had found the coat in the wood, as in truth he was:  But Ascyltos doubting whether he might trust his eyes or not, and that he might not do any thing rashly, first came nearer to him as a buyer, and taking the coat from his shoulders, began to cheapen, and turn it more carefully.  O the wonderful vagaries of fortune! for the country-man had not so much as examined a seam of it, but carelessly exposed it as beggars-booty.

Ascyltos seeing the coat unript, and the person of the seller contemptible, took me aside from the crowd:  And “Don’t you see, brother,” said he, “the treasure I made such moan about is returned?  That’s the coat with the gold in’t, all safe and untoucht:  What therefore do we do, or what course shall we take to get our own again?”

I now comforted, not so much that I had seen the booty, but had clear’d my self of the suspicion that lay upon me, was by no means for going about the bush, but down-right bringing an action against him, that if the fellow would not give up the coat to the right owner, we might recover it by law: 

    Laws bear the name, but money has the power;
    The cause is bad when e’er the client’s poor: 
    Those strickt liv’d men that seem above our world
    Are oft too modest to resist our gold. 
    So judgment, like our other wares, is sold;
    And the grave knight that nods upon the laws,
    Wak’d by a fee, hems, and approves the cause.

Ascyltos on the other side afraid of the law, “Who,” said he, “knows us in this place, or will give any credit to what we say?  I am clear for buying it, tho’ we know it to be our own, and rather recover the treasure with a little money, than embroil our selves in an uncertain suit”; but we had not above a couple of groats ready money, and that we design’d should buy us somewhat to eat.  Least therefore the coat should be gone in the mean time, we agreed, rather than fail, to sell the mantle at a lower price, that the advantage we got by the one, might make what we lost by the other more easie.

As soon therefore as we had spread open the mantle, the woman that stood muffled by the country-man, having pryingly taken notice of some tokens about it, forceably laid both hands on’t, and setting up her throat, cryed out, “Thieves, thieves!”

We on the t’other part being disordered at it, lest yet he might seem to do nothing, got hold of the totter’d coat, and as spitefully roar’d, they had robb’d us of it:  But our case was in no wise like theirs, and the rabble that came in to the out-cry, ridicul’d, as they were wont, the weaker side, in that the others laid claim to so rich a mantle, and we to a ragged coat, scarce worth a good patch.  At this Ascyltos could hardly keep his countenance; but the noise being over, We see, said he, how every one likes his own best, give us our coat, and let them take the mantle.

The country-man and the woman lik’d the exchange well enough, but a sort of petty-foggers, most of whose business was such night practice, having a mind to get the mantle themselves, as importunately required, that both mantle and coat should be left in their hands, and the judge would hear their complaints on the morrow:  For it was not the things alone that seem’d to be in dispute, but quite another matter to be enquir’d into, to wit, a strong suspicion of robbery on both sides.