Part 16 (2/2)

Having the Misfortune to treat of none but Coar Character In that quarter of London in which Golden Square is situated, there is a bygone, faded, ture houses, which seeo The very chi had nothing better to look at than the chimneys over the way Their tops are battered, and broken, and blackened with smoke; and, here and there, so heavily to one side, and toppling over the roof, seelect, by crushi+ng the inhabitants of the garrets beneath

The foho peck about the kennels, jerking their bodies hither and thither with a gait which none but tols are ever seen to adopt, and which any country cock or hen would be puzzled to understand, are perfectly in keeping with the crazy habitations of their owners Dingy, ill-plu children, to get a livelihood in the streets, they hop, from stone to stone, in forlorn search of some hidden eatable in thetheed bantam at the baker's; and even he is hoarse, in consequence of bad living in his last place

To judge from the size of the houses, they have been, at one time, tenanted by persons of better condition than their present occupants; but they are now let off, by the week, in floors or rooms, and every door has almost as many plates or bell-handles as there are apartments within The s are, for the sa ornamented with every variety of coined; while every doorway is blocked up, and rendered nearly impassable, by a motley collection of children and porter pots of all sizes, froirl and half-gallon can

In the parlour of one of these houses, which was perhaps a thought dirtier than any of its neighbours; which exhibited ht in all its freshness the first gust of the thick black se brewery hard by; hung a bill, announcing that there was yet one rooh on what story the vacant rooers which the whole front displayed, frole in the kitchento the flower-pots on the parapet-it would have been beyond the power of a calculating boy to discover

The common stairs of this mansion were bare and carpetless; but a curious visitor who had to cliht have observed that there were not wanting indications of the progressive poverty of the inh their roo flush of furniture, kept an old -place outside, which was only taken in, when occasion required On the second story, the spare furniture dwindled down to a couple of old deal chairs, of which one, belonging to the back-roo, and bottoreater excess than a wor-place displayed no costlier articles than two crippled pitchers, and soarret landing-place that a hard-featured square-faced man, elderly and shabby, stopped to unlock the door of the front attic, into which, having sur the rusty key in its still al owner

This person wore a wig of short, coarse, red hair, which he took off with his hat, and hung upon a nail Having adopted in its place a dirty cotton nightcap, and groped about in the dark till he found a remnant of candle, he knocked at the partition which divided the two garrets, and inquired, in a loud voice, whether Mr Noggs had a light

The sounds that came back were stifled by the lath and plaster, and it seeh the speaker had uttered the vessel; but they were in the voice of Newman, and conveyed a reply in the affirs!' said the ht his candle

'Does it rain?' asked Newman

'Does it?' replied the other pettishly 'I ah'

'It doesn't takehis hand upon the lappel of his threadbare coat

'Well; and that makes it the more vexatious,' observed Mr Crowl, in the sarowl, the speaker, whose harsh countenance was the very epitorate, and, es had pushed towards his pointed to the botto the shovel, threw on half the stock: which Noggs very deliberately took off again, without saying a word

'You have not turned saving, at this time of day, I hope?' said Crowl

Newh it were a sufficient refutation of the charge, and briefly said that he was going downstairs to supper

'To the Kenwigses?' asked Crowl

Newman nodded assent

'Think of that now!' said Crowl 'If I didn't-thinking that you were certain not to go, because you said you wouldn't-tell Kenwigs I couldn't co with you!'

'I was obliged to go,' said Newman 'They would have ed the selfish ht of anybody else 'It's all your fault I'll tell you what-I'll sit by your fire till you colance at his se to say no-a hich in all his life he never had said at the right tiave way to the proposed arrange hi'sers to whoses,' were the wife and olive branches of one Mr Kenwigs, a turner in ivory, as looked upon as a person of some consideration on the premises, inas a suite of two roos, too, was quite a lady in heran uncle who collected a water-rate; besides which distinction, the two eldest of her little girls went twice a week to a dancing school in the neighbourhood, and had flaxen hair, tied with blue ribbons, hanging in luxuriant pigtails down their backs; and wore little white trousers with frills round the ankles-for all of which reasons, and many s was considered a very desirable person to know, and was the constant theossips in the street, and even three or four doors round the corner at both ends

It was the anniversary of that happy day on which the Church of England as by law established, had bestowed Mrs Kenwigs upon Mr Kenwigs; and in grateful cos had invited a few select friends to cards and a supper in the first floor, and had put on a nen to receive the colour and made upon a juvenile principle, was so successful that Mr Kenwigs said the eight years of matris younger andthan on the very first Sunday he had kept cos looked when she was dressed though, and so stately that you would have supposed she had a cook and house to do but order them about, she had a world of trouble with the preparations; enteel constitution, could have sustained, had not the pride of housewifery upheld her At last, however, all the things that had to be got together were got together, and all the things that had to be got out of the ere got out of the way, and everything was ready, and the collector hi promised to come, fortune smiled upon the occasion

