Pickwick Abroad: A Companion to the Pickwick Papers — page 268: what you’re looking at

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34 the most solemn and correct of gentlemen, with the muteness and gravity of an under- taker, could hardly keep his countenance in order, as he looked at his unfortunate mas- ter. “Mr. Sedley was uncommon wild last night, sir,” he whispered in confidence to Osborne, as the latter mounted the stair. ‘‘He wanted to fight the ’ackney-coachman, sir. ‘The capting was obliged to bring him up stairs in his harms like a baby.” A mo- mentary smile flickered over Mr. Brush’s features as he spoke; instantly, however, they relapsed into their usual unfathomable calm, as he flung open the drawing-room door, and announced ** Mr. Hosbin.”’ ‘¢ How are you, Sedley ?” that young wag began, after surveying his victim. ‘*No bones broke? ‘There’s a hackney-coachman down stairs with a black eye, and a tied up head, vowing he’!] have the law of you.” ‘¢ What do you mean—law?” Sedley faint- ly asked. ‘‘ Hor thrashing him last night—didn’t he, Dobbin? You hit out, sir, like Molyneux. The watchman says he never saw a fellow go down so straight. Ask Dobbin.” ‘You did have a round with the coach- man,’’ Captain Dobbin said, ‘‘ and showed plenty of fight too.” “And that fellow with a white coat at Vauxhall! How Jos drove at him! How the women screamed! By Jove, sir, it did ‘ny heart good to see you. I thought you civilians had no pluck; but J’l/ never get in your way when you are in your cups, Jos.” ‘¢] believe I’m very terrible, whem I’m roused,” ejaculated Jos from the sofa, and made a grimace so dreary and ludicrous, that the captain’s politeness could restrain him no longer, and he and Osborne fired off a ringing volley of laughter. Osborne pursued his advantage pitilessly. He thought Jos a milksop. He had been revolving in his mind the marriage question pending between Jos and Rebecca, and was not over-well pleased that a member of a family into which he, George Osborne, of the —th, was going to marry, should make a mésalliance with a little nobody—a little upstart governess. ‘* You hit, you poor old fellow!’’ said Osborne. ‘* You terrible! Why, man, you couldn’t stand—you made every body laugh in the gardens, though you were crying yourself. You were maudlin, Jos. Don’t you remember singing a song?” ‘¢A what?” Jos asked. “A sentimental song, and calling Rosa, Rebecca, what’s her name, Amelia’s little friend—your dearest diddle-diddle-darling?”’ And this ruthless young fellow, seizing hold of Dobbin’s hand, acted over the scene, to the horror of the original performer, and in spite of Dobbin’s good-natured entreaties to him to have mercy. ‘‘Why should I spare him?” Osborne VANITY FAIR. said to his friend’s remonstrances, when they quitted the invalid, leaving him under the hands of Doctor Glauber. ‘* What the deuce right has he to give himself his pa- tronizing airs, and make fools of us at Vaux- hall? Who’s this little school-girl that is ogling and making love to him? Hang it, the family’s low enough already, without her. A governess is all very well, but I’d rather have a lady for my sister-in-law. I’m a liberal man: but I’ve proper pride, and know my own station: let her know hers. And I’|l take down that great hectoring na- bob, and prevent him from being made a greater fool than he is. That’s why I told him to look out, lest she brought an action against him.” ‘¢T suppose you know best,” Dobbin said, though rather dubiously. ‘ You always were a Tory, and your family’s one of the oldest in England. But”—— ‘¢ Come and see the girls, and make love to Miss Sharp yourself,” the lieutenant here interrupted his friend ; but Captain Dobbin declined to join Osborne in his daily visit to the young ladies in Russell-square. As he walked down Southampton-row; from Holborn, he laughed as he saw, at the Sedley mansion, in two different stories, two heads on the look-out. The fact is, Miss Amelia, in the drawing- room balcony, was looking very eagerly to- ward the opposite side of the square, where Mr. Osborne dwelt, on the watch for the lieutenant himself; and Miss Sharp, from | her little bed-room on the second floor, was in observation until Mr. Joseph’s great form should heave in sight. ‘Sister Anne is on the watch-tower,”’ said he to Amelia, ‘but there’s nobody coming ;” and Jaughing and enjoying the joke hugely, he described in the most lu- dicrous terms to Miss Sedley, the dismal condition of her brother. ‘‘T think it’s very cruel of you to laugh, George,’’ she said, looking particularly un- happy; but George only laughed the more at her piteous and discomforted mien, per- sisted in thinking the joke a most diverting one, and when Miss Sharp came down stairs, bantered her with a great deal of liveliness upon the effect of her charms on the fat civilian. “OQ Miss Sharp! if you could but see him this morning,” he said, ‘‘ moaning in his flowered dressing-gown—writhing on his sofa; if you could but see him lolling out his tongue to Glauber the apothecary.” *¢ See whom?” said Miss Sharp. ‘¢ Whom? O whom? Captain Dobbin, of course, to whom we were all so attentive, by the way, last night.” «We were very unkind to him,” Emmy said, blushing very much. ‘I—I quite for- got him.” “Ofcourse you did,” cried Osborne, still CORNIELOOO© (C S}a(GO)