However, Tibble was at this moment entirely engrossed by the
accounts, and his master left him and his big companion to unravel
them, while he himself held speech with his guest at some distance--
sending for a cup of sack, wherewith to enliven the conversation.

He showed himself quite satisfied with what Randall chose to tell of
himself as a well known "housekeeper" close to the Temple, his wife
a "lavender" there, while he himself was attached to the suite of
the Archbishop of York. Here alone was there any approach to
shuffling, for Master Headley was left to suppose that Randall
attended Wolsey in his capacity of king's counsellor, and therefore,
having a house of his own, had not been found in the roll of the
domestic retainers and servants. He did not think of inquiring
further, the more so as Randall was perfectly candid as to his own
inferiority of birth to the Birkenholt family, and the circumstances
under which he had left the Forest.

Master Headley professed to be quite willing to accept Stephen as an
apprentice, with or without a fee; but he agreed with Randall that
it would be much better not to expose him to having it cast in his
teeth that he was accepted out of charity; and Randall undertook to
get a letter so written and conveyed to John Birkenholt that he
should not dare to withhold the needful sum, in earnest of which
Master Headley would accept the two crowns that Stephen had in hand,
as soon as the indentures could be drawn out by one of the many
scriveners who lived about St. Paul's.

This settled, Randall could stay no longer, but he called both
nephews into the court with him. "Ye can write a letter?" he said.