176 FIELD AND HEDGEROW. 



these mounds, but could find no reference to them any- 

 where, so he dug through one or two of them himself, 

 without success ; the soil did not seem to have ever been 

 disturbed, consequently they might have been natural. 

 'Perhaps I should have found out something though,' 

 he said, with a smile, ' if it had not been for that there 

 old dog as we used to keep in the tub at the back of the 

 house. Such a lot of folk used to come to our back 

 door all day long after victuals, some out of the village, 

 and some from the next parish, and some as went round 

 regular, and gipsy chaps, and chaps as pretended to 

 come from London — you never saw such a crowd, — just 

 because the old man and the missus was rather good to 

 'em. So there they was a-clacking at that door all day 

 long. But this 'ere dog in the tub used to sarve 'em out 

 sometimes if they didn't mind. (Chuckle.) She never 

 barked, or nothing of that sort, never let 'em know as 

 there was a dog there at all ; there she'd lie as quiet till 

 they was just gone by a little — then out she'd slip with- 

 out a word behind them, and snip 'em by the leg. Lord, 

 how they did jump and holler ! (Chuckle.) See, they 

 had the pinch afore they knowed as she was there. 

 Lord, what a lot she did bite to be sure ! (thoughtfully) ; 

 I can't tell 'e how many, her did it so neat. That kept 

 folk away a little, else I suppose we shouldn't have had 

 anything to eat ourselves. None of 'em never went 

 wrong, you know, never went mad or anything of that 

 sort — never had to send nobody to Paris in them days 

 to be dog-vaccinated. Curious, wasn't it ? Must have 

 been something different about folk then. However, 

 this here dog was desperate clever at it. As I was 

 telling you, I dug through them mounds ; couldn't find 

 no coins or anything ; so I heard of a big archaeologist 

 chap that was writing a new book about the antiquities 



