Cities - pmonta.com · Gorgon’ s Head..... 106 10 T wo Promises..... 116. 11 A Companion Picture..... 123 12 The Fellow of ... character of fithe Captain,fl gallantly shot him

Page 1

AT

ale

of

Tw

oC

itie

s

Charl

esD

icken

s

Book

the

Fir

st

Recall

ed

toL

ife

1T

he

Per

iod

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

5

2T

he

Mail

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

7

3T

he

Nig

ht

Shadow

s.

..

..

..

..

..

..

12

4T

he

Pre

para

tion

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

16

5T

he

Win

e-sh

op

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

26

6T

he

Shoem

aker

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

35

Book

the

Second

The

Gold

en

Thread

1Fiv

eY

ears

Late

r.

..

..

..

..

..

..

.49

2A

Sig

ht

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

.54

3A

Dis

appoin

tmen

t.

..

..

..

..

..

..

60

4C

ongra

tula

tory

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

72

5T

he

Jack

al

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

77

6H

undre

ds

of

Peo

ple

..

..

..

..

..

..

.82

7M

onse

igneu

rin

Tow

n.

..

..

..

..

..

.93

8M

onse

igneu

rin

the

Countr

y.

..

..

..

..

.101

9T

he

Gorg

on’s

Hea

d.

..

..

..

..

..

..

106

10

Tw

oPro

mis

es.

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

116

Page 2

11

AC

om

panio

nPictu

re.

..

..

..

..

..

.123

12

The

Fello

wof

Delica

cy.

..

..

..

..

..

.126

13

The

Fello

wof

No

Delica

cy.

..

..

..

..

.132

14

The

Honest

Tra

desm

an

..

..

..

..

..

.137

15

Knittin

g.

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

146

16

Still

Knittin

g.

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

156

17

One

Nig

ht

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

165

18

Nin

eD

ays

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

170

19

An

Opin

ion

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

.175

20

APlea

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

.182

21

Ech

oin

gFootstep

s.

..

..

..

..

..

..

186

22

The

Sea

Still

Rises

..

..

..

..

..

..

.196

23

Fire

Rises

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

200

24

Dra

wn

toth

eL

oadsto

ne

Rock

..

..

..

..

.207

Book

the

Thir

d

The

Track

of

aSto

rm

1In

Secret

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

221

2T

he

Grin

dsto

ne

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

231

3T

he

Shadow

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

.237

4C

alm

inSto

rm.

..

..

..

..

..

..

.241

5T

he

Wood-S

aw

yer

..

..

..

..

..

..

.246

6T

rium

ph

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

251

7A

Knock

at

the

Door

..

..

..

..

..

..

257

8A

Hand

at

Card

s.

..

..

..

..

..

..

.262

9T

he

Gam

eM

ade

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

273

10

The

Substa

nce

of

the

Shadow

..

..

..

..

.284

11

Dusk

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

297

12

Dark

ness

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

301

13

Fifty

-two

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

..

308

14

The

Knittin

gD

one

..

..

..

..

..

..

.319

15

The

Footstep

sD

ieO

ut

For

Ever

..

..

..

..

330

Bo

ok

the

First

Reca

lledto

Life

Page 3

CH

AR

LE

SD

IC

KE

NS

Ther

ew

as

ast

eam

ing

mis

tin

all

the

hollow

s,and

ithad

roam

edin

its

forl

orn

nes

sup

the

hill,

like

an

evil

spir

it,

seek

ing

rest

and

findin

gnone.

Acl

am

my

and

inte

nse

lyco

ldm

ist,

itm

ade

its

slow

way

thro

ugh

the

air

inri

pple

sth

at

vis

ibly

follow

edand

over

spre

ad

one

anoth

er,

as

the

waves

of

an

unw

hole

som

ese

am

ight

do.

Itw

as

den

seen

ough

tosh

ut

out

ever

yth

ing

from

the

light

of

the

coach

-lam

ps

but

thes

eit

sow

nw

ork

ings,

and

afe

wyard

sof

road;and

the

reek

of

the

labouri

ng

hors

esst

eam

edin

toit

,as

ifth

eyhad

made

itall.

Tw

ooth

erpass

enger

s,bes

ides

the

one,

wer

eplo

ddin

gup

the

hill

by

the

side

of

the

mail.

All

thre

ew

ere

wra

pped

toth

ech

eekbones

and

over

the

ears

,and

wore

jack

-boots

.N

ot

one

of

the

thre

eco

uld

have

said

,fr

om

anyth

ing

he

saw

,w

hat

eith

erof

the

oth

ertw

ow

as

like;

and

each

was

hid

den

under

alm

ost

as

many

wra

pper

sfr

om

the

eyes

of

the

min

d,

as

from

the

eyes

of

the

body,

of

his

two

com

panio

ns.

Inth

ose

days,

trav-

elle

rsw

ere

ver

ysh

yof

bei

ng

confiden

tialon

ash

ort

noti

ce,fo

ranybody

on

the

road

mig

ht

be

aro

bber

or

inle

ague

wit

hro

bber

s.A

sto

the

lat-

ter,

when

ever

ypost

ing-h

ouse

and

ale

-house

could

pro

duce

som

ebody

in“th

eC

apta

in’s

”pay,

rangin

gfr

om

the

landlo

rdto

the

low

est

stable

non-d

escr

ipt,

itw

as

the

likel

iest

thin

gupon

the

card

s.So

the

guard

of

the

Dover

mail

thought

tohim

self

,th

at

Fri

day

nig

ht

inN

ovem

ber

,one

thousa

nd

seven

hundre

dand

seven

ty-fi

ve,

lum

ber

ing

up

Shoote

r’s

Hill,

as

he

stood

on

his

ow

npart

icula

rper

chbeh

ind

the

mail,bea

ting

his

feet

,and

kee

pin

gan

eye

and

ahand

on

the

arm

-ches

tbef

ore

him

,w

her

ea

loaded

blu

nder

buss

lay

at

the

top

of

six

or

eight

loaded

hors

e-pis

tols

,dep

osi

ted

on

asu

bst

ratu

mof

cutl

ass

.T

he

Dover

mail

was

init

susu

al

gen

ial

posi

tion

that

the

guard

sus-

pec

ted

the

pass

enger

s,th

epass

enger

ssu

spec

ted

one

anoth

erand

the

guard

,th

eyall

susp

ecte

dev

erybody

else

,and

the

coach

man

was

sure

of

noth

ing

but

the

hors

es;

as

tow

hic

hca

ttle

he

could

wit

ha

clea

rco

n-

scie

nce

have

taken

his

oath

on

the

two

Tes

tam

ents

that

they

wer

enot

fit

for

the

journ

ey.

“W

o-h

o!”

said

the

coach

man.

“So,th

en!

One

more

pull

and

you’r

eat

the

top

and

be

dam

ned

toyou,

for

Ihave

had

trouble

enough

toget

you

toit

!—Jo

e!”

“H

alloa!”

the

guard

replied

.“W

hat

o’c

lock

do

you

make

it,Jo

e?”

“T

enm

inute

s,good,

past

elev

en.”

“M

yblo

od!”

ejacu

late

dth

evex

edco

ach

man,

“and

not

ato

pof

Shoote

r’s

yet

!T

st!

