A fearful man, all in coarse gray, with a great iron on his leg. A man

with no hat, and with broken shoes, and with an old rag tied round his

head. A man who had been soaked in water, and smothered in mud, and

lamed by stones, and cut by flints, and stung by nettles, and torn by

briars; who limped, and shivered, and glared, and growled; and whose

teeth chattered in his head as he seized me by the chin.

"Oh! Don't cut my throat, sir," I pleaded in terror. "Pray don't do it,

sir."

"Tell us your name!" said the man. "Quick!"

"Pip, sir."

"Once more," said the man, staring at me. "Give it mouth!"

"Pip. Pip, sir."

"Show us where you live," said the man. "Pint out the place!"

I pointed to where our village lay, on the flat in-shore among the

alder-trees and pollards, a mile or more from the church.

The man, after looking at me for a moment, turned me upside down, and

emptied my pockets. There was nothing in them but a piece of bread. When

the church came to itself,--for he was so sudden and strong that he

made it go head over heels before me, and I saw the steeple under my

feet,--when the church came to itself, I say, I was seated on a high

tombstone, trembling while he ate the bread ravenously.

"You young dog," said the man, licking his lips, "what fat cheeks you

ha' got."

I believe they were fat, though I was at that time undersized for my

years, and not strong.

"Darn me if I couldn't eat em," said the man, with a threatening shake

of his head, "and if I han't half a mind to't!"

I earnestly expressed my hope that he wouldn't, and held tighter to

the tombstone on which he had put me; partly, to keep myself upon it;

partly, to keep myself from crying.

"Now lookee here!" said the man. "Where's your mother?"

"There, sir!" said I.

He started, made a short run, and stopped and looked over his shoulder.

"There, sir!" I timidly explained. "Also Georgiana. That's my mother."

"Oh!" said he, coming back. "And is that your father alonger your

mother?"

"Yes, sir," said I; "him too; late of this parish."

"Ha!" he muttered then, considering. "Who d'ye live with,--supposin'

you're kindly let to live, which I han't made up my mind about?"




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