“I never once gave her a thought, lad,” he said, lifting his eyes to his son’s face. “It’s awk’ard.”
“Awkward!” repeated Jagger. “What you’ve got to do is to say ’at you’ve thought better of it, and let him stop where he is. It was a mad idea to offer all t’ bit we have i’ t’ bank to bail out a scamp like him. I thought you must ha’ lost your senses when I heard you.”
“It seems such a shame after all t’ mischief he’s done you,” said Hannah indignantly. “It isn’t as if it ’ud make any difference either, ’cos there’s naught so certain as ’at he’ll get a long sentence at t’ finish.”
“Now, mother, it’s your turn, and then we’ll hear what Baldwin has to say.”
“Nay,” said Baldwin, with an emphatic movement of the head, “I’m saying naught; it’s none o’ my business.”
“Then come, mother!” said Maniwel, with half-humorous encouragement.
“He comes off a black moor, Maniwel,” said the old woman. “Them of his breed isn’t to be trusted. They’re slippy as eels, and cunning as foxes, and their heart’s nowt but a bog. They’re t’ devil’s own childer from t’ start...!”
“Why, now, I think that’s as far as we need go, mother,” Maniwel interrupted with a twinkle in his eye; “for if we went further we could hardly fare worse. I reckon if he was t’ devil’s own bairn from t’ start it’s time he had a step-father, and as there’s nob’dy else willing it’ll ha’ to be me.
“I may ha’ been a bit hasty, Jagger, i’ offering brass ’at didn’t belong to me, but if we lose it I’ll try to make it up to you, lad; and if I can’t you’ll none bear me a grudge. I can’t fairly put into words what’s at t’ back o’ my mind, but yon lad’s nob’dy akin to him by what I can make out, and this is t’ last chance there’ll be for a good while o’ showing him a kindness. He’ll ha’ lots o’ time for reckoning things up after a bit, and I could like him to think ’at he’d a friend ’at ’ud give him a hand and help him to keep straight when he came out. I could like better still, lad, to think ’at he’d a houseful o’ friends.”
He looked hard at his son, who avoided the glance and still looked gloomy.