who should bring about all the mischief in it, lay it all on
Providence, and say at every fresh calamity, "Well it's a mercy,
however, nobody was to blame you know!" The title first chosen, out of
many suggested, was _Nobody's Fault_; and four numbers had been written,
of which the first was on the eve of appearance, before this was
changed. When about to fall to work he excused himself from an
engagement he should have kept because "the story is breaking out all
round me, and I am going off down the railroad to humour it." The
humouring was a little difficult, however; and such indications of a
droop in his invention as presented themselves in portions of _Bleak
House_, were noticeable again. "As to the story I am in the second
number, and last night and this morning had half a mind to begin again,
and work in what I have done, afterwards." It had occurred to him, that,
by making the fellow-travellers at once known to each other, as the
opening of the story stands, he had missed an effect. "It struck me that
it would be a new thing to show people coming together, in a chance way,
as fellow-travellers, and being in the same place, ignorant of one
another, as happens in life; and to connect them afterwards, and to make
the waiting for that connection a part of the interest." The change was
not made; but the mention of it was one of several intimations to me of
the altered conditions under which he was writing, and that the old,
unstinted, irrepressible flow of fancy had received temporary check. In
this view I have found it very interesting to compare the original
notes, which as usual he prepared for each number of the tale, and which
with the rest are in my possession, with those of _Chuzzlewit_ or
_Copperfield_; observing in the former the labour and pains, and in the
latter the lightness and confidence of handling.[208] "I am just now
getting to work on number three: sometimes enthusiastic, more often dull
enough. There is an enormous outlay in the Father of the Marshalsea
chapter, in the way of getting a great lot of matter into a small space.
I am not quite resolved, but I have a great idea of overwhelming that
family with wealth. Their condition would be very curious. I can make
Dorrit very strong in the story, I hope." The Marshalsea part of the
tale undoubtedly was excellent, and there was masterly treatment of
character in the contrasts of the brothers Dorrit; but of the family
generally it may be said that its