Page:The ascent of man by Blind, Mathilde.djvu/145

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THE TEAMSTER.
133

There was "The Bull," with sign above the door,
And sanded floor.

Unrecognized Sam took his glass of beer,
And picked up gossip which the men let fall:
How Farmer Clow had failed, and one named Steer
Had taken on the land, repairs and all;
And how the Kimber girl was to be wed
To Betsy's Ned.

Sam heard no more, flung down his pence, and took
The way down to the well-remembered stile;
There, in the gloaming by the trysting brook,
He came upon his May—with just that smile
For sheep-faced Ned, that light in happy eyes:
Oh, sugared lies!

He came upon them with black-knitted brows
And clenched brown hands, and muttered huskily: