CUNNING 151 



you have returned the eighteen-pence you have robbed 

 him of." 



The county police had not been established, or I 

 "would have given him in charge. My horses were 

 put to and ready, when the bricklayer, tired, I sup- 

 pose, of waiting, or suspecting the trick, came rimning 

 out. 



* 



" Give it him back/' I repeated. Seeing my deter- 

 mination, the cheat reluctantly, though with a forced 

 laugh, complied. 



"I did not think you meant to serve me so," was all 

 his dupe ventured to say. 



On our arrival at the next stage, where we lunched, 

 as did the passengers of the AYisbech coach, the baffled 

 cheat went into the room. I followed, and, seeins; him 



7 7 O 



shake hands with one of the passengers, whom I knew, I 

 addressed the latter, — 



" I do not know if you are aware of it, but you are 

 shaking hands with one of the most consummate 

 scoundrels I ever met with." 



" Order, order, sir ! " said he ; " order is the first law 

 of nature." 



"True," I said, "and it is a pity you have been 

 suffered to violate it so long — for you ought to have been 

 hanged long ago." 



Saying this, 1 left the room. When he rejoined me, 

 during the remainder of the journey he attempted to 

 turn into ridicule my sympathy for his intended victim, 

 whom he represented as a hypocritical, canting rascal, 

 at the same time extolling his own masterly display of 

 cunning, by his almost successful attempt at robbing 



