is friends upon their entrance;and during the performance of the ceremony ofintroduction, with all due formalities, Mr. Pickwick had leisure toobserve the appearance
youngladies, and Mr. Wardle, each vying with the other in payingzealous and unremitting attentions to the old lady, crowded roundher easy-chair, one holding her ear-trumpet, another an orange,and a third a smelling-bottle, while a fourth was busily engaged inpatting and punching the pillows which were arranged for hersupport. On the opposite side sat a bald-headed old gentleman,with a good-humoured, benevolent face―the clergyman ofDingley Dell; and next him sat his wife, a stout, bloom
,' said Mr. Wardle, at
lady, shaking her hea
ma!' screamed both the
, it don't much matter. Hedon't care
exertion imparted a crimsonhue to his benevolent countenance―'I assure you, ma'am, thatnothing delights
short pause: 'it's all very fine,
id Miss Isabella Wardle, in alow ton
e infirmities ofage, and entered into a general
tuation this,' s
ed Messrs. Snodgrass
ink it is,' s
face; 'there ain't indeed, sir―I'm sure there ain't, sir.' The hard-headed man lookedtriumphantly
round in all Kent,' said the hard
Meadows,' observed
ejaculated the other,
Meadows,' repea
nd that,' interpos
, surely,' said
ws that,' said t
omore. 'What are they talking about?' inquired the old lady of oneof her granddaughters, in a very audible voice; for,
the land,
land?―Nothing the
saying our land was bett
coxcomb, and you may tell him Isaid so.' Saying which, the old lady, quite unconscious that shehad
with a natural anxiety tochange the conv
ckwi
' replied that gentleman; 'but pra
mother's very fond
'ain't you
deaf on this subject than onany
man; 'Joe―damn that―oh, here
oset out two card-tables; the one for Pope Joan, and the other f
eman. The round game compr
irreverently and ignominiouslyapplied. The round-game table, on the other hand, was soboisterously merry as materially to interrupt the contemplations ofMr. Miller, who, not being quite so much absorbed as he ough
odd trick at the conclusion of a hand; 'that could not have beenpla
ve trumped the diamon
the o
kwick nod
the unfortunate, with a do
said the fat gentlem
' said the cre
t,' growled the
―makes us eight,'
Can you one?' inqu
. Pickwick. 'Double,
such luck,' s
h cards,' said t
ous, the old lady serious,the fat gent
king amemorandum of the circumstance, by placing one s
sir,' said
fact, sir,' replied th
when he retired into a corner, and remained perfectlymute for one hour and twenty-seven minutes; at the end of whichtime he emerged from his retirement, and offered Mr. Pickwick apinch of snuff with the air
face gradually brightened up, till at last shelaughed louder than any of them, Then, when the spinster auntgot 'matrimony,' the young ladies laughed afresh, and the Spinsteraunt seemed disposed to be pettish; till, feeling Mr. Tupmansqueezing her hand under the table, she brightened up too, andlooked rather knowing, as if matrimony in reality were not quite sofar off as some people thought for; whereupon everybody laughedagain, and especially old Mr. Wardle, who enjoyed a joke as muchas the youngest. As to Mr. Snodgrass, he did nothing but whisperpoetical sentiments into his partner's ear, which made one oldgentleman facetiously sly, about partnerships at cards andpartnerships for life, and ca
had beendespatched, and the little party formed a social circle round thefire, Mr. Pickwick thought he had ne
―the happiest moments of my life havebeen passed at this old fireside; and I am so attached to it, that Ikeep up a blazing fire here every evening, until it ac
d times and the happiness of many years ago is suddenlyrecalled, stole
my talking about
fields seem likeliving friends to me; and so does our little church with the ivy,about which, by the bye, our e
had been greatly excited by the last observation of hisentertainer.
