheotherduringthisdiscussion,andshenowsaidanxiously,\"Willyouallowme,Aunt,totalkitoveralonewithDamonforfiveminutes?Willyou,Damon?\"

  \"Certainly,dear,\"saidWildeve,\"ifyourauntwillexcuseus。\"

  Heledherintoanadjoiningroom,leavingMrs。Yeobrightbythefire。

  Assoonastheywerealone,andthedoorclosed,Thomasinsaid,turningupherpale,tearfulfacetohim,\"Itiskillingme,this,Damon!IdidnotmeantopartfromyouinangeratAngleburythismorning;

  butIwasfrightenedandhardlyknewwhatIsaid。

  I’venotletAuntknowhowmuchIsufferedtoday;anditissohardtocommandmyfaceandvoice,andtosmileasifitwereaslightthingtome;butItrytodoso,thatshemaynotbestillmoreindignantwithyou。

  Iknowyoucouldnothelpit,dear,whateverAuntmaythink。\"

  \"Sheisveryunpleasant。\"

  \"Yes,\"Thomasinmurmured,\"andIsupposeIseemsonow……Damon,whatdoyoumeantodoaboutme?\"

  \"Doaboutyou?\"

  \"Yes。Thosewhodon’tlikeyouwhisperthingswhichatmomentsmakemedoubtyou。Wemeantomarry,Isuppose,don’twe?\"

  \"Ofcoursewedo。WehaveonlytogotoBudmouthonMonday,andwemarryatonce。\"

  \"Thendoletusgo!——ODamon,whatyoumakemesay!\"

  Shehidherfaceinherhandkerchief。\"HereamIaskingyoutomarryme,whenbyrightsyououghttobeonyourkneesimploringme,yourcruelmistress,nottorefuseyou,andsayingitwouldbreakyourheartifIdid。

  Iusedtothinkitwouldbeprettyandsweetlikethat;

  buthowdifferent!\"

  \"Yes,reallifeisneveratalllikethat。\"

  \"ButIdon’tcarepersonallyifitnevertakesplace,\"

  sheaddedwithalittledignity;\"no,Icanlivewithoutyou。

  ItisAuntIthinkof。Sheissoproud,andthinkssomuchofherfamilyrespectability,thatshewillbecutdownwithmortificationifthisstoryshouldgetabroadbefore——itisdone。MycousinClym,too,willbemuchwounded。\"

  \"Thenhewillbeveryunreasonable。Infact,youareallratherunreasonable。\"

  Thomasincolouredalittle,andnotwithlove。Butwhateverthemomentaryfeelingwhichcausedthatflushinher,itwentasitcame,andshehumblysaid,\"Inevermeantobe,ifIcanhelpit。Imerelyfeelthatyouhavemyaunttosomeextentinyourpoweratlast。\"

  \"Asamatterofjusticeitisalmostduetome,\"saidWildeve。

  \"ThinkwhatIhavegonethroughtowinherconsent;

  theinsultthatitistoanymantohavethebannsforbidden——thedoubleinsulttoamanunluckyenoughtobecursedwithsensitiveness,andbluedemons,andHeavenknowswhat,asIam。Icanneverforgetthosebanns。

  AharshermanwouldrejoicenowinthepowerIhaveofturninguponyourauntbygoingnofurtherinthebusiness。\"

  Shelookedwistfullyathimwithhersorrowfuleyesashesaidthosewords,andheraspectshowedthatmorethanonepersonintheroomcoulddeplorethepossessionofsensitiveness。

  Seeingthatshewasreallysufferingheseemeddisturbedandadded,\"Thisismerelyareflectionyouknow。

  Ihavenottheleastintentiontorefusetocompletethemarriage,Tamsiemine——Icouldnotbearit。\"

  \"Youcouldnot,Iknow!\"saidthefairgirl,brightening。

  \"You,whocannotbearthesightofpaininevenaninsect,oranydisagreeablesound,orunpleasantsmelleven,willnotlongcausepaintomeandmine。\"

  \"Iwillnot,ifIcanhelpit。\"

  \"Yourhanduponit,Damon。\"

  Hecarelesslygaveherhishand。

  \"Ah,bymycrown,what’sthat?\"hesaidsuddenly。

  Therefellupontheirearsthesoundofnumerousvoicessinginginfrontofthehouse。Amongthese,twomadethemselvesprominentbytheirpeculiarity:onewasaverystrongbass,theotherawheezythinpiping。

  ThomasinrecognizedthemasbelongingtoTimothyFairwayandGrandferCantlerespectively。

  \"Whatdoesitmean——itisnotskimmity—riding,Ihope?\"

  shesaid,withafrightenedgazeatWildeve。

  \"Ofcoursenot;no,itisthattheheath—folkhavecometosingtousawelcome。Thisisintolerable!\"Hebeganpacingabout,themenoutsidesingingcheerily——

