Page:Zangwill-King of schnorrers.djvu/37

23 THE KING OF SCHNORRERS. 23

" I could not dream of permitting it. What ! Shall I put you to all that trouble which should rightly be mine ? I will go at once — the matter shall be settled without delay, I promise you ; as it is written, ' I made haste and delayed not ! ' Follow me ! " Grobstock suppressed a groan. Here had all his manoeuvring landed him in a worse plight than ever. He would have to present Manasseh to the livery servant without even that clean face which might not un- reasonably have been expected for the Sabbath. Despite the text quoted by the erudite Schnorrer, he strove to put off the evil hour.

" Had you not better take the salmon home to your wife first?'* said he.

" My duty is to enable you to complete your good deed at once. My wife is unaware of the salmon. She is in no suspense."

Even as the Schnorrer spake it flashed upon Grobstock that Manasseh was more presentable with the salmon than without it — in fact, that the salmon was the salvation of the situation. When Grobstock bought fish he often hired a man to carry home the spoil. Manasseh would have all the air of such a loafer. Who would suspect that the fish and even the bag belonged to the porter, though purchased with the gentleman's money? Grobstock silently thanked Provi- dence for the ingenious way in which it had contrived to save his self-respect. As a mere fish-carrier Manasseh would attract no second glance from the household ; once safely in, it would be comparatively easy to smuggle him out, and when he did come on Friday night it would be in the meta- morphosing glories of a body-coat, with his unspeakable undergarment turned into a shirt and his turban knocked into a cocked hat.

They emerged into Aldgate, and then turned down Leman