ready,
Grinder?"

"Yes, sir."

"Then, lock the office-door, and don't forget to take out the key."

So saying, the old gentleman took Harry's arm, and, accompanied by
Grinder and Captain Boyns senior, hurried to the train; was whirled in
due course to Covelly, and shortly after found himself seated at a
wedding-breakfast, along with our hero Harry Boyns, and our heroine
Annie Webster, who was costumed as a bride, and looked inexpressibly
bewitching. Besides these there were present excellent Mrs Boyns--
happily no longer a widow!--and Grinder, whose susceptible nature
rendered it difficult for him to refrain from shedding tears; and a bevy
of bride's-maids, so beautiful and sweet that it seemed quite
preposterous to suppose that they could remain another day in the estate
of spinsterhood. Mr Joseph Dowler was also there, self-important as
ever, and ready for action at a moment's notice; besides a number of
friends of the bride and bridegroom, among whom was a pert young
gentleman, friend of Mr Dowler, and a Mr Crashington, friend of Mr
Webster,--an earnest, enthusiastic old gentleman, who held the opinion
that most things in the world were wrong, and who wondered incessantly
"why in the world people would not set to work at once to put them all
right!" Niven, the old nurse, was there too, of course all excitement
and tears, and so was Bob Gaston, whose appearance was powerfully
suggestive of the individual styled in the ballad, "the jolly young
waterman."

Now, it would take a whole volume, good reader, to give you the details
of all that was said and done by that wedding-party before that
breakfast was over. But it is not necessary that we should go into full
details. You know quite well, that when the health of the happy couple
was drunk, Annie blushed and looked down, and Harry tried to look at
ease, but failed to do so, in consequence of the speech which had cost
him such agonising thought the night before, which he had prepared with
such extreme care, which contained such an inconceivable amount of
sentimental nonsense, which he fortunately forgot every word of at the
critical moment of delivery, and, instead thereof, delivered a few
short, earnest, stammering sentences, which were full of bad grammar and
blunders, but which, nevertheless, admirably conveyed the true, manly
sentiments of his heart. You also know, doubtless, that the groom's-man
rose to propose the health of the bride's-maids, but you can