the Carpenter, for my benefit. And, on asking
him what the spike was, he answered, " The cas
ual w r ard. It s a cant word, you know."

But what surprised me was that he should have
the word cant in his vocabulary, a vocabulary
that I found was no mean one before we parted.

I asked them what I might expect in the way
of treatment, if we succeeded in getting into the
Poplar Workhouse, and between them I was sup
plied with much information. Having taken a cold
bath on entering, I would be given for supper six
ounces of bread and three parts of skilly.
Three parts means three-quarters of a pint, and
skilly is a fluid concoction of three quarts of
oatmeal stirred into three buckets and a half of
hot water.

"Milk and sugar, I suppose, and a silver spoon?"
I queried.

"No fear. Salt s what you ll get, an I ve seen
some places where you d not get any spoon. Old
er up an let er run clown, that s ow they do it."

"You do get good skilly at Ackney," said the
Carter.

"Oh, wonderful skilly, that," praised the Carpen
ter, and each looked eloquently at the other.

"Flour an water at St. George s in the East,"
said the Carter.

The Carpenter nodded. He had tried them all.

[[81]]

p080 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p081w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p082

v?