THERS' A MULE i'th' GARDEN. 69' 



" Nah lad," said th' owd man, " what news has ta browt ? Tha's 

 generally summut new." 



" I've nowt mich iits likely to bo fresh, I dooant think," said Ezra 

 Yo'd hear tell abaght that do o' Slinger's, I reckon ? " 



*• Niver a word, lad ; what's th' chixffin heead been doin ?" 



" "Well I'd better start at th' beginning o' my tale, an' as it's rayther a 



longish en, yo mun draw up to th' fire and ma up your mind to barken a 



a bit " 



" Yo happen niver knew Molly Momooin ? Shoo lived at Coldedge, 

 an' used to keep one o' them sooart o' spots known i' thease parts as a 

 wisht shop ; yo'll know what that is ? Shoo worn't a bad-like woman, 

 considermg her age, (for shoo wor aboou fifty, an' had been a widdy for 

 1 dozen year), an iver sin her felly deed, shoo'd sell'd small drink 

 a'th sly (they dooant think its wrang up i' them pairts) an ther wor at said 

 it wor nooan of a bad sooart, tho shoo used to booast at ther wor niver a 

 jhapgate druffeni'her haase. thother'dbeen one or twobrussen. Likemonny 

 widdy beside (at's getten a bit o' brass together) shoo wor pestered 

 vi' chaps at wanted to hing ther hats iip, an put ther feet o'th' hearth- 

 itooau, an call thersen th' niaister o' what they'd niver helped to haddle 

 3ut shoo wornt a waik-minded en, wornt Molly : — an shoo tell'd em all 

 it th' chap at gate her ud have to have a willing hand as weel as a warm 

 leaxt, for shoo'd enuff to do to keep hersen, withaat working her fingers 

 ;o th' booan for a lump o' lumber ith' nook. 



Soa one after another they all left off bothering her except one, an 

 hat Avor Jim o' long Joan's, throo Wadsworth, an he seemed detarmined 

 ^et her to change her mind if he could. As sooin as iver shoo 

 ppened th' shuts in a morning, he used to laumer in an call for a quart, 

 that cost him three-awpence, an used to fit liim varry weel woll nooin). 

 /Yell, things nother seemed to get farther nor nearer for a long time, but 

 ne day summat happened at made a change ith' matter. It wor just 

 baght th' time at th' new police wor put on, an SHnger wor made into 

 ne. Nah Slinger thowt he ought to be made into a sargent, an he said 

 he wor detarmined to extinguish hissen i' such a way woll they couldn't 

 « off promotioning him, an if they didn't he'd nobscond." Soa th'fuxst- 

 liilig he did wor to goa an ligg information agean owd Molly sdling ale ■ 

 laght license. Th' excise chaps sooin had him an two or three moor off 

 cop th' owd lass ith' act, for they said " unless they could see it theraen 



