She had a little fortune coming to her one
day, and when she fled the prospect of it was lost to her husband.
Wilson was in no hurry to recover her while she was poor-a vagrant
woman with his child at her breast. The sense of his rights as a
husband became keener a little later. Do you remember the time when
young Joe Garth set himself up in the smithy yonder?"
"I do," said Sim; "it was the time of the war. The neighbors told of
some maiden aunt, an old crone like herself, who had left Joe's mother
aboon a hundred pound."
"Wilson knew that much better than our neighbors. He knew, too, where
his wife had hidden herself, as she thought, though it had served his
turn to seem ignorant of it until then. Sim, he used _me_ to get to
Wythburn."
"Teush!"
"Once here, it was not long before he had made his wife aware of his
coming. I had kept an eye on him, and I knew his movements. I saw that
he meant to ruin the Garths, mother and son, to strip them and leave
them destitute. I determined that he should not do it. I felt that
mine was the blame that he was here to molest them.
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