24 THE EULOGY OF RICHARD JEFFERIES. 



" Yet the little things fed in perfect con- 

 fidence. He was so still, so very still quies- 

 cent they feared him no more than they did 

 the wall ; they could not hear his breathing. 



" Had they been gifted with human intelli- 

 gence, that very fact would have excited their 

 suspicions. Why so very, very still ? Strong 

 men, wearied by work, do not sleep quietly ; 

 they breathe heavily. Even in firm sleep we 

 move a little now and then, a limb trembles, a 

 muscle quivers, or stretches itself. 



" But Iden was so still it was evident he 

 was really wide awake and restraining his 

 breath, and exercising conscious command 

 over his muscles, that this scene might pro- 

 ceed undisturbed. 



" Now the strangeness of the thing was in 

 this way : Iden set traps for mice in the cellar 

 and the larder, and slew them there without 

 mercy. He picked up the trap, swung it 

 round, opening the door at the same instant, 

 and the wretched captive was dashed to death 

 upon the stone flags of the floor. So he hated 

 them and persecuted them in one place, and 

 fed them in another. 



