"Why, doctor says he's sewer that he can bring squire reight again, and what more do you want ?" "To see the man punished who shot him, Hicky," cried Dick passionately.
"Ay, I'd like to see that, or hev the punishing of him," said Hickathrift, stretching out a great fist.

"It's one o' they big shacks [idle scoundrels, from Irish _shaughraun_] yonder up at the dree-ern.
I'm going to find him out yet, and when I do--Theer, go and wesh thy faace." Dick was going sadly away when a word from Hickathrift arrested him; and turning, it was to see that the big fellow was looking at him reproachfully, and holding out a hand for him to grasp.
"Ay, that's better, lad," said the wheelwright smiling.

"Good-bye, lad, and don't feight again!" The result of this encounter was that Dick found himself without a companion, and he went day by day bitterly about thinking how hard it was that he should be suspected and ill-treated for trying to spare Tom the agony of having his father denounced and dragged off to jail.
Constables came and made investigations in the loose way of the time; but they discovered nothing, and after a while they departed to do duty elsewhere; but only to come back at the end of a week to re-investigate the state of affairs, for a large low building occupied by about twenty of the drainers was, one windy night, set on fire, and its drowsy occupants had a narrow escape from death.
But there was no discovery made, the constables setting it down to accident, saying that the men must have been smoking; and once more the fen was left to its own resources.
Mr Winthorpe grew rapidly better after the first fortnight, and Dick watched his convalescence with no little anxiety, for he expected to hear him accuse Farmer Tallington of being his attempted murderer.

But Dick had no cause for fear.

The squire told Mr Marston that he had seen a light on the mere, and dreading that it might mean an attempt to burn down some barn, he had gone out to watch, and he had just made out the shape of a punt on the water when he saw a flash, felt the shock, and fell helpless and insensible among the reeds.
This was as near an account as he could give of the affair, for the injury seemed to have confused him, and he knew little of what had taken place before, nothing of what had since occurred.
"But your life has been spared, Mr Winthorpe," said Marston; "and some day I hope we shall know that your assailant and mine has received his due." "Ay," said the squire; "we must find him out, for fear he should spoil our plans, for we are not beaten yet." "Beaten! no, squire," said the engineer; "we are getting on faster than ever, and the success of the project is assured.".