And if thou canst find no
sackcloth, then thou shalt have a double portion of ashes, ye knaves,
and so I promise you."
At these words the innkeeper and the grooms looked at each other. And
then the innkeeper said civilly that he and the grooms had meant no
offence, but that the horse had certainly been stolen from the Swan two
nights before. The second groom, equally desirous with his master to
conciliate, pressed forward to show him how the bit had been removed by
the rascal who sold the horse so that he would come straight home
again.
"Which I did but now discover," said the second groom.
And the first groom, not to be outdone, said: "If thou really seekest
the young lord and the Saxon serving-man we can put thee on their
track, for surely they did leave here but some three hours agone."
Walter Skinner stared stupidly for a moment, while the innkeeper
reproved the groom for being beforehand with him in giving the
intelligence. Then the little spy sat up straighter and put on a
haughtier air than ever. "Aha, Fortune!" he cried, "thou art bound to
make a duke of me whether I will or not.
Pages:
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171