Hark!

Tolv two elf kater ten (it can't be) sax.

Hork!

Pedwar pemp foify tray (it must be) twelve!

And low stole o'er the stillness the heartbeats of sleep.

Methought as I was dropping asleep somepart in nonland of where's please I heard at zero hour as 'twere the peal of vixen's laughter among midnight's chimes from out the belfry of the cute old speckled church tolling so faint a goodmantrue as nighthood's unseen violet rendered all animated greatbritish and Irish objects nonviewable to human watchers save 'twere perchance anon some glistery
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gleam darkling adown surface of affluvial flowandflow as again might seem garments of laundry reposing a leasward close at hand in full expectation. And as I was jogging along in a dream as dozing I was dawdling, arrah, methought broadtone was heard and the creepers and the gliders and the flivvers of the earthbreath and the dancetongues of the woodfires and the hummers in their ground all vociferated, echoating: Shaun! Shaun! Post the post! with a high voice and, O, the higher on high the deeper and low. I
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heard him so. And lo, meseemed somewhat came of the noise and somewho might amove among allmurk. Now 'twas as clump, now mayhap. When look was light and now 'twas as flasher, now more as the glow. Ah, in unlitness 'twas in very similitude, bless me, 'twas his belted lamp! Ay, he who so swayed a will of a wisp before me, dressed like an earl in just the correct wear, in a classy mac Frieze o'coat of far suparior ruggedness, indigo braw, tracked and tramped, freeswinging from his shoulthern, and an Irish ferrier collar, and thick welted brogues on him ^|9with mereswine lacersº^9| hammered to suit the scotsmost public and climate, iron heels and sparable soles, and his jacket of providence wellprovided woollies with a softrolling lisp of a lapel to it and great sealingwax buttons ^|9'of twentytwo carrot ^|akrasnapoppsky'sº^a| red,º^9'| and his invulnerable burlap whiskcoat and his popular choker, Tamagnum sette-and-forte, and his loudboheem toy and the damasker's overshirt he sported inside, a starspangled zephyr with a decidedly surpliced crinklydoodle front with his motto through dear life embrothered over it in peas, rice and yeggyolk, R for royal, M for Mail, R.M.D. hard cash on the nail, and the most successfully carried gigot ^|9'trousers turnups^9'| now you ever breaking over the ankle and hugging the shoeheel, everything the best, was none other from (Ah, then, may the turtle's blessings of God and Mary and Haggispatrick and Huggisbrigid be souptumbling all over him!) other than (and may his hundred thousand welcome stewed
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letters multiply, ay, faith, and plultiply!) Shaun himself.

Had I the concordant wiseheads of Messrs Gregory and Lyons alongside of Dr Tarpey's and the reverend Mr MacDougall's, but I, poor ass, am but as their fourpart tinckler's dunkey. Yet methought Shaun (holy messenger angels be uninterruptedly nudging him among and along the winding ways of random ever!) Shaun in proper person (now may all the bluebacksliding constellations continue to shape his changeable timetable!) stood before me. And I pledge you my agricultural word, by the hundred and sixty odds rods and cones of this even's vision, that young fellow looked the stuff, the Bel of Beaus' Walk, a prime card if ever was! Pep? Now without deceit it is hardly too much to say he was looking grand, so fired smart, in much more than his usual health. No mistaking that beamish brow, those jehovial oyeglances! The heart of the roll! He was immense, topping swell, for he was after having a great time of it in a porterhouse if you want to know, Saint Lawzenge of Toole's, leave your clubs in the hall (the house the once queen of Bristol and Balrothery twice admired because her frumped door looked up Dacent Street), where in the sighed of lovely eyes, while his knives of hearts made havoc, he had recruited his strength by means of spadefuls of mounded food constituting his three principal meals plus a collation, his breakfast of, first, a bless us O blood and thirsthy orange, next, the half of a pound of bacon with newled googs and a rice plummy ^|9'pudding paddingº ^9'| and some cold forsaken steak from the batblack night o'erflown, then
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came along merendally his dinner of a half a pound of round steak very rare, with a side of riceypeasy alla mellonge and bacon with a pair of chops and thrown in from the silver grid by the proprietoress of the roastery who lives on a hill and ^|9'gaulusch^9'| gravy ^|9'and pumpernickel to wolp up ^|~and^~|9'| and a ^|9'gorger's^9'| bulby onion ^|9'(Margareatar, Margareatar,º Margarasticandeatarº)^9'| and as well with second course and then finally, after his lunch o'clock snack of saddlebag steak and old phoenix porter and praties sweet and Irish too, to his regret his supper avic nightcap, vitellusit, a carusal consistent with second course and ^|9'bacon the rich of bacon^9'| with broad beans and steak and pepper, the diamond bone, ^|9'hotted upº^9'| and while 'twas after that he scoffed a drakeling snuggily stuffed following cold loin of veal more cabbage and, in their green free state, a clister of peas, suppositorily petty, last. Drily thankful. Bread and dulse and typureely jam, all free of charge and. And the best of wine avec. While the loaves are aflowering and the nachtingale jugs. All St Jilian's of Berry, hurrah there for tobies! Mavrodaphne, brown pride of our custard house quay, amiable with repastful, cheer us, graciously cheer us! ^|s9While ever Ever^s9| of Thee, Anne Lynch, he's deeply draiming! Houseanna. Tea is the Highest! For auld lang Ayternitay! Thus thicker will he grow now, grew
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^|9now new^9|. And better and better on butter and butter. At the sign of Mesthress Vanhungrig. Mind you, I don't mean to say for the moment that he was guilbey or gluttonous as regards chewable swallowbobbles but upon the whole^|9',º when not off his oats,º given a prelove appetite and postlove pricing,º^9'| he grubbed his tuck all right^|9', deahº smorregos,^9'| every time he felt like a bottle of porter alongwith a ^|9'a smag of a^9'| tart or. And he was so jarvey jaunty with a romp of a schoolgirl's completion sitting pretty over his Oyster Monday printface and he was plainly out on the ramp and mash, as you might say, for he sproke.