ut that,' said the hostknowingly, indic
uld like to hear you re
odgr
e only excuse I have for having ever perpetrated it is, that I wasa young
te, with the aid of sundry promptingsfrom his wife, the lines in question. 'I call them
re his meals, I ween,In
o pleasure his dainty whim;And the mouldering du
fe is seen,A rare old
ugh he wears no wings,And
how tight he clingsTo hi
leaves he gently waves,As he joyously hugs and
eath has been,A rare ol
d nations have scattered been;But the stout old I
l fatten upon the past;For the stateliest bui
me has been,A rare old
. Theold gentleman having concluded his dictation, and Mr. Snodgrasshaving returned his note-book to his pocket, Mr. Pickwick said―'Excuse me, sir, for making the remark on so short anacq
an,'but the incidents and characters have been of a homely a
you not?' inquired Mr. Wardle, who appeared very desirous to
proceeding to change the subject, when Mr. Pickwicksaid―'I beg your pa
s about to ask,' said
y thecuriosity of these gentlemen, sooner or later; so you had bett
neath the table by his ex-partner the solemn fat man, the old gentleman, without furtherpreface, commenced the following tale, to which we have takenthe liberty of prefixing the title ofTHE CONVICT'S RETURN'When I first settled in this village,' said the old gentleman, 'whichis now just five-and-twenty years ago, the most notorious personamong my parishioners was a man of the name of Edmunds, wholeased a s
uate conception. Heaven forgive me thesupposition, if it be an uncharitable one, but I do firmly and in mysoul believe, that the man systematically tried for many years tobreak her heart; but she bore it all for her child's sake, and,however strange it may seem to many, for
nt. These exertions were but ill repaid. Peoplewho passed the spot in the evening―sometimes at a late hour ofthe night―reported that they had heard the moans and sobs of awoman in distress, and th
poorly dressed―much more so than many of theirneighbours who were in a lower station―they were always neatand clean. Every one had a friendly nod and a kind word for "poorMrs. Edmunds"; and sometimes, when she stopped to exchange afew words with a neighbour at the conclusion of the service in thelittle row of elm-trees w
ace that should have cheered her, no more looked upon herown. She occupied her old seat, but there was a vacant one besideher. The Bible was kept as carefully as ever, the places were foundand folded down as they used to be: but there was no one to read itwith her; and the tears fell thick and fast upon the book, andbl
d with a long series of voluntary privations suffered byhis mother for his sake, with ill-usage, and insult, and violence,and all endured for him―shall I tell you, that he, with a recklessdisregard for her breaking heart, and a sullen, wilful for
erpetrators remainedundiscovered, and their boldness increased. A robbery of a daringand aggravated nature occasioned a vigilance of pursuit, and ast
terror to the culprit's heart, which trial, condemnation―theapproach of death itself, had failed to awaken. The lips which hadbeen compressed in dogged sullenness throughout, qu
supported her in all hertroubles to release her from a world of woe and misery, and tospare the life of her only child. A burst of grief, and a violentstruggle, such
dentreaty, to soften the hard heart of her obdurate son. It was invain. He remained moody, obstinate, and unmoved. Not even theunloo
d against bodily weakness andinfirmity. She fell sick. She dragged her tottering limbs from the
onhim nearly drove him mad. A day passed away and his mother wasnot there; another flew by, and she came not near him; a thir
when he heard the truth! His mother, the only parent he hadever known, lay ill―it might be, dying―within one mile of theground he stood on; were he free and unfettered, a few minuteswould place him by her side. He rushed to the gate, and graspingthe iro
cation for pardon, to her sick-bed. I heard, with pityand compassion, the repentant man devise a thousand little plansfor her comfort and su
ght, I confidently hope, and solemnlybelieve, to a place of eternal happiness and re
ve's head. Her sorrows were kn
Thefather had positively refused to see his son from the moment of hisapprehension; and it was a matter of indifference to him whetherhe lived or died. Many years passed over without
thoughseveral letters were despatched, none of them ever reached myhands. He remained in the same place during the whole fourteenyears. At the expiration of the term, stead
is earliest days. He pictured himself as he wasthen, clinging to his mother's hand, and walking peacefully tochurch. He remembered how he used to look up into her pale face;and how her eyes would sometimes fill with tears as she gazedupon his features―tears which fell hot upon his forehead as shestooped to kiss him, and made him weep too, although he littleknew then what bitter tears h
thanit used to be; but there were the old monuments on which he hadgazed with childish awe a thousand times; the little pulpit with itsfaded cushion; the Communion table before which he had so oftenrepeated the Commandments he had reverenced as a child, andforgotten as a man. He approached the old seat; it
ed back, for he knew him well; many a time he had watchedhim diggin
ranger's face, bade him"good-evening," a
was turnedtowards him, and many a doubtful glance he cast on either side tosee whether any knew and shunned him. There were strange facesin almost every house; in some he recognised the burly form ofsome old schoolfellow―a boy when he last saw
n there used to be, but there were theold trees still―the very tree under which he had lain a thousandtimes when tired of playing in the sun, and felt the soft, mild sleepof happy boyhood steal gently upon him. There were voices withinthe house. He listened, but they fell strangely upon his ear; heknew them not. They were merry too; and he well knew that hispoor old mother could not be cheerful, and he away. The dooropened, and a group of little children bounded out, shouting andromping. The father, with a little boy in hi
undergoneso much suffering! No face of welcome, no look of forgiveness, nohouse to receive, no hand to help him―a
ruck coldly at hisheart, and his spirit sank within him. He had not courage to makeinquiries, or to present himself to the only person who was likelyto receive him with kindness and
besidehim; his garments rustled as he turned round to st
of dissipation or disease, than thelength of years. He was staring hard at the stranger, and thoughhis eyes were lustreless and heavy at first, they appeared to glowwith an unnatural and alarmed expression after they had been
ered and tottered tohis feet. Edmunds spr
nds ad
ak," said the convict,
man, with a dreadful oath. T
ous with terror, heraised his stick, and s
urmured the convict
loud yell which rang through the lonelyfields like the howl of an evil spirit. His face turned black, the gorerushed from his mouth and nose, a
e before spoken, there lies buried a man who was inmy employment for three years after this event, and who was trulycontrite, penitent, and hu