appearance. The inky boys doubled their inky thumbs under their fingers. The boy with a pipe pocketed it and bore the bum like a Spartan. The boy with a “dorg” obscured his bandy-legged comrade. The whistler shut his lips hard together, and breathed stertorously through his nose.
There were symptoms of a rush as Brightly unlocked his door. He repelled it, however, selected the most promising subjects for further examination, and dismissed the others. Most of them, conscious of demerit, abandoned the field at once. A few, with feeble pertinacity, remained sitting on the cold steps and hoping for another chance. The curious ones stayed about the windows peering in to watch who might be the successful candidate, and with a view, no doubt, of learning what was his peculiar charm. Two or three truculent urchins amused themselves with shaking their fists at the insiders, and ferociously threatening them, if they were preferred. The “dorg” boy, finding that he was a failure in his capacity of boy, presented himself as “dorg” merchant, and withdrew indignant when he learnt that dog spelt with an “r” was unsalable thereabouts.
Meantime Brightly had conducted his selection within, and after a question or two to each, had taken two of them into his inner office for closer examination. This was the pair who had been nearest the door.
The sleeper was now wide awake, and looking about observingly. No face could be honester or
