There was a general outburst of surprise and satisfaction.

"By gosh, it looks like gineral trainin, or'n ordination."

"Looks kinder 'z if a good many fellers b'sides us hed business with
the jestices this mornin."

"I'd no idee courts wuz so pop'lar."

"They ain't stocks nuff in Berkshire fer all the fellers as is out
tidday, that's one sure thing, by gol."

"No, by Jock, nor Saddleback mounting ain't big nuff pillory to hold
em, nuther," were some of the ejaculations which at once expressed the
delight and astonishment of the men, and at the same time betrayed the
nature of their previous misgivings, as to the possible consequences
of this day's doings. Estimates of the number of the crowd in
Barrington, which were freely offered, ranged all the way from two
thousand to ten thousand, but Perez, practiced in such calculations,
placed the number at about eight or nine hundred men, half as many
women and boys. What gave him the liveliest satisfaction was the
absence of any military force, not indeed that he would have hesitated
to fight if he could not have otherwise forced access to the jail, but
he had contemplated the possibility of such a bloody collision between
the people and militia, with much concern.

"There'll be no fighting to-day, boys," he said, turning to the men,
"you'd better let off your muskets, so there may be no accidents. Fire
in the air," and thus with a ringing salvo, that echoed and reechoed
among the hills and was answered with acclamations from the multitude