"_Sindbad and the Old Man of the Sea_"--let's see what they say about
_him_. (_Reads._) "Both the story of _Sindbad_ and the old Basque
legend of Tartaro are undoubtedly borrowed from the _Odyssey_ of
HOMER, whose _Iliad_ and _Odyssey_ were translated into Syriac in
the reign of HARUN-UR-RASHID." Dear, dear, how interesting, now!
and, BOBBY, what _do_ you think someone says about "_Jack and the
Beanstalk_"? He says--"this tale is an allegory of the Teutonic
Al-fader, the red hen representing the all-producing sun: the
moneybags, the fertilising rain; and the harp, the winds." Well, I'm
sure it seems likely enough, doesn't it?

[_BOBBY suppresses a yawn; PERCY's feelings are outraged by
receiving a tin trumpet from the Lucky Tub; general move to
the scene of the Hampstead Tragedy._

_BEFORE THE HAMPSTEAD TABLEAUX._

_Spectators_. Dear, dear, there's the _dresser_, you see, and the
window, broken and all; it's wonderful how they can _do_ it! And
there's poor Mrs. 'OGG--it's real butter and a real loaf she's
cutting, and the poor baby, too!... Here's the actual casts taken
after they were murdered. Oh, and there's Mrs. PEARCEY wheeling
the perambulator--it's the _very_ perambulator! No, not the very
one--they've got _that_ at the other place, and the piece of toffee
the baby sucked. Have they really! Oh, we _must_ try and go there,
too, before the children's holidays are over. And this is all? Well,
well, everything very nice, I _will_ say. But a pity they couldn't get
the _real_ perambulator!

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