156 THE LIFE STORY OF AN OTTER 



they preferred and which every man round the 

 table thought they were entitled to, he brushed 

 their requests aside as if they were nobodies. As 

 Raftra says, a Lord High Ranger couldn't have 

 treated vagrom men with more contempt. This 

 haughty demeanour enraged everyone ; in fact, it 

 was all Geordie and the wilder spirits could do to 

 keep their clenched fists off the bailiff's person. 

 As it was, angry words passed, but when a fight 

 between the gipsy and the Scot seemed imminent, 

 the old reeve rose, lifted his thin hands to 

 command silence, and said : 



* Don't quarrel, my friends — don't quarrel ; 

 better the otter never came anist us if it's to lead 

 to blows. And yet, as an old tracker, it does my 

 heart good to see how eager every man of 'ee is 

 to get a good beat. For what else does it mean 

 but this, that the love of sport among us is as 

 strong as ever it was ? It makes me long to be 

 one of 'ee, it do ; to be young again, abroad at peep 

 o' day, when the sun is touchin' the cairns and 

 the wakin' world is fresh and sweet, to feel once 

 more the joy of comin' on the wild rover's prents. 

 This minit in my mind's eye I can see the five 

 round toe marks and the seal of the otter I 

 spurred beside the Kieve. You've heard of the 

 sport he gave. An old man's tongue will run 



