Plonkton Beat the Drum Slowly | Page 62

Twaddle Why would Pickles take a photograph of me in the thick of battle? I don ' t like it, Sir. I tell you, I don ' t like it. Freeloader Money: I should say. Blackmail! He is a greedy little pig. Pickles‘ At least my snout’ s stuck in my own trough, not in Twaddle’ s pet purse,’ I shouted, from up my little stepladder. Twaddle He’ s out there again! Bring him to me at once. Pickles I jumped down but got my foot stuck in my little stepladder. Davy Brudder came out, grabbed me and trained me into H. Q. Twaddle Put him on that seat there! Brudder I will tie his hands behind his back. Pickles Brudder sneered at me as he took out his length of bailer twine that he kept for‘ special interrogations.' Twaddle Yes, Sergeant: do so- immediately. Pickles My brother, Hamilton Conk will use your head for billiards. Twaddle Your half-brother: your half-wit brother I should say! Brudder That‘ bog roll’ brother of yours has been sacked. He is no longer one of us. He lost us the battle when we had it won. Pickles That won’ t save your head bouncing off the balk cushion. Twaddle We are advertising for a‘ hard man’ to replace your half-brother and his first job will be to eliminate stupid Hamilton Conk and retrieve the‘ Crown of Marm( First Class). Pickles What’ s wrong with Gallowsbird and Brudder here? I thought they were your hard men. Twaddle Yes, but I refuse to risk their arrest in such covert ventures. Pickles Well, if you hire someone like the Bull Ferguson there will be nothing covert about it. Twaddle Let ' s say we need a persuader, an enforcer, if you prefer. Pickles So, you are advertising for an enforcer to get beaten up by Buttass and chucked over the wall in Dock Street. For that ' s exactly what has happened to date. Twaddle Including you and we all know that it ' s nosiness that has caused your downfall. Perhaps you might suggest a name? Who knows? It may save your hide. Pickles How about Sally Beetlemeat? Or Clarence Tickmite? Maybe even, Jethro Noddler? Brudder Shall I smack him one, Mister Twaddle? Twaddle Duke, or Your Grace. I think I prefer‘ Your Grace.'