A JOURNAL KEPT IN THE COUNTRY. 145 



telling him that it is less than an hour to knocking- 

 off time, continued my way along the hedge. I 

 looked back from the gate into the next field, and 

 saw him, the sack drawn a little closer, the head 

 dropped lower, motionless under his thorn tree, a 

 figure of patient misery ; a form of dread surely to 

 us his masters, if we could look beyond those walls 

 of reasonableness and decency and well-meaning 

 which we build about our ways. I could not com- 

 fortably think of my morning's employment, with 

 old Walder's leisure hours on my mind ; but at 

 length appeased myself with the determination to 

 see the Vicar or Mr. Newcome himself in a few days, 

 and with the recollection that in a like case in 

 Arnington, the Rector's application to the employer 

 resulted in kindest consideration of the matter and 

 a long-service pension to the old servant for the rest 

 of his days, with the further thoughtful provision of 

 light work to break the strangeness of the first 

 holiday in seventy years. Our large landowners are 

 anything but hard men ; they are kind enough on 

 due occasion, if only the occasion is brought to 

 them, and they have not to seek it. I feel sure that 

 in this case Mr. Newcome will be just and generous 

 when his attention is gained ; and that old Walder 

 will not have long to wait for easier times, for rest 



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