4
“Well; but now in other aspects,—you understand me me, boy,—what sort of char-
-acter do these roads bearhave they? Pretty good,—ah?”
“Oh, very bad, your worship; very bad character; shocking character, your wor-
-ship.”
“You don’t say so, boy? You don’t say so?—But why didn’t you tell me before I set off? By But I say, boy, do you know know what I mean? Are there their there ever any footpads seen on these roads—any highwaymen—robbers, or what is it you call ’em?”
“Oh Lord, your honor, plenty plenty; according to season, plenty: of a clear night I’ve seen ’em stand behind the hedges as rank as blackberries.”
“Is it possible?”
“Aye sure enough: but we don’t call un’em robbers in these parts: we call un murderers, if it please your worship.”
Why“Murderer! Why, boy, surely you’re dreaming. You don’t mean to say that they ever go so far as to kill people?”
“Why ax any body, your honor. Aye Kill? Aye: kills and cuts their throats.Yes, yes: on dark winter nights, the like of this, many’s the throat that has been cut in these lanes since I can think on. Else, what’s the meaning of the gibbets that we stand a mile futher on; and the nine pretty scoundrelsgentlemen that are dancing upon nothing to the music of their own chains? Egad, I hear ’em now. But there’s an ugly bit of road, two miles a-
-head, where your honor may chance to see something worse.”
“Worse!, what c boy!—what can be worse?”
“Why ghosts “Boggarts, your honor.”
“Boggarts! what are boggarts? I never heard of such things?.”
“Ghosts, and please your worship.” “The gentlemen on the gibbets were
