"'The old men do the lifting, and the young men do the grunting!' exclaimed the sheriff. 'Well,' he added, in sudden good-humor, 'that is the way the world goes everywhere!' And he galloped away, leaving the men unharmed. "The sheriff next met four old women, with brooms on their shoulders. "'Whither away?' asked the sheriff. "'To the priest's, to be married,' said they all. "'To the priest's, to be married?' "'We go every morning to be married,' answered one of the old crones, 'and we have been for the last forty years!' "'Then why are you not married?' "'The priest says that we do not bring the right thing. We carry something new every morning.' "'But why do you not take a _man_?' "'A MAN!' exclaimed the old woman, leaping straight into the air. 'A MAN? I never thought of that! How wise you be! Why, you are the wisest man that I ever did see!' [Illustration: LIMESTONE DWELLINGS.] "The sheriff next met some men who had started on a journey, each of whom carried on his back a door. "'Why do you carry that door?' asked the sheriff of one of the travellers. "'Left my money at home.' "'Then why not leave the door at home too?' "'Afraid of thieves.' "'Afraid of thieves? Then leave your door at home to protect your money.' "'They can't break in, because, you see, I've got the door.' "'Leave your door at home, and take your money with you.' "'I never thought of that. How wise you be! You are the wisest man that I ever did see!' "The sheriff let the travellers pass on unmolested. "'The people are all fools here,' he said. "'It would be too bad to harm such simple people,' said his comrades. "'Fools all,' said the sheriff. "'Fools all,' said the horsemen. "'Let us go back,' said the sheriff, 'and report to the king that the people in Gotham are fools.' "'Right,' said the men. "So they returned to the king, and reported that Gotham was a place of fools. And from these circumstances, or incidents like these, if I may believe an old tale, the men of that place were called, in derision, 'The Wise Men of Gotham,' from that day." CHAPTER IX. A SERIES OF MEMORABLE VISITS. Tommy goes hunting.--"Peveril of the Peak."--The Boy at the Wheel.--Leamington.--Stratford-on-Avon.--Shakspeare's Birthplace, Garden, and Tomb.--Queer Relics.--Kenilworth.--Ernest's Album of Leaves and Flowers.--Warwick Castle.--The Mighty Guy.--The Antique Portress. Master Lewis gave the boys a couple of days in Nottingham to enjoy themselves as they liked. Tommy Toby went _hunting_. "I want to be able to tell people," he said, "that I have hunted in Sherwood Forest, the royal hunting-ground of English kings." "In midsummer?" asked Master Lewis. "I fancy if you were to use a gun in the Forest of Sherwood, you might make a longer vacation abroad than you intended." "I do not intend to use a gun. I have bought me a bow and some arrows."