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.dIARTI1V.‘C’HUZZLEll"IT. .1035
and ave him many other hints that their time was short,
and onas,‘if he, kept his word, would soon return. .But
the strangestincident in all ‘this strange behaviour was,
that of a sudden’-in:a:,moment-,-so swiftly. that it was
impossible to trace ,how, or to observe. any,process of
change-his features fell into,their old expression, and
‘he cried, striking, his hand passionately upon the table,
as ifno interval at all had taken place : ., , .,
; “.VVill,you hold your tongue, air, and let me speak?”
.n.Mr..Pecksnil‘f deferred to himwith a submissive bow ;
and said within himself, “ I knew his hand was changed,
and that his writing staggered. I said so yesterday.
Aheml -.Dearmel.’,’ ., , 3 , -, m . .
I -.“Jonas is sweet upon, your daughter, Pecksniff,” said
the old man, in his usual tone. V , ; . r
':;ui‘.‘Ve spoke of that, if you remember, air, at Mrs. Tod-
gers’s,” replied the courteous architect. , .
(1:.“,You needn’t speakso loud,” retorted Anthony. I'm
not so deaf as that.".,-., , ,, . , ; .
Mr. Pecksniff had certainly raised his voice pretty high ;
not so much because he thought Anthony was deaf, as
because he felt convinced that his preceptive faculties
‘were ‘waxing dim : but this quickresentment of his con-
siderate behaviour "greatly disconcerted him, and, not
knowing what tact to shape his course upon, he made
‘another inclination of the head, yet more submissive than
thelast.,.,-;. . ,
3:1 ‘f.-I;have said,” repeated the old man, “that Jonas is
sweet upon your daughter.” .
' “ A charming girl, sir,” murmured Mr. Pecksniff, see-
mg thatrhe waited for an answer.’ “A dear girl, Mr.
Chuzzlewit, though I say it who should not.”
.‘.‘.You know better,” criedthe old ,man, advancing his
.WeaZen:face at least a yard, and starting forward in his
Chair to do it. . “You lie What, you will be a hypo-
,CT1te,.,Will.you‘21”,.” , . . 1 .
I. :5? My good sir,” ‘Mr. Pecksniff began. -
1 :'.‘,Don’t call me a good ,sir,” retorted Anthony, “ and
don’t claim.to be one yourself. . If your daughter was
.What you would have me believe, she wouldn’t do for
Jonas. , Being what she is, I think she will. He might
bedeceived in a. wife. She ,might run riot, contract
39935. and. waste his ,,substance. Now when I am
.ea-.’.'.,.,,“,‘
His face altered so Ahoirribly as he, said the word, that
Ir..Pecksniff really was fain to look another way. ‘
.‘.‘.-mlt will be worse for me to know of such doings,
than if I was alive : for to be tormented for getting that
together, which ‘even. while I suffer for its acquisition
13 thing into the very kennels of the streets, would be in-
fllpportahlc torture; f No,” said‘ the,old man, .hoai-sely,
I‘ let that be saved at least ; let there be something gained,
andkept fast hold of, -when so muchis lost.”
W >?,‘My dear Mr. Chnzzlewitf’, said Mr. Pecksniff, “these
‘U’?-unwholesome fancies ; quite unnecessary, sir, quite
uncalled for, I am sure. The truth is, my dear sir, that ,
Y0IH1renot.welll’:’ ., V ., , ; -
g "Not dying though I ” cried ‘Anthony, with something
like the snarl of a wild animal. ‘,‘ Not yeti There are
years of life in me. - VVhy, lookiat him,”,pointing to his
.f.8eble,clerk. “ Death has no right to leave him standing,
and to'mow me down !” .. . , .v ,
.:>’Mr. Pecksniff was so much afraid of the old man, and
5? Completely taken aback by the state in. which he found
"11.‘,that.lie,liad‘. not even presence of mind enough to
5:‘1u,“P .3 Scrap of morality. from the great storehouse with-
“! his own,breast.; Therefore he ‘stammered out that no
doubt it was, in fairness and decency, Mr. ChutTey’s turn
30 f?Xp'1I'e,; and that from allphe had heard of .‘Mr. Chuf-
f.e5’.‘and tlie,little.he had the pleasure of knowing of that
gentleman, personally, he felt convinced in his own mind
that he would see the propriety of expiring with as little
delay as possible. V - ' x
9.i"C0me here If’ said .tlie.old man, beckoning him to
‘1,m.‘V.. nearer. ,,‘,‘Jonas',will be m heir, Jonas will be
T1311. and a great ‘catch’ for you. ', lou know that. .JpnaS
-‘S-‘5“Ve0t upon your daughter." , . ‘ H. , i - r .-
'a.. ,I know, that'too,’f. thought'Mr.‘Pecksnii‘f, f‘for you
.. vesaid it often endugh.’,’ , . i ., ,, ,
“ 5‘ He might get more money’ tlian with Q her," said the
Old man,‘ “ .but she will help .,him‘. to, take . care ofwliat
they 113-Ye. ,-Sheis nottoo young orhcedless, and comes
scream -from Cliuffefv
of a good hard griping stock. But don’t you play too fine
a game. She only holds him by a thread; and if-you
draw it too tight (I know his temper) it'll snap. Bind
him when he's in the mood, ‘Pecksnilf ; bind him.
