essened by the
discovery that these romantic sounds certainly proceeded from the throat
of some man up the chimney, of whom nothing was visible but a pair of
legs, which were dangling above the grate; apparently feeling, with
extreme anxiety, for the top bar whereon to effect a landing.

A sight so unusual and unbusiness-like as this, completely paralysed
Tim Linkinwater, who, after one or two gentle pinches at the stranger's
ankles, which were productive of no effect, stood clapping the tongs
together, as if he were sharpening them for another assault, and did
nothing else.

'This must be some drunken fellow,' said Frank. 'No thief would announce
his presence thus.'

As he said this, with great indignation, he raised the candle to obtain
a better view of the legs, and was darting forward to pull them down
with very little ceremony, when Mrs Nickleby, clasping her hands,
uttered a sharp sound, something between a scream and an exclamation,
and demanded to know whether the mysterious limbs were not clad in
small-clothes and grey worsted stockings, or whether her eyes had
deceived her.

'Yes,' cried Frank, looking a little closer. 'Small-clothes certainly,
and--and--rough grey stockings, too. Do you know him, ma'am?'

'Kate, my dear,' said Mrs Nickleby, deliberately sitting herself down
in a chair with that sort of desperate resignation which seemed to imply
that now matters had come to a crisis, and all disguise was useless,
'you will have the goodness, my love, to explain precisely how this
matter stands. I have given him no encouragement--none whatever--not the
least in the world. You know that, my dear, perfectly well. He was very
respectful, exceedingly respectful, when he declared, as you were a
witness to; still at the same time, if I am to be persecuted in this
way, if vegetable what's-his-names and all kinds of garden-stuff are
to strew my path out of doors, and gentlemen are to come choking up our
chimneys at home, I really don't know--upon my word I do NOT know--what
is to become of me. It's a very hard case--harder than anything I was
ever exposed to, before I married your poor dear papa, though I suffered
a good deal of annoyance then--but that, of course, I expected, and made
up my mind for. When I was not nearly so old as you, my dear, there
was a young gentleman who sat next us at church, who used, almost every
Sunday, to cut my name in large letters in the front of his pew while
the sermon was going