“‘Ho,’ ses Sam. ‘Ho, indeed. I wasn’t aweer that ’e was your nevy, Ginger.’
“‘Share and share alike.’ ses Russet. ‘It’s a very good plan o’ yours, Ginger.’
“Ginger holds ’is ’ead up and looks at ’im ’ard.
“‘I thought o’ the plan,’ ’e ses, speaking very slow and deliberate. ‘Sam’s ’is uncle, and ’e’s the wild man. Threes into a ’undered go—’
“‘You needn’t bother your fat ’ead adding up sums, Ginger,’ ses Russet, very polite. ‘I’m going to ’ave my share; else I’ll split to Ted Reddish.’
“None of ’em said a word about me: two of ’em was sitting on my bed; Ginger was using a ’ankerchief o’ mine wot ’e found in the fireplace, and Peter Russet ’ad ’ad a drink out o’ the jug on my washstand, and yet they never even mentioned me. That’s firemen all over, and that’s ‘ow it is they get themselves so disliked.
“It took ’em best part of an ’our to talk round young Beauty, an’ the langwidge they see fit to use made me thankful to think that the parrots didn’t live to larn it.
“You never saw anything like Beauty when they ’ad finished with ’im. If ’e was bad in ’is cloes, ’e was a perfeck horror without ’em. Ginger Dick faked ’im up beautiful, but there was no pleasing ’im. Fust he found fault with the winder-blind, which ’e said didn’t fit; then ’e grumbled about going bare-foot, then ’e wanted somethink to ’ide ’is legs, which was natural considering the shape of ’em. Ginger Dick nearly lost ’is temper with ’im, and it was all old Sam could do to stop himself from casting ’im off forever. He was finished at last, and arter Peter Russet ’ad slipped downstairs and found a bit o’ broken clothes-prop in the yard, and ’e’d been shown ‘ow to lean on it and make a noise, Ginger said as ‘ow if Ted Reddish got ’im for a ’undered pounds ’e’d get ’im a bargain.
“‘We must ’ave a cab,’ ses old Sam.
“‘Cab?’ ses Ginger. ‘What for?’