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“Best to think twice ’fore you ax me that,” she answered. “’Tis a serious deed, boy, and not to be undertaken in a light spirit. Mind this tu: the truth ban’t always sweet or what our ears are best tuned for hearin’.”

Her respectful manner vanished upon the introduction of this theme. She now spoke as the young man’s superior. Timothy was not frightened from his purpose, however, and screwed his face into solemnity. Then he winked behind Gammer Gurney’s back at John Aggett, who, knowing well how witches have eyes behind and before, doubted not that the action had been observed and was much discomfited in consequence.

“Here’s your guinea, mother; that’ll shew you I’m in solemn earnest upon this matter.”

The wise woman instantly swept up the coin. “If you will, you will,” she said.

As a preliminary to the fortune reading, two rush candles were lighted and the table cleared. Then upon it the sibyl drew a half circle with black charcoal and spread ancient cards round the circumference. Next she set up in the midst a lump of shining quartz, of the sort known as Cornish crystal, and into a natural cup within this stone she poured the black contents of a small, strangely shaped bottle. Now, bidding them be silent and motionless, with impenetrable gravity she went upon her knees beside the table and so remained for a long five minutes. Sometimes she gabbled to herself, sometimes she set her hands upon a conjunction of the outspread cards; but her eyes, as it appeared, never closed for a moment and never for a moment wandered from the little black lake in the quartz discerning-glass.