was--what is not to be found in Johnson's
Dictionary--rather shaky. Three of his companies had broken; four more
were in a notoriously insolvent state; and even at the meetings of the
directors of the West Diddlesex, some stormy words passed, which ended in
the retirement of several of the board. Friends of Mr. B.'s filled up
their places: Mr. Puppet, Mr. Straw, Mr. Query, and other respectable
gents, coming forward and joining the concern. Brough and Hoff dissolved
partnership; and Mr. B. said he had quite enough to do to manage the I.
W. D., and intended gradually to retire from the other affairs. Indeed,
such an Association as ours was enough work for any man, let alone the
parliamentary duties which Brough was called on to perform, and the
seventy-two lawsuits which burst upon him as principal director of the
late companies.

Perhaps I should here describe the desperate attempts made by Mrs.
Hoggarty to introduce herself into genteel life. Strange to say,
although we had my Lord Tiptoff's word to the contrary, she insisted upon
it that she and Lady Drum were intimately related; and no sooner did she
read in the _Morning Post_ of the arrival of her Ladyship and her
granddaughters in London, than she ordered the fly before mentioned, and
left cards at their respective houses: her card, that is--"MRS. HOGGARTY
of CASTLE HOGGARTY," magnificently engraved in Gothic letters and
flourishes; and ours, viz., "Mr. and Mrs. S. Titmarsh," which she had
printed for the purpose.

She would have stormed Lady Jane Preston's door and forced her way
upstairs, in spite of Mary's entreaties to the contrary, had the footman
who received her card given her the least encouragement; but that
functionary, no doubt struck by the oddity of her appearance, placed
himself in the front of the door, and declared that he had positive
orders not to admit any strangers to his lady. On which Mrs. Hoggarty
clenched her fist out of the coach-window, and promised that she would
have him turned away.

Yellowplush only burst out laughing at this; and though Aunt wrote a most
indignant letter to Mr. Edmund Preston, complaining of the insolence of
the servants of that right honourable gent, Mr. Preston did not take any
notice of her letter, further than to return it, with a desire that he
might not be troubled with such impertinent visits for the future. A
pretty day we had of it when this letter arrived, owing to my aunt's
disappointment and rag