AN OLD BAILEY PRACTITIONER.
In England they have an institution called the Old Bailey. It dealt from time immemorial in such queer animals as "four-footed recognizances," and in such strong assistance to justice as "straw bail" affords. The court-room of the Old Bailey may be called a historical vat of crime. Until recently, New-York was Old Bailey-less. Now detectives go about the streets singing an air which reminds one forcibly of the tune called "Unfortunate Miss BAILEY," only that it is Mister BAILEY they have missed. Old BAILEY is really like JOHN GILPIN in two respects; all rumors about him begin by calling him "a citizen of credit and renown;" and they generally end by referring to him as a man who was gone to "dine at—where?"
Our New-York Old BAILEY has disappeared. Either the FULLERTON earthquake has swallowed him up, or he has gone to the unknown land to which most Spiritual mediums migrate. There never was a greater Spiritual medium than Old BAILEY. He has had spirits on the brain during several years past. He throve on spirits. He had only to rap on casks of spirits, and greenbacks would rustle therefrom like trailing garments out of the Spirit-world. He had assistant mediums in all the Federal officers. And now the question asked of Commissioner DELANO, (who, by the way, in this respect would gladly become DELA-yes) is "Canst thou call 'spirits from the vasty deep?' and if thou canst, where is Old BAILEY?" Banker CLEWS is one of his sureties, but he owns no Clews to his principal's whereabouts. Do not PUNCHINELLO'S subjects all know that whisk brooms sweep clean, and that no broom swept cleaner the Augean stables of Federal plunderers than that wretched Old BAILEY'S whisky broom? There is, however, an old proverb which claims that industrious brooms soon wear out. But BAILEY is unlike a broom, in that no one can find a handle to his whereabouts.
PUNCHINELLO has heard a great deal about the practice of the Old Bailey in London. He thinks it likely that so long as the Administration continues to protect Federal plunderers, and to cover their tracks by attacks against alleged city and State abuses, these Old Bailey practices recently introduced into the United States Courts and United States procedure, within or without revenue offices, must soon entitle a large number of Federal officers, all over the country, to be happily styled "Old Bailey Practitioners."
A Gay Young Joker.
Thus spake the old Republican Machiavel, THURLOW WEED, a day or two since, to W.H. SEWARD, the sly old fox with the "little bell."
"TWEED 'l win."
"Tweedle-dee!" retorted SEWARD. "What d'ye mean by that?"
"I mean," rejoined THURLOW, that his name, T. WEED, is identical with one that erstwhile loomed largest in the sovereignty of the State of New-York."
SEWARD smiled.