beginning."

"But, my darling, it belonged to the firm."

"The firm! Arn't they all helping themselves hand over hand, except
you? There was Sarah Jane in the shop behind the counter all
yesterday afternoon. Now, I tell you what it is; if she's to come in
I won't stand it. She's not there for nothing, and she with children
at home. No wonder she can keep a nursemaid, if that's where she
spends her time. If you would go down more into the shop, George, and
write less of them little books in verse, it would be better for us
all."

And so the time passed on towards August, and the fifteenth of that
month still remained fixed as the happy day. Robinson spent some
portion of this time in establishing a method of advertisement, which
he flattered himself was altogether new; but it must be admitted in
these pages that his means for carrying it out were not sufficient.
In accordance with this project it would have been necessary to
secure the co-operation of all the tailors' foremen in London, and
this could not be done without a douceur to the men. His idea was,
that for a period of a month in the heart of the London season, no
new coat should be sent home to any gentleman without containing in
the pocket one of those alluring little silver books, put out by
Brown, Jones, and Robinson.

"The thing is, to get them opened and looked at," said Robinson.
"Now, I put it to you, Poppins, whether you wouldn't open a book like
that if you found that somebody had put it into your tail coat."

"Well, I should open it."

"You would be more or less than mortal did you not? If it's thrown
into your cab, you throw it out. If a man hands it to you in the
street, you drop it. If it comes by post, you throw it into the
waste-paper basket. But I'll defy the sternest or the idlest man not
to open the leaves of such a work as that when he first takes it out
of his new dress-coat. Surprise will make him do so. Why should his
tailor send him the book of B., J., and R.? There must be something
in it. The name of B., J., and R., becomes fixed in his memory, and
then the work is done. If the tailors had been true to me, I might
have defied the world." But the tailors were not true to him.

During all this time nothing was heard of Brisket. It could not be
doubted that Brisket, busy among his bullocks in Aldersgate Street,
knew well what was passing among the Browns in Bishopsgate Street.
Once or twice it occurred to Robinson that the young wo