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Support the Monkey! Tell All your Friends and Teachers |
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Support the Monkey! Tell All your Friends and Teachers |
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261 how can you rightly have one without t’other? Then, wot with undertakers, and wot with parish clerks, and wot with sextons, and wot with private watchmen (all awaricious and all in it), a man wouldn’t get much by it, even if it wos so. And wot little a man did get, would never prosper with him, Mr. Lorry. He’d never have no good of it; he’d want all along to be out of the line, if he could see his way but, being once in-even if it wos so.” “Ugh!” cried Mr. Lorry, rather relenting, nevertheless. “I am shocked at the sight of you.” “Now, what I would humbly offer to you, sir,” pursued Mr. Cruncher, “even if it wos so, which I don’t say it is--” “Don’t prevaricate,” said Mr. Lorry. “No, I will not, sir,” returned Mr. Cruncher, as if nothing were further from his thoughts or practice-“which I don’t say it is-wot I would humbly offer to you, sir, would be this. Upon that there stool, at that there Bar, sets that there boy of mine, brought up and growed up to be a man, wot will errand you, message you, general-light-job you, till your heels is where your head is, if such should be your wishes. If it wos so, which I still don’t say it is (for I will not prevaricate to you, sir), let that there boy keep his father’s place, and take care of his mother; don’t blow upon that boy’s father-do not do it, sir-and let that father go into the line of the reg’lar diggin’, and make amends for what he would have undug- if it wos so-by diggin’ of ‘em in with a will, and with conwictions respectin’ the futur’ keepin’ of ‘em safe. That, Mr. Lorry,” said Mr. Cruncher, wiping his forehead with his arm, as an announcement that he had arrived at the peroration of his discourse, “is wot I would respectfully offer to you, sir. A man don’t see all this here a goin’ on dreadful round him, in the way of Subjects without heads, dear me, plentiful enough fur to bring the price down to porterage and hardly that, without havin’ his serious thoughts of things. And these here would be mine, if it wos so, entreatin’ of you fur to bear in mind that wot I said just now, I up and said in the good cause when I might have kep’ it back.” “That at least is true,” said Mr. Lorry. “Say no more now. It may be that I shall yet stand your friend, if you deserve it, and repent in action-not in words. I want no more words.” Mr. Cruncher knuckled his forehead, as Sydney Carton and the spy returned from the dark room. “Adieu, Mr. Barsad,” said the former; our arrangement thus made, you have nothing to fear from me.” He sat down in a chair on the hearth, over against Mr. Lorry. When they were alone, Mr. Lorry asked him what he had done? “Not much. If it should go ill with the prisoner, I have ensured access to him once.” Mr. Lorry’s countenance fell. |
