Little Dorrit, Book One: Poverty - Penn State University

Charles Dickensever, and was leaning on some half-dozen gigantic crutches: ‘but you don’t come up to your father in my opinion. Nor yetwhich gymnasium for the neighbouring cats, weather-stained, your mother.’smoke-blackened, and overgrown with weeds, appeared in ‘How is my mother?’these latter days to be no very sure reliance.‘She is as she always is now. Keeps her room when not‘Nothing changed,’ said the traveller, stopping to look round. actually bedridden, and hasn’t been out of it fifteen times in as‘Dark and miserable as ever. A light in my mother’s window, many years, Arthur.’ They had walked into a spare, meagrewhich seems never to have been extinguished since I came dining-room. The old man had put the candlestick upon thehome twice a year from school, and dragged my box over this table, and, supporting his right elbow with his left hand, waspavement. Well, well, well!’smoothing his leathern jaws while he looked at the visitor. TheHe went up to the door, which had a projecting canopy in visitor offered his hand. The old man took it coldly enough,carved work of festooned jack-towels and children’s heads and seemed to prefer his jaws, to which he returned as soonwith water on the brain, designed after a once-popular monumentalpattern, and knocked. A shuffling step was soon heard ‘I doubt if your mother will approve of your coming homeas he could.on the stone floor of the hall, and the door was opened by an on the Sabbath, Arthur,’ he said, shaking his head warily.old man, bent and dried, but with keen eyes.‘You wouldn’t have me go away again?’He had a candle in his hand, and he held it up for a moment ‘Oh! I? I? I am not the master. It’s not what _I_ wouldto assist his keen eyes. ‘Ah, Mr Arthur?’ he said, without any have. I have stood between your father and mother for a numberof years. I don’t pretend to stand between your motheremotion, ‘you are come at last? Step in.’Mr Arthur stepped in and shut the door.and you.’‘Your figure is filled out, and set,’ said the old man, turning ‘Will you tell her that I have come home?’to look at him with the light raised again, and shaking his head; ‘Yes, Arthur, yes. Oh, to be sure! I’ll tell her that you have36