h such abominable clearness,' groaned
Clennam, 'it would have been how much better for you, Pancks, and how
much better for me!'

'At me again, sir!' exclaimed Pancks, loosening his hold of his hair;
'at me again, and again!'

Clennam, however, finding him already beginning to be pacified, had said
all he wanted to say, and more. He wrung his hand, only adding, 'Blind
leaders of the blind, Pancks! Blind leaders of the blind! But Doyce,
Doyce, Doyce; my injured partner!' That brought his head down on the
desk once more.

Their former attitudes and their former silence were once more first
encroached upon by Pancks.

'Not been to bed, sir, since it began to get about. Been high and low,
on the chance of finding some hope of saving any cinders from the fire.
All in vain. All gone. All vanished.'

'I know it,' returned Clennam, 'too well.'

Mr Pancks filled up a pause with a groan that came out of the very
depths of his soul.

'Only yesterday, Pancks,' said Arthur; 'only yesterday, Monday, I had
the fixed intention of selling, realising, and making an end of it.'

'I can't say as much for myself, sir,' returned Pancks. 'Though it's
wonderful how many people I've heard of, who were going to realise
yesterday, of all days in the three hundred and sixty-five, if it hadn't
been too late!'

His steam-like breathings, usually droll in their effect, were more
tragic than so many groans: while from head to foot, he was in that
begrimed, besmeared, neglected state, that he might have been an
authentic portrait of Misfortune which could scarcely be discerned
through its want of cleaning.

'Mr Clennam, had you laid out--everything?' He got over the break before
the last word, and also brought out the last word itself with great
difficulty.

'Everything.'

Mr Pancks took hold of his tough hair again, and gave it such a wrench
that he pulled out several prongs of it. After looking at these with an
eye of wild hatred, he put them in his pocket.

'My course,' said Clennam, brushing away some tears that had been
silently dropping down his face, 'must be taken at once. What wretched
amends I can make must be made. I must clear my unfortunate partner's
reputation. I must retain nothing for myself. I must resign to our
creditors the power of management I have so much abused, and I must work
out as much of my fault--or crime--as is susceptible of being worked out
in the rest of my days.'

'Is it impossible, sir, to tide ove