e passages must speak for themselves;
they are children sent into the world--helpless infants like those
Pickwickian "expletives, let loose upon society." Among these
unexplained things were "my Prooshan Blue" and "Old Nobs." Sir Walter,
with real Pickwickian sagacity, points to a true explanation which may be
applied in other cases. "Probably it was a phrase _which he had heard in
a crowd_, and had never asked himself what it meant," _i.e._, it seemed
appropriate, and what a person in such a case would use. This is in fact
part of that "hallucination" of which G. H. Lewes spoke; the scene came
so completely before Boz that the words and phrases suggested themselves
to him and could not be denied, and he did not ask them to give any
account. This principle, however, does not hinder an amusing display of
speculation. Mr. Andrew Lang's explanation of "My Prooshan Blue" is
certainly far fetched. He thinks it refers to a dreamy notion of George
IV., who, at one moment, thought of changing the British uniform to the
Prussian Blue. Now, this was not known at the time, and came out years
later. It had certainly not reached persons of the Weller class. The
truth is that most of Sam's grotesque epithets, _e.g._, "young Brokiley
sprout," were the arbitrary coinage of a fantastic mind. This, too, as
Sir Walter said, "he may have heard in a crowd," or in the mazes of his
own brain. "Old Nobs" is just as reasonable as Hamlet's "Old Truepenny."
"Are you there, Old Truepenny," might have been said by Sam to his
father, as Hamlet addressed it to _his_.

CHAPTER XIII. PICKWICK IN REAL LIFE

I.--Dowler and John Forster

The truculent Dowler figured before in "The Tuggs at Ramsgate"--a very
amusing and Pickwickian tale--under the title of Capt. Waters, who
exhibits the same simulated ferocity and jealousy of his spouse.
Cruickshank's sketch, too, of the Captain is like that of Dowler when
throwing up the window in the Crescent. Mrs. Waters is made as
attractive as Mrs. Dowler, and Cymon Tuggs, like Winkle, excites the
jealousy of the husband.

"Stop him," roared Dowler, "hold him--keep him tight--shut him in till I
come down--I'll cut his throat--give me a knife--from ear to ear, Mrs.
Craddock, I will." And Captain Waters: "Ah! what do I see? Slaughter,
your sabre--unhand me--the villain's life!"

In the same story we have an anticipation of another incident: the
shutting up and detection of Pipkin in the cu