When lo ^|9'meheard me saw (whish, O whish!) mesaw mestreamed ^9'| through deafths of durkness I ^|9'saw heard a voice,^9'| the ⁽⁹numerose^{9) |9'}voice voce^9'| of Shaun^|9', ^|avoice vote^a| of the Irish, voiceº from afarº^9'| (and, ^|9'cert,º no purer puer palestrine e'er chanted Panis Angelicus mid the clouds of Tu Es Petrus Tu es Petrusº, and not Michaeleen Kelly, not Mara O'Mario, and,º^9'| sure, what more ^|s9melodeontoned numerose^s9| Italicuss ever rawsucked uova in urinal?) from Inchigeela call the way how so it sighed (morepork! morepork!) to scented nightlife as softly as the loftly marconimasts from Clifden sigh open tireless secrets (mauveport! mauveport!) to Nova Scotia's listing sisterpoles. ^|9'Tubetube!^9'|

^|9'⇒ And it said:^9'|

— Alo, alass, aladdin, amobus! Shaun yawned (that was previousday's pigeonpie ^|9and the hash-say-ugh of overgestern^9| pluzz the shampain in his head), addressing himself ex alto and complaining it was so close as of the fact of him to dye his paddycoats to morn his hesternmost,
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earning his board in the swealth of his fate as, having moistened his mandibles upon the quiet and scooping
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molars and grinders clean with his two forefingers, he sank down ^|9'to re_unreadk^9'| at once, it was all he could do (disgusted with himself that the combined weight was too much for him), upon the native heath he loved, covered kneehigh with virgin bush, for who who e'er trod sod of Erin could ever sleep off the turf. Well, I'm literally dished seeing myself in this trim! ⁽⁹He looks rather thin. I'm very fond of that other of mine. But he's looking frightfully thin!⁹⁾ How all too unwordy am I, a mere mailman of peace, a poor hastehater of the first degree, for such eminence, or unpro promenade rather, to be much more exact, as to be the bearer extraordinary of these ^|9postoomany^9| missive on his majesty's service. It should of been my other for he's the head and I'm an everdevoting fiend of his. We shared the same chamber and we winked on the one wench and what ^|9he Sim^9| sobs todie I'll ^|9sing reeveº^9| tomorry, for 'twill be, I have hopes of, Sam Dizzier's ^|9day feedst^9|. ^|s9He looks rather thin. I'm very fond of that other of mine.^s9| Fish hands! ^|9I ought not to laugh on this stage. But he'sº such a game loser! How is your napper, Andy and how does hownow does she stand? I revere her! ^|aShe has studied!º^a| Piscisvendolor!^{9| |s9}But he'sº looking frightfully thin!º^{s9| |9}I heard the banshee singing in the pantry bay. Down among the dust dustbins let him lie!^9| Ear! Ear! Not aye! Eye! Eye! For I'm at the heart of it. Yet I cannot on my solemn merits recollect ever having done of anything of the kind to deserve of such. Saint Anthony Guide!

— But have we until now ever besought you, dear Shaun, we remembered, who it was, to begin with, who gave you the permit^|9'|~, good boy^~|9'|?
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— Goodbye, Shaun replied ^|9'inº echo rightdainty^9'|, with a ^|9good catlick^9| tug at his cocomoss candylock. ^|9'Everybody. ^|~Addiocaro! Athiacaro!^~| Comb his tar odd gee sing your mower O meeow?^9'| Greet thee Good! My heaviest crux and dairy lot it is. I have it from Hagios Columbkiller's prophecies.

— Then, we explained, you possibly might be so by order?

— Forgive me, Shaun repeated from his liquid lipes, it was condemned on me primatially by Hireark Books and Chiefoverseer Cooks, and there does be a power coming
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over me that is put upon me from on high and so as it is becoming hairydittary I have nothing in view to look forward at unless it is Swann and beating the blindquarters out of my oldfellow's orologium oloss olorium. Almost might I say of myself I am now becoming about fed up be going circulating about and that is why I was veribally complussed by thinking of the Dublin river as a way out ^|9'or to isolate i from my multiple Mes on the spits of Lumbage Island^9'| or bury meself deep in my wineupon pontoon as it is a tithe fish so it is and where on dearth to turn since it came into my hands I am hopeless to be doing anything concerning.

