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a boney fide fructifier of freedom. Talk of the Tories. Your Tories can't be put in juxtaposition with him. Look at 'em. What are they? A plundering set of blood-sucking pensioners, screwing a matter of ninety millions a year out of the vitals of the people, and putting men in prison for speaking their mind, while their bishops are living on the fat of the land. Do you call this liberty?" he continued, rising with the view of giving more emphatic expression to his sentiments. "Do you call this fructifying freedom? If the people were not most amalgamated fools they'd hang, draw, and quarter the lot. Look at France—would they have it? Look at Spain—would they stand it? Look anywhere you like—I don't care where you look: take Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, and point out a people groaning under such a heap of national debt, if you can. Look at the currency—there's a currency. Look at the corn-laws—only look at 'em. Was there ever such a mighty mass of monstrous corruption—isn't it enough to make one's hair stand on end? If a man becomes poor he must go to the workhouse and live upon gruel and such like muck, while the very men who have made him poor are swimming in sherry, and port, and champagne! Do you call this justice? Is this carrying out the eternal principal of equal rights? I'm for all men in the world being equal—why should'nt they be? A'n't the poor as good as the rich? Haven't they got souls and bodies as well as the rich have? Why should they be crushed? Why should they be ground down and trampled upon? I'm for an equitable adjustment. I'd have whatever money there is in the country equally divided among us all. It belongs to us all as a matter of right, and therefore we all ought to have it. One man should be just as rich as another. The whole system ought to be changed, and it can't be changed without a rattling revolution. A revolution we must have. That would bring the beggarly aristocracy to their senses. That would let your bishops and your parsons and all the rest of your muck know what's what. We must have a revolution: and, mark my words, when we have one they'll know it. What! isn't it monstrous that we should work and slave to let a limited lot of locusts live in luxury? Isn't it disgraceful to our intellects as men that we should suffer a parcel of puppet-show paupers to plunder and propagate the people in this way? Down with them. That's my sentiments! Down with the lot. We'll have no king—no constitution—no aristocracy!—strangle them all:—no bishops—no parsons—no church—no nothing. Down with tyranny and up with freedom: fair, fructifying freedom: unlimited liberty is all we require. Britons never shall be slaves!"

"Bravo," cried Sylvester; "bravo, bravo! Why are you not in the House?"

"The House—the corrupt House of Commons! If I ever put a foot into such a house as that I should feel it a national disgrace. No; if it was honest—if it was pure—if it wasn't what it is a notorious den of thieves—I'd say something to you, but as it's rank, rascally, rampant, and rotten, neither you nor any other man in Europe will ever catch me there."

"I hope you've been amused, sir," observed Legge, aloud.