" A HOPE S END TO HIM." 293 



tickling, so makes sure of his fish, and does him (as 

 all cooks should do their fish) a nice brown. 



There are of course various classes of dealers de- 

 scending to the lowest : but we must not seek out all 

 these: neither my space nor my readers' patience, 

 would admit of this ; we will therefore at once make 

 acquaintance with the low dealer and a very low 

 and dangerous acquaintance he is. Of these there 

 are various sorts ; but I hope I shall not be considered 

 to confound the dealer, who, being low in pocket, can 

 only deal in low-priced horses, and but few of them 

 perhaps, with the regular organised scoundrel, low in 

 manners, low in pursuits, and still lower in principle. 

 There are many decent and respectable men who can 

 only keep two or three 20. or 30/. horses, that are quite 

 as worthy of confidence as their more opulent brethren. 

 These men ride their own horses about the streets, 

 show them to their customers, and often act as useful 

 middle men in finding horses for them, if their own 

 circumscribed means will not enable them to do so 

 from their own stable. These are probably young 

 men beginning with a capital of 50^., or dealers who 

 have seen better days. 



The men I designate as low dealers are of various 

 other sorts, of which I will mention, first, the 

 thoroughly low, half pig-jobbing, half horse-dealing- 

 looking vagabond, with a greasy macintosh, a pair 

 of mahogany-coloured top-boots, a red worsted com- 

 forter round his neck, arriving with his confederate in 

 a wretched gig, with the still more wretched lame, 

 spavinous anatomy of a good one drawing it. These 

 fellows are to be seen in every fair. They do not go 

 there like the respectable man, certain to buy if the 



u 3 