Yah!

Get

on

wit

hyou!”

8

AT

AL

EO

FT

WO

CI

TI

ES

Chapte

r1

The

Per

iod

Itw

as

the

bes

tof

tim

es,

itw

as

the

wors

tof

tim

es,

itw

as

the

age

of

wis

dom

,it

was

the

age

of

foolish

nes

s,it

was

the

epoch

of

bel

ief,

itw

as

the

epoch

of

incr

edulity

,it

was

the

seaso

nof

Lig

ht,

itw

as

the

seaso

nof

Dark

nes

s,it

was

the

spri

ng

of

hope,

itw

as

the

win

ter

of

des

pair,w

ehad

ever

yth

ing

bef

ore

us,

we

had

noth

ing

bef

ore

us,

we

wer

eall

goin

gdir

ect

toH

eaven

,w

ew

ere

all

goin

gdir

ect

the

oth

erw

ay—

insh

ort

,th

eper

iod

was

sofa

rlike

the

pre

sent

per

iod,

that

som

eof

its

nois

iest

auth

ori

ties

insi

sted

on

its

bei

ng

rece

ived

,fo

rgood

or

for

evil,

inth

esu

per

lati

ve

deg

ree

of

com

pari

son

only

.T

her

ew

ere

akin

gw

ith

ala

rge

jaw

and

aquee

nw

ith

apla

infa

ce,on

the

thro

ne

of

Engla

nd;

ther

ew

ere

akin

gw

ith

ala

rge

jaw

and

aquee

nw

ith

afa

irfa

ce,on

the

thro

ne

of

Fra

nce

.In

both

countr

ies

itw

as

clea

rer

than

cryst

alto

the

lord

sof

the

Sta

tepre

serv

esof

loaves

and

fish

es,

that

thin

gs

ingen

eralw

ere

sett

led

for

ever

.It

was

the

yea

rof

Our

Lord

one

thousa

nd

seven

hundre

dand

seven

ty-fi

ve.

Spir

itual

revel

ati

ons

wer

eco

nce

ded

toE

ngla

nd

at

that

favoure

dper

iod,

as

at

this

.M

rs.

South

cott

had

rece

ntl

yatt

ain

edher

five-

and-t

wen

tiet

hble

ssed

bir

thday,

of

whom

apro

phet

icpri

vate

inth

eL

ife

Guard

shad

her

ald

edth

esu

blim

eappea

rance

by

announci

ng

that

arr

angem

ents

wer

em

ade

for

the

swallow

ing

up

of

London

and

Wes

tmin

ster

.E

ven

the

Cock

-lane

ghost

had

bee

nla

idonly

aro

und

doze

nof

yea

rs,aft

erra

ppin

gout

its

mes

sages

,as

the

spir

its

of

this

ver

yyea

rla

stpast

(super

natu

rally

defi

cien

tin

ori

gin

ality

)ra

pped

out

thei

rs.

Mer

em

essa

ges

inth

eea

rthly

ord

erof

even

tshad

late

lyco

me

toth

eE

n-

glish

Cro

wn

and

Peo

ple

,fr

om

aco

ngre

ssof

Bri

tish

subje

cts

inA

mer

ica:

whic

h,st

range

tore

late

,have

pro

ved

more

import

ant

toth

ehum

an

race

than

any

com

munic

ati

ons

yet

rece

ived

thro

ugh

any

of

the

chic

ken

sof

the

Cock

-lane

bro

od.

Fra

nce

,le

ssfa

voure

don

the

whole

as

tom

att

ers

spir

itual

than

her

sist

erof

the

shie

ldand

trid

ent,

rolled

wit

hex

ceed

ing

smooth

nes

sdow

nhill,

makin

gpaper

money

and

spen

din

git

.U

nder

the

guid

ance

of

her

Chri

stia

npast

ors

,sh

een

tert

ain

edher

self

,bes

ides

,w

ith

such

hum

ane

ach

ievem

ents

as

sente

nci

ng

ayouth

tohave

his

hands

cut

off

,his

tongue

torn

out

wit

hpin

cers

,and

his

body

burn

edalive,

bec

ause

he

had

not

knee

led

dow

nin

the

rain

todo

honour

toa

dir

typro

cess

ion

of

monks

5

Page 4

CH

AR

LE

SD

IC

KE

NS

which

passed

with

inhis

view

,at

adista

nce

of

som

efifty

or

sixty

yard

s.It

islik

elyen

ough

that,

rooted

inth

ew

oods

of

Fra

nce

and

Norw

ay,

there

were

gro

win

gtrees,

when

that

sufferer

was

put

todea

th,

alrea

dy

mark

edby

the

Woodm

an,Fate,

toco

me

dow

nand

be

saw

nin

toboard

s,to

make

acerta

inm

ovable

fram

ework

with

asa

ckand

aknife

init,

terrible

inhisto

ry.It

islik

elyen

ough

that

inth

ero

ugh

outh

ouses

of

som

etillers

of

the

hea

vy

lands

adja

cent

toParis,

there

were

sheltered

from

the

wea

ther

that

very

day,

rude

carts,

besp

attered

with

rustic

mire,

snuffed

about

by

pig

s,and

roosted

inby

poultry,

which

the

Farm

er,D

eath

,had

alrea

dy

setapart

tobe

his

tum

brils

of

the

Rev

olu

tion.

But

that

Woodm

an

and

that

Farm

er,th

ough

they

work

uncea

singly,

work

silently,

and

no

one

hea

rdth

emas

they

wen

tabout

with

muffl

edtrea

d:

the

rath

er,fora

smuch

as

toen

tertain

any

susp

icion

thatth

eyw

ereaw

ake,

was

tobe

ath

eisticaland

traito

rous.

InE

ngla

nd,th

erew

as

scarcely

an

am

ount

of

ord

erand

pro

tection

toju

stifym

uch

natio

nal

boastin

g.

Darin

gburg

laries

by

arm

edm

en,

and

hig

hw

ay

robberies,

took

pla

cein

the

capita

litself

every

nig

ht;

fam

iliesw

erepublicly

cautio

ned

not

togo

out

of

tow

nw

ithout

removin

gth

eirfu

rnitu

reto

upholsterers’

wareh

ouses

for

security

;th

ehig

hw

aym

an

inth

edark

was

aC

itytra

desm

an

inth

elig

ht,

and,

bein

greco

gnised

and

challen

ged

by

his

fellow

-tradesm

an

whom

he

stopped

inhis

chara

cterof

“th

eC

apta

in,”

galla

ntly

shot

him

thro

ugh

the

hea

dand

rode

aw

ay;

the

mall

was

wayla

idby

seven

robbers,

and

the

guard

shot

three

dea

d,and

then

got

shot

dea

dhim

selfby

the

oth

erfo

ur,

“in

conseq

uen

ceof

the

fail-

ure

of

his

am

munitio

n:”

after

which

the

mall

was

robbed

inpea

ce;th

at

magnifi

cent

poten

tate,

the

Lord

Mayor

of

London,

was

made

tosta

nd

and

deliv

eron

Turn

ham

Green

,by

one

hig

hw

aym

an,w

ho

desp

oiled

the

illustrio

us

creatu

rein

sight

of

all

his

retinue;

priso

ners

inL

ondon

gaols

fought

battles

with

their

turn

key

s,and

the

majesty

of

the

law

fired

blu

n-

derb

usses

inam

ong

them

,lo

aded

with

rounds

of

shot

and

ball;

thiev

essn

ipped

off

dia

mond

crosses

from

the

neck

sof

noble

lord

sat

Court

dra

win

g-ro

om

s;m

usk

eteersw

ent

into

St.

