d he strode back to chambers, and smoked pipe after pipe
long into the night, and wrote article upon article, more and more
savage, in lieu of friend Pen disabled.

Well, it was a happy time for almost all parties concerned. Pen mended
daily. Sleeping and eating were his constant occupations. His appetite
was something frightful. He was ashamed of exhibiting it before Laura,
and almost before his mother who laughed and applauded him. As the roast
chicken of his dinner went away he eyed the departing friend with sad
longing, and began to long for jelly, or tea, or what not. He was like
an ogre in devouring. The Doctor cried stop, but Pen would not. Nature
called out to him more loudly than the Doctor, and that kind and
friendly physician handed him over with a very good grace to the other
healer.

And here let us speak very tenderly and in the strictest confidence
of an event which befell him, and to which he never liked an allusion.
During his delirium the ruthless Goodenough ordered ice to be put to his
head, and all his lovely hair to be cut. It was done in the time of--of
the other nurse, who left every single hair of course in a paper for the
widow to count and treasure up. She never believed but that the girl
had taken away some of it, but then women are so suspicious upon these
matters.

When this direful loss was made visible to Major Pendennis as of course
it was the first time the elder saw the poor young man's shorn pate, and
when Pen was quite out of danger, and gaining daily vigour, the Major,
with something like blushes and a queer wink of his eyes, said he knew
of a--a person--a coiffeur, in fact--a good man, whom he would send down
to the Temple, and who would--a--apply--a--a temporary remedy to that
misfortune.

Laura looked at Warrington with the archest sparkle in her
eyes--Warrington fairly burst out into a boohoo of laughter: even the
widow was obliged to laugh: and the Major erubescent confounded the
impudence of the young folks, and said when he had his hair cut he would
keep a lock of it for Miss Laura.

Warrington voted that Pen should wear a barrister's wig. There was
Sibwright's down below, which would become him hugely. Pen said "Stuff,"
and seemed as confused as his uncle; and the end was that a gentleman
from Burlington Arcade waited next day upon Mr. Pendennis, and had a
private interview with him in his bedroom; and a week afterwards the
same individual appeared with a box under his