  \"Hetold’herthatshe’wasthejoy’ofhislife’,Andif’

  she’dcon—sent’hewouldmakeherhiswife’;Shecould’

  notrefuse’him;tochurch’sotheywent’,YoungWillwasforgot’,andyoungSue’wascontent’;Andthen’

  wasshekiss’d’andsetdown’onhisknee’,Noman’

  intheworld’wassolov’—ingashe’!\"

  Mrs。Yeobrightburstinfromtheouterroom。

  \"Thomasin,Thomasin!\"shesaid,lookingindignantlyatWildeve;

  \"here’saprettyexposure!Letusescapeatonce。Come!\"

  Itwas,however,toolatetogetawaybythepassage。

  Aruggedknockinghadbegunuponthedoorofthefrontroom。

  Wildeve,whohadgonetothewindow,cameback。

  \"Stop!\"hesaidimperiously,puttinghishanduponMrs。Yeobright’sarm。\"Weareregularlybesieged。

  Therearefiftyofthemoutthereifthere’sone。

  YoustayinthisroomwithThomasin;I’llgooutandfacethem。Youmuststaynow,formysake,tilltheyaregone,sothatitmayseemasifallwasright。

  Come,Tamsiedear,don’tgomakingascene——wemustmarryafterthis;thatyoucanseeaswellasI。Sitstill,that’sall——anddon’tspeakmuch。I’llmanagethem。

  Blunderingfools!\"

  Hepressedtheagitatedgirlintoaseat,returnedtotheouterroomandopenedthedoor。Immediatelyoutside,inthepassage,appearedGrandferCantlesinginginconcertwiththosestillstandinginfrontofthehouse。

  HecameintotheroomandnoddedabstractedlytoWildeve,hislipsstillparted,andhisfeaturesexcruciatinglystrainedintheemissionofthechorus。Thisbeingended,hesaidheartily,\"Here’swelcometothenew—madecouple,andGodbless’em!\"

  \"Thankyou,\"saidWildeve,withdryresentment,hisfaceasgloomyasathunderstorm。

  AttheGrandfer’sheelsnowcametherestofthegroup,whichincludedFairway,Christian,Samtheturf—cutter,Humphrey,andadozenothers。AllsmileduponWildeve,anduponhistablesandchairslikewise,fromageneralsenseoffriendlinesstowardsthearticlesaswellastowardstheirowner。

  \"WebenothereaforeMrs。Yeobrightafterall,\"

  saidFairway,recognizingthematron’sbonnetthroughtheglasspartitionwhichdividedthepublicapartmenttheyhadenteredfromtheroomwherethewomensat。

  \"Westruckdownacross,d’yesee,Mr。Wildeve,andshewentroundbythepath。\"

  \"AndIseetheyoungbride’slittlehead!\"saidGrandfer,peepinginthesamedirection,anddiscerningThomasin,whowaswaitingbesideherauntinamiserableandawkwardway。

  \"Notquitesettledinyet——well,well,there’splentyoftime。\"

  Wildevemadenoreply;andprobablyfeelingthatthesoonerhetreatedthemthesoonertheywouldgo,heproducedastonejar,whichthrewawarmhaloovermattersatonce。

  \"That’sadropoftherightsort,Icansee,\"

  saidGrandferCantle,withtheairofamantoowell—

  manneredtoshowanyhurrytotasteit。

  \"Yes,\"saidWildeve,\"’tissomeoldmead。Ihopeyouwilllikeit。\"

  \"Oay!\"repliedtheguests,intheheartytonesnaturalwhenthewordsdemandedbypolitenesscoincidewiththoseofdeepestfeeling。\"Thereisn’taprettierdrinkunderthesun。\"

  \"I’lltakemyoaththereisn’t,\"addedGrandferCantle。

  \"Allthatcanbesaidagainstmeadisthat’tisratherheady,andapttolieaboutamanagoodwhile。

  Buttomorrow’sSunday,thankGod。\"

  \"Ifeel’dforalltheworldlikesomeboldsoldierafterIhadhadsomeonce,\"saidChristian。

  \"Youshallfeelsoagain,\"saidWildeve,withcondescension,\"Cupsorglasses,gentlemen?\"

  \"Well,ifyoudon’tmind,we’llhavethebeaker,andpass’enround;’tisbetterthanhelingitoutindribbles。\"

  \"Jowntheslipperyglasses,\"saidGrandferCantle。

  \"What’sthegoodofathingthatyoucan’tputdownintheashestowarm,hey,neighbours;that’swhatIask?\"

  \"Right,Grandfer,\"saidSam;andthemeadthencirculated。

  \"Well,\"saidTimothyFairway,feelingdemandsuponhispraiseinsomeformorother,\"’tisaworthythingtobemarried,Mr。Wildeve;andthewomanyou’vegotisadimant,sosaysI。Yes,\"hecontinued,toGrandferCantle,raisinghisvoicesoastobeheardthroughthepartition,\"herfather(inclininghisheadtowardstheinnerroom)

  wasasgoodafelleraseverlived。Healwayshadhisgreatindignationreadyagainstanythingunderhand。\"

