The Public-House — Landlord on His Legs Again — A Blow in Season — The Way of The World — The Grateful Mind — The Horse’s Neigh

It was rather late on the following morning when I awoke. At first I was almost unconscious of what had occurred on the preceding day; recollection, however, by degrees returned, and I felt a deep melancholy¹ coming over me, but perfectly² aware that no advantage could be derived³ from the indulgence of such a feeling, I sprang up, prepared my breakfast, which I ate with a tolerable appetite, and then left the dingle, and betook myself to the gypsy encampment, where I entered into discourse⁴ with various Romanies, both male and female. After some time, feeling myself in better spirits, I determined⁵ to pay another visit to the landlord of the public-house. From the position of his affairs when I had last visited him, I entertained rather gloomy ideas with respect to his present circumstances. I imagined that I should either find him alone in his kitchen smoking a wretched pipe, or in company with some surly bailiff or his follower⁶, whom his friend the brewer⁷ had sent into the house in order to take possession of his effects.

Nothing more entirely⁸ differing from either of these anticipations⁹ could have presented itself to my view than what I saw about one o’clock in the afternoon, when I entered the house. I had come, though somewhat in want of consolation¹⁰ myself, to offer any consolation which was at my command to my acquaintance Catchpole, and perhaps, like many other people who go to a house with ‘drops of

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