It was some time before I minded what had happened; so, dreading skaith, I found first the one arm, and then the other, to see if they were broken--syne my head--and finally both of my legs; but all, as well as I could discover, was skin-whole and scart-free.

On perceiving this, my joy was without bounds, having a great notion that I had been killed on the spot.

So I reached round my hand, very thankfully, to take out my pocket-napkin, to give my brow a wipe, when lo, and behold! the tail of my Sunday's coat was fairly off and away, docked by the hainch buttons.
So much for plays and playactors--the first and last, I trust in grace, that I shall ever see.

But indeed I could expect no better, after the warning that Maister Wiggie had more than once given us from the pulpit on the subject.

Instead, therefore, of getting my grand reward for finding the old man's daughter, the whole covey of them, no better than a set of swindlers, took leg-bail, and made that very night a moonlight flitting, and Johnny Hammer, honest man, that had wrought from sunrise to sunset for two days, fitting up their place by contract, instead of being well paid for his trouble, as he deserved, got nothing left him but a ruckle of his own good deals, all dung to shivers..