20 mr. sponge's sporting tour. 



his house through a little square window almost blinded with Irish 

 ivy, out of which he was in the habit of contemplating the arrival of 

 his occasional lodgers, Doe and Roe, " Ah, Mr. Sponge ! " exclaimed 

 he, with well-assumed gaiety; "you should have been here yesterday ; 

 sent away two sich osses — perfect 'unters — the werry best I do think 

 I ever saw in my life ; either would have bin the werry oss for your 

 money. But come in, Mr. Sponge, sir, come in," continued he, back- 

 ing himself through a little sentry-box of a green portico, to a narrow 

 passage which branched off into little rooms on either side. 



As Buckram made this retrograde movement, he gave a gentle 

 pull to the wooden handle of an old-fashioned wire bell-pull, in the 

 midst of buggy, four-in-hand, and other whips, hanging in the entrance, 

 a touch that was acknowledged by a single tinkle of the bell in the 

 stable-yard. 



They then entered the little room on the right, whose walls were 

 decorated with various sporting prints, chiefly illustrative of steeple- 

 chaces, with here and there a stunted fox-brush, tossing about as a 

 duster. The ill-ventilated room reeked with the effluvia of stale 

 smoke, and the faded green baize of a little round table in the centre 

 was covered with filbert-shells and empty ale-glasses. The whole 

 furniture of the room wasn't worth five pounds. 



Mr. Sponge, being now on the dealing tack, commenced in the 

 poverty-stricken strain adapted to the occasion. Having deposited 

 his hat on the floor, taken his left leg up to nurse, and given his hair 

 a backward rub with his right hand, he thus commenced : 



" Now, Buckram," said he, " I'll tell you how it is. I'm deuced 

 hard up, — regularly in Short's Gardens. I lost eighteen 'undred on 

 the Derby, and seven on the Leger, the best part of my year's income, 

 indeed; and I just want to hire two or three horses for the season, 

 with the option of buying, if I like ; and if you supply me well, I 

 may be the means of bringing grist to your mill ; you twig, eh ? " 



" Well, Mr. Sponge," replied Buckram, sliding several consecu- 

 tive half-crowns down the incline plane of his pocket. " Well, Mr. 

 Sponge, I shall be happy to do my best for you. I wish you'd come 

 yesterday, though, as I said before, I jest had two of the neatest nags 

 — a bay and a grey — not that colour makes any matter to a judge 

 like you ; there's no sounder sayin' than that a good oss is not never 

 of a bad colour; only to a young gemman, you know, it's well to have 

 'em smart, and the ticket, in short ; howsomever, I must do the best 

 I can for you, and if there's nothin' in that tickles your fancy, why, 

 you must give me a few days to see if I can arrange an exchange with 

 some other gent ; but the present is like to be a werry haggiwatin' 

 season; had more happlications for osses nor ever I remembers, and 

 I've been a dealer now, man and boy, turned of eight-and-thirty 

 years; but young gents is whimsical, and it was a young'un wot got 

 these, and there's no sayin' but he mayn't like them — indeed, one's 



