Stranica 66 [66]
OCR
Early on the seventh morning after he had left his native place, Oliver limped slowly into the little town of Barnet. ‘The window-shutters were closed, the street was empty, not a soul had awakened to the business of the day. The sun was rising in all his splendid beauty, but the altogether as roystermg and swaggering a young gentleman as ever stood three feet six, or something less, in his bluchers. c Hullo, my covey, what’s the row ?" said this strange young gentleman to Oliver. “Tam very hungry and tired,” replied own lonesomeness and desolation as he sat with bleeding feet and covered with dust upon a cold door-step. By degrees the shutters were opened, the window-blinds were drawn up, and people began passing to and fro. Some few stopped to gaze at Oliver for a moment or two, or turned round to stare at him, or troubled themselves how he came he sat. He had been crouching on the step for some time, gazing listlessly at the coaches as they passed through, and thinking how strange it seemed that they could do with ease ina few hours what it had taken him a whole week of courage and determination beyond his years to accomplish, when he was roused by observing that a boy who had passed him carelessly some minutes before, had returned, and was now surveying him most earnestly from the opposite side of the way. He took little heed of this at first; but the boy remained in the same attitude of close observation so long, that Oliver raised his this, the boy crossed over, and walking close up to Oliver, said, * Hullo! my covey, what’s the row?” The boy who addressed this inquiry to the young wayfarer was about his own age, but one of the queerest-looking boys that Oliver had ever seen. He was a snub-nosed, flat-browed, common-faced boy enough, and as dirty a juvenile as one would wish to see; but he had got about him all the airs and manners of a man. He was short of his age, with rather bowlegs, and little sharp ugly eyes. His hat was stuck on the top of his head so slightly that it threatened to fa.. ff every moment, and would have done so very often if the wearer had not had a knack of every now and then giving bis head a sudden twitch, which brought it back to its old place again. He wore a man’s coat, which reached nearly to his heels. He had turned the cufis back halfway up his arm to get his hands out of the sleeves, apparently with the ultimate view of thrusting them into the pockets of his corduroy Lrouser:, fur there he kept them. He was he spoke. “I have walked a long way, —I! have been walking these seven days." “Walking for sivin days!” said the young gentleman. “Oh, I see. Beak’s orders, eh? But,” he added, noticing Oliver’s look of surprise, “1 suppose you don’t know wot a beak is, my flash compan-l-on.” Oliver mildly replied, that he had always heard a bird’s mouth described by the term in question. “ My eyes, how green!” exclaimed the young gentleman. ‘ Why, a beak’s a madg’st’rate; and when you walk by a beak’s order, it’s not straight forerd, but always going up, and niver coming down agen. Was you never on the mill ?” 6 What mill?” inquired Oliver. c What mill !—why, the mill,—the mill as takes up so little room that it’ll work when the wind’s low with people than when it’s high, acos then they can’t get workmen. But come,” said the young gentleman; § a want grub, and you shall have it. I’m at low-water-mark,— only one bob and a magpie; but as far as it goes, [711 fork out and stump. Up with you on your pins. There: now then, morrice.” Assisting Oliver to rise, the young gentleman took him toan adjacent chandler’s shop, where he purchased a sufficiency of ready-dressed ham and a half-quartern loaf, or, as he himself expressed it, " fourpenny bran ;” the ham being kept clean and preserved from dust by the ingenious expedient of making a hole in the loaf by pull. ing out a portion of the crumb, and stuff ing it therein. ‘Taking the bread under his arm, the young gentleman turned inte a small public-house, and led the way tc a tap-room in the rear of the premises. Here, a pot of beer was brought in by the direction of the mysterious youth; and Oliver, falling to, at his new friend’s bidding, made a long and hearty meal, during the progress of which the strange boy eyed him from time to time with great attention. s Going to London?” said the strange boy, when Oliver had at length concluded. “ Yes,”
