e
matter out. "How could he win? Did you see the way he was ridden? That
horse was stiffened just after I seen you, and he never tried a yard.
Did you see the way he was pulled and hauled about at the turn? It'd
make a man sick. What was the stipendiary stewards doing, I wonder?"

This fills the Oracle with a new idea. All that he remembers of the race
at the turn was a jumble of colours, a kaleidoscope of horses and of
riders hanging on to the horses' necks. But it wouldn't do to admit that
he didn't see everything, and didn't know everything; so he plunges in
boldly.

"O' course I saw it," he says. "And a blind man could see it. They ought
to rub him out."

"Course they ought," says the Whisperer. "But, look here, put two quid
on Tell-tale; you'll get it all back!"

The Oracle does put on "two quid", and doesn't get it all back. Neither
does he see any more of this race than he did of the last one--in fact,
he cheers wildly when the wrong horse is coming in. But when the public
begin to hoot he hoots as loudly as anybody--louder if anything; and all
the way home in the tram he lays down the law about stiff running, and
wants to know what the stipendiaries are doing.

If you go into any barber's shop, you can hear him at it, and he
flourishes in suburban railway carriages; but he has a tremendous local
reputation, having picked first and second in the handicap, and it would
be a bold man who would venture to question the Oracle's knowledge of
racing and of all matters relating to it.

THE CAST-IRON CANVASSER

The firm of Sloper and Dodge, publishers and printers, was in great
distress. These two enterprising individuals had worked up an enormous
business in time-payment books, which they sold all over Australia
by means of canvassers. They had put all the money they had into the
business; and now, just when everything was in thorough working order,
the public had revolted against them.

Their canvassers were molested by the country folk in divers strange
bush ways. One was made drunk, and then a two-horse harrow was run over
him; another was decoyed into the ranges on pretence of being shown a
gold-mine, and his guide galloped away and left him to freeze all night
in the bush. In mining localities the inhabitants were called together
by beating a camp-oven lid with a pick, and the canvasser was given ten
minutes in which to get out of the town alive. If he disregarded the
hint he would, as likely as n