thee
go to sea; but stay at home and die on dry land. Why see how happy I am!
and I'll be hong'd if measter within would'nt take thee with all love,
to tend customers and draw the beer: ay, and 'twould be worth his while
too, for thy song would bring custom, let me tell thee. As to being a
play-actor, confound it, I hate the very word; you need not think
anything about your size. Thou'rt very tall and hast a better face to
look at than any on 'un I see; and though thou be'est knock-kneed a bit,
its the way with all growing boys. Lord love thee, Jack, if wert to see
some of them fellows, for all they look so on the stage with paint and
tinsel and silk, when they stop to take a pint of beer, I think they be
the ugliest, conceitedest, foolishest talken fellows I ever ze'ed. Why
there's one feller was here for three days all time quite drunk--went
yesterday to Bath to get place there among them. He's a player, and as
ugly as an old mangy carthorse. But he's an Irishman to be sure, and
they say he won't do at Bath because he wants an eye."

"You have players here at times then," said H. interrogatively.

"Yes! sometimes they comes for their baggage, that is, their trunks and
boxes and women and children. Sometimes the poor souls on 'un come in
the wagon themselves. Sometimes when it's a holliday we 'un, they walk
out to Stapleton and other parts to kill time, being very idle people;
then they stop to take beer here, and they talk such nonsense that I
can't abide the tuoads. Lauk! thee why Jack, thee know'st I would not
flatter thee now--thee art a king to some on 'un that talks ten times as
big as king George could for the life o' him."

This intelligence given by the honest simpleton, in all likelihood for
the purpose of disgusting our adventurer with the stage, communicated
to him the first proud presentiment he felt of what afterwards occurred.
The thought instantly struck him, "If performers, so very despicable as
this man describes, are endured upon a public stage, thought he, why may
not I?--cannot I be as useful as them? besides I can--but these men
sing, I suppose--do not they sing John, much better than me?" "Noa, I
tell thee they doan't: sing better than thee! they can't sing at all. A
tinker's jackass is as good at it as any of them I see here. When they
are on the stage (I went three or four times with our Sall to the play)
od rot 'un--they make a noise by way of a song, and the musicianers sing
for them on the