“Oh, but this is too bad. Why, the—the—”
“Stone, I should say it were, sir. Bet a halfpenny as it was a ballast cobble as was hev down.”
“But it might have come down on you and killed you.”
“Shouldn’t wonder, sir.”
“But you have no one with such a spite against you as to make him do that?”
“Haven’t I, Master Aleck? Why, bless your innocence, there’s dozens as would! I’d bet another halfpenny as that young beauty as I brought down with my stick this mornin’ felt quite sore enough to come and drop a stone on my head. ’Sides, they’ve got a spite agen you, too, my lad, and like as not Big Jem would try to sarve you out by making a hole through your boat for leathering him as you did a fortnit ago.”
“Tom!”
“Ah, you may shout ‘Tom!’ till you’re as hoarse as a bull, Master Aleck, but that seems to be about the bearings of it; and now I think more on it, that’s about the course I means to steer. Two on ’em, you says as you saw?”
“Yes, two biggish lads.”
“Sculling hard?”