society, vich is ever the henemy of the brave and noble, hoperating through the mis-called ministers of justice, the tipstaves, queer cuffins (Magistrates), cut 'em short in the career of their glory. But vot of it, comrades? A man can't die but vonce, and it matters but little to the philosopher vhether his life be cut short by an 'alter or a bullet, it doesn't. 'Sides the high tobyman vas alvays sure of the sympathy of the masses, not of the big vigs, the bishops, lords and gemmen, but the people, and 'specially the ladies-God bless 'em'ere's their good health. The close of sich a man's life vas a moral triumph, it vos.

"Ven the queer cuffin, vith his big vig, and hempty 'ead put on his black cap to pass sentence, the high tobyman stood up and faced the music like a true mettled 'oss. Ven he hentered the cart to go to Tyburn vith Jack Ketch, he vas dressed in his best, and vore a nosegay in his bosom and carried a bokay in his hand-The vimmen, God bless 'em, and 'ere's their 'ealth ag'in-shed pearly tear drops, dearer to him than drops of purl (gin). He mounted the three legged 'oss, foaled of a hacorn, vith a step as never trembled. He dropped the fatal 'andkerchief, and then vas drop. ped 'imself,dying game like a true blue son of a gun."

"Them is reminiscences as we all knows about, Hardhead," said a little stubbed piece of humanity beside of the burglar. "But where's your story? that's what we want to hear, my covey."

"And you needn't talk about the three legged 'oss, if you please," suggested another, "for I knew a fellow once-"

"Hold up," said a third party, we don't want to hear you now, let Hardhead tell his story."

"Ay, let Hardhead tell his story," chimed in half a dozen all at the same time.

"Vel, gemmen, all that 'ere is now past and gone, there aint many real spirited chaps among us, cause vy, the breed's runnin' out. The business of the road is done up altogether, and ve find ourselves reduced to faking clies and readers (stealing handkerchiefs and pocket-books) and cracking kens (housebreaking), a business as is beneath such as us, but vich ve must follow, or else ve shall starve. But speaking of cracking kens, brings me to the pint of my discourse, as I intend to tell

you, and that is the story of French Bill, as all the covies used to call my 'ero."

"O, it's comin' at last, is it? Vell, drive ahead and give us the story, comrades," said

the short man.

"Some years ago," resumed Hardhead, “a young man as vas properly introduced and vouched for, bringin' certificates of the very vust moral character, and the most desperate designs, joined the select circle of gemmen to vich I 'ad the 'onor to belong. There was summut wery strikin' in 'is personal happearance, vich is heverything in the perfeshun. He vas helegantly formed and summut above the middle 'ith. He vas apparently slight and weak as a kinchin mort (young girl) but hap pearances is halmost halways deceitful, for that slight and feminine frame vas made up of bone like steel, and muscles like a mixture of India rubber, whalebone and catgut. My hies, now I remember, vot a cove French Bill vas ven he vas up.

"Von blow of his light harm and bunch of fives vould lay a fellar hout as cold as Cæsar. I've seen a good many 'ansom cracks men in my day, but French Bill beat 'em hall, hout and hout, he did.

"His features were reg'lar, his eyes blue as London milk, his complexion remarkable for it's dilixy, and his 'air black as Ingy ink, or Day & Martin. His 'ands vas delicate as a duchesses, and his feet wery small halso. He simply guv his name as Villiam, and no questions vas asked, for he vas varranted a good 'un by 'sponsible men, and vot he vas, or vare he came from vas neither here nor there, so long as he behaved 'imself like a gemman, and vas true to his pals. But then he vas so wery polite-so like a Monseer in his manners, 'sides his bein' able to patter the lingo like a reg'lar built frog-eater, that after a vhile he got the name as I have referred to, and the covies all called him French Bill, they did.

"In the good hold times I vas speakin' about, ven I begun this 'ere story, French Bill vould have been a high tobyman, but he seed how things vas, and know'd there vas no kind of huse in trying that on, and so like a true philosopher, he did the best as could be done under the circumstances, and took to crakin' kens like a real Trojan. He vas werry expert in the huse of gimmies and false keys, he took to such things sort of nat'ral like. 'Sides

that, he could snuff a candle, or centre the bull's eye at ten paces, and could play a sword like a life guardsman, right and left, cut and thrust, he could.

