David and William looked at each other, and hesitated. "You've no call to be ashamed of me," said Caro rather irritably. "We--we äun't ashamed of you." "That's right--for you've no call to be. I was driven to this, couldn't help myself. Besides, I'm no worse than a lot of women wot you call respectable--at least, I put some sort of a price on myself, if it's only five shillings. Now good night, young men, and thank you for a very pleasant evening. I don't suppose as you'll ever see me again. And mind--you tell father as, no matter the life I lead and the knocks I get, I've never once, not once, regretted the day I ran off from his old farm. Now mind--you tell him that." § 8. The boys told him. Reuben listened in silence save for one ejaculation of "the dirty bitch!" David nudged William. "And she asked us particular to say as she'd never regretted the day she left Odiam, or wished herself back there, nuther." "She wur purty säafe to say that--for who'd have her back, I'd lik to know? Larmentable creature she always wur, spanneling around lik a mangy cat. Always thin and always miserable--I'm glad to be shut of her. But she seemed cheery when you saw her?" "Unaccountable cheery--and she drank three bottles of six ale." "Um," said Reuben. The boys had one or two secret talks about Caro. She also stimulated that habit of "thinking" which their father so thoroughly disapproved of. Somehow their encounter with her, combined with their encounter with Richard, seemed to have modified their enthusiasm for Odiam. They could not help comparing that supper at Newhaven with that dinner at Rye, and wondering if it was true what she had said about Richard having got away in time, whereas she had been too late. "And yet she was glad she'd gone--she'd rather be free too late than not at all." "Bill, do you think that if we stay here, Odiam 'ull' do for us wot it did for Caro?" "I döan't think so. Fäather was much harder on Caro than he is on us." "He's not hard on us--but he's unaccountable interfering; it maddens me sometimes." "Seems as if he didn't trust us--seems sometimes as if he was afraid we'd go off like the others." "Reckon he is--he saw how we envied Richard." "Davy, it 'ud be cruel of us to go and leave him." "I döan't say as I want to do that." "Besides, it äun't likely as we'd do as well fur ourselves as Richard. We've no Miss Bardon to trouble about us--reckon we'd come to grief like Albert." "Maybe we would." § 9. Four years later Reuben bought the farmstead of Totease. Brazier died, and the Manor, anxious as usual for ready money, put up his farm for sale. It was a good place of about sixty acres, with some beautiful hop gardens and plenty of water. Reuben felt that it would be unwise to neglect such an opportunity for enlarging the boundaries of Odiam. He outbid one or two small farmers, put the place under repair, engaged more hands, and set to work to develop a large business in hops.