Gampling besides being an itinerant tinker was also an itinerant political preacher, and seeing that he could prevail nothing by secular pleas, he betook himself to his spiritual armory, and in a voice of sour derision that made Bessie Fairfax cringe asked the doctor if he had yet received the Devil’s Decalogue according to h’act of Parliament and justices’ notices that might be read on every wall?—­and he proceeded to recite it:  “Thou shalt remove the old landmarks, and enter into the fields of the poor.  Thou shalt wholly reap the corners of thy fields and gather the gleanings of thy harvest:  thou shalt leave nothing for the poor and the stranger.  If a wayfarer that is a-hungered pluck the ears of corn and eat, thou shalt hale him before the magistrates, and he shall be cast into prison.  Thou shalt turn away thy face from every poor man, and if thy brother ask bread of thee, thou shalt give him neither money nor food.”

Mr. Carnegie made a gesture to silence the tinker, for he had thrown himself into an oratorical attitude, and shouted out the new commandments at the top of his voice, emphasizing each clause with his right fist brought down each time more passionately on the palm of his left hand.  But his humor had grown savage, and with his eyes glowing like hot coals in his blackened visage he went on, his tone rising to a hoarse, hysteric yell:  “Thou shalt oppress the poor, and forbid to teach the gospel in the schools, lest they learn to cry unto their God, and He hear them, and they turn again and rend thee.”

“What use is there in saying the thing that is not, Gampling?” demanded Lady Latimer impetuously.  “The Bible is read in our schools.  And if you workingmen take advantage of the privileges that you have won, you ought to be strong enough, both in and out of Parliament, to prevent any new act being made in violation of the spirit of either law or gospel.”

“I can’t argy with your ladyship—­it would be uncivil to say you talk bosh,” replied the tinker as suddenly despondent as he had been furious.  “I know that every year makes this world worse for poor honest folk to live in, an’ that there’s more an’ more h’acts to break one’s shins over.  Who would ha’ thowt as ever my old ass could arn me a fine an’ costs o’ a summons by nibbling a mouthful o’ green meat on the queen’s highway, God bless her!  I’ve done.”

My lady endeavored to make Gampling hear that she would pay his fine (if fined he were), but he refused to listen, and went off, shaking his head and bemoaning the hard pass the world was come to.

“It is almost incredible the power of interference that is given to the police,” said Lady Latimer.  “That wretched young Burt and his mother were taken up by Cobb last week and made to walk to Hampton for lying on the heath asleep in the sun; nothing else—­that was their crime.  Fortunately, the magistrates had the humanity to discharge them.”

“Poor souls! they are stamped for vagabonds.  But young Burt will not trouble police or magistrates much longer now,” said the doctor.