----"Well, governor, _how does the cock fight?_" "Oh, pretty well, sir; but it ain't a cock; its a genuine thing--the days for cocks, sir, is gone bye--cheap newspapers 'as done 'em up." "Yes; we see this is a Brighton Newspaper of to-day." "Oh, yes, that's right enough--but its all true." "Yes; we are aware of that and knew the unfortunate man and his family; but you are vending them after the old manner." "That's all right enough, sir,--you see I can sell 'em better in that form than as a newspaper--its more natural like for me: I've sold between ten and twelve dozen of 'em to-day." "Yes; but how about to-morrow?" "Oh, then it will be all bottled up--and I must look for a new game, I'm on my way to London, but a hearing of this suicide job, I thought I'd work 'em just to keep my hand in and make a bob or two." To our question of "Have you got any real old 'cocks' by you?" He replied, "No, not a bit of a one; I've worked 'em for a good many years, but it 'aint much of a go now. Oh, yes, I know'd 'old Jemmy Catnach' fast enough--bought many hundreds, if not thousands of quires of him. Not old enough? Oh, 'aint I though; why I'm turned fifty, and I've been a 'street-paper' seller all my life. I knows Muster Fortey very well; him as is got the business now in the Dials--he knows his way about, let him alone for that; and he's a rare good business man let me tell you, and always been good and fair to me; that I will say of him." Having rewarded the man with a few half-pence to make him some recompense for having detained him during his business progress, we parted company. While still prosecuting our enquiries for information on the literature of the streets, we often read of, and heard mention made of, a Mr. John Morgan, as one of the "Seven Bards of the Seven Dials" and his being best able to assist us in the matter we had in hand. The first glimpse we obtained of the Poet! in print was in an article entitled "The Bards of the Seven Dials and their Effusion" and published in "THE TOWN," of 1839, a weekly journal, conducted by the late Mr. Renton Nicholson, better known as "Baron Nicholson," of Judge and Jury notoriety:-- REVIEW. _The Life and Death of John William Marchant_, who suffered the extreme penalty of the law, in front of the Debtor's door, Newgate, on Monday, July 8th, 1839, for the murder of Elizabeth Paynton, his fellow servant, on the seventeenth of May last, in Cadogan Place, Chelsea. By John Morgan. London: J. Catnach, 2 and 3, Monmouth Court, 7 Dials.