Pickwick Abroad: or, The Tour in France — page 372: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Pickwick Abroad | 309 to project the least bit in the world upon the footpath that led from the George and Punch-bowl to Mrs. Burton’s meadow. And now, what do you think Tom Austin did ?” ‘I really don’t know,” said Mr. Pickwick, anticipating some ter- rible result in reference to the pigs and the courting. ‘Why,’ continued Mr. Kallaway, with an air of the deepest indig- nation, which seemed to proclaim that the sense of the insult was still as strong as ever in his mind, ‘‘ he told Richard Sherrin that I’d been guilty of a trespass; whereupon Sherrin, by the advice of Skinflint, his attorney, pulled down the new planks of the stye, and let the whole litter into the village. Little Tommy Hawkins caught two of them— Ben Skipps, the butcher, caught a third—and the others were drowned in Sam Whitfield’s pond, close by the willow-walk. The poor black sow look on sadly!” | ‘Poor creature!’’ ejaculated Mr. Pickwick, who suddenly found his sympathies deeply enlisted in the case of a black sow and her inte- resting offspring. “This,” continued Mr. Kallaway, ‘‘ was enough to dispirit me on the very morning when I intended to propose to old Clumley for his daughter Hannah. I however put a good face on it, and walked across the close, round by the brick-kiln, and so up by Sowerby’s mill, toward’s father-in-law’s house.” ‘¢ And did you succeed in winning the fair hand of Miss Hannah Clumley ?” enquired Mr, Pickwick, in a somewhat sentimental and plaintive tone of voice “Well, by astrange coincidence,” replied Mr. Kallaway, ‘‘ I found Hannah engaged in hunting her sow—’twas a black and white one, Mr. Pickwick—out of the cucumber-beds; and desperate hard work it was.”’ | So indeed it must have been ; particularly as the fair hands of Miss Hannah Clumley (as Mr. Pickwick beautifully expressed himself) were, most probably, engaged in lugging out the aforesaid black and white sow by the tail. ** What a very singular coincidence !”” exclaimed Mr. Pickwick. *¢ Very,’ said Mr. Kallaway ; ‘* and any one else would have thought it ominous. I’m sure I did; but Hannah and her father declared that, it was entirely in our favour, and it was very lucky that he thought so; for he became bankrupt three days after our wedding: and instead of turning out one of the richest men sh that part o’ the country, he proved to be the poorest.” A sudden thought illuminated the gigantic brain of Mr. Pickwick. What if he were to make use of the services of his new acquaintance, in breaking the matter to Mr. Scuttle? The idea was, certainly, a bright one—no other imagination than that of this truly great man could have entertained it—and he at once resolved to be candid and open with Mr. Kallaway. ‘* My dear Sir,” said he, taking him by the button-hole, and lead- ing him a little way from the steps where they had been standing, “in reference to that which you have just been telling me—” “What! abont the black sow ?” interrupted Mr. Kallaway. ‘Ah! er ae He loss of her two young ones preyed deeply upon her mind !” - CORnNICLOOKS (C(O)