Page:Fun upon fun, or, The comical merry tricks of Leper the taylor (4).pdf/12

12 ſides, and gave Leper half a crown to drink.

Leper was not long done with his apprenticeſhip till he ſet up for himſelf, and got a journeyman and an apprentice, was coming into very good buſmeſs, and had he reſtrained his roguiſh tricks might have done very well. He and his lads being employed to work in a farmer's houſe, where the goodwife was a great miſer, and not very cleanly in making ready of meat, and ſnivel'd greatly when ſhe ſpoke the morning when he went to make their pottage, the made a faſhion of walking the pot, which by appearance ſeemed to him to be amongſt the firſt pots that had been made; then ſhe ſet it down before the fire till ſhe went to the well, in which time Leper looking into it, ſees two great holes in the bottom stopped with clouts, he takes up his goofe, and holds it as high as his head, then lets it fall into the pot, which knocked out the bottom of it; preſently in comes the wife with the water, and pours it into the pot, which ſet the fire-ſide all in a dam, for ſtill as ſhe poured it in, it ran out, the wife being ſhort-sighted, or what they call ſand-blind, looks into the pot, holds up both her hands and cries, “The loſhi “ preſerve me, ſirs, for the grip atween the holes is "broken;" ſays Leper, the pot was old enough, but do not you ken that taylor's pottage is heavier than other mens: indeed lad, ſaid ſhe, I believe it is ſae, but they ſay ye're a Warlock, it's Wedneſday a' the warld o'er, and a woful Wedneſday to me indeed, my pot might have laſted me this fifty years, a ſae wad it een This ſport diverted Leper and his lads thro' the day, and after ſupper, knowing he was to get but ſome dirty bed, as the cows and the people-lived all in one apartment, he chuſed rather to go home; and knowing the moon was to riſe a little after midnight thay ſat long by the fire, told them many a fine ſtory to drive away the time, and bade