“One afternoon Mr. Naggett he comes up to my place and wants to see the Girl in harness, and to drive her himself. I told him it wouldn’t be safe, not yet, at no price; but Mr. Naggett he’d been a-drinking, for things had gone cross at home, and he wouldn’t be satisfied without a drive. Well, I got him set down to take a bit of dinner with me at my place (it’s a poor place, sir, for gentlemen like you, but you’re heartily welcome when you are passing that way), and he sent out for some brandy, and made himself quite comfortable. After he’d smoked a pipe or two, I tried to persuade him to go home. ‘Home!’ says he, ‘I ain’t going home for a fortnight! while Mrs. Naggett’s blowing off _her_ steam, I’m a-getting _mine_ up,’ says he; ‘and if I don’t have a jolly good spree this week and the next, I’m a Scotchman!’ says he, ‘and that’s all about it!’ “So we went into the stables, and had the Girl stripped; and at last, if it was only to content him, I was forced to put her into the trap, and take him out for a drive; but I got him to promise he wouldn’t lay a finger on the reins, ‘for,’ says I, ‘if anything _should_ happen,’ says I, ‘without doubt Mrs. N. will cast it up to you, as you should have taken her advice and stayed at home.’ He’s not an obstinate gentleman, Mr. Naggett, and this convinced him at once. “The Girl went kindly enough for the first half-mile, and I wanted to turn back and go home afore worse came of it; but Mr. Naggett says, ‘We’ll just go down to the Silver Bells at Willow-tree, take a pint of purl, and come back to tea; so, as it’s a good wide road and not much frequented, I put the whip in the bucket, and drove steadily on. “Well, sir, as luck would have it, we hadn’t gone a mile, before we came to some chaps at the road-side, cutting down a tree. There isn’t many trees along that line, and I wished there was none, or else they’d leave them all standing. Them countrymen isn’t over cute, and though I got by as quick as ever I could, the tree fell with a crash close behind us. The Girl gave a jump, that I thought would have taken her clean out of her harness, and away she bolted like a frightened stag. Bless ye! I’d no more power over her than a baby. There was a hill to go down a few rods ahead. I says to Mr. Naggett, says I, ‘Hold on, master; when we get to the old Barn, the trap’ll run on to the Girl, and we’ll be kicked out, so look for a soft place!’ Mr. Naggett didn’t seem to care about arguing the point, but he swore awful.