76 MR. SPONGE'S SPORTING TOUR. 



dead lock. People tire of the constant revision of plate, linen, 

 and china. 



Mrs. Jawlcyford, on the other hand, was a very rough-and- 

 ready sort of woman, never put out of her way ; and though she 

 constantly preached the old doctrine that girls " are much better 

 single than married," she was always on the look-out for 

 opportunities of contradicting her assertions. 



She was an Irish lady, with a pedigree almost as long as 

 Jawleyford's, but more compressible pride, and if she couldn't get 

 a duke, she would take a marquis or an earl, or even put up with 

 a rich commoner. 



The perusal, therefore, of Sponge's letter, operated differently 

 upon her to what it did upon her husband, and though she would 

 have liked a little more time, perhaps, she did not care to take 

 him as they were. Jawleyford, however, resisted violently. It 

 would be most particularly inconvenient to him to receive 

 company at that time. If Mr. Sponge had gone through the 

 whole three hundred and sixty-five days in the year, he could 

 not have hit upon a more inconvenient one for him. Besides, he 

 had no idea of people writing in that sort of a way, saying they 

 were coming, without giving him the chance of saying no. 



" Well, but my dear, I daresay you asked him," observed 

 Mrs. Jawleyford. 



Jawleyford was silent, the scene in the billiard-room recurring 

 to his mind, 



" I've often told you, my dear," continued Mrs. Jawleyford, 

 kindly, " that you shouldn't be so free with your invitations if 

 you don't want people to come ; things are very different now to 

 what they were in the old coaching and posting days, when it 

 took a day and a night and half the next day to get here, and I 

 don't know how much money besides. You might then invite 

 people with safety, but it is very different now, when they have 

 nothing to do but put themselves into the express-train and 

 whisk down in a few hours." 



" Well, but confound him, I didn't ask his horses," exclaimed 

 Jawleyford ; " nor will I have them either," continued he, with a 

 jerk of the head, as he got up and rang the bell, as though 

 determined to put a stop to that at all events. 



" Samuel," said he, to the dirty page of a boy who answered the 

 summons, " tell John Watson to go down to the Railway Tavern 

 directly, and desire them to get a three-stalled stable ready for a 

 gentleman's horses that are coming to-day — a gentleman of the 

 name of Sponge," added he, lest any one else should chance to 

 come and usurp them — " and tell John to meet the express train, 

 and tell the gentleman's groom where it is." 



