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"Zettle the pralimbinaries," spoke Farmer Snowe, on appeal from us, "virst zettle the pralimbinaries; and then us knows what be drivin' at." "Preliminaries be damned, sir," cried Uncle Ben, losing his temper. "What preliminaries were there when I was robbed; I should like to know? Robbed in this parish as I can prove, to the eternal disgrace of Oare and the scandal of all England.
Here there are quick ways and manners, and the rapid sense of knowledge, and the power of understanding, ere a word be spoken. Whereas at Oare, you must say a thing three times, very slowly, before it gets inside the skull of the good man you are addressing. And yet we are far more clever there than in any parish for fifteen miles.
Now, up to the end of Dulverton town, on the northward side of it, where the two new pig-sties be, the Oare folk and the Watchett folk must trudge on together, until we come to a broken cross, where a murdered man lies buried.
Nevertheless I could not stop to argue that matter with her. 'The little maid has not been devoured, I said to Mistress Odam: 'and now she is a tall young lady, and as beautiful as can be. If I sleep in your good hostel to-night after going to Watchett town, will you come with me to Oare to-morrow, and see your little maiden? 'I would like and yet I fear. This country is so barbarous.
For I doubted not, being young and strong, that I could walk from London to Oare in ten days or in twelve at most, which was not much longer than horse-work; only I had been a fool, as you will say when you hear it.
His kingly favours Swell up in such high heapes above my merit, Could I reare up a thousand lives, they cannot Reach halfe the way. Ime his, to be his Vassaile, His Gally Slave, please you to chaine me to the oare; But, with his highnes pardon & your allowance, I beg one Boone. All. What is't? Pike. That I may once more See my owne Country Chimneys cast out smoake.
For although there was nobody now in our family to be churchwarden of Oare, it was well admitted that we were the people entitled alone to that dignity; and though Nicholas Snowe was in office by name, he managed it only by mother's advice; and a pretty mess he made of it, so that every one longed for a Ridd again, soon as ever I should be old enough.
"And know you of your own low descent from the Ridds of Oare?" "Sir," I answered, being as yet unaccustomed to this style of speech, "the Ridds, of Oare, have been honest men twice as long as the Doones have been rogues." "I would not answer for that, John," Sir Ensor replied, very quietly, when I expected fury. "If it be so, thy family is the very oldest in Europe.
But now he was set up again by gorging for an hour, and chattered as if he had done a great thing. There must have been miles of rough walking through woods, and tangles, and craggy and black boggy hollows, until we arrived at a wide open space where two streams ran into one another. "Thic be Oare watter," said the boy, "and t'other over yonner be Badgefry.
Now I believe the truth to be that the boundary of the two counties, as well as of Oare and Brendon parishes, is defined by the Bagworthy river; so that the disputants on both sides were both right and wrong.
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