ut they seemed to think they had waited long enough, and
began to move off. Before they had gone, many paces, the carter came
running out and caught them. He seemed furious at their having moved,
and with whip and rein punished them brutally, even beating them about
the head. Our gentleman saw it all, and stepping quickly across the
street, said in a decided voice: "If you don't stop that directly, I'll
have you arrested for leaving your horses, and for brutal conduct."

The man, who had clearly been drinking, poured forth some abusive
language, but he left off knocking the horses about, and taking the
reins, got into his cart; meantime our friend had quietly taken a
notebook from his pocket, and looking at the name and address painted on
the cart, he wrote something down.

"What do you want with that?" growled the carter, as he cracked his whip
and was moving on. A nod and a grim smile was the only answer he got.

On returning to the cab, our friend was joined by his companion, who
said laughing, "I should have thought, Wright, you had enough business
of your own to look after, without troubling yourself about other
people's horses and servants."

Our friend stood still for a moment, and throwing his head a little
back, "Do you know why this world is as bad as it is?"

"No," said the other.

"Then I'll tell you. It is because people think only about their own
business, and won't trouble themselves to stand up for the oppressed,
nor bring the wrong-doer to light. I never see a wicked thing like this
without doing what I can, and many a master has thanked me for letting
him know how his horses have been used."

"I wish there were more gentlemen like you, sir," said Jerry, "for they
are wanted badly enough in this city."

CHAPTER XIV

POOR GINGER

One day, while our cab and many others were waiting outside one of the
parks where music was playing, a shabby old cab drove up beside ours.
The horse was an old worn-out chestnut, with an ill-kept coat, and bones
that showed plainly through it, the knees knuckled over, and the
fore-legs were very unsteady. I had been eating some hay, and the wind
rolled a little lock of it that way, and the poor creature put out her
long thin neck and picked it up, and then turned round and looked about
for more. There was a hopeless look in the dull eye that I could not
help noticing, and then, as I was thinking where I had seen that horse
before, she looked full at me and