Page:The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club.djvu/670

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rOSTHUMOUS PAPERS OF

As Mr, Pickwick was further prompted to betake himself to Gray's Inn Square by an anxious desire to come to a pecuniary settlement with the kind-hearted little attorney without further delay, he made a hurried breakfast, and executed his intention so speedily that ten o'clock had not struck when he reached Gray's Inn.

It still wanted ten minutes to the hour when he had ascended the staircase on which Perker's chambers were. The clerks had not arrived yet, and he beguiled the time by looking out of the staircase window.

The healthy light of a fine October morning made even the dingy old houses brighten up a little : some of the dusty windows actually look- ing almost cheerful as the sun's rays gleamed upon them. Clerk after clerk hastened into the square by one or other of the entrances, and looking up at the Hall clock, accelerated or decreased his rate of walk- ing according to the time at which his office hours nominally com- menced; the half-past nine o'clock people suddenly becoming very brisk, and the ten o'clock gentlemen falling into a pace of most aris- tocratic slowness. The clock struck ten, and clerks poured in faster than ever, each one in a greater perspiration than his predecessor. The noise of unlocking and opening doors echoed and re-echoed on every side, heads appeared as if by magic in every window, the porters took up their stations for the day, the slipshod laundresses hurried off, the postman ran from house to house, and the whole legal hive Avas in a bustle.

" You're early, Mr. Pickwick," said a voice behind him.

''Ah, Mr. Lowten," replied that gentleman, looking round, and recognising his old acquaintance.

key from his pocket, with a small plug therein, to keep the dust out.
 * ' Precious warm walking, isn't it?" said Lowten, drawing a Bramah

clerk, who was literally red hot.
 * ' You appear to feel it so," rejoined Mr. Pickwick, smiling at the

" I've come along, rather, I can tell you," replied Lowten. " It went the half hour as I came through the Polygon. I'm here before him, though, so I don't mind."

Comforting himself with this reflection, Mr. Lowten extracted the plug from the door key ; having opened the door, replugged and re- pocketed his Bramah, and picked up the letters which the postman had dropped through the box, he ushered Mr. Pickwick into the office. Here, in the twinkling of an eye, he divested himself of his coat, put on a thread-bare garment, which he took out of a desk, hung up his hat, pulled forth a few sheets of cartridge and blotting paper in alter- nate layers, and sticking a pen behind his ear, rubbed his hands with an air of great satisfaction.

"There you see, Mr. Pickwick, he said, now I'm complete. I've got my office coat on, and my pad out, and let him come as soon as he likes. You haven't got a pinch of snuff about you, have you.'^"


 * ' No, I have not," replied Mr. Pickwick.

" I'm sorry for it," said Lowten. '^ Never mind — 1 11 run out pre- sently, and get a bottle of soda. Don't 1 look rather queer about the eyes, Mr. Pickwick ?"