46 THE TREE SPARED 



woman ; I spoke in haste. I'll never lay hands 

 on Johanna's tree. And here comes our Jesse 

 already. The lad's as fast as a hare, and if he's 

 forgotten the bellows he's remembered the cloth 

 to ground the hive on." 



Taking the skep, the farmer shook the bees 

 into it and laid it on the cloth which Jesse had 

 spread at the foot of the tree. "They'll do all 

 right theere till the sun is gone, when I'll come 

 myself and fetch 'em. Now let's make haste back 

 and finish our fish and taties, or they'll be too 

 cold to be worth eating. What do you say, 

 Dick?" 



''You're right, maister, a cold pilcher ed'n 

 much account, nor a cold tatie nother. I'd 

 as soon sit down to a basin of sky blue and 

 sinker,^ and that ed'n sayin' much." With that, 

 man and master, Betty and the boys quitted the 

 field, leaving the hare to his reflections. 



The whole proceeding was a mystery to the 

 timid wildling, who had kept to his seat notwith- 

 standing Betty's shrill voice and gesticulations. 

 Some hares would have slipped away, but it was 

 instinctive in him to lie close until found ; a trait 

 of his strain which went far to explain the survival 

 of his forbears amidst the gradual disappearance 

 of their kind. But though satisfied that he was 



1 Barley-bread and skimmed milk. 