You're too deep. In your way of leading him on, you’ll
leave him miles behind. Bah, you man of oil, have]
no eyes to see how you have angled with him from the
first?’ .. .
“Now I wonder,” thought Mr. Pecksniff. looking at
him with a wistful face, “ whether this is all he has to
sa I” .
Old Anthony rubbed his hands. and muttered to him-
self; complained again that he was cold ; drew his
chair before the fire ; and, sitting with his back to Mr.
Pecksniif, and his chin sunk down upon his breast, was,
in another minute, quite regardless or forgetful of his
presence. .
Uncoutli and unsatisfactory as this short interview
had been, it had furnished Mr. Pecksnitf with a hint
which, supposing nothing further were imparted to him,
repaid the journey up, and home again. For the good
gentleman had never (for want of an opportunity) dived
into the depths of Mr. Jonas’s nature; and any recipe
for catching such a son-in-law (much more one written
on a leaf out of his own father's book) was worth the
having. In order that he might lose no chance of im-
proving so fair an opportunity by allowing Anthony to
fall asleep herore he had finished all he had to say, Mr.
Pecksniff, in the disposal of the refreshments on the ta-
ble-a work to which he now applied himself in earnest
-resorted to many ingenious contrivances for attracting
his attention, such as coughing, sneezing, clattering the
teacups, sharpening the knives, dropping the leaf, and
so forth. But all in vain, for Mr. Jonas returned, and
Anthony had said no more.
“)Vhatl my father- asleep again?” he cried, as he
hung up his hat, and cast a look at him. “Ah! and
snoring. Only hear; 1” - ‘
“ He snores very deep,” said Mr. Pecksnilf. .
“,Snores deep ?” repeated Jonas. “ Yes ; let him
alone for that. lle’ll snore for six, at any time." .
“ Do you know, Mr. Jonas,” said Pecksniff, “ that I
think your father is-.don’t let me alarm you-hrcak-
in ?” . r " '- . =
$‘Oh, is he though," replied Jonas, with a.shako- of
the head which expressed the closeness of his dutiful
observation. “ Ecod, you don't know how tough he is.
He ain’t upon the move yet ” . '
It struck me that he was changetl, both in his appear-
ance and manner,” said Mr. Pccksmif. .
“ That’s all you know about it,” returned Jonas, seat-
ing himself with a melancholy air. “ He never was bet-
ter, than he is now. How are they all at home? How s
Charity ‘Z ” . ‘ a
“ Blooming, Mr. Jonas, blooming.”
“ And the other one -how’s she? ”
,“ Volatile trifler l” said Mr. Pecksniif, fondly musing.
“ She is well-she is well. Roving from parlour to bed-
room, Mr. Jonas, like the bee ;. skimming from to
pillar, like the ,butteI‘lly:,dipping.her young beak. into
our current wine, like the hurnming-birdl :Alll were
she a little less giddy than she is ; and had shg but the
sterlingqualities of Cherry,’ my young friend I I -
"‘ Is she so very giddy, then?” asked Jonas. . .
“XVell, well!" said Mr. Pecksniff, with great fgel-
ing; ‘‘let me not be hard upon my Child.‘ Beside hiier
sister C,l.l8I'l‘.V’ the appears so. A strange noise that,
Jo‘n‘aSSo!Inething wrong in the clock. I 5“l’P059r"- 5Plf1
Jonas’ ghmcingv jorvard?’ it. " So thelother one - ain t
your favorite ain't she v
The fond father was about to reply, and had already
summoned into his face a look of most intense sensibil-
ity, when the sound he had already noticed was ‘re-
peated- ..
‘;4tUp0nII[’l’ .1P lsnig p
na1rg?:z1(;:)‘::11;fh:iSv.?c:(beefiic if it had‘ made the.no'ise ‘which
s‘farf]ed them : but another kind of time-piece was fast
running down, and from that the sound proceeded. - A
’ rendered a hundred times more
loud and formidable by,his silent habits, inado. the
y word, ltfr. Jonas, that is if very clrtraordi-N '
U nurses.-‘