it done in six months' time, when he come back again from the
country. For you see, sir, Mr. Bouncer had made hisself so pleasant,
that he'd been and got the porter out o' bed, and corked his face
dreadful; and then, sir, he'd been and got a Hinn-board from
somewhere out of the town, and hung it on the Master's private door;
so that when they went to early chapel in the morning, they read as
how the Master was 'licensed to sell beer by retail,' and 'to be drunk


[38 ADVENTURES OF MR. VERDANT GREEN]

on the premises'. So when the Master came to know who it was as did
it, which in course the porter told him, he said as how Mr. Bouncer
had better go down into the country for a year, for change of hair,
and to visit his friends."

"Very kind, indeed, of Dr. Portman," said our hero, who missed the
moral of the story, and took the rustication for a kind forgiveness
of injuries.

"Just what Mr. Bouncer said, sir," replied the scout, "he said it
~were~ pertickler kind and thoughtful. This is his room, sir, he
come up on'y yesterday." And he pointed to a door, above which was
painted in white letters on a black ground, "BOUNCER."

"Why," said Mr. Green to his son, "now I think of it, Bouncer was the
name of that short young gentleman who came with us on the coach
yesterday, and made himself so - so unpleasant with a tin horn."

"That's the gent, sir," observed the scout; "that's Mr. Bouncer,