"A flick to young Squire; a terrible douse, ay sure!"
"By George, a notable match!" said Godolphin. "Your young parson is a lad of mettle, gaffer; he'll be a sportsman an he lives long enough. Here, man, drink his health, and tell him from me that the Lord Treasurer loves pretty play. Come, Frank, we'll drive on."
He flung a coin to the old man, remounted his carriage, and drove off. Gaffer looked at the money, then after the calash.
"Ah, 'tis a mighty fine thing to hold the Queen's purse, my lads, mighty fine! There be a power o' these same shinen bright ones in the Queen's purse; eh, lads?"
A shout came from the distance, and the eyes of the small group around old Minshull were turned towards the road. Lord Godolphin's carriage had broken down. The axle had snapped in two; the horses were plunging, and my lord and his son were clinging to the sides of the vehicle. A score of sturdy fellows rushed to lend a hand, and Gaffer Minshull was left to himself.
CHAPTER II
Sherebiah Shouts
An Angling Story—Old Izaak—Landed—Breakfast—Marlborough's Smile—The Story of a Potticary—Dosed—On the Horizon—Highwaymen—A Man of Peace—Behind the Scenes—Nos Duo—Promises—Black John Simmons—Sherebiah is Troubled
"'Tis here or hereabouts, baten years ha'n't tooken my memory. True, feyther o' mine calls me boy, and so I be to a old aged man like him; but when a man's comen on forty-four, and ha' seen summat o' the world—well,
"'Man's life is but vain, for 'tis subject to pain
An' sorrow, an' short as a bubble;
'Tis a hodge-podge o' business, an' money, an' care,
An' care, an' money, an' trouble.'