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Venever henny desperate lay (job) vas purposed, French Bill vas alvays the first vun to wolunteer. The whole town vas struck aghast vith the daring of the hexploits he achieved, and the police tried in vain, vith all their cunnin' and hexperience, to discover the hauthor of these remarkable houtrages. Money flowed into the common stock like a river, and though he vas the cause of nearly hall the success, he vas wery modest, and vas contented vith a moderate share.

"Sometimes he used to disappear for veeks together, and then ve had rumors that he vas figurin' avay as a foreign Count at Bath, or Brighton, or Arrowgate, or some other fashionable vatering-place, and ve felt proud of 'avin' von of hus a takin' his proper stashun in society, and representing the perfeshun in so distinguished a manner. Ven he came back from vun of these excursions he generally brought a heap of swag (booty) with him, showing that he united business and pleasure in a manner perfectly agreeable and profitable. Sometimes it vas a gold mounted cane or hopera-glass, sometimes a diamond ring, and sometimes a bracelet or other harticle of jewelry. Many of them were love-gifts from the fair and fashionable, and them Bill never turned into the common stock, he halways claimed these as his own, and employed them on purposes of his own, vich I vill explain to you gemman presently," said Hardhead, turning to Mother Giles.

"There vas an old covey as lived in Wapping, at the time I'm telling you of, who vas connected vith us by ties of common interest. He kept a small ship-chandler shop,hostensibly for sellin' old junk, and bits of iron and rope, but in reality, he vas a receiver of stolen goods-as the laws calls it-an agent of ours, and a necessary one too, for he disposed of all such articles as ve didn't know what to do vith, and vich ve picked up in the line of our perfeshun. He vas industrious and persewering, and had got a pretty snug lot of blunt together by his business, and he know'd a thing or two, I tell you.

"Now this old covey had an only child-a daughter. My hies! vhat a beauty she vas! Her hies vas like stars in brightness-only they vas dark as night-but scarce darker than her raving hair. She had a form like a queen's. Her valk-my hies-she valked like a hopera dancer, and stepped as light as a hinfant burglar on a egg-stealing hexpedition. The roses and lilies in Covent Gardin' Market vas nothin' at all compared to her complexion. She vas a reg lar hout and houter, and no mistake. French Bill seed her, and the first time he sot his peepers on her, vy, he vas struck up all of a 'eap, as von may say. I recollects vell his first impressions ven he saw the gal, for you see, I vas vith him.

'Hardhead,' said he, 'you are mistaken. It's no such thing.'

"Bill,' says I, 'have I been takin' too much

"Not's I knows of, Hardhead,' said he larfin' at me all the time.

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Then,' said I, 'there's no mistake about it, and you are reg'larly smit.'

"Oh! nonsense,' said Bill.

"Vell,' said I, 've shall see. But look sharp that the gal doesn't get you into trouble. Beware of the blowens, many a man has had his neck stretched for 'em. Remember vot the song says:

"My nuttiest blowen vun fine day,

To the beaks did her fancy man betray." "Never fear,' said he, I'm not in love yet, and if I was, Jenny is as true as steel."' "But he vas in love-though he didn't

know it then-and Miss Jenny got all the pretty rings, and bracelets and necklaces and purses, as vas given to Bill, or stolen by him ven he vent among the big-bugs at the vatering places and sich like. He used to go a sarahnading her, and cumed all sorts of romantics vith the girl. There vasn't nothing in the vay, for the old man vas agreeable, 'cos he knew French Bill vith all his hexpertness vas vurth his veight in gold. Vel, at last it vos agreed that he should marry her, for she vos von of that genteel sort as goes in for the parson and the ring. Her prospex and his'n vos all bright and glowin', and many a pint of purl ve used to drink to the 'ealth and speedy union of French Bill and the Wapping Belle."

"Was they married at last?" asked the little fellow they called Shorts.

"Keep still a bit," said another, "can't ye let a cove tell his story?"

"Vel, boys," resumed Hardhead, "vun day a great lay vas proposed to us. This vas no less than cracking the ken of a rich old hunks as had just moved from Yorkshire to the neighborhood of London, vhere he had purchased a waluable willa on the Thames. The chap as vas on the lookout and reported the game to us, said the lockers vas full of plate, and that the old man vas known to have a vast amount of gold vich he vas keeping by him to make a certain purchase. Ve chose von dark night for the hexpedition, and hafter gettin' everything ready, ve took a boat on the Thames and rowed silently to the willa. It vas a dark, ugly sort of a night, no moon, no stars wisible, and now and then a big drop of rain cumed down about us, damp and dreary.

