[Gutenberg 37424] • Views and Reviews

[...]and humanely handled. After a long and somewhat chilling silence, amid the pipes and beer, the landlord opens the conversation "by saying in a doubtful tone to his cousin the butcher: - "'Some folks 'ud say that was a fine beast you druv in yesterday, Bob?' "The butcher, a jolly, smiling, red-haired man, was not disposed to answer rashly. He gave a few puffs before he spat, and replied, 'And they wouldn't be fur wrong, John.' "After this feeble, delusive thaw, silence set in as severely as before. "'Was it a red Durham?' said the farrier, taking up the thread of discourse after the lapse of a few minutes. "The farrier looked at the landlord, and the landlord looked at the butcher, as the person who must take the responsibility of answering.[...].