The blacks came nearer, and one of them said, “Gib fig tobacker, mate?” Here was a gleam of hope, a chance of postponing his final doom.  When a foe cannot be conquered, it is lawful to pay him to be merciful; to give him an indemnity for his trouble in not kicking you.  The shepherd instantly pulled out his tobacco, his pipe, his tobacco-knife, and matches, and handed them over.  A second blackfellow, seeing him so ready to give, took the loan of his tin billy, with some tea and sugar in it, and some boiled mutton and damper.  These children of the plains now saw that they had come upon a mine of wealth, and they worked it down to the bed rock.  One after another, and with the willing help of the owner, they took possession of his hat, coat, shirt, boots, socks, trousers, and drawers, until the Hyde was completely bare, as naked, and, it is to be hoped, as innocent, as a new-born babe.  His vanity, which was the major part of his personality, had vanished with his garments, and the remnant left of body and soul was very insignificant.

Having now delivered up everything but his life, he had some hope that his enemies might at least spare him that.  They were jabbering to one another at a great rate, trying on, putting off, and exchanging first one article and then another of the spoils they had won.  They did not appear to think that the new chum was worth looking after any longer.  So he began slinking away slowly towards his flock of sheep, trying to look as if nothing in particular was the matter; but he soon turned in the direction of the home station.  He tried to run, and for a short time fear winged his feet; but the ground was hard and rough, and his feet were tender; and though he believed that death and three devils were behind him, he could go but slowly.  A solitary eaglehawk sat on the top branch of a dead gum-tree, watching him with evil eyes; a chorus of laughing jackasses cackled after him in derision from a grove of young timber; a magpie, the joy of the morning, and most mirthful of birds, whistled for him sweet notes of hope and good cheer; then a number of carrion crows beheld him, and approached with their long-drawn, ill-omened “croank, croank,” the most dismal note ever uttered by any living thing.  They murder sick sheep, and pick out the eyes of stray lambs.  They made short straggling flights, alighting on the ground in front of the miserable man, inspecting his condition, and calculating how soon he would be ready to be eaten.  They are impatient gluttons, and often begin tearing their prey before it is dead.

Mr. Robinson clothed the naked, and then mounted his horse and went for the blacks.  In a short time he returned with them to the station, and made them disgorge the stolen property, all but the tea, sugar, mutton, and damper, which were not returnable.  He gave them some stirring advice with his stockwhip, and ordered them to start for a warmer climate.  He then directed Hyde to return to his sheep, and