wonderful boldness and dexterity in overthrowing the one and
puzzling the other. His contortions of visage are astounding. His
'power over his own muscles and those of other people' is almost
equal to that of Liston; and indeed the original face, flat and
square and Chinese in its shape, of a fine tan complexion, with a
snub nose, and a slit for a mouth, is nearly as comical as that
matchless performer's. When aided by Ben's singular mobility of
feature, his knowing winks and grins and shrugs and nods, together
with a certain dry shrewdness, a habit of saying sharp things, and a
marvellous gift of impudence, it forms as fine a specimen as
possible of a humorous country boy, an oddity in embryo. Everybody
likes Ben, except his butts (which may perhaps comprise half his
acquaintance); and of them no one so thoroughly hates and dreads him
as our parish schoolmaster, a most worthy King Log, whom Ben
dumbfounds twenty times a day. He is a great ornament of the
cricket-ground, has a real genius for the game, and displays it
after a very original manner, under the disguise of awkwardness--as
the clown shows off his agility in a pantomime. Nothing comes amiss
to him. By the bye, he would have been the very lad for us in our
present dilemma; not a horse in England could master Ben Kirby. But
we are too far from him now--and perhaps it is as well that we are
so. I believe the rogue has a kindness for me, in remembrance of
certain apples and nuts, which my usual companion, who delights in
his wit, is accustomed to dole out to him. But it is a Robin
Goodfellow nevertheless, a perfect Puck, that loves nothing on earth
so well as mischief. Perhaps the horse may be the safer conductor
of the two.

The avenue is quite alive to-day. Old women are picking up twigs
and acorns, and pigs of all sizes doing their utmost to spare them