ANTIQUITIES NEAR LISKEARD. 51 



from completely enveloping his head, he carried in 

 it a bason containing his dinner, as his home was 

 some distance from the school : at other times a 

 packet of hay answered the purpose ; and, to prevent 

 the wind from blowing it away, it had a pad in front 

 which hung over his forehead like a small pillow, 

 and gave him a most grotesque appearance. 



After some parleying, we prevailed on this promis- 

 ing rustic to play the truant; and, for the consider- 

 ation of a shilling, to pilot us to the Cheesewring ; 

 giving him a promise that, on our return, we would 

 make his peace with the schoolmaster. To the 

 latter point he seemed quite indifferent, and told us 

 that he had " thrashed the master about a year ago, 

 for going to birch him, and he would n't mind doing 

 it again ." Though this young fellow possessed the 

 bones and flesh of a bullock, and was shod hke a 

 London dray horse, he scampered before us as lightly 

 as a Mercury. His knowledge of distance did not 

 seem much improved by school training; for he 

 assured us that the Cheesewring was not more than 

 a mile and a half from St. Cleer, though we had 

 been informed at Liskeard that the distance was 

 four miles at least. It is however fair to say that 

 he did not seem to be singular in this matter, for, 



