had scorned the grammar, to go upon
the pad. Though his early companions were scragged at Tyburn, the
light-fingered rascal was indifferent to their fate, and squandering
such booty as fell to his share, he bravely 'turned out' for more.
Tottenham Court Fair was the theatre of his childish exploits, and there
he gained some little skill in the picking of pockets. But a spell of
bad trade brought him to poverty, and he attempted to replenish an empty
pocket by the childish expedient of a threatening letter.

The plan was conceived and executed with a futility which ensured an
instant capture. The bungler chose a stranger at haphazard, commanding
him, under penalty of death, to lay five guineas upon a gun in Tower
Wharf; the guineas were cunningly deposited, and the rascal, caught
with his hand upon the booty, was committed to Newgate. Youth, and the
intercession of his grandmother, procured a release, unjustified by the
infamous stupidity of the trick. Its very clumsiness should have sent
him over sea; and it is wonderful that from a beginning of so little
promise, he should have climbed even the first slopes of greatness.
However, the memory of gaol forced him to a brief interlude of honesty;
for a while he wore the pink coat of Colonel Cunningham's postillion,
and presently was promoted to the independence of a hackney coach.

Thus employed, he became acquainted with the famous Cyprians of Covent
Garden, who, loving him for his handsome face and sprightly gesture,
seduced him to desert his cab for an easier profession. So long as the
sky was fair, he lived under their amiable protection; but the summer
having chased the smarter gentry from town, the ladies could afford him
no more than would purchase a horse and a pair of pistols, so that Harry
was compelled to challenge fortune on the high road. His first journey
was triumphantly successful. A post-chaise and a couple of coaches
emptied their wealth into his hands, and, riding for London, he was able
to return the favours lavished upon him by Covent Garden. At the first
touch of gold he was transformed to a finished blade. He purchased
himself a silver-hilted sword, which he dangled over a discreet suit
of black velvet; a prodigious run of luck at the gaming-tables kept his
purse well lined; and he made so brilliant an appearance in his familiar
haunts that he speedily gained the name of 'Gentleman Harry.' But the
money, lightly won, was lightly spent. The tables too