The party was ads and Mrs Kenwigs, and four olive Kenwigses who sat up to supper; firstly, because it was but right that they should have a treat on such a day; and secondly, because their going to bed, in presence of the company, would have been inconvenient, not to say is's dress, and who-it was thein the two-pair back, gave up her bed to the baby, and got a little girl to watch it Then, tos when he was a bachelor, and wasthe reputation of a rake To these were added a newly-s in their courtshi+p; and a sister of Mrs Kenwigs's, as quite a beauty; besides who ns upon the lady last enteel person to ask, because he had been a gentleman once There were also an elderly lady fro lady, who, next to the collector, perhaps was the great lion of the party, being the daughter of a theatrical firereatest turn for the stage that was ever known, being able to sing and recite in a s's eyes There was only one drawback upon the pleasure of seeing such friends, and that was, that the lady in the back-parlour, as very fat, and turned of sixty, caloves, which so exasperated Mrs Kenwigs, that that lady assured her visitors, in private, that if it hadn't happened that the supper was cooking at the back-parlour grate at that moment, she certainly would have requested its representative to withdraw

'My dear,' said Mr Kenwigs, 'wouldn't it be better to begin a round gas, my dear,' returned his wife, 'I ain without s; 'oh no, that would never do'

'He's so particular,' said Mrs Kenwigs, turning to the other an without him, I should be out of his will for ever'

'Dear!' cried the married lady

'You've no idea what he is,' replied Mrs Kenwigs; 'and yet as good a creature as ever breathed'

'The kindest-hearted oes to his heart, I believe, to be forced to cut the water off, when the people don't pay,' observed the bachelor friend, intending a joke

'George,' said Mr Kenwigs, solemnly, 'none of that, if you please'

'It was only e,' rejoined Mr Kenwigs, 'a joke is a wery good thing-a wery good thing-but when that joke is s, I set ainst it A man in public life expects to be sneered at-it is the fault of his elewated sitiwation, and not of his's relation is a public e, and that he can bear; but putting Mrs Kenwigs out of the question (if I COULD put Mrs Kenwigs out of the question on such an occasion as this), I have the honour to be connected with the collector by s was going to say 'house,' but he rounded the sentence with 'apartments'

At the conclusion of these observations, which drew forth evidences of acute feeling fro the co was heard at the bell

'That's hireatly excited 'Morleena, my dear, run down and let your uncle in, and kiss hi'

Adopting Mr Kenwigs's suggestion, the company spoke very loudly, to look easy and uneun to do so, a short old gentleht have been carved out of LIGNUM VITAE, for anything that appeared to the contrary, was led playfully in by Miss Morleena Kenwigs, regarding whose uncommon Christian name it may be here res previous to her first lying-in, for the special distinction of her eldest child, in case it should prove a daughter

'Oh, uncle, I a the collector affectionately on both cheeks 'So glad!'

'Many happy returns of the day,the co Here was a collector of water-rates, without his book, without his pen and ink, without his double knock, without his intireeable fe taxes, summonses, notices that he had called, or announceain, for two quarters' due, wholly out of the question It was pleasant to see how the coht, and to behold the nods and winks hich they expressed their gratification at finding so atherer

'Where will you sit, uncle?' said Mrs Kenwigs, in the full glow of fauished relation occasioned

'Anywheres, my dear,' said the collector, 'I am not particular'

Not particular! What a meek collector! If he had been an author, who knew his place, he couldn't have beenthe collector, 'some friends here, sir, are very anxious for the honour of-thank you-Mr and Mrs Cutler, Mr Lillyvick'

'Proud to know you, sir,' said Mr Cutler; 'I've heerd of you very often' These were notkept house in Mr Lillyvick's parish, had heard of hi had been quite extraordinary

'George, you know, I think, Mr Lillyvick,' said Kenwigs; 'lady from downstairs-Mr Lillyvick Mr Snewkes-Mr Lillyvick Miss Green-Mr Lillyvick Mr Lillyvick-Miss Petowker of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane Very glad to s, s, with the assistance of News, (who, as he performed sundry little acts of kindness for the children, at all times and seasons, was humoured in his request to be taken no notice of, and was entleuests sat down to speculation, while News, and Miss Petowker of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, looked after the supper-table