'"Well, Jack, Tommy's sold the brown oss!" '"N--O--O--R!" exclaimed Jack, starin' 'is eyes out, as if it were unpossible. '"He '_as_ though," said Sam. '"Well, then, I 'ope the gemman's fond o' walkin'," exclaimed Jack, bustin' out a laughin' and runnin' on. 'This rayther set me a thinkin',' continued Mr. Buckram, dropping a second half-crown, which jinked against the nest-egg one left at the bottom, 'and fearin' that Mr. Sponge had fallen 'mong the Philistines--which I was werry concerned about, for he's a real nice gent, but thoughtless, as many young gents are who 'ave plenty of tin--I made it my business to inquire 'bout this oss; and if he _is_ the oss that I saw in Leicestersheer, and I 'ave little doubt about it (dropping two consecutive half-crowns as he spoke), though I've not seen him out, I--' 'Ah! well, I bought him of Mr. Sponge, who said he got him from Lord Bullfrog,' interrupted Mr. Waffles. 'Ah! then he _is_ the oss, in course,' said Mr. Buckram, with a sort of mournful chuck of the chin; 'he _is_ the oss,' repeated he; 'well, then, he's a dangerous hanimal,' added he, letting slip three half-crowns. 'What does he do?' asked Mr. Waffles. 'Do!' repeated Mr. Buckram, 'DO! he'll do for anybody.' 'Indeed,' responded Mr. Waffles; adding, 'how could Mr. Sponge sell me such a brute?' 'I doesn't mean to say, mind ye,' observed Mr. Buckram, drawing back three half-crowns, as though he had gone that much too far,--'I doesn't mean to say, mind, that he's wot you call a misteched, runaway, rear-backwards-over-hanimal--but I mean to say he's a difficultish oss to ride--himpetuous--and one that, if he got the hupper 'and, would be werry likely to try and keep the hupper 'and--you understand me?' said he, eyeing Mr. Waffles intently, and dropping four half-crowns as he spoke. 'I'm tellin' you nothin' but the truth,' observed Mr. Buckram, after a pause, adding, 'in course it's nothin' to me, only bein' down here on a visit to a friend, and 'earin' that the oss were 'ere, I made bold to look in to see whether it was 'im or no. No offence, I 'opes,' added he, letting go the rest of the silver, and taking the prop from under his chin, with an obeisance as if he was about to be off. 'Oh, no offence at all,' rejoined Mr. Waffles, 'no offence--rather the contrary. Indeed, I'm much obliged to you for telling me what you have done. Just stop half a minute,' added he, thinking he might as well try and get something more out of him. While Mr. Waffles was considering his next question, Mr. Buckram saved him the trouble of thinking by 'leading the gallop' himself.