en educated. They forbore at once, and jointly signified to
Mr Bailey that if he should presume to practice that figure any more in
their presence, they would instantly acquaint Mrs Todgers with the fact,
and would demand his condign punishment, at the hands of that lady. The
young gentleman having expressed the bitterness of his contrition by
affecting to wipe away scalding tears with his apron, and afterwards
feigning to wring a vast amount of water from that garment, held the
door open while Miss Charity passed out; and so that damsel went in
state upstairs to receive her mysterious adorer.

By some strange occurrence of favourable circumstances he had found out
the drawing-room, and was sitting there alone.

'Ah, cousin!' he said. 'Here I am, you see. You thought I was lost, I'll
be bound. Well! how do you find yourself by this time?'

Miss Charity replied that she was quite well, and gave Mr Jonas
Chuzzlewit her hand.

'That's right,' said Mr Jonas, 'and you've got over the fatigues of the
journey have you? I say. How's the other one?'

'My sister is very well, I believe,' returned the young lady. 'I have
not heard her complain of any indisposition, sir. Perhaps you would like
to see her, and ask her yourself?'

'No, no cousin!' said Mr Jonas, sitting down beside her on the
window-seat. 'Don't be in a hurry. There's no occasion for that, you
know. What a cruel girl you are!'

'It's impossible for YOU to know,' said Cherry, 'whether I am or not.'

'Well, perhaps it is,' said Mr Jonas. 'I say--Did you think I was lost?
You haven't told me that.'

'I didn't think at all about it,' answered Cherry.

'Didn't you though?' said Jonas, pondering upon this strange reply. 'Did
the other one?'

'I am sure it's impossible for me to say what my sister may, or may not
have thought on such a subject,' cried Cherry. 'She never said anything
to me about it, one way or other.'

'Didn't she laugh about it?' inquired Jonas.

'No. She didn't even laugh about it,' answered Charity.

'She's a terrible one to laugh, an't she?' said Jonas, lowering his
voice.

'She is very lively,' said Cherry.

'Liveliness is a pleasant thing--when it don't lead to spending money.
An't it?' asked Mr Jonas.

'Very much so, indeed,' said Cherry, with a demureness of manner that
gave a very disinterested character to her assent.

'Such liveliness as yours I mean, you know,' observed Mr Jonas, as he
nudged her with his elbow. 'I should