"I'm yer man," sed I, and then 'e took a card from 'is pocket, and told me to call at the address to-morrer at one o'clock. 'Is rooms wos on the fust flore, 'e said, and I was to march straight into the 'ouse and up the stairs, and say nothink to nobody. As 'e wos tellin' me this Morgan came runnin' up to 'im and whispered somethink about a 'orse that wos goin' to run in the next race, and they made off together. "Mean cuss!" thought I, for the least 'e could 'ave done wos to give me a bob or two on account, seein' the state I wos in. 'Owsomever, the chance of a job cheered me up a bit. When the races wos over I looked about for Maxwell or Morgan, but they wosn't in sight, and there wos nothink for it but to shoulder my traps and tramp it to London. Not a pleasant journey, guv'nor, with the rain comin' down in torrents. Past five in the mornin' when I got back, and I wos that 'ungry I could have eat a brick if I could 'ave got my teeth in it. I ain't tellin' yer this to egscuse myself for wot I did afterwards, only I want yer to know that I wos never in my life so desperately 'ard up as I was that night when I footed it from Windsor to London through the peltin' rain. I wouldn't like a dawg belongin' to me to go through wot I did, and if it 'adn't been for a woman givin' me the best part of 'er mug of corfey at a night stall at two in the mornin' it's my opinion I should 'ave 'ad to throw up the sponge. The address on the card was Newman Street, Soho, and I wos there to the minute. Up I limped--I'd run a nail into my foot--to the fust flore, as Maxwell told me to do, the street dore bein' on the swing. If anybody 'ad opened it to me they'd 'ave slammed it in my face, and small blame to 'em, I wos sech a scarecrow. The landin' was so dark that I could 'ardly see, but my 'and touched a knocker, and I used it free. Maxwell 'imself answered it, and I follered 'im to 'is room. "By gum," said 'e, "you've got yerself up for egshibition! 'Ave yer spent that twelve bob yer won of us at billiards?" "Give me somethink to eat," sed I. "I'm 'arf starved." He took a pie of some sort out of a cupboard, and I made short work of it. "Beer or whisky?" 'e sed, when I wos arf way through. "Both," I answered, and 'e laughed as 'e put a bottle o' beer and 'arf a tumbler of whisky afore me. I finished the beer and put the whisky atop of it. It warmed me, I can tell yer. "Now for business," he sed; "but fust go into that bath room, and wash the dirt off your 'ands." I got 'em as clean as I could, and then 'e sed, "There's a pack o' cards on the mantelshelf. Let's 'ave a game o' piquet." I stared at 'im, and sed I didn't know the game. "I'll learn it yer," he sed. "You beat me at billiards; I want to see if yer can beat me at piquet." "I ain't got no money to lose," sed I. "We'll play for nuts," sed 'e with a wink. 'E told me all the pints of the game, and in 'arf-a-hour I 'ad it at my fingers' ends, and knew as much about it as 'e did 'isself.