  \"Isthatverydangerous?\"saidChristian。

  \"Andtherewerefewinthesepartsthatwereupsideswithhim,\"

  saidSam。\"Wheneveraclubwalkedhe’dplaytheclarinetinthebandthatmarchedbefore’emasifhe’dnevertouchedanythingbutaclarinetallhislife。Andthen,whentheygottochurchdoorhe’dthrowdowntheclarinet,mountthegallery,snatchupthebassviol,androzumawayasifhe’dneverplayedanythingbutabassviol。

  Folkwouldsay——folkthatknowedwhatatruestavewas——’Surely,surelythat’sneverthesamemanthatIsawhandlingtheclarinetsomasterlybynow!\"

  \"Icanmindit,\"saidthefurze—cutter。\"’Twasawonderfulthingthatonebodycouldholditallandnevermixthefingering。\"

  \"TherewasKingsberechurchlikewise,\"Fairwayrecommenced,asoneopeninganewveinofthesamemineofinterest。

  Wildevebreathedthebreathofoneintolerablybored,andglancedthroughthepartitionattheprisoners。

  \"HeusedtowalkoverthereofaSundayafternoontovisithisoldacquaintanceAndrewBrown,thefirstclarinetthere;

  agoodmanenough,butratherscreechyinhismusic,ifyoucanmind?\"

  \"’Awas。\"

  \"AndneighbourYeobrightwouldtakeAndrey’splaceforsomepartoftheservice,toletAndreyhaveabitofanap,asanyfriendwouldnaturallydo。\"

  \"Asanyfriendwould,\"saidGrandferCantle,theotherlistenersexpressingthesameaccordbytheshorterwayofnoddingtheirheads。

  \"NosoonerwasAndreyasleepandthefirstwhiffofneighbourYeobright’swindhadgotinsideAndrey’sclarinetthaneveryoneinchurchfeeledinamomenttherewasagreatsoulamong’em。Allheadswouldturn,andthey’dsay,’Ah,Ithought’twashe!’OneSundayI

  canwellmind——abassvioldaythattime,andYeobrighthadbroughthisown。’TwastheHundred—and—thirty—thirdto’Lydia’;andwhenthey’dcometo’Randownhisbeardando’erhisrobesitscostlymoistureshed,’

  neighbourYeobright,whohadjustwarmedtohiswork,drovehisbowintothemstringsthatgloriousgrandthathee’ena’mostsawedthebassviolintotwopieces。

  Everywinderinchurchrattledasif’twereathunderstorm。

  OldPa’sonWilliamsliftedhishandsinhisgreatholysurpliceasnaturalasifhe’dbeenincommonclothes,andseemedtosayhisself,’Oforsuchamaninourparish!’

  ButnotasoulinKingsberecouldholdacandletoYeobright。\"

  \"Wasitquitesafewhenthewindershook?\"Christianinquired。

  Hereceivednoanswer,allforthemomentsittingraptinadmirationoftheperformancedescribed。

  AswithFarinelli’ssingingbeforetheprincesses,Sheridan’srenownedBegumSpeech,andothersuchexamples,thefortunateconditionofitsbeingforeverlosttotheworldinvestedthedeceasedMr。Yeobright’stourdeforceonthatmemorableafternoonwithacumulativeglorywhichcomparativecriticism,hadthatbeenpossible,mightconsiderablyhaveshorndown。

  \"Hewasthelastyou’dhaveexpectedtodropoffintheprimeoflife,\"saidHumphrey。

  \"Ah,well;hewaslookingfortheearthsomemonthsaforehewent。Atthattimewomenusedtorunforsmocksandgown—piecesatGreenhillFair,andmywifethatisnow,beingalong—leggedslitteringmaid,hardlyhusband—high,wentwiththerestofthemaidens,for’awasagood,runneraforeshegotsoheavy。

  WhenshecamehomeIsaid——wewerethenjustbeginningtowalktogether——’Whathaveyegot,myhoney?’

  ’I’vewon——well,I’vewon——agown—piece,’saysshe,hercolourscomingupinamoment。’Tisasmockforacrown,Ithought;andsoitturnedout。Ay,whenIthinkwhatshe’llsaytomenowwithoutamosselofredinherface,itdoseemstrangethat’awouldn’tsaysuchalittlethingthen……However,thenshewenton,andthat’swhatmademebringupthestory。Well,whateverclothesI’vewon,whiteorfigured,foreyestoseeorforeyesnottosee’

  (’acoulddoaprettystrokeofmodestyinthosedays),’I’dsoonerhavelostitthanhaveseenwhatIhave。

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