164 The Amateur Poacher. 



coarser groceries and a little bacon. He had also 

 rather extensive gardens, from which he sold quantities 

 of vegetables. It was more than suspected that the 

 carrier's cart was really Luke's that is, he found the 

 money for horsing it, and could take possession if he 

 liked. The carrier's cart took his rabbits, and the game 

 he purchased of poachers, to the railway, and the vege- 

 tables from the gardens to the customers in town. 



At least one cottage besides his own belonged to 

 him ; and some would have it that this was one of the 

 reasons of his success with the ' quality.' The people 

 at the great house, anxious to increase their influence, 

 wished to buy every cottage and spare piece of land. 

 This was well known, and many small owners prided 

 themselves upon spiting the big people at the great 

 house by refusing to sell, or selling to another person. 

 The great house was believed to have secured the first 

 ' refuse ' of Luke's property, if ever he thought of selling. 

 Luke, in fact, among the lower classes was looked 

 upon as a capitalist a miser with an unknown hoard. 

 The old man used to sit of a winter's evening, after he 

 had brought down the rabbits, by the hearth, making 

 rabbit-nets of twine. Almost everybody who came 

 along the road, home from the market town, stopped, 

 lifted the latch without knocking, and looked in to tell 

 the news or hear it. But Luke's favourite manoeuvre 



