“Ha! ha! That was very good! So like Mr. Grannett, wasn’t it?” interposed the matron. “Well, Mr. Bumble?”

“Well, ma’am,” rejoined the beadle, “he went away; and he did die in the streets. There’s a obstinate pauper for you!”

“It beats anything I could have believed,” observed the matron emphatically. “But don’t you think out-of-door relief a very bad thing, any way, Mr. Bumble? You’re a gentleman of experience, and ought to know. Come.”