“You wunner if wheä kicked?” came the slow response.
“Absalom, when Joab stabbed him. The other day, when the pigs were killed, they all kicked like mad.”
Bolland laid down the Bible and glanced at Martin with a puzzled air. He was not annoyed or even surprised at the unlooked-for deduction. It had simply never occurred to him that one might read the Bible and construct actualities from the plain-spoken text.
“Hoo div’ I knoä?” he said calmly; “it says nowt about it i’ t’ chapter.”
Then Martin awoke with a start. He saw how nearly he had betrayed himself a second time, how ready were the lips to utter ungoverned thoughts.
He flushed slightly.
“Is that all for to-day, father?” he said.
Before Bolland could answer, there came a knock at the door.
“See wheä that is,” said the farmer, readjusting his spectacles.