"A very poor one, sir--I thought Miss Dolly--"
"No, no," said Gabriel, dropping his voice, and shaking his head,"not Dolly. Give "em to her mother, Joe. A great deal better give"em to her mother. Would you mind giving "em to Mrs Varden, Joe?"
"Oh no, sir," Joe replied, and endeavouring, but not with thegreatest possible success, to hide his disappointment. "I shall bevery glad, I"m sure."
"That"s right," said the locksmith, patting him on the back. "It don"t matter who has "em, Joe?"
"Not a bit, sir."--Dear heart, how the words stuck in his throat!
"Come in," said Gabriel. "I have just been called to tea. She"sin the parlour."
"She," thought Joe. "Which of "em I wonder--Mrs or Miss?" Thelocksmith settled the doubt as neatly as if it had been expressedaloud, by leading him to the door, and saying, "Martha, my dear,here"s young Mr Willet."
Now, Mrs Varden, regarding the Maypole as a sort of human mantrap,or decoy for husbands; viewing its proprietor, and all who aidedand abetted him, in the light of so many poachers among Christianmen; and believing, moreover, that the publicans coupled withsinners in Holy Writ were veritable licensed victuallers; was farfrom being favourably disposed towards her visitor. Wherefore shewas taken faint directly; and being duly presented with thecrocuses and snowdrops, divined on further consideration that theywere the occasion of the languor which had seized upon her spirits.
"I"m afraid I couldn"t bear the room another minute," said the goodlady, "if they remained here. WOULD you excuse my putting them out of window?"
Joe begged she wouldn"t mention it on any account, and smiledfeebly as he saw them deposited on the sill outside. If anybodycould have known the pains he had taken to make up that despisedand misused bunch of flowers!-"I feel it quite a relief to get rid of them, I assure you," saidMrs Varden. "I"m better already." And indeed she did appear tohave plucked up her spirits.
Joe expressed his gratitude to Providence for this favourabledispensation, and tried to look as if he didn"t wonder whereDolly was.
"You"re sad people at Chigwell, Mr Joseph," said Mrs V.
"I hope not, ma"am," returned Joe.
"You"re the cruellest and most inconsiderate people in the world,"
said Mrs Varden, bridling. "I wonder old Mr Willet, having been amarried man himself, doesn"t know better than to conduct himself ashe does. His doing it for profit is no excuse. I would rather pay the money twenty times over, and have Varden come home like arespectable and sober tradesman. If there is one character," saidMrs Varden with great emphasis, "that offends and disgusts me morethan another, it is a sot."
"Come, Martha, my dear," said the locksmith cheerily, "let us havetea, and don"t let us talk about sots. There are none here, andJoe don"t want to hear about them, I dare say."
At this crisis, Miggs appeared with toast.
"I dare say he does not," said Mrs Varden; "and I dare say you donot, Varden. It"s a very unpleasant subiect, I have no doubt,though I won"t say it"s personal"--Miggs coughed--"whatever I maybe forced to think"--Miggs sneezed expressively. "You never willknow, Varden, and nobody at young Mr Willet"s age--you"ll excuseme, sir--can be expected to know, what a woman suffers when she iswaiting at home under such circumstances. If you don"t believe me,as I know you don"t, here"s Miggs, who is only too often a witnessof it--ask her."
"Oh! she were very bad the other night, sir, indeed she were, saidMiggs. "If you hadn"t the sweetness of an angel in you, mim, I don"t think you could abear it, I raly don"t."
"Miggs," said Mrs Varden, "you"re profane."
"Begging your pardon, mim," returned Miggs, with shrill rapidity,"such was not my intentions, and such I hope is not my character,though I am but a servant."
"Answering me, Miggs, and providing yourself," retorted hermistress, looking round with dignity, "is one and the same thing.
How dare you speak of angels in connection with your sinfulfellow-beings--mere"--said Mrs Varden, glancing at herself in aneighbouring mirror, and arranging the ribbon of her cap in a morebecoming fashion--"mere worms and grovellers as we are!"
"I did not intend, mim, if you please, to give offence," saidMiggs, confident in the strength of her compliment, and developingstrongly in the throat as usual, "and I did not expect it would betook as such. I hope I know my own unworthiness, and that I hateand despise myself and all my fellow-creatures as every practicableChristian should."
"You"ll have the goodness, if you please," said Mrs Varden, loftily, "to step upstairs and see if Dolly has finished dressing,and to tell her that the chair that was ordered for her will behere in a minute, and that if she keeps it waiting, I shall send itaway that instant.--I"m sorry to see that you don"t take your tea,Varden, and that you don"t take yours, Mr Joseph; though of courseit would be foolish of me to expect that anything that can be hadat home, and in the company of females, would please YOU."