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Bella,‘ thus directed, would examine the window with
the greatest attention, while Mr. Bofiin .would examine
her face. :The moment she pointedout any book as be-
ing entitled Lives of eccentric personages, Anecdotes of
strange characters, Records of, remarkable individuals,
or. anything to that purpose, Mr. Bofiin’s countenance
would light up, and he would instantly dart in and buy
it. - Size, price, qualitywere of no account. 4 Any book
that seemed to promise a chance of miserly biography,
- Mr. Bofiiu purchased without a moment’s delay and car-
ried home. : Happening to be informed by.a bookseller
that at portion of the Annual Register was devoted to
“Characters,’?. Mr. Bofiin at once bought a whole set of
. that ingenious compilation, and beganrto carry it home
piecemeal, confiding a volume to Bella, and bearing three
'mself.-i The completionof this labour occupied them
abonta fortnight. i VVhen the task was done, Mr. Boflin,
with his appetite for Misers whetted instead of satiated,‘
began to look out again. ' i
It very. soon became unnecessary to tell Bella what to
look for, and an understanding waseestablished between
her and Mr..Botlin;' that she wasalways to look for Lives
of Misers. :Morning aftermorning they roamed about
the town together, ‘pursuing this: i singular research.
Miserly literature not being abundant, the proportion’ of
: failures to successes may have been as a hundred to one ;
still Mr. Boflin never wearied, remained as avaricious for
misers as he had’ been at the first onset. It was curious
that Bella never saw the books about the house,’ nor did
she ever hear from Mr. Boflin one word of . reference to
their contents.‘ He seemed to save up his Misers as they
had saved up their money. As they had been greedy
for it, and secret about it,.and had hidden it, so he was
greedy for-them, and secret about them, and hid them.
But beyond .all doubt it was to be noticed, and was by
Bella very clearly noticed, that, as he pursued the ac-
quisition of those dismal records with the ardour of Don
Quixote for his books of chivalry, he began to.spend his
money with a more sparing hand- ' often when he
came out of a shop with some new account of one of
; those wretched lunatics,‘ she would‘ almost shrink from
i the sly dry,chuckle with which he would take her arm
3 againand trot away. i It did not appear that Mrs. Boflin
knew of this taste.‘ He made no allusion to it, except in
the morning’ walks when he and Bella were always alone ;
and Bella, partly under the impression that he took her
into his confidence by implication, and ‘partly in remem-
brance of Mrs. Bofiiu’s anxious face that night. held the
samereserve. " u " . ;'v . . ‘
VVhile these occurrences were in progress , Mrs. Lammlc
made the discovery that Bella had a fascinating influence
over her. The Lamrnles, originally presented by the
dear Vcneerings,visited tho‘Bofiius on all grand occa-
sions, and: Mrs. Lammle had’ not previously found . this
out ;’ but now the knowledge came upon her all at once.
It was a most extraordinary thing (she said to'Mrs. Bef-
‘ fin) ; she was foolishly susceptible of the power of beauty,
5' but it!wasn’t. altogether that; she never had been able
3 to resist a natural grace of manner, but it wasn’t alto-
gether that; it was more than that, nndrthcro was no
Immefor the indescribable’ extent and. degree to which
she was captivated by this charming girl. i
This charmin girl having the words repeated to her
by.Mrs. Boliin lfwho was proud of her being admired,
and would have done anything to give her pleasure), nat-
urally recognized in Mrs. Lammle awoman of penetration
ilndtaste. Responding to the sentiments, by being very
gracious to Mrs. Lammle, she gave that lady the means
of so improving her opportunity, as that the captivation
became reciprocal, though always wearing an appearance
Of greater sobrietyou Bella's part than on the enthusias-
tic Sophronia’s. 'Howbeit, they were so much together
that, for a time, the Botlin chariot held Mrs. Lammle
Oftener than .Mrs. Boflin : a preference of which the lat-
ter worthy soul was not in the least jealous, placidly re-
marking, “Mrs. Lammle is a younrrer companion for her
than I am.‘and Lori she’s more fas ionable.” . ' 1
.But between Bella‘ lVilfer and Georgiana Podsnap
there was thisvonedifference, among many others. that
Bella was in no danger of being captivated by Alfred.
She distrusted anddisliked him.-. - Indeed; her perception
Was so quick, and her observation so sharp, that after all
‘4.
...r.-... .n;... -n ....L....L-
l OUR !]i[UTUA.L FRIEND.
