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quite another thing!’ And adds, ‘But it don’t matter. Mr. Ba-
gnet’s situation is all one, whether or no.’
The unfortunate George makes a great effort to arrange
the affair comfortably and to propitiate Mr. Smallweed by
taking him upon his own terms.
‘That’s just what I mean. As you say, Mr. Smallweed,
here’s Matthew Bagnet liable to be fixed whether or no.
Now, you see, that makes his good lady very uneasy in her
mind, and me too, for whereas I’m a harurn-scarum sort
of a good-for-nought that more kicks than halfpence come
natural to, why he’s a steady family man, don’t you see?
Now, Mr. Smallweed,’ says the trooper, gaining confidence
as he proceeds in his soldierly mode of doing business, ‘al-
though you and I are good friends enough in a certain sort
of a way, I am well aware that I can’t ask you to let my friend
Bagnet off entirely.’
‘Oh, dear, you are too modest. You can ASK me any-
thing, Mr. George.’ (There is an ogreish kind of jocularity
in Grandfather Smallweed to-day.)
‘And you can refuse, you mean, eh? Or not you so much,
perhaps, as your friend in the city? Ha ha ha!’
‘Ha ha ha!’ echoes Grandfather Smallweed. In such a
very hard manner and with eyes so particularly green that
Mr. Bagnet’s natural gravity is much deepened by the con-
templation of that venerable man.
‘Come!’ says the sanguine George. ‘I am glad to find
we can be pleasant, because I want to arrange this pleas-
antly. Here’s my friend Bagnet, and here am I. We’ll settle
the matter on the spot, if you please, Mr. Smallweed, in the

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