Justice Thorne lived in the town, in a stone house where the street mounted the hill. Here went Richard Osmund, about him the staves of the constable and his men. Behind came a part of that black cloud, and it laughed and jeered and cried hard names. The way was not long. Here was the house, and the justice’s parlour and the justice—an old, shrivelled man with a hawk nose and cold, dim eyes.
And Richard Osmund was a disturber of the peace, a pestilent, notorious fellow, a railer against law and good manners. Justice Thorne made short work. “Thou fool and rogue! Thou shalt stand three hours in pillory! Then shalt thou be flung out of town, and if thou comest this way again, thou shalt find yet worse fare!—Take him away, constable, and let me to my dinner and my book!”
Down again to the heart of Great Meadow went law and prisoner and the attending, triumphing rabble. So Richard Osmund was set in the pillory.
Three hours he stood there while Great Meadow turned to its business of that market day. At first boys pelted him with clods, but they tired after a time and rested from that. Persons passed him continually. Some paused to bestow ridicule and abuse, some stared without speaking, some passed, with turned or lowered heads. And still the day shone high and still and clear, with a sky of even sapphire.
Diccon the thatcher came by. He looked around and found it safe to speak. “I knew ’twould happen so! Thunder in thunder clouds, and danger in telling people what they don’t want to know! It’s George Fox over again!—When you’re put out of Great Meadow, will you be going on to Greenfield?”
“Yes.”
“There’s an old grange with a tower two miles this side Greenfield. Friendly people live in it. I’ll get your white horse there to-night.”
“Thank you heartily, friend!”
“I’m going home now.... A strange thing I notice,” pursued the thatcher, “and that is that men like George Fox and you aren’t cast down. To have light and food where there is no light and food, and still to stand, though men have cast you down—that, it seems to me, is a marvellous and a darling thing!”
Nodding his head, he went on by, going toward his cottage east of town.