James Greenwood

“ The friendly young crossing-sweeper left the other boy, and by a wink bespoke my private ear.
"Talk about boys wantin' a dinner, now," he whispered; "here's one, if you like. I don't believe that Joe - that's what his name is, Joe the Whistler - I don't believe that Joe has had any dinner worth speaking of since he came out of the 'orspidal." ”

“ The girl had, as far as one might judge, about two dozen cobblers in the little rush basket slung on her arm; but though she pulled at the string of the one she carried in her hand with such desperate jerks that the hardworking cobbler's eyes were set squinting at the rate at least of sixty times a minute, and at the same time kept up the cry, "Here's the 'ard-workin' cobbler for a a penny; who'll have two 'ard-working cobblers for a penny?" no one was tempted to become a purchaser. ”

“ Piper freely criticised the quality of the beef, and inquired how much a pound we might have given for it, and when he was informed whistled incredulously, and expressed his opinion that if we had gone over to the dead meat market we might have saved at least fifteen pence on the joint. His example, after the first serving or so, gave courage to the others, and by the pudding time we were all as jolly as sand-boys. I don't believe that ever a pudding was so severely punished by five small assailants. As for Joe the Whistle ”

“ And on'y suppose that me and you, Emm, and Sal is playin' out in the street, jolly miserable cos we ain't got no dinner, and we agree to go and have a smell at the areas" - "There, I knowed it would be wittles," remarked his sister Sal, experiencing her empty stomach's first twinges - "to go and have a smell at the areas," continued Billy, with an aggravating smack of his lips, "at the houses where the people live what are always baking and biling such lovely grub. ”

“ I can't stand too much of it," in a warning voice from Sal; but Billy was reckless.
"'You're going to have as much as ever you know how to tuck into,' she ses, and then she lifts off the kivers; and first there's baked beef, all smoking hot, fat roast beef, with a bit of holly stuck in it because it's Christmas, and a regler high tide of gravy in the dish" - Billy's waterside experiences must have furnished this simile - "rich gravy, with a spoon in it, and bits of brown. ”

“ It is a jointed toy, and represents a mender of old shoes, who, when a string concealed at the back of his body is sharply pulled, commences to work his arms to and fro in the act of sewing on a shoe-sole with such hearty will and with such praiseworthy determination to accomplish his job in a manner to give satisfaction to his customer, that every time he tugs a stitch tight the strain on his physical powers is such as to cause his movable eyes to squint in the most frightful way. ”

“ And on'y suppose that we got a helpin' of that-a regler piled-up plateful swimmin' in gravy, and -"
"And then we come away, Billy," observed Sal, persuasively; "that's a good boy, and then we come away."
"No we don't," returned Billy, doggedly; "on'y suppose that when we had as much beef as ever we could eat, we saw another kiver lifted off, and there was puddin' - a whackin' all. hot Christmas pudding, as big - ah! pretty nigh as big as that woman's umbreller, and we all had as much as we could eat of that. ”