"Then workey on rodey ten (holding up his fingers) day. Chinaman no good for shovel—work more days Englishman. Come." "No can come now. Pay money by by," the Chinaman said, thinking that his promise to pay before long would suffice.
"Pay money now—no pay money now, go!" repeated the inspector, who managed to make himself understood.
"No pay," the old fellow said, and as the sounds escaped his lips, the sergeant dismounted from his horse and approached him.
"Come," that worthy said, and he laid his huge hand upon the Celestial, in close proximity to his pigtail.
"No go," repeated Yam.
"Start your stumps," cried the policeman; and he lifted the Chinaman from the ground by his pigtail, and almost held him at arm's length.
"Me pay! me pay!" he roared, to the great delight of the police, and a few of Yam's countrymen who were standing near.
The sergeant released the old fellow, and he rapidly uttered a number of expressions in his native tongue, that I will swear were not complimentary to the English character.
After he had thus vented his anger, he drew from the folds of his inside trousers a little bag of dust, which, upon being weighed, was found to contain just the amount, to a scale, that was required for the payment of his tax, and after checking his name, we rode on.
In this manner the tax was collected from the miners of Ballarat.