Activate Javascript or update your browser for the full Digital Library experience.
Previous Page
–
Next Page
OCR
206
as she stood upon the dining-table, intensely enjoying
this refreshment, rubbing busily at Steerforth’s head,
and winking at me over it.
“ Ah 1 " she said. “ Such things are not much in de-
mand hereabouts. Tliat sets me off again! I haven’t
seen a pretty woman since I’vc been here, Jemmy.”
‘ ‘ No? ” said Stcerforth.
“ Not the ghost of a one,” replied Miss Mowcher.
“.VVe could show her the substance of one, I think?"
said" Steerforth, addressing his eyes to imine. “Eh,
Daisy ? ”
“ Yes, indeed,” said I.
“Alia?” cried the little creature, glancing sharply
at my face, and then peeping round at Steerforth’s.
‘ ‘ Umph ‘f ”
The first exclamation sounded like a question put to
both of us, and the second like a question put to Steer-
fortli only. She seemed to have found no answer to
either, but continued to rub, with her head on one side
and her eye turned up, as if she were looking for an
answer in the air, and were confident of its appearing
presently.
“'A sister of yours, Mr. Copperfield?” she cried, after
a pause, and still keeping the same look out. “Ay,
ay?l)
“ No,” said Steerforth, before I could reply. “ Noth-
ing of the sort. On the contrary, Mr. Copperfield used
-or I am much mistaken-to have a great admiratiog
for her I ”
“ VVhy, hasn't he now? ” returned Miss Mowcher.
“ Is'he fickle? oh, for shame I Did he sip every fiower,
and change every hour, until Polly his passion requited?
-Is her name Polly?”
The Elfin suddenness with which she pounced upon
me with this question, gind a searching look, quite dis-
concerted me for a moment.
“ No, Miss Mowcher,” I replied.
Emil .”
“ Alia?" she cried exactly as before.
VVhat a rattle I am i
“ Her name is
“ Umph?
Mr. Copperfield, ain’t I volatile?”
Her tone and look implied something that was not‘:
agreeable to me in connexion with the subject. So I
said, in a gravcr manner than any of us had yet as-
sumed:
“ She is as virtuous as she is pretty. She is engaged
to be married to a most worthy and deserving man in
her own station of life. I esteem her for her good sense,
as much as I admire her for her good looks.”
“ VVel1 said i” cried Steerforth. “ Here, here, here !
Now I'll quench the curiosity of this little Fatima, my
dear Daisy, by leaving her nothing to guess at. She is
at present apprenticed, Miss Mowcher, or articled, O1‘
whatever it may be, to Omer and J orain, Habcrdashers,
Milliners, and so forth, in this town. Do you observe?
Omer and J oram. The promise of which my friend has
spoken, is made and entered into with her cousin ; Chris-
tian name, Ham; surname, Peggotty; occupation, boat-
builder; also of this town. She lives with a relative ;
Christian name, unknown; surname, Peggotty; occupa-
tion, seafaring; also of this town. She is the prettiest
and most engaging little fairy in the world. I admire
her-as my friend does-exceedingly. If it were not
that I might appear to disparage her Intended, which I
' know my friend would not like, I would add, that to me
she seems to be throwing herself away ; that I am sure
she might do better; and that I swear she was born to
be a lady.” .
Miss Mowcher listened to these words, which were
very slowly and distinctly spoken, with her head on one
side, and her eye in the air, as if she were still looking
for that answer. VVhcn he ceased she became brisk
again in an instant, and rattled away with surprising
volubility -
“ Oh I And that's all about it, is it?” she exclaimed,
trimming his whiskers with a little restless pair of scis-
sors, that went glancing round his head in all directions.
“Very well : very Well i Quite along story. Ought to
end ‘ and they lived happy ever afterwards :' oughtn’t it?
Ah I XVliat’s that ame at forfeits? I love my love
with an E, because 5 ie’s enticing ; I hate her with an E,
because she’s engaged. I took her to the sign of the
exquisite, and treated her with an elopeinent, her name’s
.ri;v.a...--.i:yx-M, .
.r I I .
OHARLES DICKENS’ WORKS. I
Emily, and She lives in the’ east? Ha! ha! ha! in.
