LIFE ON A SHILLING A DAY.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XXIX, Issue 7243, 31 July 1907, Page 1

LIFE ON A SHILLING A DAY.

Before me, as I write, is an illustrated volume with a title that suggest: much reading, weary and otherwise It is called "The History of'Englam from William I. to Edward VII." The size of the book belies the title. It is not much larger than a postage stamp You can read the whole of tho con tents in three minutes. Nine whol<; centuries of English history come and go before the mental vision in a trice. The little history was the gift of .-•

gutter merchant. Gutter merchant is not a nice name, but it is the name by which those odd and kindly people are known who sell things at the kerb in; London streets. There is a time to feel; for loose coppors and a time when not to feel for them. One of the times tc feel for them is when you see a gutter merchant plying his calling persistently in a side street about dusk. It is then in your power to decide whether a mail shall sleep in a bed that night or walk the streets. For when our^ friend turns into the side streets —the police are not so troublesome there —if moans he has had a bad day, and despair is coming with the night. ; It may not always be inspiring when you are making for the station to be : urged to buy bootlaces, umbrella rings. 'or "ivory-backed, revolving collar- : studs;" ■'Even "the little penny comic I dying pig—all made to die" loses its ! interest when you are rushing homei ward. But our friend with the penny [history ioskedjso woebegone that one | was impelled to turn back. ' ! "No luck to-day?" I queried. j "Not a ha'porth," he answered. 1' means no doss to-night." . Soon we fell to talking about Ins trade. He bought his histories at nines' ponce the dozen. He sometimes sola • as many, as four dozen in a day, clearI ing a shilling. -, I "An' wif a bob in me pocket at the ' end of a day I'm a king," he declared, triumphantly. - ! "How a king?" I asked. i "Why, fivepence for a doss leaves ! severipence to spend, don't it?" i I assented.' I "Well, a man. as can't feed 'isself on sevenpence an' 'aye a penny to spare | for 'bacca, ain't worth his salt." That sounded like admirable economy; but our friend was not frugal as the world would have him be. He told .me he made a practice of spending \ every penny ho possessed before going to bed each night. He always safeguarded himself by laying in his stoc!' overnight for the next day's business but every morning he turned from hi? favourite lodging-house with nothing j between him and want except the history of. England. "I ain't a relative as I knows of ir the world," he added. "An' if I werr to die in the night, wot 'ud happen' Why, the other blokes in the lodpin' house 'ud rifle me pockets, and if thefound any money, d'ye know wot theyV do wif it?" I didn't. "Drink it, sir. That's what tlieyV do. An' I can't bear tho thought 1 o r them drinking me health, an' me not there." —George Haw, in tho Daily News. '