“Ay, that’ll be how they’ve left it lying, hinny.  But then it ’d do fine to put a flower in for the window; I’m thinking I’ll just take it home, anyways.”  And she bent her stiff old back, and lifted the lid to look inside.

“Mercy me!” she cried, and jumped back to the other side of the road; “if it is fit brim full o’ gold PIECES!!”

For a while she could do nothing but walk round and round her treasure, admiring the yellow gold and wondering at her good luck, and saying to herself about every two minutes, “Well, I do be feeling rich and grand!” But presently she began to think how she could best take it home with her; and she couldn’t see any other way than by fastening one end of her shawl to it, and so dragging it after her along the road.

“It’ll certainly be soon dark,” she said to herself, “and folk’ll not see what I’m bringing home with me, and so I’ll have all the night to myself to think what I’ll do with it.  I could buy a grand house and all, and live like the Queen herself, and not do a stroke of work all day, but just sit by the fire with a cup of tea; or maybe I’ll give it to the priest to keep for me, and get a piece as I’m wanting; or maybe I’ll just bury it in a hole at the garden-foot, and put a bit on the chimney, between the chiney teapot and the spoons—­for ornament like.  Ah!  I feel so grand, I don’t know myself rightly!”

And by this time, being already rather tired with dragging such a heavy weight after her, she stopped to rest for a minute, turning to make sure that her treasure was safe.

But when she looked at it, it wasn’t a pot of gold at all, but a great lump of shining silver!

She stared at it, and rubbed her eyes and stared at it again; but she couldn’t make it look like anything but a great lump of silver.  “I’d have sworn it was a pot of gold,” she said at last, “but I reckon I must have been dreaming.  Ay, now, that’s a change for the better; it’ll be far less trouble to look after, and none so easy stolen; yon gold pieces would have been a sight of bother to keep ’em safe.  Ay, I’m well quit of them; and with my bonny lump I’m as rich as rich—!”

And she set off homewards again, cheerfully planning all the grand things she was going to do with her money.  It wasn’t very long, however, before she got tired again and stopped once more to rest for a minute or two.

Again she turned to look at her treasure, and as soon as she set eyes on it she cried out in astonishment.  “Oh, my!” said she; “now it’s a lump o’ iron!  Well, that beats all; and it’s just real convenient!  I can sell it as easy as easy, and get a lot o’ penny pieces for it.  Ay, hinny, an’ it’s much handier than a lot o’ yer gold and silver as ’d have kept me from sleeping o’ nights thinking the neighbours were robbing me—­an’ it’s a real good thing to have by you in a house, ye niver can tell what ye mightn’t use it for, an’ it’ll sell—­ay, for a real lot.  Rich?  I’ll be just rolling!”