'Well, well, I understand.'
'I thought you did—but what was that? There is nobody sleeps here, I hope?'
'Oh no, it is the dog; he is dreaming I suppose.'
'It startled me though, neighbour, for it would not be quite so clever to have any one get the run of what we have been saying.'
'Never fear, Squire; I shut all up myself.'
'I hope you are sure of that; for I was just going to tell you the best of the whole joke.'
'Tell away, Squire; there are no listeners but the old casks; they won't tell any tales.'
'They do sometimes though, neighbour.'
'How so?'
'They tell a little bit, sometimes by the end of our nose, ha, ha, ha!'—another poke—'don't they? ha, ha, ha! Well, as I was saying, the best of it is all to come. Rutherford is clean done up'—one, two, three pokes right off.