Novel Offence
COOKE and Dibdin went, at a tolerably steady quick-step, as far as the
middle of Greek Street, when Cooke, who had passed his hand along all
the palisades and shutters as he marched, came in contact with the
recently-painted new front of a coachmaker's shop, from which he
obtained a complete handful of wet color. Without any explanation as to
the cause of his anger, he rushed suddenly into the middle of the
street, and raised a stone to hurl against the unoffending windows; but
Dibdin was in time to save them from destruction, and him from the
watch-house. On being asked the cause of his hostility to the premises
of a man who could not have offended him, he replied, with a hiccup,
what! not offend? A ---- ignorant coachmaker, to leave his house out,
new-painted, at this time of night!