Page:History of John Cheap the chapman (3).pdf/4

 foul thief; it is well kend I am come of good honest fouks: It may be so goodwife, said I, but ye look rather the other way, when you would lodge the d---l in your house and ca out a poor chapman to die, such a stormy night as this. What do ye say! says she, there was na a bonnier night since winter came in nor this. O goodwife, what are you saying! Do ye not mind, when you and I was at the east end of the house, such a noise of wind and water was then; a wae worth the filthy body, said she, is not that in every part! What said the goodman, a wat well there was nae rain when I came in: the wife then shoots me out, and bolted the door behind me: Well said I, but I shall be through between thy mouth and thy nose or the morrow. It being now so dark, and I a stranger, could see no place to go to, went into the corn yard, but finding no loose straw I fell a drawing one of their stacks, sheaf by sheaf, until I pulled out a threave or two, and got into the hole myself, where I lay as warm as a pie; but the goodman in the morning, perceiving the heap of corn sheaves, came running to carry it away, and stop up the hole in the stack wherein I lay, with some of the sheaves, so with the steighling of the straw, and him talking to others, cursing the thieves who had done it; swearing they had stole six threaves of it; I then skipping out of the hole, ho, ho, said I, goodman, you're not to bury me alive in your stack: he then began to chide me, vowing he would keep my pack for the damage I had done: whereupon, I took his servants witnesses he had robbed me; when hearing me urge him so, he gave me my pack again, and off I came to the next house, where I told the whole of the story.