"Dear life! Won't Maister John be in a gashly passion!" said Simon Mail. "He had more nor you in it, Zacky, I b'lieve!"
"Iss, fay, he did. Neighbour Doubledick loses least; 'tis a mercy for 'ee, neighbour."
"So 'tis, Zacky," said Doubledick. "Ah! I was right to bide quiet a while arter that journey to France. But name it all, I bean't goin' to bide quiet for ever; I'll take a share in the next, be-jowned if I don't, and I hope them above will gie us better luck."
"Ay, Maister John will be in a rare passion," repeated Simon Mail. "He be spendin' money so free that 'twill be a blow to him, to be sure."
"True," said Pendry, "and spendin' for the country, too. Do 'ee think, now, as Boney will come to these parts, neighbour Tonkin?"
"I wouldn' think so myself, but you never can tell," replied Tonkin. "'Tis a little small place, wi' no great riches to tempt un; but that may be a reason for 't. We've no forts nor cannons nor sojers to defend us, and Boney may choose the place according; 't 'ud be easier to land here than at Weymouth, where the King and all his high generals sometimes be."
"What I say is, Maister John be a fine feller," said Mail. "'Tidn' every gentleman as 'ud do what he be doin'. Why, he've had a dozen men from Trura riggin' up iron shetters to his winders, and a cart come t'other day wi' firelocks and pikes, and I seed him only yesterday marchin' his miners up and down in front o' the house, every man of 'em wi' a terrible weapon o' some sort; and when he shouted, up went firelock or pike, and seein' the guns all pointin' at me, I run off as hard as my poor legs 'ud move, for I didn' want to be hurted, not I."
"Ay, and I seed Petherick goin' up to Dower House wi' a noble bell under his arm," said Pendry, "and when I axed un about it, 'a telled me 'twas to rig up in the roof, to gie the word o' warnin' to the whole village if Boney was spied wi' all his horses and men."
"And what's more," added Mail, "he hev took three men-servants into house, purgy fellers they be too, so's to hev a army to lead agen the enemy. They'll eat a deal o' meat, they will, and sartin sure he'll be in a passion at losin' money over this crop."
"Hee! hee!" laughed Doubledick. "It do make me laugh, neighbours, to think o' Maister John leadin' a army agen Boney. I'll go up-along to-morrer and see this practisin' wi' pikes and firelocks; 'twill do me good, hee! hee! They miners had better turn sojers out and out, for they'll never get tin or copper enough out o' the earth to pay for their keep."