The Open Air 



by indoor folk) will do for him. His natural con- 

 stitution rebels against such " peevish " drink. In 

 winter he wants beer against the cold and the frosty 

 rime and the heavy raw mist that hangs about the 

 hollows ; in spring and autumn against the rain, and 

 in summer to support him under the pressure of 

 additional work and prolonged hours. Those who 

 really wish well to the labourer cannot do better than 

 see that he really has beer to drink real beer, 

 genuine brew of malt and hops, a moderate quantity 

 of which will supply force to his thews and sinews, 

 and will not intoxicate or injure. If by giving him a 

 small money payment in lieu of such large quantities 

 you can induce him to be content with a little, so much 

 the better. If an employer followed that plan, and at 

 the same time once or twice a day sent out a moderate 

 supply of genuine beer as a gift to his men, he would 

 do them all the good in the world, and at the same 

 time obtain for himself their goodwill and hearty 

 assistance, that hearty work which is worth so 

 much. 



Roger breathed heavily in his sleep in the cow- 

 house, because the vile stuff he had taken puffed 

 him up and obstructed nature. The tongue in his 

 open mouth became parched and cracked, swollen 

 and dry; he slept indeed, but he did not rest; he 

 groaned heavily at times and rolled aside. Once 

 he awoke choking he could not swallow, his tongue 

 was so dry and large ; he sat up, swore, and again lay 

 down. The rats in the sties had already discovered 

 that a man slept in the cowhouse, a place they rarely 

 visited, as there was nothing there to eat; how they 

 found it out no one knows. They are clever creatures, 

 the despised rats. They came across in the night and 

 looked under his bed, supposing that he might have 



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