Giles’s,

tosea

rchfo

rco

ntra

-band

goods,

and

the

mob

fired

on

the

musk

eteers,and

the

musk

eteersfired

on

the

mob,

and

nobody

thought

any

of

these

occu

rrences

much

out

of

the

com

mon

way.

Inth

em

idst

of

them

,th

ehangm

an,

ever

busy

and

ever

worse

than

useless,

was

inco

nsta

nt

requisitio

n;

now

,strin

gin

gup

long

row

sof

miscella

neo

us

crimin

als;

now

,hangin

ga

houseb

reaker

on

Satu

rday

who

had

been

taken

on

Tuesd

ay;

now

,burn

ing

peo

ple

inth

ehand

at

New

gate

by

the

dozen

,and

now

burn

ing

pam

phlets

at

the

6

AT

AL

EO

FT

WO

CI

TI

ES

door

of

Westm

inster

Hall;

to-d

ay,

takin

gth

elife

of

an

atro

cious

mur-

derer,

and

to-m

orro

wof

aw

retched

pilferer

who

had

robbed

afa

rmer’s

boy

of

sixpen

ce.A

llth

eseth

ings,

and

ath

ousa

nd

like

them

,ca

me

topass

inand

close

upon

the

dea

rold

yea

rone

thousa

nd

seven

hundred

and

seven

ty-

five.

Enviro

ned

by

them

,w

hile

the

Woodm

an

and

the

Farm

erw

ork

edunheed

ed,

those

two

of

the

larg

eja

ws,

and

those

oth

ertw

oof

the

pla

inand

the

fair

faces,

trod

with

stiren

ough,

and

carried

their

div

ine

rights

with

ahig

hhand.

Thus

did

the

yea

rone

thousa

nd

seven

hundred

and

seven

ty-fi

ve

conduct

their

Grea

tnesses,

and

myria

ds

of

small

creatu

res—th

ecrea

tures

of

this

chro

nicle

am

ong

the

rest—alo

ng

the

roads

that

lay

befo

reth

em.

Chapter

2

The

Mail

Itw

as

the

Dover

road

that

lay,

on

aFrid

ay

nig

ht

late

inN

ovem

ber,

befo

reth

efirst

of

the

perso

ns

with

whom

this

histo

ryhas

busin

ess.T

he

Dover

road

lay,

as

tohim

,bey

ond

the

Dover

mail,

as

itlu

mbered

up

Shooter’s

Hill.

He

walk

edup

hill

inth

em

ireby

the

side

of

the

mail,

as

the

restof

the

passen

gers

did

;not

beca

use

they

had

the

least

relishfo

rw

alk

ing

exercise,

under

the

circum

stances,

but

beca

use

the

hill,

and

the

harn

ess,and

the

mud,

and

the

mail,

were

all

sohea

vy,

that

the

horses

had

three

times

alrea

dy

com

eto

asto

p,besid

esonce

dra

win

gth

eco

ach

acro

ssth

ero

ad,w

ithth

em

utin

ous

inten

tofta

kin

git

back

toB

lack

hea

th.

Rein

sand

whip

and

coach

man

and

guard

,how

ever,

inco

mbin

atio

n,

had

read

that

article

of

war

which

forb

ade

apurp

ose

oth

erwise

strongly

infa

vour

of

the

arg

um

ent,

that

som

ebru

teanim

als

are

endued

with

Rea

son;and

the

team

had

capitu

lated

and

return

edto

their

duty.

With

dro

opin

ghea

ds

and

tremulo

us

tails,

they

mash

edth

eirw

ay

thro

ugh

the

thick

mud,

flounderin

gand

stum

blin

gbetw

eenw

hiles,

as

ifth

eyw

erefa

lling

topieces

at

the

larg

erjo

ints.

As

often

as

the

driv

errested

them

and

bro

ught

them

toa

stand,

with

aw

ary

“W

o-h

o!

so-h

o-

then

!”th

enea

rlea

der

vio

lently

shook

his

hea

dand

every

thin

gupon

it—lik

ean

unusu

ally

emphatic

horse,

den

yin

gth

at

the

coach

could

be

got

up

the

hill.

When

ever

the

leader

made

this

rattle,

the

passen

ger

started

,as

anerv

ous

passen

ger

mig

ht,

and

was

distu

rbed

inm

ind.

7

Page 5

CH

AR

LE

SD

IC

KE

NS

Jerr

y,le

ftalo

ne

inth

em

ist

and

dark

nes

s,dis

mounte

dm

eanw

hile,

not

only

toea

sehis

spen

thors

e,but

tow

ipe

the

mud

from

his

face

,and

shake

the

wet

out

of

his

hat-

bri

m,

whic

hm

ight

be

capable

of

hold

ing

about

half

agallon.

Aft

erst

andin

gw

ith

the

bri

dle

over

his

hea

vily-

spla

shed

arm

,unti

lth

ew

hee

lsof

the

mail

wer

eno

longer

wit

hin

hea

ring

and

the

nig

ht

was

quit

est

illagain

,he

turn

edto

walk

dow

nth

ehill.

“A

fter

thatth

ere

gallop

from

Tem

ple

Bar,

old

lady,

Iw

on’t

trust

your

fore

-leg

sti

llI

get

you

on

the

level

,”sa

idth

ishoars

em

esse

nger

,gla

nci

ng

at

his

mare

.“

‘Rec

alled

tolife

.’T

hat’s

aB

lazi

ng

stra

nge

mes

sage.

Much

of

that

would

n’t

do

for

you,

Jerr

y!

Isa

y,Je

rry!

You’d

be

ina

Bla

zing

bad

way,

ifre

callin

gto

life

was

toco

me

into

fash

ion,Je

rry!”

Chapte

r3

The

Nig

ht

Shad

ow

s

Aw

onder

ful

fact

tore

flec

tupon,

that

ever

yhum

an

crea

ture

isco

nst

i-tu

ted

tobe

that

pro

found

secr

etand

myst

ery

toev

ery

oth

er.

Aso

lem

nco

nsi

der

ati

on,w

hen

Ien

ter

agre

at

city

by

nig

ht,

that

ever

yone

of

those

dark

lycl

ust

ered

house

sen

close

sit

sow

nse

cret

;th

at

ever

yro

om

inev

ery

one

of

them

encl

ose

sit

sow

nse

cret

;th

at

ever

ybea

ting

hea

rtin

the

hun-

dre

ds

of

thousa

nds

of

bre

ast

sth

ere,

is,in

som

eof

its

imagin

ings,

ase

cret

toth

ehea

rtnea

rest

it!

Som

ethin

gof

the

aw

fuln

ess,

even

of

Dea

thit

self

,is

refe

rable

toth

is.

