Page:History of John Cheap, the Chapman (7).pdf/6

6 night, I came to a little town with four or five houses in it; I went twice through it, but none of them would give me the credit to stand all night among their horses, or yet to lie in their cow's oxter: at last I prevailed with a wife, if her husband was willing to let me stay, she would, and sent me to the barn to ask him; and meeting him at the barn door carrying in strae for his horses, I told him his wife had granted to let me stay if he was not against it, to which he answered, 'if I should lie in his midden dub, I should get no quarters from him that night; a wheen lazy idle villains, turns a' to be chapmen, comes through the kintry fashing fouks, ay seeking quarters; the next day ye'll be gaun wi' a powder'd perriwig, and a watch at your arse, and winna let fouk stand afore your chap-doors, ye'll be sae saucy.' I hearing thus my sentence from the goodman, expected no relief but to lie without; yet I perceived when he came out of the barn, he only drew the door behind him. So when he was gone I slips into the barn, and by the help of one of the kipples, climbs up the mou, and then dives down among the sheaves, and happed myself all over, so that I lay as warm as the goodman himself. But in the morning, long before day, two fellows came into the barn and fell a thrashing, so that by their disturbance I eouldcould [sic] sleep no more; at last I got up with my hair all hanging over my face, and when he that stood on the opposite side perceived me, I made my eyes to roll, and wryed my face in a frightful manner, so that the poor fellow supposing he had seen the d---l, or something as ill, gave a roar as if he had been sticked, and out at the door he runs; the other following after him, crying, Wa, Johnny, man, what did you see? O!