A Moorland Legend. 113 



had started forward as if to meet the procession ; then she 

 resolutely arrested her movements, and paused stock still 

 again. The warder this time did not follow her, and it was 

 to the sportsman that he continued his comments. 



" Oho ! " he exclaimed, " this," referring to the approach- 

 ing group, "is about the biggest scoundrel in the whole 

 establishment. Do you remember the fellow who narrowly 

 escaped hanging for that Southwark affair? This is the 

 second time he has tried to bolt. Last time he nearly killed 

 his warder with a hand-saw, and the poor chap will be 

 maimed for life in consequence." 



The Southwark burglar was just then borne past. He 

 had been shot twice once through the shoulder, once in 

 the thigh 1 and, limp and motionless as to body and limbs, 

 and ghastly as to countenance, seemed already dead. The 

 crowd followed the procession, and before long a shout was 

 raised that a cart was bringing the other convicts from 

 another direction. This turned out to be true. A donkey- 

 cart was driven at a walk within the walls, conveying back 

 to their punishment two groaning men, from whom the 

 prison surgeons would soon be extracting the leaden checks 

 upon liberty. The ponderous gates harshly shut out sight 

 and sound, and gradually the Kingsford housekeepers and 

 their little ones dispersed. Miss Western had lingered until 

 the three wounded men had gone in. It was with almost a 

 smile that she said to Sullivan, in passing 

 " They are the builders, are they not ? " 

 "Yes," he said; "they were all working beyond the 

 stone-yard yonder. We make use of artizans in that way. 

 One of them is a very bad lot. The other two are good 

 fellows enough, but I suppose they couldn't resist the 

 temptation to run away." 



The fourth convict, then, was not captured. The search 



i 



