ha' done it!' These reflections were too much for the good old man. He
raised Sam's tumbler to his lips and drank off its contents.

'Wot's the matter now?' said Sam.

'Nev'r mind, Sammy,' replied Mr. Weller, 'it'll be a wery agonisin'
trial to me at my time of life, but I'm pretty tough, that's vun
consolation, as the wery old turkey remarked wen the farmer said he wos
afeerd he should be obliged to kill him for the London market.'

'Wot'll be a trial?' inquired Sam. 'To see you married, Sammy--to see
you a dilluded wictim, and thinkin' in your innocence that it's all
wery capital,' replied Mr. Weller. 'It's a dreadful trial to a father's
feelin's, that 'ere, Sammy--'

'Nonsense,' said Sam. 'I ain't a-goin' to get married, don't you fret
yourself about that; I know you're a judge of these things. Order in
your pipe and I'll read you the letter. There!'

We cannot distinctly say whether it was the prospect of the pipe, or the
consolatory reflection that a fatal disposition to get married ran in
the family, and couldn't be helped, which calmed Mr. Weller's feelings,
and caused his grief to subside. We should be rather disposed to
say that the result was attained by combining the two sources of
consolation, for he repeated the second in a low tone, very frequently;
ringing the bell meanwhile, to order in the first. He then divested
himself of his upper coat; and lighting the pipe and placing himself in
front of the fire with his back towards it, so that he could feel its
full heat, and recline against the mantel-piece at the same time, turned
towards Sam, and, with a countenance greatly mollified by the softening
influence of tobacco, requested him to 'fire away.'

Sam dipped his pen into the ink to be ready for any corrections, and
began with a very theatrical air--

'"Lovely--"'

'Stop,' said Mr. Weller, ringing the bell. 'A double glass o' the
inwariable, my dear.'

'Very well, Sir,' replied the girl; who with great quickness appeared,
vanished, returned, and disappeared.

'They seem to know your ways here,' observed Sam.

'Yes,' replied his father, 'I've been here before, in my time. Go on,
Sammy.'

'"Lovely creetur,"' repeated Sam.

''Tain't in poetry, is it?' interposed his father.

'No, no,' replied Sam.

'Wery glad to hear it,' said Mr. Weller. 'Poetry's unnat'ral; no man
ever talked poetry 'cept a beadle on boxin'-day, or Warren's blackin',
or Rowland's oil, or some of them low fellows; never