A coper's confession. 8C^ 



beliind — returns in answer either ''^ his compliments, and 

 he's very sorry to say he shall want the pony every day 

 for the next six months ; or, if he has anything* like the 

 heart and humour of ourselves, encloses a post-office order 

 for fifteen shillings ! 



What otherwise should he expected from such "an 

 impudent attempt at robbery ?" And then just compare 

 it with my perfect, actually obliging, style of going* to 

 work. I never wanted to borrow ahorse, but I persuaded 

 his owner I wanted to buy hin. And the troops I have- 

 taken horse exercise on at these terms ! and the provoking^ 

 little defects which prevented my purchasing* — heads a 

 leetle too long*, or tails too short — nice hack, but wouldn't 

 suit me, as he'd not been in harness — or a clever animal,, 

 certainly, but a heavy goer, had him in a minute if he 

 hadn't been in harness — too big*, too small, too fat, too 

 sluggish, too leggy, too punchy. By Jupiter ! if I had 

 only bought one in a hundred of the horses I've tried^ 

 Mr. Collins must lono* since have hid his diminished head, 

 and the lower end of Oxford-street have erected a 

 monument to my memory. 



But few pursuits — I may not say pleasures — are with- 

 out their drawbacks, and a plain statement of one of the 

 heaviest and most unavoidable I ever experienced may 

 tend to the edification of any who feel inclined to adopt 

 my profession. 



The winter before last found me breaking into February 

 with far from the feeling of having had enough of the 

 hunting season. To be sure, I had three days with the 

 Queen on a thorough-bred, sky-scraping tit, which a 

 sucking barrister was very anxious to get out of, and 

 which I fancied at first I rather liked ; had condemned 

 again a couple of machmers for an ex-Jobmaster, after 