Copperfield, aiii’t I volatile‘? '-
Merely looking at me with extravagant slyness, and I
not waiting for any reply, she continued, without draw.
ing breath : , '
“ There! If ever any scapegrace was trimmed and
muc11cd up to perfection, you are, Steerforth. If Inn.-
derstand any iioddle in the world. I understand yours,
‘Do you hear me wlienl tell you that. my darling? I,
, understand yours,” peeping down into his face. “ Now
3 you may mizzle, Jemmy (as we say at Court), and if Mr,
5 Copperfield will take the chair I’ll operate on him.”
.. what do you say, Daisy?” inquired Stcerfortli,
laughing, and resigning his seat. “ VVill you be im-
i proved?” , , H ‘
1 “ Thank you, Miss Mowcher, not this evening.
3 “ Don’t say no,” returned the little woman, looking at
‘ iiio with the aspect of a connoisseur ; “ a. little bit more
' eyebrow?” , ‘
‘ “ Thank you.” I returned, “ some other time.” ,
l “ Have it carried half a quarter of an inch towards
the temple,” said Miss Mowcher. “ We can do it in ii
i fortnight.” ‘ ” ’
1 “ No, I thank you. Not at present. -
[ “Go in for a tip,” she urged. “Ifo? Let's get the
scaffolding up, then, for a pair of whiskers. Come l”
1 I could not help blushing as I declined, for‘I felt we
‘ were on my weak point now. But Miss Mowclicr, find-
I
1
I
i ing that I was not at present disposed for any decoration
, within the range of her art, and that I was, for the time
' being, proof against the blandishments of the small
bottle which she held up before one eye to enforce her
pg;-suasigns, said we would make a beginning on an
,‘ early day, and requested the aid of my hand to descend
from her elevated station. Thus assisted, she skipped
Jdown with II111)1Cll agility, and began to tie her double
‘ chin into her onnet. .
“ The fee,” said Steerforth, “is-” i i
“ Five bob,” replied Miss Mowcher, “ and dirt cheap,
2 my chicken. Ain't I volatile, Mr. Copperfield ?”
I replied polittily : “hNot at ‘pill’! But I tlliolqght she
iwas rather so, w ien s e tosse up iis two ia -crowns
’ like a goblin pieman, It-audglilt them, dropped them in her
ocket, and ave it a on 5 up. '
P “Tliat’s tile till i” observed Miss Mowcher, standing
at the chair again, and replacing iii the bag a miscella-
neous collection of little objects she had emptied out of it.
“ Have I got all my traps? It seems so. It won’t do to
be like long N ed Beadwood, when they took him to
church ‘to marry him to somebody,’ as he says, and left
the bride beliind. Ila ! ha I ha A wicked rascal, Ned,
but droll 1 how, I know I in going to break your hearts,
but I am forced to leave you. You must call up all your
fortitude,vand try to bear it. Good bye, Mr. Copperfieldl
Take care of yourself, Jockey of Norfolk! How I have
been rattling on ! It's all the fault of you two wretches.
I forgive you 1 ‘ Bob swore !’--as the Englishman said
for ‘ Good night,’ when he first learnt French, and
thought it so like English. ‘ Bob swore,’ my ducks I"
‘Vith the bag slung over her arm, and rattling as she
waddled away,‘ she waddled to the door ; Where she
stopped to inquire if she slioulrl leave us a lock of her
hair. . “Ain’t I volatile?” she added, as a commentary
on this offer, and, with her finger on her nose, departed.
Steerforth laughed to that degree, that it was impossi-
ble for me to help laughing too ; though I am not surel
should have done so, but for this inducement. When we
had had our 1Z1l1gl1.qll1l’.0 out, which was after some time,
he told me that Miss Mowcher had quite an extensive
connexion, and made herself useful to a variety of peo-
ple in a variety of ways. Some people trifled with heras
a mere oddity, he said ; but she was as shrewdly and
lsharply observant ‘as any one he knew, ‘ ‘and as long-
ieaded as she was ‘short-armed. He told me that Jvliat
she had said of being here, and there, and everywhere,
)V3-S true enough : for she made little dartsinto the prov-
inces, and seemed to pick up customers everywhere, and
to know everybody. I asked him what her disposition
was 5 whether it was at all niispliievohs, and it‘ her sym-
pathies were generally on the right side of things ; but,
not succeeding in attracting his attentionto these qucs-'
tions after two or three attempts, I forbore or forgot to
‘ ’...;4r.-r..,..‘,, -,.,:..‘w‘.‘;M
,;..i.-a-v