human
Half these fellows are in alliance with these bands, which are a scourge to the country, one of the traders said.
gpt
If we were to inform the authorities at the next town, we should, in the first place, be blamed for letting the wounded man escape, and secondly we might be detained for days while investigations are going on. In this country the next worse thing to being a prisoner is to be a complainant. Law is a luxury in which the wealthy and idle can alone afford to indulge.
human
What do you think of that, Geoffrey?
gpt
It is magnificent, Geoffrey replied;
human
Ah, you would not get much if you made your bargain beforehand. It is only at a moment of urgent danger that fear will open purse-strings widely. Had we bargained beforehand with these traders we might have thought ourselves lucky if we had got ten crowns apiece as the price of our escort to Cadiz, and indeed we should have been only too glad if last night such an offer had been made to us; but when a man sees that his property and life are really in danger he does not stop to haggle, but is content to give a handsome percentage of what is risked for aid to save the rest.
gpt
Well, thank goodness, our money trouble is at an end, Geoffrey said;
human
Things certainly look better, Gerald said laughing;