"Rather hard upon the poor dear children," laughingly remarked a lady, who overheard him: "why, surely you wouldn't deny _them_, their share of the enjoyment of God's good creatures?" "God's good creatures, madam! Are the wine and negus God's good creatures?" "Certainly they are," was the reply: "God has permitted man to manufacture them out of the fruits of the earth, and to make them the means of pleasurable excitement, and therefore surely we may take them and give them as His good creatures." Mr Tankardew made no answer, but striding up to Mary, where she sat with a circle of little interesting faces round her, eagerly intent on some simple story she was telling them, he said, "Miss Franklin, will you favour me by bringing me a few of your young friends here. There, now, my dear," (speaking to one of the little girls), "just hand me that empty negus glass." The child did so, and Mr Tankardew, producing from his coat pocket a considerable sized bottle, turned to the lady who had addressed him, and said: "Madam, will you help me to dispense some of the contents of this bottle to these little children?" "Gladly," she replied. "I suppose it is something very good, such as little folks like." "It is one of God's good creatures, madam:" saying which, he turned towards the other's astonished gaze the broad label on which was printed in great black letters, "Laudanum--Poison." "My dear sir, what do you mean?" "I mean, madam, that the liquid in this bottle is made from the poppy, which is one of the fruits of the earth; therefore it is one of God's good creatures, just as the wine and negus are. It produces very pleasurable sensations, too, if you take it, just as _they_ do; therefore it is right to indulge in it, and give it to others, just as it is right for the same reasons to indulge in wine and negus and spirits, and to give them to others." "I really don't understand you, sir." "Don't you, madam? I think you won't be able to pick a hole in my argument." "Ah! But this liquid is poison!" "So is alcohol, madam, only it is not labelled so: more's the pity, for it has killed thousands and tens of thousands, where laudanum has only killed units. There, my child," he added, turning to Mary, and taking an elegant little packet from his pocket, "give these _bonbons_ to the little ones. I didn't mean to disappoint them."