No

more

can

Itu

rnth

ele

aves

of

this

dea

rbook

that

Ilo

ved

,and

vain

lyhope

inti

me

tore

ad

itall.

No

more

can

Ilo

ok

into

the

dep

ths

of

this

unfa

thom

able

wate

r,w

her

ein,

as

mom

enta

rylights

gla

nce

din

toit

,I

have

had

glim

pse

sof

buri

edtr

easu

reand

oth

erth

ings

subm

erged

.It

was

appoin

ted

that

the

book

should

shut

wit

ha

spri

ng,

for

ever

and

for

ever

,w

hen

Ihad

read

but

apage.

Itw

as

appoin

ted

that

the

wate

rsh

ould

be

lock

edin

an

eter

nal

frost

,w

hen

the

light

was

pla

y-

ing

on

its

surf

ace

,and

Ist

ood

inig

nora

nce

on

the

shore

.M

yfr

iend

isdea

d,

my

nei

ghbour

isdea

d,m

ylo

ve,

the

darl

ing

of

my

soul,

isdea

d;it

isth

ein

exora

ble

conso

lidati

on

and

per

pet

uati

on

of

the

secr

etth

at

was

alw

ays

inth

at

indiv

iduality

,and

whic

hI

shall

carr

yin

min

eto

my

life

’sen

d.

Inany

of

the

buri

al-

pla

ces

of

this

city

thro

ugh

whic

hI

pass

,is

ther

ea

slee

per

more

insc

ruta

ble

than

its

busy

inhabit

ants

are

,in

thei

rin

ner

most

per

sonality

,to

me,

or

than

Iam

toth

em?

12

AT

AL

EO

FT

WO

CI

TI

ES

The

emphati

chors

e,cu

tsh

ort

by

the

whip

ina

most

dec

ided

neg

a-

tive,

made

adec

ided

scra

mble

for

it,and

the

thre

eoth

erhors

esfo

llow

edsu

it.

Once

more

,th

eD

over

mail

stru

ggle

don,

wit

hth

eja

ck-b

oots

of

its

pass

enger

ssq

uash

ing

alo

ng

by

its

side.

They

had

stopped

when

the

coach

stopped

,and

they

kep

tcl

ose

com

pany

wit

hit

.If

any

one

of

the

thre

ehad

had

the

hard

ihood

topro

pose

toanoth

erto

walk

on

alitt

leahea

din

toth

em

ist

and

dark

nes

s,he

would

have

put

him

self

ina

fair

way

of

get

ting

shot

inst

antl

yas

ahig

hw

aym

an.

The

last

burs

tca

rrie

dth

em

ail

toth

esu

mm

itof

the

hill.

The

hors

esst

opped

tobre

ath

eagain

,and

the

guard

got

dow

nto

skid

the

whee

lfo

rth

edes

cent,

and

open

the

coach

-door

tole

tth

epass

enger

sin

.“T

st!

Joe!

”cr

ied

the

coach

man

ina

warn

ing

voic

e,lo

okin

gdow

nfr

om

his

box.

“W

hat

do

you

say,

Tom

?”T

hey

both

list

ened

.“I

say

ahors

eat

aca

nte

rco

min

gup,

Joe.

”“I

say

ahors

eat

agallop,

Tom

,”re

turn

edth

eguard

,le

avin

ghis

hold

of

the

door,

and

mounti

ng

nim

bly

tohis

pla

ce.

“G

entl

emen

!In

the

kin

gs

nam

e,all

of

you!”

Wit

hth

ishurr

ied

adju

rati

on,

he

cock

edhis

blu

nder

buss

,and

stood

on

the

off

ensi

ve.

The

pass

enger

booked

by

this

his

tory

,w

as

on

the

coach

-ste

p,

get

-ti

ng

in;

the

two

oth

erpass

enger

sw

ere

close

beh

ind

him

,and

about

tofo

llow

.H

ere

main

edon

the

step

,half

inth

eco

ach

and

half

out

of;

they

re-m

ain

edin

the

road

bel

ow

him

.T

hey

all

looked

from

the

coach

-m

an

toth

eguard

,and

from

the

guard

toth

eco

ach

man,

and

list

ened

.T

he

coach

man

looked

back

and

the

guard

looked

back

,and

even

the

emphati

cle

ader

pri

cked

up

his

ears

and

looked

back

,w

ithout

contr

a-

dic

ting.

The

stilln

ess

conse

quen

ton

the

cess

ati

on

of

the

rum

bling

and

labour-

ing

of

the

coach

,added

toth

est

illn

ess

of

the

nig

ht,

made

itver

yquie

tin

dee

d.

The

panti

ng

of

the

hors

esco

mm

unic

ate

da

trem

ulo

us

moti

on

toth

eco

ach

,as

ifit

wer

ein

ast

ate

of

agit

ati

on.

The

hea

rts

of

the

pas-

senger

sbea

tlo

ud

enough

per

haps

tobe

hea

rd;but

at

any

rate

,th

equie

tpause

was

audib

lyex

pre

ssiv

eof

peo

ple

out

of

bre

ath

,and

hold

ing

the

bre

ath

,and

havin

gth

epuls

esquic

ken

edby

expec

tati

on.

The

sound

of

ahors

eat

agallop

cam

efa

stand

furi

ousl

yup

the

hill.

“So-h

o!”

the

guard

sang

out,

as

loud

as

he

could

roar.

“Y

oth

ere!

Sta

nd!

Ish

all

fire

!”

9

Page 6

CH

AR

LE

SD

IC

KE

NS

The

pace

was

sudden

lych

ecked

,and,w

ithm

uch

spla

shin

gand

floun-

derin

g,a

man’s

voice

called

from

the

mist,

“Is

that

the

Dover

mail?”

“N

ever

you

min

dw

hat

itis!”

the

guard

retorted

.“W

hat

are

you?”

“Is

that

the

Dover

mail?”

“W

hy

do

you

want

toknow

?”“I

want

apassen

ger,

ifit

is.”“W

hat

passen

ger?”

“M

r.Ja

rvis

Lorry.”

Our

booked

passen

ger

show

edin

am

om

ent

that

itw

as

his

nam

e.T

he

guard

,th

eco

ach

man,

and

the

two

oth

erpassen

gers

eyed

him

dis-

trustfu

lly.“K

eepw

here

you

are,”

the

guard

called

toth

evoice

inth

em

ist,“beca

use,

ifI

should

make

am

istake,

itco

uld

nev

erbe

setrig

ht

inyour

lifetime.

Gen

tleman

of

the

nam

eof

Lorry

answ

erstra

ight.”

“W

hat

isth

em

atter?”

ask

edth

epassen

ger,

then

,w

ithm

ildly

qua-

verin

gsp

eech.

“W

ho

wants

me?

Isit

Jerry?”

(“Idon’t

like

Jerry’s

voice,

ifit

isJerry,”

gro

wled

the

guard

tohim

self.“H

e’shoarser

than

suits

me,

isJerry.”

)“Y

es,M

r.L

orry.”

“W

hat

isth

em

atter?”

“A

desp

atch

sent

after

you

from

over

yonder.

T.and

Co.”

