"Then he got quite touched, and wiped his eyes with the flapping sleeves of his shirt.
"Behind the door stood a stout willow-wood stick, which he laid hold of. I wondered what he was going to do with it. Would he give it to me as a staff for my pilgrimage?
"'Permit me, your ladyship, to accompany you as far as the castle. Some evil might befall you on the way. There are bad men about. The dogs might bark at you, and the bull is quite savage.'
"'But I am not going to the castle,' I said.
"He gaped at me. 'Whither away, then?'
"'That's my business! The road goes up, and the road goes down. I'll go whichever way the wind blows.'
"Then he rallied all the wisdom he possessed, and preached a sermon to me with all the unction of an Old Testament patriarch.
"'Don't do that, my dear good lady! Don't grieve your good and loving lord! There's not a better man in the world. Allow me to accompany you home. I'll keep well behind—twenty yards if you like.'
"I stamped my foot impatiently, and bawled at him to come away from the door and let me go my way.
"Then it was that Peter showed his true colours.