ordinance for every dog caught
within the limits of New York?'

"'Vell, if you'd been born into the perwession, you couldn't have
understood its vays better.'

"'You are a sweet subject, certainly.'

"'Des'say.'

"'Are you not ashamed of yourself, to be found lying drunk in
door-ways?'

"'B'lieve so.'

"'Are you not certain you are?'

"'Prob'bly.'

"'Did you drink liquor to-night?'

"'P'r'aps.'

"'Where did you get it?'

"'Dun'no.'

"'What kind was it?'

"'I halvays 'ad a passion for gin.'

"'Was it gin you drank to-night?'

"'Des'say.'

"'Are you not sure that it was?'

"'Mebbee.'

"'How often do you drink?'

"'Honly ven I've got the blunt to pay. Dutchmen vont trust now.'

"'Did you have any money to-night?'

"'Likely.'

"'How did you get it?'

"''Oldin' an 'orse for a cove.'

"'How much did you get for that?'

"'A shillin.'

"'With that you bought gin?'

"'Prob'bly.'

"'And got drunk?'

"'Poss'bly.'

"'Thomas, where do you live?'

"'Noveres, in p'tickler.'

"'Where do you eat?'

"'Vere the wittles is.'

"'Where do you sleep?'

"'Anyveres, so that the M.P.s can't nab me.'

"'You ought to be sent to Blackwell's Island as a vagrant.'

"'Des'say.'

"'You've been there, have you not?'

"'Mebbee.'

"'Don't you know whether you've been there or not?'

"'P'r'aps.'

"'Are you certain of anything?'

"'Dun'no.'

"'Now, Thomas,' said I, in conclusion, 'I am going to let you off this
time, but I hope you will keep sober in the future. Now, here is a
quarter for you, to pay for your lodging to-night.'

"Thomas, the non-committalist, accepted the silver.

"I concluded to ask him one more question, in hopes to get a direct and
positive answer.

"'Will you use that money to pay for a bed?' I asked.

"'Des'say,' said he, upon which I vamosed."

The Higholdboy raised himself from his official seat before the window,
turned round, got on his knees in the chair, leaned his head on his
hands and his arms on the chair-back, and whilst everybody was still and
quiet, he called out, in a stentorian voice, "Order." The effect of this
peremptory demand was to induce considerable disorder, as no one was
willing to be regarded out of order, even by implication, without some
foundation. Everybody talked and nobody listened, except Mr. Dropper,
and it was not until Mr. Quackenbush had stuffed a ham sandwich down the
throat of the Higholdboy, thrown a box of sardines at the