“I

know

this

messen

ger,

guard

,”sa

idM

r.L

orry,

gettin

gdow

nin

toth

ero

ad—

assisted

from

beh

ind

more

swiftly

than

politely

by

the

oth

ertw

opassen

gers,

who

imm

edia

telyscra

mbled

into

the

coach

,sh

ut

the

door,

and

pulled

up

the

win

dow

.“H

em

ay

com

eclo

se;th

ere’snoth

ing

wro

ng.”

“I

hope

there

ain

’t,but

Ica

n’t

make

so’N

atio

nsu

reof

that,”

said

the

guard

,in

gru

ffso

liloquy.

“H

allo

you!”

“W

ell!A

nd

hallo

you!”

said

Jerry,m

ore

hoarsely

than

befo

re.“C

om

eon

at

afo

otp

ace!

d’y

em

ind

me?

And

ifyou’v

egot

holsters

toth

at

saddle

o’yourn

,don’t

letm

esee

your

hand

go

nig

h’em

.For

I’ma

dev

ilat

aquick

mista

ke,

and

when

Im

ake

one

itta

kes

the

form

of

Lea

d.

So

now

let’slo

ok

at

you.”

The

figures

of

ahorse

and

rider

cam

eslo

wly

thro

ugh

the

eddyin

gm

ist,and

cam

eto

the

side

of

the

mail,

where

the

passen

ger

stood.

The

rider

stooped

,and,

castin

gup

his

eyes

at

the

guard

,handed

the

passen

-ger

asm

all

fold

edpaper.

The

rider’s

horse

was

blo

wn,

and

both

horse

and

rider

were

covered

with

mud,fro

mth

ehoofs

of

the

horse

toth

ehat

of

the

man.

10

AT

AL

EO

FT

WO

CI

TI

ES

“G

uard

!”sa

idth

epassen

ger,

ina

tone

of

quiet

busin

essco

nfiden

ce.T

he

watch

ful

guard

,w

ithhis

right

hand

at

the

stock

of

his

raised

blu

nderb

uss,

his

leftat

the

barrel,

and

his

eye

on

the

horsem

an,

an-

swered

curtly,

“Sir.”

“T

here

isnoth

ing

toappreh

end.

Ibelo

ng

toT

ellson’s

Bank.

You

must

know

Tellso

n’s

Bank

inL

ondon.

Iam

goin

gto

Paris

on

busin

ess.A

crow

nto

drin

k.

Im

ay

read

this?”

“If

sobe

as

you’re

quick

,sir.”

He

open

edit

inth

elig

ht

of

the

coach

-lam

pon

that

side,

and

read—

first

tohim

selfand

then

alo

ud:

“‘W

ait

at

Dover

for

Mam

’selle.’It’s

not

long,you

see,guard

.Jerry,

say

that

my

answ

erw

as,

recalled

tolife.”

Jerrysta

rtedin

his

saddle.

“T

hat’s

aB

lazin

gstra

nge

answ

er,to

o,”

said

he,

at

his

hoarsest.

“T

ake

that

messa

ge

back

,and

they

will

know

that

Ireceiv

edth

is,as

well

as

ifI

wro

te.M

ake

the

best

of

your

way.

Good

nig

ht.”

With

those

word

sth

epassen

ger

open

edth

eco

ach

-door

and

got

in;

not

at

all

assisted

by

his

fellow

-passen

gers,

who

had

exped

itiously

se-creted

their

watch

esand

purses

inth

eirboots,

and

were

now

makin

ga

gen

eralpreten

ceof

bein

gasleep

.W

ithno

more

defi

nite

purp

ose

than

toesca

pe

the

haza

rdof

orig

inatin

gany

oth

erkin

dof

actio

n.

The

coach

lum

bered

on

again

,w

ithhea

vier

wrea

ths

of

mist

closin

gro

und

itas

itbeg

an

the

descen

t.T

he

guard

soon

repla

cedhis

blu

nder-

buss

inhis

arm

-chest,

and,

havin

glo

oked

toth

erest

of

itsco

nten

ts,and

havin

glo

oked

toth

esu

pplem

enta

rypisto

lsth

at

he

wore

inhis

belt,

looked

toa

smaller

chest

ben

eath

his

seat,

inw

hich

there

were

afew

smith

’sto

ols,

aco

uple

of

torch

es,and

atin

der-b

ox.

For

he

was

fur-

nish

edw

ithth

at

com

pleten

essth

at

ifth

eco

ach

-lam

ps

had

been

blo

wn

and

storm

edout,

which

did

occa

sionally

happen

,he

had

only

tosh

ut

him

selfup

insid

e,keep

the

flin

tand

steelsp

ark

sw

elloff

the

straw

,and

get

alig

ht

with

tolera

ble

safety

and

ease

(ifhe

were

luck

y)

infive

min

-utes.“

Tom

!”so

ftlyover

the

coach

roof.

“H

allo

,Jo

e.”“D

idyou

hea

rth

em

essage?”

“I

did

,Jo

e.”“W

hat

did

you

make

of

it,T

om

?”“N

oth

ing

at

all,

Joe.”

“T

hat’s

aco

incid

ence,

too,”

the

guard

mused

,“fo

rI

made

the

sam

eof

itm

yself.”

11

Page 7

CH

AR

LE

SD

IC

KE

NS

inw

hic

hm

any

leaves

of

burn

ing

red

and

gold

enyel

low

still

rem

ain

edupon

the

tree

s.T

hough

the

eart

hw

as

cold

and

wet

,th

esk

yw

as

clea

r,and

the

sun

rose

bri

ght,

pla

cid,and

bea

uti

ful.

“E

ighte

enyea

rs!”

said

the

pass

enger

,lo

okin

gat

the

sun.

“G

raci

ous

Cre

ato

rof

day!

To

be

buri

edalive

for

eighte

enyea

rs!”

Chapte

r4

The

Pre

para

tion

When

the

mail

got

succ

essf

ully

toD

over

,in

the

cours

eof

the

fore

noon,

the

hea

ddra

wer

at

the

Royal

Geo

rge

Hote

lopen

edth

eco

ach

-door

as

his

cust

om

was.

He

did

itw

ith

som

eflouri

shof

cere

mony,

for

am

ail

journ

eyfr

om

London

inw

inte

rw

as

an

ach

ievem

ent

toco

ngra

tula

tean

adven

turo

us

travel

ler

upon.

By

that

tim

e,th

ere

was

only

one

adven

turo

us

travel

ler

left

be

con-

gra

tula

ted:

for

the

two

oth

ers

had

bee

nse

tdow

nat

thei

rre

spec

tive

roadsi

de

des

tinati

ons.

The

mildew

yin

side

of

the

coach

,w

ith

its

dam

pand

dir

tyst

raw

,it

sdis

agee

able

smel

l,and

its

obsc

uri

ty,

was

rath

erlike

ala

rger

dog-k

ennel

.M

r.L

orr

y,th

epass

enger

,sh

akin

ghim

self

out

of

itin

chain

sof

stra

w,a

tangle

of

shaggy

wra

pper

,flappin

ghat,

and

muddy

legs,

was

rath

erlike

ala

rger

sort

of

dog.

“T

her

ew

illbe

apack

etto

Cala

is,to

morr

ow

,dra

wer

?”“Y

es,

sir,

ifth

ew

eath

erhold

sand

the

win

dse

tsto

lera

ble

fair.

