of a collier from North Shields, or an overseer in Jamaica.
These are the high prizes for such as you and me; and the droll part of
the matter is, they _will_ talk of us as 'such lucky dogs,' whenever
we attain to one of these brilliant successes. Gazette my son-in-law
as Ambassador to Moscow, and nobody thinks it strange; announce, in the
same paper, that Kit Davis has been made a gauger, and five hundred open
mouths exclaim, 'How did he obtain that? Who the deuce got it for him?
Does n't he fall on his legs!' and so on."

"I suppose we shall have our turn one of these days," muttered the
other, sulkily.

"I hope not. I 'd rather have things as they are," said Grog, gravely.

"Things as they are! And why so, I 'd wish to ask?"

"Look at it this way, Tom Fisk," said Grog, squaring his arms on the
table and talking with slow deliberation; "if you were going to cut into
a round game, wouldn't you rather take a hand where the players were all
soft ones, with plenty of cash, or would you prefer sitting down with a
set of downy coves, all up to every dodge, and not a copper farthing
in the company? Well, that's exactly what the world would be if the
Manchester fellows had their way; that's exactly what it is, this very
hour we 're sitting here, in America. There's nobody on the square
there. President, judges, editors, Congressmen, governors, are all
rogues; and they've come to that pass, that any fellow with a dash of
spirit about him must come over to Europe to gain his livelihood. I have
it from their own lips what I 'm telling you, for I was a-thinking about
going over there myself; but they said, 'Don't go, sir,'--they always
say 'sir,'--'don't go, sir. Our Western fellows are very wide awake; for
every trump _you_ 'd have up your _sleeve_, _they_ 'd have two in their
_boots!_'"

"For my own part," said Fisk, "I 'd not go live amongst them if you 'd
make me Minister at Washington, and so I told Simmy Hankes this morning,
when he came in such high feather about his appointment as consul--I
forget where to."

"Hankes--Hankes! The same fellow that used to be with Robins?"

"Just so; and for some years back Davenport Dunn managing man."

Grog gave a very slight start, and then asked, carelessly, why he was
leaving Dunn's employment.

"Dunn's going to shut up shop. Dunn is to be a peer, next week, and
retires from business. He is to be in Tuesday's 'Gazette,' so Hankes
tells me."

"He has done the thing well,