56 THE HISTORY OF DAME MITCHELL AND HERCAT,.

sion. Poor Nicholas bethought him of the cold he was
about to suffer, the privations which awaited him, the
smallness of his means, the largeness of his appetite, and
how painful it was to lie all the long night under the bleak
arches of a bridge. Evil thoughts seized him, as he mut-
tered to himself the words of Daddy Sharpphiz: “ What
is a cat?”

“ Mr. Sharpphiz,” said he, still weeping, “do not turn
me away; I will do whatever you bid me.”
« To-morrow, at the hour of twi-
light, you must entice Mow-
mouth into the garden.”
«Yes, Mr. Sharpphiz.”
“You must then put him into
this bag.”
«Yes, Mr. Sharpphiz.”
“¢ And strike when I strike.”
The reply to this last injunction
did not come spontaneously.
Nicholas changed colour, his legs sunk beneath him; at
length he bent his head, and letting one of his arms fall
straight by the side of his body, he stammered out, in a low,
sullen voice,—

“Yes, Mr. Sharpphiz.”