“I—I beg your pardon,” he said. “I didn’t know. I was surprised. I’m very sorry—”
Josh’s weather-tanned face lit up directly with a pleasant smile, and grasping the boy’s hand he wrung it so hard that Dick had hard work to keep from wincing.
“It’s all right, my lad,” he said. “Of course you didn’t know! It be gashly ugly, bean’t it? Fell off the cliff when I was quite a babby, you know, and soft. Fifty foot. Yonder, you know;” and he pointed to the steep cliff and its thin iron railing at the end of the village.
“How shocking!” said Dick.
“Oh! I dunno,” said Josh cheerily. “I was such a little un, soft as one of our bladder buoys, you see, and I never knowed anything about it. Bent it like, and stopped it from growing; but thank the Lord, it grew strong, and I never mind. There, you be off along o’ Will there and get your tea, and we’ll have such a night’s fishing, see if we don’t!”
Chapter Ten.
Uncle Abram always has a bit of Salt Provision in Cut.
The two lads went off towards the village, Dick in the highest of glee, and chattering and questioning about everything he saw, Will getting more and more quiet and lower of spirit as he thought of the ordeal that he had to face.