366 THE SELLER FROTHED UP AND DONE BROWN. 



" Yes," says Meddler, " you must take off a good 

 many if I buys him." " Nonsense ! " exclaims the 

 owner, now joining in : " come, what will you give for 

 him ? " " I'd rather not make an offer," says Med- 

 dler. By dint of persuasion, however, Meddler at last 

 says, "Well, I'll give five-and-twenty, and no more." 

 He then walks off. " I told you, Sir," says Nickem, 

 " he was a rogue ; but I got a gentleman out of his 

 horse last week by selling him to the fellow: so I 

 hoped I could you ; but I believe he did lose ten 

 pounds ; so he is worse than ever now." 



" Come now," says the gentleman, " you can get 

 out of the horse better of course than I can : do buy 

 him yourself. What can you afford to give me ? " 

 After many objections, a good deal of sympathising 

 with the owner, &c., Nickem says, " Well, Sir, if you 

 really so earnestly wish it, I am not like Mr. Meddler ; 

 I don't think so much of the corn as he did : indeed I 

 should think very little of it if I had not seen the horse 

 go a little tender when I first saw him out with you. 

 I will take him off your hands at forty pounds ; and 

 if you can bring any friend who will give me the forty 

 back, he shall be very welcome to him ! " 



I think my reader will allow I have been as good a 

 prophet in this as YATES. I have seen so many tricks 

 of this sort, which have always ended very like this, 

 that depend on it my supposed case is very near the 

 mark. 



Having described some of the transactions carried 

 on in some repositories, and brought forward Mr. 

 Nickem in the principal character of the piece, which 

 may be either farce or light comedy to the actors and 

 audience, but partakes a good deal of the tragic so 

 far as the author of the representation is concerned; 



