VILLAGE MINERS. 159 



the upper end, and place a piece of paper in it with 

 the message. 



The hamlet forge is not yet quite extinct, and the 

 blacksmith's hammer sounds among the oaks. He 

 frequently has to join two pieces of iron together, say 

 to lengthen a rod. He places both ends in the fire, 

 heats them to a certain point, and then presses the 

 one against the other. By this simple means of touch- 

 ing they unite, the metal becomes one almost like 

 a chemical union, and so complete is it, that, with a 

 little polishing to remove the marks of fire, the join 

 is not perceptible to an ordinary eye. This is the 

 most perfect way of joining metal, and when accom- 

 plished, the pieces are said to be ''butt-shut." The 

 word has passed from the forge into conversation, and 

 the expression is often heard, " That won't butt-shut." 

 If any one be telling a tale, or giving an account of 

 something of which his hearers are incredulous, they 

 say it will not butt-shut — one part of the story will 

 not agree and dovetail with the rest ; there is a break 

 in the continuity of the evidence, which does not 

 unite and make one rod. Such a term is true miners' 

 language. Indeed, the American backwoodsmen, 

 miners, and so on, are really only English farmers 

 and labourers transplanted to a freer and larger life. 