The

tide

willse

rve

pre

tty

nic

ely

at

about

two

inth

eaft

ernoon,si

r.B

ed,si

r?”

“Ish

all

not

go

tobed

till

nig

ht;

but

Iw

anta

bed

room

,and

abarb

er.”

“A

nd

then

bre

akfa

st,si

r?Y

es,si

r.T

hat

way,

sir,

ifyou

ple

ase

.Show

Conco

rd!

Gen

tlem

an’s

valise

and

hot

wate

rto

Conco

rd.

Pull

off

gen

tle-

man’s

boots

inC

onco

rd.

(You

will

find

afine

sea-c

oal

fire

,si

r.)

Fet

chbarb

erto

Conco

rd.

Sti

rabout

ther

e,now

,fo

rC

onco

rd!”

The

Conco

rdbed

-cham

ber

bei

ng

alw

ays

ass

igned

toa

pass

enger

by

the

mail,

and

pass

enger

sby

the

mail

bei

ng

alw

ays

hea

vily

wra

pped

up

from

hea

dto

foot,

the

room

had

the

odd

inte

rest

for

the

esta

blish

men

tof

the

RoyalG

eorg

e,th

at

alt

hough

but

one

kin

dof

man

was

seen

togo

into

it,

all

kin

ds

and

vari

etie

sof

men

cam

eout

of

it.

Conse

quen

tly,

an-

oth

erdra

wer

,and

two

port

ers,

and

sever

alm

aid

sand

the

landla

dy,

wer

eall

loit

erin

gby

acc

iden

tat

vari

ous

poin

tsof

the

road

bet

wee

nth

eC

on-

cord

and

the

coff

ee-r

oom

,w

hen

agen

tlem

an

of

sixty

,fo

rmally

dre

ssed

16

AT

AL

EO

FT

WO

CI

TI

ES

As

toth

is,

his

natu

ral

and

not

tobe

alien

ate

din

her

itance

,th

em

es-

senger

on

hors

eback

had

exact

lyth

esa

me

poss

essi

ons

as

the

Kin

g,

the

firs

tM

inis

ter

of

Sta

te,

or

the

rich

est

mer

chant

inL

ondon.

So

wit

hth

eth

ree

pass

enger

ssh

ut

up

inth

enarr

ow

com

pass

of

one

lum

ber

ing

old

mail

coach

;th

eyw

ere

myst

erie

sto

one

anoth

er,

as

com

ple

teas

ifea

chhad

bee

nin

his

ow

nco

ach

and

six,or

his

ow

nco

ach

and

sixty

,w

ith

the

bre

adth

of

aco

unty

bet

wee

nhim

and

the

nex

t.T

he

mes

senger

rode

back

at

an

easy

trot,

stoppin

gpre

tty

oft

enat

ale

-house

sby

the

way

todri

nk,

but

evin

cing

ate

nden

cyto

kee

phis

ow

nco

unse

l,and

tokee

phis

hat

cock

edover

his

eyes

.H

ehad

eyes

that

ass

ort

edver

yw

ell

wit

hth

at

dec

ora

tion,

bei

ng

of

asu

rface

bla

ck,

wit

hno

dep

thin

the

colo

ur

or

form

,and

much

too

nea

rto

get

her

—as

ifth

eyw

ere

afr

aid

of

bei

ng

found

out

inso

met

hin

g,

singly

,if

they

kep

tto

ofa

rapart

.T

hey

had

asi

nis

ter

expre

ssio

n,

under

an

old

cock

ed-h

at

like

ath

ree-

corn

ered

spit

toon,and

over

agre

at

muffl

erfo

rth

ech

inand

thro

at,

whic

hdes

cended

nea

rly

toth

ew

eare

r’s

knee

s.W

hen

he

stopped

for

dri

nk,he

moved

this

muffl

erw

ith

his

left

hand,only

while

he

poure

dhis

liquor

inw

ith

his

right;

as

soon

as

that

was

done,

he

muffl

edagain

.“N

o,

Jerr

y,no!”

said

the

mes

senger

,harp

ing

on

one

them

eas

he

rode.

“It

would

n’t

do

for

you,

Jerr

y.Je

rry,

you

hones

ttr

ades

man,

itw

ould

n’t

suit

your

line

of

busi

nes

s!R

ecalled

—!

Bust

me

ifI

don’t

thin

khe’

dbee

na

dri

nkin

g!”

His

mes

sage

per

ple

xed

his

min

dto

that

deg

ree

that

he

was

fain

,se

v-

eral

tim

es,

tota

ke

off

his

hat

tosc

ratc

hhis

hea

d.

Exce

pt

on

the

crow

n,

whic

hw

as

ragged

lybald

,he

had

stif

f,bla

ckhair,

standin

gja

gged

lyall

over

it,

and

gro

win

gdow

nhill

alm

ost

tohis

bro

ad,

blu

nt

nose

.It

was

solike

Sm

ith’s

work

,so

much

more

like

the

top

of

ast

rongly

spik

edw

all

than

ahea

dof

hair,th

at

the

bes

tof

pla

yer

sat

leap-f

rog

mig

ht

have

dec

lined

him

,as

the

most

danger

ous

man

inth

ew

orl

dto

go

over

.W

hile

he

trott

edback

wit

hth

em

essa

ge

he

was

todel

iver

toth

enig

ht

watc

hm

an

inhis

box

at

the

door

of

Tel

lson’s

Bank,by

Tem

ple

Bar,

who

was

todel

iver

itto

gre

ate

rauth

ori

ties

wit

hin

,th

esh

adow

sof

the

nig

ht

took

such

shapes

tohim

as

aro

seout

of

the

mes

sage,

and

took

such

shapes

toth

em

are

as

aro

seout

of

her

pri

vate

topic

sof

unea

sines

s.T

hey

seem

edto

be

num

erous,

for

she

shie

datev

ery

shadow

on

the

road.

What

tim

e,th

em

ail-c

oach

lum

ber

ed,

jolt

ed,

ratt

led,

and

bum

ped

upon

its

tedio

us

way,

wit

hit

sth

ree

fellow

-insc

ruta

ble

sin

side.

To

whom

,likew

ise,

the

shadow

softh

enig

htre

vea

led

them

selv

es,in

the

form

sth

eir

dozi

ng

eyes

and

wander

ing

thoughts

sugges

ted.

13

Page 8

CH

AR

LE

SD

IC

KE

NS

Tellso

n’s

Bank

had

aru

nupon

itin

the

mail.

