cked, and rebuked for my presumption to aristocracy. I didn't
mind a flogging in those days, 'cos I was use to 'em, and let me tell
you that London 'prentices, as a general thing, get more blows than
holidays."

"That's so," muttered Mr. Brown, who appeared to deeply sympathize with
the speaker in that portion of his narrative.

"I grew up," continued the red-haired individual, whose cognomen was
Day, "quite fond of corpses."

I shuddered, and turned my head to see if there were any lying near, for
I didn't consider that the subject was a very proper one to talk about
at that time of night, and under the circumstances I should have
prepared a more agreeable topic.

"The gentleman needn't be afeard," muttered the fellow, with a sneer;
"corpses won't hurt a feller, 'cos I've tried 'em."

He had seen me flinch at the word, and improved his opportunity to show
his hardihood.

"In fact, as I growed older," Day continued, "I was quite useful in my
way, and got trusted by master with some important jobs. I could lay out
a poor covey, who hadn't any money, with as much despatch as any
'prentice in London, and when you come to the mourning part I was really
terrible. I could groan more unearthly and oftener than any mute that
master employed."

"Did you not give us a specimen to-night?" I asked.

"Well, yes, I think that I did pretty well to-night, but I was too
anxious to frighten you off to pay particular attention to my business.
I'll show you what I can do, if you'll just listen."

But I declined to hear him, and the undertaker's ex-apprentice continued
his story:

"I used sometimes to be borrowed by rival undertakers just 'cos I could
groan so beautiful, and had I been contented to have worked my way up in
the world, until I got the position of head mute, I shouldn't be here,
surrounded by this d----d cloud of mosquitoes, and not a particle of
tobacco to put in my pipe, and no friend to offer me a bit."

The hint was so strong that I could not refuse to gratify our new
acquaintance with a small piece of the weed, which was received with a
grunt, expressive of gratitude.

"As I was saying," continued Day, filling his pipe while talking, "I was
always an ambitious cuss, and used to like plenty of money to spend on
dress and cheap jewelry, but I couldn't always get it; one day my fellow
'prentice made a proposal, which he stated would fill our pockets and
enable us to sport 'round nights in great style. I was re