murky and blurred rays through the windows of all its then-occupied sets of chambers; in one of which sat Mr. Grewgious writing by his fire . . as did the clerk of Mr. Grewgious, in the adjoining room, writing by his fire. "A pale, puffy-faced, dark-haired person of thirty, with big dark eyes that wholly wanted lustre, and a dissatisfied, doughy complexion that seemed to ask to be sent to the baker's.

"Now, Bazzard,' said Mr. Grewgious, on the entrance of his clerk: looking up from his papers as he arranged them for the night: 'what is in the wind beside fog?'

"Mr. Drood,' said Bazzard.

"What of him?'

"Has called,' said Bazzard.

"You might have shown him in.' "I am doing it,' said Bazzard.

"The visitor came in accordingly. . . took the easy-chair in the corner; and the fog he had brought in with him, and the fog he took off with his greatcoat and neckshawl, was speedily licked up by the eager fire.

"I look,' said Edwin, smiling, 'as if I had come to stop.'

666

'By-the-bye,' cried Mr. Grewgious; 'excuse my interrupting you: do stop. The fog

We can have

may clear in an hour or two. dinner in from just across Holborn.'

"You are very kind,' said Edwin.

"Not at all,' said Mr. Grewgious; 'you are very kind to join issue with a bachelor in chambers, and take pot-luck. And I'll ask,' said Mr. Grewgious, dropping his voice,

'I'll ask Bazzard. He mightn't like it else. Bazzard!'

"Bazzard reappeared.

"Dine presently with Mr. Drood and me.'

"If I am ordered to dine, of course I will, Sir,' was the gloomy answer.

""Save the man!' cried Mr. Grewgious. 'You're not ordered; you're invited.'

"Thank you, Sir,' said Bazzard; 'in that case I don't care if I do.'

"That's arranged. And perhaps you wouldn't mind,' said Mr. Grewgious, 'stepping over to the hotel in Furnival's, and asking them to send in materials for laying the cloth. For dinner we'll have a tureen of the hottest and strongest soup available, and we'll have the best made-dish that can be recommended, and we'll have a joint (such as a haunch of mutton), and we'll have a goose, or a turkey, or any little stuffed thing of that sort that may happen

to be in the bill of fare in short, we'll have whatever there is on hand.' .

"When Bazzard returned he was accompanied by two waiters - an immovable waiter, and a flying waiter; and the three brought in with them as much fog as gave a new roar to the fire. The flying waiter, who had brought everything on his shoulders, laid the cloth with amazing rapidity and dexterity; while the immovable waiter, who had brought nothing, found fault with him. The flying waiter then highly polished all the glasses he had brought, and the immovable waiter looked through them. The flying waiter then flew across Holborn for the soup, and flew back again, and then took another flight for the made-dish, and flew back again, and then took another flight for the joint and poultry, and flew back again, and between the whiles took supplementary flights for a great variety of articles, as it was discovered from time to time that the immovable waiter had forgotten them all. But let the flying waiter cleave the air as he might, he was always reproached on his return by the immovable waiter for bringing fog with him, and being out of breath. At the conclusion of the repast, by which time the flying waiter was severely blown, the im

movable waiter gathered up the table-cloth under his arm with a grand air, and having sternly (not to say with indignation) looked on at the flying waiter while he set the clean glasses round, directed a valedictory glance toward Mr. Grewgious, conveying: 'Let it be clearly understood between us that the reward is mine, and that Nil is the claim of this slave,' and pushed the flying waiter before him out of the room."

CHAPTER XIV

THE OFFICES OF "ALL THE YEAR ROUND"; CHARLES DICKENS, EDITOR, 1859-1870

THE

HE auctioneer, famous the world over for holding the last rites over the mortuary remains of many a defunct library, was positive that the offices of All the Year Round were on the corner some few streets above and that I 'couldn't miss it." Another intelligent gentleman, also versed in books, was pretty positive that I could miss it, and with the greatest ease, as the building had been torn down these many years.

A third individual, who kept a chemist shop on the supposed site, had never once heard the magazine mentioned since he had lived here, and he would certainly have done so had there been any such publication. He knew Dickens; that is, he had heard of him . . . he was dead, of course; he supposed I knew that (I nodded assent) had been dead some years, long