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of my younger days which had brought me to the knowl-
edge of Mr. Micawber.
His house was not far off; and as the street door opened
into the sitting-room, and he bolted in with a precipitation
quite his own, we found ourselves at once in the bosom
of the family. Mr. Micawber exclaiming, ‘Emma! my life!’
rushed into Mrs. Micawber’s arms. Mrs. Micawber shrieked,
and folded Mr. Micawber in her embrace. Miss Micawber,
nursing the unconscious stranger of Mrs. Micawber’s last
letter to me, was sensibly affected. The stranger leaped. The
twins testified their joy by several inconvenient but inno-
cent demonstrations. Master Micawber, whose disposition
appeared to have been soured by early disappointment, and
whose aspect had become morose, yielded to his better feel-
ings, and blubbered.
‘Emma!’ said Mr. Micawber. ‘The cloud is past from my
mind. Mutual confidence, so long preserved between us
once, is restored, to know no further interruption. Now,
welcome poverty!’ cried Mr. Micawber, shedding tears.
‘Welcome misery, welcome houselessness, welcome hunger,
rags, tempest, and beggary! Mutual confidence will sustain
us to the end!’
With these expressions, Mr. Micawber placed Mrs. Mi-
cawber in a chair, and embraced the family all round;
welcoming a variety of bleak prospects, which appeared, to
the best of my judgement, to be anything but welcome to
them; and calling upon them to come out into Canterbury
and sing a chorus, as nothing else was left for their support.
But Mrs. Micawber having, in the strength of her emo-

11 David Copperfield