— ^|9'We expect you are,^9'| Honest Shaun, we agreed, ^|9'but^9'| a whisper reaches us that in the end it may well turn
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out to be you who will bear these open letter.

— As, Shaun replied patly, to that I have the gumpower and that has a lock to say with everything.

— Would you mind telling us, Shaun honey, we proposed to such a dear youth, where mostly are you able to work? Whimper and we shall.

— Here! Shaun replied while he was fondling one of his cowheel cuffs, I mostly am able to walk, being too soft for work proper. I am always telling them how
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it was foretold for me by brevet, while possessing stout legs, to be disbarred after holy orders from unnecessary servile work of all sorts for the relics of my time, for otherwise I would get into a blame there where thieves fall out. Excelsior tips the best. Go thou this island, one housesleep there, then go thou other island, two housesleep there, then catch one nightmaze, then home to dearies. Never back a woman you defend, never get quit of a friend on whom you depend, never make face to a foe till he's rife, and never get stuck to another man's pfife. His hungry will be done! But, believe me, in my simplicity I am awful good, I believe, so I am, at the root of me. And I can now truthfully declaret before my ^|s9Geity's^s9| Pantokreator with my fleshfettered palums on the epizzles ^|9of the apossels^9| that I do my reasonabler's best to recite my grocery beans for mummy ⁽⁹cum com⁹⁾ dummy regular, genuflections enclosed. In fact, always have, I believe. Amen, ptah!

— Yet one minute's observation, dear dogmestic Shaun, as we point out how you have while away painted our town a wearing greenridinghued.

— O murder mere, how did you hear? Shaun replied, smiling the oily way up his lampsleeve, so shy of light was he then. Well, so be it! The gloom hath rays, her lamp is love. And I will confess to have, yes. ^|9'|~Truebedure Thrubedore^~| I did.º^9'| And I am afraid it wouldn't
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be my first coat's wasting ^|9'after striding on the vampyre and blazing on the ^|~foco focoal^~|. See! ^|~Blaze Blazingº^~| on the ^|~foco! focoal.^{~| |~}Ah see! As see! Blazingº upon the foe.^~|9'| like the regular redshank I am. Somebody may perhaps hint at ^|9'an after impression of^9'| I was wrong. No such a thing! You never made a more fruitful mistake, excuse yourself! But it is grandiose, by my ways of thinking, from the prophecies. New worlds for all! And they were scotographically arranged for gentlemen only by a scripchewer in Whofoundland who finds he is a relative. And it was with my extravert davy, like glue, be true, moyhard's daynoight, tomthumb.

— Do you mean, we gathered substantively, whether furniture would or verdure varnish?

— It is a confoundyous injective so to say, Shaun, the fiery boy, shouted, naturally incensed, as he shook the red pepper out of his auricles. And another time please confine your glaring intinuations to some other mordant body. What on the physiog of this furnaced planet would I be doing besides your verjuice? That is more than I can fix anyway. So let I and you now kindly drop that, angryman! Understand me when I tell you that under the past purcell's office, so deeply deplored by my erstwhile elder friend, Miss Enders, poachmistress and gay receiver ever for in particular to the Scotic Poor Men's Cow Society (I was thinking of her in sthore), allbethey blessed with twentytwo thousand sorters out of a biggest poss of twentytwo thousand, mine's won, too much privet stationery and safty quipu was ate up larchly by those nettlesome goats out of pension greed. ^|9It Proceding, I will say it^9| is also one of my avowal's intentions at some time, pease Pod, when I am not prepaid to say, to comprose quite the makings of a verdigrease savingsbook surrounding this matter for my publickers, Nolaner and Browno, Nickil Hopstout, Christcross, so long as,
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thanks to force of destiny, my selary as a paykelt ^|9is^9| propaired and there is a peg under me and there is a tum till me.

— Otherwise, frank Shaun, we pursued, what would be the autobiography of your softbodied fumiform?

— Hooraymost! None whomsoever, Shaun replied (he had intended and was peering now rather close to the paste of his rubiny winklering), though it ought to be more or less rawcawcaw romantical. All of it, I might say, pay and perks
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(some rhino, rhine, O joyoust rhine!), was handled over spondaneously by me (and bundle end to Miss Anders! she woor her wraith of ruins the night she lost I left) in the name of Mr van Howten of Tredcastles, Clowntalkin among my prodigits nabobs and navious of every subscription, entitled our evicted tenemants. What I say is (and I am noen roehorn or culkilt, permit me to tell you, if uninformed), I never spont it. Nor have I the ghost of a nation on me the way to. It went anyway like hot pottagebake. And this brings me to my fresh point. Quoniam I am as plain as portable enveloped, inhowmuch you will shortly receive, care of one of Mooseyears Guinness's registered ^|9'|~and outerthus andouterthus^~|9'| barrels. Quick take um whiffat andrainit.