"Me and French Bill and Stammering Jake made up the party; 'twasn't best to have too many, and three could vurk as vell as a dozen and better too. We landed and hid our boat in a quiet place, and it had got to be about midnight then. Passing through a dark lane, ve come to a garden gate in a brick vall, and here ve heard the deep growl of a bull dog, but ve never vent unprepared for all emergencies, and Bill tossed a piece of poisoned beef steak over the wall. Ve didn't hear no more growlin' out of that animal. Dumb dogs, like dead men, tell no tales, and Bill said as much ven after listening, he vas convinced he vas dead. It didn't take us long to pick the gar

den gate, and ve soon found ourselves on the other side, snug and undiscovered, and there vas the dog as dead as a herrin'.

"Ve approached the house quietly-nobody vas stirrin', all vas as dark and silent as if it had been an old church standing in a grave yard. Ve soon vorked our vay into the house, and up to the china closet, vare ve opened our dark lanterns, and vhile French Bill and Stammering Jake vas fillin' their bags with silver spoons and cups, I vent up stairs to see vat swag there vas aloft. I vanted to get hold of some of the shiners the old feller had hid avay somevhere, and so I left them to look after the other stuff. I opened a door into a chamber, and there vas the old gemman and his wife asleep in bed. On the other side of the room stood a secretary invitingly open. I crossed the floor on tip-toe and broke hopen vun of the draws. My hies! it vas full of gold, himages of our gracious sovereign in precious metal. I valked into the yellow boys, I tell you. But some unlucky noise woke up the old Trojan, and the fust thing I knowd, he lighted a lamp. I turned round just as he vos jumping hout of bed. He vas a vhite-haired old codger, and looked as brave as a lion.

"Von vord,' said I, springin' to him, with my knife in my hand, ' von vord, and I stops your squeaking forever, with my whittler.'

"Dog!' said he-upon my word he made use of that identical ungentlemanly phrasedie like a hound as you are.'

"And he snatched a pistol from the table and pulled the trigger. The cap only exploded, and I had him by the throat.

"But the noise, slight as it was-and it was very slight, for it didn't wake up his wife though she must 'ave been an uncommon good sleeper-struck the quick ear of French Bill. Almost any one else would 'ave cut, but he comed up vile the old covey was struggling with me, a tryin' to get at another pistol on the table."

Here the burglar stopped and called for another drink of purl, showing by his manner that he had reached a part of his narrative that caused anything but pleasing memories to arise in his thoughts. However he drank again, and went on:

"Of course you'll suppose when French Bill came into the room he rapped the old cove over the head. He did no such thing. He

me reelin' across the room, and wrenched, the knife out of my hand. The old man started forward to see who was his deliverer, but instead of pourin' out his thanks, he bust out with:

"O, God! is it you Frederick, and do I find you the associate of villains?'

"French Bill, or Frederick, or whoever he was, stood there just as white and ghostly as a corpse, and he trembled just like a leaf; he had to hold on to a chair to keep up.

"Ah,' said the old man, in a hagony of tears,' vy did you spare my life, to give me up to shame and sorrow? The knife of that ruffian (you see covies he meant me) would have been more merciful.'

"Then French Bill, mean Frederick, trembled more and more, till at last he fell down on his knees and clasped his 'ands and cried like a babby, as he said in a broken voice :

Father, father, O, forgive me for my poor mother's sake.'

"I didn't stop to see what followed, for somehow or other the servants had got the alarm, and were movin', so I and Stammering Jake cut with as much of the swag as we could grab. Ve got back to St. Giles's some OW or other, but without French Bill. He didn't come back with us that night-and he never did."

"You never see French Bill after that?" asked the impatient Shorts.

"I didn't say I never see him; I said he never came back again."

"Don't be botherin', Shorts," said one or two of the party, to the little burglar.

"Vell, vot do you think, my boys?" resumed Hardhead. "That old feller was Sir Frederick Armington, a baronet, and French Bill was his only son. He vas a vild youth, and the old man had cast him off and disowned him. But blood is stronger than vater, and after all as had passed, the father took him back again, and that 'ere young man vas so foolish and degraded that he accepted the old man's hoffers, and so lost to shame, that from bein' a cracksman, he sunk to a gemman's son. However, natur is unaccountable. To see a young man of his natural abilities run to vaste in that fashun vos too bad, it vos.

