THE BOARDING-HOUSE. 485 



self exceedingly agreeable to Mrs. Maplesone indeed, the desire of 

 being as amiable as possible extended itself to the whole party; Mrs. 

 Tibbs having considered it an admirable little bit of management to 

 represent to the gentlemen that she had some reason to believe the 

 ladies were fortunes, and to hint to the ladies, that all the gentlemen 

 were " eligible." A little flirtation, she thought, might keep her 

 house full, without leading to any other result. Mrs. Maplesone was 

 an enterprising widow of about fifty ; shrewd, scheming, and good- 

 looking. She was amiably anxious on behalf of her daughters ; in 

 proof whereof she used to remark, that she would have no objection 

 to marry again, if it would benefit her dear girlsshe could have no 

 other motive. The " dear girls" themselves were not at all insensible 

 to the merits of " a good establishment." One of them was twenty- 

 five, the other three years younger. They had been at different 

 watering-places for four seasons : they had gambled at libraries, read 

 books in balconies, sold at fancy fairs, danced at assemblies, talked 

 sentiment in short, they had done all that industrious girls could 

 do, and all to no purpose. 



" What a magnificent dresser Mr. Simpson is !" whispered Miss 

 Matilda Maplesone to her sister Julia. 



"Splendid!" returned the youngest. The magnificent individual 

 alluded to wore a sort of maroon-coloured dress coat, with a velvet 

 collar and cuffs of the same tint very like that which usually invests 

 the form of the distinguished unknown who condescends to play the 

 " swell" in the pantomime at " Richardson's Show." 



" What whiskers !" said Miss Julia. 



" Charming !" responded her sister ; ft and what hair !" His hair 

 was like a wig, and distinguished by that insinuating wave which 

 graces the shining locks of those chef-d'ceuvres of perruquerian art 

 surmounting the waxen images in Bartellot's window, in Regent- 

 street ; and his whiskers, meeting beneath his chin, seemed strings 

 wherewith to tie it on, ere science had rendered them unnecessary 

 by her patent invisible springs. 



" Dinner's on the table, ma'am, if you please," said the boy, who 

 now appeared for the first time, in a revived black coat of his 

 master's. 



" Oh ! Mr. Calton, will you lead Mrs. Maplesone ? Thank you." 

 Mr. Simpson offered his arm to Miss Julia ; Mr. Septimus Hicks 

 escorted the lovely Matilda; and the procession proceeded to the 

 dining-room. Mr. Tibbs was introduced, and Mr. Tibbs bobbed up 

 and down to the three ladies like a figure in a Dutch clock, with a 

 powerful spring in the middle of his body, and then dived rapidly 

 into his seat at the bottom of the table, delighted to screen himself 

 behind a soup tureen, which he could just see over, and that was all. 

 The boarders were seated, a lady and gentleman alternately, like the 

 layers of bread and meat in a sandwich ; and then Mrs. Tibbs di- 

 rected James to take off the covers, and salmon, lobster-sauce, giblet- 

 soup, and the usual accompaniments were discovered : potatoes like 

 petrefactions, and bits of toasted bread, the shape and size of blank 

 dice. 



(t Soup for Mrs. Maplesone, my dear," said the bustling Mrs. 



