The New Bloomfield, Pa. times. (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1877-188?, 1879-11-11
THE MASTER THIEF.
CONCLUDED.


=" Yes, II you can. I'll do my best for
you, said the Squire.
SO the Master Thief set off to shop
and bought brandy enough to fill two
pocketfiasks, and into one of them he
puts sleepy drink, but into the other
only brandy. After that he hired eleven
men to lie in wait at night, behind the
'Squire's stableyard; and last of all, for
fair words and good bit of money, he
borrowed ragged gown and cloak
from an old woman ; and SO, with staff
in his hand and bundle at his back, he
limped off, as evening drew on, towards
the Squire's stable. Justas he got there
they were watering the horses for the
night, and had their hands full of
work.
"What the devil do you want ?" said
one of the grooms to the old woman.
"Oh, oh hutetu it is so bitter cold,"
said she, and she shivered and shook,
and made wry faces. " Hutetu it is SO
cold poor wretch may easily freeze to
death, and with that she fell to shiv-
oering and shaking again.
"Oh, for the love of heaven, can 1
get leave to stay here awhile, and sit
inside the stable door ?"
"To the devil with your leave" said
~one. "Pack yourself off this minute,
for If the Squire sets his eyes on you he
will lead us a pretty dance"
oh the poor old bag -ofbones, " said
another, who seemed to take pity on
her, "the old hag may sit inside and
welcome; such a one as she can do no
harm"
And the rest said, some she should
stay, and some she shouldn't; but
while they were quarreling and mind
ing the horses, she crept farther and
farther into the stable, till at last she
sat herself down behind the door; and
when she had got so far, no one gave
any more heed to her.
AS the night wore on, the men found
it rather cold work to sit so still and
~auiet on horseback.
20 Hutetu, it is so devilish cold," said
one, and beat his arms crosswise.
"That it is," said another. II freeze
so, that my teeth chatter.
"If one only had a quid to chew"
said a third.
Well, there was one who had an ounce
or two so they shared it between them
though it wasn't much, after all, that
each got; and so they chewed and spat,
and spat and chewed. This helped
them somewhat; but in little while
they were just as bad as ever.
Hetetu - said one, and shivered and
shook.
Hutetu ~ said the old woman, and
shivered so, that every tooth in her
head chartered.
Then she pulled out the flask with
brandy in it, and her head shook SO that
the spirit splashed about in the flask,
and then she took such gulp, that it
went " bob" in her throat.
" What is that you've got in your
flask, old girl ?" said one of the grooms.
"Oh it's only drop of brandy, old
man." said she.
Brandy Well, 1 never Do let
me have DROP" screamed the whole
twelve, one after another.
oh but it is such little Drop"
mumbled the old woman, it will not
even wet your mouths round"
But they must and would have it !;
and SO she pulled out the flask with the
sleeping drink in 1t, and put it to the
first mans lips; then she shook no
more, but guided the flask so that each
of them got what they wanted, and the
twelfth had not done drinking before the
first sat and snored.
Then the Master Thief threw off the
beggar's rags, and took one groom
after the other so softly off their horses.
and set them astride on the beams be-
tween the stalls; and so he called his
eleven men, and rode off with the
'Squire's horses.
But when the Squire got up in the
morning and went to look after his
grooms, they had just begun to come
to; and some of them fell to spurrinp
the beams with their spurs, till the
splinters flew again, and some fell Off
and some still hung on and sat there
looking like fools.
" Ho, ho I" said the Squire, "I SET
very well who has been here; but as
for you, pretty set of blockheads you
must be to sit here and let the Master
Thief steal the horses from between