o have anything to do with me, as he said my
appearance was against me. 'Faith, Shorsha, he had better have looked at
home, for his appearance was not much in his favour: he looked very much
like a Jew, Shorsha. However, he at last agreed to take me to be his
companion, or bonnet, as he called it; and I was to keep a look out and
let him know when constables were coming, and to spake a good word for
him occasionally, whilst he was chating folks with his thimbles and his
pea. So I became his bonnet, and assisted him in the fair, and in many
other fairs beside; but I did not like my occupation much, or, rather, my
master, who, though not a big man, was a big thaif, and an unkind one,
for do all I could I could never give him pleasure; and he was
continually calling me fool and bogtrotter, and twitting me because I
could not learn his thaives' Latin, and discourse with him in it, and
comparing me with another acquaintance, or bit of a pal of his, whom he
said he had parted with in the fair, and of whom he was fond of saying
all kinds of wonderful things, amongst others, that he knew the grammar
of all tongues. At last, wearied with being twitted by him with not
being able to learn his thaives' Greek, I proposed that I should teach
him Irish, that we should spake it together when we had anything to say
in sacret. To that he consented willingly; but, och! a purty hand he
made with Irish, 'faith, not much better than did I with his thaives'
Hebrew. Then my turn came, and I twitted him nicely with dulness, and
compared him with a pal that I had in ould Ireland, in Dungarvon times of
yore, to whom I teached Irish, telling him that he was the broth of a
boy, and not only knew the grammar of all human tongues, but the dialects
of the snakes besides; in fact, I tould him all about your own sweet
self, Shorsha, and many a dispute and quarrel had we together about our
pals, which was the cleverest fellow, his or mine.

'Well, after having been wid him about two months, I quitted him without
noise, taking away one of his tables, and some peas and thimbles: and
that I did with a safe conscience, for he paid me nothing, and was not
over free with the meat and the drink, though I must say of him that he
was a clever fellow, and perfect master of his trade, by which he made a
power of money, and bating his not being able to learn Irish, and a
certain Jewish lisp which he had, a great master of his tongue, of which
he was very proud,