LITERARY HISTORY OF PARNELL^S ' HERMIT/ 147 



ordinary well treated, stole away a gilt cup from the gen- 

 tlemaii of the house and carried it away with him. The 

 Eremite was very much astonished with what he saw done 

 by so fair and agreeable a person as he conceived him to 

 be ; but thought not yet fit to speak to him or seem to take 

 notice of it. And therefore they travel fairly on together 

 as aforetimes, till night foi'ced them to seek lodging. But 

 they light upon such an house as had a very unhospitable 

 owner^ who shut them out unto the outward coui't and 

 exposed them all night to the injury of the open weather, 

 which chanced then to be very rainy ; but the Eremite's 

 fellow-traveller unexpectedly compensated his host's ill- 

 entertainment with no meaner reward than the gilt cup he 

 had carried away from the former place, thrusting it in at 

 the window when they departed. This the Eremite thought 

 was very pretty, and that it was not covetousness but 

 humour that made him take it away from its first owner. 

 The next night where they lodged they were treated again 

 with a deal of kindness and civility : but the Eremite 

 observed with horroiu* that his fellow-traveller for an ill 

 requital strangled privately a young child of their so cour- 

 teous host in the cradle. This perplext the mind of the 

 poor Eremite very much ; but in sadness and patience 

 forbearing to speak, he travelled another day's journey 

 with the young man, and at evening took up in a place 

 where they were more made of than anywhere hitherto. 

 And because the way they had to travel next morning was 

 not so easie to find, the master of the house commanded 

 one of the servants to go part of the way to direct them ; 

 whom, while they were passing over a stone bridge, the 

 Eremite's fellow-traveller caught suddenly betwixt the legs 

 and pitched him headlong from off the bridge into the 

 river and drowned him. Here the Eremite could have no 

 longer patience, but flew bitterly upon his fellow-traveller 



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