morning. He heard a good deal of goblin-tapping, but it all sounded
far
away in the hill, and he paid it little heed. Toward midnight he began
to feel rather hungry; so he dropped his pickaxe, got a lump of bread
which in the morning he had laid in a damp hole in the rock, sat down
on
a heap of ore and ate his supper. Then he leaned back for five minutes'
rest before beginning his work again, and laid his head against the
rock. He had not kept the position for one minute before he heard
something which made him sharpen his ears. It sounded like a voice
inside the rock. After a while he heard it again. It was a
goblin-voice--there could be no doubt about that--and this time he
could
make out the words.
"Hadn't we b WGFW"&R??f??s?"?B6?B?&?Vv?W"?BFVWW"f??6R&W?VC???%F?W&Rw2???W''??F?Bw&WF6?VB?GF?R???Rv??wB&RF?&?Vv?F????v?B???b?Rv?&?WfW"6??&B??Rw2'????V?2BF?RF????W7B?6R? ??$'WB??R7F???F????F?R??FRF?W26??RF?&?Vv???F??W"??W6S?"6?@??F?W&??????3??W6W'5??????F?7V?V?G5?F?R&??6W72?BF?Rv?&???F?7???vR3???bc3@???