"But Sir Frederick Armington had ene

mation from a crackman who peached, denounced his son to the authorities, and he was at vunce arrested. The most powerful hinfluences was used with the government for his pardon, and at last he obtained it, but only on vun condition-that he would turn snitch on his pals-king's evidence, and denounce to the authorities all his old associates. Ve got vind of this and dodged, von or two himigrated to the United States, others vent to the continent. Bill spared me, and the beaks never laid a finger on me.

"But that vas nuffin, and I vas bound to da justice on the traitor, and I swore to take his life."

"Vell, did you do it?" asked Shorts, again interrupting Hardhead. "No."

"You didn't?" "No-I didn't." "Vot pervented you ?”

"Vot pervented me? Just this 'ere. But I'm mighty dry," and Hardhead took another draught of the "purl," and after a moment's pause, resumed his story as follows:

Jenny, Frederick's blowen, the gal at Wapping as he'd swore to marry, she who had given herself entirely up to him, got vind of my design, and by her powers of perswashun, prevailed upon me to hold my hand for a while. She said as how she'd a good reason for it, and palavered me till I consented. Then the poor hinnocent gal tried her arts to while him back to her harms again, never doubting for a moment that he loved her still, as before, and they did meet after that more than vonce, and he allers swore eternal love to the ship chandler's daughter.

"But she soon found hout that he was just as false to her as he had been to hus, and that he was at that very time ven he comed and promised her everything, engaged to marry a French nobleman's daughter. This put an end to all her love; she didn't palaver any more about that, but looked as though her principal vituals vas vormvood and gaul. If you have seen a Bengal tigress, you'll have some idea how that blowen looked ven she vas satisfied that his love was false to her.

hold my hand any longer? aint you convinced

of his treachery now.'

"Frederick, or French Bill, just vich you please, vas too much hoccupied with his new

"But I know'd all the while that she was miserable about his desertin' her, and this made me want to kill him all the more, for I half loved Jenny myself, though she didn't care a pin for me.

"Shortly arter this, there was a masquerade ball on the Christmas holidays at one of the theatres, and I vent there myself for the purpose of pickin' up a job in a perfeshunal vay. Vell, Jenny, the belle of Wapping, vas there too, dressed as a gipsey, and she fastened onto a young man in a pink domino, vich vas nobody else but our old French Bill, as was now called Frederick Armington. He didn't know her, but she recognized him by his voice, his manner, and his walk.

"She vas a werry facinating creature, werry genteel and haccomplished, and she perfectly bewildered him. At the close of the evening, he asked permission to accompany her home. She consented, replying in the same feigned voice as she had assumed for the whole evenin', and he was delighted, for he seemed to have become infatuated with the unknown beauty. Vell, they got into a car'age and vare driven fast through a part of the town, until they arrived at last before a house in St. Giles', in a dark street, vare no police troubles themselves to penetrate, and vare the houses vare very old.

had come to, and she took good care to keep his mind engaged upon other matters, and as the car'age stopped and he handed her hout, she took him by the hand, as hif to show him the way, and led him up a narrow and dark staircase, and then into a room that was as dark as Hegypt-you couldn't see your hand before you.

"Can't we have a light, my dear?' said Frederick Armington.

"Yes, vait a moment," said she, 'while I get a lamp.'

"I'm all impatient to see that pretty face of yours,' said he.

"If you will be very quick I will. Do you promise me?'

"But slipping away she made him no answer, and in a moment afterwards, he felt a cold ring of steel pressed against his forehead, and was startled by a voice that he recognized. only too late, and vich thrilled through every fibre of his guilty frame, as it solemnly pronounced these words in his very ear:

"Die, double traitor, false to your friends, and to your love!'

"The explosion of a pistol instantly followed these vords, and Frederick Armington alias French Bill, fell dead at the very feet of his forsaken blowen, who would have been to him a faithful mistress.

"Thus fell a scoundrel as turned snitch on his pals, and may hevery traitor meet with the fate of French Bill."

As he ended his story thus, the sentiment was echoed by the whole company, who drank Hardhead's health in a glass of purl.