Nicholas Nickleby

al Economy of

h hovered over the rough couch of Nicholas, and whispered their airy nothings in his ear, were of an agreeable and happy kind. He was making his fortune very fast indeed, when the f

Nickleby,' sa

ready?' asked Nichol

s, 'and ready iced too. Now, Nick

p' at once, and proceeded to dress himself by the lig

' said that gentlema

as, not much interest

s. 'You can't wash yo

self!' excla

ving yourself a dry polish till we break the ice in the well, and can get a buc

s, meanwhile, opened the shutters and blew the candle out; when the voic

y love,' sa

ry of her figure on the previous night, and further ornamented with a beaver bonnet of some anti

, opening the cupboard; 'I can't

rved Squeers in a soothing man

k!' retorted Mrs. Squeers sharpl

; 'yes, it certainly is. We purify th

ense of flower of brimstone and molasses, just to purify them; because if you think we car

id Squeers fr

have the brimstone and treacle, partly because if they hadn't something or other in the way of medicine they'd be always ailing and giving a world of trouble, and par

sted. A few words passed between them while they were thus engaged, but as their voices were partially stifled by the cupboard, all that Nicholas co

o suggest that possibly Mrs. Squeers might have the spoon in her pocket, as indeed turned out to be the case. As Mrs. Squeers had previously protested, however, that she was quite certain she had not got it, Smike r

,' said Squeers when his consort had hur

r!' observe

al. That woman, Nickleby, is always the same-always the same b

domestic prospect thus opened to him; but Squeers was, fortuna

a mother. But she is more than a mother to them; ten times more. She does things for them

ey would not, sir,

y as could by possibility be screwed out of him. On this point they were both agreed, and behaved in unison accordingly. The only difference between them was, that Mrs. Squeers waged war against the enemy openly and fearlessly,

ughts to this effect in the mind of his usher, 'let's go to the

ch he took down from a peg in the passage; and Squeers, arming himself wit

r as they stepped in together

indows, whereof a tenth part might be of glass, the remainder being stopped up with old copy-books and paper. There were a couple of long old rickety desks, cut and notched, and inked, and damaged, in every possible way; two or three forms; a detached desk

ig

hare-lip, the crooked foot, and every ugliness or distortion that told of unnatural aversion conceived by parents for their offspring, or of young lives which, from the earliest dawn of infancy, had been one horrible endurance of cruelty and neglect. There were little faces which should have been handsome, darkened with the scowl of sullen, dogged suffering; there was childhood with the light of its eye quenched, its beauty gone, and its helplessness alone remaining; there were vicious-faced boys, broo

e of the bowl at a gasp. In another corner, huddled together for companionship, were the little boys who had arrived on the preceding night, three of them in very large leather breeches, and two in old trousers, a something tighter fit than drawers are usually worn; at no great distance from these was seated the juvenile son and heir of Mr Squeers-a striking likeness of his father-kicking, with great vigour, under the hands of Smike, who was fitting upon him a pair of new boots that bore a most suspicious resemblance to those which the least of the little boys had worn on the journ

th his cane, which made half the little boys nearly

urry, and tapping the crown of his head with the wooden spoon

d wiped her hands upon it, hurried out after him into a species of wash-house, where there was a small

porridge. A minute wedge of brown bread was inserted in each bowl, and when they had eaten their porridge by means of the bread, the boys ate the bread itself, and h

allow earth-lest they should be inconveniently hungry when there is nothing to eat. Having further disposed of a

. The children sat crouching and shivering together, and seemed to lack the spirit to move about. The only pupil who evinced the slightest tendency towards locomotion or pl

ut one to eight learners. A few minutes having elapsed, during which Mr. Squeers looked very profound, as if he had a perfect apprehension of what was i

hoolmaster's desk, half-a-dozen scarecrows, out at knees and elbows

said Squeers, beckoning Nicholas to stand beside him. 'We'll get up a

k-parlour window,' said the tempora

tem. C-l-e-a-n, clean, verb active, to make bright, to scour. W-i-n, win, d-e-r, der, winder, a casement. When the boy kn

eeding the garden,'

