Page:Life of Daniel Dancer Esq..pdf/8

 some, he hired a man for his companion, who was a proper counterpart of himself. This servant, Griffiths, had. by severe parsimony, contrived to accumulate 500l. out of wages which had never exceeded 10l. per annum.—At the time he hired with Mr Dancer, he was about sixty years of age, and his wages were eighteen pence per week. He assisted his master in picking up bones, &c., accordingly, when they went out, they took different roads for the same purpose; but Griffiths having a taste for strong beer would tipple a little, which was the cause of much altercation at night, when he returned home to his master.

From a principle of rigid economy, Mr Dancer rarely washed his hands and face; and when he did, it was always without the assistance of either soap or towel. Dispensing with those articles of expensive luxury, he used, when the sun shone, to repair to a neighbouring pool, and after washing himself with sand, he would lie on his back in the sun to dry himself. His tattered garments, which were scarcely sufficient to cover his nakedness, were kept together by a strong hayband, which he fastened round his body. His stockings were so patched, that not a vestige of the original could be perceived, and in cold and dirty weather he wound about his legs ropes of hay, so that his whole figure present-