"Oh, indeed!" said she; "and pray, how do you know that?" Mr. Leicester favored her with a knowing wink. He gave her a moment to digest this, and then said, almost in a whisper,-- "Hearkened the gentlefolks on Scutchemsee Nob, after you was gone home, Mistress." Kate was annoyed. "What! they must be prating as soon as one's back is turned! Talk of women's tongues! Now what did they say, I should like to know?" "It was about the bet, ye know." "A bet? Oh, that is no affair of mine." "Ay, but it is. Why, 'twas you they were betting on. Seems that old soger and Squire Hammersley had laid three guineas to one that you should let out which was your fancy of them two." Kate's cheeks were red as fire now; but her delicacy overpowered her curiosity, and she would not put any more questions. To be sure, young Hopeful needed none; he was naturally a chatterbox, and he proceeded to tell her, that, as soon as ever she was gone, Squire Hammersley took a guinea and offered it to the old soldier, and told him he had won, and the old soldier pocketed it. But after that, somehow, Squire Hammersley let drop that Mr. Neville was the favorite. "Then," continued Mr. Leicester, "what does the old soger do, but pull out guinea again, and says he,-- "'You must have this back; bet is not won: for you do think 'tis Neville; now I do think 'tis Gaunt.' "So then they fell to argufying and talking a lot o' stuff." "No doubt, the insolent meddlers! Can you remember any of their nonsense?--not that it is worth remembering, I'll be bound." "Let me see. Well, Squire Hammersley, he said you owned to dreaming of Squire Neville,--and that was a sign of love, said he; and, besides, you sided with him against t'other. But the old soger, he said you called Squire Gaunt 'Griffith'; and he built on that. Oh, and a said you changed the horses back to please our Squire. Says he,-- "'You must look to what the lady did; never heed what she said. Why, their sweet lips was only made to kiss us, and deceive us,' says that there old soger." "I'll--I'll----And what did you say, Sir?--for I suppose your tongue was not idle." "Oh, me? I never let 'em know I was hearkening, or they'd have 'greed in a moment for to give me a hiding. Besides, I had no need to cudgel my brains; I'd only to ask you plump. You'll tell _me_, I know. Which is it, Mistress? I'm for Gaunt, you know, in course. Alack, Mistress," gabbled this voluble youth, "sure you won't be so hard as sack my Squire, and him got a bullet in his carcass, for love of you, this day." Kate started, and looked at him in surprise. "Oh," said she, "a bullet! Did they fight again the moment they saw my back was turned? The cowards!" And she began to tremble. "No, no," said Tom; "that was done before ever you came up. Don't ye remember that single shot while we were climbing the Nob? Well, 't was Squire Gaunt got it in the arm that time." "Oh!"