the loo."

"You had gone through your gymnastics on it a little too often?"
asked the attorney. But this Mr. Kantwise would not acknowledge. The
strength of that table was such that he could stand on it for ever
without injury to it; but nevertheless, in some other way it had
become strained, and therefore he had sold the set to Mrs. Mason for
L12 17_s._ 6_d._, that lady being minded to make a costly present to
the wife of the curate of Groby.

When dinner-time came Mr. Dockwrath found that the party was swelled
to the number of eight, five other undoubted commercials having
brought themselves to anchor at the Bull Inn during the day. To all
of these, Mr. Kantwise introduced him. "Mr. Gape, Mr. Dockwrath,"
said he, gracefully moving towards them the palm of his hand, and
eyeing them over his shoulder. "Mr. Gape is in the stationery line,"
he added, in a whisper to the attorney, "and does for Cumming and
Jibber of St. Paul's Churchyard. Mr. Johnson, Mr. Dockwrath. Mr.
J. is from Sheffield. Mr. Snengkeld, Mr. Dockwrath;" and then he
imparted in another whisper the necessary information as to Mr.
Snengkeld. "Soft goods, for Brown Brothers, of Snow Hill," and so
on through the whole fraternity. Each member bowed as his name was
mentioned; but they did not do so very graciously, as Mr. Kantwise
was not a great man among them. Had the stranger been introduced to
them by Moulder,--Moulder the patriarch,--his reception among them
would have been much warmer. And then they sat down to dinner, Mr.
Moulder taking the chair as president, and Mr. Kantwise sitting
opposite to him, as being the longest sojourner at the inn. Mr.
Dockwrath sat at the right hand of Kantwise, discreetly avoiding the
neighbourhood of Moulder, and the others ranged themselves according
to fancy at the table. "Come up along side of me, old fellow,"
Moulder said to Snengkeld. "It ain't the first time that you and
I have smacked our lips together over the same bit of roast beef."
"Nor won't, I hope, be the last by a long chalk, Mr. Moulder,"
said Snengkeld, speaking with a deep, hoarse voice which seemed to
ascend from some region of his body far below his chest. Moulder and
Snengkeld were congenial spirits; but the latter, though the older
man, was not endowed with so large a volume of body or so highly
dominant a spirit. Brown Brothers, of Snow Hill, were substantial
people, and Mr. Snengkeld travelled in strict accordance with the
good old rules of trad