As

the

bank

passen

ger—

with

an

arm

dra

wn

thro

ugh

the

leath

ernstra

p,

which

did

what

lay

init

tokeep

him

from

poundin

gagain

stth

enex

tpassen

ger,

and

driv

ing

him

into

his

corn

er,w

hen

ever

the

coach

got

asp

ecial

jolt—

nodded

inhis

pla

ce,w

ithhalf-sh

ut

eyes,

the

littleco

ach

-win

dow

s,and

the

coach

-la

mp

dim

lyglea

min

gth

rough

them

,and

the

bulk

ybundle

of

opposite

passen

ger,

beca

me

the

bank,

and

did

agrea

tstro

ke

of

busin

ess.T

he

rattle

of

the

harn

essw

as

the

chin

kof

money,

and

more

dra

ftsw

erehonoured

infive

min

utes

than

even

Tellso

n’s,

with

all

itsfo

reign

and

hom

eco

nnectio

n,

ever

paid

inth

riceth

etim

e.T

hen

the

strong-ro

om

sunderg

round,

at

Tellso

n’s,

with

such

of

their

valu

able

stores

and

secretsas

were

know

nto

the

passen

ger

(and

itw

as

not

alittle

that

he

knew

about

them

),open

edbefo

rehim

,and

he

wen

tin

am

ong

them

with

the

grea

tkey

sand

the

feebly

-burn

ing

candle,

and

found

them

safe,

and

strong,and

sound,

and

still,ju

stas

he

had

last

seenth

em.

But,

though

the

bank

was

alm

ost

alw

ays

with

him

,and

though

the

coach

(ina

confu

sedw

ay,

like

the

presen

ceof

pain

under

an

opia

te)w

as

alw

ays

with

him

,th

erew

as

anoth

ercu

rrent

of

impressio

nth

at

nev

ercea

sedto

run,all

thro

ugh

the

nig

ht.

He

was

on

his

way

todig

som

eone

out

of

agra

ve.

Now

,w

hich

of

the

multitu

de

of

faces

that

show

edth

emselv

esbefo

rehim

was

the

true

face

of

the

buried

perso

n,th

esh

adow

sof

the

nig

ht

did

not

indica

te;but

they

were

all

the

faces

of

am

an

of

five-a

nd-fo

rtyby

yea

rs,and

they

differed

prin

cipally

inth

epassio

ns

they

expressed

,and

inth

eghastlin

essof

their

worn

and

wasted

state.

Prid

e,co

ntem

pt,

de-

fiance,

stubborn

ness,

subm

ission,

lam

enta

tion,

succeed

edone

anoth

er;so

did

varieties

of

sunken

cheek

,ca

davero

us

colo

ur,

emacia

tedhands

and

figures.

But

the

face

was

inth

em

ain

one

face,

and

every

hea

dw

as

prem

atu

relyw

hite.

Ahundred

times

the

dozin

gpassen

ger

inquired

of

this

spectre:

“B

uried

how

long?”

The

answ

erw

as

alw

ays

the

sam

e:“A

lmost

eighteen

yea

rs.”“Y

ou

had

abandoned

all

hope

of

bein

gdug

out?”

“L

ong

ago.”

“Y

ou

know

that

you

are

recalled

tolife?”

“T

hey

tellm

eso

.”“I

hope

you

care

toliv

e?”“I

can’t

say.”

“Shall

Ish

ow

her

toyou?

Will

you

com

eand

seeher?”

14

AT

AL

EO

FT

WO

CI

TI

ES

The

answ

ersto

this

questio

nw

erevario

us

and

contra

dicto

ry.Som

e-tim

esth

ebro

ken

reply

was,

“W

ait!

Itw

ould

kill

me

ifI

saw

her

too

soon.”

Som

etimes,

itw

as

giv

enin

aten

der

rain

of

tears,

and

then

itw

as,

“T

ake

me

toher.”

Som

etimes

itw

as

starin

gand

bew

ildered

,and

then

itw

as,

“I

don’t

know

her.

Idon’t

understa

nd.”

After

such

imagin

ary

disco

urse,

the

passen

ger

inhis

fancy

would

dig

,and

dig

,dig

—now

with

asp

ade,

now

with

agrea

tkey,

now

with

his

hands—

todig

this

wretch

edcrea

ture

out.

Got

out

at

last,

with

earth

hangin

gabout

his

face

and

hair,

he

would

sudden

lyfa

naw

ay

todust.

The

passen

ger

would

then

start

tohim

self,and

low

erth

ew

indow

,to

get

the

reality

of

mist

and

rain

on

his

cheek

.Y

etev

enw

hen

his

eyes

were

open

edon

the

mist

and

rain

,on

the

movin

gpatch

of

light

from

the

lam

ps,

and

the

hed

ge

at

the

roadsid

eretrea

ting

by

jerks,

the

nig

ht

shadow

soutsid

eth

eco

ach

would

fall

into

the

train

of

the

nig

ht

shadow

sw

ithin

.T

he

real

Bankin

g-h

ouse

by

Tem

-ple

Bar,

the

real

busin

essof

the

past

day,

the

real

strong

room

s,th

erea

lex

press

sent

after

him

,and

the

real

messa

ge

return

ed,

would

all

be

there.

Out

of

the

mid

stof

them

,th

eghostly

face

would

rise,and

he

would

acco

stit

again

.“B

uried

how

long?”

“A

lmost

eighteen

yea

rs.”“I

hope

you

care

toliv

e?”“I

can’t

say.”

Dig

—dig

—dig

—until

an

impatien

tm

ovem

ent

from

one

of

the

two

passen

gers

would

adm

onish

him

topull

up

the

win

dow

,dra

whis

arm

securely

thro

ugh

the

leath

ernstra

p,

and

specu

late

upon

the

two

slum

-berin

gfo

rms,

until

his

min

dlo

stits

hold

of

them

,and

they

again

slidaw

ay

into

the

bank

and

the

gra

ve.

“B

uried

how

long?”

“A

lmost

eighteen

yea

rs.”“Y

ou

had

abandoned

all

hope

of

bein

gdug

out?”

“L

ong

ago.”

The

word

sw

erestill

inhis

hea

ring

as

just

spoken

—distin

ctlyin

his

hea

ring

as

ever

spoken

word

shad

been

inhis

life—w

hen

the

wea

rypassen

ger

started

toth

eco

nscio

usn

essof

daylig

ht,

and

found

that

the

shadow

sof

the

nig

ht

were

gone.

He

low

eredth

ew

indow

,and

looked

out

at

the

rising

sun.

There

was

arid

ge

of

plo

ughed

land,

with

aplo

ugh

upon

itw

here

ithad

been

leftla

stnig

ht

when

the

horses

were

unyoked

;bey

ond,a

quiet

coppice-w

ood,

15

Page 9

CH

AR

LE

SD

IC

KE

NS

hea

vily

and

the

sea

ran

hig

h.

The

liken

ess

pass

edaw

ay,

like

abre

ath

alo

ng

the

surf

ace

of

the

gaunt

pie

r-gla

ssbeh

ind

her

,on

the

fram

eof

whic

h,

ahosp

ital

pro

cess

ion

of

neg

rocu

pid

s,se

ver

al

hea

dle

ssand

all

crip

ple

s,w

ere

off

erin

gbla

ckbask

ets

ofD

ead

Sea

fruit

tobla

ckdiv

init

ies

of

the

fem

inin

egen

der

-and

he

made

his

form

albow

toM

iss

Manet

te.

“Pra

yta

ke

ase

at,

sir.”

Ina

ver

ycl

ear

and

ple

asa

nt

young

voic

e;a

litt

lefo

reig

nin

its

acc

ent,

but

aver

ylitt

lein

dee

d.

“I

kis

syour

hand,

mis

s,”

said

Mr.

Lorr

y,w

ith

the

manner

sof

an

earl

ier

date

,as

he

made

his

form

albow

again

,and

took

his

seat.