-y, ney, bottinney, noun substantive, a knowledge of plants. When he has learned that bottinney mean

one, at any rate,'

not remarking the emphasis of his

sir,' repl

d Squeers. 'Ain

no doubt of that, si

d quadruped's Latin for beast, as everybody that's gone through th

!' said Nichol

and rub him down well, or I'll rub you down. The rest of the class go and draw water up, till s

hilosophy, and eyed Nicholas with a look, half cunning and half doubtful, a

o it, Nickleby,' he

in a manner that was scarcely pe

them fourteen little boys and hear them some reading, because, y

ot say enough to him in praise of the establishment. The children were arranged in a semicircle round the new master, and he was soon listening

r-about and potatoes, sat down in the kitchen to some hard salt beef, of which Nicholas was graciously permitted to take his portion to his own solitary

h. This solemn proceeding always took place in the afternoon of the day succeeding his return; perhaps, because the boys acquired strength of mind from the suspense of the morning, or, possibly, because Mr. Squeers himself acquired greater sternness and inflexibility from certain warm potations in which he was wont t

eave,' said Mr. Squeers mildly, 'an

, and a deathlike silence immediately prevailed,

have returned to my family and y

feeble cheers at this refreshing intelligence. Such

hey're so glad to hear how their sons are getting on, that there's no prospect at all of t

ut the greater part of the young gentlemen having no particular parent

' said Squeers, looking very grim; 'Bolder's fa

ned twenty officious voices. Bo

Bolder,' s

his place to the master's desk, and raised his eyes imploringly to Squ

onsidering, as the saying goes, where to have him. 'Bolder

by the cuff of his jacket, and surveyed it w

d the schoolmaster, administering a c

. 'They will come; it's the dirty work I think, sir-at l

d to get a good grip of the cane, 'you're an incorrigible young scoundrel, and as the last

rcy, Mr. Squeers fell upon the boy and caned him soundl

s hard as you like, you won't rub that off in a hurry. Oh!

he bundled the victim out by a side-door, and Mr. Squeers perched himself agai

queers. 'A letter for Co

e letter very hard while Squeers

inking, which is all the news his sister sends, except eighteenpence, which will jus

th a most business-like air, and Squeers pass

eers, 'he's the next.

the schoolmaster looked

r this world; but hopes he may long be spared to carry on the business. Would have sent the two pair of stockings as desired, but is short of money, so forwards a tract instead, and hopes Graymarsh will put his trust in Providence. Hopes, above all, that he will study

her than his maternal parent; Squeers, however, without alluding to this part of the story (which would have sounded immoral

's-liver broth, after his good master had asked a blessing on it. This was told her in the London newspapers-not by Mr. Squeers, for he is too kind and too good to set anybody against anybody-and it has vexed her so much, Mobbs can't think. She is sorry to find he is discontented,

ring which he had moistened the palm of his right hand again, 'won't

cipation of good cause for doing so; and he soon afterwards r

caps and so forth, all of which the same lady stated to be too large, or too small, and calculated for nobody but young Squeers, who would appear indeed to have had most accommodating l

to his fireside, leaving Nicholas to take care of the boys in the school-room, which

he had been an unwilling witness, the coarse and ruffianly behaviour of Squeers even in his best moods, the filthy place, the sights and sounds about him, all contributed to this state of feeling; but when he recollected that, being there as an assistant, he actually seemed-no matter what unhappy train of

nouncing the safe conclusion of his journey, and saying as little about Dotheboys Hall, and saying that little as cheerfully, as he possibly could. He hoped that by r

rove a far greater curse than ugliness and decrepitude? To a caged man, bound hand and foot, this was a terrible idea-but no, he thought, his mother was by; there was the portrait-painter, too-simple enough, but still living in the world, and of it. He was willing to beli

s knees before the stove, picking a few stray cinders from the hearth and planting them on the fire. He had p

e,' said Nicholas ki

-n

re shi

plied Smike quickly

manner, and he was such a timid, broken-spirited creatur

ould have slunk away without a wo

is face with his cracked and horny hands

d upon his shoulder. 'Be a man; you a

them! How many of them since I was a little child, yo

olas, wishing to rouse the poor half-

, 'myself-my-oh! what su

,' said Nicholas; he

o; none for me. Do you remem

now,' said Nicholas ge

lent he cried no more for friends he wished to come and sit with him, but began to see faces round his bed that cam

' rejoined

e long nights! They cannot come from home; they would frighten me, if they did, for I don't know what

pt away as if anxious to avoid notice. It was with a heavy heart that Nicholas soon afterwar