Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1905-03-28
CHAPTER xI.-(Continued.l

"saAhst some rival nursery, which alwa vs.
pays the upstart one; but / led him round
ana by patient words and simple truth
brought him back to reason. The pack
ing OF the bag he remembered well, and
the pouring of lot of buckwheat husks
around and among the potato sets, to
keep them from bruising, and to keep
out frost. And he sent his best man to
the Oxford coach, the first down from
London, which passed by their gate
about ter o'clyock, and would be in Ok
iord about two, with the weather and
the roads as usual. In that case, the
uag could scarcely have beer at the
biack Horse more than half an hour
oeiore you came and laid hold of it; and
oelhs put into the bar, as the Squire's
parcels always are, it was very unlike
~ to be tempered with
1t was witchcraft thenl The same
as l said all along; it were witches
craft, anc nothing else"
stop, Grips, don't you be in such
hurry. But wait till you hear what
nave next to tell But oh, here comes
my TREND Hardenow, as punctual as the
CLOCK strikes two.-Well, old fellow, how
are you getting on?'
1he Rev. Thomas Hardenow, Fellow
own room at full speed, and stopped alb
rlptly at sight of the carrier. "Of all
men, most have avoided thee" was in
ms mind; but he spoke it not, though
being strongly outspoken man. Not
mat ne ever had done any wrong to make
MN be shy of the Cripps race; but that
ne felt 1t in his heart a desire for COM
mune, which must be dangerous. He
knew
dency towards Esther: and he knew
that she had done her best to overcome
still more foolish turn towards him.
Crlpps however, looked upon any little
bygone 'coorting" as a social and con-
genial topic, enabling a quiet man to get
on with almost any woman. Like
sensible man, he had always acquitted
dardenow of any blame in the matter,
knowing that young girls fancies may be
caught without any angling. eff her
chose to be fool. how were he to blame
LOT IT. And the carrier never forgot
The stages of social distinction. Ser
want, sir" he therefore said, with his
usual salaam; hope see you well, sir"
Thank you, Zachary" said Mr.. Har-
denow, taking the carriers hand, Il am
pretty well. thank YOU"
Then YOU don't look it, sir, that YOU
doesn't. We heer'd you was getting on
wonderful well. But the proof of the
puddin' amt in you, sir"
That's right, Cripps," cried Over
shute; give it to him, Grips. Why, he
kiaryes himself Ever since he took his
first and second, and got his fellowship
ana took orders. he hasn't known what
a good dinner is He keeps all the fasts
n ~ -.
tlvals. and be ought to have an appe-
ute for the feasts; but he overstays his
tllne, and can't keep anything on his
stomach"
Now, Russell, as usualu Hardenow
answered, with a true and pleosapt
smile; what a fine fellow you would be
II you only had moderation! But | see
that you want to talk 10 Cripps! and |
have several men waiting in the ouod
There goes one of the finest fellows
Of all fine fellows yet" With these
words Russell Overshute ran to the win
dow and looked out. A dozen or more
Ct young men were waiting, the hest
undergraduates of the college for Mr.
Hardenow to lead them for fifteen miles.
without word.
Sir" said Cripps, you might a seen
you PLACE to go on wi 'un."
Very well, that satisfies the most ex
acting historian. l win go on where
left off. Well, left the foreman of the
nursery telling me about the man he
sent with the bag of potatoes to the Ok
ford coach. He told me he was one of
his sharpest hands, who had been off
work for week or two then. and had
putV returned thot
was his name, and when they could get
him to work he would do as much as any
other two men. Here to-day and gone
tomorrow had always been his charae-
ter; and they thought that he must be
Of gypsy race, and perhaps had a wander
Ing family.
This made me a little curious about
the man; and l asked to see him. But
the foreman said that for some DAYS now
he had not been near the nursery, and
they thought that he was in the neigh
horhood of Nettlehed. Suddenly
thought of your sisters tale, and | said
to the foreman, Does he speak like this 2
initiating as well as | could your sisters
imitation of him. You know the man.
sir, the foreman answered, you have got
him so exactly that you must have heard
him many times
Grips, you may we'll suppose that
my suspicious were strong by this time
Here was your sisters description con.
frmed to the very letter; and here was
the clear opportunity offered for SHINING
the wreath of hair into the bag"
Your worship, now. your worsbin,
you be bit too sharp! If that there
man were at Headington Quarry ar
nightfall of Tuesday. how could he nos.
sibly a beer to Maidenhead next morn.
ing? No, no, your worship are too
sharp"
Too thick, you mean. Cripps: and not
sharp enough. Those long-legged gypsies
think very little of going thirty miles in
a night. And then there is the up mail
coach. OF course he would nor nav
his fare. but he might hang on beneath
the guards bugle, with or without h;s
knowledge, and slip away at the chang
Ing houses.
Very well, SIR" said Cripps, discreet.
ly; who be for to argify?"
'Well, l went back TO the inn Mt once
and rode leisurely TO Henley. 1t was
raining hard and the river in food with
all the melted SNOW and so on, when |
crossed that pretty bridge. l went into
the entrance OF that good inn by the
waterside. The landlord was good enough
20 come out, and knowing me from old
boating days. he got into a talk with me
Remembering how the gypsies hang
about the boats and the waterside, /
asked him whether any of them happen
ed to be in the neighborhood just now
He thought, perhaps, that | was timid
about my dark ride homeward. and he
told me all he knew of them. There was
pne lot. as usual, in the open ground
about Newman, and another large camp
near Chalgrove. and another. quite a
small pitch that, on the edge of the frs
above Nettlebed.
This last was the lot for me: and l
pressed him so about them that he looked
at me with peculiar grin. What do
you mean by thatF l asked. Now.
Squire overshute, as if you did not
i-rc.srr no answered. sDoth ,.r,,- ,,.,-