“I

rece

ived

ale

tter

from

the

Bank,

sir,

yes

terd

ay,

info

rmin

gm

eth

at

som

ein

tellig

ence

—or

dis

cover

y—

”“T

he

word

isnot

mate

rial,

mis

s;ei

ther

word

willdo.”

“—

resp

ecti

ng

the

small

pro

per

tyof

my

poor

fath

er,

whom

Inev

ersa

w—

solo

ng

dea

d—

”M

r.L

orr

ym

oved

inhis

chair,

and

cast

atr

ouble

dlo

ok

tow

ard

sth

ehosp

italpro

cess

ion

of

neg

rocu

pid

s.A

sif

they

had

any

hel

pfo

ranybody

inth

eir

absu

rdbask

ets!

“—

render

edit

nec

essa

ryth

at

Ish

ould

go

toPari

s,th

ere

toco

mm

uni-

cate

wit

ha

gen

tlem

an

of

the

Bank,so

good

as

tobe

des

patc

hed

toPari

sfo

rth

epurp

ose

.”“M

yse

lf.”

“A

sI

was

pre

pare

dto

hea

r,si

r.”

She

curt

seyed

tohim

(young

ladie

sm

ade

curt

seys

inth

ose

days)

,w

ith

apre

tty

des

ire

toco

nvey

tohim

that

she

felt

how

much

old

erand

wis

erhe

was

than

she.

He

made

her

anoth

erbow

.“I

replied

toth

eB

ank,

sir,

that

as

itw

as

consi

der

ednec

essa

ry,

by

those

who

know

,and

who

are

sokin

das

toadvis

em

e,th

at

Ish

ould

go

toFra

nce

,and

that

as

Iam

an

orp

han

and

have

no

frie

nd

who

could

go

wit

hm

e,I

should

este

emit

hig

hly

ifI

mig

ht

be

per

mit

ted

topla

cem

yse

lf,

duri

ng

the

journ

ey,

under

that

wort

hy

gen

tlem

an’s

pro

tect

ion.

The

gen

tlem

an

had

left

London,

but

Ith

ink

am

esse

nger

was

sent

aft

erhim

tobeg

the

favour

of

his

wait

ing

for

me

her

e.”

“I

was

happy,

”sa

idM

r.L

orr

y,“to

be

entr

ust

edw

ith

the

charg

e.I

shall

be

more

happy

toex

ecute

it.”

“Sir,

Ith

ank

you

indee

d.

Ith

ank

you

ver

ygra

tefu

lly.

Itw

as

told

me

by

the

Bank

that

the

gen

tlem

an

would

expla

into

me

the

det

ails

of

the

busi

nes

s,and

that

Im

ust

pre

pare

myse

lfto

find

them

of

asu

rpri

sing

natu

re.

Ihave

done

my

bes

tto

pre

pare

myse

lf,

and

Inatu

rally

have

ast

rong

and

eager

inte

rest

toknow

what

they

are

.”

20

AT

AL

EO

FT

WO

CI

TI

ES

ina

bro

wn

suit

of

cloth

es,

pre

tty

wel

lw

orn

,but

ver

yw

ell

kep

t,w

ith

larg

esq

uare

cuff

sand

larg

eflaps

toth

epock

ets,

pass

edalo

ng

on

his

way

tohis

bre

akfa

st.

The

coff

ee-r

oom

had

no

oth

erocc

upant,

that

fore

noon,

than

the

gen

tlem

an

inbro

wn.

His

bre

akfa

st-t

able

was

dra

wn

bef

ore

the

fire

,and

as

he

sat,

wit

hit

slight

shin

ing

on

him

,w

ait

ing

for

the

mea

l,he

sat

sost

ill,

that

he

mig

ht

have

bee

nsi

ttin

gfo

rhis

port

rait

.V

ery

ord

erly

and

met

hodic

al

he

looked

,w

ith

ahand

on

each

knee

,and

alo

ud

watc

hti

ckin

ga

sonoro

us

serm

on

under

his

flapped

wais

t-co

at,

as

though

itpit

ted

its

gra

vit

yand

longev

ity

again

stth

ele

vit

yand

evanes

cence

of

the

bri

skfire

.H

ehad

agood

leg,

and

was

alitt

levain

of

it,

for

his

bro

wn

stock

ings

fitt

edsl

eek

and

close

,and

wer

eof

afine

textu

re;

his

shoes

and

buck

les,

too,

though

pla

in,

wer

etr

im.

He

wore

an

odd

litt

lesl

eek

cris

pflaxen

wig

,se

ttin

gver

ycl

ose

tohis

hea

d:

whic

hw

ig,

itis

tobe

pre

sum

ed,

was

made

of

hair,

but

whic

hlo

oked

far

more

as

though

itw

ere

spun

from

fila

men

tsof

silk

or

gla

ss.

His

linen

,th

ough

not

of

afinen

ess

inacc

ord

ance

wit

hhis

stock

ings,

was

as

whit

eas

the

tops

ofth

ew

aves

thatbro

ke

upon

the

nei

ghbouri

ng

bea

ch,or

the

spec

ks

ofsa

ilth

atglinte

din

the

sunlight

far

atse

a.

Afa

cehabit

ually

suppre

ssed

and

quie

ted,w

as

stilllighte

dup

under

the

quain

tw

igby

apair

of

mois

tbri

ght

eyes

that

itm

ust

have

cost

thei

row

ner

,in

yea

rsgone

by,

som

epain

sto

dri

llto

the

com

pose

dand

rese

rved

expre

ssio

nof

Tel

lson’s

Bank.

He

had

ahea

lthy

colo

ur

inhis

chee

ks,

and

his

face

,th

ough

lined

,bore

few

trace

sof

anxie

ty.

But,

per

haps

the

confiden

tial

bach

elor

cler

ks

inT

ells

on’s

Bank

wer

epri

nci

pally

occ

upie

dw

ith

the

care

sof

oth

erpeo

ple

;and

per

haps

seco

nd-h

and

care

s,like

seco

nd-h

and

cloth

es,

com

eea

sily

off

and

on.

Com

ple

ting

his

rese

mbla

nce

toa

man

who

was

sitt

ing

for

his

por-

trait

,M

r.L

orr

ydro

pped

off

tosl

eep.

The

arr

ivalof

his

bre

akfa

stro

use

dhim

,and

he

said

toth

edra

wer

,as

he

moved

his

chair

toit

:“I

wis

hacc

om

modati

on

pre

pare

dfo

ra

young

lady

who

may

com

eher

eat

any

tim

eto

-day.

She

may

ask

for

Mr.

Jarv

isL

orr

y,or

she

may

only

ask

for

agen

tlem

an

from

Tel

lson’s

Bank.

Ple

ase

tole

tm

eknow

.”“Y

es,si

r.T

ells

on’s

Bank

inL

ondon,

sir?

”“Y

es.”

“Y

es,

sir.

We

have

oft

enti

mes

the

honour

toen

tert

ain

your

gen

tle-

men

inth

eir

travel

ling

back

ward

sand

forw

ard

sbet

wix

tL

ondon

and

Pari

s,si

r.A

vast

dea

lof

travel

ling,

sir,

inT

ells

on

and

Com

pany’s

House

.”

17