Part 38 (2/2)

'So these are some of the stories they invent about us, and bandy froht Nicholas 'If a ainst any society, large or sive him any crime but that'

'You surely don't mind what that malicious creature says, Mr Johnson?' observed Miss Snevellicci in hertones

'Not I,' replied Nicholas 'If I were going to reht think it worth my while to embroil myself As it is, let them talk till they are hoarse But here,' added Nicholas, as Smike approached, 'here coood-nature, so let he and I say good night together'

'No, I will not let either of you say anything of the kind,' returned Miss Snevellicci 'You must come home and seeto behold you Led, my dear, persuade Mr Johnson'

'Oh, I'm sure,' returned Miss Ledrook, with considerable vivacity, 'if YOU can't persuade him-' Miss Ledrook said no more, but intimated, by a dexterous playfulness, that if Miss Snevellicci couldn't persuade hiings in our house, and share our sitting-room for the present,' said Miss Snevellicci 'Won't that induce you?'

'Surely,' returned Nicholas, 'I can require no possible inducement beyond your invitation'

'Oh no! I dare say,' rejoined Miss Snevellicci And Miss Ledrook said, 'Upon my word!' Upon which Miss Snevellicci said that Miss Ledrook was a giddy thing; and Miss Ledrook said that Miss Snevellicci needn't colour up quite so much; and Miss Snevellicci beat Miss Ledrook, and Miss Ledrook beat Miss Snevellicci

'Coh time ere there, or we shall have poor Mrs Snevellicci thinking that you have run aith her daughter, Mr Johnson; and then we should have a pretty to-do'

'My dear Led,' remonstrated Miss Snevellicci, 'how you do talk!'

Miss LedrookSmike's arm in hers, left her friend and Nicholas to follow at their pleasure; which it pleased thereat fancy for a TETE-A-TETE under the circu matters of conversation when they reached the street, for it turned out that Miss Snevellicci had a small basket to carry ho such minor articles of theatrical costume as the lady perfor Nicholas would insist upon carrying the basket, and Miss Snevellicci would insist upon carrying it herself, which gave rise to a struggle, in which Nicholas captured the basket and the bandbox likewise Then Nicholas said, that he wondered what could possibly be inside the basket, and attempted to peep in, whereat Miss Snevellicci screaht he had seen, she was sure she should faint away This declaration was followed by a similar attempt on the bandbox, and similar demonstrations on the part of Miss Ledrook, and then both ladies vowed that they wouldn't move a step further until Nicholas had proain At last Nicholas pledged himself to betray no further curiosity, and they walked on: both ladies giggling verythat they never had seen such a wicked creature in all their born days-never

Lightening the ith such pleasantry as this, they arrived at the tailor's house in no ti present besides Mr Lillyvick and Mrs Lillyvick, not only Miss Snevellicci's mama, but her papa also And an uncommonly fine man Miss Snevellicci's papa ith a hook nose, and a white forehead, and curly black hair, and high cheek bones, and altogether quite a handso He had a very broad chest had Miss Snevellicci's papa, and he wore a threadbare blue dress-coat buttoned with gilt buttons tight across it; and he no sooner saw Nicholas coers of his right hand in between the two centre buttons, and sticking his other arracefully a-kimbo seeot to say to me?'

Such was, and in such an attitude sat Miss Snevellicci's papa, who had been in the profession ever since he had first played the ten-year-old i a little, dance a little, fence a little, act a little, and do everything a little, but not much; who had been sometimes in the ballet, and sometimes in the chorus, at every theatre in London; as always selected in virtue of his figure to play the military visitors and the speechless noblemen; who alore a smart dress, and came on arm-in-arm with a smart lady in short petticoats,-and always did it too with such an air that people in the pit had been several times known to cry out 'Bravo!' under the impression that he was somebody Such was Miss Snevellicci's papa, upon whom some envious persons cast the imputation that he occasionally beat Miss Snevellicci's ure and soood looks; and who now sat, as she danced,-being rather too old for the full glare of the foot-lights,-in the background

To these good people Nicholas was presented withcompleted, Miss Snevellicci's papa (as scented with ruhted to hly talented; and furthermore remarked, that there hadn't been such a hit made-no, not since the first appearance of his friend Mr Glavor

'You have seen him, sir?' said Miss Snevellicci's papa

'No, really I never did,' replied Nicholas

'You never saw my friend Glavormelly, sir!' said Miss Snevellicci's papa 'Then you have never seen acting yet If he had lived-'

'Oh, he is dead, is he?' interrupted Nicholas

'He is,' said Mr Snevellicci, 'but he isn't in Westminster Abbey, one to that bourne from whence no traveller returns I hope he is appreciated THERE'

So saying Miss Snevellicci's papa rubbed the tip of his nose with a very yellow silk handkerchief, and gave the company to understand that these recollections overcame him

'Well, Mr Lillyvick,' said Nicholas, 'and how are you?'

'Quite well, sir,' replied the collector 'There is nothing like the married state, sir, depend upon it'

'Indeed!' said Nicholas, laughing

'Ah! nothing like it, sir,' replied Mr Lillyvick sole hiht?'

'As handso at the late Miss Petowker

'Why, there's air about her, sir,' whispered the collector, 'that I never saw in anybody Look at her now she moves to put the kettle on There! Isn't it fascination, sir?'

'You're a lucky man,' said Nicholas

'Ha, ha, ha!' rejoined the collector 'No Do you think I ah, eh? Perhaps I may be, perhaps I may be I say, I couldn't have doneman, could I? You couldn't have done much better yourself, could you-eh-could you?' With such inquires, and many more such, Mr Lillyvick jerked his elbow into Nicholas's side, and chuckled till his face became quite purple in the attempt to keep down his satisfaction

By this time the cloth had been laid under the joint superintendence of all the ladies, upon two tables put together, one being high and narrow, and the other low and broad There were oysters at the top, sausages at the bottom, a pair of snuffers in the centre, and baked potatoes wherever it was ht in from the bedroom: Miss Snevellicci sat at the head of the table, and Mr Lillyvick at the foot; and Nicholas had not only the honour of sitting next Miss Snevellicci, but of having Miss Snevellicci's ht hand, and Miss Snevellicci's papa over the way In short, he was the hero of the feast; and when the table was cleared and soot up and proposed his health in a speech containing such affecting allusions to his co departure, that Miss Snevellicci wept, and was compelled to retire into the bedroom

'Hush!+ Don't take any notice of it,' said Miss Ledrook, peeping in from the bedroom 'Say, when she comes back, that she exerts herself too much'

Miss Ledrook eked out this speech with so ain, that a profound silence ca which Miss Snevellicci's papa looked very big indeed-several sizes larger than life-at everybody in turn, but particularly at Nicholas, and kept on perpetually eain, until the ladies returned in a cluster, with Miss Snevellicci a them

'You needn't alarm yourself a bit, Mr Snevellicci,' said Mrs Lillyvick 'She is only a little weak and nervous; she has been so ever since the '

'Oh,' said Mr Snevellicci, 'that's all, is it?'

'Oh yes, that's all Don't ether

Now this was not exactly the kind of reply suited to Mr Snevellicci's importance as a man and a father, so he picked out the unfortunate Mrs Snevellicci, and asked her what the devil sheto him in that way

'Dear me, my dear!' said Mrs Snevellicci

'Don't call me your dear, ma'am,' said Mr Snevellicci, 'if you please'

'Pray, pa, don't,' interposed Miss Snevellicci

'Don't what, my child?'

'Talk in that way'

'Why not?' said Mr Snevellicci 'I hope you don't suppose there's anybody here who is to preventas I like?'