"Ye was a long time comin, Ginral, but it's all right now," he said.
"I knowd ye'd come at las', an I tole the boys not to git
diskerridged. The redcoats has used us bad though, an I hope ye'll
hang em, Gin'ral."

At the time of which I write, rape was practically an unknown crime in
Berkshire, and theft extremely uncommon. But among the debtors there
were a few criminals. These, released with the rest, were promptly
recognized and seized by the people. The general voice was first for
putting them back in the cells, but Abner declared that it would be
doing them a kindness to knock them on the head rather than to send
them back to such pigsties, and this view of the matter finding favor,
the fellows were turned loose with a kick apiece and a warning to make
themselves scarce.

In the first outburst of indignation over the horrible condition of the
prison and the prisoners, there was a yell for Bement, and had the men,
in their first rage, laid hands on him, it certainly would have gone
hard with him. But he was not to be found, and it was not till some
time after, that in ransacking the tavern, some one found him in the
garret, hidden under a tow mattress stuffed with dried leaves, on which
the hired man slept nights. He was hauled downstairs by the heels pretty
roughly, and shoved and buffeted about somewhat, but the people having
now passed into a comparatively exhilarated and good-tempered frame of
mind, he underwent no further punishment, that is in his person. But
that was saved only at the expense of his pocket, for the men insisted
on his going behind the bar and treating the crowd, a process which
was kept up until there was not a drop of liquor in his barrels, and
scarcely a sober man in the village. Mrs. Bement, meanwhile, had been
caught and held by some of the women, while one of the prisoners, a