TIRING WORK 



<No, Polly, it's not cold at all, No, I'm not going in yet.) 

 How is Mr. Boyt?" 



" Mr. Boyt he be fairly, thanking you kindly, 'm, Of 

 course he be a bit tired this evening/' 

 Mrs. Polly, with a wild eye, intervened. 

 'Tin afraid it's tea-time, darling. H'm- H'm A beauti- 

 ful evening Mrs. Boyt, my Mother was admiring the little 

 calvesCome on, Bathsheba ! " 



In vain she clucked, in vain she pulled the reins / Bath- 

 sheba merely twitched an ear. The clear voice from the 

 bath-chair put all efforts to turn the conversation on one 

 side with a decision which swept her into silence. 

 "Tired? Did you say your husband was tired, Mrs. 

 Boyt?" 



" Yes 'm. Pigs be very tiring." 



"Pigs, Mrs. Boyt? Oh! what was he doing with the 

 poor pigs this morning? He wasn't he wasn't killing 

 them?" 



" Oh, 'ess 'm." And, blind to the horror and disgust on 

 her listener's face, Mrs. Boyt proceeded with unction : 

 " Beautiful pigs they was, six of them." 

 " Oh, but he didn't do it himself?" 

 " Oh, 'ess 'm." Mrs. Boyt was much shocked. " We 

 allus do it ourselves, I do hold en, and Boyt he do stick 

 en very tiring it do be for us both ! " 

 It was only Mrs. Polly who saw the humour of the situation 

 in after days. The beloved lady in the bath-chair remained 

 overwhelmed with the tragedy. It was not a subject that 

 could be referred to again in her presence. 



117 



