t accustomed to the card-tables
of Littlebath. But, nevertheless, they were always willing to sit
together at the same rubber.

To them came up smirking little Mr. Fuzzybell. Mr. Fuzzybell was not
great at whist, nor did he much delight in it; but, nevertheless, he
constantly played. He was taken about by his wife to the parties,
and then he was always caught and impaled, and generally plucked and
skinned before he was sent home again. He never disported at the same
table with his wife, who did not care to play either with him or
against him; but he was generally caught by some Miss Ruff, or some
Mrs. King Garded, and duly made use of. The ladies of Littlebath
generally liked to have one black coat at the table with them. It
saved them from that air of destitution which always, in their own
eyes, attaches to four ladies seated at a table together.

"Ah, Mr. Fuzzybell," said Miss Ruff, "you are the very person we are
looking for. Mrs. Garded always likes to have you at her table. Sit
down, Mr. Fuzzybell." Mr. Fuzzybell did as he was told, and sat down.

Just at this moment, as Miss Ruff was looking out with eager eyes
for a fourth who would suit her tastes, and had almost succeeded
in catching the eye of Miss Finesse--and Miss Finesse was a silent,
desirable, correct player--who should walk up to the table and
absolutely sit down but that odious old woman, Lady Ruth Revoke! It
was Mrs. Garded's great sin, in Miss Ruff's eye, that she toadied
Lady Ruth to such an extent as to be generally willing to play with
her. Now it was notorious in Littlebath that she had never played
well, and that she had long since forgotten all she had ever known.
The poor old woman had already had some kind of a fit; she was very
shaky and infirm, and ghastly to look at, in spite of her paint and
ribbons. She was long in arranging her cards, long in playing them;
very long in settling her points, when the points went against
her, as they generally did. And yet, in spite of all this, Mrs.
King Garded would encourage her because her father had been Lord
Whitechapel!

There was no help for it now. There she was in the chair; and unless
Miss Ruff was prepared to give up her table and do something that
would be uncommonly rude even for her, the rubber must go on. She was
not prepared at any rate to give up her table, so she took up a card
to cut for partners. There were two to one in her favour. If fortune
would throw her ladyship and Mr. Fuzzy