489.
she mistrusted his wife too, though with her giddy van.
pity and wilfulness she squeezed the mistrust away into a
corner of her mind, and blocked it up there. i .
Mrs. Lanimle took. the friendliest interest in Bella’s
making a good match. Mrs. Lammle said, in a sportive.
way, she really must show her beautiful Bella what kind
of wealthy creatures she and Alfred had on hand, who
would as one man fall at her feet enslaved. Fitting oc-
casion made, Mrs. Lammle accordingly produced the
most passable of those feverish, boastful, and indefinably
loose gentlemen who were always lounging in and out of '
city on questions of the Bourse and Greek and Spanish
and India and Mexican and par and premium and dis-
count and three-quarters and seven-eighths. Who in their
agreeable manner did homage to Bella as if she were a com-
pound of fine girl, thorough-bred horse, well-built drag,
and remarkable pipe. But Without the least effect, though
even Mr. Fledgeby’s attractions were cast into the scale.
> “ I fear, Bella dear," said Mrs. Lammle one day in the
chariot, “that you will be very hard to please.”
“I don’t expect to be pleased, dear,” said Bella, with
a languid turn of her eyes. :
“ Truly, my love,” returned Sophronia, shaking her‘
head, and smiling her best smile, “ It would not he very
easy to find a man worthy of your attractions.”
“ The question is not a man, my dear,” said Bella
cooly, “ but an establishment.”
‘fMy love,”, returned Mrs. Lamn'ile, “your prudence
amazes me-’-where did you study life so well l-you are
right. In such a case as yours, the object is a fitting es-
tablishment. You could not descend to an inadequate
one from Mrs. Bof‘Iin’s house, and even if your beauty
alone could not command it, it is to be assumed that Mr.
and Mrs. Boffin will-” . ‘ . -
t “ Oh ! they have already,” Bella interposed.
. "Nol Have they really?.", , , ,
A little vexed by a suspicion that she had spokcn.pre-
cipitately, and withal a little defiant of her ownvexation,
Bella determined not to retreat. -' ‘ V V
“ That is to say,” she explained, if they have told me
they mean to portion me as their adopted child, if you
mean that. .But don’t mention it.” -
“Mention it I ” replied Mrs. Lammlc, as if she were
full of awakened feeling at the suggestion of such an
impossibility. " Men-tion it l” '
" I don’t mind telling you, Mrs. Lammlee-” Bella be-
gan a ain. ,
“My love, say Sophronia, or I must not say Bella,"
With a little short, petulant “ Oh l" Bella complied.
“ Oh l-Sophronia then-I don’t mind telling you,. So-
phronia, that I am convinced I have no heart, as people
call it ; and that I think that sort of thing is nonsense.”
“ Brave girl !” murmured Mrs. Lammle. , .
'5 And so,’.' pursued Bella, “ as to sceking to please my-
self, I don’t ; except in the one respect I have mentioned.
I am indifferent otherwise.” i ; , . . , .
.‘.‘ But you can't help pleasing, Bella," said Mrs. Lamm-
lo, rallying her with an arch look and her best smile,
“ you can’t help making a proud and an admiring hus-
band. You may not care to please yourself, and you
may not care to please him, but you are not a free agent
as to pleasing : you are forced to do that, in spite of
yourself, my dear; so it may be a question whether you
may not as well please yourself too, if you can.”
Now, the very grossness of this flattery put Bcllaupou
proving that she actually did please iuspito of herself.
She had a misgiving that she was doing wrong-tho.urrh
she had an indistinct foreshadowing that some harm mtg t
come of it thereafter, she ;little thought what conse-
quences it would really bring ab0ut-l>Ut 5118 Went 011
with her confidence. : 3 ' , ‘ g
' “ Don’t talk of pleasing in spite of one S Self. (191117
said Bella. “ I have had enough of that. - ,
“ Aye ? " cried Mrs. Lammle. “Am I already corrob-
orated, Bella?” ' , ,
:1 Never mind, Sophronia, we will not speak of it any
more. a Don’t ask me about it.” -, . . .
This plainly meaning, Do ask me about it, Mrs. Lam-
mle did as she was requested. , I - . '.
‘‘Tell me, Bella. come, my dean Wlmt PP0V0k1Dg
burr has been inconvcniently attracted’ to the charming
skirts, and with diflicult)’ shaken off ‘I , ,
1
L... Li.